Page 23 of A Cameo for a Cowgirl

“I don’t know about you, but I think Buddy might be getting a little bored in here. Want to hit some trails?”

“You mean we can go further afield?”

Ted nodded. “One of the reasons we love this place so much is that the ranch owners basically give us license to use the surrounding acres. And we’re talking thousands of acres.”

“Imagine being that rich.”

Ted shrugged. “I like that it’s a family business, and the Three Creek Ranch has been in the same family for generations. It’s not one of these corporations that buy up ranches like what often happens these days.”

Yeah, he supposed that was a good thing. “So, where do you want to go?”

“There’s a stream not too far away. I bet Buddy would like the chance to stretch his legs, and it’ll give you somewhere new to see.”

“We can just go there?”

“As long as if we open any gates we close them behind us, then the owners are happy for us to use the land. It’s not like the cattle aren’t used to people on horseback, either. And I think the James family don’t mind us keeping an eye on things to make sure their stock is safe too. Come on. It’ll be fun. More fun than baking to a crisp hanging around here in the sun.”

“Sounds good.”

A short time later he was cantering across the long grass, beyond the western town. Judging from the tree shadows this direction was north. He wondered how long it would take to ride to the main road, then wondered about who maintained all this land. It was one thing to have thousands of acres, but it must take a huge team to mend fences and keep livestock safe.

But he could appreciate why they hadn’t sold their land. The vistas here were amazing, the view to the Rockies like a cowboy’s dream. He reined in Buddy and drank it in, before a faint sound drew his attention. He glanced to the side, cocking his ear.

Ted turned Nancy back and drew alongside. “All good?”

“I thought I heard something.”

Ted grinned. “That’d be the sound of enjoyment. Go on, you can tell me. You’re enjoying riding, aren’t you?”

“It’s not as bad as I remember.”

“I’m counting that as a win.”

“And I do appreciate the trouble you’re taking with me.”

“Oh, yeah, it’s a real hardship going for a ride in this beautiful area. Such a chore.” Ted pulled out his phone, read a message, winced. “I gotta go. One of the horses is sick. Now you remember which way we came?”

“That way?” He pointed in the direction he thought they came.

“Good. I’ll see you there soon. Take it easy and you’ll be fine, okay?”

Ted took off, not waiting for an answer, but something held Harrison back. He didn’t want to speed home—Ted was clearly in a hurry, and Harrison would only slow him down—and he was still curious about the sound he’d heard before. It had sounded like a shout, like someone was hurt, and if that was the case, then he couldn’t leave whoever it was here. Memories flashed of his mom, her cries of pain, while he’d hidden under the bed.

He shook his head, trying to free himself of the memories. It wouldn’t be that bad, surely. Although, while Ted had assured that there weren’t bears around here, how could the man be sure? This ranch was huge, and what exactly was stopping a bear, or bear posse, from moving down from the mountains to get themselves a nice meal of prime beef? He’d seen the cattle around here. They were huge, and looked like just the right sort of animal to tempt a hungry bear to a snack. And it wouldn’t take much longer for the bear to find the injured human and be persuaded to snack on them instead. So it was only right that he check on the source of the sound and make sure all was okay.

He stayed still, waiting. Then the cry came again. There! From the right.

“Come on, Bud.” He patted the horse’s neck. “Let’s go find out who’s in trouble.”

His heart beat faster as he steered Buddy down the hill, near the rocks where he was fairly sure the sound had originated. After all his recent misses, this was his chance to be a hero. It was just a shame that certain people—okay, a certain cowgirl—wouldn’t be around to witness it. But that was okay. Ted might find it in his heart to subtly tell people how Harrison had saved the day, and he’d just need to look humble. And he could do humble. He could do humble very well, thank you very much.

He smirked as Buddy trotted around a large rock, situated on what looked like an embankment. In fact, he could act like the humblest person ever in the history of the world, and—

“Whoa!”

He pulled Buddy to a stop, and stared at the scene below.

Below, where in a small river, several swimsuit-clad women were lying on large floating mattresses—was that a pink flamingo?—and obviously not in any trouble at all.

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