A Pony for Christmas Read online

  A Pony for Christmas

  The Belles of Wyoming, Book 4

  P. Creeden

  Contents

  A Pony for Christmas

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  About the Author

  Brokken Rising

  A Pony for Christmas © 2018 P. Creeden

  Cover by Virginia McKevitt

  All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

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  The Creation of Belle, Wyoming

  1840's

  On a wagon train to Oregon, Clara Brown's husband died of Cholera, leaving her on her own. The wagon train did not allow single women to travel alone, so she is ordered to leave.

  She was rescued by a trapper and they fell deeply in love, creating their own town not far from Ft. Bridger. They named the town Belle for the jingle bells that were attached to her oxen when they first met. Now, years later, each Christmas the tradition continues as the town places the bells on an ox or horse, gifting rides to remember the legacy of the founders. The bells were safely put away and only brought out each year for this purpose.

  Except, this year, the bells have gone missing.

  Are they ever found?

  Read the five stories coming out each day starting on December 10th to find out what happened to the bells. Even some of the authors don't know how this will end! Each story is complete with a happy ending!

  In order of release:

  Wynters Bride by Christine Sterling

  Holly's Christmas Wish by Marianne Spitzer

  A Tin Star for Christmas by Cyndi Raye

  A Pony for Christmas by P Creeden

  Natalie's Surprise Engagement by Julia Ridgmont

  A Pony for Christmas

  Amanda has been in love with Nate since she was nine years old. Now she’s grown up, and he still treats her like a little sister. When he became a widower raising an only daughter, just like her father, Nate stole her heart just a little bit more. This Christmas, his Aunt Eugenia is in town, determined to find him a suitable wife before she leaves for the new year. But can Amanda recover from a bad first impression in order to be considered a candidate for the position?

  Chapter 1

  December 1880 - Just south of Belle, Wyoming

  Amanda Tripp gained more satisfaction in training a pony to accept a rider than she did for just about anything else. She didn’t break horses the way that the cowboys did, she gentled them and made them, just like her grandfather had taught her. Her grandfather, who was half Nez Perce Indian, showed her how to connect with horses on a deeper level, that they weren’t simply to be ordered around and treated as slaves, but rather partners in the process of learning. She trotted the little gray filly, Lilly, around the corral. It was the first time the filly didn’t slow down as she passed the gate. Lilly was finally starting to learn when the lesson was finished and not trying to end the session on her own by heading for the gate. It was a big part of her training to learn that small lesson. Amanda pulled on the reins and slowed the filly down to a walk. They passed by the gate again, and Lilly didn’t even look at it longingly. She already understood that they would go once more around the corral before Amanda would pull her up and get off.

  The sun shined overhead, even though there was just enough breeze to kiss color into her cheeks. Her breath came out in clouds around her face. In the sky, clouds moved in from the west, bringing with it the promise of rain, or potentially snow, depending on the time of day they arrived. When Lilly made it back around to the gate, she stopped before Amanda gave her the cue. With a smile on her face. Amanda gave her a pat on the neck and hopped down from the saddle.

  “She’s looking really good, sweetheart. You should be proud,” John Tripp, her father, called down from the large chestnut he’d been working, Thunder. Thunder was a five-year-old Appaloosa but hardly had any spots. Her father was training the colt to work cattle in the hopes of selling him to a nearby ranch.

  “I am,” Amanda said breathlessly as she opened the gate and led the filly out.

  “It’s nearly two o’clock. Didn’t I say that Nate would be coming by around 3?”

  The blood drained from Amanda’s face. “It’s already two?”

  She rushed forward for the barn, so her mare had to jog a bit in order to keep up. The smells of hay and leather and horses filled her nostrils, embracing her the moment she entered their stable. But she couldn’t take the time to savor the feeling today, she needed to give Lilly a good rub down before running up to the house to clean up and change out of her work clothes. By the time she’d finished and run up to the house, sweat soaked her brow. It was much too cold for that. She should have taken off her coat before she’d gotten to that point, but she tended to be stubborn like her mother used to be, her father would say.

  Once she’d cleaned up and powdered herself and changed into her brown dress, she checked the time on her late-mother’s mantle clock. The hands told her it was nearly five past three. She blinked and headed for the window. Once she’d set the curtain to the side, she peered out, her heart thumping in anticipation. Nate was already there, talking at the fence with her father about one of the younger colts. She rushed to the door, peering at her reflection in the glass to see if everything was straight before stepping out slowly into the yard without more than a shawl to cover her shoulders. From the front porch, she called, “Nate Halberson, what a surprise to see you here on this lovely Friday afternoon.”

  A dimple flashed in Nate’s cheek as he offered a smile and removed his hat. “Lovely to see you, Miss Tripp. I’m here to see your father about a colt.”

  Nate Halberson was a widower and had a daughter who was three-years-old. He was seven years Amanda’s senior, but Amanda had been sweet on him since she was only nine. Back then, he’d come by to purchase a filly, but when he found out he was purchasing Amanda’s favorite filly, he promised to let her come visit the ranch with the filly anytime she liked. It had made her feel better, and his kindness had made an impression on her young heart. It had broken her heart when Nate had married a year later, but she’d gotten through it because she understood, at ten, that she couldn’t ask Nate to wait for her to grow up, as much as she wanted to. She wasn’t happy when his wife became ill with fever that summer, though she prayed as hard as anyone for Sandra’s health because she hated the thought that she had caused the fever due to her jealousy.

  Her father knew she was sweet on Nate, had always been sweet on Nate, and just recently, he’d started to support her one-sided love for the man. Her father laughed. “How is little Emma doing?”

  Nat
e’s smile grew wide. “She’s doing very well, thank you for asking. My mother’s sister is visiting for the winter and will head back to San Francisco, come spring. My Aunt Eugenia is a bit of a matchmaker. She’s determined to have me married by Christmas if she has any say in it.”

  Amanda’s heart leapt in her throat. Nate still had yet to look at her as anything but a sweet young girl. He hadn’t once treated her as a woman, like she wanted. If his aunt arranged a marriage with another woman before she’d gained Nate’s attention, Amanda didn’t know if she’d be able to take the second heartbreak. She opened her mouth to speak, but her mind had gone blank in the wake of her heart shift.

  Her father eyed her for a moment and then turned back to Nate. “Amanda and I can deliver the colt to you tomorrow, if that works well for you? I’m sure she’d love to visit with Emma and greet your Aunt Eugenia as well.”

  Amanda blinked at her father. And then nodded when Nate turned his gaze on her. When he smiled, his blue eyes sparkled, and she couldn’t help but smile back. Finally, some words dislodged themselves from her throat. “That sounds lovely. I’d like that, too.”

  Nate’s smile grew wider. “Wonderful. In fact, why don’t you come by around supper time? I’m sure that Mother and Eugenia would love to have some company for the meal. I’ll let them know to expect two extra guests at the table.”

  A fluttering began in Amanda’s heart and her stomach flipped. Not only would she get a chance to spend the afternoon with Nate, but she’d get a chance to persuade his aunt Eugenia to be on her side as a potential bride for the widower. She’d need to wash the dress she had on at the moment. Would there be enough time for it to dry before tomorrow? Only if she got to it right away. If only she was one of those women who had two or three good dresses, then she wouldn’t be having this problem right now. Though her father had done a wonderful job of raising her on his own, this would have been a great time to have had a mother to help. Amanda’s mind already began to go wild with all the things she needed to do before they would visit the next afternoon. She hardly heard it when her father said her name... for the second time.

  “Amanda, Nate is leaving. Be sure to say your goodbyes now, all right?” Her father scrunched his brow at her and shook his head slightly.

  Swallowing past the hard lump in Amanda’s throat wasn’t easy to do. She tucked her dark blond hair behind her ears and offered Nate a self-deprecating smile. “Forgive my rudeness, Mr. Halberson. My mind wandered to other things.”

  A smirk tugged at his lip as it always did when he teased her. “What kind of things?”

  Her eyes went wide, before she composed herself and shook her head at the man. “My thoughts are my own, Mr. Halberson, and sometimes they wander to womanly things that might not be fit for conversation.”

  He nodded. “You’re right, Miss Tripp, forgive my rude inquiry. I look forward to seeing you and your father on the morrow.”

  “Of course,” she said, dipping her head into a slight curtsy. “Until tomorrow.”

  She watched until Nate rode the mare that she raised as a child down the path that led from her father’s house to the main road. The smile on her face remained fixed as she turned back to her father. He frowned at her. She blinked at him. “What?”

  “It’s all well and good that you have affection for Nate, but you’re being a little too obvious. Men do like to chase the object of their affections like prey, you know?”

  I shook my head at my father. “Certainly, but what about when the predator in question doesn’t even seem to notice this prey’s existence? I just want him to notice me, father, and see me as a woman instead of just a child.”

  His hazel eyes became soft as nodded slowly. “You truly are growing into a fine woman, Amanda. Better than just any woman who concentrates solely on sewing and cooking. Though you are fine at those things, you’re amazing when it comes to helping work the farm. It couldn’t have been better if I’d had a son.”

  Tears stung the backs of Amanda’s eyes. Though she was proud of her father’s acknowledgement of what she could accomplish around the farm, she didn’t think those things were positives when it came to wooing a man like Nate.

  Nate

  Nate left the farm feeling good about the colt he was going to buy. Though he’d seen Amanda every Sunday at church in that same dress, it made his heart flutter a little to see her in a new environment with the same glow about her face. She was young and pretty and full of life. Being around her made him happy in a similar way being around his own daughter, Emma did. They both had the same sort of zest for life he needed to have in order to keep himself sane. He rubbed his chest as he clucked May, his mare into a lope. Part of him dreaded returning to his own home. His mother had gotten pneumonia over the summer, and still had a lingering cough afterward. The winter air wasn’t doing her any good, so she’d sent a letter to her sister Eugenia from San Francisco, asking her to join them for the holiday and the winter. Now Nate was dealing with his Aunt Eugenia pushing him toward getting married faster so that she could take his mother back home with her.

  Not one bit of that plan did he like very much. He didn’t want to be forced into getting married when his heart still ached for Sandra, his wife of four years who had only died a little over a year ago. And he didn’t really want to rush his mother out the door either. Emma liked having her in their home, and he didn’t want his daughter to feel the loss of another loved one, even if it was to moving instead of death.

  As he rounded the wooded bend, the cleared pastures of his own ranch came into view. The smoke from the chimney rose high, reminding him that he wanted to chop some more firewood before heading inside this afternoon. He’d sold all his long yearling steers at auction to be shipped to the cities on the west coast. Right now was the quiet time, when he wasn’t breeding the cattle, birthing the cattle, or even checking on them while they lived on the back forty acres. He could spend the holiday with his family and enjoy the time they had to be together. But instead, anxiety flooded him, all because of his aunt Eugenia.

  Chapter 2

  Amanda

  A bundle of nerves knotted in Amanda’s stomach as she and her father rode up to the Halberson Ranch. Her father rode Thunder while ponying the two-year-old palomino colt, Austin, against his right side. Amanda reined Lilly in a bit closer to her father’s left side. “You’re not going to say anything to his Aunt Eugenia, right? You’re going to let things take their own course? I just don’t want to seem to eager.”

  Her father lifted an eyebrow toward her, the crease between his brow smoothing. “Sweetheart, if we don’t make our intentions clear, you’ll be dismissed because of your age. Honestly, it’s the one thing that I’m not terribly pleased with either. I know you’re of marrying age, and I know you’ve been sweet on Nate for years, but you’re still very young and you’ll be committing yourself to motherhood, directly.”

  Amanda frowned at her father. “I understand that, entirely. I’m ready. Emma is a good child, and I believe we get along very well.”

  “As playmates, yes. Motherhood isn’t entirely about playing games and having fun.”

  “I understand that as well.”

  He shook his head. “I’m not entirely sure that you do. Emma likes you now, because you’ve never had to correct her. When you start taking on a position of authority, as her mother would, you’ll find that she’s not going to be too keen on being told what to do by a former playmate.”

  Her father was right. Amanda hadn’t thought about that, and now that her father had brought the potential problem to her attention, her stomach knotted further. She’d been visiting with Emma and playing with her for Emma’s entire life. If Amanda could manage capture Nate’s affections, the relationship between Emma and her could change drastically. She let out a slow breath and thought things through. She’d have to remember what her father said. She’d have to be hard and take a leadership position when necessary, but also remember Emma’s perspective, and try to make t
he transition as smooth as possible. She’d treat the training like she would a horse. Making, not breaking. She’d want to develop a trusting relationship with Emma, not a domineering one. This was something she could do.

  But right now, Amanda was getting ahead of herself.

  Why was she adding more worries to herself, when her present situation had plenty to keep her anxious mind occupied. Beneath her, Lilly nickered toward May, the mare who stood in the field in front of the main house. May whinnied back and ran down the side of the fence to greet the incoming horses. Her head and tail were both raised up high as she trotted down the road that butted the fence and led to the house. Amanda couldn’t help but smile at the mare that she’d had so much affection for when they were both younger.

  While her father set free the palomino colt in the same pasture with May, Amanda untacked her filly Lilly, who was much smaller than the rest of the horses. The rest of the horses were about fifteen hands or so, while Lilly was just over thirteen hands, making her less intimidating for children. Emma squealed from the porch, “Miss Amanda! Miss Amanda! Did you come to visit me?”

  A wide smile spread across Amanda’s lips as Emma jumped off the porch and ran toward her. She stepped to the side a couple feet away from Lilly so the pony wouldn’t get startled by the sudden movement of the small human running toward them. Emma slammed into her with a huge hug and giggled when Amanda scooped her up into her arms. “Of course, I’ve come to visit you, sweet one. I’ve missed seeing you since last Sunday at church.”