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With that thought, he grinned and couldn’t keep the smile off his face the whole way to his brother Matt’s stable.
“Hey there,” Matt greeted him as he stepped into the warm, cozy stable where the smell of horse hung heavy in the air.
He would never get tired of that scent, never get tired of the sounds of the stable, the munching of hay, the occasional slurp from a water bucket, or the thump as a hoof hit the wall, whether impatient for its feed or kicking at flies.
“Morning, bro.” He paused as Matt looked up at him from where he stood in front of the calendar, writing in a feed ration for their newest horse. His riding stables had been so popular over the last year that he’d added a couple of new horses to his herd, hoping that he could keep up with the bookings of tourists over the coming season.
“Do you have plans for later today?” Ryan asked, figuring there was no point in beating around the bush.
“Nothing aside from making sure the kids get on the bus and moving some hay from the upper barn down here. We’re almost out.”
“Would you have time to run in to Blueberry Beach to wire money for me?”
“What did you do now?” Matt said, concern lowering his brows but a smile tugging at his lips. Ryan wasn’t exactly known as a hothead, but he had done his share of crazy things over the years.
“I’m buying a horse. My buddy’s gonna get her for me, and I told him I’d wire him the money today.”
“Don’t you want to get a vet check?”
“He’s got a contract he’ll have her sign, and the sale will be contingent on the horse passing a PPE,” he said, referencing the prepurchase exam.
“All right. I was concerned you’d gone off the deep end.”
“This horse is worth it. Even if she can’t do anything but carry babies, she’s a once-in-a-lifetime horse, and I’m lucky to be able to get my hands on her.”
“I see. I guess in that case, you don’t ask too many questions.”
“Exactly,” Ryan said, glad that Matt got it. Some people would think he was nuts for spending the kind of money that he was going to on a horse. But he knew what she was worth and knew the amount of money that he could make off of her. Not to mention, she was a gorgeous horse with a great personality.
He loved horses, but he was wise enough to know that he couldn’t just have horses for the sake of having horses. He didn’t have that kind of money. Only people who were born with money or who had a job that enabled them to have money to burn could do that. Ryan had to make money with them if he wanted to be able to continue to have them. And he did. Horses were in his blood.
“Sure. I can head that way.”
Ryan felt his phone vibrate and pulled it out of his pocket. “She’s already signed the contract.”
“What’s her name?”
“I’m not sure. She had a friend posting the horse, and Denver is the one who told me. I honestly have no idea. But Denver will make sure all my bases are covered with transferring her papers, and she agreed to my terms, which is that Goldie will pass a PPE and have a negative five panel of course, as well as a negative Coggins.”
“Of course.”
That was pretty much industry standard. They couldn’t ship a horse without a negative Coggins and health certificate. The PPE went a little further, and the five panel was a typical request.
They settled a few more details, with Denver agreeing to go get the horse, and in five minutes, Ryan shoved his phone back in his pocket.
He just bought a horse.
Part of him was really excited, because he knew the quality of the horse that he’d gotten. But part of him was a little annoyed that he was that much further from owning his own place.
Regardless, maybe something would come up for sale that would be a little less expensive than the places that he’d been looking at. He didn’t want to move too far from Strawberry Sands. His entire family was here.
There was a time in his life where he said he’d never go back to his hometown. Never move back home. That time was long gone. After being on the rodeo circuit for as many years as what he had, he’d learned to appreciate the value of family. The way he could depend on his siblings to back him, that he could call them up and they would give him a hand immediately. He didn’t have too many people he felt comfortable sharing the bank account with, but he trusted his brother Matt completely.
Matt had bailed him out more than once and helped him when he needed it. He’d needed Matt on his bank account in case he needed something done while he was on the road and couldn’t find a branch of his bank in the area he was in.
Back in the old days anyway. Now with Internet banking, he could bank pretty much anywhere. But it didn’t used to be like that.
Regardless, he grinned to himself, and got to work, feeding the horses. They chatted while they worked, with Matt eventually saying he could finish up if Ryan wanted to head out.
