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“Erin has to go work with your grandma for a bit,” Erin replies.“But you go have fun with your two guys, okay?”
“Okay!Johnny!”Holly races off to find her brother and share the good news.
“They love the horses,” I say.
“I know.They talk about them often.”
“Have you ever ridden?”
Erin shakes her head.“No.I’m not so great with heights, so I don’t know that it’s for me.”
“It’s notthathigh up,” I disagree.
“I can’t touch the ground with my feet, so it’s high enough.I don’t know, I might try it sometime.Do you need anything before I head over to your parents’ place?”
“No, thanks.We probably won’t be gone long.Holly doesn’t have much stamina yet.”
“She’ll get there,” Erin says.“Have fun.”
Before she can walk away, I catch her hand in mine and tug her close.Her face lifts, ready for my lips, and I don’t disappoint her.I kiss this woman every chance I get.
“Mm,” she says when she pulls away.“That’ll tide me over for a while.”
Erin leaves just as the kids hurry out of Johnny’s room.
“Can I wear my cowboy hat, Dad?”Johnny asks, the brown hat already on his head.“If we’re gonna be doing some cowboying, I need a hat.”
“You can wear it,” I reply.
“I need mine, too,” Holly decides and hurries over to her bedroom.Seconds later, she returns with her purple hat on her head.“I can even wear it with my pretty braids.”
“I see that.Okay, buckaroos, let’s go saddle up some horses.”
“Someday,I’ll be able to saddle my own horse,” Johnny mutters as we set out on the trail that leads us deep into our property.
“You pretty much did it all by yourself,” I remind him.
“Not really.Lucky had to help.”
“Well, saddles are heavy, and horses are tall.It’s not easy, even for grown men sometimes.You’ll get there, buddy.”
“Yeah,” Holly adds.“You’re only eight.Cut yourself some slack.”
I have to press my lips together so I don’t laugh out loud.
“Are we going to the special place?”Holly asks.
“I thought we would, yeah.It’s pretty this time of year.”
And it’s not a hard or long ride from the barn, making it easier on the kids.It’s a gorgeous late spring day.The trees are all green now, and some wildflowers are starting to pop up here and there, spattering the property in pops of red and yellow.
Holly’s already starting to fade on her horse by the time we reach our destination.
Our whole family has loved this particular spot for generations.The view of the mountains is mesmerizing, and sometimes you get lucky and spot a deer or a bear.I’ve even seen moose out here.
“It’s so pretty,” Holly whispers, looking up at the mountains.“Are thoseourmountains, Daddy?”
“Pieces of them.Mostly, we just use them to look at because they’re too high up for anything else.”
