Chapter 137 Part 137
Asher
“Colt! There’s one coming your way!” Asher had the rope in his hand, but he didn’t want to leave Cassidy alone on this side.
“I see him!” Colt yelled.
Cassidy had quickly learned how to position her horse to keep the cattle moving forward. A few times she’d break away to steer cattle closer to the main group. Asher couldn’t be more proud of her. She hadn’t complained once, not about the heat, or being thirsty, or her ass and thighs that had to be sore by now.
It took longer to get to the lower camp. There were always a few ornery cattle that didn’t want to move. It took patience, a lot of patience to get them moving, but the majority were easy to handle.
“Do you think you could ride ahead and open the gate?” Asher asked her.
“Yeah, I can do that.” She wiped the back of her hand over her brow, and Asher grinned. Her shirt was sticking to her back, and loose tendrils of hair were plastered to her face.
“You’re going to have to move your ass! Ride hard, open the gate, and get back on Betty. You’ll need to stay on my side so the cattle don’t run past you,” Asher said loudly.
“Gotcha, Asher!” Cassidy leaned forward, and Betty flew away from them. Asher watched as she went up the small incline and disappeared from view. She had minutes before the first cattle would crest that slope.
Blair whistled loudly and raised his hand in the air. Asher moved forward, and One Star picked up speed. When he reached the top of the incline, he saw Cassidy was already back on her horse, the gate wide open.
He steered One Star away, and rode back the way he came, egging the cattle on to start moving faster. The first over the hill started to run down the incline, and soon, it sounded like a stampede of hooves and braying. None of them tried to break away and Colt chased the last of the cattle into the pasture.
“Close the gate!” he yelled to Cassidy. She nodded her head and was off the horse in an instant.
When he reached her, she was sitting on Betty’s back again, and looked exhausted. He grinned and handed her a water bottle. “We’ll head back to the ranch through the woods. It’s a shorter route with much more shade.”
“I know I didn’t do much in terms of physical activity, but man, I feel like I can sleep for a whole day now.”
“You’ll feel worse tomorrow,” Blair said, as he joined them.
“My ointment offer is still on the table,” Colt added, and ducked as Blair tried to hit him with the rope in his hand.
They headed back toward the woods, following the fence line. The shade of the trees brought instant relief, and Asher took his hat off. His hair was wet with sweat, and he pulled a bandana from his pocket, and wiped his face before putting his hat back on.
They watered the horses at the stream, taking their time to stretch their legs. Asher grinned as he looked at Cassidy. He knew she was sore, but she didn’t let on. She never showed weakness to anyone, not if she could help it.
“How do you wanna do this, Asher?” Colt asked him.
“We walk down to the tree line. We go at three,” Asher answered him.
“What are we doing?” Cassidy asked.
“They always race the last few miles home. Last one to get there has to rub all the horses down,” Blair said.
“Who normally wins? I mean, I’ll bet on Asher any day of the week because I know he likes to be the best in everything, but I don’t know if Colt has that same streak,” she said.
“We’re all competitive. It’s a Fitzgerald trait,” Colt said, his eyes now narrowed as he looked at Asher.
“The only thing you ever win is by charm,” Blair said, and chuckled.
“And here I thought it was just Asher that could charm people.” Cassidy smiled, and winked at Blair.
“And Blair can’t charm anyone to save his life,” Colt said.
“Come on, let’s get back to the ranch. I’m starving, and I really need a shower,” Asher said.
“Do you remember that time my escort got lost and I had to stay with you in that nest you built?”
Asher started to laugh. “I got you out of there alive.”
“Two days, Fitzgerald! Two days I had to sniff your stinky armpits,” she said.
“Your armpits weren’t smelling all that fresh either,” Asher said, and chuckled as she glared at him.
“It was crazy. Every time I woke up, Asher was still looking through the scope of that rifle. He didn’t move, I don’t think he even slept until he took that shot,” Cassidy said.
“When our escort arrived, it started to rain, and you had your face tilted upwards, and you laughed as we got drenched, just standing in the rain,” Asher said. For a moment, it seemed like he was lost in thought, but his eyes cleared, and he headed to his horse.
“You stayed with Asher in a sniper’s nest for two days?” Blair asked her.
“Yeah, he was my guardian angel, always looking out for me.”
“Because you were the baby of the unit.” Asher ducked as she aimed to slap him behind his head and missed.
“I think we should have some beers on Asher’s porch, and you can tell me all the crazy things my brother got up to over there,” Colt said.
“My money’s still on Asher,” Cassidy said, and grinned at Colt.
They all raced back to the ranch, but the competition was between Colt and Asher. By the time Cassidy reached the barn, Colt was muttering under his breath, and Asher laughed.
“I can’t move,” Cassidy said.
“Just slide onto my shoulder. I’ve got you,” Asher said, as he held her steady. She did exactly as he said. She slid sideways off the horse, and Asher propped her over his shoulder, and started walking back to his house.