Lone Star Pair

Alexander walked into Matthew’s office which was now redecorated to honor the new stable owner. What was once an old, dusty, mothballs ridden office hidden in the back of the old house has been revamped to let in more natural light than Alexander thought was possible. It didn’t surprise him though, Matthew decided that it was a new era for Northridge and he wanted to give the old farmhouse a facelift. The new office was grey with a modern look to it. Big bay windows overlooked the pasture with Delta casually grazing in it. Well-trimmed bushes hid some of the interiors from the outside but it let birds and other critters be able to view from the inside while not bothering them. Matthew’s desk was a dark oak desk that had pictures and trophies around it but his computers and many notebooks were still strewn about it. Matthew had always been one to keep notes on all the horses, something he had picked up from his father and no one questioned it since it worked clearly. Matthew was relaxing in denim jeans and an old college shirt, he smiled as Alexander walked in.  

“So, I’ve been looking into finding us a good quarter horse to start our western division, but I wanted your final say on them before I fly out to look at them.” Alex explained as he handed Matthew the binder of horses.  

    All meeting the standards set by Matthew for bringing horses in, at least seven years old, good conformation, and a good head on it. Color didn’t matter and gender either, but Matthew tended to lean towards stallions rather than geldings. Something that hung around from racing. Matthew started to look through the book, marking a few of them with sticky notes to go back and discuss. However, he hung on the last one a little longer, which Alexander smirked at. 

“Where did you find this horse?” Matthew asked pointing to the grullo from Texas that Alex had his fingers crossed behind his back for.  

“Remember John Houston? He visited last year with his father looking to buy some of our mares for his quarter horse herd?” Alex answered and Matthew tapped his chin before nodding.  

“Slightly. You know I’m not good at faces.” Matthew chuckled and Alex nodded knowingly before continuing his explanation. 

“He’s starting to compete and I guess he’s doing pretty well out in Texas. Placed high with this horse.” Alex gestured towards the horse’s profile page. 

“I told you to get me horses to buy, not riders.” Matthew joked before Alex held up his hands in defense.  

“I know, I know. But this guy is good. I watched some videos his dad sent me, and he’s got a way with that stallion. And we need a strong western rider if we are going to start competing. You aren’t up to speed and you know I’m not a fan of those western saddles. They hurt my ass.” Matthew laughed a little more and rolled his eyes before sighing.  

“It’s a packaged deal then? Rider and horse?” Matthew asked and Alex nodded.  

“Let’s fly down there and meet them. If we don’t like ‘em, we come home and look elsewhere. But you did say you were wanting some more color in the stables....” Alex smirked and Matthew sighed again. 

“I guess we’re heading to the Lonestar state.” Matthew smiled and the pair started to work on plane tickets. 

~~~~~~~~ 

“Matthew, Alexander let me introduce you to John and Eagle.” The sun-beaten farmer said as he walked the pair out towards the stables. To Matthew, this was a little slice of equine heaven in the middle of nowhere Texas. Sprawling acres with horses running and grazing to their heart's content. Before them stood a corral with a young gentleman and his stallion stood waving.  

“Nice to meet you. Alexander has told me quite a bit about you.” Matthew smiled reaching out for a firm handshake with John.  

“And Alexander told me you’re the one to impress. John, it’s a real pleasure to meet you, sir.” John smiled, his face and neck clearly showing signs of the sun from working. Matthew liked that; he wasn’t about to hire just a Joe Smith who hadn’t worked with horses before. 

“Well John, I have a deal for you. I’m impressed by what I’ve seen from videos and reports. But as you know, my stable isn’t just for trail riding, we compete actively and we’ve got a name to keep.” Matthew stated and watched as John’s expression stayed the same, clearly not wavered from the information.  

“There’s a show being hosted virtually by a good friend of ours. They’ve got an open western division and we’d like to compete in it. We’ll record you and Eagle here and submit it. You place, you’ve got the job.” Matthew offered and John’s face lit up a bit and he smiled. He held out his hand with a confident smirk on his face.  

“Deal.” John answered and Matthew shook his hand with a smile.  

“Best get Eagle tacked up them, we start at sunset.”