“Yes, please stay. You won’t judge me.”
“I’ll never judge you, honey,” I say, swallowing my own emotions.
“Thank you, Nathan,” she says. “Thank you so much for everything.”
We stop talking, and she nestles herself against my chest. Eventually, she stops crying and falls asleep. I sit with her a while longer, and then get out of bed to go help Tomás take care of the horses. Even though I only got a few hours of sleep last night while sitting up with Storm, it’s not fair to leave the only other stable hand alone for the day. Plus, I’m nearly done with my community service hours, after working six days a week, for ten hours a day. I only need to do a few more days or so and then I’ll be officially finished.
As to what happens and where I’ll be going after I’m done, I have no idea. It all depends on whether the woman currently asleep in bed wants me to stay.
In the barn,I find Tomás talking to Jonah, the farrier. I had no idea he was coming in today, and if I had, I would have made myself scarce. He always a bit too friendly with Candice for my taste, and I’m not interested in playing nice with him. Especially not today.
“Hey, Nathan,” Tomás calls. “Come here.”
Grimacing, I walk over to the two men.
“What’s up?”
“What’s going on?” Tomás asks. “I just clocked in, and Candice is nowhere to be found. Beau isn’t around either.”
I rub my hand over my face and sigh. “Storm died last night.”
Tomás’s face sinks. “Damn it.”
“Fuck,” Jonah says. “Beau told me you had a new horse here. I told him I’d come over today and check on her hooves.”
“She was in real bad shape,” I say, filling him in on the rescue and everything we tried to do to help her.
“Candice must be crushed,” Jonah says, shaking his head. “I hope she’s alright.”
“She’ll be okay, because I’ll be there to make sure of it.” I cross my arms and glare at him.
Unfortunately, this just makes Jonah laugh. I just stare him down even harder, while Tomás looks at us like we’re both insane.
“I don’t like Candice like that,” Jonah says. “I’m not stupid and I like to keep my balls where they are, thank you very much.”
“What the hell does that mean?” I bite out.
“It means,” he says, scratching his beard, “that Candice Wilson is a ball buster. She’s not my type.”
“Well she’smyball buster,” I say, realizing immediately how ridiculous I sound.
“I can see that,” Jonah says, still smiling.
I sigh. “Sorry,” I say. “Look, I’m not usually the jealous type, it’s just been a rough few days.”
“You’re so fucking gone for her, Jesus Christ,” Jonah mutters. “Now, are there any horses here who need a farrier, or can I get going?”
“Bubba threw a shoe the other day and needs a new one,” Tomás says.
The mention of the little pony gives me a really good idea as to how I’m going to cheer Candice up later, and the thought of it makes me smile. I leave the two other men where they are and head over to Ballantine’s stall. I always start with him in the morning, and he’s awake and lively when I get to him.
“We’ll go for a ride later, okay?” I tell him, after I’ve checked his water, hay, and cleaned his stall a bit. “And I’ll have to clip you soon, for the magazine shoot. I’m sure they’ll want a shot of us reining, and you need to look your best.”
Ballantine just snorts, and then lips at my pocket for treats. I oblige easily, giving him two carrot rounds and a small piece of apple.
“Don’t die on me, Bally,” I whisper. “You’ve gotta go when I go. Or at least let me go first.”
Ballantine presses into me, looking for pets, and I give them to him, soaking in the moment with my horse, and feeling the pain in my chest over Storm start to ease up just a bit. Maybe when I finish up at Star Mountain, I’ll start a new horse. It’s just been Ballantine and I for a while, but he seems like he’s about done competing. I could get a yearling, bring it here, and train it with Candice. Maybe I could get a new cutting horse and bring it back to the ranch.
