Ruin Me (60 page)

“Shh, boy,” Tobias whispers into Leo’s ear. He gently strokes his head and the horse calms a bit.

Charlie shakes his head. “Most temperamental horse I’ve ever seen,” he mutters.

“He just doesn’t like you,” Tobias jokes. “I’ve never had a problem with him.”

Charlie pulls himself up into Orion’s saddle. “Claire,” he says, looking at me, “you ever ridden before?”

I shake my head quickly. “No.” The horse bucks a little beneath me at the sound of my voice.

“Hmm… maybe I should take that one,” Charlie muses.

“I got him,” Tobias says, gripping Leo’s reigns. “I’ll walk with them for a bit. See if I can calm him down. Besides, he’ll just kick you off. He
really
doesn’t like you.”

Charlie eyes the two of us for a moment before nodding. “All right,” he says. “Try and keep up.”

“Come on, Leo,” Tobias says, tugging the reigns. He starts walking us towards the fields as Charlie takes Orion ahead. “Breathe, Claire.”

“What?” I squeak.

“You’re holding your breath,” he laughs.

“Oh.” I let the air out of my lungs. “I’m just a little…”

“Scared?”

“Terrified. It’s not every day there’s a powerful, unpredictable animal between my legs.”

He glances up at me and smiles. “Just hold on,” he says. “He won’t run off with me holding him like this. Try and relax. If you’re tense, he’s tense.”

“Okay…” I take a deep breath and let it wash through my body to release all my locked joints and muscles. We continue walking. Every few yards, Leo lurches slightly, but Tobias easily calms him down with the touch of his hand. “Tobias
the Horse Whisperer
,” I chuckle.

“Eh, animals are easy,” he says. “Humans are far more dangerous.”

I lick my lips and look around to locate Charlie. He’s far ahead of us, just outside of earshot distance. “So, when is your next fight?”

Tobias hesitates, his eyes darting in Charlie’s direction. “Tonight,” he answers.

I raise an eyebrow. “Can I come?”

“No.”

“Please?”

“It’s too dangerous, Claire.”

“I can take care of myself,” I say.

“I don’t mean for you.”

I pause. “What do you mean?”

He sighs and brushes his fingers along Leo’s neck. “I can’t have distractions,” he mutters.

“I’m distracting?” I ask.

“Yes.”
He stops and looks up at me. “Claire, promise me you won’t be there.” His eyes, as intense and wild as this horse, stare up at me in desperation. He says nothing more about it, but he doesn’t need to. I realize that the reason he doesn’t want me around isn’t because he despises my company at all. It’s because he likes it.

“Okay.” My lips quiver. “I won’t be there.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.”

Tobias nods. “Slide back.” He reaches up and grabs the front of the saddle. I push back to make room for him as he pulls himself up. “Hold onto me.”

I lay my trembling hands on his waist.

“Tighter,”
he says, pivoting back to pull my wrists around his body. “Don’t even think about letting go—”

“Tobias, what are you doing?”

“Don’t panic, Claire.”

“Tobias—!”

He digs his ankle in Leo’s side, sending the horse into a fierce sprint. I scream and bury my face in his back as terror overwhelms me. My fingers interlock in front of him and I bind myself to his body as the gallop tosses us up and down in the saddle.

The initial shock bleeds from my system and I open my eyes to peak over Tobias’ shoulder. He’s led the horse out into the open fields. The sight steals the breath from my lungs as I scan this new world with wide eyes. I look over my shoulder to see Charlie riding behind us on the horizon, but he’s not going fast enough to keep up with us. Laughter attacks my chest and I hold Tobias a little tighter.

“You okay back there?” he shouts.

“I hate you so much…”

He laughs and urges Leo to bolt a little faster.

We circle back around and I watch the sun slowly falling down, casting the open world into a deep orange glow. I lay my head against him and listen to his heart thump with quick and steady beats as we ride back towards the farm.

“Whoa—”

Tobias pulls slowly on the reigns, signaling for Leo to slow down. I raise my head to find that we’ve already made it to the stables.

Charlie lingers on the black horse, his face stern as ever as we draw near. “And just what was that?” he asks, staring daggers at Tobias.

“He got antsy,” Tobias answers. “Needed a good run.”

“Claire, you look like you’re about to hurl,” Charlie notes. “You all right?”

“Nah,” Tobias says. He looks back at me. “See? She’s fine.”

I catch my breath. “Let’s go again,” I joke. Tobias pats my hands and I release him to feel my fingers have gone stiff from holding onto him too tightly.

“Let’s
not
,” Charlie says with a soft chuckle and dismounts his horse. “Go ahead and get inside, Claire. Dinner’s in twenty.” He yanks on the reigns and starts to lead Orion inside the stables.

Tobias throws a leg over and hops off our horse. I smile at him, lamenting how he makes it looks so easy while I sit here, temporarily unable to remember how to move. He spins around and extends his arms out to me to help me down. I move to sit side-saddle and slowly slide towards him. His hands glide up my body, holding me steady as if I weighed nothing at all. My feet find the ground, but my knees quickly buckle beneath me.

“Whoa—” he whispers, keeping a firm grip on me to keep me standing.

“Sorry,” I say, forcing a laugh. “Never ridden before…”

He smiles. “You’ll be all right.”

I look up at him and I suddenly realize how close we are. Our lips sit just inches apart. His breath grazes my cheeks. I bite my tongue in a futile attempt to distract myself from the beauty in his green eyes.

“Claire…” he says my name, his voice low.

“Yeah?”

“Promise me again.”

I force my feet flat against the earth to stand on my own. “I promise, Tobias,” I say. “I won’t be there.”

His hands drop and he steps away from me.

Chapter 8

Get The Blood Off

I keep my promises.

I lay here now, staring at the ceiling above my bed, wishing that I didn’t. Part of me wants to run downstairs, grab Charlie’s keys, and take off into town. Damn the consequences. I don’t care how angry Tobias will be. I don’t care what Charlie will do if he finds out. None of that matters right now.

I can’t stop thinking about those fights. Tobias is strong — mighty, even. He took
the Brute
down so fast, no one was even sure what happened until it was already done. Even the Menace couldn’t take him down and the odds were stacked against him. I’ve never known a man like Tobias before and I want to know more of him. Even if it feels like a betrayal to the man I thought I wanted before.

I slide the volume up a little louder and let Tobias’ music drown out the thoughts in my head. It’s a surprising mix of 80’s glam rock and classic country hits. The more I listen to it, the more I feel like I understand a little bit more about
Tobias the Untouchable
.

Light scans the corners of my vision. I jolt out of bed and look out the window to see Tobias’ bike riding up the driveway. A smile touches my lips. I pull the headphones off my ears. He rolls to a stop in front of the barn and my smile slowly falls.

He’s hurt.

Tobias clutches his side. He just barely makes it off the bike before he tumbles to the ground outside the barn. My heart stops in my chest, but I force myself to take action. I grab my shoes, slip them on, and bolt out of my room. My feet creak the stairs, but I don’t care. There’s only one thought on my mind, the only driving force I have, and that’s him.

I race across the driveway in time to see him pick himself up and lean on his bike. “Tobias, what happened?” I ask.

“Get back—!”

I pull away from him, too scared to touch him. He’s wearing his jacket, so I can’t see what damage has been done. “Let me help you…” I beg. He pauses and looks up at me. Once again, his face is clean of marks or bruises, but my eyes quickly fall to the purple and red mark along his neck. “What did they do to you?” I ask, scanning his bloodshot eyes.

“Help me push this…” He grips one handlebar and waits for me to swing around the bike and take the other.

We push the bike into the barn together and let it tip against the wall. Tobias turns around and sits backward to lean against a hay bale in the corner. I push the barn door closed before returning to him.

“Tobias…”

He’s breathing hard, struggling to sit up. “I’m fine…”

“You’re not
fine
,” I argue. I turn back to the door. “I’m gonna get Charlie—”

“No!”
he hisses, stopping me in my tracks. “Claire,
don’t
.”

“You need a hospital,” I cry.

“No, I don’t. I just…” He pauses and reaches out to me. “I just need you to sit with me for a bit.”

I keep on my toes, still eager to run for help. “But…”

“Claire,
please
…”

Tears sting my eyes, but I do as he asks. I walk over to him and sit down on the ground beside him. “I don’t know what to do, Tobias,” I mutter.

“Trust me,” he smiles. “I’ve had worse.”

“What happened?” I ask again.

He hesitates for a moment before pushing his jacket aside and raising his shirt. I gasp, covering my mouth, as he shows me the deep red markings along his side. “Got paired up with that guy from Springfield.”

“The
Devil
guy?”

He nods. “He got in a few cheap shots,” he says. “Knocked me down and beat on me before putting me in a headlock.”

“Did you lose the fight?” I ask.

His eyes drop and he shakes his head.

“How the hell did you get out of a headlock?” I lean forward, raise the shirt to look again, and I see the red splatter staining his inked abdomen. “Is this blood?”

“Yeah,” he says, “but it’s not mine.”

“Jesus, Tobias…”
I whisper. “Why do you do this to yourself?”

He pulls his shirt from my grasp and lays it back down. “I need the tournament money,” he says.

“Do you need it more than your ability to
breathe
?” I bite.

“Claire…”

“A couple hundred bucks can’t possibly be this important.”

“Not a couple hundred,” he says, shaking his head. “Tens of
thousands
is up for grabs at the tournament fight next week and I intend on getting it.”

“Why do you need it?” I ask.

“I just do.”

I sigh. “Well, I’m coming with you to the next fight.”

“No.”

“You’re obviously going to get your ass kicked whether I’m there distracting you or not, Tobias.”

“I did not get my ass kicked—”

“Either I’m going with you or I’m telling Charlie.”

He grits his teeth, furious with me, but after a few moments, his eyes turn soft. “Okay,” he says, “but I don’t want you to watch.”

“Why not?”

His eyes fall. “I don’t want you to see this side of me.”

I lean forward and shift my knees beneath me. “Why do you care what side of you I see—”

“Come on, Claire,” he says. “You’re a stupid girl, but you’re not an idiot.”

A warm shiver runs up my spine as he raises his hand to my face. His trembling fingers touch my cheek, shaking from the adrenaline firing through his system. “Tobias…”

“You don’t have to say anything,” he mutters. “I know how you feel about Rick.”

My heart sinks as his hand drops to his side. “I don’t give a shit about Rick right now, Tobias. I care about you.”