Hands in the pockets of his jeans, Paul kept his gaze on Bonnie and her new pal. “Agreed.”
“Friend of your daughter’s?”
Paul’s smile faded into a scowl. “Friend of mine.”
“Dude. Seriously? I mean, sorry about the question, but, uh…”
Reminding himself that Bonnie looked deceptively younger with her hair in the ponytail and her lace top and jeans, Paul changed the subject abruptly. “So, are you riding with us?”
“Well, I can if you want me to, since I don’t have any other rides booked until later today, but you know the trail well enough to take her out yourself, if you prefer.” Tim wiggled his eyebrows just enough to make it clear what he would do in Paul’s boots.
Tim was a natural entertainer as a trail ride guide, with an endless supply of jokes and quips and stories. Yet as much as Paul enjoyed those rides with his friend, he liked the idea of leaving him behind today. “I’ll take her, then. I’m sure you have things to do here.”
His brown eyes glinting with humor, Tim nodded. “I do have some calls to make.”
Paul turned toward Bonnie. “So, is that the mount you like?”
Planting a noisy kiss just above the bay’s nose, Bonnie then turned a beaming smile toward Paul. His gut tightened in response.
“If he follows me home, can I keep him?” she asked with a laugh.
He cleared his throat and spoke as lightly as she had. “Well, if your brother can keep a big dog, you should be able to have a pet horse.”
“That’s Stewie, ma’am, and he’s a marshmallow when it comes to pretty ladies who fawn over him,” Tim informed her in a drawl, sauntering over in her direction. “Paul, are you riding Ace?”
“Of course.” Paul had already moved
toward the black Walker who stood quietly near the water trough in the spacious corral among a group of saddled horses who watched Paul approach with idle curiosity.
“Hey, Ace, how’s it going?”
He wasn’t sure if his favorite mount remembered him specifically, but Ace responded to his voice with a friendly nicker and head nod. After greeting the horse with pats, he mounted, sliding his left boot into the left stirrup and swinging his right leg over easily. He saw that Tim had Bonnie settled comfortably in Stewie’s saddle, the stirrups adjusted for her shorter legs.
Holding Ace’s reins loosely in his right hand, he nudged the horse forward toward Bonnie and Stewie. “Ready?”
She was beaming so brightly that he couldn’t help mentally patting himself on the back for coming up with this idea, even if belatedly. “Absolutely,” she assured him.
“You kids have fun,” Tim said with a grin, stepping back out of the way. “You’ve got my number if you get into trouble, Paul.”
Looking at Bonnie sitting so happily on the eager bay, her bright eyes glittering like blue diamonds before she hid them behind her sunglasses again, Paul figured he was already in trouble. But there was nothing Tim could do to help him.
They couldn’t have asked for a nicer day for the ride. It was warm, but not uncomfortably so, with a nice breeze to ruffle their hair and cool their skin. A few clouds dotted the sky, diffusing the sunlight when they weren’t beneath the shade of the lush trees lining the trail. Off in the distance beyond the mountain peaks they could see a heavier bank of clouds gathering for the rain predicted that evening, but Bonnie figured they had several hours yet to enjoy being outdoors.
Because he knew the way, Paul rode lead with Bonnie following on Stewie. Paul kept the pace slow, and the horses plodded easily over the very familiar trail. The only sounds other than the steady clops of hooves were the birds singing overhead and the breeze rustling leaves, underscored occasionally by running water sounds from the shallow streams that crisscrossed the woods. She and Paul were able to chat easily enough without raising their voices to disturb the peace of their surroundings.
“It was nice of your friend to let us take the horses by ourselves,” she commented. “The trail ride operation Kinley and I used back in Tennessee never let anyone go out without a guide, even experienced horsemen. It was against their policy.”
“I’ve ridden this trail with Cassie and/or the twins and their friends almost too many times to count,” Paul explained. “I’ve been friends with Tim for years, so he knows he can trust me to take care of the horses—and you. Cassie and I went along on his first guided ride when he and his partner, Jase, opened their business a few years back. Now they’re a big success. In addition to the trail and buggy rides, they provide hunting and fishing guides in seasons. A general-purpose outfitting operation, you could say.”
She admired the sight of Paul sitting so comfortably astride the black horse. She didn’t mind at all following him on the trail, as it allowed her to appreciate him without being overly obvious about it. “Did you grow up around horses?”
He shook his head, looking over his shoulder to answer. “I grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina. My parents were both in their early forties when I came along to surprise them, and I was only a toddler when my dad was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. He wasn’t able to get out and do much, and Mom spent most of her time either working or taking care of Dad. I think she pretty much wore herself out before we lost him, which was why she wasn’t able to fight off the infection that killed her only a few years later. I did all I could to help her, but she insisted on doing most of it herself. I mean, I got plenty of attention from them, don’t get me wrong. We were all close, and I miss them both, but we didn’t do a lot of outdoor stuff like horseback riding.”
She suspected from his tone that he didn’t want an expression of sympathy just then. The day was too nice to be spoiled by sadness. Instead she asked, “How did you end up being such a jock and a horseman?”
He chuckled, and he seemed pleased that she’d lightened the conversation. “My mom’s younger brother, my uncle Brian, made a point to take me out and do ‘manly stuff’ like hunting and fishing and sports at least once a month. Great guy. We’re still close, though we don’t get to see each other as often as we’d like. I like sports and kayaking and other outdoor pursuits, but I’d hardly call myself a jock. I have a master’s degree in mathematics, which some people consider pretty much the opposite of jock-hood.”
Bonnie laughed, conceding his point.