“Yeah, you look good, brother,” Trace said. “Perfect for a country band manager.”
He finally cracked a smile, and Jem said, “And…there it is,” with a laugh following.
“Your son didn’t want to come?” Adam asked, switching his attention back to Jem.
Jem’s eyes blazed for a moment, but Adam couldn’t tell if it was angry or if he just possessed a lot of charisma. “The kids got together this morning to start planning a little bit for Gabe and Morris’s birthday party,” Jem said.
“Oh, that sounds fun.”
Adam wouldn’t even know how to start making sure that they celebrated every birthday in the Young family, and thankfully that wasn’t part of his job description.
Behind him, the crunching of tires on gravel sounded, and everyone looked that way as Mav drove down the road and parked next to Adam. He, Boston, and Joey got out, but Adam only had eyes for the white-blonde woman walking toward him.
“Hey,” he said, going to meet her.
He’d lived many days without Joey in them, and he honestly had no idea how. He slid one hand along her waist and leaned down and kissed her quickly. “You made it.”
“How long have you been here?” she asked.
“Oh, only a few minutes,” he said. “Did you know that all of your uncles were coming?”
Joey peered past him and then looked up at him again. “That is not all of my uncles.” She grinned. “But it’s a lot of them. Come on, I heard we’re riding over to Kassie’sand she’s going to have scones with raspberry butter for us.”
“Oh, that sounds fancy,” Adam said. “And very Southern.”
“Well, it should. Kassie is from Louisville.”
“Oh, that’s right,” Adam said. “I had just been hired by Harry before she and Reggie got married.”
“So you must’ve been at their wedding.” Joey raised her eyebrows at him.
“Yeah,” Adam said.
“I didn’t go,” Joey said. “I think only Harry’s parents went—and Bryce’s, since she’s his best friend.” She hooked her arm through his, and they turned back to her uncles.
“All right,” Jem said. “This is our first test, and if you don’t pass it, you can’t ride.” He sounded serious, but he wore a smile in his eyes. “I need everyone who’s a beginner to raise their hand.”
Adam glanced around at the group of men and then raised his hand. “I haven’t ridden a horse in about fifteen years,” he said. He looked over to Joey, who also had her hand up.
“I mean, I rode a little sooner than fifteen years ago,” she said. “But it’s been a while.”
No one else had their hand up, and Jem clapped Adam on the back and said, “All right, everyone passes. You guys come with me. I’m going to put you on a couple of Bryce’s super tame rescues.”
“Blaze, you’re going to grab Cisco, Pebbles, and Little Sister for me and you and Mav,” Jem said. “And we can useany of the horses in the green stable, so Boston, Trace, and Luke—go pick whoever you want.”
“Sounds good,” Mav said. “We’ll meet you out there.”
Jem led Adam and Joey to a stable that didn’t seem to have a color on it. “Are these the permanent residents of Rising Sun Ranch?” Adam asked.
“Yep,” Jem said. “They’re horses that are too old to go back out onto ranches or into service, and Bryce just keeps them here. He says they’re all real tame and used to people and riding, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”
“Who’s in the green stable then?” Joey asked.
“Those are the horses Bryce isn’t going to keep,” Jem said. “He uses some of them to train the others in the yellow and red stables, and then he sells them.”
“Oh, I see,” Adam said. “Red must be his worst candidates.”
“Yep, the most abused,” Jem said. “The skinniest, the ones who need the most vet care, the most skittish. He keeps them there until they’re healthy and strong and able to work with him and Codi, and honestly, usually me or Blaze, and then we move them into the yellow stable.”
