Free Elite Ambition by Jessica Burkhart

any of your horses to be sore before the show. That was a great workout for everyone, and I’m impressed by all of you and your horses.”
    Mr. Conner looked over at Brit. “I watched with how in tune you are with Apollo. You knew exactly when he needed to slow, and you never pushed him past his limits, even though you made sure the workout was a challenge. Excellent job.”
    â€œThank you,” Brit said, blushing.
    I couldn’t help but think if Mr. Conner had made that remark to Jasmine. Her answer would have been more of an
um, duh
than the way Brit handled the compliment—with grace. It felt surreal—like I kept expecting the cool new girl to disappear and the former princess of destruction to return.
    We walked the horses back toward the stable, and I smiled to myself when I remembered who was waiting for me to finish my lesson—Jacob.

 10 
    FRIEND, BOYFRIEND, AND MAYBE-FRIEND
    BACK AT THE STABLE WITH CHARM IN CROSS-ties, I texted Jacob.
    Grooming Charm. Meet in an hr under archway?
    I was digging through Charm’s tack box, looking for his dandy brush when my phone vibrated.
    Perfect. C u there.
    His text gave me chills even though I was warm from the workout.
    â€œI’m going to meet Jacob,” I whispered to Charm. “We’ve barely had time to talk since school started, and I really want to see him.” Just saying the words made me nervous and exhilarated at the same time.
    Charm, listening, turned an ear in my direction. I unclipped the crossties and led him to his stall, lettinghim loose inside. After I filled his water bucket, checked his hay net, and latched his stall door, he popped his head over to watch me as I gathered up his tack.
    â€œLove you,” I said.
    Charm bobbed his head—his eyes connecting with mine for a second before he went for his hay net. Laughing, I stored his tack and locked myself in the stable bathroom. I ran my fingers through my hair—ridding it of the tangles from my ride. I wiped a speck of dirt off my cheek and applied a coat of peachy lip gloss. Then, I couldn’t stand being in the stable for another second. Jacob was waiting for me.
    I hurried down the aisle, cut across the courtyard, and headed for the stone archway. It wasn’t a place of good memories, but I hoped seeing Jacob there would change that. Right now, all of my thoughts associated with the archway had to with the Belles. The then–eighth-graders had tried to force Callie, the Trio, and me into riding at midnight as part of a dare. If we completed the task, they’d coach our riding and get us invited to the coolest parties. We’d met them in a secret old room under the archway. I shivered—the memory alone was enough to make me nervous. At the final step of initiation, we’d gotten caught and, for a second, I thought I’d be sent back to Union.
    Yards away from the archway, someone leaned against the stone wall. When I got closer, Jacob straightened and walked toward me, reaching for my hand. He pulled me under the arch. We were finally alone.
    Together.
    I’d chosen the arch because the courtyard was too public. If Jacob and I really were going to get back together, I wanted Callie to hear that and the truth from him first—not witness anything between us.
    â€œHi,” Jacob said.
    â€œHi,” I echoed back. My tone was high and giggly.
    â€œI’m glad you texted me,” he said. “I wanted to see you
and
make sure this is still what you want.”
    â€œIt is,” I said. “I can’t focus too much about you telling Callie, or I’ll make myself crazy. I know you’re doing the right thing, but I don’t want to see people looking at you the way they looked at me.”
    â€œThe only person that I care about looking at me is you,” Jacob said.
    His words seemed to reverberate in my ears. I looked at Jacob as if I’d never seen him before—his green eyes had