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Dad pulled the truck into the rodeo grounds, and I leaped out the second it stopped with a quick goodbye thrown over my shoulder. I had horses to see.
I found both Gambler and Cherokee dozing in their stalls, both clean and shiny. I made a mental note to thank my friends for taking such great care of them.
“Hey, guys!” I cooed.
I let myself into Cher’s stall first and gave her a big hug, planting a kiss on her nose. Two days without seeing them had been too long. I didn’t do “no horse” days.
Cher nosed at my pockets, looking for treats.
“Did you miss me or the treats?” I teased her.
When I entered Gambler’s stall, he merely flicked an ear in my direction. He was much too dignified to beg for treats, but I gave him some, and he didn’t object.
“Just so you know”—I ran my fingers through his long black mane— “there are no hard feelings, okay?”
“I saw your accident.” Abby’s voice caught me off guard. I hadn’t heard her approach the stall. She stood with her arms crossed over the door, looking in. “Somebody posted it online.”
“Of course they did. It was epic,” I replied.
Abby rolled her eyes. “Hardly.” She rubbed her hand up and down Gambler’s face, fiddling with his forelock. Her eyes softened as she looked at him.
My sister and I had little in common, but we both loved horses.
Gambler’s head jerked up, startling us both, but it was just the approach of four smoking hot cowboys.
“She’s back!” Grady’s smile was wide and grew even wider when his eyes landed on my sister.
Nope, I hadn’t imagined that. Good luck to him.
My heart skipped a beat when my eyes landed on Wyatt. I felt the fluttering in my stomach like a girl with a schoolyard crush.
“Well, you guys are a sight for scrambled brains,” I greeted them.
They laughed, except for Wyatt, who scowled at my joke.
I let myself out of the stall and elbowed him in the stomach. “Lighten up,” I teased and gave each of them a hug.
“So, how’s my boy been behaving?” I nodded towards Gambler.
Finn started, “The horse? Or Wyatt? Both could use some tuning—"
“Great on the trail, same old in the arena,” Wyatt interrupted, his eyes dark, intense, and unreadable. I didn’t miss the way his walls seemed to be firmly in place, like he had retreated to a fortress.
“Did you try him on the barrels?”
“Yeah, he tried to overshoot the first one every time,” Wyatt answered.
I nodded and chewed the inside of my cheek. So, it wasn’t just me who had this issue with Gambler.
“We’ll figure him out.” Finn throwing an arm around Wyatt’s shoulders. “He needs something to do.”
“I trust you guys.” I eyed the men with a rush of gratitude for how they’d stepped up to help me out. “Let me buy you all a round at the bar,” I offered, grinning. “As a thank you for taking care of the horses.”
The reaction wasn’t what I’d expected. They all exchanged shifty glances, their eyes darting to Wyatt like they were waiting for his cue.
Grady cleared his throat. “I was thinking we should have a bonfire instead. You know, hang out, relax...”
I raised an eyebrow. Since when did these guys turn down a chance to hit the bar?
