Page 30 of Adored
“Or not. He is the devil,” Paddy admitted, as his friend was almost hooved.
“And that is why he’s Arthur’s horse and I told you not to go near him. Arthur will handle him. Few can handle Diablo,” Poe admitted as Gamble went into the stall and calmed him down.
Honestly, it didn’t take long.
So Poe kept introducing them.
“This is Honey. She’s a sweetheart. She likesA P P L E S,” he said, spelling it out for them, and as soon as he did, her ears went up.
Poe just shook his head.
“She’s incorrigible.”
That she was.
The grooms laughed.
Well, at least they wouldn’t be hooved by the horse. That was always a good thing.
“This is Snow, and she’s easygoing, for the most part. King is Diablo’s father, and while not as feisty, he’ll stomp you if you upset him. All three of these horses can be saddled. Underno circumstance are you to even try to saddle Diablo. He’s a bareback kind of a horse.”
The men understood.
“We’ll take good care of them, Sir,” he said, petting Honey and Snow.
Paddy kept staring at Gamble, and he was curious.
“Yes?” he asked.
“Are you Native American?” he inquired.
For Gamble, this was a loaded question.
“Yes, why? I’m half Native.”
The man pointed at the demon horse.
“You have a way with him. He likely knows your connection to the animals.”
Maybe.
Gamble had always been good with animals. That was one of his few redeemable skills.
He could survive in the wilderness for long periods of time, and he could make a dog be his buddy. That was about it unless there was a gun involved.
Animals liked him.
Look at Rufus not far away watching him with his tongue hanging out of his mouth.
The mutt was his best buddy when they were moving around a stable.
When Gamble came out of the stall, he was standing very close to Poe. In fact, he had his arm around his waist and his hand on his hip.
Why?
Oh, well, there was one good reason.
He didn’t know these men, and he wasn’t sure how they were vetted. Maybe he was paranoid, but he was going to make sure Poe was safe here.
