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“They have good food. I take the florist there sometimes.”
She ignored him. She was jealous of the florist. It would never do to let him know it. “Thanks again.”
She started limping back toward the ranch house.
“You have to start out riding every day to build up those muscles in your legs,” he called after her. “Sitting in the living room knitting doesn’t teach squat.”
“Thank you for that brilliant observation, Mr. Blake.”
There was a soft chuckle before she shut the door behind her.
* * *
She soaked in a hot tub of water, groaning at the protesting muscles. She hadn’t ridden in a long time. She knew the cowboys were probably out there with the so-superior Dal Blake laughing their heads off at their tenderfoot boss. Clearly, a few more YouTube videos were going to be necessary for her to learn anything about the ranch. Maybe one or two on horse riding and how to handle a runaway. But not tonight. She had a date!
* * *
Jeff gave her a grin when he saw the way she was walking. She wore a simple gray pantsuit tonight, with a pink camisole underneath, and wool-lined leather boots with her Berber coat. One thing she had learned was how to dress for the cold.
Jeff was wearing a heavy coat, too, over jeans and a long-sleeved shirt. They’d agreed that it was going to be an informal evening. Meadow was grateful. Her legs were still killing her.
“I hear you had an adventure today,” he remarked when they were walking through the line past all the delicious food that servers were putting on plates for them.
She grimaced. “I guess Dal told you.”
“He said a horse ran away with you,” he replied. He wasn’t going to add that his best friend sounded worried about her, or that his concern had shown. “You need riding lessons. It’s been a long time since you’ve been on horseback, hasn’t it?”
“Yes, it has,” she said reluctantly. “All I could do was hang on. I jerked the bridle. Apparently the horse is high strung. I should have picked a gentler one.”
“Need to let your men do that for you,” he said.
“I know. I was in a hurry. I just picked a horse and told them to saddle it. Ted tried to argue with me, but . . .” She grimaced. “I was bullheaded. I’m like my dad, I guess.”
He laughed. “Nothing wrong with being stubborn sometimes. It’s what leads to solving cold cases.”
“I suppose so.”
“Legs sore?”
She laughed. “Does it show?”
“Well, you’re pretty much walking like a senior citizen,” he added when they’d gone through the line and were sitting in a booth.
“I’d forgotten how sore it could make you,” she confessed. “I always liked to ride, but I’ve never been good at it. I’m afraid of horses,” she added, lowering her voice. “This isn’t the first time I’ve had one run away with me. The last time ended badly. It stopped suddenly and I went over its head into a shallow stream. Hit my head.” She frowned. “I was sixteen. I’d forgotten.”
“Your dad took you to a doctor, didn’t he?”
“I was riding with my mother, in Mississippi. Our cousin has a big farm there, and he keeps quarter horses that he’d let us ride on his place.” She hesitated. “Mom took me to the doctor, but he didn’t do tests. He checked me out and said I had a mild concussion. I wasn’t ever in real danger.”
“I see.”
“But it sort of put me off horseback riding, if you get my drift.” She laughed.
“I can see why!”
“This is really good,” she exclaimed, having tasted the rare steak she’d ordered.
“They use a lot of spices,” he said. “It brings out the flavor.” He closed his eyes as he chewed and moaned softly. “Gosh, this is great!”
