Mail Order Isabella by Jo Grafford

Author:Jo Grafford [Grafford, Jo]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: JG PRESS
Published: 2020-09-25T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 5: Schemes and Consequences

Reed

Reed jogged blindly for the barn to saddle up his horse. He had no idea where he was going, only that he needed to gallop off some steam before he cracked.

He marched straight up to Barnhart’s stall. Though the Sullivans owned a prime collection of horses, this one was his favorite ride. An enormous black stallion that everyone else claimed was wild and unpredictable, they suited each other to perfection.

“That’s right, my friend.” Reed mounted the majestic creature and leaned over to pat his neck. “They say the same things about me.” He had to duck to one side to avoid being smashed in the nose as the horse tossed his head. Then he leaned forward for leverage as the creature reared back on his hind legs.

Dancing back down on all fours, the horse launched into a gallop with little urging. They burst through the open double doors of the stable and careened across the riding ring.

“Whoa! Who-o-a-a!” Their groom, Carnegie, called in warning, but Reed pretended not to hear. He gave Barnhart more rein and headed straight for the fence. In one fluid motion, he and the horse sailed across the top of it.

Digging in his heels, he urged the creature on. “Show me what you’ve got!” he cried gleefully. It felt good to break free at last. Reed was tired of toeing the line. Tired of following the rules. Tired of trying to please everyone. It never worked, at any rate, so he wasn’t sure why he kept trying.

All he knew for sure was that things had been rough at the Silver Shoe Ranch ever since Pa died. Though Tex didn’t think his younger brother was responsible enough to notice such things at the green age of one and twenty, he did. Reed noticed lots of things. He noticed the way Ma was fading away in her grief like a broken flower. He noticed how Grandpop’s hair had gone from speckled black and silver to a solid white over the past year. He noticed the worry lines permanently creasing the edges of his older brother’s eyes, even though he was only five years his senior. And he felt powerless to do anything about it.

Watching Tex get himself engaged to the brittle, shallow Dakota Starling had been the last straw. At first, Reed had been aghast that the older brother he’d always looked up to could be such a fool. And then he’d gotten angry and done something about it.

So maybe my methods aren’t the smoothest or the most polished, but at least I did something!

A distant shout had him jolting in the saddle. A glance over his shoulder proved his older brother was in hot pursuit. What the—? Alarm curdled in Reed’s chest. Barnhart wasn’t exactly the kind of creature to listen to orders the first time they were given. Or the second. Or the third. He was half-wild and reckless, and he usually needed to run awhile before wearing himself out.

Since Tex was joining them, however, Reed didn’t want to risk his brother’s safety like that.

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