“This is just so I’ve got hold of her,” he said, taking the leather rope handle under her neck. “I want her to trust me to guide her, and I think she’ll let to feel the actual ground under those hoofs.” He patted her neck. “Don’t you girl.”
She pressed her head near his, knocking his hat off as if to nuzzle again him. I backed away. I didn’t want her trying to do the same with me, and if all it took was a head nod to hit his hat away, I didn’t want to think what else she was capable of.
Lorenzo found it funny, picking the hat up and dusting it off. “Let’s see your neighbors.”
I sat at the far end of the stable on a bench and placed the tote bag. “I’ve got coffee and soup here whenever you’re ready for that,” I told him. “Also, how many pairs of boots do you own?”
He cocked his head in my direction. “I thought you weren’t going to snoop.”
“I didn’t, I saw the pair by the radiator, and the pair you’ve got on now, and then—well, the pair you arrived in, so that’s three,” I somewhat lied.
“Can’t ever have too many,” he said. “I’ve also got a nice black pair. They still need breaking in. And with three horses, I don’t have time to break in a new pair of boots too.”
I watched his lips as he spoke. It was impossible to look at any other part of him. His mouth was mesmerizing, practically warranting my lips on them as he licked his between sentences. Ihad to look away and gather myself, but when I looked back, he’d left the stables.
10. LORENZO
Waiting and watching the horses come to life from their sedation was like watching a bear come out of a hole after hibernation. They didn’t all come thru at the same time, but with thirty-minute increments. It happened late evening with Jace in the stables, trying not to get too close to any of them. I had him noting the times and when they were being fed and drinking. The vets work to rehabilitate them went as far as giving them their shots and making sure any cuts were covered with gauze and ointments.
Coal was the worst when he woke from his sleep, the most vocal of the three horses. He was their protector it seemed, and he was desperate to be reunited with them.
One by one, Bramble and Ashwind popped their heads over the stalls, huffing and neighing almost in response to him.
“Come on boy, you’re in a nice home now,” I whispered to him, bowing my head slightly and stroking his nose. “Let’s get you on those feet, you need to come drink.”
It took a while to get him to listen to anything I had to say, and with Jace still backed into a corner of the stable, I was doing it alone. It was rewarding once Coal was up on those stilts he called legs; he nearly stumbled over trying to get to Bramble and Ashwind across the stable.
“You’ve got this,” I said, keeping myself level with him at his side, trying not to let him sway too far in either direction. I feared a fall would send him right back to the vet with broken bones.
“I don’t think he’s going to listen,” Jace said.
“Not helpful,” I said. “But I’ll take any ideas.”
He stuttered a little. “You could let them be together.”
I didn’t want them all together because they were all in need of healing, and I was still trying to give them one on one attention, which would become impossible the moment I let them cramp and sleep together in their stalls. “I guess, you can lead a horse to water and all that,” I grumbled, giving in to the suggestion. I unlatched the stalls to Bramble and Ashwind and they seemed to bounce right out, nuzzling at Coal’s head.
“Oh god, are they coming over here?” Jace let out in a squeal, scampering further back against the stable.
Trying not to lose focus, I kept my eyes on the horses. “Come on,” I said, guiding them to the water trough. “Let’s get some water.” Now the real test, they couldn’t drink too much, they couldn’t handle large amounts of water just yet, and thankfully only Coal drank, his head almost dropping into the bottom of the trough to inhale it.
It was a bit of a hectic forty minutes, from giving them water to feeding them some of the high-quality feed in small increments, and then they were all a lot quieter. It took more effort to get them into their individual stalls now, but they didn’t put too much of a fuss up when they were in there. I suppose full bellies would do that to them.
I joined Jace at the back of the stable where he’d written notes as I’d told him on the times they drank and ate. “Sorry about that before,” I told him. “It’s gonna be a lot to handle. And I noticed a couple things on them.” I held my hand out for the notepad.
Jace nodded and then yawned. “I don’t know how you can be near them and not think they’re going to stampede all over you.”
“It’s trust,” I said. “They trust me to take care of them and feed them, and I trust them not to buck or go wild on me. “
“It must take a while for you to learn that,” he said. “I wonder if I’ll ever begin to think like that.”
“I hope so, one of the staples of any ranch is their horses,” I told him. “And you want this place to go on for generations to continue.”
He snort-laughed. “I was talking about generation stuff earlier with my mom,” he said. “My sister is convinced this place will go to me, and she was saying how I won’t have kids, but I told her I could adopt, and it became a thing.”
“I’ve had that talk with my folks before,” I said. “It’s one of the reasons I avoid the topic of my sexuality altogether. Although you definitely look more well-adjusted and happier to show your pride.”
“You can show your pride here,” he said. “You saw the town. We’re not going to come burn your house down or chase you out with pitchforks.”
