Between Hope & the Highway Read Online Free Page B

but couldn’t prove anything.”
    “He never could pin nothing on that kid,” Seth chimed in. “Remember when Bart found a load of manure blocking his truck?”
    Loud snorts followed. “Yeah,” Mike grinned. “Mr. Law lost a lung telling Rawson to get out there and clean up his sh—” He yelped as Bill whacked him. “I mean mess . But he’d been grounded for hanging out with Damon and had an alibi. But Rawson totally did it. Everyone knew it.”
    Milt took a break from the kitchen to join us. “That whippersnapper’s too smart for his britches.”
    “I’d wager he’s smarter than his old man,” Chance said.
    Milt huffed. “Of course, he is. Bart would be first to admit that. But smarts and wisdom ain’t the same, and wise is something Rawson’s not. That boy’s reckless and has never given jack sh—” He winced when Bill elbowed him. The older vet was fast becoming my hero for how he reined in the language for me. Milt gave me a sheepish grin. “What I mean is, Rawson ain’t never cared much about the future. He’s only lived for the moment, drinking and carrying on with that worthless SOB friend of his.”
    Bill glared at him, making me laugh. “I can handle acronyms.”
    Milt headed back to the kitchen. “That’s the nicest thing I can think to call that loser.”
    The others agreed with his assessment of the friend, but by how the younger hands kept discussing other pranks Rawson had pulled, I sensed something akin to hero-worship from them. I’d never understand guys.
    After supper, I worked the new gelding in the round pen until well after dark before calling it a night and heading to my cramped room above the garage. As I crossed the pasture, I felt the urge to twirl like Julie Andrews on those green hills in Sound of Music . My thoughts turned to the enigmatic Rawson Law, and I considered him crazy for leaving this place. But I wouldn’t hold that against him. If he had returned, I wouldn’t have been hired. And that would have been tragic, because after playing the part of a zombie for the last six months, I felt alive again. Yes, the work was exhausting, but the hours spent with high-pedigreed horses were a dream come true. As soon as I hit my pillow each night, I zonked before I had a chance to recall the nightmare that had altered my path.
    I considered that success.
     

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 5
    Bentley
    Yesterday I got caught, but getting busted never felt so good. I’d been spying on the new girl. She seemed worthy of a painting, so I watched from afar with my sketchbook in hand, trying to capture her fluid beauty on vellum. I overheard Seth call her Liz, and thought the name fit since she was prettier than a Montana sunset. Liz had performed miracles with the horses that had given Larry grief for months, especially Kodiak Kisses. We’d nicknamed the feisty three-year-old chestnut Kisser because everyone who’d tried to mount him had ended up on theirs.
    When I discovered Liz working in the arena, I hobbled over to the bleachers and watched through the slats as she risked her neck with that devil horse. Every evening, she brought him out and talked to him as she led him around on a long rope. He’d snort, paw the ground, and shake his head, but her sweet voice kept him from bolting.
    By the end of the week, she had him eating from her hand. Yesterday, when she let the wild cuss loose, I wondered if she might be slightly nuts as I watched the stud gallop and buck like a Tasmanian devil on Red Bull . But when she whistled, he trotted over calm as can be. When she grabbed his mane and mounted him bareback, I feared the psycho horse would hurt her. But strangest thing…he only nickered and pawed the ground.
    That’s when Liz met my gaze and grinned. In my anxiety for her safety, I’d crawled out from my hiding spot into plain view. Thankfully, she didn’t keep staring, but rested her head on Kisser’s neck and urged him around the arena.
    I couldn’t believe