Read Online Star Gazer by Chris Platt - Free Book Online

other bidder at the end, you get the first right of purchase at your last offer!”
    Jordan stood there listening to Jacob’s words, but they weren’t sinking in. “What does that mean, Jacob?” she asked. Her head was spinning, trying to make sense of it all.
    Nicole grabbed her by the arms and swung her around to face her. “It means you’re going to get another chance!” she said. “Your last bid was nine hundred dollars. Sometimes the winning bidder can’t follow through on his offer. When that happens, the next highest bidder is given the chance to buy the animal at their last bid price. That means you!”
    Jacob motioned them forward. “You need to return to the sale ring and officially tell my dad that you want the bid at nine hundred dollars.”
    Jordan turned to Mr. and Mrs. Wilson. “Can I?” she pleaded. She’d already lost Star Gazer once. She couldn’t bear losing her a second time.
    Mrs. Wilson looked to her husband. He gave her a smile. “I guess we’re all in this together, Jordan,” she said. “Go ahead and make your offer. If your mom doesn’t want the horse, then we’ll have to take responsibility for her. We’d have to find a new home for Star and try to get your money back, though. We can’t keep her ourselves.”
    Jordan gave them both a big hug. “I’m really sorry that all this happened,” she apologized. “I feel terrible that I dragged you into it. I don’t usually do things like this. But I can’t let Star Gazer die. It’s not fair. Her owner shouldn’t have abandoned her like this.”
    Mr. Wilson rounded them all up. “Let’s get back to the auction before it’s too late.”
    Jordan walked back into the sales ring and a loud murmur of approval rose from the crowd. Mr. Wilson signaled his approval to the auctioneer, and Mr. Yoder slammed the hammer on the podium with a loud crack . “Sold to the chicken lady for nine hundred dollars,” he crowed.
    The onlookers applauded loudly.
    â€œYou did it!” Nicole wrapped Jordan in a big hug. Then she laughed and held her out at arm’s length. “What in the world are you going to do with a horse the size of a Volkswagen? You only came here to buy chickens!”
    Jacob interrupted them to congratulate Jordan. “Well, it was a crazy ride, but you won in the end.” He took off his hat and dusted the brim. “What are you going to do with her?”
    Jordan shocked herself by blurting out, “Star Gazer’s going to win that log-skidding contest at the fair this year.” She wasn’t sure what made her say that. She didn’t know a thing about draft horses, let alone driving them. But Mr. Sutton needed someone to give him some competition, and Star Gazer would be the perfect horse to do it.
    Jacob gave her a doubtful look. “You’re biting off a pretty big chunk there,” he cautioned. “Are you sure you can handle it? That contest is only a couple months away and you’re new to the sport. In fact, you’re kinda new to everything.”
    Jordan felt a bit hurt. Jacob didn’t think she could do it. She knew that she’d be the weak link in the process. She was starting from scratch. But she could learn how to work with draft horses, couldn’t she?
    Jacob seemed to sense that he’d hurt her feelings. “We’ve never had a girl in the log-skidding contest,” he said. “But there’s no reason you couldn’t give it a try…assuming Star Gazer doesn’t have anything seriously wrong with those feet.”
    He stuffed his hands in his pockets and looked at her. “You’ve got to face it, Jordan. There’s a good chance that Star Gazer might have something really wrong with her hooves. Sutton doesn’t just get rid of prime breeding stock. Star Gazer might have to be put down if she’s broken