Riding the River (The Westerners, Book One)

by Jeanne Harrell

  * * *

  After lunch, Sarah and Tess headed down to the gun range on the side of the property to learn gun safety. Sarah figured she might as well learn how to handle a pistol or rifle while she was in the West. Why not?

  Cowboys, Frank and Aaron, were instructing this time. Targets had been set up some thirty yards away. They were starting off with rifles – How to hold them, how to load and use the sights. It was more complicated than Sarah thought, but that was all right. She was there to learn and she took it seriously. She couldn’t even imagine what her father would think of her out on a shooting range. She glanced at Tess sizing up yet another cowboy and grinned.

  There were ten guests who had signed up for a lesson and Frank had them all spaced out. He and Aaron went down the line working individually with each guest on holding the rifle, the proper stance and how to fire. It was interesting stuff and when they were allowed to shoot, Sarah started hitting the target pretty regularly. They would each fire ten rounds and then the cowboys would come along to give each some advice. Frank was becoming impressed with Sarah’s shooting. She seemed to have natural ability and wasn’t afraid to try anything. They changed to different targets and she could hit those too. Many women guests didn’t even sign up for gun safety and here was a woman who could be Annie Oakley with a little practice. Well, maybe not Annie Oakley, but close.

  Matt had ridden by with a couple of guests, showing them the range as he was giving a riding lesson. He set his Appaloosa as comfortably as if it were the easy chair in his living room. The horse was a natural extension.

  He and his guests were a ways back, so as not to spook the horses. But he could see Sarah just fine from where they stood. At first, he wasn’t sure who it was – Then she turned to lift her protective earmuffs to speak to Frank and he recognized her. He couldn’t believe it as she started firing. She hit the target consistently again and again around the center for all ten shots that he watched. He was stunned… She was an unbelievably good shot… Maybe she had practiced in Baltimore…

  He thought again – That seemed unlikely. Dan had mentioned to him, although he hadn’t asked, that she was a computer consultant, whatever that meant. It probably didn’t have much to do with shooting a gun, however. Matt grudgingly rode away with his guest, but continued thinking about Sarah. He was thinking of her far too much, for his liking.

  Sarah and Tess congratulated themselves on the way back to the ranch house for the good scores they posted on the gun range. Tess wasn’t half bad either. She kidded Sarah about starting a new profession – gunslinger.

  It was a few hours before dinner. Tess wanted to go find Tyler, and Sarah wanted to ride alone for a while. She went back to the barn to see if she could get a horse. She bumped into the trail boss, looking over the horses and checking how many there were.

  “Hello…”

  “Hi. I hope I’m not bothering you.”

  “Not even close. Just checking the horses for the drive, day after tomorrow. You a guest here?”

  “…Sarah.” She extended her hand, which he shook.

  “Cooper.”

  “Nice to meet you.”

  “Same here.”

  “Did you sign up for the horse drive?”

  “I did.”

  “Good. I think you’ll enjoy it.” She tilted her head at him.

  “What exactly is a horse drive, Mr. Cooper?” He laughed.

  “... No, just Cooper.”

  “Sorry.”

  “… Anyway, we drive a herd of fifty or so horses from one seasonal pasture to another.”

  “What does that mean?” Sarah knit her brows.

  “We’ll move the herd from a pasture west of here to one farther north. There’s better grass for grazing up near the Jarbidge Wilderness and so we’ll put them up there for a few months. It’ll take two days to drive them up and get them settled, but only a day to return. It’s quicker without the herd.” He winked at her and she smiled.

  “And you don’t mind taking us city slickers along with you?”

  “Absolutely not. You’re quite welcome.” He looked at her. She was stroking a horse’s flank and seemed easy around horses. She noticed that he was looking at her and raised an eyebrow.

  “Um…”

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to stare. You just look so much like my daughter. How old are you? Twenty-four? Twenty-five?”

  “Wow! Asking a woman her age. You’re pretty brave and yes, I’m twenty-five.”

  “Okay, sorry again. Why did you come in the barn? Do you need a horse saddled?”

  “I do indeed. I wanted to get in a quick ride before dinner.”

  He began saddling a horse for her.

  “How’s your day been?”

  “Great.” Sarah’s eyes lit up. She was pretty. “I had a riding lesson this morning and a shooting lesson after lunch.”

  “Wow! You’re taking in the Old West for all its worth, aren’t you?”

  She smiled. “I plan to fill every minute with learning something new. It’s all been extraordinary so far.”

  “Really? Well, good for you. I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself.” He walked the horse up to her. “You’ve had just one lesson. Are you all right on your own?”

  “I don’t plan to lose sight of the ranch house. I just want to practice some more.”

  “All right. I’ll watch you for a while and then I’ve got to get busy.”

  “Don’t worry about me.”

  Cooper held the horse for her to mount. “Now this is Thunder.” Her eyes widened hearing the horse’s name. Cooper laughed. “Don’t worry. The only thing tough about this horse is his name. He’s a real sweetie.”

  Sarah let out a breath. “Thanks, Cooper.” And she took off walking her horse until she went past the corrals. Then she let him go and Thunder galloped up towards the hills. Cooper watched for a bit and decided she’d do just fine on the horse drive. She was definitely comfortable in the saddle.

  She galloped out past the ranch house up into the low hills. Sarah had purchased a cowboy hat – And with jeans and a Western shirt, she fit right into the landscape. The wind picked up the hat and blew it off her head, so it hung down her back. Sarah smiled… Just a cowgirl out for a ride… It was a delicious thought.

  She rode through the hills and onto the back part of the property where Richie had taken them this morning. Seeing the wildflower meadow and stream, she headed right for that area. Sarah breathed in the moist air from the cold stream, stopped Thunder and dismounted. She let him drink while she looked around at the gorgeous meadow. Sitting down in the yellow, blue and white wildflowers, she picked a few and then lay back to look at that big, blue sky. She laid her cowboy hat on the ground beside her. The flowers were soft on her back as was the ground by the stream.

  Lying there, she watched the puffy clouds roll lazily by. She had never seen a sky that immense… It seemed to go on and on and on… Thinking about the difference of life here in Nevada with the hustle and bustle of life in Baltimore… There was just no comparison. It was ‘Big Country’ come to life and she loved it. Sure, there were a few problems: communication being one and distance between towns being another. Somehow, that didn’t faze her. She got up and took a bottle of water out of her saddlebag, thought again and got out the horseshoe too. Sarah took a swig of her water and lay down again in the wildflowers looking at her horseshoe. Life doesn’t get any better, does it?

  Thunder was happily munching some grass. Sarah picked up her cowboy hat and put it over her face. She’d decided to snooze out here in the meadow, nestled in the wildflowers. Listening to a few birds. The gurgling stream… Eyes that drooped lower and lower until she was asleep.

  In a little while, around the hill came Matt riding with another guest. He saw a rider down in the meadow and told the guest to head back to the barn. He needed to check on something. Concerned, Matt rode up to the stream, checked the horse and looked
at the downed rider, expecting some kind of trouble. Instead, he saw a girl lying in the flowers with her cowboy hat over her face, arms comfortably at her sides. He started to smile as he heard soft, snoring sounds. When he glanced at the horseshoe on the ground beside her, he knew who it was.

  He debated what to do – Matt could ride his horse quietly away and let her sleep, which he was very tempted to do. He’d made kind of a half vow or something to stay away from her. And he really didn’t want to bother her… But it wasn’t long until dinner, and Mr. Walker probably didn’t want a guest out here by herself. So he dismounted, let his horse get a drink and sat down to wait until she woke up. He was impressed she could fall asleep out here in the open so easily. She was obviously comfortable in her new surroundings. An unexpected pleasure.

  As he watched and listened, she made funny little noises in her sleep – bubbles and pops. A purring sound. It was hard not to laugh. Suddenly, she reached under her hat to scratch her nose, and the hat fell off her face. Matt held his breath, thinking she’d wake up. He didn’t want to scare her, but he didn’t want to leave either. He glanced at her pretty face, so calm in sleep, smiled at her light snoring and wished he could remember the color of her eyes. Blue? Gray? With the blonde hair in a spray around her head, it resembled a halo. Her pale blue Western shirt fit her well and her jeans hugged in the right places. It wasn’t an altogether unpleasant job, just sitting and gazing at her. She’d picked up cowboy boots too. The city gal he’d seen at the hotel was gone and a country gal had taken her place. It set well with him.

  Finally, an eye opened --- Blue, they were deep blue… He’d thought so. Another eye opened and she looked up at the sky. She must have seen him sitting there, but didn’t comment at first.

  “Pretty, isn’t it?” she said at last. Matt thought her voice, just roused from sleep, was as nice as the rest of her.

  “Very.”

  “How long have you been sitting there?” Her eyes slid over to focus on his smiling ones.

  “Long enough…”

  “How long is that?” she insisted.

  “… You make cute little noises in your sleep, you know.”

  She scrunched her eyebrows. “No, I didn’t know.”

  “Your boyfriend’s never told you?” He was still smiling at her.

  “Whether or not I have a boyfriend is no concern of yours.” She sat up and grabbed her hat.

  Matt laughed. “Well, there’s no need to get upset. I was just…”

  “… Just what? Spying on me?”

  “No, ma’am. I thought you might be in some trouble, so I rode over.”

  “And seeing that I was in no immediate danger…”

  “Sorry,” he shrugged his shoulders. “Then I couldn’t resist watching you sleep. You’re kinda cute when you snore...”

  Sarah huffed at him, got to her feet and snatched up her horseshoe.

  “…You…”

  “And what’s with the horseshoe? Dan give it to you? Is it bringing you luck?” He was laughing at her again.

  “Obviously not, since you’re here bothering me.”

  “Am I bothering you, really?”

  Sarah turned to look at him. She folded her arms across her chest and tried her best to look cross. “You’ve tried to ignore me ever since I got here, and now you make a pest of yourself.”

  “I’m a pest?”

  “And do you have to answer everything I say with a question? It’s annoying.”

  “Is it really?” He couldn’t help himself and started laughing. He doubled up at her angry face – She looked darling. When he calmed down, he said, “You just can’t help it, can you?”

  “What?”

  “Never mind. You’re mad at me enough already. Let’s head back to the house. Can you get on your horse?”

  She gave him another stern look. “Why wouldn’t I be able to get on my own horse?”

  He held out his hands in front of him. “Just being polite…”

  “Well, knock it off.” She put on her cowboy hat, stuffed the horseshoe back in the saddlebag.

  Matt watched Sarah gracefully mount her horse, pull the reins and gallop off. Richie said she’d had her first lesson this morning, but he couldn’t tell. He could have sworn she ridden her whole life. Matt smiled watching her ride away. He mounted his horse and rode after her. Maybe this week wouldn’t be so bad after all -- She was beginning to chip away at him.

  Could he really stay away from her? It was beginning to look like the answer to that question was no. But she was probably still mad at him. Well, let her sulk… Maybe Richie was right -- This might be fun after all.

  * * *

  CHAPTER ELEVEN