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bit of information? Store it with the rest of what
circled in his brain at the moment for reflection later.
    “Why don’t I get Sunny saddled and you
can take her for a test drive,” Shelby suggested.
    The interruption of his thoughts was a
welcome thing and Craig took his daughter’s hand to pull her away from the
horse.
    In the sunlight, the mare was even more
stunning. Her coat glowed a pale, flawless gold and her mane and tail were a
clean, creamy white. Four white stockings accentuated her coloring.
    Though Marisol appeared eager to try the
horse, she stood back. “Can Quinn try her first?”
    Shelby shrugged and held the thin black
leather reins toward Quinn.
    Quinn led Sunny into the riding ring set
up with three green and blue barrels in a cloverleaf pattern. She mounted, took
to the rail and walked the mare for one full circle before putting her through
her paces.
    Except for the day before, it had been a
long time since Craig had seen Quinn ride. He was impressed. She looked easy
and natural on Sunny, though he doubted she’d ever ridden the animal before.
There was a connection between the two. Through subtle signals, Quinn moved the
horse from a steady, even jog to an easy lope. After about ten minutes, she
rode back to them.
    “I’m in love,” she declared and
dismounted. “Marisol, you ready to give her a try?”
    Marisol nodded and went to the mare and
laid a tentative hand on her shoulder.
    As Marisol’s first lesson began, Craig
leaned against the fence and watched Quinn work with his daughter and Sunny.
Shelby joined him and while he listened to her talk about Sunny’s attributes,
he remained focused on the trio in the ring. He admired the care Quinn showed
his daughter, the complete focus in her eyes as she instructed Marisol in the
correct way to hold the reins and how to position her feet in the stirrups.
    The way Marisol paid attention was a
relief as well. She took this very seriously. The three of them moved off at a
walk, Marisol tall in the saddle and Quinn vigilant, but letting the girl keep
control.
    “I see a natural there,” Shelby
commented.
    “I never thought she’d want to do this.”
    “Sunny will take care of her, Mr. Lynch.
And with Quinn teaching her, she’s going to be a pro in no time.”
    The threesome in the ring went around
twice before returning to the gate. Shelby let them out and Craig helped
Marisol dismount. She whipped around, her eyes wide, grabbed Craig’s hands and
squeezed.
    “I love her, Dad.”
    “I can tell,” he replied calmly.
    “Please, can I have her?”
    Craig smiled. He’d already decided but
he wanted to hold out that information for a moment. He glanced at Quinn, who
watched them closely.
    He shrugged, gave Quinn a wink, and
looked back at his daughter. “I need to think about it.”
    “Before you make any decisions this
serious, I think you should sleep on it. Who knows, you may change your mind,”
Quinn added, stepping in to play the game.
    Marisol turned on Quinn and gave her a
pained frown, as if she couldn’t believe everything she wanted was at her
fingertips only to be yanked away.
    Craig grinned at Quinn, sending her a
silent thank you.
    “You guys! Don’t you see how good Sunny
and I are together?”
    Quinn laughed and Craig joined her. He
was no good at pulling the wool over his daughter’s eyes for very long. “Why
don’t you go wait in the truck while Shelby and I talk.”
    Marisol narrowed her eyes in suspicion
and looked from him to Quinn but did as told with one long last look at the
horse.
    Craig looked at Shelby. “I guess I have
to buy her now.”
    Within ten minutes, he and Shelby
reached an agreement that included Sunny’s tack. Shelby would bring the mare to
the Shady H in three days, giving her a little more time with her beloved
horse.
    By the time he got into the driver’s
seat, Marisol was nearly bouncing off the wall. Quinn, who’d been waiting in
the SUV as well, was more patient but gave him a