A Bride for Deke

ever happen, but thank you for your confidence in me.”
Deke shrugged. “We all start the same way. Getting on the horse’s back is the first step. You’ll do well.”
After breakfast was eaten and the dishes were done, Amalie strolled out to the corral doing her best to look calm, but her stomach was churning, and she wished she’d skipped breakfast.
Nate waved from inside the corral, and Amalie smiled and waved back, fighting the urge to run and hide. She scolded herself for her foolishness. Neither Nate nor Deke would allow her to be injured. Honey was a sweet, calm horse, and she was a brave woman—or was she? She wasn’t quite sure at the moment.
Deke opened the corral gate and took Amalie’s hand. “We set a box out for you to make it easier for you to climb onto Honey’s back. In time, you’ll be able to mount a horse without the box.”
Amalie looked at him skeptically, but she didn’t say a word.
He held her hand as she climbed onto the box that had been set next to Honey’s side. “All right—slip your left foot into the stirrup and swing your leg slowly over Honey’s back.”
Amalie stared at Deke again, calming a bit when he smiled at her. She followed his directions and was amazed that she was actually sitting on Honey.
“I did it,” Amalie gushed. “I’m sitting on a horse.”
“That you are—that you are. Now, hold onto the reins, and Nate will walk you around the corral. I’ll walk next to you in case you slide off, but I doubt you will.”
Thirty minutes later, Nate said, “My leg is getting tired. Deke can walk with you now.”
Amalie answered, “You said you’d ride, too. Come on, Nate—get on Buck, and let’s ride together.”
Nate nodded his head as if to indicate he’d remembered his promise. He returned a short time later with a saddled Buck. Amalie watched as he used his good leg to lift himself with the stirrup and swing his bad leg over Buck’s back. The look on his face matched the earlier feeling in Amalie’s stomach.
Nate’s face calmed a few moments later when Buck started to walk around the corral. Deke motioned to the corral gate, and Nate nodded. When Deke opened the gate, Nate and Buck left the corral, while Amalie watched as they rode slowly toward the open field.
Still holding Honey’s reins, Deke said to Amalie, “I knew he could do it if he tried. He loves horses and riding. I remember when we had to pull him off his horse for supper.”
“Do you think I will ever be able to ride out of the corral like that?” Amalie asked.
“I’m sure you will. Here—take the reins. Just let Honey walk. She won’t run off.” Deke gave Amalie a few more instructions on how to get Honey to stop or ride faster before handing her the horse’s reins.
~  *  ~
Amalie rode Honey around in circles for several more minutes until Nate returned. He looked as excited as Amalie felt. “I think I should let Honey rest now,” Amalie told Deke. “I can ride her again tomorrow.”
Deke knew that Honey wasn’t tired, but he thought that perhaps Amalie had needed a break. Tomorrow was another day, and he knew that Amalie would soon ride Honey across the ranch.
Amalie rode Honey twice every day—once in the morning and once in the afternoon—until they became nearly inseparable. If Honey were out of her stall, she would follow Amalie around the yard as she did the laundry or worked in the garden.
Amalie always had a carrot or apple for Honey, and she spoke to the horse as she did her chores. Deke swore the horse listened to Amalie and understood her.
Amalie rode Honey a bit farther each day. One afternoon, Deke asked her if she’d like to take a longer ride with him. “We could ride to the creek. It’s only about a twenty-minute ride, and I think Honey might enjoy stretching her legs a bit more than she does walking around the yard.”
Amalie giggled. “Maybe she would. Look at what she’s learned.” Amalie whistled, and Honey stopped grazing and ran immediately up to her.
Deke knew that Honey was Amalie’s horse, but the notion solidified when he saw Honey react to Amalie’s whistle. He hoped that whenever Amalie decided to leave, it was somewhere she could take Honey. He knew Honey would die of a broken heart if Amalie ever left her behind.
“All right—I’ll ride with you,” Amalie answered.
Deke and Amalie enjoyed the ride, and when they crested a small hill, Honey picked up her pace to get to the creek for a drink of the fresh water. Amalie held on, seeming to enjoy the quicker pace.
There was a large, flat-topped boulder next to the creek, and Amalie found it enjoyable to sit on the boulder to watch the fish swim and jump in the water, scattering the sparkles from the bright sun overhead on the water’s surface.
Deke mentioned that he and Nate used to swim and play in the creek when they were boys, and if Amalie wanted, she could come down to enjoy the cold water on a hot day.
“No one is around to see you,” Deke told her. “It’s refreshing when the hot sun has been beating down on you for most of the day. Maybe after hanging the wash or weeding the garden.”
Amalie blushed at the thought of removing anything more than her boots to go into the water, and she said, “Maybe, someday.”
Deke nodded in understanding. He’d been foolish to suggest she cool off in the water, and he must have embarrassed her. She was easy to talk to, but he had to remember that their marriage was in name only, and he had to be less forward.
Deke cleared his throat and said, “There’s