Wild Wind Valley by Jasper25 Garvin (each kindness read aloud .txt) 📕

A girl around Skylars age with long dark brown hair and forest green eyes came bounding in, a big smile on her face. Skylar’s eyes widened and a real smile made its way onto her face as she leapt up to hug the girl, “Sophie!” Sophia was Jaden’s cousin that had instantly connected with Skylar when they had first met. The girls had both been fifteen at the time, and Jaden who was seventeen at the time, had been told to watch over them. Back then, Jaden had been tall and lanky, but that didn't stop her from having a crush on him. Now he was twenty and had grown into himself, and both the girls were eighteen and grown up.

Sophia hugged Skylar back, missing her partner in crime. After the girls had calmed down, Sophia gave Skylar a sad look, “My cousin called, he said you needed me Sky.” Skylar looked down and sighed, “Ya, I had a break down this morning. I think I kinda freaked him out, but he handled it well.” She chuckled but the frown was soon back. “The only way you’re going to get past this is if you quit thinking about it and try to get back into your normal routine,” Sophia watched her friend, ”as much as possible.”

Jasper flared his nostrils as he scented a mare nearby; Jaden gave him his head so that the stallion could hone in on the paint. She was grazing in a small meadow, in the perfect position for Jaden to rope her if he was quick enough. He got a rope ready, hoping he wouldn't have to use his backup rope. The stallion waited silently for the queue, knowing exactly what he needed to do. Jaden barely flexed his calf muscles and Jasper launched toward the mare, covering ground quickly. They were close to the mare before she realized what was happening and tried to escape, but it was too late. The rope that had been swinging above Jadens head slid easily off his fingers and hit its mark, wrapping around the mare’s neck. Her cries of fury rang out across the valley and she stopped to rear and strike out at her captors. Her harks laid flat against her skull, nose scrunched up and teeth bared.

Birds took flight as the furious cry of a horse rang out, making both of the girls turn towards the window. “Well, Jaden must have caught that mare.” Sophia chuckled as Skylar turned to her with a questioning look. “When he was bringing the horses in, one paint mare escaped and he went out today to try to capture her.” Skylar nodded and flashed her eyes to the corral where the sold horses waited to be picked up. Mark and the other man had already loaded three of the horses and Mark waved to the man as the truck started up and began its journey back to its home.

Jaden struggled with the mare as she thrashed around tugging at the rope that was secured around the horn of his saddle. Jasper slowly drug the mare behind him, his strength out matching that of hers. Squirrels chattered in the trees, watching from a safe distance as the paint fought. Suddenly, the mare jolted forward, now attempting to pull the stallion and his rider. Jaden used this to his advantage and spurred Jasper on, galloping with the mare. She twisted and turned but all to no avail, all she succeeded in doing was get herself closer to the ranch. Her wild eyes caught sight of buildings and other horses, causing her to screech to a halt. The mare wasn't use to the sights and smells of humans, her nostrils flaring to assess the scents.

The horses in the corral watched as Jaden and Jasper drug the mare the rest of the way and into a small round pen. Once she was free of the rope, the paint galloped around, looking for a way to escape. Jaden led the buckskin back to the barn and unsaddled him, only stopping once to pour cool water over the stallions steaming back. Once Jasper was put away, Jaden wandered back over to the round pen, watching the mare as she slowly calmed down. Two sets of footsteps alerted him that the girls had come down to see the mare. Sophie folded her arms and rested them on one of the metal bars that lined the round pen, “She sure is wild,” Skylar stood on the other side of Sophie, silently watching the mare with interest, “What do you plan on doing with her?” Jaden looked the mare over and looked over at Skylar with a smile, “Well, if Sky feels up to it, she can work with the mare and maybe even break her.”

Skylar was off in her own world as she watched the mare, but Jadens comment caught her attention. Her eyes widened as she looked up at him, seeing if he was joking or not. The look in his eyes told her he was serious, and with one last look at the mare she nodded her head. “But,” Jaden added, “I don’t want you in the pen with that mare unless someone else is around watching you.” Skylar nodded and smiled at the paint, thinking of names that fit the wild mare. She eyed Jaden, his breathing was even but she could tell by the sweat that was dripping off of him, the mare had been one heck of a workout.

Skylar found out that Sophie sadly had to return home and wouldn't be able to come back out for a while due to the fact that she had her parent’s cattle ranch to take care of. Skylar was quiet during dinner, exhausted from the day’s events. Sleep came quickly as she fell into bed. Skylar dreamed of the mare and her wild spirit, Jaden’s ocean blue eyes also making an appearance

The next few days passed by quickly as Skylar started working with the mare that she had named Destiny. Jaden was never far when she was in the pen with Destiny, always keeping a close eye on the body language of the paint, making sure that Skylar was safe. Destiny was calm and watchful, unsure of things but unwilling to show weakness. Skylar sat cross legged in the center of the pen as she had for days, getting the mare use to her presence and showing her that she was no threat. She slowly ate an apple while leaving another a few feet away, hoping to entice Destiny and get the mare closer. This went on for days until the mare would come right up to Skylar and take the apple from her hand. Slowly the mare let her brush the dirt from her coat and even put a halter on her, though she was still unsure of any pressure on her back.

Jaden watched as Skylar brushed Destiny with a smile, she was no longer the pale and depressed looking girl that had stepped out of the truck two weeks ago. Taking care of the mare and gaining her trust had given Skylar something else to think about besides the fire and her parent’s death. She still stood far away if they lit the fireplace, or even if there was a candle burning. Every so often he would hear her having nightmares of that night; though, they were getting fewer and far between. Heading into the barn, Jaden was greeted by the sight of Charity happily wandering the aisle looking for food to steal. He chuckled and wrapped his arm around her neck, grabbing her mane to steer her back to her stall. Charity had a habit of unlocking her door and wandering around the property, often ending up on the porch to beg for food through the kitchen window.

After the grey mare was securely in her stall, Jaden shook his head running his hands through his dark brown hair. It was a hot day and the next was supposed to be even warmer, all Jaden could think about was going down to the river to relax in the cool water. He leaned against the side of the barn in the shade to watch Skylar as she finished up for the day. She closed the gate and rubbed Destiny’s nose, saying goodbye till tomorrow. She spotted Jaden and walked over to him, watching as his smile grew, “She’s lookin’ good,” Skylar glanced back at the mare with a smile, ”Ya, Destiny is starting to trust me, but she still doesn't like any weight on her back.”

“Give her time,” his gaze moved from the mare down to Skylar who was about a head shorter than him, “Why don’t you give her tomorrow off and come down to the river with me?” Skylar bit her bottom lip as she thought about it, “Ok, but I’m going to have to go to the store and get a bathing suit.” Jaden nodded, “Why don’t you call Sophie and spend the rest of the day at the mall?” Skylars eyes lit up at the opportunity to go shopping and grabbed her phone, running towards the house to change while yelling, “Thank you!” He chuckled and pushed off of the barn, wandering over to the house to go relax and take a shower.

By the time Sophia dropped Skylar off it was dark and the resident snowy owl greeted her, golden eyes watching her. She lightly made her way to her room, making sure to not wake anyone. Skylar dropped her bags next to the door and decided to wait till morning to put everything away. She had had a great time running around the mall with Sophia, though she had spent a little too much. Skylar yawned and snuggled into her soft sheets, enjoying the warmth they already gave her.

Morning arrived and by the time Jaden and Skylar were ready to head out, the sun was beating down and warming the air to over a hundred degrees. Jaden sat bareback on Jasper as the stallion grazed just outside the barn, only wearing swim shorts that matched the color of his eyes. Skylar hopped on one of the geldings that they used for roping and trotted outside. Jaden’s mouth dried and his eyes darkened as he saw what Skylar was wearing, short shorts and a hot pink bikini top that made her skin glow and look tan. She smiled at him and motioned for him to lead the way. Jasper tossed his head, sending his mane in all directions. Jaden clicked and the stallion trotted off, leading the way towards the cool water of the river.

Breaking into a canter, Jasper flicked an ear back to watch as the gelding started to pass him. The buckskin was extremely competitive as was his rider, and soon the pair were racing ahead of Skylar and the gelding. She laughed and urged the gelding on; slowly catching up after Jaden slowed the stallion down so they didn't end up hitting a tree. The river could be heard before it could be seen, a loud rushing sound from the falls. A small meadow surrounded