shooting tomorrow, require a high level of technique.” He gritted his teeth as he scowled at Kara. “Skill you promised you had.”
“I’ll do my best, I swear.” The actress’s voice rose. “Maybe someone can hypnotize me or something so I’m less…uh, skittish around horses.”
“That’s your solution? Hypnotism?” A vein throbbed at John’s temple. “I knew we were taking a risk signing an untested talent. Shit!”
Blake’s attention strayed to Eden as she carried a saddle that must weigh twenty-five to thirty pounds into the barn with the ease of a woman hefting a bag of groceries. Waist-length, shiny dark hair shimmered in the late afternoon sun. Slowly, he turned to study Kara. Her hair was a little darker and straighter, but the two women were similar in height and had the same slim build…
“I think your answer just walked into the barn.”
“Huh?” The director’s brows pinched together above wire-framed glasses. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“Eden Wilde. She could pass for Kara at a distance if her hair is braided and you avoid face shots. I’ve watched her, and she rides like a professional. Couldn’t you cut in footage of her on horseback doing the actual riding the way you would any stunt double?”
John turned to stare toward the barn as the side door opened and Eden emerged without the saddle. She carried a curry comb and a hoof pick and didn’t even glance their way.
“I’d thought of getting a stunt double, of course, but we don’t have time to waste finding one now since filming starts in the morning. I would have hired one sooner if I’d known in advance Kara couldn’t handle the job.” His frown deepened. “Little Miss ‘I’m a tad nervous around horses’ has to leap onto one of those wild Appaloosas bareback and gallop away in the first scene we shoot tomorrow.”
A hint of guilt flashed through her dark eyes. “How hard can it be to ride a horse? I was positive I’d be able to do it until I got up close to that one over there.” She pointed toward a second Quarter Horse, this one with a white blaze on its nose, dozing in the sun. “The thing breathed on my neck.”
John gazed heavenward and lifted his hands. “This is what I have to deal with.”
Blake cleared his throat. “Eden is here now and hopefully available. She definitely has the skill. Seems like the perfect solution.”
Kara eyed the other woman up and down. “I guess she could pass for me. Do you think she’d agree to do it?”
Stuffing his hands in his pockets, Blake leaned back and smiled. “All we can do is ask.”
The director let out a long sigh. “And pray she says yes.”
Chapter 2
Tepees constructed by workers who’d arrived at dawn dotted the open prairie. Cook fires smoked, and a group of nearly naked kids ran among the female extras who all wore rawhide dresses. Clothed in similar attire with her hair braided in long plaits and makeup darkening her skin, Eden hung out near her wild horses on the far edge of the action where she wouldn’t accidently wind up in the footage too soon.
A massacre was scheduled for noon. Once edited, the scene would depict a renegade band of soldiers riding in to slaughter women and children. The female lead would sprint away from the carnage to fling herself up onto the back of one of the Appaloosas. Kara Fox was perfect for the part of Kimani, a Shoshone maiden. With her high cheekbones and long black hair, the actress was stunningly beautiful. Too bad she was afraid of horses.
Eden rolled her eyes. How could anyone be frightened of such sensitive, beautiful creatures?
A sigh escaped as she kicked at a clump of grass. She still wasn’t sure why she’d agreed to act as a double for the scenes Kara was supposed to appear in on horseback. A combination of the actress’s tearful pleading and the dollar amount on the contract she’d signed definitely had something to do with it. Also, Blake Benedict’s hypnotic gaze as he’d pitched the idea had been hard to resist. But the deciding factor was her horses. If she was the one riding them, she’d be able to better control the situation. Their welfare mattered more than her aversion to being the center of attention.
“Quiet!” The director’s voice carried over the conversations that immediately broke off at his shouted command. “We’ll shoot Kara running toward the horses a couple of times just to be sure we have something we can use. Once that’s done, I want Eden to sprint in, swing up onto the big Appaloosa and ride away. I know those horses will be agitated by then, so try to get it right the first time. Afterward, we’ll go back and shoot the massacre. Comprendes, people? Places.”
Eden controlled an urge to flip off the jerk. Get it right the first time. She’d show him. Her gaze collided with Blake Benedict’s amused blue eyes as a smile tilted his firm lips. If she didn’t know better, she’d swear the man had read her mind. Since he wasn’t in this morning’s scene, he stood out of the way near the far end of the pasture to watch. Her grandpa had joined him, and when Benedict bent to listen to something the older man said, his smile broadened.
“Action!”
Eden dragged her attention back to Kara as the woman ran toward the horses. Terror flashed in her brown eyes as she glanced over her shoulder and put on more speed. The rawhide dress slapped against her legs as she drew closer, and the horses pranced nervously away.
“Cut! Someone calm down those animals. Kara, don’t get quite so close next time. We’ll cut Eden in before that point.”
Assuming she was the “someone” the director referred to, Eden eased into the small herd and spoke in a low voice. “Easy does it.” She laid a hand on the warm flank of the nearest mare. “Shhh, no need to be afraid. This will all be over soon.”
“Places.”
With a sigh and final stroke for the Pinto, she hurried out of camera view as Kara took her place on the edge of the tepee village.
“Action.”
Eden noted the exact path the woman ran along with the rhythm of her gait. She’d damn well get it right the first time since she wanted nothing more than to get her horses away from the filming. Sooner rather than later.
“Cut! Perfect. All right, Eden, get into position. Do you know what you’re doing?”
As she approached her mark, she glanced over at Stafford and nodded. “I’ll manage my part. You make sure no one screws up on your end since I don’t want to do it twice.”
The director’s brows shot up. “Who’s running this show, anyway?”
She kept her mouth shut and took her place as the cameras focused on her from behind.
“Action!”
Legs pumping, Eden flew across the yellow prairie grass toward the horses, the soft moccasins on her feet barely touching the ground. She stayed on course, even when the agitated animals skittered and shied away. As she passed the mark where Kara had stopped, she cut to the left and ran up to the stallion she’d named Apollo, grabbed a handful of his mane and swung up onto his back. Clamping her thighs tight, she held on when he reared and came down in a full gallop. The rest of the herd ran with them.
With nothing to use to control the horse but her legs, she applied pressure and spoke in a calming voice as she threaded her fingers through his mane. “That’s it, boy. I’m not going to hurt you. Whoa. Whoa. Slow down, now.” Leaning forward, she stayed low as they thundered across the prairie, then guided Apollo in through the open pasture gate. “Whoa, baby. Whoa.”
The horse kicked and reared. Eden launched off his back and landed hard. Pain jolted upward through her back as she tucked and rolled. Nearby, boots pounded the ground. With an effort, she drew in a shaky breath and gathered her wits.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” After a