Free Gypsy Gold by Terri Farley Page A

he could think of, Jen hadbeen her usual sarcastic self, wondering aloud where Sam had gotten the idea she could have a birthday every year.
    She’d known Jake all her life, and though they didn’t make a huge deal of each other’s birthdays, they always gave each other something. When Jake had been recovering from the horseback accident that had broken his leg, she’d given him a beautiful leather headstall for Witch and a book about Native American trackers. Even when they’d been little kids, she’d given him a bunch of carrots for his pony.
    This was the first time she’d completely forgotten.
    But why hadn’t someone reminded her? Like Gram. Or Jen. Sam reined in her impulse to blame someone else. That wouldn’t help, and besides, she was fourteen years old. She knew how to use a calendar.
    â€œI didn’t even give him a card!” Sam mumbled. “How stupid can I be?”
    â€œDon’t panic, Sam,” Jen said.
    â€œHey, if I’d missed your birthday—”
    â€œI would have reminded you with merciless harassment.”
    â€œExactly. But Jake just let it go,” Sam moaned.
    â€œHe might not even have noticed,” Jen said.
    Yeah, right, Sam thought.
    â€œWho’s Jake?” Nicolas asked again.
    The breath Sam drew to tell him puffed right back out of her as Ace’s sudden stop jerked her forward against the saddle horn.
    Her bay gelding threw his head so high, she couldn’t gaze through the frame of his ears in the direction he was staring. He gave a shrill neigh. Then, as he bobbed his head, and his black mane slapped his neck, Sam saw the dark figure riding their way.
    â€œ That’s Jake,” Sam said, pointing.
    Sam wondered if there was a name for this weird feeling of guilt mixed with relief.
    Probably not. Most people who were glad to see a friend hadn’t forgotten his birthday for an entire month.
    Just the same, Sam was glad to see Jake. She just wished he’d shown up sooner.
    Not that she, Jen, and Nicolas hadn’t handled Slocum just fine. She hadn’t collapsed into tears or smothered the rich rancher with his own huge hat, although the image of Slocum’s pudgy legs kicking in protest was kind of satisfying.
    Sam shook the picture from her wicked imagination.
    She’d done fine, but if Jake had been riding beside her, Slocum might have apologized instead of threatening to report her to the sheriff. Jake had a more calming effect on people than she did.
    Sam heard the gentle thud of hooves and saw Jake sway in the saddle, moving with his horse as if they were a single creature.
    A centaur, she thought, one of those mythological beasts that were half horse and half human. And ifshe rode every day for the rest of her life, no one would ever mistake her for one.
    â€œHow did he get so close without any of us noticing him?” Nicolas asked.
    â€œIt’s what he does,” Jen said sourly.
    Sam smiled. It was strange that even though he rode Witch, a big black mare, Ace hadn’t noticed Jake until he was a quarter-mile away.
    â€œI hope he’s a friend of yours,” Nicolas said, “because he’s got the colt with him.”
    Just then, the dun colt, which had been running in Witch’s shadow, pranced on ahead of her. Jake kept Witch at an easy lope as they followed. The black mare hovered behind the colt without hurrying him.
    â€œWhat you’re seeing is typical Jake,” Jen told Nicolas. “He has this totally annoying habit of showing up at the right place at the right time.”
    â€œIt’s only because he’s the best tracker in the state, not because he’s psychic or anything,” Sam explained.
    â€œA tracker?” Nicolas asked. “Like a bounty hunter?”
    Jen gave a short laugh. “Maybe that’s a career choice he should consider.”
    Sam wondered if her two best friends’ competition would last their entire lives.