“Clearly,” I agreed, studying him. The bags under his eyes could have gone on their own vacation. His phone, I noticed, was on the floorboard. It must have fallen out of his hand. Since I knew how awkward it was to try and reach with the steering wheel in the way, I bent down and retrieved it. I handed it over, he woke up the screen, and swore.
“It’s ten AM?” His tone clearly sounded as though he didn’t believe it. He turned wide eyes on me, needing me to confirm it.
“Yep.”
Emery’s laugh was self-deprecating. “Crap. I’ve been here for almost four hours.”
“You need a bed, my friend,” I said gently. “Especially because brunch is at noon and I’m told attendance is mandatory.”
“That it is.” He sighed and turned the key, the SUV rumbling to life. He peered up at me. “If you could not mention this to anyone, I’d be appreciative. I’d never hear the end of it.”
Not seeing a reason not to keep this a secret, I nodded. His relief spread all over his face and he offered me a smile.
“Thanks. I guess I’ll see you in a few hours?”
I stepped back so he could close the door and then watched for a minute as he made his way up the drive. He hadn’t gone more than five hundred feet before Juanpablo started up. I whirled around to see Marielle’s wide eyes. When I got back in the car, Elisa was laughing.
“They have a donkey, huh?”
I nodded. “A watch donkey.”
I had to explain that as I drove the rest of the way, and even Marielle was amused by the story. By the time I was done, I’d reached the parking lot, such as it was. Really, it was just a stretch of pavement where everyone working or visiting this side parked their vehicles. Usually, I parked by Barn 4 and I knew there was another parking pad closer to the house.
We exited the Jeep but before I could direct the women toward Barn 3, which was on the far side and where Mal told me to meet him for the ride, Marielle froze, her gaze locked on one of the pastures. Almost as though she wasn’t conscious of it, she drifted closer. Elisa and I exchanged a glance and followed, wondering what had drawn her.
Ah. The babies.
The pasture was huge, so I was sure we couldn’t see them all. But fairly close to the fence line were three mares, foals rightbeside them. The moms seemed unaffected, never stopping their grazing. But the babies frolicked around, chasing each other. One bent its head and ate next to its mom. At least, I assumed she was its mother, since they looked nearly identical. Other than the big horse having a nearly all white face and the baby only having white on its forehead. I peered closer. There was also some kind of scar.
As much as I wanted to let Marielle look her fill, because I was certain that would soften her toward the ranch, we did have a schedule to keep and Mal was waiting for us. We were already a few minutes later than I would have liked. I gave it another minute or two, then nudged them along.
Mal, Gemma, Mike, and another hand were waiting for us at the doors to Barn 3. Introductions went around and I met Lovett for the first time. The Harringtons were as gracious as ever, welcoming Marielle and Elisa to their property.
“Sorry we’re a few minutes late,” I said, shooting Mal a look. He snorted. “We got distracted by the babies.”
“They’re so cute aren’t they?” Gemma cooed. “I get distracted by them all the time.”
“What happened to the baby?” Marielle asked, cocking her head to the side. “The one with the mark on its face.”
Mal cleared his throat and shifted on his feet. “An accident. I didn’t secure a gate well, a gelding got out and riled them all up, and Angela Lansbury got cut. She’s healing well though, and by the time she’s grown, it probably won’t even be noticeable.”
Mike slung an arm around Mal’s shoulders. “Part of ranch life, you know?”
Mal nodded earnestly. “Sometimes, no matter how careful you are, things happen. Fortunately, it wasn’t anything too serious.”
It seemed to me as though there was a story there. Sensing a mood shift, and wanting to keep things easy, I waggled myeyebrows. “Mike, how about you tell Marielle and Elisa about the broodmare names.”
He did, to Elisa’s delight. Marielle even cracked a smile. I myself thought it was wonderfully ridiculous that he insisted the barn names for all the broodmares be British actresses. Especially since they had to be two named, first and last, by everyone. When that was done, everyone was smiling.
“Okay.” Mal clapped his hands. “We’ve planned an easy trail ride today through some of the prettier parts of the property. Not that it’s not all pretty. And we’ll circle by the pond so you can see that too. We should be gone for about an hour. Now tell me, ladies. Have either of you ridden before?”
Marielle shook her head and, to her credit, kept any distaste out of her expression. Elisa nodded.
“It’s been years, but I’ve done the trail riding thing before a few times.”
Mike looked them both over. “What do you think, Malachi? Niko for Marielle and Ransom for Elisa?”
“How tall are you, Elisa?”
