"Roberts, Nora - Irish Hearts 1 - Irish Thoroughbred" - читать интересную книгу автора (Roberts Nora)

"No." He eyed Paddy through narrowed lids. "You're not thinking of
letting her take him out?"

"I'd say she's about the right size--couldn't weigh over a hundred
pounds." He gave his niece a thorough survey, one hand rubbing his chin.

"Paddy." Hank's hand descended on his shoulder, only to be ignored.

"You're a Cunnane, aren't you, lass? If you say you can handle him, then
by the saints you can." Adelia beamed at her uncle and told him firmly
she was indeed a Cunnane.

"God knows what the boss is going to say when he finds out," Hank
muttered, finding himself against a solid wall of family alliance.

"Just leave Travis to me," Paddy answered with calm authority.

With a shrug of his shoulders and another incoherent mutter, Hank
resigned himself to Paddy's loss of common sense.

"Once around the track, Dee," her uncle instructed. "Pace him to what
you can handle; I can see from the look of him he wants his head."

Pulling her cap lower, she nodded, watching the well-trimmed hooves paw
the ground in impatience.

With an easy vault she was in the saddle, and as Hank opened the wide
gate she took Majesty onto the dirt track. Leaning forward, she
whispered in his ear as he sidestepped and strained to be off.

"Ready, Dee?" Paddy called. As an afterthought, he pulled out his
stopwatch.

"Aye, we're ready." Straightening, she took a deep breath.

"Go!" he shouted, and horse and rider lunged down the track.

Crouching low over the Thoroughbred's neck, she urged him on to the
speed for which he thirsted. The wind beat against her face, stinging
her eyes, as they tore over the dirt at a pace she had never
experienced, never imagined, but somehow had craved. It was a wild,
exhilarating adventure; both horse and rider reveled in the unbridled
sensation as they sped as one around the oval track, sun, wind, and
speed their companions. She laughed and shouted to her partner, a new
sense of freedom liberating her from the concerns and worries that had
been a part of her life for so long. For a few short moments she was
riding the clouds, away from pressure, away from responsibility, in a
glorious haven that returned her to carefree childhood. When they came
to the end of the run, she slowed the horse gradually to a halt and