“Babe, I have your sandwich and coffee,” I called out to him.
He lifted the last pole into the cup and rubbed his hands on his tight jeans. Wranglers, I’d learned. I appreciated them for various reasons.
He sauntered towards us, and I thought he was putting on a bit of a show. Again, I didn’t mind in the least.
“Thank you,” Theo said and took his lunch. “We got someone interested in the pinto gelding, so I’m going to see what he thinks of jumping,” he explained, gesturing at the jumps.
“When do the bays leave?”
“Monday. The buyers are coming to get them. That’s potentially three, and four if the new sporty draft goes, too.”
I took the travel mug off him so he could unwrap the sandwich, then gave it back as he leaned on the inside of the fence. Anderson and I were on the outside.
“How long do the horses stay here on average?” Anderson asked, looking around.
Bucky had appeared from somewhere and sat next to me, leaning against my leg as he gazed up at us all adoringly.
Mollie, the barn cat, trotted to us, promptly climbing up the closest fence post, then balanced nimbly on the top board to approach Theo’s sandwich.
“Depends on the horse and what we’re doing with them.” Theo gave Mollie a piece of ham, which she accepted gratefully and greedily. “Sometimes we get one and realize the horse needs something we can’t offer, so we find them somewhere else to go. Then there’s ones like Ursula who is a long-hauler because she doesn’t work well with people and we’d rather be safe than sorry.”
“Ah, right, Lake told me about her on the phone,” Anderson said, smiling. “I never knew horses had varied characteristics.”
Theo chuckled. “You have no idea.”
While Theo munched on his sandwich, I asked Anderson, “Have you ever ridden a horse?”
“No, I haven’t. City boy through and through, and no pets, either.” He made a sad face, then smiled. “You guys have no idea how exotic this is for me.”
I couldn’t help chuckling. “At least I was born on a hobby farm.”
“So, if you want to learn how to ride horses, we have a few suitable mounts for a beginner.” Theo raised a brow at Anderson. “No pressure, but if you want to see what we can do with the horses that come to us…” He shrugged. “Up to you.”
Anderson’s eyes shone with a bit of fear and a whole lot of excitement. “Really?”
“Of course.” Theo looked at me. “Salem would be good for him, I think.”
Surprised he was asking me, I nodded. “Yeah, I think Salem’s a good one.”
“He also has a story you’ll want to hear. Have I told you, Lake?”
“No, no you haven’t.” Somehow, even though Salem had been the horse I’d been riding the most, we had never talked at length about him.
Anderson thought for a moment, then smiled. “Tomorrow? Before I leave?”
“Absolutely,” Theo promised. He finished his coffee, gave Mollie the last bit of ham, and tossed the edge of the sandwich to Bucky.
I took the travel mug from him. “So, tour?” I asked, turning to Anderson.
“Please.”
“I’ll come with you guys.” Theo walked to the open gate and came out, then played tour guide for half an hour or so.
When we got to where the pinto gelding was in the corral, he went in and grabbed the horse, then came back out.
“How are the newbies?” I asked when we walked with him back to the stable so he could saddle up.
“They’re good. All healthy. Seb did the usual blood testing and took some skin scrapes from a couple of them. Everything is treatable and non-contagious.” Theo took the horse to the cross-ties. “That’s always important,” he continued. “Making sure the newcomers don’t bring anything nasty with them, just in case. Luckily most common things are easy to spot and we always keep new horses isolated until our vet Sebastian has all their test results back, but yeah, the latest batch is fine.”
