Saving Grace by Unknown (romance book recommendations txt) 📗

Rebecca. Always talking nonsense.

There was a bit of well water left in a bucket on the floor so I cleaned up as best I could and went outside to see what the damage was like out there. That was no pretty sight either.

The barn doors were wide open and my heart jumped at the possibility they'd taken the horses too. I broke into a run as soon as I'd seen that and ran the rest of the way until I was standing at the barn and looking inside. Empty. My heart sank and I felt myself start to slouch as I thought of what this meant. There was nothing left. Nothing left to sell. Nothing left to live off of. This meant I was going to have to sell the land. My heart swelled a bit and I felt those same tears from the kitchen well up with it and a choke at my throat.

This was going to be the end of this whole dream that daddy had.

He'd raised me almost as if I were a boy, to the ire of some who constantly had to tell him what he should be doing different. I reckon he'd always wanted a son but never said as much. Then when mama died he swore off women, well, except for me. I remember from that day he said that I was gonna learn how to run a ranch if it killed him. If it killed him. The memory of him mingled with the shame I felt at letting him down and it made it all the harder not to cry.

The hard clatter of hooves on the barn floor made me look up with a start, made my heart jump and my eyes widen, trying to peer deep into the corners of the dark barn. Destiny's huge shape came into view as the massive animal walked towards me. I almost took a step back but my daddy had taught me better than to back down from a horse who thought it was boss. So I puffed out my chest as I could. I won't lie that I did take some pride in the size of my bosom, and the horse stopped a few feet away, nodding its head and pawing at the ground.

"Of course they left you," I muttered, shaking my head. I couldn't help but smile at what Destiny had done when those damned thieves tried to get at him. I walked up slow and careful and put a hand on his nose to stop his head from swaying. "Oh you poor thing, they got you good and scared, didn't they?" Destiny gave another nod, almost as if he were saying yes.

Destiny was my daddy's favourite horse. Mine too. Only trouble was, no one could ride him. Oh, I tried now and again, but that was one horse that was stubborn as a mule. Wouldn't take a rider for a bucket full of apples. I think that's why daddy liked him, he always did appreciate a creature with an opinion.

I don't know what got into my head right then and there. Maybe the knock on the noggin' I'd received had shaken something up in there, but standing in that barn looking at that horse I decided that would be a great time to try and get a saddle on him and ride him into town. Well the choice was either that or walking, so why not?

"Okay big feller, you and me are gonna try something and you're gonna act like the gentleman I know you can be. What do you say?"

He just kind of looked at me with a wide eye, probably trying to tell me I was crazy. Well I managed to get a blanket on him, that was a step in the right direction. But as soon as that stubborn stallion started pawing at the ground again and gave me a couple of snorts my way like he was letting me know to stay well enough away. "Come on now you big dumb horse," I said as calmly as I could, walking towards him with big leather saddle. With how high he was, I wasn't even sure I could reach to get the saddle onto him, much less get myself on. Turned out there was no need to even try. Soon as I got a few feet from him that horse bolted out of that barn faster'n lightning in a summer storm.

Looked like I was walking to town after all.

***

"Gracey?" Rebecca's drawl stretched out my name even longer than usual as I came walking up towards the porch.

"Hiya Becca," I called out, giving her a wave just to add some flair to the occasion.

"How'd you get here? And don't call me that out loud," she said scowling and glancing around for her daddy, "you know Pa don't like no nicknames."

"What does it look like? I walked!" I said, pretty cheerful considering I'd just spent the better part of the last three hours walking the nine miles from my ranch to theirs.

"What do you mean you walked?!? Where's your horse?"

It was my turn to look around and make sure her Pa wasn't listening. Like most of the men round those parts, he didn't much fancy me livin' on that ranch on my own and made sure to let me know every damn time I saw him. The last thing I needed was him giving me a big ole' I told you so. I put a finger up to my lips to shush her a bit and sat down beside her on the bench.

"Look, don't tell no one yet, but...I been robbed." As I expected, Becca's eyes popped open even wider and I had to put my hand over her mouth so she didn't start screaming. She was always a little more of a lady than I was.

"What do you mean you got robbed? Horse thieves?!?" she hissed once she'd pulled my hand away.

"No. They took everything."

"Everything?"

"Everything. Cutlery