see the man had a tough row to hoe. She didn’t know what was fair, but she sensed Sean knew how to make it right.
She watched him stride away and offer Harry his hand. They shook, making introductions and small talk about the man who was deceased. A low-throated nicker caught her attention, and she found the friendlier horse watching her with curious eyes.
“Your lives are about to improve.” She ran her fingertips down the gelding’s graying nose. “Just you wait and see.”
In the back lot at the inn Sean lowered the ramp with a clatter, surprised as Eloise tapped up the incline with a lead rope in hand. She didn’t let her cane slow her down much. A glow of admiration filled him as he followed her up. The horses, not used to the trailer, were in various stages of fear. The black one fidgeted against his gate.
Eloise laid a comforting hand on his flank and spoke calmly and confidently like someone who had been around horses all her life. “It’s going to be all right, Licorice.”
The gelding blew out a breath, as if he were highly doubtful of that.
“How about you, Hershey?” she asked, unlatching the brown gelding’s gate. The bay glanced over his shoulder to study her, his eyes white-rimmed, but he didn’t move much as Eloise clipped into his halter and led him out.
Why couldn’t he look away? He ought to be paying attention to the horses, but all he saw was the woman. She walked like a ballerina even with an obvious limp.
There was strength and a beauty inside her that became clearer every time he looked.
“I know you’re worried, Hershey, but trust me when I say you have one of the best stalls in the county waiting for you.” Her alto rose and fell like a song over the pad of her cane and the clomp of hooves on the ramp. “Cady went all out when she built this stable. Every stall is huge and it has a view. That’s it. Turn for me, big guy. Come this way, that’s right.”
Kindness made a woman truly beautiful, Sean decided as he laid a hand on the black’s neck. The gelding shivered, lunging nervously against the metal barrier.
“It’s all right,” he crooned, aware of the tension bunching in the horse’s muscles. “It has to be hard having no say in this, but you are going to be just fine. No worries, buddy.”
He clipped on the lead and backed the horse down the ramp. Every step Licorice took was halting as if he wanted to bolt into the trailer and go home. The unknown can be scary, so Sean used his voice to reassure the horse and led him down the breezeway between large but empty box stalls.
All he had to do was follow Eloise’s voice, which felt as natural as breathing. Sunlight found her, burnishing her blond hair and haloing her like a Renaissance painting. Her frilly blouse and slacks weren’t typical barn wear, but she didn’t look out of place as she secured the gate to the straw-strewn stall. Inside, Hershey gave a snort and paraded around, taking in his view of the grassy paddock and various troughs for water, grain and alfalfa.
“Licorice can have the corner stall.” She spotted him coming and opened the gate wide. “Rocco, who’s on barn duty, has everything ready for them.”
Across the row, a gold-and-white mare raced in from her paddock and clattered to a stop in her stall. Curious to meet her new neighbors, she arched her neck, whinnying in a friendly manner. Her big chocolate eyes shone a welcome.
“This is an exciting day for Misty, since she’s been all alone in the stable,” Eloise explained as he closed the gate and unhooked the lead.
“It’s a pretty good day for me, too,” he quipped, not at all sure how to say what he was feeling. “We did good work today.”
“Yes, and I am indebted to you, sir.” She handed him back the rope she’d used on Hershey. “I couldn’t have done this without help.”
“You mean without me.”
“Well, yes, since you’re the one who helped me.” She gave her shiny hair a toss behind her shoulder, shaking her head at him as if she didn’t know what to make of him. “It was good of you to volunteer. Cheyenne doesn’t know what she missed out on. Until next time, that is.”
“Hey, I don’t mind doing this again.” He kept his tone casual and made sure he didn’t make eye contact. A lone wolf didn’t work at making connections, he kept things light and loose. “I had fun. There’s a lot of satisfaction to this. These horses weren’t wanted, and now they are. It’s a good way to spend an afternoon.”
“So, you’re really volunteering for next time?”
“Absolutely. Might as well make myself useful. Besides, Cheyenne might be busy and I have lots of spare time.”
“Doesn’t Frank keep you busy at the ranch?” Her grin hitched up in the corners of her soft mouth.
Cute. He ambled down the aisle at her side. “Sure.
I get in a hard day’s work. Lately, my personal life has been a bit slow. That’s the way I want to keep it.”
“Me, too.” Was that a hint of sorrow turning her gorgeous eyes a deep, emerald green?
Hard to tell because it was gone as quickly as it came. “That is, if you want me to lend a hand. You know I come with a horse trailer, right?”
“I know.” She rolled her eyes at him.
Cuter. “Then you aren’t agreeing to this reluctantly?”
“I am.” She leaned her head back and gazed up into his eyes full on, a spark of humor lighting her up. “I am very reluctant about you.”
“Sure, cuz most folks are.” He smiled all the way down to his toes. It was nice being with her. They emerged through the open double doors into the kiss of the late-May sun and heat. Larks warbled, robins swooped by and a sparrow up on the roof chirped at them warningly. Grass whispered in the wind, leaves rustled and he couldn’t remember the last time he felt so good.
“My dad didn’t want me to grow up to be a cowboy, you know.” He knelt to put up the ramp, working quickly, hardly thinking about it. He finished the quick task with a rattle and clang. “Said it was hard work and a hard life. He wanted something more for me.”
“Is that why he didn’t stay and help Frank with the ranching?”
“Yep, but I guess he didn’t have the calling. Ranching is in my blood. That’s why I’m here.”
“Sometimes you get blessed with the right path to follow in life.” The wind tangled her sleek blond locks. Again, that brief flash of sadness disappeared as if it had never been. “It doesn’t always last, so you should enjoy it while you can.”
“Good advice.” He glanced at her cane, wondering if that’s what life had taught her. He had some advice for her, too. “Sometimes you feel lost. When you look down, you realize you are already walking the path meant for you.”
“You are a glass-is-half-full kind of man, aren’t you?” She led the way down a garden walkway.
“Sure. It’s a matter of choice. The glass has the same water in it either way.” He flashed his dimples at her. “Let me guess.
