Leroy Ninker held on tight. He thought of more pretty words, and he said them.

“Sweetness,” said the cowboy. “Lovely one. Beloved.”

The horse went faster.

“Maybelline of my dreams!” shouted Leroy Ninker.

The world was a green and gold blur, and Leroy was happier than he had ever been in his life. Maybelline ran and ran and ran.

The horse ran until the sun was low in the sky and the shadows were long and sad.

“Maybelline,” said Leroy into Maybelline’s left ear, “it is time for the two of us to head home.”

Maybelline nickered. She slowed down to a trot. And then she stopped entirely. Leroy Ninker slid forward in the saddle.

“Giddy-up, my beautiful one,” said Leroy.

But Maybelline held still.

“Yippie-i-oh, my beloved,” said Leroy. “We are homeward bound.”

Maybelline looked to the left, and then she looked to the right. She let out a long whinny.

“Oh,” said Leroy. “I get it.” He slid off Maybelline’s back. He took hold of the reins. “Come on, horse of my heart,” he said. “I will show you the way home.”

Leroy walked ahead, and Maybelline followed behind, and every once in a while, she would give Leroy a friendly little bump with her nose, pushing him forward. And in this way, the cowboy and his horse made their way home through the deepening purple dusk.

Home was the Garden Glen Apartments, Unit 12.

Unit 12 was a very small apartment, which was just fine because Leroy was a very small man. Maybelline, however, was not a small horse. She was a tall horse and she was a wide horse, and she would not fit through the door of Unit 12.

“Gol’ dang it,” said Leroy Ninker.

He gave Maybelline a little push. And when that didn’t work, he gave her a large shove. But Leroy soon saw that it was impossible. All the shoving in the world was not going to make Maybelline fit through the door of Unit 12.

“Dag blibber it,” said Leroy. He actually felt like he might cry. Which was ridiculous because cowboys definitely did not cry.

Leroy closed his eyes, and Patty LeMarque’s face floated into view. She opened her mouth and said, “Cogitate on item one if you care to move forward, Hank. You got to compliment the heck out of her!”

Leroy opened his eyes. He cleared his throat. He said, “Maybelline, you are the best squeeziest-into-a-small-spot horse that I have ever known.”

Maybelline twitched her ears to the left and to the right, and while the horse was busy savoring the compliment, Leroy gave her a hopeful shove.

But Maybelline still wouldn’t fit through the door.

“Flibber gibber it,” said Leroy. He closed his eyes and conjured up Patty LeMarque’s face again. He tried to remember the other items about Maybelline. He thought very hard.

“I got it,” he said. “Item two is that you are the kind of horse who eats a lot of grub.”

Leroy opened his eyes.

Maybelline was looking at him in an extremely hopeful manner.

“Well, yippie-i-okay,” said Leroy Ninker. “I will make us some food, and then we will deal with the too-small door.”

Maybelline looked as overjoyed as it was possible for a horse to look, and Leroy was moved to compliment her again.

“You are the most splendiferous horse in all of creation,” he said.

Maybelline whinnied long and loud. She nodded in agreement.

She truly was an excellent horse.

Leroy didn’t think he would ever be done admiring her.