Free Cowboy's Kiss by Victoria Pade Page B

could.
    Getting into the saddle again was not an easy proposition, however.
    Lifting her leg high enough to reach the stirrup just couldn’t be done with muscles that were crying out for mercy. Fleetingly she considered walking rather than riding, wondering if she could keep up, but of course she knew that wasn’t really an option, just wishful thinking when anything seemed preferable to sitting in that saddle again. If she could even get there.
    She searched for something to use to boost herself up, spotting a tree stump on the outskirts of the small clump of bushes she’d just availed herself of.
    She took her horse to that spot; though she still could have used a bigger lift, with a moan of misery, she managed it.
    For a moment she closed her eyes, swallowed hard and waited for the pain to pass. Barring that, she at least waited for it to ease up.
    Then she opened her eyes, pulled up the scarf that was tied around her neck to cover her nose and mouth and went around the trees and bushes to return to work.
    There was only one problem.
    There wasn’t a cow or horse or cowboy or so much as a cloud of dust anywhere to be seen.
    Thinking that maybe she’d just lost her bearings and was facing the wrong direction, Ally made a full circle of the stand of trees and bushes, searching the distance for signs of the herd.
    But there weren’t any.
    In fact, there wasn’t anything but wide-open countryside. Quiet. Beautiful. Empty. And she had most definitely lost her bearings, because she didn’t have any idea which direction she’d come from or where to go to get back.
    â€œOh, boy,” she said as reality sank in. Then, as loud as she could, she called, “Hey, is anybody out there?”
    No answer. Not even her own voice echoed back to her.
    â€œYou don’t think we’re lost, do you?” she said to her horse, the only living thing within earshot.
    It didn’t answer.
    It didn’t need to. They were in trouble and Ally knew it.
    Still, she had to try to get out of this. Keeping her fingers crossed, she took a guess and ventured as far as she could without losing sight of the trees.
    Nothing.
    Back she went, trying another direction. And then another and another, always keeping the trees as home base. But still there was no sign of the herd. It was as if they’d disappeared into thin air.
    Which left her with the camp rule applying to lost hikers—stay in one place. So for the last time she went back to the trees and bushes, thinking that when Jackson realized she wasn’t bringing up the rear, he’d backtrack and find her.
    Wouldn’t he?
    A sinking feeling washed through her with the doubt.
    Maybe he wouldn’t. Maybe he’d figure it served her right and she was on her own. That she could find her way home or die trying.
    The vast expanse of the open countryside seemed to stretch out even farther than before, all around her. And she had an overwhelming sense of how completely vulnerable she actually was.
    â€œThank God, Meggie didn’t come with me,” she murmured when that thought occurred to her, her own voice sounding loud in the silence.
    But then she realized she was being silly. Surely Jackson wouldn’t just leave her. Or even if he would, someone else would come looking for her.
    She just needed to wait awhile.
    But she didn’t need to do it sitting on the back of that horse.
    â€œUnless, of course, you know your way home. Any chance of that?” she asked, bending over the animal’s mane to speak into its ear.
    The horse snorted and shook its head as if to rid itself of a fly.
    No help there.
    â€œOkay for you,” she said. “No horsey treats when we do get back.”
    She slid to the ground again, groaning the whole way and longing to be anywhere but where she was—preferably in a bath full of bubbles. At home in Denver where there wasn’t so much dust and dirt and grime. In the middle of the