Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 77936 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77936 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
“Ow.” Colt limped around Adzuki, looking in no shape to ride, but he mounted with a pained groan before I could renew my bid for him to ride in the wagon, let others worry about how to get the extra horse back.
Determined to show I was capable, I swung up—way up—into the saddle. So far, so good.
“You can have all the treats back at the ranch if you don’t throw me,” I promised softly.
“Looking good, cowboy.” Colt managed to joke despite the deep lines around his eyes and mouth. It didn’t matter how hard Firecracker was to handle. Colt would be the one hurting more at the end of the ride, and that perspective kept me from complaining even as Firecracker required far more from my hamstrings than the placid Adzuki had.
Halfway back to the trailhead, though, a surprising thing happened. I started to enjoy the ride. As a kid and teen, I’d always faced a string of critiques for my riding skills, but left to my own devices, it turned out I remembered far more than I’d realized, even with a difficult horse. Good job, Maverick. I heard the ghost of my mother’s voice, that rare approval for my cowboy skills. I knew better than to get cocky, but relaxing into the ride gave me fresh confidence, a continued high even as we ended the ride in the early afternoon.
“Should we help Willow and Colt tonight?” Hannah asked as she dismounted next to me. “I don’t think Willow can cook.”
“You have a good heart.” I’d already been musing over a similar plan. “Yes, we should help.”
“I don’t need help.” Colt was one of the last riders to arrive back at the parking lot and almost fell getting off Adzuki.
“Colt. You can barely drive. Thank God your truck looks like an automatic.” I steered him toward his truck, using the maneuver as an excuse to serve as his human crutch. “I already texted Kat. I’ll drop the horses off, then come over. Willow and Hannah can have the additional time together, and I’ll make sure you rest.”
“How do you intend to do that?” Colt was possibly more stubborn than Firecracker.
“I have ways.” Oops. That sounded a little too flirty, so I backpedaled. “Don’t make me take you to urgent care for X-rays so a doctor can be the one to order you to stay off your feet.”
“It’s just a sprain.” Colt glared at me. Thankfully, though, he listened and got in the truck. He grudgingly gave me his address before the girls and I loaded the horses. I did a quick hand-off to Kat at the ranch and switched to my car. Faith wasn’t back from Denver, so taking care of Colt was a good distraction for Hannah as well. We stopped for a bag of ice on the way to Colt’s place, which, not surprisingly, was on the same street as his mother’s small home.
His house was also on the smaller side, an older one-story ranch with a decent-sized fenced lot, but not the sort of room a horse might need. Enough acreage for a horse or two and a barn was at a premium around here. It said something about county payroll and the price of land when this modest home was all the sheriff could afford. Colt’s truck was parked next to his official county SUV, so I pulled in behind him.
“You came!” Willow rushed out of the house. “Dad’s trying to water the garden.”
“Of course he is.” Sighing heavily, I followed Willow and Hannah to the backyard, where Colt was hobbling around some raised beds with a hose in one hand and a rake for a crutch in the other.
“You need to sit down before you fall down.” I shot him my sternest glare.
“I don’t want our tomato plants to die.”
As sweet as Colt Jennings having pet tomato plants was, I couldn’t help my groan. “I’m more concerned about your foot.”
“How about some ice?” Voice bright, Hannah held up the bag of ice.
“You brought me ice?” Momentarily distracted, Colt allowed Willow and me to guide him into the house, entering his kitchen through the back door.
“I wasn’t sure what your freezer situation was,” I said as the girls rushed off to Willow’s room.
“Abysmal.” Colt collapsed onto a kitchen chair at the small table to the side of the cabinets. A whiteboard containing a lengthy to-do list, including watering the plants, sat in the center of the fridge door. I transferred some ice to a plastic bag and put the rest in the near-barren freezer.
“You can’t ice your foot while sitting.” I glanced at the living area beyond the kitchen and dining area. The living room featured two mismatched loveseats and a big TV. “Hmm. Both of those couches are too small for you to put your foot up. I’ll help you to your room.”