Convincing her

Unbeknownst to them, Jen who was standing on the balcony of Lucas' room had seen them and as she watched the progression of events her jaw dropped leaving her mouth open.

Was the air at the estate different? Or was there something in the water? She watched as the pair galloped around the spacious field and couldn't stop herself from calling Lucas.

"Lucas!" Jen called sharply still in shock. A few seconds later she felt herself being hugged from behind and Lucas' wet hair dripping water on her neck.

"What is it?" Lucas asked.

"Who is he?" Jen asked and pointed in the direction of the horse. Lucas saw the tattooed guy and chuckled.

"That's Brian, why?" Lucas asked.

"He is with Rachel" Jen said and only after she mentioned it did Lucas notice that there was a blonde woman who was sitting in front of Brian.

He knew her character and how withdrawn she normally was, so he was also surprised to see the two together. It looked like they were getting along well enough.

Jen still felt slightly weird about the whole situation. She was definitely not expecting this situation.

"Are you worried about her?" Lucas asked as he pressed closer to her body. They had both just showered to freshen and were wearing their bathrobes.

"I am, shouldn't I be?" Jen asked as she turned back to look at Lucas.

"It's understandable, but I can definitely vouch for Brian. Despite how he looks, he is a gentleman. He wouldn't be so forward if Rachel didn't want him to." Lucas said as he looked at the pair in the distance.

"Is that so?" Jen asked.

"Mmh, we can go check out the stables if you want so you can meet him" Lucas offered.

"Okay, let's go" Jen said and slipped away from Lucas who had been trapping her with his body. With a chuckle, Lucas followed her inside.

He was also curious about how Brian and Rachel ended up like that since Brian always made sure to leave no room for misunderstanding, especially with the opposite sex, unless he was genuinely interested in her.

"Lucas hurry up" Jen called out from the dressing room when she realised that Lucas was still not making any moves of getting dressed.

*

Meanwhile Rachel had gotten much more relaxed on the horse and had even unconsciously leaned against Brian.

"This place is beautiful" Rachel commented as she took in the scenery.

"It is" Brian replied, his voice resounding from the top of her head making her aware that she was sitting very close to him. Rachel cleared her throat and sat up straight feeling slightly embarrassed from how she had so easily taken advantage of him.

Although Brian couldn't see her face, he noticed that her ears had gone red, a sign that she was blushing. He almost laughed at her but he stopped himself since he realised that she seemed to be sensitive.

"Is there a way I can find a place like this? I think it really suits me" Rachel said as she tried to cool her hot face with her hands almost falling off the horse in the process. Fortunately, one of Brian's arms caught her just in time preventing a disaster.

Rachel's palms grabbed the arm that was around her torso tightly and Brian felt her hands shake.

"Are you okay?" Brian asked worriedly. Rachel had gotten too comfortable and had not thought much about her actions. The thought of falling from such a distance raised her blood pressure.

"Rachel?" Brian called when she didn't respond. Rachel seemed to snap back to her senses when she was called and nodded in response.

"Don't worry, I got you" Brian said when he realised she did not have plans of releasing his arm.

"You can lean against me" Brian offered when he saw that she was still tense.

He hadn't prompted the horse to continue moving so they were seated atop a still horse in the middle of the greenfield.

Although Brian was casual about what he said, Rachel felt her heart tremble.

She had wanted to hear those words on numerous occasions but she had not wanted to inconvenience her friends so she tended to fight her battles alone.

She was now in the arms of a stranger that she was strangely not wary of and he told her that she could lean against him. Even though the context was different, she could feel her eyes sting already.

Rachel turned back to look at Brian's worried face with her big baby blue eyes which were slightly watery.

"Are feeling alright?" Brian asked concern lacing his voice making Rachel smile. Rachel had not been interested in anyone for a while but she was obviously developing an interest for Brian. Rather than avoid him, she decided that she would keep an open mind, they could at least be friends right?

[A/N: I'm rolling my eyes]

"Mmh, I'm alright" Rachel responded and took him up on his offer not so subtly when she leaned against him.

"Should we go to the stables? Or are you tired?" Brian asked finally at ease.

"We can go to the stables" Rachel said before Brian lightly kicked the horse so they would go to the stables.

As the horse lightly trotted towards the stables Brian continued with their previous conversation so as to distract her.

"There are quite a number of places similar to this, but you might as well just buy a piece of land from us" Brian said making Rachel confused before she recalled what they were talking about.

"That would be more convenient, how far does the property go?" Rachel asked casually to keep the conversation flowing.

"All the way over there" Brian said pointing at the horizon.

"Where?" Rachel asked curiously.

"As far as your eyes can see" Brian explained as he clutched the reins with his free hand once more.

"I only see mountains" Rachel replied slightly puzzled.

"Exactly" Brian replied and pulled the reins to stop the moving horse. He nimbly jumped off the horse once he landed on the ground, he looked at Rachel who seemed to be lost in her thoughts.

He continued to lead the horse into the stables and noticed that Rachel still seemed to be deep in thought. He couldn't help but think she would probably not notice if he left. He even brought the horse to it's stall but Rachel was still dazed.

[A/N: Now you know what Jen went through]

"Rachel?" Brian called startling her out of her reverie.

"Oh" Rachel exclaimed when she noticed that he was waiting for her. She naturally reached for his shoulders carelessly as if she was completely sure that he would grab her.

Brian caught her by the waist before she slipped off the horse with a chuckle and gently placed her on the ground. When he released her she almost fell down to the hay below her feet.

"My legs are numb" Rachel said sheepishly as she clung to his shoulders once more. With a helpless sigh he placed one hand on her back and the other behind her knees and lifted her up startling her enough that she hugged his shoulders from his sudden action.

What the pair was not anticipating was meeting the crowd once they left the stall. Rachel's face turned instantly red when she saw the wide eyed Jen and the even wider eyed Laura.

"Tsk, tsk, so you were into this type huh?" Laura teased on reflex making Rachel turn even redder.