thing.’ Max is going to love it when I tell him, too.”
Minutes later Mr. Denver arrived with a fully tacked Blondie. In fact, she had more than the usual amount of tack on. She had a lead rope snapped onto her bridle—now known as the rein thing.
“Since you’re a beginner, I am going to hold on to the lead rope, but you get the reins and you can take her wherever you want to go, as long as I can go along, too.”
“I never have a leash thing on when I ride in class!” Lisa protested. “I don’t want one now. I can do fine without it. Mom, tell him!” Lisa whined.
“Oh, I don’t know,” said Deborah. “This horse seems like she’s got a lot of get-up-and-go. I’d hate to see her run away with you.”
Carole looked at the tame, plodding old mare they were discussing and wondered how Deborah could say that with a straight face.
“Your mother’s right,” said Mr. Denver. “Now, let me help you into the saddle.”
This was a tricky part because climbing into a horse’ssaddle was one of the first things all of Max’s students learned to do, and they learned to do it well. It would be a dead giveaway if Lisa did one of her usual snappy mounts. Carole held her breath. She needn’t have bothered.
“Which side?” Lisa asked.
“Uh, over here,” said Mr. Denver, smiling broadly. In a minute, he’d given Lisa a hand up into the saddle, helping her get her right leg over the old horse’s broad back.
And then the ride began. He led Blondie over a well-worn path that circled her paddock. He walked around once, and then, at Lisa’s insistence, he let the mare trot. It was an effort, both for Blondie and for Mr. Denver. Lisa, however, was in her element.
“Oh, Mom! Blondie is the perfect horse! I can’t believe we found her the first place we looked! Her walk is so gentle, and her trot! Well, I never felt a smooth trot like this before!”
Carole had known Lisa was a good actress, but she’d never known she was this good. She even managed to post on the wrong diagonal! That was something Max’s riders learned never to do by their third lesson.
The third time around the circle, Blondie was walking again, and seemed glad of it. That gave Lisa a chance to look around the farm a little more. The mountains werevery dramatic, and Rock Ridge itself was stark and beautiful. Then something moved in the air by the mountain. Lisa squinted to see what it was. It was a glider—just like the one Phil would be in in two days. Suddenly Lisa was very glad she was sitting in the saddle of an earthbound horse. The glider seemed very small and fragile compared to the mountain behind it.
“So, Mrs. Hale, is it time for us to make a deal?” Mr. Denver asked, drawing Blondie to a halt right in front of Deborah.
“Well, if Lisa thinks this is the perfect horse for her, then I guess we should—um—once I’ve had a vet check her over.”
Mr. Denver shook his head disapprovingly. “I thought you wanted to
buy
, not haggle,” he said.
“Oh, we do,” Deborah assured him. “It’s just that I thought it would be a good idea if a vet—”
“Mrs. Hale, you obviously don’t know much about horse trading, do you?”
“Well, no,” Deborah said uncertainly.
“The fact is that I have a vet out here to my ranch three times a week to look after one thing or another. I own somewhere between forty and fifty horses, so the vet spends a lot of time here. He’s never once had to give any treatment to Blondie.”
“She’s that healthy?” Deborah said.
“Not one problem,” said Mr. Denver. “And I’d stake my reputation on it.”
He
doesn’t know how right he is!
thought Carole.
“Look, I can’t tell you what to do or not do, but this here is a fine piece of horseflesh, and if young Lizzie here doesn’t buy her, somebody else will. It doesn’t really make any difference to me. I’ll get my price. But when I saw the smile on your little girl’s face—and what a pretty smile that is—I just knew
Minutes later Mr. Denver arrived with a fully tacked Blondie. In fact, she had more than the usual amount of tack on. She had a lead rope snapped onto her bridle—now known as the rein thing.
“Since you’re a beginner, I am going to hold on to the lead rope, but you get the reins and you can take her wherever you want to go, as long as I can go along, too.”
“I never have a leash thing on when I ride in class!” Lisa protested. “I don’t want one now. I can do fine without it. Mom, tell him!” Lisa whined.
“Oh, I don’t know,” said Deborah. “This horse seems like she’s got a lot of get-up-and-go. I’d hate to see her run away with you.”
Carole looked at the tame, plodding old mare they were discussing and wondered how Deborah could say that with a straight face.
“Your mother’s right,” said Mr. Denver. “Now, let me help you into the saddle.”
This was a tricky part because climbing into a horse’ssaddle was one of the first things all of Max’s students learned to do, and they learned to do it well. It would be a dead giveaway if Lisa did one of her usual snappy mounts. Carole held her breath. She needn’t have bothered.
“Which side?” Lisa asked.
“Uh, over here,” said Mr. Denver, smiling broadly. In a minute, he’d given Lisa a hand up into the saddle, helping her get her right leg over the old horse’s broad back.
And then the ride began. He led Blondie over a well-worn path that circled her paddock. He walked around once, and then, at Lisa’s insistence, he let the mare trot. It was an effort, both for Blondie and for Mr. Denver. Lisa, however, was in her element.
“Oh, Mom! Blondie is the perfect horse! I can’t believe we found her the first place we looked! Her walk is so gentle, and her trot! Well, I never felt a smooth trot like this before!”
Carole had known Lisa was a good actress, but she’d never known she was this good. She even managed to post on the wrong diagonal! That was something Max’s riders learned never to do by their third lesson.
The third time around the circle, Blondie was walking again, and seemed glad of it. That gave Lisa a chance to look around the farm a little more. The mountains werevery dramatic, and Rock Ridge itself was stark and beautiful. Then something moved in the air by the mountain. Lisa squinted to see what it was. It was a glider—just like the one Phil would be in in two days. Suddenly Lisa was very glad she was sitting in the saddle of an earthbound horse. The glider seemed very small and fragile compared to the mountain behind it.
“So, Mrs. Hale, is it time for us to make a deal?” Mr. Denver asked, drawing Blondie to a halt right in front of Deborah.
“Well, if Lisa thinks this is the perfect horse for her, then I guess we should—um—once I’ve had a vet check her over.”
Mr. Denver shook his head disapprovingly. “I thought you wanted to
buy
, not haggle,” he said.
“Oh, we do,” Deborah assured him. “It’s just that I thought it would be a good idea if a vet—”
“Mrs. Hale, you obviously don’t know much about horse trading, do you?”
“Well, no,” Deborah said uncertainly.
“The fact is that I have a vet out here to my ranch three times a week to look after one thing or another. I own somewhere between forty and fifty horses, so the vet spends a lot of time here. He’s never once had to give any treatment to Blondie.”
“She’s that healthy?” Deborah said.
“Not one problem,” said Mr. Denver. “And I’d stake my reputation on it.”
He
doesn’t know how right he is!
thought Carole.
“Look, I can’t tell you what to do or not do, but this here is a fine piece of horseflesh, and if young Lizzie here doesn’t buy her, somebody else will. It doesn’t really make any difference to me. I’ll get my price. But when I saw the smile on your little girl’s face—and what a pretty smile that is—I just knew
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