"Oh, I know!" she said with gentle scoffing. "That sort of a horse—just cow-ponies. I love 'em, but I guess—well—"
"You've been educated away from 'em, you mean?" he chuckled.
"Well, whatever it is—I want something better. I, as a daughter of the biggest, best man in Colorado, want to ride the best animal that ever felt a cinch."
"Well?"
"And I want to have him now, so I can get used to him this fall and look forward to coming back to him in the spring."
Bob Thorpe took both her hands in one of his.
"And if a thing like that will make my bambino happy, I guess she'll have it."
The girl kissed him and held her cheek close against his for a breath.
"When I go to Denver for the stock show I'll pick the best blue ribbon—"
"Denver!" she exclaimed indignantly, sitting straight and tossing her head. "I want a real horse—a horse bred and raised in these mountains—a horse I can trust. None of your blue-blooded stock. They're like the girls I went to college with!"