Dangerous Alliance. Lindsay McKenna

      Chapter Four

      By Saturday afternoon, totally disgusted and bored with the moving-in process, Dan sat down amid the boxes cluttering the living room of his new apartment in Oceanside. His thoughts—and if he was honest, his emotions—revolved back to Libby Tyler. She’d said she had a horse show this weekend at the base stables. Grimacing, he looked around at the half-unpacked cartons and strewn packing material. To hell with it. In one smooth motion he was on his feet. He was going to see Libby.

      Not wanting to make the mistake of showing up in uniform, Dan decided the faded jeans and short-sleeved chambray shirt he was wearing would be more appropriate under the circumstances. Minutes later, as he pulled his Corvette onto the dirt road leading to the base stables, he saw cars, trucks and horse trailers lining both sides of the road. Hundreds of people dotted the rolling hills that surrounded the stables and the three riding arenas. Once he’d found a place to park, the urgency he felt to find Libby made him walk a little faster than perhaps he would have under ordinary circumstances.

      Children of all ages either had horses in hand or were riding them around. The small hills that formed a backdrop for the largest of the three fenced arenas were colorfully decorated with parents watching their children compete in the riding events. Some children wore tall, shining black boots with canary yellow breeches, a white shirt or blouse, a black jacket and a black safety helmet. Others wore decidedly Western outfits and rode in Western-style saddles.