Page 7 of Wandering in Love

Will just lifts an eyebrow at me, crossing his arms over his massive chest. “Last year. He’s got a bum ticker. Ester told him if he didn’t retire, he was going to be cooking his own dinner. She got Betty to agree not to feed him. He lasted a week before he announced his retirement.”

I can’t help but laugh. Sounds about right.

“So, I hear you’re looking for a stable hand. I happen to be on the market for a job.”

“You’re sticking around?”

“That’s the plan. For now, I’m staying with Momma, but I’m sure she’ll get tired of me soon enough and tell me to find my own place.” I smirk at him.

“Alright, I could definitely use an experienced hand. What have you been doing for work since you left?” He leans against a horse stall, a long black face comes into view, looking to see what’s going on.

“Is that Bandit?” My heart is pounding, tears springing to my eyes at the sight of the last colt I helped bring into the world. I loved him from the first second I set eyes on him.

“Yeah,” Will says with a smile. “He’s an ornery bastard, but he works hard.”

Stepping up to him, I run my hand down his long face. “Hey, baby.”

He snorts at me, nudging me in the stomach with his nose.

“You got a mint?” I ask Will, not taking my eyes off the black quarter horse.

“Yeah.”

I open my palm and wait for it before offering it to Bandit. His soft lips take the treat from the flat of my hand, and I smile, stepping up to hug him.

“Aw, shit. I know that look.” The Curtis brother steps up next to Will, leaning his arm on Will’s shoulder. “She just fell in love.”

I can hear Will chuckle, but I don’t pay them any mind. That boy is right. I’ve fallen in love.

Will eventually pulls me away from the black beauty and goes over what my responsibilities will be: mucking stalls, feeding, exercising, and taking care of the horses. All normal duties for the job.

Will is in charge of the stables and all the horses, so I’ll be working pretty close to him and Johnny Curtis.

“So, when was the last time you were in the saddle?” Will leans his forearm against the wall the raises an eyebrow at me.

“Too long,” I say, turning around to look down the aisle of the barn. “You got a horse that needs a workout?”

“As a matter of fact, Bandit needs to go out.”

I smile over my shoulder at him before racing for the tack room. His laugh follows me, the warm chuckle like a blanket on a chilly night. Will is three years younger than Ian and me, so while Ian rarely wanted him around, he always was. He was my buddy.

Moving away from everything and everyone I knew was the hardest thing I’ve done. Then to get stuck in a town only two hours away was devastating. I was finally free to explore the world, to see and do and be and experience, but my car broke down and I didn’t have the money to fix it. Hell, I had barely any money at all.

It wasn’t what I wanted, but it was probably what I needed. I learned to depend on myself when things were hard. I learned what I could live without, like a cell phone, and what I couldn’t. For the first time in my life, I didn’t have the entire town and two moms looking over my shoulder, helping me to stand. I found myself.

Finding tack, I head back to my new main man, Bandit.

Will is watching me with a smirk and his arms crossed over his chest. I admitted to not working in a barn for a while, so I don’t mind him watching over me. These horses are the family’s livelihood, and I would rather get injured myself than hurt one of them.

“Hey there, handsome,” I coo as I slide the half door open and step inside the stall.

He huffs at me, telling me he won’t put up with my shit. I smile at him and get the bridle on, then tie the reins to the hook on the wall.

In the few short minutes it takes me to get Bandit situated, Will has a pad and saddle in his hands waiting. He lifts it to set on Bandit’s back, the muscles of his arms bulging. I can’t help but stare. They’re in my face and bigger than my head. What happened to the little boy I grew up with? Apparently, he became a man, and it’s damn distracting.

“Hey, my eyes are up here.”

My cheeks flame at being caught. “You got a concealed carry for those bad boys? They’re dangerous.”