Page 30 of Back in the Saddle

‘That’d just be Caroline. I’ve never been on a horse. Probably best not to start at my age.’ Anna laughed nervously. ‘She used to take horse riding lessons when she was younger. She’s visiting from Scotland, and I wanted to show her a true Oklahoma ranch.’

Caroline’s cheeks flushed. This was an exaggeration. True, she had taken riding lessons when she was younger. She’d started in primary school and continued all the way into high school. But once her mother got sick, she stopped. Every moment with her mum was precious and she didn’t want to waste it on something as indulgent as horse riding. She had never found a way to get back into it.

Duke crossed his arms over his chest and looked at Caroline. He seemed to measure her up from top to bottom. Finally, he nodded approvingly. ‘All righty. You seem to be dressed for the ride already.’

Caroline smiled in response. She didn’t know she’d be getting up on a horse today but figured one couldn’t go wrong with jeans, a shirt over a tank top and a pair of brown leather cowboy boots she had bought the first weekend here. ‘Follow me, then, ma’am,’ he said to her and then looked at Anna. ‘Big Al said he would like to see you in the house. I think Mrs Jackson baked a cake as well.’

‘Well, who can say no to a cake? I’ll see you later. Hope you have fun!’ She waved to Caroline and went off in the direction of the house.

Duke waited for her to disappear and motioned to the left. ‘Ladies first.’

The two of them walked towards a set of three tall, red-painted wooden bars on a wide path. Caroline spotted a muddy quad bike parked in front of one of the barns. She glanced back at the vast open space, covered in yellowed grass and contained only by the fences. The soft snickering of horses carried on the air, along with the scent of freshly mowed grass.

Smile tugging on the corners of her lips, she turned and gazed up at the barns in front of her. ‘You keep horses in all three of these?’

Duke gave a short nod. ‘Yes, ma’am. We have separate ones for the cattle and two more at the back of the ranch for horses, although they aren’t the stock we use for training and breeding.’

‘What do you use them for?’

‘Few years ago, the ranch started to buy ex-rodeo horses. They come here for what you can call retirement, I guess. They get to roam in the pastures and get the food and all. They have a good life. And we keep them here until, you know, they pass.’

‘That’s a wonderful thing to do,’ Caroline said.

Duke shrugged as if he hadn’t really considered it before. ‘I guess it is, isn’t it? New boss has a soft spot for horses, always has. When he came back to help with the ranch, he wanted to do something good, as he put it.’

Caroline assumed he meant Alan’s son, the one that Anna had mentioned. ‘He sounds like a nice guy.’

They reached the wide entrance to the barn and walked inside. The smell of horses and hay filled Caroline’s nostrils. She closed her eyes, remembering the feeling of pure joy and peace when she was younger. A long neigh came from a horse in a nearby stall.

Duke continued the conversation as they walked towards the back of the building. ‘Yep, he really is.’ They reached a stall where another man was brushing the mane of a beautiful black horse. He was standing with his back to them. Duke stopped, raising a hand in a greeting. ‘Hey, boss! This is the woman Big Al wanted you to take out riding.’

As the man turned round, Caroline’s heart stopped.

You’ve got to be kidding me,she thought as her breath hitched.

Hunter seemed just as surprised as she was. He dropped the brush and didn’t bend to pick it up. His eyes fixed on her. ‘Caroline?’

She collected herself, raising her brow. ‘Hi, Hunter.’

Duke looked between them. ‘You two know each other?’

Hunter ran a hand through his thick, dark hair. He still didn’t take his eyes off her face.

Scraps of their text messages yesterday sloshed in her mind. The memory of the nervous energy zapping through her body when she’d started typing and retyping the first message last night, just to delete the letters with one vicious swipe of anxiety. This was uncharted territory for her, being flustered by a guy. It was as unsettling as it was exciting.

She gave him an unsure smile, not certain how to speak to him when Duke was standing right there.

Hunter seemed to have read her mind. ‘Thanks for bringing her, Duke. Can you see if Rory needs any help in the eastern pasture?’

‘Sure thing. It was nice to meet you, ma’am.’ Duke tipped his hat towards her and bowed slightly. As he walked away, Caroline let out a breath.

Hunter stepped forward, the grin that had already imprinteditself in her consciousness back on his lips. ‘Well, this is a nice surprise.’

‘I’m sorry, I didn’t know this was your ranch.’

‘Technically it’s my father’s,’ he said, his voice strained. ‘No need to apologise though. It’s not like I wasn’t thinking about you anyway.’

Caroline’s cheeks heated and she looked down, quite convinced that if she didn’t break their eye contact, there was a real risk she could burst into flames on the spot. The out-of-control feeling consuming her body, from the inside of her chest to the very ends of her hair, was a fire hazard.

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