The Lady and the Cowboy by Winchester Catherine

Author:Winchester, Catherine [Winchester, Catherine]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Published: 2013-02-10T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

Angel’s training was done in the mornings, when it was cooler and so that the business of the ranch wasn’t too disrupted.

First Sam checked him over for injury, feeling for heat, swelling or tenderness. Next he was saddled and checked at walk and trot for lameness.

Sam and Ruth then headed to the outskirts of the farm to train over one or two mile distances, warming the horses up on the way. Sam rode over to the finish line and would fire his gun, Ruth would start galloping when she saw the flash and Sam would time them. Twice a week the other ranch hands rode with them, so Angel got used to competitive racing, even although none of his regular horses could match him.

They tried various techniques. Letting Angel have his head throughout the race, holding him back to begin with so that he didn’t tire himself out but they had discovered that by far the best technique, was for Ruth to keep Angel just behind the lead horse for the first part of the race, then let him fly in the last furlong. Angel’s natural competitive instinct seemed to kick in and he even bested all his own times.

They were always finished by 11 a.m. and often earlier, as they didn’t want to overwork Angel or risk a strain injury.

As such, they were finished rubbing down and grooming the horses by 11am on the Wednesday. They exercised the other horses on their roster for only 20 minutes, using the excuse that Sam wanted to show the rest of the ranch to Ruth. By 2 o’clock that afternoon, they were saddled with a picnic lunch courtesy of Mamma, and heading out on their last two mounts of the day to the stream that Sam had spoken about.

They didn’t talk much on the way, both nervous of the coming encounter. The area was a little hollow on the stream edge, shaded by a cluster of oak trees and in a dip between two hills, so they felt perfectly unobserved. They tied the horses to a pair of pitching rings that had been bolted into a tree trunk, many years ago judging by how rusty they were. They left the horses enough length to nibble on the patchy grass or drink from the water’s edge.

Sam spread a large blanket out for them to sit on, then began unpacking the food that Mamma had packed. They had bread, jam, potted meat, pickles, cookies and a bottle of lemonade, as well as metal plates and cups.

They sat in silence, only exchanging pleasantries as they handed or asked for something.

“We don’t have to do this,” Sam finally said.

Ruth looked up at him, her nerves and yes, just a little touch of fear evident.

“Did you get what we needed?” she asked and Sam knew she spoke of the birth control they had discussed.

He nodded.

“Can I… Can I see?” she asked, her cheeks turning a deep crimson shade.

Sam was a little taken aback by the request but he didn’t see why not and retrieved a small leather satchel from his saddle bags.

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