Montana Christmas Magic by Casey Dawes

Author:Casey Dawes
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: F+W Media
Published: 2016-11-22T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

Logan cornered Douglas and asked him if he knew anything that Willy had been planning in terms of livestock.

“He loved to go to Vegas, particularly during the national rodeo. He was getting real interested in rescuing rodeo stock—running the horses on the range once their usefulness was over. He had the land and money enough. I didn’t know he’d moved from talking to doing, though. Can I see her?”

Logan let Julie know where he was going, and they walked across to the structure.

“She’s a beauty,” Douglas said when Logan led the mare out of her stall.

Lefty nickered her agreement.

“Can I see?” A young girl, about twelve or thirteen, dashed into the barn, followed by two more.

How had they known?

“Did you really expect to walk into a barn alone?” Douglas chuckled. “Kids are always keeping their eye out, especially if it’s a strange place that needs exploring.”

“Wow, she’s pretty,” the first girl said. “I bet she’d make a good barrel racer. Wouldn’t you girl?” She walked close, and Lefty nuzzled her.

The horse did have an affinity for women.

“Have you put a saddle on her?” Douglas asked.

“Not yet.” Would he ever get to a place where he’d think about putting a saddle on a horse? Not that he knew how to go about the process.

“Why don’t you let her out into the corral? The kids would like it, and she could use the exercise.” Julie’s soft voice echoed in the barn.

He nodded and led the mare from the barn. Soon there was a crowd looking at the animal.

But no one knew where she’d come from.

The party began to wind down in time for attendees to get home or to travel to where the fireworks were being held. Sarah was one of the last ones to leave. She embraced him in a giant bear hug.

“Willy would have been proud of what you’ve done for the ranch and the spread you put out for people. You’re becoming a part of this community—a good part. You should think harder about moving here permanently. It suits you.”

He nodded politely.

After they’d cleaned up the last of the trash, he cracked open two beers that were left and offered one to Julie. “Special reward. Thanks for all your help.” He gestured to the two Adirondack chairs that faced the sun setting over the mountains. “Unless you want to go to the fireworks ...” He hadn’t even thought about it. Didn’t small-town girls live on small-town traditions?

She shook her head. “Too much noise. They’re pretty once in a while, but we’ve been with people all day. I’m kinda wrung out.”

“What did the gallery owner say?”

“She’s willing to take a look—especially since I’m already in one gallery and I’ve sold a painting. Now, all I need to do is paint another one.”

“Must be hard to keep up with your job.”

“Yeah. Sue Anne’s pretty understanding, and I need that base salary for now.” She gave him a quick glance. “That’s why I thought the retreat idea would be perfect for me.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.