Straight For The Heart by McDonough Vickie

Author:McDonough, Vickie
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2013-08-16T04:00:00+00:00

Nine

“Come closer and watch me, Ryan.” Holding two new horseshoes, the boy approached cautiously on Quinn’s right. He lifted the mare’s rear hoof between his legs and held up a tool. “This is a hoof pick. It’s used to scrape out packed dirt, manure, and small stones from a horse’s hoof.”

Quinn cleaned the hoof and removed the old shoe. Ryan watched with something that looked like admiration on his face. “Hand me those nippers. You use them to trim the hoof wall.” He quickly trimmed the hoof and used a rasp from his back pocket to smooth it out.

“I’ve already sized the shoes for this mare, so all that’s left is to put on the new one.” Ryan handed him a shoe, and Quinn tapped it on with a nailing hammer.

“What about the nail points sticking through the shoe?” Ryan asked as he bent closer, blocking the light.

“Clinch the nails—bend the ends—to keep the shoe from coming off. After that, smooth things with the rasp, and then you get to do that three more times.” He dropped the mare’s hoof, patted her rump, and rubbed his lower back. Ryan picked up the old shoe and examined it.

Quinn smiled and lightly squeezed the boy’s shoulder. At least Ryan was no longer flinching whenever he touched him. Since acquiring a new family, Quinn had chosen chores that kept him closer to home. For someone who’d been a loner for so long, it was a big change. He bent and lodged the horse’s front hoof between his legs, dug out a stone, and grated down the hoof. “Hand me the rasp again.”

Ryan stood beside him watching each thing he did. Adam had never been so interested in ranching. He’d done what had to be done but would slip off and draw pictures if their pa didn’t keep a close eye on him. Ryan wanted to learn everything. He’d probably asked Quinn a hundred questions. With the new shoe nailed on, he lowered the hoof and patted the mare again. Why couldn’t women be so easy to handle? “See, it’s simple.”

“Maybe to you.” Ryan shrugged.

“It will be to you one day, too, after you’ve shod a few dozen horses.”

He finished the last two hooves and then let the boy lead the horse into the corral and release her. Ryan was a quick learner. His coloring and features hardly resembled his big sister, except for those brilliant blue eyes they all had.

The odor of cattle hung on the cool breeze, reminding him of all the chores that needed doing. Fences needed mending. This spring’s crop of calves still needed to be branded. His wife needed a real husband.

He shook his head, leaned on the corral, and lifted his foot to the first rail. Had it been a mistake to marry Sarah? Weren’t she and the kids much better off?

Ryan closed the gate and mirrored his stance but remained silent. Quinn’s thoughts veered to Sarah and how she had insisted he sleep on the bed. Ever

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