Montana Heartbeat by Vella Munn

Author:Vella Munn [Munn, Vella]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Prairie Rose Publications
Published: 2019-09-18T18:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

It took a while for Strong Eagle to take off Bea’s saddle and bridle because the mare couldn’t hold still. He waited until he was finished with her before drawing the bit out of Black’s mouth and swatting him on the rump. Black pranced to Bea’s back end and rose onto his hind legs. Instead of letting him finish what he’d started, Bea moved as if intending to follow the herd.

“Oh, no,” Carrie exclaimed. “If they run away—“

“They won’t.”

“How can you be sure?”

For the first time since he’d spotted her, he gave Carrie his full attention. She’d twisted her hair on top of her head, but some of it had come loose. The way it brushed her cheeks gave her a feminine touch he wished he could ignore. She repeatedly closed and opened her fingers, which he took as proof of how much effort it had taken for her to control the mare—but she’d done it.

Now that he wasn’t concerned for her safety, his mind opened up. He’d been thinking about her more than he’d wanted to. Certainly hadn’t suspected he’d see her today, especially not here. She’d come alone.

A low whinny had her taking a few steps toward the horses. Then, she stopped. “You’re right. It looks like they aren’t interested in anything except each other.”

It’s the same for me. I don’t want it to be, but it is.

Shaken by his admission, he tried to focus on the animals. Carrie’s mare pranced in place, moving about too much for Black to pin her under him. He kept trying.

“Why are you here?” he asked.

“The creek—the longhorns—part of it is because I was hoping to see the horse herd. I figured there was a chance they’d be around here.”

“Part of it?”

She captured a few hairs and pressed them against her head. “I’m a mess. Mama wouldn’t approve of—right now I don’t care what she does or doesn’t approve of.”

“Why don’t you care?”

“You would ask, wouldn’t you? All right, I’m feeling trapped.” She kicked at dirt then sat on a large clump of grass. She gave no indication she cared about soiling her skirt.

“Trapped by what?”

“My life.” She yanked a blade of grass from the ground and wrapped it around a forefinger.

“Your father was going to take you to Bozeman. Did he?”

“Yes. Yesterday.”

Strong Eagle had spent yesterday morning on an unsuccessful deer hunt, then had devoted the afternoon to helping his father replenish his supply of arrows. He’d been tempted to point out that maintaining bows and arrows didn’t make much sense now that everyone had rifles, but he understood his father’s need to hold onto what represented his youth. The whole time he’d been peeling the bark off straight, slender branches, his thoughts had been on the Berrymen ranch, or rather on the woman who was sitting near him.

“Was the meeting what your father wanted it to be?”

Instead of answering, she studied the horses. Bea was pretending to be grazing, her teeth barely brushing the grass. She held her tail high and to the side.

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