All I Need Is You by Johanna Lindsey Read Free Book Online Page A

people who treat animals like this,” he said, glaring at Billybob, who was scooting back in case any more kicks were coming. “Which one is yours?”
    “Neither,” Billybob denied, an obvious lie. “They both belong to Vince.”
    “Well, one can’t be ridden, and the other won’t be doing any hard riding any time soon. Took a rock out of his foot that was beginning to fester. And look at them! They’re both ripped up bloody from your damn spurs.”
    Billybob scooted back even farther, but Kid was done with his tirade and continued on to the fire. “Time to move out,” he told Damian. “We’ll be lucky if we make any more distance today than if those two were on foot. They’ll have to share the one horse. The other is going to go crippled if she takes any more weight before she mends. Damn, but stupid people annoy the hell out of me.”
    That was pretty obvious. Under the circumstances, Damian decided not to mention his traveling bag again. He supposed he would be able to replace it as soon as he reached civilization again. Finding new clothes of good quality was another matter…
    He helped break up the camp as best as common sense would allow, which for him was washing the dishes in the river. When he came back up the hill, the fire was completely buried and Kid’s horse saddled and packed up with the large saddlebags that carried his trail gear.
    This was the first time he’d noticed the chestnut gelding, which had been staked off on the edge of the camp. It was a fine-looking animal, well-groomed and spirited, or at least it seemed eager to be on the move. It was comparable to the Thoroughbreds that Damian had seen when he’d occasionally gone to the races, and he was a bit surprised that the skinny kid would own such an animal.
    The boy was in the process of trying to get Billybob mounted, and from the sound of it, not having much luck. “I tell you, I can’t do it, not with my hands tied behind me,” Billybob was saying. “And even if I get up there, I’ll be falling off without something to hold on to.”
    “Good. Then you’ll spend all day thinking about staying in the saddle, rather than thinking up ways to cause me trouble. Now either you get up there or you walk, and it sure don’t make me no nevermind which you choose.”
    It did look like an impossible task, which was why Damian came up behind Billybob and more or less tossed him up into the saddle. The man let out a “What the…?” before he concentrated on not falling off the other side.
    Kid gave Damian a genuine grin. His look said, Guess you’re not totally useless , and then he glanced at the still unconscious Vince. “If he’sstill alive, you want to see if you can manage that again?”
    The allusion to how hard Damian had hit the man had him blushing slightly. He nodded, and did manage to help Vince up into the saddle behind his friend after pouring half a canteen of water on him to get him awake enough to stay in it. But now that it was his own turn to mount, he was wishing someone was there to give him a hoist up as well—not that he could imagine anyone big enough to.
    Living all his life in a large city, Damian had never had to deal with horses before, always having footmen or drivers to see to the carriage horses. Today would actually be the first time he’d ever been on the back of a horse, and he’d never realized what big animals they really were, particularly the spirited chestnut.
    The boy, mounted and waiting, finally said, “You put your foot in the stirrup, Mr. Rutledge. Haven’t you ever ridden before?”
    “Only in vehicles, not on the animals that pull them,” Damian was forced to admit.
    He heard a sigh, then, “I shoulda known... Here, use my arm for balance, but push with your leg once you get your foot in the stirrup, then release it once you’re seated.”
    It was easier said than done, of course, but Damian made it after the second attempt, and without landing them in the dust. His perch on top