If I get hurt, I know you’ll be there, like I’m always there for you.
Always! Gotta run; Seth and I are going riding. Talk soon. Love you.
Love you too.
She lifted her steaming coffee mug and headed into the living room, perfectly content to let the day unfold however it would. When she sat on the sofa, Cosmo jumped onto her lap, curled into a ball and fell asleep as she absentmindedly stroked his fur.
****
As Rawley entered the barn early Sunday morning, his dogs followed him, their nails clicking against the concrete floor. The scent of hay and horse manure hung in the air.
“Morning, boss.” Todd’s voice echoed in the spacious area.
“Todd. What are you doing here on a Sunday?” Rawley asked the manager of his ranch, noticing the man’s mud-splattered boots and the dark circles under his eyes.
“I wanted to make sure the guys got the hay stacked. Were you going for a ride?”
“Yeah. I’ll check the hay. Todd, go home.” Rawley’s tone left no room for argument.
“Yes, sir.”
“Yeah, fuck you with that yes, sir shit.” Rawley grinned when he heard Todd’s deep laugh echo through the barn.
After checking the hay, he opened the stall door to lead his horse out, when he noticed the horse was limping. He crouched down to see that the horse had thrown a shoe.
“Well, we have to fix this first, boy.” Rawley ran his hand down the horse’s leg, then stood and got what he needed from the tool room, nippers, a hoof knife, and a rasp for trimming,a hammer, clinch cutter, and shoe pullers for the removal. He entered the tool room, removed a shoe from the wall, then strode back to the horse. The big red chestnut’s coat gleamed like burnished copper in the morning light as he butted his massive head against Rawley’s chest, and Rawley rubbed his velvety ears.
“Hey, buddy. Let’s get you a new shoe, then take a ride.” He removed his hat and hung it on a hook.
Thirty minutes of reshoeing the horse, sweat beading on his forehead, he removed a handkerchief from his pocket, wiped his brow, then entered the tack room. The leather saddle creaked as he lifted it onto the horse’s back, the familiar weight comfortable in his hands as he shifted it a little to sit just right on the blanket. Rawley mounted and nudged the gelding into a gallop out of the barn. The hot morning air rushed past his face. He glanced over his shoulder to see his dogs running behind him.
As he rode through the pasture, the tall prairie grass swished like whispers against the horse’s legs. Dew sparkled on the blades, catching the sun’s golden light. He decided to check on the cattle. He knew someone had already checked them at sunrise, but things could happen fast out there, and he wanted to see for himself. In these late summer months, he didn’t have to worry much about predators, but come winter, when snow blanketed the land in pristine white silence, it was a constant battle with wolves. Their howls would echo across the frozen valley, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Lowfood sources made them desperate, their eyes gleaming like lanterns in the darkness, and a pack could easily take down a six-hundred-pound cow, leaving nothing but crimson-stained snow.
Every winter, he prayed that he wouldn’t lose any cattle to them, but it depended on how bad the weather was. If it snowed a lot, piling in six-foot drifts against the fence lines, the wolves would venture closer to the ranch, searching for any morsel they could find.
He didn’t like shooting them, respected their place in this harsh ecosystem, and usually fired his Winchester rifle into the air to scatter them, but he also knew that once he disappeared over the ridge, they’d circle back. He’d never had to shoot one, but if it came down to his cattle, his horse, himself, or the wolf, the wolf would lose.
He reached the cattle grazing and did a headcount which he would compare to the number the ranch hand had counted when he got back to the barn. He dismounted and let the horse drink from the pond.
It was a beautiful day, but he knew it would be so hot later that he’d rather just stay inside. He thought about Skylar and grinned. She was a real beauty.
As the horse drank from the pond, Rawley removed his phone from the pocket of his T-shirt, scrolled until he saw her number and sent a text.
How’s your morning going?He sent it and waited, then he saw the bubbles.
Great. Yours?
Same. I’m out in the pasture, checking my cattle and thought about you.
What? Your cattle made you think of me? How am I supposed to take that?
Rawley chuckled.Not how I meant it.
Sure. It’s a beautiful morning.
It is. I should have asked you to ride with me.
You should have. I love riding.
