“That’s the best part. The dinner practically cooks itself. You pretty much just have to sit back and relax.”
“I believe I’m qualified for that. Let’s do it.”
He spun Ricochet around in a tight circle three times.
“Are you doing that on purpose?” She wasn’t sure if his horse had been bitten by something or what, but then she noticed Adam’s smile. “What are you doing?”
“Celebrating,” he said. “Come on. Follow me.”
11
Adam hadn’t been sure thatMerry Anna would go for the whole-day ride and the dutch-oven dinner he’d planned. If she hadn’t, he’d have had a whopping lot of food down there at the horse trailer to cook up and eat by himself. He’d taken the day off from the feedstore, leaving Jim to take care of things. One of these days, he should probably let Jim buy him out completely, but it was his one tie back to Grandpa, and he just couldn’t let go of it, even if it was mostly breakeven the past couple of years.
It had been a long while since he’d taken time to just have fun. No ranch responsibilities. No rodeo to travel to. And best of all, with Merry Anna, there were no games and no expectations, so they could actually just relax and have fun. Just friends.
He and Merry Anna rode the trail. The horses did most of the work, and she looked as though she’d been riding for years, sitting relaxed in the saddle, her feet just kind of bumping along in the stirrups. She hadn’t complained about a thing.
“Do you know what that sweet smell is?” she asked.
He took a whiff. “Oh yeah, that’s honeysuckle.” It delighted him how she was taking notice of things.
“I really like it.”
He steered his horse over to the right and pointed it out. “See? There’s tons of it.”
“I smell it. Oh gosh. I don’t think I’ve ever smelled something so sweet.”
“I think that’s one of those smells those aromatherapy people have missed out on.”
“We never slept with the windows open where I used to live. I really love it.”
“Where did you used to live?”
Her lips parted, and then she said, “Up near DC.”
She seemed to watch for his reaction, which was hard to hold back. “DC? You don’t seem like a city girl.”
“And what doesthatmean?”
“I don’t know. You seem nice and not all frantic.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“It is one. What made you come to Antler Creek?”
She wiped her hand on her pant leg and regripped the reins. “That’s kind of a long story.”
She didn’t elaborate, and he didn’t press. He found that people would tell their stories when they were ready. Pressing never did serve a purpose, and it wasn’t all that important anyway.
He took her up his favorite trail, stopping at the top to let her look down across the town.
“It’s so beautiful. Peaceful,” she remarked. Then she sat quietly.
There was something special about watching someone find a moment of peace. This place had that effect on folks. He let her take all the time she needed. This was his favorite place in the world.
A couple of silent moments passed. He reached into hissaddlebag and took out two bottles of water. After opening one, he handed it to her.
“Thank you.”
