Page 82 of Texas Honor

He put her on a horse the day after she arrived, while Maggie stood with her hands clenched, murmuring soft prayers.

“It’s all right, honey,” Gabe told the nervous little girl as he helped her onto a small mare, grimacing as he forced his arm to perform the minor task. Becky was light, but any pressure still caused him some problems. “She’s old and gentle. Your mother used to ride her, in fact,” he added, glancing toward Maggie with a grin. “Remember Butterball?”

“That isn’t Butterball!” Maggie exclaimed. “But, Gabe, she’d have to be twenty-five years old.”

“She’s twenty-six,” he said. He checked the cinch and put the reins in Becky’s hands, teaching her how to sit the horse, how to hold it in check, how to keep her knees and elbows in and guide the horse with the faintest pressure of her legs.

“You sure know a lot about horses,” Becky said with shy admiration, her soft green eyes glancing off his.

“I’ve worked around them all my life,” he replied. “I love animals. I took courses in veterinary science in college and almost had a degree in it.”

“I like animals, too,” Becky said enthusiastically. “But we never got to have any,” she added, looking away sadly. “Daddy was allergic. And when we came away, Mama had to work and I had to go away to school. They don’t let you have dogs at school.”

“Do you want a dog?” Gabe asked her, ignoring Maggie’s frantic signals and head shaking. “Because Bill Dane down the road has a litter of registered collies. If you want one, I’ll get it for you.”

Becky’s face was fascinating—a study in admiration, excitement, surprise and pure delight. “You would?” she whispered.

Maggie shut up. She’d let the dog sleep in the parlor. She’d buy it a house. Whatever she had to do, it would be worth it to see that young face so happy. She hadn’t even known Becky wanted a pet.

“I would,” Gabe said, and grinned. “If your mother doesn’t mind,” he added belatedly, cocking an eyebrow at Maggie.

“Of course her mother doesn’t mind,” Maggie murmured, and made a face at him.

He laughed. “I thought you wouldn’t. Closing the gate after the bull gets out, don’t they say?” he added.

“I like dogs,” she said.

“Me too!” Becky burst out, her ponytail bobbing as she stared down at Gabe. She started to reach out but abruptly brought her hand back to her reins, and her small face closed up all over again.

Maggie felt tears sting her eyes. She’d have to tell him, later, how great a step that was for Becky, who avoided any physical contact with people she didn’t know—especially men. Just the inclination to reach out was a milestone in the child’s life.

But he seemed to know, because when he looked toward Maggie he wasn’t laughing. And the eyes that met hers were dark with a kind of pain.

“Can we go now? Right now?” Becky asked excitedly. “Can we get a puppy today?”

“First we go riding,” Gabe said. “Then we’ll see.”

“All right,” Becky sighed.

“Becky,” Maggie chided. “Where are your manners?”

“In my back pocket.” Becky grinned. “Want to see?”

It was a sharp and delightful change to see her shy little daughter so vividly happy and outgoing. Maggie smiled up at Gabe, the sunlight turning her eyes as green as grass.

He winked at her before he turned to give her the reins of her own mount. “Can you get up all by yourself?” he asked in a gently mocking tone of voice.

She glared at him. “I know how to ride,” she replied indignantly—and then ruined everything by missing the stirrup.

He caught her arm with his good hand and kept her upright. “Pilgrim,” he accused. He steadied her while she got her booted foot into the stirrup and threw the other leg over gracefully. The steely hand on her arm wasn’t doing a lot for her nerves, but she didn’t refuse the offer of assistance.

He gathered the reins of his own horse and stepped easily into the saddle, looking so much at home up there that Maggie just stared at him.

“Stay right with me, honey,” Gabe told Becky, moving into step with her horse. “There’s nothing to worry about. I’ll take care of you.”

“All right,” Becky said. Her small hands gripped the reins just as Gabe had taught her to. She glanced at him to make sure she was doing it right, and he nodded.

Maggie trailed along beside Gabe on the wide farm road, drinking in the beauty of vast horizons and grazing cattle and the feel of the warm spring breeze in her hair. There had been other times like this, long ago, when she and his sisters had gone riding. Sometimes they’d meet him unexpectedly on the trail, and her heart would run wild. It might have been only a schoolgirl crush, but it had hurt when she hadn’t seen him again. Her eyes adored him unconsciously, admiring the powerful length of his body, the straightness of his carriage, the lean hands so deft and strong on the reins. He was exceptional. He always had been. And she might marry him....

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