Her school definitely needed it The jungle gym was worn out when Maddy was in kindergarten Her school was going to build a new one once they earned enough money She couldn’t wait to play on it Maddy hummed as she put the bills away She busied herself with straightening up the table She covered the cupcakes with paper and rearranged the cookies She started making a new sign Buy two donuts get the third free Then she heard a voice 8
Maddy A girl ran toward her black hair flying A man followed her Maddy gave Darcy an enormous hug They fell onto the grass and rolled around They sat up laughing while their parents talked Darcy and her dad were taking the next shift at the bake sale Sorry we’re late Darcy stood up and brushed off her jeans We had to bring my sister to her horseback riding lesson first You mean in Half Moon Bay said Maddy A little way outside the city there were ranches and horse farms 9
No right here said Darcy Some horses moved into the old stables in the park Right over there She pointed My parents are happy Darcy said Now they won’t have to drive my sister so far Maddy’s stomach gave a little lurch of excitement Horses here Maddy and Mom turned over the sale to Darcy and her dad Maddy waved then grabbed Mom’s sleeve Mom come on said Maddy She pulled Mom in the opposite direction of the parking lot 10
Mads what are you doing asked Mom Where are we going Maddy dropped Mom’s sleeve and sprinted ahead To the stables For as long as she could remember Maddy had loved horses Even more than she liked dogs and cats She hardly ever got to see horses and she’d never ridden one Once at a fair she’d had a pony ride But that wasn’t the same She liked how big and wise horses seemed They were independent like cats and friendly too like dogs 11
