“I thought I did too,” he said. “It broke again.” He wandered away from Faith, rubbing circles on Lara’s back and murmuring to her. Lara relaxed her death grip around his neck, and she rubbed his back in return as if soothing him. When he finally placed her back on the ground, his words carried. “Let’s hitch up the float and get you and Starlight home. Amy mentioned something about a barbecue for dinner tonight.”
Lara wiped her eyes and nose on her shirt and sniffed. “OK.”
As they worked together to hitch the horse float, Faith’s phone rang. One look at the caller made Faith suppress a groan. She walked away from them before answering. “Hi, Dad.”
“Where the hell are you?” he demanded.
“I’m at the pony club,” she said. “We ran a little late.”
“You left your mother alone for that long!”
She shifted the phone away from her ear, the volume far too loud. She prayed for patience. “I asked if she wanted to come, but she wasn’t interested.”
“That’s beside the point. I said you can’t leave her alone. What if she had another stroke? No one would be here to help her. She’d die and her death would be on your conscience.”
Fear put those words in his mouth, but she still rallied against them. At her mother’s last check up, the doctor had assured Faith she was at little risk of another stroke. But her father refused to believe it. “I’ll be home shortly. I need to talk to a father.”
Darcy was leading the bay mare inside the float. He was efficient, she’d give him that.
“We’ll discuss this more then.” Her father hung up.
Faith sighed and strolled back to the father and daughter team who were closing the float door.
Darcy turned. “I’m sorry about being late. I hope I haven’t caused you any trouble.”
How much of the conversation had he heard? “Nothing I can’t handle.”
Darcy retrieved his phone, one arm around Lara. “Can I have your number? I shouldn’t be late again, but just in case…”
She told him and he saved it. “Thanks.”
“Dad, Faith said she’s never been horse-riding along the beach,” Lara said. “Can she come out to our place and ride along the gulf?”
Faith’s face heated. She hadn’t expected an invitation. “Thank you, Lara, but it’s not necessary.”
Darcy smiled. “You’re more than welcome,” he said. “Think of it as an apology. I hope your husband won’t be too cross at you.”
She frowned. “My husb– ” The penny dropped. She held up her phone. “Oh. No, that was my father. He doesn’t like Mum being left alone for too long since her stroke.”
Darcy shifted. “I’m sorry for putting you into that position. I’ll set an alarm next time.”
“We could all go on a picnic together!” Lara suggested, warming to the topic, her enthusiasm returned now her father was there. “On the weekend ’cos it takes a couple of hours to ride to the ocean from our place.”
The urge to accept was strong. When was the last time she’d been on a decent trail ride? At least eight months ago when she’d been in Perth, probably longer. She glanced at Darcy to see if he was sincere.
He nodded. “I can take some time on Sunday. It’s better if you have a guide, so you don’t get lost. You can borrow one of our horses.”
“I have my own horse,” she said. “But I’ll need to find someone to look after Mum.”
“There’s always someone at the farmhouse if you want to bring her out too.”
Such a kind offer and so tempting, but her father was already cross. “Can I let you know?”
“Sure. Probably best if we get an early start, say seven or eight so it’s not too hot,” Darcy continued. He pressed some buttons on his phone and her mobile beeped. “That’s my number.”
A thrill went through her and she ignored the flutter in her chest.
Lara jumped up and down. “You’ve got to come, Faith. Amy and I will put together an awesome picnic.”
