Read Online Blue Ribbon Summer by Catherine Hapka - Free Book Online Page B

company?”
    Brooke already had all the company she wanted in Foxy. But it didn’t seem polite to say so, so instead she said, “Sure. I was just giving Foxy a good grooming.” She shot the other girl a shy sidelong look. “Your horses are all so sleek and shiny, it sort of inspired me.”
    â€œAw, thanks.” Paige looked pleased by the compliment. “I can’t take all the credit, though. Snow is on full care at my home barn, and the grooms do an amazing job keeping her clipped and pulled and clean.” Suddenly her eyes lit up. “Hey, I have an idea. Want to pull Foxy’s mane? I could help you—I’m actually pretty good at it.”
    â€œPull her mane?” Brooke glanced from Foxy, with her long, wild mane, to the horses in the nearest stalls. All of their manes were tidy and short. Brooke liked the look; she’d thought about pulling Foxy’s mane once about a year earlier after reading a how-to site on the Internet. But somehow she’d never gotten around to it.
    â€œYeah.” Paige sounded enthusiastic. “She’d look adorable with a pulled mane! Like the world’s cutest show pony.”
    That made up Brooke’s mind. Foxy might not always act like she belonged here, but this way at least maybe she’d look the part.
    â€œSure,” Brooke said. “Thanks. That would be great. How do we start?”
    â€œFirst let’s brush out her mane and get it all lying on the right side of her neck,” Paige said, digging into Brooke’s grooming bucket for a big plastic comb.
    That part went pretty well. Foxy didn’t seem to mind being fussed over. She didn’t even object when Paige fetched a spray bottle from the tack room and squirted the mane with water to make it lie flat.
    â€œOkay,” Paige said, finally seeming satisfied. “Nowwe’ll start pulling.” She’d grabbed a little metal comb from the tack room while she was in there, which she now used to separate out a small section of mane. “You hold the comb like this and wrap the longest ends around it. See? Then give it a sharp yank, like this.”
    She did just that, pulling out some of the mane hairs with the comb. Foxy jerked her head up and took a step backward. “Easy, girl,” Brooke said, rubbing the pony’s neck. “Did that hurt?”
    â€œIt doesn’t hurt them,” Paige said, flipping her own red hair out of the way, over her shoulder. “Not any more than it hurts them for you to grab a handful of mane to steady yourself while you’re riding.” She shrugged. “Foxy’s probably just not used to the feeling, that’s all. She’ll get over it.”
    But she didn’t. With each yank of the pulling comb, the mare got more agitated. Brooke stood at her head, trying to soothe her with words and pats. Finally, though, Foxy had had enough. As Paige pulled another cluster of hairs out, the mare jerked her head up and back. The crossties snapped, and Foxy was loose.
    â€œWhoa!” Brooke cried, alarmed. “Easy, girl.”
    â€œWhat’s going on?” It was Hannah. She’d just arrived in the barn, with Livi right behind her.
    â€œWe were pulling Foxy’s mane, and she set back and broke the ties. No biggie.” Paige didn’t sound that upset.
    But Brooke’s face was flaming. “Um, I guess she likes her mane the way it is,” she quipped weakly. “It’s okay, girl. . . .”
    Luckily, Foxy didn’t seem interested in running off. She let Brooke grab her halter and lead her over to another set of ties.
    â€œWant to try again?” Paige asked. “Maybe you could hold her while I pull or something?”
    â€œNo, that’s okay.” Brooke didn’t meet the other girl’s eye. “It’ll be time for our lesson soon. We should probably just tack up.”

    â€œBy the way,” Robin said as Brooke and