Page 8 of Cozy Cabin for Two
Ro got excited. “Mom! Look at me and Marshmallow!”
“Great honey, be careful.” Willow glanced over at me and waved from where she sat on the bench seat of the UTV, ankle elevated. I waved back.
“Well, this is new. Haven’t seen another woman on this ranch in some time,” Daisy observed, stepping down from her cab, slamming the door behind her. Then she pointed to Colt. “You. Also new.”
“I’m Colt, ma’am,” he nodded her way.
“Well, well. I imagine my sisters are going to want to get their hooks into you,” she laughed, giving Colt a once-over. “My advice though? Stay clear of Ivy. She eats cowboys for breakfast and spits them out in pieces.”
Colt chortled with a winning grin. I filed away a reminder to fill him in later on the Wylde sisters of the valley.
“I’mstill here, sweetheart,” Knox sent Daisy a wink and a cocky grin. The faint scent of his aftershave reached my nose.
“I have eyes.” Which she used to roll at him.
I made introductions all around. “That’s my sister-in-law, Willow, and my niece, Ro, here for a visit. And you met Colt. Everyone, this is Daisy, our farrier,” I explained, and said how she tended to the horses’ hooves and general horse care at our ranch and others in the area.
Willow waved politely. “Hello.”
“Marshmallow has really adapted well,” Daisy said, observing Ro on the back of one of the first rescues we took in when we opened. Knox helped Ro off and showed her how to tie up the pony.
“Who did you bring to us today?” I nodded toward the trailer, eager to move things along.
Her face sobered. “One of the worst cases I’ve seen in a while.”
She opened the back gate, and a beautiful, pissed-off mare backed right out, flaring her nostrils. With a rich brown coat, thick black mane, and fire in her eyes, she could be a beauty save for her temper. Her overgrown hooves stomped the ground and needed Daisy’s attention, assuming she’d calm down and not buck at the slightest human touch.
“Whoa, Juniper,” she spoke softly, keeping tight hold on the rope attached to the halter. “I wrangled her away from the back pasture of a hoarder’s field this morning. Underfed, neglected, hardly ever handled. Other rescues gave up on her.”
Ro walked up behind us. “Why’d they give up?”
Daisy glanced at her. “Because she scared them.”
“Are you scared?” Ro asked.
Daisy grinned with every confidence. “I don’t scare easily.”
“That’s right. Daisy’s lived here her whole life. Don’t let her outer beauty fool you. Inside, she’s tough as nails,” Knox teased.
A smoldering look passed between them I couldn’t miss. Maybe there was something going on with them after all. But Juniper reared up, breaking their brief connection apart.
“I’d like to know how you’re going to get this one under control,” I barked.
“I came prepared with treats.” Daisy resorted to bribery with carrots just to get Juniper to follow into a stall. But the horse was smart, only taking a few steps. “Fine, girl. Make me break out the good stuff.”
She went to pull a bag from her pocket but dropped it, and it landed at Ro’s feet.
“Peppermint candy?” Ro picked a disc and studiedit. Suddenly Juniper stepped toward her, head out, sniffing. Before Daisy and I could react, Ro slowly held out a candy in the middle of her palm.
I tensed, and Willow sat up straight with the look of a worried mother.
Juniper ate up the candy and sniffed Ro like they could be best friends. Not to be outdone, Marshmallow poked his head out between the bars of the arena fence, angling for a treat, too.
Ro giggled, and the sweet sound of it brought out something I’d never felt before. Warmth? Pride? Is this how Scott felt as a father?
“Can I feed her some more?” She asked.
Willow called over, “Be careful, honey. Do as Daisy tells you.”
