The River Ranch

"Ridiculous"

Arlo led Remington out of the stables and adjusted the saddle one more time. It had been a long time since he took his horse out and went for a ride, just for fun. Ever since his week long marriage, the second wife, convinced him to run for Sherriff and he had won -- life had been too hectic to enjoy a day riding horseback. He looked up as Sadie Rae Wilcox rode in on her horse, he took the reins of Remington and smirked Sadie struggled to get her horse to come to a stop.

"By the looks of it, you have forgotten how to ride a horse." Arlo said.

"I do know how! It's this horse. She's crazy and doesn't listen to me." Sadie Rae replied.

Arlo petted the snout of the Friesland horse. An expensive breed. "Is this the horse your dad bought you?" he asked.

"Yeah, but I haven't been on her much because, well, you know why."

"Yeah, I know. What did you name her?" he asked.

"Arlo meet Ridiculous, Ridiculous this is Arlo." She introduced the horse to him and smiled. Arlo noticed that Sadie Rae's smile was still beautiful and he was glad that the drugs she got tied up into six months ago didn't effect her teeth. A little judgy, maybe but, he had seen what meth could do a person and how badly it could mess someone up. He was thankful that Sadie Rae didn't fall that far down that rabbit hole. Her long blonde hair and baby blue eyes glistened under the brim of her cowboy hat. One would not know the darkness that she had stumbled into by looking at her, not that it mattered, the name of the horse is what he wanted to know more about.

"Ridiculous?! Why did you name her that?" He chuckled and stepped back beside Remington.

Sadie laughed, "She does ridiculous things and at the most ridiculous times!"

"Like what?"

"Okay, let me show you when I try to back her up and turn around, watch her feet." She said and backed up the big horse and turned her around. Arlo watched the horse tap, tap, tap, and shuffle her feet around and then walked sideways in two steps. He busted out laughing and led Remington up beside them.

"You have a trick horse, she is trained to do that when you turn around." He said through the low chuckle. "She isn't ridiculous, she is talented." He jumped up on Remington, did the same maneuver with Rem and Rem danced like the filly. Sadie laughed. "Oh." Her cheeks turned pink in embarrassment. "I didn't know!" She said.

Arlo hopped off the horse and walked over, "Hop off. I want to see what else she can do."
Remington could only do those tricks and it had taken two years to teach the old horse a new trick and after that Arlo gave up on doing anymore. Rem isn't a trick horse anyway, the brown mustang with a white diamond on his forehead is a ranch horse and Arlo's best horse. His horse, not a show horse.

Sadie Rae slid off the saddle and took Remington's reins as Arlo got on Ridiculous. She talked to Remington. "It's still ridiculous. Even you looked ridiculous. Like this, let me show you." She stepped away from Rem and shuffled her feet and took two wide steps to the left. "This how you look Rem!" She laughed and kept doing it. Remington threw his head back with a snort and walked into the corral. "Awe! Rem, I am sorry!" she couldn't help but laugh and looked up at Arlo sitting atop of her saddle. The image nearly took her breath away. The Steston black hat pulled down low over his shoulder length light brown hair and outlining his stunning dark brown eyes. His smile tucked between his mustache and his beard.

"Are you happy now? You have hurt his feelings." Arlo shook his head with the smile and Sadie's heart thumped a little harder than normal. Oh, no. She couldn't go there again. What they had together back in high school was over. One night of blissful happiness and druken stupor was all she would have with Arlo. She knew that. Right? She would be reminding herself of it often. Arlo was easy to fall in love with and many women had and none ended in a happy ending. She knew they wouldn't either. They could barely get along as friends. He had been married twice before and she has a son to think about. Do not go there, Sadie, she scolded herself.

"I didn't mean to hurt his feelings." She said a little distant than she wanted. She was working on calming her heart back down.

"He will be alright." Arlo said and adjusted the filly's reins in his hands. "I will be right back." He kicked the belly of Ridiculous and she took off in a dead run. Sadie watched as Arlo ran the horse up to the end of the corral and turned her to run back towards her. She didn't know if she should stay or duck for cover as fast as they were headed towards her. The black beauty was headed right for her and she felt anixous. She trusted Arlo but not the horse! She stepped out of the way just as Arlo had pulled back on the reins and he leaned back with his knees locked. The horse sat on her hind legs and slid to a stop twenty feet ahead of Sadie. Ridiculous stood up and shook her head up and down. Sadie could hear Arlo laughing and patting the side of the horses neck. "Good Girl." he said and shivers slid down Sadie's spine.

"Whoa! I didn't know she could do that!" She exclaimed.

"You could take her to the rodeo and probably win some money for that." He said looking behind the horse at the skid marks the horse had made. It was a good distance for a sizeable jackpot at the rodeo.

"I don't know if they will let me into the rodeo but I could try." Sadie said looking down at her boots. She needed new boots and more importantly she could round up enough money to get her son back. Her parents wanted her to do better and maybe the horse would help with that but first, she would have to sweet talk herself back into the fairgrounds with the commissioneer of the rodeo.

Arlo jumped down from Sadie's horse and walked over to Sadie. "Are you alright?" He asked

"Yeah, I was just thinking of all of the bridges I burned and I have to find a way to repair them."

"You will get there. I believe in you, Sadie Rae. It all takes time.'

"Thanks, Sherriff."

"I'm not the Sherriff today. I'm ready to go for that ride. Are you?"

"Yes, Arlo." She said with a smile.

She nodded and both walked beside each other to collect their horses to enjoy the day riding.