Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 22539 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 113(@200wpm)___ 90(@250wpm)___ 75(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22539 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 113(@200wpm)___ 90(@250wpm)___ 75(@300wpm)
“Thunderbolt loves people,” she says as she tries to chase after him.
He doesn’t look like he loves people. He looks like he’s wishing we all went extinct.
I was up too late partying last night and I woke up with a wicked hangover. I spent the whole day with my exhausted nauseous ass in bed, so I’m the last one to arrive at the group activity of horseback riding through the mountains. I missed the shuttle bus and had to take a cab.
Thunderbolt was the last horse left for obvious reasons.
“It’s okay,” I call out to Carrie as she slips in the mud while desperately trying to corral the horse who wants nothing to do with her. “It looks like it’s going to rain anyway.”
It’s late in the afternoon and the sky is a horror show of dark rain clouds. It looks like it’s going to open up and rain down Armageddon on all of us at any second.
“I checked the weather,” Carrie says as she sprints after the horse through the mud with a forced smile on her face, “it’s not supposed to rain.”
“Have you checked the sky?” I mutter to myself.
I turn and look at my group. About a dozen people from the wedding signed up for the activity and they’re all watching atop their nice calm horses.
My sister Ashley is probably wrapped up in bed right now enjoying her new groom Dylan. I wish I was doing the same. Perhaps with that gorgeous Park Ranger from last night. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about him.
Carrie stops in the middle of the muddy paddock and forces out a laugh as Thunderbolt hurries away from her. The giant horse’s back is all tense and he’s looking like he’s ready to bolt at any second.
“Why is he named Thunderbolt?” Richard asks from atop his very well-behaved patient horse.
“I’m not sure,” Carrie says as she puts her hands on her hips. She’s trying to catch her breath from all that effort. “Tyler would know.”
“Tyler?” I ask.
All of my group takes in a collective gulp of air as they stare behind me in shock. I turn and watch as a giant man with a long brown beard and intense brown eyes comes walking over. He’s got big tattooed arms and looks like he was spawned out of these mountains. He heads into the paddock, kisses Carrie on the lips, and then calmly walks over to the horse.
The horse doesn’t move when he comes over. Even other species seem to recognize and respect his dominant nature.
He takes the reins and walks the horse over to me.
“He’s all yours,” he says in a deep voice.
“Great,” I say as I nervously try to get on. He helps me up and I immediately regret it. This feels like I’m sitting on a missile that’s loaded up and ready to fire.
“Okay!” Carrie says with red cheeks and a flustered smile. “Who’s ready to go explore those mountains?”
We head out along the trail and I can’t focus on anything except staying on this horse. The spectacular mountainous views, the wildlife, the blooming flowers, the tall towering Aspen trees—they all get ignored as I cling to Thunderbolt’s tense back while gripping the reins like we’re about to jump over a river of lava.
The other newlyweds, Justin and Richard, are ahead of me on their gentle laid-back horses. “Did you see that guy’s arms?” Justin whispers to him. “I wonder if he intermittent fasts?”
“Nah, he’s just a real man,” Richard answers. “Those muscles are honed from the mountains, not from the gym.”
They start arguing about it and my mind goes back to that park ranger from last night. Were those muscles honed in the mountains as well? They certainly looked like it.
The guide, Carrie, is pointing out birds but it sounds like she’s making up half of them. “That’s a yellow peekacoo,” she says as she points at one in a tree. It darts off when the rain starts coming down.
It’s light at first, but pretty soon, it opens up.
Thunderbolt tenses even more.
“Anyone want to trade horses?” I ask as I nervously squeeze my thighs around his slick back.
No one answers. No one even turns around.
Something is going on with this horse. He keeps whipping his head around and making these strange noises. His eyes are big and buggy like he forgot to take his Xanax and is about to have a nervous breakdown.
“Anyone?” I ask.
The clouds get darker and Thunderbolt starts trying to get off the trail.
“Whoa!” I gasp as he heads for a steep drop. I yank the reins, desperately pulling him the other way with all I got. He makes a sound which I can only imagine is horse for ‘fuck you.’
“Are you okay?” Richard asks as he looks at me over his shoulder.
“Carrie!” I shout. “I need help!”