Read Online Marry Me, Cowboy (Copper Mountain Rodeo) by Lilian Darcy - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Lilian Darcy
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had an amazing ride, when they were finally ready for it. How long was it since she’d really done this? Gone for a gallop across open terrain? Maybe once or twice at Bob Crannock’s, but not for months. It reminded her of home, when she would have a pony club friend – Natalie or Kathleen or Abby - bring a horse and stay for a few days, and they would just ride and ride and ride. She’d lost touch with everyone except Kathleen, now, and had forged new friendships here on the rodeo circuit.
Could she call Jamie a friend?
Faro and Shildara swept across the open rangeland, sure-footed and keen. The mountains looked unreal, like an artist’s vision too perfect to be true, and the grass was so much thicker than the grass at home, Tegan almost wanted to eat it herself.
She and Jamie had the wind rushing on their skin and the magical thud of horse hooves in their ears, and a couple of times they both let out a whooping yell because the exhilaration was so strong. It was only when they came over a rise and saw a pickup parked by a fence farther down the hill that Jamie slowed. “Hey, that’s Dad and RJ,” he said.
The two men had seen them. They were fixing fence, a tough job that Tegan knew well, but now they’d straightened from their coils of wire and were watching, suspiciously at first, it seemed, but then with a shout and wave of recognition.
“I guess Mom didn’t remember to call them,” Jamie said. He didn’t sound surprised. “Oh, well...”
They slowed more, and reached Jamie’s father and older brother at a walk, the horses stretching forward and down on a loose rein and seeming relaxed and content after their workout.
“You came for the rodeo,” Jamie’s dad said.
RJ just nodded, by way of a greeting, and muttered, “Jamie.”
There was a long moment of tension, then an apparent shared desire for this to go better. Jamie jumped down from his horse, strode up and gave both men something that was more punishing than a hug, but much more tender than a punch.
“Good to see you, son.”
“Good to be here.”
“You saw your mother?”
“Down at the house for coffee. I thought she might call. She seemed to think you had a phone with you.”
“No, she didn’t call.” He gave a half-smile.
“You want to give us some help?” RJ asked, and it was more of a challenge than an invitation.
Jamie looked at Tegan, then back at the men. “Well... Sure. For a bit.”
“Only got another hour more to do here.”
“If Tegan doesn’t mind.”
“Tegan, by the way,” Tegan said, “is me.”
“Yeah, sorry,” Jamie said. “Tegan, from Australia. Tegan, my brother RJ and my dad Rob.
She gave them a grin. “Hi, RJ, hi, Rob. I don’t mind if we stay, Jamie. I can help, if you want.”
“Help?” RJ was flagrantly skeptical, and Tegan was suddenly glad she’d made that dumb, defiant gesture to Jamie of putting on her old pony club state camp shirt. Jamie’s older brother would have been a heck of a lot more skeptical if she’d been wearing a dark pink satin shirt covered in fake diamonds.
“I’ve hammered in staples before,” she told him. “And twisted wire. And used a fence strainer.”
The men nodded, but she thought she would only prove herself once they’d seen her at work, which was fair enough. Anyone could talk up their own talents. You had to back it up with action before it counted for anything.
Which was an argument Jamie could have used about the whole talking thing, if he’d thought of it. She was kind of glad he hadn’t, because if she came up with many more such arguments herself, she’d end up conceding that he was right.
They loosened the saddle girths on the horses, crossed the stirrups over the top, knotted the reins out of the way and let Faro and Shildara graze with their bits in their mouths while they got to work.
She hadn’t seen this side of Jamie before, hadn’t seen him move this way. Around the rodeo, he seemed almost lazy in how he moved, a lot
Could she call Jamie a friend?
Faro and Shildara swept across the open rangeland, sure-footed and keen. The mountains looked unreal, like an artist’s vision too perfect to be true, and the grass was so much thicker than the grass at home, Tegan almost wanted to eat it herself.
She and Jamie had the wind rushing on their skin and the magical thud of horse hooves in their ears, and a couple of times they both let out a whooping yell because the exhilaration was so strong. It was only when they came over a rise and saw a pickup parked by a fence farther down the hill that Jamie slowed. “Hey, that’s Dad and RJ,” he said.
The two men had seen them. They were fixing fence, a tough job that Tegan knew well, but now they’d straightened from their coils of wire and were watching, suspiciously at first, it seemed, but then with a shout and wave of recognition.
“I guess Mom didn’t remember to call them,” Jamie said. He didn’t sound surprised. “Oh, well...”
They slowed more, and reached Jamie’s father and older brother at a walk, the horses stretching forward and down on a loose rein and seeming relaxed and content after their workout.
“You came for the rodeo,” Jamie’s dad said.
RJ just nodded, by way of a greeting, and muttered, “Jamie.”
There was a long moment of tension, then an apparent shared desire for this to go better. Jamie jumped down from his horse, strode up and gave both men something that was more punishing than a hug, but much more tender than a punch.
“Good to see you, son.”
“Good to be here.”
“You saw your mother?”
“Down at the house for coffee. I thought she might call. She seemed to think you had a phone with you.”
“No, she didn’t call.” He gave a half-smile.
“You want to give us some help?” RJ asked, and it was more of a challenge than an invitation.
Jamie looked at Tegan, then back at the men. “Well... Sure. For a bit.”
“Only got another hour more to do here.”
“If Tegan doesn’t mind.”
“Tegan, by the way,” Tegan said, “is me.”
“Yeah, sorry,” Jamie said. “Tegan, from Australia. Tegan, my brother RJ and my dad Rob.
She gave them a grin. “Hi, RJ, hi, Rob. I don’t mind if we stay, Jamie. I can help, if you want.”
“Help?” RJ was flagrantly skeptical, and Tegan was suddenly glad she’d made that dumb, defiant gesture to Jamie of putting on her old pony club state camp shirt. Jamie’s older brother would have been a heck of a lot more skeptical if she’d been wearing a dark pink satin shirt covered in fake diamonds.
“I’ve hammered in staples before,” she told him. “And twisted wire. And used a fence strainer.”
The men nodded, but she thought she would only prove herself once they’d seen her at work, which was fair enough. Anyone could talk up their own talents. You had to back it up with action before it counted for anything.
Which was an argument Jamie could have used about the whole talking thing, if he’d thought of it. She was kind of glad he hadn’t, because if she came up with many more such arguments herself, she’d end up conceding that he was right.
They loosened the saddle girths on the horses, crossed the stirrups over the top, knotted the reins out of the way and let Faro and Shildara graze with their bits in their mouths while they got to work.
She hadn’t seen this side of Jamie before, hadn’t seen him move this way. Around the rodeo, he seemed almost lazy in how he moved, a lot
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