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“Nope.”
“Then we’re good. Go ahead and make that call.”
He made his way outside and located Brittany in the arena with the crazy mustang. Only the mare didn’t look so wild anymore. She accepted the bit-less hackamore, and was equally tolerant of the saddle.
Casey joined Joel on his way over to the fence.
“Things look to be going well in there,” he commented to the wrangler as the mare obediently moved out on the lunge line to circle the enclosure.
“Really well, especially when you consider that first day when you were here. She’s got a gift.”
With more than just the horses.
They talked in low voices as Brittany gave the mare a good workout. When she brought the mare to a halt and drew her in, Joel could hear her soft words of praise for the horse. After a few sweeps of her hand along its neck, she shifted to where she could lift a boot up to the stirrup.
“Didn’t know she was doing this today,” Casey muttered.
“First ride?”
“Yep.?
?
Joel tensed as she pulled herself into a standing position in the stirrup, but didn’t swing her leg over. The mare scooted sideways and Brittany remained standing until she came to a halt.
“Shouldn’t you or Mark be doing that?”
Casey shook his head. “This is her baby. Surely you know her well enough by now to know she’d never hand over the reins for this ride.”
It may be true, but he still didn’t like it. He climbed up onto the fence, ready to jump in should she need help. Casey stood on the bottom board and watched beside him.
With the mare at a standstill, Brittany swung her leg over her back and settled nice and easy into the saddle. She gave it a moment, then dismounted and did the same on the other side. He was impressed with her patience. Back where he came from, many of the ranchers hopped up and held on tight until the horse stopped bucking.
Brittany took a moment to pause in front of the mare. She stroked her forehead before moving back to the horse’s left side to mount a third time. She kept talking in that soft voice of hers as she settled into the saddle. Gathering the reins, she shortened the one on the left side and nudged her heel against the horse’s belly.
The mare skittered sideways again, but when she tried to lower her head to start bucking, the shortened rein kept her head up, and Brittany kept her moving.
“You really think she’ll head back to the city?” Joel asked. He felt Casey’s gaze on him, but didn’t take his eyes off the girl and horse. From the corner of his eye, he saw the other man shrug.
“It’d be great if Britt would do what she wants to do, but her dad’s a pretty formidable force. If Mark hadn’t needed her this summer, she’d be working in that high rise right now.”
Joel couldn’t picture the woman before him in her dusty jeans and cotton shirt sitting behind a desk in downtown Chicago. If she ended up there, would she let this talent go to waste?
Casey hopped back off the fence. “Good talking to you, Joel, but I’ve still got work to do, so I’ll catch ya later. Good ride, Britt!”
She’d slowed the mare to a walk, and reined her to a halt in the center of the enclosure. As she shifted her weight to dismount, a motorcycle roared to life from the direction of the Sports Center. Whether it was a Harley Davidson, or the owner simply wanted it to sound like one, the peace-shattering noise was more than enough to detonate the mare’s flight instincts.
She flinched with her whole body, then exploded. Head down, she lunged forward in a series of stiff-legged hops.
“Pull her head up!” Joel called.
But Brittany’s balance was off, and with the next forward plunge, the mare unseated her. Joel cringed as she flew off and landed on the ground. His heart lodged in his throat when she didn’t move.
Chapter 22
Britt blinked at the blue sky above her. Comprehension flooded in as a figure blocked out the light. Joel’s face wavered above her, then she blinked his concerned expression into focus. No more than she moved to get up, his hand shot out to hold her down.
“Stay still. Does it hurt anywhere?”
