The Cowboy Takes a Bride by Lori Wilde Read Free Book Online Page A

chest, knitted her brow in a scowl, tough as the South Side of Chicago, but she couldn’t mask the quick glimmer of sadness in her brown eyes. “Why are you here?”
    “Miracle.”
    She startled. “What?”
    “Some Kind of Miracle.”
    “Is that supposed to mean something?”
    “It’s a horse. A quarter horse stallion to be precise and the best cutting horse I’ve ever had the pleasure to clamp eyes on.”
    “What does that have to do with me?”
    “Miracle was Dutch’s horse. When Miracle won several cutting events in a row, we knew we had something special on our hands.”
    “If he’s Dutch’s horse, what do you have to do with it?”
    “He trained Miracle. I rode him. We knew we stood a good chance at winning the Fort Worth Triple Crown Futurity this season. The purse is four hundred thousand dollars. Dutch told me Miracle was his last chance.”
    “Last chance for what?”
    “To settle down,” Joe said. “Make amends. Redemption. Hell, I don’t know. We didn’t talk about stuff like that. He just offered me the stallion in exchange for this old cabin he’d been renting, the horse barn, and four hundred acres of land a few weeks before he died. I took him up on it.”
    “I see.” She turned to run a scathing gaze over the ramshackle house. “Looks like you got the best end of that deal. Want to trade back?”
    “What would you do with a cutting horse?”
    “Sell it.”
    “You can’t sell Miracle!” What in the hell was wrong with this woman? She had some screwed-up values. “That stallion is the best cutting horse to ever draw breath.”
    “Oops, forgive me for blasphemy.” Mariah rolled her eyes. “I had no idea you were one of those .”
    “One of what?” he drawled lethally, not liking her tone.
    “Pie-in-the-sky dreamers just like my father.”
    “You don’t know what you’re talking about. Miracle is going to win the futurity.”
    “You sound just like Dutch in the throes of his get-rich-quick schemes.”
    “Anyone who thinks you can get rich quick training cutting horses has no idea what they’re talking about. It takes time, hard work, skill, and lots of luck just to make a passing living.”
    “And yet you’re certain this horse is going to win.”
    “He’s not named Some Kind of Miracle for nothing.”
    They fell silent, warily watching each other.
    “Does that pickup truck belong to Dutch?” she asked, nodding at the dually.
    “It does.”
    “Do you know if he left it to anyone?”
    “I believe it’s yours. You need to go see your father’s lawyer, Art Bunting, for the details of his estate.”
    “Thank you,” she said. “I’ll do that.”
    Joe never intended on saying the next words out of his mouth, but somehow they just slipped out. Probably guilt over being mean to her a few minutes ago. Or maybe some damn misguided sense of chivalry. “You need someone to follow you to turn in the rental car and give you a ride back?”
    “Would you do that?” She sounded astonished.
    Every instinct was telling him to leave her to her own devices, but Joe wasn’t built that way. He saw a damsel in distress and he broke out in Sir Galahad. Bad habit, but there it was. “Sure.”
    “That’s very kind of you, considering I thumped your hat.”
    “I won’t hold it against you.” He grinned. “I was sort of asking for it.”
    She raised a palm to hide a yawn. “And could you give me just a couple of hours to get some sleep? I’ve been awake for over thirty-six hours.”
    “Tell you what,” he said. “We’ll do it tomorrow after you’ve had a good night’s sleep. In the meantime, I’ll just go round up Miracle from your barn and take him back home.”

Chapter Four
At some point, home is a strange land.
—Dutch Callahan
    M ariah left Joe to retrieve his horse and went back inside the house. One more look at the mess and she heaved a deep sigh. If she had any money, she’d drive to a motel. As it was, she had to make do. At least the house was hers and