[open] The Prince and the Princess

[Parker Townsend]

I was kidding... of course i taught you better than to stoop that low. Don't worry I've got you covered... and I'll get you in no problem. He sighed expressing his boredom with the topic. Sure he was all about the clubs and partying it up... though his type of parties weren't exactly like everyone else's parties... he didn't have the trashy cheepy beer like coolers or any of that s.hit. He was all about the Chimey and basically anything imported that had a big price sticker on it. And then he had good music nothing old and retarded... like MJ there was definitely none of that. When Parker Townsend through a party you had to be on the list... or accepted by he himself or else there was no way you were getting in. And if you were a girl don't think that if you bat you petty little eyes at him that he's going to have sympathy oh no.

He usually already had three or more girls hanging off him that were more than gorgeous and if you didn't impress him and look better than them there was no chance you were getting in. But that only made people want to get close to him more. Despite his jackass mentality... And another reason people wanted to make the list was because Parker only had parties ever now and then because his schedule was always so packed so went he had a party he really had a party. And he always out did himself every party he through... so when news got out that he was having a party everyone was dying to get onto the list.

Now days though he didn't have time to through a party. He was in intense training and that required just about 94 percent.... then another 2 percent to working out and staying in top condition and then the last 2 percent went to sex. And that was just because that was a physical need that he had learned quickly helped him in his day to day life. Without it he just didn't seem to be able to keep a good attitude for very long and then that turned into his full focus on riding and once he was in his red zone riding state it was really hard to pull him out of it. So he just decided that sex was necessary to keep a nice balance in his life. So that was how his life was now perfectly praportioned...

As far as Phoenix went was a good addition to keep a steady balance in his life... he needed that challenge every now and then and their little game that they had kept that challenge. She was just about the only girl he knew who had half a brain and that included his mother. Al the other girls out there were superficial... and even though Phoenix was pretty superficial herself he at least knew she had enough of a brain to think of her horses first and that put her above any other human he had had contact with so far. Whoever was his future wife had a really high bar she had to make... and Parker wasn't very lenient on his standards. Good luck to all you ladies out there he was a tough man to win over.

[Phoenix Zima]

Horses were Phoenix's second love as far as the time line went. The first thing she'd ever loved was being a brat and ruining everything for everyone. She loved the feeling of power she got when she screwed things up. That was why she was in and out of so many foster homes for that year between her dad and being adopted. Whether she found things out about the prospective families and told some important big wig about it, or just made their kids as completely miserable as they possibly could be... Phoenix was the neighborhood bitch before she was even five years old. That took talent.

Then came horses... which she discovered because of Parker... so that sort of looped him in with horses in a way. No, she didn't love him like that... but if anything ever happened to him, she would (not admittedly) be one of the ones sitting in the chair by his hospital bed all night long watching the heart monitor with a steady vigil. If he somehow got killed, she'd be one of the ones standing at the burial with a tear or two rolling down her cheeks. She wasn't completely heartless...but there was only so much room in the tiny excuse of a heart that she did have, and filling every bit of it was power, horses, Parker, sex, and alcohol. He meant something to her, even if she didn't ever show it.

Thank you. she said with that typical Phoenix smirk, I knew I could count on you. She could tell he was bored with the subject, but didn't really know where else to go with it. Normally she saw him at the beginning of summer when he came to California... but since she'd left literally two days after graduation, she obviously hadn't seen him, and summer was starting to come to an end now. It had been nearly a year since she had seen him, so she was sort of out of practice as far as conversations went. She didn't really ever talk to anyone but him, and with good reason. Everyone else was either afraid of her, hated her, or she'd already used them up and wasn't interested... she had no one else to talk to except Parker.

So... she said with a tiny bit of uncertainty... which was not a common thing with Phoenix, how are Foxy and Kalypso? Despite the uncertainty, it wasn't really awkward, except for the fact that she didn't normally sound uncertain. She just hadn't really expected to see him here... much less ever again. She didn't do the whole facebook, myspace, email, texting thing, so they didn't really stay in contact when he wasn't around, and she had no idea he was even coming here, or that he knew she was here. A small tiny inkling of a part of her wanted to hug him, but of course she would never ever give in to that inkling... that would imply that she actually didn't completely despise him.

[Parker Townsend]

He simply nodded at her thank you... of course she could count on him... she could always count on him for just about anything... Money, a place to stay, or just a good old fashion argument. If she asked him he would undoubtedly give it to her. Even if that meant a hug... he wasn't to huge on the public display of affection sure maybe when he was married or found "the one" but right now, as previously stated he only used the opposite sex for one thing... and there was no way he was gunna hug another guy... that was just gay. But if it was for Phoenix and she asked.. or hinted towards it he'd give in and hug her. But he knew her well enough to know that she was to damn stubborn to ask or even hint towards that even if she wanted one. Which he guessed that she didn't because that just didn't fit her personality.

But if there ever was a soft spot on his heart for anyone but his horses it was for Pheonix... not in a he was madly in love with her way... just more like... well actually in all honesty his feelings for her were more like... a dad's feelings for his little girl... or at least how a dad should feel towards his little girl. But then again feelings were foreign objects to Parker so i guess you could count that out but that was the best way i could describe it. He was extremely protective over her and he would always be there for her. Even though she'd never admit it and he'd never say it... he knew she needed him... to be the one that cared. It was like they never showed that they cared but i guess deep down they both knew that the other one cared. Strange i know... but thats how it worked.

Though his mind was filled with like a million things at the time he still caught her tiny hint of uncertainty when she tried to change the subject no doubt catching on to his boredom of the last topic. And that hint of uncertainty usually meant something... even if it was just the fact that they hadn't seen each other in a while. A long while actually. It had been over a year since he'd seen her last... but it was like things hadn't changed. They still were the same people they were when they saw each other last summer. And in just realizing that he actually took time to look at her... and pick up on the tiniest of details... like how she was talking and if there was something bothering her just by the fact that she was using a different tone than she usually does... Parker was good with Detail.

A proud, closest thing he was going to get to one, smile appeared on his face as she brought up his pride and joys. Foxy and Kalypso. Perfect as always, Just like any Townsend horse. Foxglove was already here since he didn't go anywhere without her and he didn't trust anyone else to handle her other than himself. Not that she wouldn't be handled by anyone else he just didn't like the idea of someone grimy hands touching his million dollar horse. He was protective over her as well... and although he was expressing his proud owner "smile" at the moment that didn't mean he had forgotten about her hesitation before he was still studying her making sure that she was okay. If she wasn't it wouldn't be long before he knew. He was attuned to her... even if it had been a year or more he still knew her inside and out. But i wouldn't count on her being able to notice his studying eye... he was very subtle and good at making it look like he was having a casual conversation when in fact he was summing up the person with every detail about them...Told you he was good with Detail.

[Phoenix Zima]

Phoenix thought she had everyone fooled... and aside from Parker she probably did. She wanted her "lack of flaws" to make people think that she was perfect and didn't have any issues. Truth was though, she had a lot more issues than people thought. Knowing you were just a joke to your parents was rough, not being good enough for your dad and being given up was rougher still, and being forced into a home where you were hated for 13 years was the roughest yet. Phoenix wanted people to think she didn't care about anything except her horses because she knew that there wasn't anyone out there who didn't care about her. The way she saw it, if she didn't care, then knowing they didn't care wouldn't hurt so much.

For the most part it worked. She didn't get attached to anyone, so she never had to be rejected by anyone. As long as life was a game that she was winning, she was content. Not happy... just content. The only time she was ever happy was when she was riding. Ice and Casper were very high class horses, and at their level, they were definitely superior performers. Sadly enough, they were the one thing she had that didn't remind her of all that she didn't have. Sure she had "million dollar" looks, but even so, at the end of the day when she went back to her shabby little apartment, even looks couldn't transform that tiny one bedroom apartment into the palace she'd dreamed of as a little girl.

She wasn't about to tell Parker that she'd taken a job at the diner in order to pay rent. She liked to be seen as a princess... not a waitress. It was anything but a glorious job, but having to pay rent, boarding for two horses, and money for food was a little more than what her prize money from shows would cover. She would do whatever she had to for Ice and Casper, and right now that meant demeaning herself to the level of a common waitress. Needless to say she had a talent for racking in the tips which helped significantly and made it so she really only had to work three days a week... but even so, she wasn't going to tell him.

Of course, she said, forcing the uncertainty out of her voice and going right back to her over-confident self, I shouldn't have expected any differently. You take better care of your horses than your women. She and Parker were a lot alike in that respect too. They both devoted nearly everything to their horses and made sure they had the best they could possibly have. As evidenced by her less than spectacular lodging, her horses came even before her own needs and odds were they always would. They were the most important thing in her life right now, and she wanted to take the best care of them as she possibly could.

[Parker Townsend]

His proud "smile" remained as she went on... and mostly because he knew it was true he did treat his horses better than his women... with good reason though. Thats because my horses are more intelligent then the women I've been with. Course he usually didn't give a girl a long period of time to prove that fact but usually it was true. Besides his horses were the only things he loved... he'd never said it though... he actually has never said the cursed L word... he thought it was a waste of time though... that was the heartless bastard that is Parker though. The girls would all scream that they loved him and he would completely ignore them. They weren't worthy of his time or his words. He wasn't looking for love in a woman either... why search all over for something when he had already found it in his horses.

Besides people were to predictable to be unpredictable. The only thing you could count on them for was to disappoint you. He had experienced that first hand with his parents. Over time he just came to the realization that they only had him for the image they wanted... the perfect wealthy family. And once they got that image they didn't need him anymore. Which explained why they had his little sister right before he moved out... they needed to keep up their image. Parker just used the saying two negatives equal a positive... in his mind he was the positive and both his parents were negatives... I guess the brains passed through every other generation, from Sr. Townsend passed over Brad and then to Parker.

That was another way that Phoenix and him were alike. They both had idiotic parents. Sure his may not have thought he was a joke but they also didn't take him seriously... they didn't want him... they just wanted the idea of him. He put up with it until he couldn't anymore. He dealt with the nagging the pushing the ignoring all of it. He was a very patient person... though he didn't express that patience to the stable hands... But that had to do with his horses. The only things he cared about other than Phoenix and i suppose he cared about her because he understood her. Parker was a very nice person if you really knew him, don't let that get around, but he never gave anyone the chance to know him.

He didn't even let Phoenix in on that soft side... she probably could see it but he never expressed it... he liked being heartless he liked not having feelings it saved him a lot of trouble. Fast fact was that Parker just like being a jackass. He liked power and he liked intimidating people and he was very good at it. He was good at putting people down... he didn't care... he liked making people run and cry in a corner because they didn't curry out the horse just perfectly. That was just how he was... that soft spot in him was about the size of an atom...and he had the power to eliminate it completely. He wasn't even nice to Phoenix he was a jerk to her... he just got lucky enough that she would put up with him and in return he put up with her. So i guess everything i said before about him being nice has all just been obliterated. Parker was just a guy on a power trip ready to cause pain to anyone who stepped in his way.

[Phoenix Zima]

It was true, Phoenix did see a side of him that most people never would. She knew that he actually didn't completely hate her like he seemed to hate the rest of the world. Sure he treated her like crap, but she knew that if he didn't at least care a little bit, he would have "dumped" her a long time ago the same way he did to every other girl. If he didn't care about her, he would have just slept with her, then walked away like nothing ever happened. He was a jerk like that, but then again, so was she. She didn't really understand his reason for being a jerk, the same way he probably didn't understand her reasons for being a jerk... they just were. They didn't bother with questioning why they were the way they were because they knew it wouldn't make a difference and they probably wouldn't find the answer. It didn't matter why they were like that... just that they were.

To be perfectly honest, Phoenix couldn't remember the exact day she met him, but she certainly remembered how. It had been a relatively normal day at the park, and little ten year old Phoenix was living up to her status as the biggest brat on the block, and was taking that out on her adopted siblings. Why do you think they adopted me? she'd asked, They wanted to have at least one pretty daughter and since the rest of you failed to satisfy, they had to resort to adoption. They had always picked on her for being the adopted one, but she never let it hurt her, at least she didn't let it show that it hurt her... she just retaliated with some snotty remark that usually got her into trouble.

As it were, Parker was walking by just as she said that, and he made some sort of comment about her being right about that... and of course Phoenix's "sister" ran off crying to their mom, saying how mean Phoenix was being again. It was old news that Phoenix was mean to people... she always was... but what was unexpected was someone who wasn't afraid to be just as mean as she was. And from there, the "friendship" budded. Of course she wasn't just going to let him take the credit for making her adopted sister cry, and so she turned right around and started some argument with him... about what she couldn't remember... but it had lasted for some time. I suppose in a way, you could say it was still the same argument. Neither one of them were willing to give in and admit defeat, so they just kept right on ragging on each other like they hated each other.

Why Pinewood? she asked, legitimately curious... in one of those moments where she let on just a little bit that she didn't hate him. I mean it seems a little lowly for the almighty Parker Townsend don't you think? She was actually sort of in a better mood now that he was here, and since he knew her as well as he did, he could probably tell. To most people it would still look like she was just being a bitch, but Parker knew her inside and out, she couldn't hide things from him... or at least most things she couldn't hide from him. Secretly though, she liked it that way. She needed someone like that in her life, and Parker was just the one. She'd hate it if some goody two shoes could read everything about her no matter how hard she tried to hide it. Since Parker was just like her in so many ways, she knew he wouldn't really judge her for being the way she was.

[Parker Townsend]

Parker and Phoenix wouldn't be classified in normal people's form of getting along. Mostly because in other peoples eyes they didn't get along. They argued, picked on each other, and said just down right dirty things to each other, but because they both had the same jerk mentality they got along swimmingly. He didn't take anything harsh she said to him seriously... and if he did take it seriously it was because he knew it was true and was usually proud of the fact. He liked it when people called him a heartless bastard because he was proud of that. He liked being a jerk and he liked being heartless. And she didn't take him seriously when she said she was a superficial bitch... or tell her she looked fat in those jeans. They were mean to each other because they knew the other one could take the harshness.

But don't for one second think that they teased and made fun of each other because they liked each other because they didn't. They got along because they were both mean and the other one just tolerated it. They didn't need to know each others whole life story to understand each other. He didn't know why she was the way she was and he didn't need to, and she didn't know why he was the way he was but it didn't matter to her. They didn't need to ask questions like that for Parker it didn't matter he cared about her and he showed it by not leaving her. If he didn't care about her he would have left quite a while ago... just like all the other girls she would have been no different. But it was the fact that she was different from all the other girls that he didn't leave her.

The day they met wasn't really anything special. It wasn't one of those dates that he kept bookmarked. Actually the only dates he saved were the dates of shows and the birthdays of his most prized possessions. He didn't care to remember his own birthday or anyone else's. He didn't celebrate holidays. His family was huge on a party for whatever occasion they could find... and Parker liked a party but he wasn't like his parents. He was dedicated to his mission in life and that meant training for 20 hours a day 365 days a year no exceptions. If it was one horses Birthday he would ride the other then pamper the birthday horse the rest of the day. No one came before his horses... absolutely no one. Including himself. He'd do anything for them even if it cost him his own life. Drastic... i think not. Other than Phoenix they were the only ones that truly knew him. And he trusted them with his life every day.

Her question wasn't a big surprise... i mean it was true he was a bit higher class than this place. Despite that fact that he was beginning to like this place. But he was picking up on her lack of harsh humor that he could normally find in her tone so he took her questioning a little more seriously than he normally would. His proud "smile had faded into a more solemn look still light though so it wasn't a scowl. It is lowly... and dirty... but I needed a break... He shrugged as if it was nothing huge. There was no big reason why he picked this place... other than its location near the upcoming show he was preparing for. But other than that there really was no reason for this particular town. It held nothing special... no hidden meaning. He just needed to get away and give himself some space to breathe.

[Phoenix Zima]

Phoenix raised her eyebrows slightly when Parker said he needed a break. She didn't think he would need breaks... but then again, he was human... even if he didn't always seem like it, he was, and life probably wore on him just as much as it wore on her. She had a good reason for leaving California, and she was sure he had a good reason for leaving Kentucky too. His family was just as awful as hers... possibly worse. She understood the need to get away from life and all the people she knew... with the exception of Parker. She never got tired of annoying the hell out of him... and she was good at it too.

Oh so the king does occasionally need a vacation from his throne? She asked, putting a hint of vindication and scorn back into her voice. She had nothing against people being wealthy, and certainly not Parker. He was a jerk, but he'd helped her out a few times when she just couldn't make rent. She just liked to pick on him about it because she could, since she was far from well off. She honestly wished she could be more well off than she was so she could take better care of Ice and Casper, but as she was right now, there was no way she was going to get rich quick unless by some miracle she managed to win the gold cup this year or something like that.

She was officially out of topics to talk about, and didn't really know what else to say. Considering Parker's usual non-talkative ways, since she generally did most of the talking and he only interjected when he felt the need, she was really trying to come up with something else to say, but unfortunately, it wasn't working. She didn't really like to talk about herself... unless talking about herself would somehow demean someone else... but other than that she sort of avoided that topic. She didn't like talking about herself because if she talked about herself then she would end up telling them that she hardly had a penny to her name, was working at the diner as a waitress just to make things work, and really was having a hard time of life... and none of that fell into the category of things she was proud of.

She'd never admit it, but she was ever so slightly ashamed of her minuscule bank account. Not because she wanted to be rich, but because she wanted so much more for Ice and Casper, but she couldn't afford it. They were like family to her, and she would do whatever she had to for them. That was the only reason she took the job at the diner. I mean really, even though she didn't have much money, she was a very high class lady, and a job at the diner was beneath her... but for her horses, she had to. Surely Parker of all people would understand doing whatever you had to for your horses, but she still didn't want to tell him because that was just how Phoenix was.

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About a week had passed since Phoenix had run into Parker, and it was show time. It wasn't a big event, but it would keep her in practice. Both Ice and Casper would be showing, and of course she would be riding both of them. After dressage, Ice was holding first, and Casper was in a dismal third because he was being such a brat today. After show jumping, Ice had increased his lead substantially, and Casper had fallen to fourth because of a refusal and a rail. Just a typical show day for Phoenix and her two compadres. Then came cross-country. It was being run in last to first, so she had some time between show jumping and cross-country to work out some of the kinks with Casper. She wasn't about to let the big horse win. She might have been smaller than he was, but she sure as hell wasn't going to let him get away with making a fool of Phoenix Ansley Zima... oh no, not on your life was that going to happen. As much as she loved him, he had to do as he was told.

It came time for her ride, and believe it or not, Casper was flawless, clearing every fence without a moment's hesitation, and finishing well within the time. Even Phoenix was impressed... which was saying a lot considering she'd been riding Casper for three years. With his spectacular improvement, and the two horses in second and third not doing so well, Casper landed himself at worst second, only Ice being ahead. Phoenix was relatively certain she had it made. Ice loved cross-country, he always did his best, and she was convinced she had first and second nailed down with her two boys. They may not have been Townsend horses... and were there Townsend horses in the show her victory might not be so certain... but Phoenix Zima horses were top rate horses, and hard ones to beat.

Unfortunately for Phoenix... things weren't going to go as planned. There were 20 jumps throughout the course, one of which went through water, up a bank, and four strides later over a solid log oxer. They were doing well, every jump previously cleared, and time to spare... but alas for Phoenix jump number 16 was not going to go so smoothly. Just as they came up over the bank, a little boy's dog got loose, and being completely oblivious to the on coming horse, the kid ran out onto the course after the dog. Ice saw him before Phoenix did, and hit the breaks hard, while veering to the left in an attempt to avoid the boy. Unfortunately, when the kid did see the horse, he went back to his right... which happened to be Ice's left. Being the horse that he was, the friesian made a last attempt at avoiding the kid, and went up... two strides short of the oxer and way off balance.

His upper front legs smashed into the log, his velocity carrying him forward in a somersault over the jump. Because he was off balance, Phoenix had been too, and as her luck would have it, she was thrown out of the saddle as her horse toppled over the jump. A gasp followed by a horrified silence filled the crowd as the horse lay where he had fallen, struggling to get up. Phoenix was relatively unhurt, and as soon as she had regained the breath that had been knocked out of her, she ran over to Ice and grabbed the frantic horse's reins, holding him down, trying desperately not to panic. It didn't take the medics long to get there, and Phoenix was pulled away from the horse as veterinarians and handlers swarmed over him, trying to keep the horse down before he furthered the damage already done. As Phoenix was forced towards an ambulance, she looked back and could see the kid that had been the cause of the accident... he was fine... scared, but fine... and for once in her life, she was glad of it.

Waiting at the vet's office was a horribly long time for Phoenix. She wasn't going to leave. When she was given the estimate to fix the near catastrophic damage, her heart broke. There was no way she could afford it. Living off of a waitress' salary and paying for everything herself including housing, boarding, and food, there was no way she could afford a $10,000 vet bill on top of all of that. Now came the one decision Phoenix never wanted to have to make... but really the decision was already made... she had no choice. Completely distraught, she told the vet to make him as comfortable as possible tonight and she would have the authorization for him in the morning.

Once home she kept trying to get herself under control and sign the paper, but she felt like she was signing away a piece of her, and she couldn't do it. Not knowing what else to do, she finally called Parker. He probably couldn't understand 80% of what she said in that message, but he would definitely know that something was horribly wrong. She had a feeling he was with some girl, which she didn't mind, and that he wouldn't be answering the phone. The basic content of the voice mail was a lot of blabbering and finally her asking him to come to her apartment because she didn't know what to do and she needed him. For the first time in her life, she was scared, hurt, and incapable of taking care of this on her own. For the first time in her life, she actually needed help, and was asking for it. What has this world come to?

[Parker Townsend]

He just rolled his eyes at her comment . Of course he got tired of his throne. Always running from the mob that loved to follow him trying to get the latest scoop on what he was doing...or who. Then having his parents down his throat for being at the wrong kind of parties or for not showing up at one of their "show off" parties because he was on a horse. It all got exhausting over time, and although he would never show it, it wore on him like it would any normal human being. He just came off as super human that didn't really mean he was. He was no exception to the human race... ok that’s a lie he really was i mean I’m pretty sure no one else out there has the attitude about life like he did nor were they as rich and nor did they get as many girls as he did. He was just in general an exception and he was very good at making sure the whole world saw him as the exception to every human rule.

You could say that... but how else would the King get to enjoy the other.... luxuries of the world Says slowly as he checks out a decent girl who walks by... But in the end just shook his head as if she didn't make it up to par... like he found one minor detail about her that he simply didn't like. His women had to be proportionally perfect... he was the type who slept with models and basically whatever his parents brought into the house at their parties... that wasn't over the age of 30. Anthony over that was just plan wrong... unless she looked like she was 21 and then he might make an exception for her. There was a lot of rules that Parker had and nearly every single one had exceptions... except, of course, those rules that pertained to his horses.

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After that day Parker didn't see Phoenix... which wasn't uncommon or a big deal. He was busy with his life and she with hers. They may be best friends in a way but that didn't mean they kept tabs on each other ever second of their lives. Oh n.. it was quiet normal for them not to speak for days at a time... especially when he went back to Kentucky. Besides being Parker he knew everything there was t know about the eventing circuit so he knew she had a show coming up and that she'd be drilling for it and he had his own agenda so he knew it would be better to leave her to her training to stay focused... not that she needed it.. he wasn't in the show so she had nothing to worry about this was just another cat in the bag. And had he bee in the show he would have scoped her out during her training sessions just to see how hard is competition was working. But that wasn't the case.

A small show a few towns away was coming up for Parker and that was his warm up for the big stuff that was about to kick the season off. He was as usual in top condition but that didn't mean that he was going to slack off... if anything that meant he was going to work hard. He spent hours at the barn and then went home and worked out slept and then started all over the next morning. He had a strict schedule... that he rarely ever stuck to but it was usually the same general structure. Wake up go to the barn ride all day come homework out then sleep and start all over again. Yet some how he always managed to find a girl between working out and sleeping. How he usually couldn't tell you but it all seemed to happen that way more often than not.

He had to go back to Kentucky for some charity event his parents were throwing and he "absolutely needed to attend" in his parents words. So he went up there for a night played the high society perfect son that his parents loved and adored. After several years he had the part down to a beat. So a few hours socializing and drinking then he went down to the barn to examine his previous home. It was just as he left it... perfectly pristine set in the maple trees with Kentucky blue grass over the entire piece of property... and white fences decorating the landscape in the most amazing symmetrical way you could imagine. Compared to Townsend Acres, Pinewood was a dump... not to say for an average boarding stable it was trashy but if you compared a sterling silver ring to an immaculate diamond ring... it would look average too.

This was the pace he grew up... he remembered training his first colt with his grandfather... he stepped down the long aisle sliding his fingers across the wooden stall doors that housed the most elite race horses in the country... if not the world. Then came the stall that Jasper stayed in. Parker could remember countless days of hiding out in that stall grooming Jasper and sitting on him imagining winning a golden Olympic medal. In fact they had to practically drag him inside when he was little because he never wanted to leave the barn. Jasper poked his head out of the stall by now and Parker stroked his hand up the horses face... he was smaller compared to all the other tall lanky beasts that filled the barn but Parker loved him just the same. Without Jasper he would have never been where he was today in the riding society. And even though Jasper was just about 30 something he still looked like the most amazing eventing horse.. Despite his lack of being around his grandfather made sure Jasper stayed in top condition.

Seeing as how he was hiding out from the party, it didn't take long before his Grandfather came looking for him. Out of his entire family Senior Townsend was the only one Parker got along with... and he was also his greatest supporter. And the reason he is either called grandfather or Sr. Townsend is because he hated grandpa and that just wasn't proper... and no one actually ever called him by his name. And now Brad was Mr. Townsend so that’s just how it was. After then spent a while chatting Parker decided he was done with being home... it drained him being back here though he would never admit it to anyone or even show the tiniest bit of exhaustion. So he said his farewells to his Grandfather and to Jasper and let himself out without telling anyone else. Besides they were all used to him exiting quietly without a moments notice. He was the rich kid he didn't need to tell anyone what he was doing.

He got on his private Jet that his father sent for him then a few hours, if that, later he was back on neutral ground. His car was waiting for him and it was late so he did what he did best... went to the club grabbed a drink found some pleasable girl and went home. Not just any girl... oh no. No girl off the streets who hadn't been to a doctor in ages would do. He found a nice... good-looking blonde with an hourglass figure designer clothes and gorgeous blue eyes. She wasn't any Adriana Lima but she was as good as it was going to get here in Pinewood. She wasn't taller than him... but she wasn't exceedingly short... besides she obviously had good taste if she picked Parker out of the entire club and tried to speak to him before she talked to anyone else. So he had to give her credit for that... oh who are we fooling? He was Parker Townsend he didn't have to give anyone credit... even if the won the Nobel Prize.

The next morning he was up before she was and down the stairs. A quick refreshing dip in the pool... so what if it was 5 in the morning it was an indoor pool anyways. After that he stepped into the kitchen told his personal assistant the plan for the day and told her to get ride of the blonde that was upstairs. Glass of Orange Juice and a banana and he was headed for the barn by 6am. That was another thing you should know about Parker... he never got hangovers... and I mean never. That and he never acted drunk. It was like he only got al the good affects of alcohol and his body was immune to the bad parts. Lucky Heartless Bastard... that was usually his title when people found out about that... actually that was usually just his title in general.

It was about 6:15 when he reached the barn, and seeing how it was summer it was already nice outside as the temperature was rising. Hardly anyone was there because... well how the hell should he know he didn't pay attention to the local rituals of the natives in this town. He went down the aisle that was definitely not up to par with Townsend Acres but it was what he called home so he wouldn't complain... out loud anyways. He was dressed in a polo that had the Townsend emblem and perfectly spotless tan breaches and knee high scuffless riding boots. Sure those cowboys out there maybe are thinking homo. But Parker didn't see them getting on a 17 hand thoroughbred that could maneuver over jumps that would frighten their fat little barrel racing ponies away. Plus he was rich and they weren't so he didn't care what they thought or said. And he didn't see any of the girls protesting to his clothing.

About an hour later he had Foxy groomed and tacked up leading her down to the jumping arena. Oh and don't forget the cloves that set the entire look to extremes yeah he looked damn good in his apparel. Once down there he plugged his ipod on glanced over the course that was already set up from yesterday morning and then mounted his tall lanky horse. He they looked like the were supposed to be on the cover of some magazine. Which knowing them they probably were. Foxy danced for a moment before Parker collected her and made her stand still before he let her open up into a slow level trot once around the arena then a slow canter once around and then over the course. The music was no classical music it was Diary of Jane by Breaking Benjamin but that’s what got them both going.. it practically pumped the blood through their veins and gave them that adrenalin rush that the both loved so much.

A smirk played over his face as they took the course perfectly, he was the last oxer and they were done. She was perfect he must admit... but he knew that already... of course she was perfect he had trained her just the way he wanted she knew him better than anyone. And together they basically had no competition. But for Parker he already knew he had everyone beat... he was more determined to beat his own perfection... he set the bar high... and the only one good enough to beat it was himself. But smoking the others had its advantaged. Don't get me wrong... they have had their off days just like the rest of the world and they have lost... but Parker wasn't a sore loser... mainly because he knew even if they did lose he still had the best horses there were and everyone still wanted to be him or be with him.

Once they had the course memorized and could do it with their eyes closed which Parker had done before... Just not today. He dismounted and lead his precious mare out of the arena. Back up at the stable he clipped her to the cross ties and began the de-stress process. Not a speck of dirt remained on her glowing coat when he was finished... Sure he was rich enough to have a groomsman to do all of this but as you should know by now. Parker didn't trust anyone to touch his horses. If you want the job done right. You did it yourself. Unless he was at a show and then he did have a stable hand get them ready... but only a stable hand he trusted... one that he knew the ins and outs of. He returned her to her stall and put his tack away... not sure why he bothered to keep it here where it could get dusty (which it couldn’t because he used it every day nearly all day).

It was about 4 by the time he was back to his car... The de-stressing process was a long one and they had been riding for a good 7 hours. But before you go off and call the animal rights people lets make sure you know all the details. Parker never ever, ever over exhausts his horse... Foxy had been conditioning for this her entire life... And he took 30 minute walking breaks and then did some dressage and then more jumping it was very well spaced out. Now that he was back in his car he returned to his mansion to continue his day with a workout. Sure you may say does he ever do anything fun... but let me ask you this... how much fun do you think he can have in a hick town such as this one... and besides his entire life right now was dedicated to his horses and getting to the Olympics.

Back at him he changed and went down to the weight room, which also was where the pool was. His phone was waiting on a silver platter along with a balanced snack and a bottle of water. One thing he loved about a personal assistant... so long as you paid them well they made no mistakes. Well that and if they did make mistakes they knew he would fire them so they always made sure it was perfect... exactly his standards. He continued with his work out finished eating grabbed his phone then went back. He showered then finally checked his phone knowing there was bound to be some party or event he could go to tonight... there was always something.

What he didn't expect to find was a missed cal from Phoenix. He listened to the message... or rather her explosion on the other end of the line... then she finally just asked him to come to her apartment... something he hadn't expected but she was apparently panicked about something so he grabbed his keys and drove down to where she lived.. He found this out because well he was smart and how many Phoenix Zima's do you think there were in this tiny god forsaken town. Once there he locked his car like fifty times... not that anyone would ever dare steal of break into his car but al the same. He walked the steps still staying in his very Parker laid back attitude even though inside he was about to murder whoever was making Phoenix freak out. He knocked on the door and waited... preparing himself for the worst... but no worry was written on his face.. His face was relaxed and his eyes were calm behind his aviator glasses.

[Phoenix Zima]

Yes, Phoenix was practically in a panic. She couldn't afford to fix Ice, but she couldn't bring herself to sign the paper. The more she thought about it, the harder it was to do it, and the more freaked out she became. Her world revolved around Ice and Casper, and without them, she had nothing. Yes, she still had Casper, and he was perfectly fine... sitting pretty on the blue ribbon that was going to be Ice's. This was not how things were supposed to happen. She was supposed to dominate these shows... she and her two boys were so much higher level than these other horses in her opinion. They were perfect, things like this didn't happen to perfect horses, and certainly didn't happen to Phoenix Zima. She didn't know what to do... and she always knew what to do. There was no person that was making her freak out except herself. She needed to calm down, but she couldn't calm down.

She wanted to go back, slow Ice down just a little, be more relaxed on the course... then they wouldn't have had the unfortunate timing that they did, and Ice would have his blue, and Casper would have the red. That was how it was supposed to go... that was how it always went when Parker didn't ride in the same show as her. Yes, Ice and Casper were extremely high level horses, but there was just no competing with a Townsend horse, or with a Townsend. They were perfect... literally. You just couldn't beat them, and Phoenix knew it. She would love to someday... but she was in check with reality, and it wasn't happening. That was why when she rode against Parker, she was always content with third and fourth if he had both of his horses, or second and third if it was just one. It was common knowledge that Parker was going to win, it was best to just accept that.

She had been pacing anxiously ever since she left him the message, arguing with herself on what to do if Parker didn't get the message tonight. She couldn't sign the paper, but they couldn't put Ice down without her signature... and she couldn't afford all the surgeries to fix him so she had to have him put down. It was a twisted and vicious circle she was trapped in, and no matter how hard she tried she couldn't see a way out of it. Parker always did the things for her that she asked him to do... she was sure that he would do this for her. I mean sure, it wouldn't be her signature... but really, would anyone dare to contest Parker's authority. If he signed the authorization, then anyone in their right mind would just do whatever he was authorizing. Besides, Parker was Phoenix's only friend... the only person she could turn to. She didn't have a choice in the matter.

Since they had insisted that she be taken to the hospital, she had entrusted Casper to one of the other riders... which was a very rare thing. Phoenix never trusted anyone with her horses, but she didn't really have a choice. She was fairly sure the other rider knew full well that if anything happened to the friesian while he was in their care Phoenix would kill them... so she assured herself that he would be fine. She really didn't have many injuries from the crash, but taking a fall like that was obviously going to hurt. She had an ugly black bruise from her shoulder to about halfway down her back where she had landed. There was a good sized cut on the side of her head just inside her hairline and above her ear from which a bit of blood had run down to her neck and dried there. There were numerous other smaller cuts and bruises on her, but none of them substantial.

Since getting home, she had changed out of her riding gear into jeans and a tank top, but she was too stressed out to even think about her appearance. When Parker finally arrived and knocked, she pulled the door open quickly, giving no thought to the fact that she looked horrible. She had managed to stop herself from crying, but there were still stains from the tears on her cheeks. Phoenix wanted to just say it and get it out there quickly, hoping to keep herself from crying again if she put more thought into what she was saying. We crashed, she said quickly, not even giving him time to say hi, and I need to put him down but I can't sign it. She knew Parker would understand... he of all people knew what it was like to be so attached to a horse that he meant more than anything in the world... he would know why this was so hard for her... he would get why she was so upset. Even though he was a jackass and she was a bitch, he understood her, and he was the only one. He meant just about as much to her as her horses did... even if she wouldn't ever show it.

[Parker Townsend]

All week long he had been training and drilling the horses preparing for his show that was now one week away. He Had Foxglove in top form she knew every jump perfectly she knew the amount of strides she had to take for ever specific move. She knew the dressage moves like the back of Parkers hand and they moved together in an amazing way. Parker loved this show because though it was one of the shows on his way to the top it wasn't so important so the dressage judges gave out a list of maneuvers they wanted to see and then told the competitors they were free to come up with any compilation that they wanted. Parker loved that because it was like freestyle partner ice skating. He loved coming up with his own performance and Foxglove did her best when it was to their own rhythm.

Of course he picked an up beat song because they liked to wow the judges... and instead of using peaceful classical music they chose hip hop music that had a rhythm and that Foxglove and Parker could dance to. They moved like the most graceful dancers out there... they just flowed like they were floating over the ground, she never stumbled or falter and he looked like he was apart of her never moving in the saddle not even at a trot. They had a way of wowing the crowd and Parker loved every moment of it. Though he loved Cross Country the best because he loved the race and the jumps... he had speed bred into him. He grew up on a race horse farm... it was expected of him to love going fast. And He and Foxy were the best cross country team out there.. no one could beat their scores. And they all knew it.

Phoenix was one of the ones who knew they show was already won as soon as Parker and Foxy were admitted. They always stole the show... but i mean really who could compare... Everyone knew he had the gold in his pocket already... it was pointless to even show but for Parker winning wasn't what it was all about... that was only number 2 on his reasons for doing it... or actually number three. But Phoenix knew best out of anyone that he always one and that if they were in a show together she would get second behind him and his horses. And she accepted that. Which is why her phone call surprised him. He figured it was her bragging about how she blew away the crowd and was now gaining on him. Considering he had a board of all the races he won with all the ones she had won next to his and the current standings he was winning.

But no thats not why she was calling him. He didn't have to wait even a portion of a second after knocking and she had the door open. The words blurted out of her mouth before he had time to even look her over... His face didn't change... there was no sympathy no hint showing that he would hug her or comfort her in anyway. He already knew where she was going with what she had blurted out and he just nodded. Ok After barely even a second he had looked over her making sure she was ok... from all he could see was that her head had been bleeding but it was dried up now and that she had been crying. And it was obvious to him that she was trying not to do so now. He took a breath and took his glasses off looking at her in a reassuring way. He took her hand in his and stepped in side closing the door behind him. I'll take care of it ok he looked down into her eyes and nodded again.

He may be a total jackass to everyone else but this wasn't just anyone else. This was Phoenix and he knew he would be just as torn up about this as she was, if not worse, if he was in her situation. He understood that this wasn't just a horse to her... this was her life a part of her... he knew if she could she'd gladly put her life up instead of his. And in someone else's eyes this may be a total change of character but Parker despite everyones beliefs really was human. And he cared about Phoenix and he knew she was hurting so he was going to be the best friend and help her out when she needed him. Just like he always did and he always would.

[Phoenix Zima]

The first time Phoenix had gone riding had been nothing short of a miracle. While she was normally a brat most of the time who everyone hated because she was just so outright mean, if getting what she wanted meant being an annoying little pest, she could do that too. She had known Parker for some time, and had watched him ride quite often. The more she saw him ride and how much he loved it, the more she wanted that too. When she asked him if she could ride his horse... he said no. He didn't want to share his horse with anyone, not even Phoenix. But she was a persistent little rat, and kept pushing the matter over and over and over again until he finally agreed to let her ride... but not his horse, one of the other older horses that was very unlikely to buck her off. Normally she wouldn't compromise, but since Parker was so like her, she figured she would never win and so a compromise was what she settled for.

Ever since she had been given Ice for her 10th birthday she had treasured that horse more than anything. While a lot of girls her age would have been centering their schedules around parties and what their friends were doing, Phoenix centered her schedule around her horse. He always came first, and if his needs interfered with school... she's just skip school. Once she got into high school she started getting in trouble for skipping school as often as she did, especially after Casper entered the scene... but there was an easy fix to that. The principal was a rather young man in his early to mid thirties, and he was definitely attractive. So what better way to fix the problem of getting in trouble than to sleep with him? As much as she didn't like having sex with the same guy more than once, she would rather sleep with him once a week than get detention and have to spend more time away from her horses than before.

The thought of not having Ice around was killing her. She felt so horrible. Phoenix wasn't blaming herself... at least not really... but like everyone who was losing something they cared about, there was a bit of the "if only I had done one thing differently" element in her thinking. She loved Ice, and unlike Parker, she said it regularly. Like most female riders, crooning to and praising the horse was something that just came naturally, and she really did love her horses, so she was going to tell them that, even though they didn't understand what she was saying. She wasn't totally heartless... at least not when it came to horses. When ti came to people... with the exception of Parker... she didn't give a damn. Sad little stories about orphans hadn't ever had any affect on her... she just didn't care about people... and people stayed away from her because of it. No one wanted to hang around with someone who was just going to be a bitch to them.

When he stepped in and told her he would take care of it for her, she bit her lip to keep it from trembling, and pulled her hand out of his, wrapping her arms around him, and pressing her face into his chest. Phoenix never cried... she didn't hug... this was her first time doing either of those... and that meant she was definitely very upset. It took her a minute or two to force herself to regain her composure at least a little, and looked up at him. Thank you Parker. she said taking a deep shaky breath, feeling a little ashamed of her breakdown... though if it had to be in front of anyone she would want it to be him. I just need them signed and dropped off. She didn't want to "see him one more time" because she didn't want to remember him cut up and in pain. She wanted to remember him as the vibrant black horse who caught everyone's eye with his class and commanding presence... and she wasn't really ready to come to terms with this being the end. It was going to take time... a lot of time... and probably a lot of alcohol and drunken sex before she got over it. But that was to be expected of someone of her caliber.

[Parker Townsend]

Letting Phoenix ride his horse wasn't something that he would ever let her or anyone for that matter do. When she asked he only had Jasper and Jasper was just the horse that was used to train the others to be cometitive but Parker loved him and taught him how to jump and do dressage. They were partners and once his grandfather gave him to him, Parker spent his whole day in the barn. That was his time his life something that he actually had control of... and Parker loved power ever since then. Which is why he liked cars and motocross it was a powerfull machine that he had power over. Riding sort of held the same aspect but he knew that it was more of a team effort... which is why him and Foxy were so good together... because they had a give and take reationship. He understood her and in turn she listened to him. They were a team.. inseperable.

So when Phoenix askedif she could ride Jasper it was an easy straight up "no" that came out of his mouth without even the slightest hesitation. There was no way he was going to elt her ride his horse... no way. But she was an annoying pest and kept nagging him so he gave in and let her ride the post pony... notnearly as big as Jasper nor any of the other horses on Townsend Acres but he figured it would be safer for her since she didn't know diddly squat about riding. So he wasn't about to let her on a horse without teling her how to do it propery. And i don't say teachor hep because thats not what it was. Parker was a demanding commanding little boy and when he gave her a tip it came out as more of a demand or command than a suggestion. If she was going to ride... she was going to do it the right way andlive up to his standards...

But it turns out his demands helped her get to where she is today... And yes he bragged about that and told it to her face that Without him she wouldn't be as good as she is. OF course he took credit. Now Parker on the other hand had learned from the best... his parents paid for the best trainers thinking it would keep themout of his hair...little did they know it would do that job on a permanent basis. He went through a trainer just about every other week sometimes within days. None of them could handle him... he was to... stubborn i guess you could say. He didn't think they knew what they were talking about so by about age 11 he gave up on even having a trainer and had his parents hire an advisor that came out about twice a month to see how he was progressing and other than that he just trained himself... Then he took on the task of training Foxy himself which is another reason they got along so perfectly.

Parker could remember vivedly the day helet her ride Patches... she looked so focused... So different from thr grown woman she was now...not somuch in attitude.. but specific to this moment she was nothing like that little girl... She was heart broken. When she pulled her hand out of his he thought she was regaining composure but he was wrong. He hesitated just a moment when she hugged him knowing she was a complete wreck if she was crying and hugging him. But it only took him a second to wrap his arms around her in the warmest embrace these two would ever share. Shh it'll be ok... i'll take care of it for you... it's going to be ok. He was new at this comforting thing but he was doing pretty good so far... He held her head against his chest gently with one hand while the other was wrapped around her waist comfortinly. He hated seeing her like this knowing that it wasn't really anyones fault and there wasn't really anything he could do to fix it.

Or so you all think.

She pulled away and looked up at him telling him what he needed to do. He let his hand craddle her face and swept away the tears that were streaking down her cheek. She looked so torn up and he didn't like that one bit. Yes the monster had a heart... and you better get a good look because this is the only time he'll ever show it. Don't worry about a thing i'll take care of all of it. He didn't want her to have to deal with any of this... it wasn't right she shouldn't have to. And he was glad she called him... and that she didn't just hold it in like he would have thought she would have... but i guess he knew that this was something that just couldn't be held in... this was a mother losing her child... it was like against nature... and he had every intention of having a hightened discussion with mother nature.

[Phoenix Zima]

To the outside observer, it probably looked something like Phoenix and Parker were in love with each other or something, but that was anything but the case. Phoenix hadn't ever had feelings for anyone, let alone Parker. Even when they were little and he was the guy that all the girls had a crush on, Phoenix never had a thing for him outside of friendship... if you could even call it that. No, this definitely wasn't love. It was more sort of a combination of two best friends, a daughter and her dad, and an older brother and a younger sister. It was difficult to explain their relationship. They most commonly came off as hating each other in public with the way they were constantly at one another's throats... but if anyone had been lucky enough to see this moment, they would realize that Parker and Phoenix did, in fact, care about each other and would do anything for one another... even if that meant taking a break from their little game which they were so fond of.

Phoenix had owned Ice for nearly half her life, and she hardly remembered what life was like without the horse. She'd probably spent the vast majority of every waking hour on that horse's back for the first few years before she got Casper and her time was split between the two of them. Even if that meant just sitting on his back out in the pasture while he grazed, she had obsessed over Ice in every way possible. Even though she didn't have much, Ice and Casper always got the best that she could give them, and that regularly meant she went without... but she didn't mind going without. As long as Casper and Ice were happy and content, then so was she. They were her babies, and she spoiled them to no end. In a way it was her way of thanking them for giving her a purpose in life aside from just destroying the self-esteem of everyone she met.

Having Parker here and knowing he was going to take care of this for her was of a little comfort to her. She knew she would never have been able to sign that paper, and she would have been trapped in a vicious cycle of needing to have him put down, not being able to sign it, but also not being able to fix the problem and so still needing to have him put down. It was almost cruel. It was toying with her mind, and she couldn't have done anything about it on her own. Parker was the only solution to this mess. As far as she was concerned, she didn't really have any family. She hated her adopted family, and they hated her. She was still bitter towards her dad for giving her up, though she was a little less angry about it since he had been the one who gave her both Ice and Casper... but still, she wasn't close enough to him to ask for his help. Parker was all she had... and he might as well have been family to her.

Okay. She said a bit softly, still trying to get a grip and stop the tears from falling, which really wasn't working. Even though Parker was going to take care of it for her, the thought of not having Ice anymore was killing her. She supposed it was slightly her fault. Friesians weren't "supposed" to be eventing horses because of their heavy build meaning they had to put more effort into jumping to make it over the jump, and if she'd been on a different breed, they might have made it over that jump instead of crashing into it... but Casper and Ice loved jumping. They'd been trained over smaller jumps before they came to Phoenix, and once she started putting them over the higher jumps, they definitely started liking it. Besides, they were good at it, and she didn't want to be just like everyone else on some thoroughbred or other typical eventing horse. She wanted to be the one who rode by and caught every one's eye and got the cameras clicking. Friesians were just the horses to do that.

At the same time she knew there was nothing she could have done to prevent this. She couldn't have known it was going to happen, and even though it hurt, there was no way to fix it. Life was a bitch... and right now she just didn't feel up to being a bigger one. Thank you Parker. she said again, really grateful for his help. He was the only one she could turn to, and she knew she could count on him. Whether it was getting her into the clubs and bars without a fake ID or taking care of bigger problems like this, he'd never refused to help her. Right now, he was her hero. Even though he was the one signing Ice's death warrant, he had saved her from having to do it herself, and that meant the world to her.

[Parker Townsend]

He let a small smirk come over his face and wiped a tear or two off her cheek. Anytime...now let me have those papers so you can get yourself cleaned up... In all honesty... he wasn't all that worried about her. For one his mind was already well on its way with a plan... and two despite how hard he knew this was for her... he knew out of anyone she would be the one that was able to handle it the best. She was strong... but more so stubborn and she would eventually get closure with it and go on with life... Though the lose was hard she would manage to turn her focus back to riding and toward Casper. She was a lot stronger than she gave herself credit for...

And even though they looked all sweet and nice right now... it was quite the opposite... Parker was the spawn of Satan... and Phoenix...well she was like his little right hand demon i guess... but most just refereed to her as a B*itch. They fought almost constantly and when they did get along like now it was a rare occasion... and never in public. Parker had an image to keep up and being nice to Phoenix wasn't going to happen in public... lucky for him she never took it personally... plus she was just like him... due to his training obviously... it was amazing if they actually found each other attractive...they might very well have ended up ruling the world... thank God that will never happen.

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Now here we are a few weeks later... Parker had convinced Phoenix to move in with him in his huge mansion after seeing her apartment that one time and deciding that it wasn't adequate living conditions for her at all. Yeah he's just a little stuck up... but if you had the option between the two you would have picked his place too. He also treated her to a trip to New York in his private jet to enjoy a few clubs along with a private party... which didn't exactly last long... A lot can happen in just a few weeks though... but to fully understand exactly all that happened we have to take you back to the very day that this all started....

After Phoenix gave him the papers and he made double sure that she was ok by herself he left her and went to go "take care" of it for her. But as always Parker's ways of taking care of things was different than what Phoenix's way of taking care of things. He got to the vet signed a check and made sure that Ice had nothing but the best of care. He also made sure that anything and everything revolving the horse was delivered to him not Phoenix. And that also any future bills were made out to him not her. He expected that she would find out sooner or later... but until then he didn't see why it was important to tell her... and he was already planning on making Ice a surprise... For a Jackass he sure was a good friend... but i guess that was because Phoenix was his only friend anyway.

In his mind he didn't have anything else to spend the money on... and if she was willing to put up with him then she deserved nothing but the best... just don't spread around the rumor that he was nice or anything... that would be just plan old bad for business. He needed to keep up his rep. as a...well as someone who didn't take any crap from anyone and if you needed sympathy you better try someone else. And this was true... if you needed a shoulder to cry on even if your story had something involving my parents abused me and my baby died he'd still tell you to suck it up or go find someone who gave a damn. Parker didn't have a compassionate bone in his body... he also didn't know what the Love word meant nor had he ever used it in his vocabulary... he was just a hard ass.

Now the next step was too keep Phoenix from finding out so he made sure Ice stayed at the hospital and well that was that...it wasn't as if she went there on a regular basis. So that took care of that. Then one day he saw her at the stables and well she truly looked like sh*it but Parker being Parker and also being in public...just told her flat out that she looked dreadful and told her he would take her out and show her a good time just like always. But he failed to mention that his definition of "out" meant a jet, a skirt, and a street bike... the skirt obviously being for her. That was also the occasion that he convinced her to move in with him... He wasn't about to let her spend another night in that crappy apartment by herself... even though he basically promised her, her own side of the house which she could fit at least five of her apartments inside. Wealthy was an understatement for Parker Townsend.

Anyways... this morning he woke up early as usual sticking to his daily routine despite the addition in roommates. It was interesting.. they lived together and even rode at the same stables and they still rarely saw each other... Maybe it was because they were so dedicated to their horses that they didn't have time... or maybe it was simply because the house was too big for just two people...Who knew. But they did see each other more than they normally would have not that it had even the slightest of difference in Parker's life... he still brought the party home with him every night and he wouldn't be surprised if she did the same... but he always managed to avoid the awkward goodbye in the morning... he was good at letting his personal assistant take out the trash.

This morning was different though. He got a call the night before that Ice had made a full recovery and was ready to be taken home so he said that he'd pick him up in the morning and that meant getting up a little bit early... but did not mean going to bed earlier... no that never changed. So he got up trailered Ice back to the barn and did his morning ride with Foxy.. once that was finished and he had Amy his personal assistant fill him in on Phoenix's location, having seen no sign of her at the barn, he drove home to get her. He was going to surprise her, which totally went against all that is Parker but he had a soft spot for Phoenix.... not that he'd ever ever admit that... He didn't have a soft spot for anyone but she was like his little sister... and that being said he got the pleasure of being the obnoxious older brother.

He got back to the house turned the coffee on figuring that if she wasn't up by now she had a rough night. After doing so he went up and rinsed off... it was still early and in all honesty he wasn't in any big hurry... the faster he rushed today meant the faster he had to visit his parents and he wasn't looking forward to yet another trip to Kentucky... lets just say he got a lot of frequent flier miles. So he tried not to think about that and just focus on the task at hand... and that was getting Phoenix's hung over ass down to the stables... He made his way to her room and due to the fact that he'd already seen her at her worst... and without any clothes on he skipped knocking and went straight to opening the door smirking at the sight he found.

He simply cleared his throat and tapped on the door figuring that would be enough to announce his entrance. Thank God you picked the room on the other side of the house from mine... i can only imagine how loud this was last night He said with his coy smirk knowing that she'd absolutely love hearing his voice first thing in the morning. He loved antagonizing her... i think its mainly because he knew it bugged her so much... if only she knew not to react to his teasing... if she didn't he wouldn't find enjoyment in it and he'd just leave her alone... but no she reacted and he continued to drive her insane... it was such a fun little game of his. He loved seeing how it turned out... which was usually in his favor... mainly because Townsend's never lost... especially not Parker.