Luke led me around the farm in a hasty tour. He took me out to the pastures and pointed out each of the seven horses. Then he showed me a chicken coop, and took me around the barn last. When he was finished, he turned around and raised his eyebrows at me.
“Happy now?” he said, his tone laced with irritation.
“Not quite,” I said, smiling as he gaped at me, “I want to ride one of the horses.”
He pinched the bridge of his nose and glared at me for a long moment. “Are you serious? Wyatt is coming over any minute now. Can’t you handle that on your own?” he asked.
I smiled at him. I was no high-maintenance princess by any means, but I was acting that way because I wanted to get under his skin. I needed to show him that I could play dirty too.
“I don’t know these horses, you do. Plus, why would I bother getting all tired and sweaty when you can do it for me?” I said sweetly. He groaned and grabbed a halter off a hook on the wall. He gave me a pointed look before storming out of the barn and out to one of the pastures. A few minutes later he came back, leading a pretty chestnut horse.
“This is Indie. She’s a pretty good mare,” he said as he hooked her up on the cross ties in the middle of the aisle. I stroked Indie’s neck as Luck went into the tack room. He came back with a grooming box full of brushes and set it down on the concrete floor roughly.
“Now this isn’t so hard, is it?” I said as I picked up a curry comb and started grooming. He grabbed one too and worked on the other side of Indie.
“You might wanna watch the attitude darlin’. Karma can be a bitch, kinda like you,” he said as he brushed the horse.
I was about to reply when Wyatt came walking up to the barn.
“Look what we have here,” he said, grinning widely, “looks like you two are good buddies.”
“Not even close,” I said. I was relieved that Wyatt showed up. Him I could deal with. Luke, not so much.
We quickly managed to finish grooming and get Indie tacked up as Luke and Wyatt chatted about trucks. Wyatt’s presence erased the tension, which I was thankful for. I was glad to be able to take a break from my princess act.
Both boys followed me as I led Indie out to the riding ring. It wasn’t that big and there were weeds growing in the sand, but it was fine for me. Since there was no mounting block, I had to make Luke give me a leg-up to get on. Wyatt just sat on the fence, chuckling at us.
“Be a darlin’ and tighten the girth for me, will ya?” I said as I settled into the old, leather Western saddle.
“Of course, boss,” Luke said with a wide smile. Something about the look on his face told me he was up to no good, but I chose to ignore it. “Ready?” he asked, still smiling at me.
“Yup,” I said. As soon as I spoke, Luke smacked Indie’s rump with a loud clap.
The startled horse took off at a gallop, catching me off guard. Luke laughed wildly as I struggled to keep my seat. Just when I thought I had gained control, Indie slowed down and started bucking wildly. She kicked her hind end up roughly and spun on her front legs, which finally sent me sailing through the air. I landed on flat on my stomach in the sand and Indie took off galloping around the ring.
As I lumbered to my feet, I looked up to see Luke and Wyatt howling with laughter. Wyatt had fallen off the fence from laughing so hard, and Luke was clutching his stomach. I stomped over to them, rage coursing through my body.
“You fucking dumbass! You could’ve killed me!” I yelled. I grabbed Luke’s shirt with both fists and yanked him towards me. “Are you out of your mind?” I shrieked.
YOU ARE READING
Heart of Georgia
Romance(UNDER CONSTRUCTION) Shay Crawford never thought her parents would get divorced. She never thought she would have to leave Georgia. She never thought her life would self-destruct. And she definitely never thought that her mom would die when she was...
