Tears welled in Chelsea’s eyes. Kate started to tell him to back off then suddenly realized Travis was doing what she’d accused him of avoiding before. He was parenting. As if expecting her to interrupt, he halted Kate with his hand. Both of them waited for Chelsea to respond.
“I’m sorry. It was stupid.” She looked imploringly at her dad. “Don’t be mad. You won’t leave me because of this, will you?”
Her daughter’s words echoed thoughts Kate had harbored inside since she was five, only she hadn’t been able to beg her own mother to stay. She’d left while Kate was in school.
“You messed up, Chelsea,” Travis said, drawing Kate back to the present. “But we aren’t going to stop loving you because of it. Not that you aren’t old enough now to think things through before acting impulsively.” Travis glanced at Kate and grinned, giving her a one-shoulder shrug with a quirk of his lips. Like father, like daughter. Then he returned his attention to Chelsea. “I still have to go back home this week, but you’ll always be in my life, even when we’re apart for short periods. I’ll never leave you.”
Travis had told her she and Chelsea would come first no matter what, and she was beginning to see that he meant it.
“Then you don’t hate me?” Chelsea asked in a whisper.
“I sure as hell hate the choice you made, and I’ll expect you to learn from this mistake so it isn’t repeated.” He cupped her cheek. “But I’ll never hate you. I will always love you, Chelsea.”
Kate felt herself transformed into the little girl who’d blamed herself for causing her mother to leave her all those years ago. How did she erase decades of self-blame over believing she’d been the reason her mom had left?
Not to mention figure out how she was going to share her daughter with Travis. She’d better work on it before she drove Chelsea away trying to keep her all to herself, the same way her father had done with Kate by lying to her about her mom and keeping the two of them apart. How had she turned into her father?
Kate blinked away the tears as Chelsea wrapped her arms around Travis’s neck and sobbed more apologies. Clearly, Travis was going to be the most amazing daddy ever given how quickly he’d grown into the role. Sure, he’d made a mistake about the horse, but Kate hadn’t been a perfect parent, either.
“Daddy,” Chelsea hiccupped, as she tried to regain control of her emotions, “I want to stay with you the rest of the summer.”
Already Chelsea wanted to leave her? Kate’s heart hammered. Was she prepared for this? Had the two of them talked about this earlier, once again leaving Kate out of the discussion? Travis made eye contact with Kate, however, arching his brows and giving an almost imperceptible shake of his head. But how did Travis intend to respond to Chelsea’s declaration? He’d told her he had some days off after the Fourth, but he’d already been gone the last two weeks.
Grateful she had her daughter back in one piece, she mouthed to Travis“we’ll talk later.” Kate forced a smile to her face, not wanting to let on how much she dreaded what decision they’d come to about this, but deep down, Kate knew Chelsea needed more time with Travis to make up for the lost years.
He set Chelsea away and grabbed a tissue for her to dry her eyes and face. “Sunshine, let’s start with this long weekend coming up, and I’ll have to discuss plans for the summer with your mom later. Besides, she and I talked this morning after you ran out, and she might have projects arranged for your summer already.”
Chelsea turned toward her. “You do?”
Kate nodded, grateful to Travis for remembering. “If you’d like to work toward getting a performance horse, then I’ll sign you up to show the rest of the summer and into the fall on the academy circuit.”
Chelsea turned toward her, eyes open wider. “You mean you’re going to let me do shows like Melissa does?”
Kate nodded. “She started out at the academy level, too, and worked hard to get to where she is today. It took years, but if you’re willing to put in the time and effort needed to train, I don’t see why you can’t be where she is in a couple of years. And if you can show me…”—she glanced at Travis, who was a part of this—“…us that you’re committed for the long-haul over the rest of the year, then we’ll talk about acquiring a horse of your own to show on.”
Chelsea wrinkled her brow as she contemplated Kate’s words, looking from Kate to Travis, before gracing them with her beautiful smile. “Could I train on Chula? She’s my favorite of all your horses.”
“Chula’s an excellent choice, far superior to what many of the riders will bring to the shows.” Honestly, the horse was probably her most valuable one, so Chelsea had to know she’d be sold eventually. Would Kate have the heart to sell this horse once Chelsea became more attached to her, especially after finding out where the name chula came from?
“I’m going to show you both I’m totally ready for my own show horse.”
Travis, who had remained silent during the exchange, said, “We decided to hold off talking about you owning a performance horse of your own until the show season ends in November.” He’d picked up on Chelsea’s penchant for selective hearing, again showing that he was a natural at parenting once he learned the ropes. “However, I don’t want you to neglect Princess Jasmine. She’s been there for you for six years now, and you have a commitment to her.”
“Oh, Jazz will always be my special horse! I like riding her the best.” She turned toward Kate. “And she’s much better behaved than Angus!”
The three of them laughed, something Kate hadn’t thought she’d be doing again for a long while.
“Do your best, and I’ll take you to Murfreesboro in November for the National Academy Championship. The first day’s classes are open to anyone. I’m confident that, if you put your mind and energy into it, you’ll place high in the initial classes and easily advance to the more competitive ones with your abilities. Do you want to work on accomplishing that goal?”
“For sure! You’ll see, Mom. I’m ready!”
Kate hoped so. Her daughter had talent, but Kate wasn’t sure she had the perseverance necessary. A few minutes ago, she’d wanted to spend the summer with Travis in Nashville. Kate realized that probably wouldn’t happen if she was serious about this training schedule.
Perhaps the possibility of having her own show horse one day would be the incentive she needed to mature.
After the physician delivered the results confirming that she had a concussion but thankfully no brain bleed, Kate was given a list of symptoms to watch for and Chelsea was discharged.
On the ride home, Kate had to deal with the consequences for Chelsea’s reckless behavior. “The doctor said you won’t be able to ride for the next week or so, but he didn’t say anything about you being unable to do extra chores in a couple of days.”
“But Mom, my head hurts really bad.” Interesting considering she’s been giggly not so long ago.
“That’s part of your punishment, too, for doing such a careless and dangerous stunt,” Travis said, backing her up. She smiled at him as he drove them home.
“The doctor said your headaches should clear up in a few days, and tonight I’m going to have to wake you up a few times to check on you. But there’s no riding in the meantime. You’ll be staying home until we leave for Tennessee on Friday.”
“But I was going to the movies tomorrow night with my friends.”
“You heard your mom,” Travis said. “You’re grounded.”
Kate had never had anyone around to help with disciplining Chelsea before. Maybe sharing parental responsibilities wasn’t going to be so bad after all.
“Why don’t you watch me working with Melissa this week?” An idea occurred to her that Melissa might like to become a mentor to Chelsea, much like kids did in 4-H, but she’d discuss that later after talking with the girl.
Back at the house, she discovered Miguel had helped Melissa with her morning lesson. Kate had completely forgotten about the day’s lesson. He confirmed that the girl knew where
she needed to improve. Besides, they still had plenty of lessons scheduled for this week and the beginning of next week. Chelsea was Kate’s first priority now.
Kate insisted that Chelsea take it easy today, and the girl had gone up to her room while Kate prepared her a late lunch. She’d complained of a headache still, but the doctor said that was to be expected.
Kate overheard Travis on the phone in the hallway, apparently asking Clint to help out at the company this week. Did Travis intend to stay here until he was sure about Chelsea’s condition?
It didn’t sound as though the response he received was the one he wanted. He went upstairs, and when he came back down to the kitchen, his lips were pressed tight.
“Kate, I hate doing this, but I’m going to have to leave tonight.”
Well, so much for sharing the parenting.
“Look, I didn’t say anything earlier, but my foreman was injured this morning and won’t be back until August. There’s no one I can get to take over for Jackson. If we don’t finish this project on time, we forfeit a sizable chunk of money.”
“Have you told Chelsea?” He nodded his head. “How’d she take it?”
He shrugged. “Said she understood. I think it helped knowing she’ll be down there with me Friday night to spend four days.”
Kate wouldn’t put words in Chelsea’s mouth, but fumed for a minute before muttering that would be fine and turning to the fridge for some green olives to add to Chelsea’s plate.
“I tried to see if Clint could take over, but he’s in the middle of a big project for Dad. I don’t like leaving you two, but I need to oversee the crew for the rest of the week.”
“You need to do what’s best for you. I’ll keep you posted on Chelsea’s condition.”
He scrubbed his face. “Chelsea’s twelve, not two. She doesn’t need someone by her side the whole time. I can check in via Facetime or Skype.”
“I said that’s fine. What more do you want me to say?”
“Yeah, I know what your ‘fine’ means.” He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply before piercing her with a stare that stilled her hands from opening the jar. “Cut me some slack, Katie? I’m doing the best I can. She has you. If this had happened two weeks ago, you’d have had to handle it by yourself. At least I was here for her today.”
Kate’s body began trembling. Perhaps the adrenalin was crashing. Suddenly, Travis’s arms were around her. “She’s okay. Everything turned out for the best. I’d stay if I could, believe me, but missed deadlines come with steep penalties and that could affect my ability to keep my crew working in the future it jobs dry up.”
She sniffled, feeling like a shrew. “I understand that accidents happen. I don’t know what got into me.”
“You’ve had a helluva day, woman. Wish I could stick around and give you a massage or something.”
She grinned, her mind going straight to the gutter. No, actually, there was nothing wrong with the feelings she share for this man.
“The offer still stands for you to join us this weekend, Katie.”
After the blow-up in the parking lot and again just now, Kate was embarrassed to accept. They’d both said some hurtful truths, and she felt raw still. “We’ll see.”
Spoken like a true parent, Kate.
She didn’t relish the idea of dropping Chelsea off at the door, either. What if Travis was called in to work and had to leave her alone?
Kate glanced up and met Travis’s gaze. “Are you sure she should make the trip after what happened today?”
“I asked the doctor, remember? He didn’t see any problem with it unless she shows some of the warning signs.”
Clenching her teeth, she nodded curtly before saying goodbye and heading up to Chelsea’s room with her lunch. Neither Travis nor the doctor took one important issue into consideration.
They’re not her mother.
* * *
Kate looked up from weeding the tomato plants in her garden when she heard a vehicle pulling into the lane. She’d only been at it for thirty minutes, but already was sweating buckets. Chelsea wasn’t due home from her friend’s house until after supper. They’d worked for more than two hours after Chelsea had watched Melissa’s morning lessons. Kate showed Chelsea various moves and techniques Chula was capable of. When Chelsea complained that her head hurt, Kate sent her into the house. However, she couldn’t be more pleased with the girl’s questions and attention to detail. Last night, they’d found a show in northeastern Ohio for Chelsea to enter and work toward over the next month. It would be here before they knew it. Chula also seemed happy to be working toward a show again, as if she understood. It had been a long time since she’d had a mount for a show.
So had Chelsea decided to come home early? Kate’s spirits soared. The afternoon had become lonely for her since Chelsea left a few hours ago. She’d become accustomed to having Travis around to fill the gaps, but he’d left yesterday once they knew Chelsea was going to be okay.
But the unfamiliar black Range Rover driving toward her wasn’t the SUV she expected Chelsea to come home in. It wasn’t Lidia or Jason’s, either. She shook off the dirt from her gloves and removed them. The kneeling pad had kept her knees clean. She walked toward what looked like a couple. The man exited first. He was almost as tall as Travis. The woman came around from the other side, petite with long, auburn hair.
“Hi, I’m Kate Michaels. Welcome to Michaels Bluegrass Saddlebreds.” She extended her hand first to the woman.
“We’re Tillie and Greg Buchanan,” Greg said. “Saw your sign about offering riding lessons.”
Ah, that explained the unannounced visit.
The woman added, “We were just at the winery down the road choosing some bottles for our B&B in Nelson County, Jesse’s Hideout.”
“I’m good friends with Lidia and Jason. I’m sure you found some great wines. And, yes, I do offer riding lessons. Which one of you is interested?”
They glanced at each other and laughed before Greg said, “Actually, my son. He’s five, almost six. I share custody with his mother in Minnesota. That’s where he is this week, but he’s been wanting to learn to ride for a while now.”
“That’s the perfect age to start. I’d be happy to talk with you about what I might offer. Perhaps you’d like a quick tour if you have time.”
“Sounds wonderful,” Tillie said.
“Follow me.” Kate always loved bringing in new students and hoped they’d be impressed with what she had to offer. She showed them some of the horses in the barn. “This one’s only fourteen hands high and would be a good one to start your son with.”
Greg patted the neck of the bay mare, Twilight. “She’s gentle and takes to kids. My daughter started out on her. She’s twelve now, so I’ve had her for quite a few years.”
Twilight nuzzled Tillie, who giggled. “She’s adorable. I can’t wait to bring Derek out here to meet her and the other horses—and his instructor, too.”
“That would be me. I do all the training and am also the riding instructor.”
Greg asked, “When would he be able to start lessons? He’ll be back in Kentucky for the rest of the summer starting on Tuesday.”
“I have a show that will take up most of next week, but the week after would be fine. We’ll begin slowly, teaching him about caring for the horse before and after the ride, and he may have an affinity for a different horse. As long as I feel he’s able to handle it, we’ll go from there. Why don’t we go into my office so I can check my schedule?” On the way, they determined that weekdays would be best given their schedule at the inn, which also worked out better for Kate.
They headed toward the main office in the arena. The way Greg wrapped his arm around Tillie as they walked made Kate miss Travis all the more.
After looking at the availabilities on their schedules, Tillie said, “Let’s do Wednesdays, then if guests are staying over or arriving early, we shouldn’t have any issues.”
Once that was set, Greg sat back, “So
you run this place all by yourself?” His fingers played with Tillie’s auburn curls.
Kate nodded. “With the exception of my breeding manager, but my students help with some of the chores, and my twelve-year-old daughter pitches in, too.”
“I admire you,” Tillie said. “You sound like me when I had to run everything on my own, too.” She looked up at Greg and they exchanged a smile. “But I don’t know how I would run the inn without Greg now.”
Travis had been a huge help to Kate as well, when he’d shown up here. But more important than mucking stalls, he’d also made life much more enjoyable and had even managed to get her away from the farm to have some down time once in a while.
She missed spending time with Travis, but words had been said that would make it difficult for them to ever build anything deeper than a string of sexual encounters.
Watching Greg and Tillie together, for the first time in her life, Kate knew she wanted more. So much more.
Chapter Thirty-Three
On Friday night, Kate tried to calm the butterflies raging in her stomach as she turned into Travis’s driveway. A boat sat in an extended parking area to the left of a two-car garage. The gabled house was a beautiful mixture of brick, stone, and wood with a bay window in front. The detail work clearly spoke of countless hours of labor. Travis most likely had designed and built the house himself.
“Why am I so nervous, Mom?”
Good question—at least Kate knew why she was nervous. She smiled at Chelsea. “You’re going to have a lot of fun with your daddy this weekend.” Leaving Chelsea here would be the hardest thing Kate had ever done, especially so soon after Chelsea’s concussion. But she wanted the two of them to continue forming a strong relationship. The days of having Chelsea all to herself were over. She’d have to share her from now on. With the distance between their homes, dropping off Chelsea was going to become commonplace, at least until she could drive herself there—at the age of twenty-five or so.
The front door opened, and a smiling Travis came toward Chelsea’s door. Kate’s hands shook as she gripped the steering wheel and tried to hide her nerves from her daughter. Not that she needed to bother. Chelsea was out the door and in Travis’s arms in about five seconds flat.
Kate's Secret (Bluegrass Spirits Book 2) Page 38
