Page 19 of Hot For You

Carilyn did as he told her. Dolly snuffled over Carilyn’s palm and the horse’s velvety muzzle tickled her hand. The horse smelled…horsey. The next thing she knew, the pellets were gone.

“Dolly is so beautiful,” Carilyn said as she stroked the mare’s forehead. She glanced at the other pair that looked interested in what was going on. “So are your sorrels. Can I feed Holly and Molly, too?”

“You bet.” He whistled to the sorrels and they both trotted over to Carilyn and Cody.

Carilyn held out her palm again and Cody gave her a few pellets, which she fed to Molly. “Their muzzles feel so soft.” She held out her hand to Cody and he put more pellets on it, which she fed to Holly.

When they had fed all of the pellets to the horses, Cody said, “If you’re up for it, I’d like to take you out for a ride.” He nodded to the sorrel with the white markings. “You can ride Molly.”

She held her hand to her belly. “What if I fall off?”

“I promise, you’ll be fine.” He inclined his head toward the house. “Let’s pack a picnic lunch and then we’ll head on out.”

She found herself feeling more excited than doubtful and she smiled at him. “Okay. I’m ready to experience ranch life.”

“Great.” He started toward the house and she walked beside him. “What do you like—roast beef, turkey, or egg salad?”

“Any of those is great,” she said, “but if I had to choose one I’d go with egg salad.”

The house was cool as they stepped inside. The living room was spacious, with chocolate brown leather sofa and love seat, a recliner in caramel-colored leather, a big wooden rocker, and a large flat-screen TV. Cody hung his hat on a rack by the front door. A guitar case was next to the hat rack.

She glanced from the case to Cody. “Do you play guitar?”

“Yep,” he said. “I’ve been playing since I was a kid.”

Carilyn followed him into the kitchen with light oak cabinets, dark granite countertops, and stainless steel appliances. A round oak table with four chairs was in a nook to the right.

She looked around the kitchen. “I like your kitchen.”

“Thanks. Just had it remodeled in January.” He went to the fridge and ducked inside. In moments he had pulled out condiments, meats, and hard-boiled eggs, along with tomatoes, lettuce, and cheese.

They set about putting several sandwiches together. Carilyn only wanted one egg salad sandwich, but Cody made three different sandwiches for himself. With their picnic lunch, he included Oreo cookies, corn chips, green grapes, and a thermos of iced tea. When they were finished, he packed everything into a saddlebag, including paper plates, paper napkins, and a canteen of water.

“Hold on and I’ll be right back,” he said.

She nodded and he left the kitchen. When he came back, he was wearing a holster with a revolver in it.

Her brows lifted. “You’re carrying a gun?”

He nodded. “You never know out here if you might run into a rattlesnake. These bullets have snake shot in them.”

At the mention of rattlesnakes, her eyes widened. “You’re worried about snakes?”

“Not really.” He walked to the saddlebags and slung them over his shoulder. “But better safe than sorry.”

She followed him out of the kitchen. He grabbed his hat off the hat rack and put it on.

As they left the house and walked to the barn, nervous tension settled on her shoulders and she rolled them to try and get rid of it. She was actually going to ride one of those big animals and attempt to stay on it.

Once they were in the barn, Cody set aside the saddlebags and whistled to Molly and Holly, and the sorrel mares trotted into the barn. He haltered Molly and took her to the tack room where he put a thick saddle blanket and saddle on her back. After Molly was taken care of, Cody took Holly out of the pen and saddled her, too.

When Cody was finished, he put the saddlebags on Holly then turned to Carilyn. “I’ll help you mount Molly.”

Carilyn rubbed her hands on her jeans while she felt a quick burst of nerves, but nodded and went to the horse. Cody instructed her on how to mount the big animal. With his help, from the left side of the horse she put her left foot in the stirrups and swung her right leg over before settling into the saddle. Not very gracefully, but she made it into her seat. It felt strange sitting on a saddle, the huge beast between her legs.

With one hand on the pommel, Carilyn leaned forward and patted the big horse’s neck. “That’s a good girl, Molly,” she murmured before settling back into the saddle.

It felt kind of cool sitting so high up and feeling the horse shift beneath her. The mare’s tail swished as she swatted flies off of her large rump. It surprised Carilyn when she realized that her nervousness had vanished to be replaced by excitement.

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