Brace yourself... this is a long one guys! SORRY! but im getting it where i want it to be!!
:)


Chapter Three

    Gracie slammed her locker shut with enough force to knock the wall down.
“ Do you smell that? I think I smell horse.”
A group behind her twittered in laughter. Gracie whirled around. Just like she had expected, Tirzah and her crowd of followers stood there.
“ What do you want?” Gracie snapped. Tirzah’s heavily made up blue eyes narrowed and she stalked a few steps closer.
“ Deylin told us about your little barn your family runs. And how much you suck at riding horses.” Tirzah glanced behind her and her little groupies twittered, like they were on command.
Gracie just stared at her, struggling to keep her temper in check.
“ So listen here, Barn Rat, stay away from Deylin. He’s mine.” Tirzah growled.
Gracie felt the urge to laugh. Barn rat? Really? That’s all she had. She was considering just walking over to Deylin to talk to him, just to show Tirzah that she wasn’t afraid of her. But then she remembered how fast he had ditched her the other day.
“ Oh that wont be a problem.” She glared at Tirzah until she stumbled a step back. Gracie shouldered through the little group and marched down the hall.
Camie met up with her a few minutes later.
“ Whoa. Who woke you up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?”
Gracie turned and glared at her. “Tirzah.” That one word was the only explanation Camie needed.
“ Uh oh. Hottie alert, Gracie. And it looks like he’s looking at you!” Camie whispered loudly to Gracie. Gracie looked up and locked eyes with Deylin. His lips started to lift into a smile. Gracie glared back. She quickly looked around and plotted her escape. Before Deylin could get to her, she ducked into the bathroom.
“Girl, what are you doing? Deylin was walking straight for you!” Camie hissed as she followed her.
“ And that’s exactly why I came in here.” Gracie snapped as she looked at herself in the mirror. Her Auburn hair was looking halfway decent, curling down her back in waves.
“Cam, lets get my hair cut.” Gracie suggested, glancing over at Camie’s cute little bob. Camie’s eyes sparked fire.
“ Absolutely not. I would kill to have hair like yours.” Camie muttered and fluffed her brown locks.
“ I’d better run or else I’m going to be late for Algebra.” Gracie finally said.
Camie nodded and called after her, “ Hey, ill come to the barn tonight and ride with you!”
Gracie waved and took off at a brisk pace towards her math class.
“ Did You have a good meeting in the bathroom? I hope you don’t cut your hair.”
Gracie gasped and jumped. Deylin just grinned and walked on beside her.
“ Don’t you know its not polite to ease drop?” Gracie snapped.
“ Sorry. But you ducked in there so fast, I thought there might be an emergency or something. Maybe like the school collapsing? And maybe you knew about some secret safe place I didn’t know about.”
Gracie glanced up at him, and his mischievous grin let her know he was teasing.
“ No emergencies.” She finally answered.
“ Well that’s good to know.” He walked along beside her.
Gracie finally looked over at him with narrowed eyes.
“ Aren’t you going to be late to class?”
“Nope. Actually I’m almost there.”
Gracie felt her heart start to quicken. She was almost to her class too.
She bit back a groan as he opened the door to her class room.
This was just her luck.
“ You’re not in my class.” Gracie said before she thought about it.
Deylin smiled down at her, as he held the door open.
“ I am now.”
Gracie stomped into her class and plopped down in her chair.
“Who might you be, young man?”
Gracie’s Algebra Two teacher, Ms Tryon asked.
“ Deylin Davis. I switched into this class.” Deylin walked up to her desk and handed her a piece of paper.
“ Well ok then. Welcome to the class. I think that seat is open.”
Gracie breathed a sigh of relief when Ms Tryon set him across the room from her. Her plan of staying away from him wasn’t working very well.
She settled in and tried to pay attention as Ms Tryon started the lesson. She kept feeling like someone was looking at her. She glanced up, but she couldn’t see anyone looking at her. Just then Deylin decided to stretch, and Gracie’s eyes grew wide. She watched his arm muscles as they stretched and bulged before he saw her looking. He grinned and faked a yawn, motioning with his head to the teacher.
Gracie felt her face grow hot and she was sure she was blushing. She reluctantly smiled back. After that she had a hard time focusing on the lesson. She kept replaying the sight of Deylin’s muscles rippling under his shirt. The bell rang and Gracie grabbed her stuff and bolted.
“Whoa, Gracie!” Deylin grabbed her arm before she could escape down the hall.
“ What?” Gracie jerked her arm out of his grasp, hating that she liked the warmth seeping through her skin where he had touched her.
“ Where are you running off to?”
“I have to go to the barn.” Gracie decided to keep things short and sweet.
“ You need a ride?” Deylin asked almost sigh.
Gracie arched her brows. “ Um no thanks. I learned my lesson last time.” Without waiting for him to respond, she turned and walked down the hall. Gracie pulled her keys out and unlocked her ranger, jumping when someone’s voice sounded behind her.
“ Hey Gracie.”
“ Good grief, Nate.” Gracie glared over her shoulder at her best guy friend.
He grinned and walked around to get in the passenger side, lowering his tall frame to fit inside.
“What happened to your jeep?” Gracie asked as she pulled out of the parking lot.
“ Oh I busted the transfer case. I’m going to work on it tonight.” Nate looked a little sheepish.
Gracie glanced over him. He really was good looking. It was too bad she never had thought of him in that way. He would make some girl a really good boyfriend.
“Uh Gracie, can you watch the road?”
Gracie jerked her attention back to the road. Her cheeks flushed at being caught staring at him.
“ Your mom and dad have some good news for you, Gracie.”
Gracie looked over at him quickly, and then looked back to the road.
“ Oh yeah? Like what?”
He grinned at her, revealing a dimple in his cheek. Why hadn’t she noticed these things before? His green eyes sparkled mischievously.
“Can’t tell. It’s a secret.” He ran a hand through his dark hair and Gracie had to make herself focus on the road. What was with her? Was she just falling for every single guy she saw? She pulled into the barn’s parking lot and hopped out by herself, even though Nate was on his way to help her.
Julie Evans came running out of the barn and grabbed Gracie as soon as she saw her. Her father, Bryce followed at a more slow pace.
“ Graceanne! You are not going to believe this!” Julie exclaimed and drug her daughter around in a little circle. Gracie knew it had to be something important because her full name was only said on rare occasions.
“Guess who’s going to be at the horse show next week?” Julie asked, jumping up and down a little.
“ Who?” Gracie asked, giggling as Julie jumped up and down again.
“ Scouts from The World Equestrian Team.”
Gracie felt a dull roar build up in her head.
“What?” She whispered.
“I know! I couldn’t believe it either when I heard!” Julie let out a little squeal.
“ My daughter is going to get to perform in front of scouts! From the World Equestrian Team, non the less!” Julie hopped up and down and threw herself in her husbands arms. Bryce grinned at his daughter and hugged his wife close.
Gracie’s head was still spinning, and she was starting to feel nauseous.
Suddenly, she was incased in arms, and her face was resting on Nate’s chest.
“ You’re gonna do great, Gracie.” One of his hands, which was gently stroking up and down her back, sent shivers racing through her body.
She inhaled deeply, smelling his wonderful musky scent of leather and the woods. She wasn’t even aware of her mom and dad walking back to the barn, grinning at each other. She was only conscious of her body, pressed up against Nate’s, and the knowledge that he was holding her because she was scared.
A picture of Deylin’s face flashed across her mind. She grinned and tightened her arms around Nate.
Deylin who?