Page 80 of Saltwater Cowboy

And now, apparently, I’m learning to ride a horse—on a Friday night.

Normal people went to happy hour. Some went for a nice dinner. But no. Here I was, standing in front of a thousand-pound animal with eyes that screamed, ‘I know you have no idea what you’re doing’.

“This is Bandit,” Wells said, patting the horse’s side like they were old war buddies. “He’s real gentle. Perfect for beginners.”

I narrowed my eyes at the horse. “Are we sure about that?”

Bandit blinked at me. I swear he was judging me.

Wells grinned. “You’ll be fine. Just put your foot in the stirrup and swing your leg over.”

It sounded simple. It was not simple.

For starters, the stirrup was much higher than anticipated. I attempted to lift my foot, but I might as well have been trying to scale a mountain.

“This is a lot,” I muttered. “Maybe I should start with a pony. Or, like… a horse simulator.”

Wells sighed, coming up behind me. “Here, I’ll give you a boost.”

Before I could protest, his hands were on my waist, and suddenly, I was airborne. Which was all fine and dandy, except he launched me with way too much enthusiasm.

I cleared the saddle like an Olympic gymnast.

For a glorious second, I was flying. Weightless. Free.

And then I wasn’t.

I landed on the other side of the horse in a very ungraceful heap, smacking the ground with an oof.

Silence.

Then—Wells. Wheezing.

“Oh—” he bent over, hands on his knees. “Oh, hell—” A full-body laugh shook him. “I didn’t—” He gasped for air. “I didn’t mean to throw you over the damn thing.”

I groaned, staring up at the darkening sky. “So this is how I die. On a farm. Launched like a rag doll.”

Bandit turned his head to look at me, utterly unbothered.

Wells finally got himself under control and leaned over me, grinning way too wide. “You good, Sunshine?”

“I think my soul left my body for a second, but yeah.” I lifted a hand. “Give me a moment to gather my pride.”

He shook his head, laughing, before offering me a hand up. “Alright, alright. Let’s try this again. With less enthusiasm.”

Round two went slightly better. Mostly because I demanded no launching this time. Wells helped me into the saddle—at a normal human speed—and after some tense moments of gripping the reins like my life depended on it, I was officially on a horse.

“See?” Wells smirked. “Not so bad.”

I exhaled slowly. “Not so bad.”

Bandit shifted slightly, and I immediately yelped and grabbed Wells’ arm. “Nope. Nope. Too high. I changed my mind.”

He laughed, steadying me. “Relax. He’s just adjusting. You got this.”

I gave him a suspicious look. “Are you sure? Because I feel like this is how people end up on YouTube compilations.”

He just grinned. “Guess we’ll find out.”