Trail Ride (9 page)

It was about nine o’clock, but the sun hadn’t completely set yet. One of the dreaded mosquitoes buzzed in her ear. She waved it away and began to ramble down the street, figuring that as long as she kept moving, she might keep the bugs at bay.

The distance between houses surprised her. Most of them were set far back from the main road, secluded by large trees, some even by small orchards. At one point she paused to look between the bars of a wrought iron gate at an old cemetery. She found graveyards fascinating, and she wished fervently that Lisa and Carole could be there to explore it with her.

She wandered a little farther along the road and was thinking of turning back when she noticed she was walking next to a wooden-railed fence. Beyond it was a grassy field with a small pond.
This would be a nice place to keep horses.

Up ahead, the fence veered out of sight around a bend in the road. As she rounded the corner, her heart leaped
with joy. Two horses stood grazing peacefully. One was a gray and the other a bay with two white socks.

Stevie was tempted to reach out and try to coax them closer. She would have loved to give them a pat on the nose and feel their warm breath on her hand. Instead she contented herself with leaning on the top rail and gazing at them. She didn’t even mind the mosquitoes.

“You like horses?”

Stevie let out a yip of surprise, which startled the animals. They threw up their heads and snorted, ears pricked in her direction.

The boy standing next to her was tall and thin. He had longish dark hair and deep brown eyes. “I didn’t hear you come up,” she said a little nervously, suddenly wondering how smart it was to go walking at night in a strange neighborhood without telling anyone where she was going.

“Yeah, I could tell by your reaction,” he laughed.

Nice laugh
, Stevie thought. “You could have made a noise or something,” she said, determined to hide her uneasiness.

“I did, actually, but you were mesmerized. Never seen a horse before?”

“Of course I have,” Stevie said scornfully. “In fact, I own one.”

“You do? That’s great!” He smiled.

Nice smile.

“I own two,” he told her.

Is he trying to impress me? Let’s see if he really knows anything about horses or if he’s only pretending.
“Really? What kind? Thoroughbreds? Geldings?”

The boy looked disappointed. “I thought you said you owned your own horse.”

“I do.”

“Then you should know that a Thoroughbred is a breed of horse, while a gelding is a male horse that’s been fixed.” He turned away from her. “Good night.”

Stevie felt ashamed. She had tried to trick him into revealing himself as a horse fraud, and instead it looked as if she was the pretender. “Wait!” she called and hurried after him. “Look, I’m sorry. I’m from Virginia, and I’m visiting my cousin here, and she pretended to like horses in order to tease me and I fell for it and I felt like a fool, so when you said you had two of your own, I automatically didn’t believe you and decided to test you, which was incredibly rude of me and I’m really sorry.” Stevie hadn’t intended to say that much, but it all came out in an uncontrolled rush.

The boy considered her for a moment, then laughed and held out a hand. “I’m Will.”

Really nice laugh.
“Stevie,” she said, shaking his hand.

“One question. Do all the people in Virginia talk so fast?”

Stevie blushed. “Or so much? No. But I haven’t had anyone to talk to in days.”

“Would you like to meet my horses?”

Would I!
“Are they very far from here? I really shouldn’t go much farther without telling my parents.”

“How about I bring them to you?” he suggested with a grin.

“You’d do that?”

“I can tell you’re suffering from a lack of equine companionship. As a fellow rider, it’s practically my duty to help if I can.”

Stevie laughed. “Will it take long?”

“Not if they’re in a good mood.” He winked at her, returned to the fence, and let out a series of low, lilting whistles.

To Stevie’s surprise, the two horses that had been grazing lifted their heads and trotted obediently over to where Will waited at the fence. “Stevie, I’d like you to meet Honey and Sugar.”

“These are your horses?”

“Yep. Actually, this is my family’s farm.”

Stevie held out a hand for the animals to sniff. “Honey and Sugar?”

Will looked embarrassed. “I know they’re goofy names, but I promised my kid sister she could name them, and that’s what she chose.”

“Sweet.”

“I know,” he said with a shrug. “Honey and Sugar.”

“Not their names. I think it’s sweet that you let her name them.” She laughed. “And even sweeter that you kept the names after she did.”

He reddened and stared at his shoes.

Before long Stevie found herself describing Pine Hollow Stables; her horse, Belle; and, of course, her Saddle Club friends.

Somewhere during the conversation, Will invited her to sit on one of the horses. “We’ll be more comfortable.”

Stevie didn’t need to be asked twice, and with barely a pause in her story, she slipped onto Honey’s back. It was pure heaven. It almost felt like coming home. She had a sudden rush of emotion, and for a moment she was afraid she’d burst into tears in front of her new friend. She had been so miserable and lonely for the last few days, Will’s simple act of kindness almost overwhelmed her.

Will talked, too, telling Stevie about life on the farm
and his friends and school, but mostly they talked about horses.

The two of them circled the field, never breaking out of a slow walk, but it was enough.

Finally Stevie knew she had to get back to her family; sooner or later she would be missed. “Thanks, Will. I think you saved my life,” she said earnestly. “Or at least my sanity.”

Will looked embarrassed. “Any time. If you get trapped at your cousin’s house again, feel free to come over.”

Stevie hurried back to the party, which was in full swing. The first person she bumped into was Dava, who was chatting with Alex.

“Well, well, Cinderella returns to the ball,” snickered Dava, looking down her nose. “Except it looks like the clock has already tolled midnight.”

Stevie thought about how disheveled she must look. The humidity had caused her hair to curl riotously, her sleeves were rolled back, her clothes were covered with little hairs, and she was certain she smelled of horses. She smiled blissfully.

“What’s with her?” Dava demanded of Alex when Stevie didn’t respond to her taunt.

Alex took one look at his sister and knew. “She’s found a horse,” he said. “You been riding, Stevie?”

“Uh-huh.” Stevie couldn’t wipe the contented smile off her face.

“Not a chance,” Dava declared. “The only horses around here belong to …” She frowned and sniffed the air. “You
have
been riding!” she accused Stevie. “Wait until I tell the owners. You are going to be in major trouble!”

The smile left Alex’s face. “Cut it out, Dava. Stevie wouldn’t ride someone’s horse without permission. And what are you, anyway, some kind of professional tattletale?”

Stevie felt a surge of affection for her twin. “It’s okay, Alex. As a matter of fact”—she allowed herself a slight smile—“I did have the owner’s permission.” She turned her back on Dava. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have an e-mail to write.”

Stevie left them with her head held high and a spring in her step. She had taken a bareback moonlit ride on a horse in the company of a handsome stranger. Lisa and Carole were going to have to work hard to top that!

“C
OME ON
,
YOU
lazy thing,” Lisa called to Chocolate. “An early morning ride will do you good.”

“We’re not even going to saddle you,” Carole told Berry as she led him through the gate.

The two girls had decided on a prebreakfast bareback ride to watch the sunrise.

Lisa managed to get a hold of her horse. “I wonder how Kate is? It feels kind of strange doing this without her.”

Carole slipped the bridle over Berry’s head and offered him the bit. “We can do it again tomorrow if she’s feeling better.”

“You know we hang horse thieves around here,”
Paula said. She was standing in the opening of the barn holding a grooming kit.

Lisa felt herself flush as though she had been caught doing something wrong. “We thought we’d take a ride.”

Paula shook her head.

“We can’t take a ride?” Carole asked.

“You can do whatever you want,” Paula assured them. “But you’ve picked the wrong time to do it.”

Lisa was puzzled. It looked like a beautiful morning to her. “We have?”

“You ought to be going tonight. We’re expecting a meteor shower.” Paula delivered the news with all the enthusiasm of someone announcing a garbage strike.

“Thanks for the information. We’ll be sure to go out tonight then as well,” Carole said.

“Two pleasure rides in one day.” The wrangler shrugged. “Some people have got the life. It’s back to work for me.” She trudged off.

Lisa stifled a giggle. “Nice of her to tell us.”

Carole was grinning, too. “Come on. We’d better get going or we’ll be late getting back for breakfast.”

They headed for lookout point, the highest spot on the ranch, knowing from experience that the sunrise from there would be spectacular. On the way, they
passed a herd of horses kept for the use of the guests. The girls agreed that watching them grazing in the predawn gave them a sense of tranquillity they missed during the school year back in Willow Creek.

The dawn was everything they could wish for—the mountains turning pink and yellow as the sun rose over the craggy peaks, the air crisp and fresh.

They made it back to the ranch in time for the breakfast feast that Mrs. Devine provided each morning. Helping herself to a second serving of steak and scrambled eggs, Lisa noticed Carole lethargically pushing her food around her plate. “I can’t believe you’re not hungry,” she said. “Early morning rides always make me ravenous.”

“I was thinking about Kate. Her mom must be pretty worried if she called the doctor.”

Upon returning from their ride they had learned that Kate was not only still running a fever but had been sick to her stomach during the night. Mrs. Devine had left a message for the doctor, but he hadn’t returned her call yet. “Moms always worry too much. I’m sure Kate will be back on her feet tomorrow.”

Carole pushed her half-eaten breakfast away. “In the meantime, that leaves us on our own today. Got any ideas?”

“Feel up to a little honest work?” Paula asked from her place down the table.

“What did you have in mind?” Carole asked.

“I have to ride out to check on some of the free-range horses to make sure none of them are hurt or sick. Kate mentioned you were studying with a veterinarian. I thought you might find it interesting.”

“That would be great, Paula,” Carole told her happily. “Thanks for asking.”

“Mind if I tag along, too? Lisa asked, not wanting to be left out. “I’ll try to keep out from under foot.”

“Suit yourself,” Paula told her. “See you in a little while.”

“Gee, I’m overwhelmed by her enthusiasm,” Lisa said, feeling like a third wheel on a bicycle.

“Actually, I think she’s warming up,” Carole said.

“Don’t be hurt, Lisa,” Mrs. Devine told her. “A ‘suit yourself’ coming from Paula is practically an engraved invitation. Carole’s right, she must have taken a real liking to you two.”

Lisa and Carole helped clean up the breakfast dishes, then decided to quickly check on any new e-mails from Stevie before going out to meet Paula.

“A horseback ride with a boy,” Lisa crowed as she read. “Sounds as if things are looking up for Stevie. I’d
like to have seen the look on Dava’s face when she found out.”

Carole raised her eyebrows. “I’d like to see the look on her boyfriend Phil’s face when he finds out.”

“Nobody’s more faithful than Stevie,” Lisa declared. “Besides, this thing was probably exactly what she needed to restore her confidence.”

“Shall we tell her about our ride this morning?”

“Of course,” Lisa said automatically, then had second thoughts. “Just be sure to tell her how cold and wet it was.”

“Cold and wet?” Carole protested. “It was beautiful.”

“The last time we got happy news from Stevie, it turned out her cousin was playing a nasty joke on her, remember? What if this new relationship turns sour?”

“Hmmm,” mumbled Carole. “Good point. There
was
dew on the grass.”

“Dew is very wet stuff,” Lisa told her with a wink. Carole nodded. “Very wet.”

“And if that morning breeze had kicked up a little more, it definitely could have been cold,” added Lisa.

“True,” said Carole. “Wet and cold.” She broke into a conspiratorial grin. “You’re learning fast, Lisa.”

“W
E ALWAYS KEEP
a small herd of horses near the ranch for the use of the guests,” Paula explained as they rode.
“But we also have a group of animals that are allowed pretty much the run of our range. Every now and then I need to check on them.”

“There they are!” Carole exclaimed.