by Celya Bowers
“Where are you? It’s after six. How long is the lesson? Call me.”
Jemma dialed her sister’s phone number and waited to connect. “Is everything okay?” Janna asked in a rush. “I thought it was only an hour lesson?”
“I think it’s running a little long. She had to put the horse away.”
“Well that’s good. Did she say anything else?”
Jemma sighed. “No, she waved when she saw me, but no more words.”
“Don’t worry. She’s had a good first day.”
Jemma wondered if she should mentioned everything or not. If she didn’t Janna would kill her later. “Kassie hugged him after the lesson was over. You know she hardly interacts with strangers.”
“You’re kidding!” Janna shouted. “I can’t believe it! She hugged him!”
Jemma wiped away a tear. The small gesture was so monumental, it was hard to hold back her joy. “I’ll call you back, Jan.” She ended the call and ran to the bathroom to wash her face.
When she returned to the office, Kassie and Kyle were walking inside. Kassie ran to her mother and hugged her. Her baby girl had a smile a mile wide. Jemma’s heart filled with pride. “I bet you had a good time.” Jemma took off her daughter’s helmet. Her curly hair bounced free.
Kassie nodded quickly.
Kyle stood next to Kassie. “She did great Jemma. A natural horsewoman.” He patted Kassie on the shoulder. “See you next week, Kassie.”
“Okay.”
It took everything Jemma had not to say anything. She looked up at Kyle and he acknowledged the moment. Two milestones in one day. Sure it had been the grand total of two words, but Kassie was slowly getting back into communicating with the world.
Jemma rose, grabbed her purse and took Kassie’s hand. She cleared her throat, hoping and praying that her voice sounded normal. “See you next week, Kyle.”
“Goodnight,” he said. “I’ll walk you outside.”
Jemma, not wanting to offend the man, simply said, “Okay.”
He called over his shoulder, “I’ll be right back, Chutney.”
“Okay, Kyle.” He opened the door and motioned for Jemma and Kassie to precede him outside. Next to her Escalade, was one of the ranch’s trucks, and another very small car, too small for Kyle’s tall, athletic body.
“It’s very of nice of you to walk us outside,” Jemma said as they neared her vehicle. Kassie had ran ahead of them and was waiting at the SUV. She disarmed the alarm, so her daughter could get in.
“It’s no problem,” he said in his deep voice. “She did great today. Remember no pushing. It will come naturally.”
She agreed. “It’s going to be hard, but I’ll do my best. I’m so proud of her today.”
“I can tell,” he said, wiping her tears. “I’m going to have to keep a supply of handkerchiefs with you around.” He helped her inside her the SUV. “Have a good evening.” He closed the driver’s side door. He waved at Kassie in the backseat.
She started the Escalade and let her window down. “Thank you again. For everything.” She backed out of the driveway and proceeded home.
Kyle stood in the drive watching Jemma until she was out of sight. What was he thinking? Wiping her tears away, really? He knew he was attracted to her, but he had to consider her daughter. Kassie was still grieving for her father, he wondered if Jemma was missing her husband.
“So now we’re walking clients to their cars?” His father asked as he walked up behind him. “Why don’t you just asked that woman out? Might do you good.”
“Dad, I was just being nice. It’s almost dark, and I didn’t want anything to happen to her or her daughter.” He walked back inside the office, his father hot on his trail. Chutney looked up from her desk, hurriedly gathered her things and prepared to leave.
“I prepared the deposit for Tesla to do in the morning. I’m not sure what do about Mrs. Patterson’s bill. Should I mail it to her at the end of the month?”
It was an innocent question. A touchy question, but one that needed to be answered. “I’ll take care of it tomorrow with Mom.” He glanced at his father, but said nothing.
Chutney grinned. “You like the mother. I’m so happy.” She walked toward the door. “Goodnight, Kyle. Goodnight, Mr. Cosgrove.” She was gone in an instant.
Kyle looked at his father. “Now look what you did. You ran off Chutney.” Okay, he knew it was a lie, but he had to get the focus off him.
“I did not. The office closed almost an hour ago. The only reason she was still here was because I asked her to stay until the last client left. Now back to you asking out that nice woman. What’s the problem?”
“Her daughter is still grieving for her father. I don’t know if Jemma is grieving for her husband. I’d look like an ass.”
“True. But since your return to the ranch, you haven’t been on a date, hadn’t even been out or anything. You’ve been living and breathing this place for the last five years. I know your marriage is a touchy subject, but it’s over and done with, so let’s just move on.”
“I don’t want to make another mistake.” He’d never admitted that to anyone, especially his father. “I look at you and Mom and you’ve been together almost fifty years.”
“It wasn’t all roses. Your mother will tell you that. No one is happy all the time. The thing is you find someone that you can have a conversation with, not just sex.”
Kyle thought about his father’s words. “Not that I’m admitting to any such thing, but how would I find out if she’s still hung up on her husband?”
“Ask her.”
***
“Pizza.”
Jemma gasped before she realized. They were on their way home and she’d been reciting dinner choices for Kassie as she normally had when she hadn’t felt like cooking. She ran through the usual options, when Kassie announced her choice.
“Cheese?”
Kassie shook her head. “Pepperoni.”
Jemma smiled into her rearview mirror. “Pepperoni, it is.” She turned onto her street when her cell phone rang. She engaged the talk option on the steering wheel. Technology, she mused, what had they done before all those fancy gadgets to make life easier.
“Hey, Janna. We’re on our way home.”
“Great. Hello, Kassie,” Janna said, not expecting an answer.
“Hi.”
“Wait. Kassie?”
No answer.
Jemma wanted to laugh, but hadn’t wanted to alert her daughter she was doing anything spectacular. “In honor of Kassie’s excellent performance today, we’re celebrating with pizza.” Kassie clapped.
“Amazing,” her sister said. “Call me later.”
Jemma heard the catch in her sister’s voice. It was so hard keeping her composure and not burst into tears of happiness. She wished Kassie would have said more, but she didn’t stop talking instantly. It was gradual. So gradual, that she hadn’t realized it until Kassie had almost completely stopped talking.
After their celebratory meal, homework and a bath, Kassie went to bed. She hadn’t said any more words, but she had been more animated than her usual self. It was definitely something about that horse ranch, she thought. Maybe there was something to that nonsense about horses being good for kids.
Jemma relaxed in front of the TV downstairs. She had a microphone in Kassie’s room, just in case. Secretly, she was hoping for a few more words, but so far nothing. She read her mail, checked her blog and responded to the queries from readers, and entered a happy post celebrating her daughter’s horse lesson. Her phone rang as she closed her laptop.
“Hey Janna.”
“Sorry for losing it earlier. She’s speaking? OMG, I can’t believe it.”
Jemma chuckled. “Remember, it’s just been a word here and there. So we can’t jump the gun.”
“I know, but it’s been so long since we’ve heard her say anything. I’m a doctor, so yes, I know better. I’ll tell Mom, so she doesn’t go nuts. I’d say those lesson are already
paying off.”
“Speaking of, I’ve yet to pay anything. He keeps telling me he’s doing monthly billing because of her condition.”
“That place is a multi-million dollar ranch, I’m sure they’ll charge you.”
“I just don’t want Kyle to get in trouble for not charging me correctly. I know how those places are. Especially since his mother helps runs the office and his father works there too.”
“Stop worrying.”
“Well, there’s something else,” she said quietly.
“What?”
“Kyle walked me out to the car tonight. I mean it was late and everything, it seemed out of the ordinary.” She took a deep breath. “What do you know about him?”
“He’s good at his job and he’s good looking.”
Sometimes, Janna could be a pain in the ass. “Besides, that.”
“He’s white.”
“Really? I hadn’t noticed.”
“Liar. He’s divorced. He used to live in Austin, but came back to the ranch about five years ago.”
“That’s all you got?” Her sister was known for gossiping.
“For you, yes. It’s been a while since Jared died. It’s not a sin to want companionship, but you need to be sure you’re not feeling the effects of Kassie.”
“What?” She was totally confused.
“I’m saying don’t let the fact that Kassie reacts positively to him be the reason that you’re attracted to him.”
“I’m not attracted to him,” Jemma corrected her sister.
“Right. The man is letting you pay monthly, when they have a strict policy of per week payments. He walked you to your car. There’s something there. Only time will tell.”
“How do you know about the payments?”
“As stated on their website,” Janna said. “When you said you tried to pay and he mentioned billing, I call Krista. That’s his sister. She said they didn’t do it as a rule, except for special cases.”
“So what do you think?”
“I think he sounds like a nice man, who is doing a nice thing for a widow and her troubled daughter. Just enjoy it for what it is.”
FIVE
The next week, Jemma drove to the ranch listening with joy as her daughter hummed along with a song on the radio. It had been a remarkable week for the Patterson women. It all started with the parent-teacher conference earlier that day.
“Mrs. Patterson, Kassie has had a great week. She’s been using a few words in class this week,” Mrs. Johnson said. “She always does her work and is very smart. Has anything changed in her life lately?”
“She started taking horse riding lessons,” Jemma said proudly. “She just started last week, but she’s been saying words here and there.”
Mrs. Johnson nodded. “Yes, she seemed so much more animated this week. I mean, she always communicated, but it’s nice to hear her voice.”
“Thank you. She has a lesson this afternoon.”
Mrs. Johnson smiled. “That’s wonderful. I’ve never seen a case quite like this one. The school counselor has been baffled as well. Kassie passed all the tests with flying colors.”
Jemma remembered all too well when she enrolled Kassie in the private school, they were hesitant to admit her. Her baby took test after test and passed them all with the high marks. “Yes, she’s just choosing not to talk, but thanks to the ranch, that’s changing.”
“Yes, it is. I’d like you to think about putting her in advance placement courses. As I said, she’s been doing well in class. I know she has a lot going on with losing her father, moving to Mansfield, a new school, and trying to make new friends, which she does well even without talking. I would like you to just think about it.”
She was not expecting that. “I will think about it. How much time do I have before you need an answer?” She would definitely need to talk to her sister about the implications of harder schoolwork on Kassie.
“We’d like the start the advance placement classes in the spring semester. So you have about two months to make a decision.”
“I’ll let you know my answer as soon as I have one.”
“That’s all I ask.”
***
That afternoon, Kyle sat in his office staring at the computer screen. This book was going to be harder to write than the others. In the other books, he took a clinical view toward the cases, but this case was special because it was Kassie. She’d had such a breakthrough last week, he could only hope for the same today.
Work on something else, he told himself. Normally that trick worked when he was blocked and couldn’t write, but when he wasn’t thinking about Kassie, he was thinking about her mother.
He dialed his sister’s phone. Hopefully, Krista was between patients and could talk. He waited for her to pick up. “Hey Krissy,” he said.
“Hey, big brother,” she said. “How’s things at the ranch? Mom and Dad?”
“Everyone is cool. I have a problem and need your help.” He hoped his nosy sister didn’t ask too many questions.
“Should you ask Jemma out on a date?” She waited half a beat. “Yes!”
“How do you know? Who squealed?” He imagined it was his parents.
“Actually, I’m friends with her sister, Janna. We interned together. Jemma was concerned about the billing.”
“Why is monthly billing so hard for anyone to grasp? You’re as bad as Dad.”
“Well, most places like ours require payment weekly. Just like you do every other customer. What are you going to do if someone ask her?”
“I’ll cross that bridge when it breaks.”
“So when are you going to ask her out?”
“She’s still grieving for her husband. I’d feel like a jerk asking her out now. Especially with her daughter.”
“Kassie is fine. I heard she said a few words last week. I’m not saying the first date has to be a two tablecloth affair, but you better make your move. Or she’s just going to think you’re a nice man who treats her daughter really nice.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know. I’ll see how this week’s lesson goes. Maybe I can start nosing around and find out if she’s still mourning her marriage.” Kyle hated small talk, but sometimes a man had to step up to the stall and take care of business.
“Of course she is. That man was the love of her life. According to Janna, they were blissfully happy. So yes, those are big shoes to fill. But you’re a big boy, I know you can.”
Kyle saw the mountain before him. It was a monumental task, but he could do it. He was a Cosgrove, damn it! “You’re right, Krista.” He glanced at the clock on the wall. Those late nights were starting to catch up with him. He yawned as his sister droned on about possible dating scenarios. “Hey, sis, I’m going to have to hit you back. I’m going to take a quick nap before Kassie’s lesson.”
Krista snickered. “Perks of being the boss, huh?”
“Yep. Later.” He ended the call and turned off his computer, grabbed his keys and headed out of his office. His mother and Tiffany were behind the counter, while Chutney was helping a customer. “Mom, I’m going to the house for an hour or so.” He hoped she didn’t ask many questions.
“Yes, you do look tired. All those late hours working on that blasted book,” she said. “You need to start enjoying your life.” She patted him on the shoulder. “Oh, and a shower wouldn’t hurt either.”
He kissed his mother on the cheek. “Always the diplomat.”
Jemma and Kassie arrived at the ranch in time for the lesson. For Jemma, it had been one thing after another. But she’d gladly have done it all over again, just to hear Kassie’s teacher praise her.
Jemma parked the SUV and helped Kassie carry her supplies. Again, she thought about the fact that she hadn’t paid for any lessons yet. Janna told her to relax and she decide would do just that. She was carrying Kassie’s grooming kit, which held a brush, a sponge, and a lot of things she couldn’t remember the official names of the items she’d purchased for her daughter’s lessons.
Kassie walked alongside her mother, holding her helmet in her hands. They entered the stable and Kassie immediately went to the horses. She reached through the bars and touched some of the horses on the forehead.
Jemma was in awe of the quiet moment her daughter took with the horses. In only one lesson, Kassie had bonded with animals. When Kassie touched the third horse, Jemma stopped her. “Honey, you shouldn’t touch all the horses. They might not like that.” She made a mental note to bring hand sanitizer with her from now on.
Kassie stared at her mother. “Say hello.” She moved to the next horse and placed her tiny hand on the horse’s face for a few seconds. The horse moved its head up and down. Kassie smiled back at her mother. “You do it.”
Before Jemma couldn’t form a thought, her daughter grabbed her hand and placed it on the horse’s face. “Mommy, say hello. Nutmeg is my horse.”
Her baby spoke! Jemma tried to keep her voice normal. Her baby-girl just strung together two sentences. Before she could straightened her daughter out about the rules of ownership, Kyle joined them. She inhaled the scent of a clean man.
“Hello, ladies,” Kyle said standing next to Jemma. “I’m sorry, I’m late.”
“No problem,” Jemma croaked. “Kassie was just showing me the horses. We hope you didn’t mind.” She glanced at him. His dark brown hair was slick back, revealing his tanned face. His deep blue eyes smiled at her. He had on knit shirt, tucked neatly into his starched jeans. His black boots looked well-worn and very expensive. “Kassie was showing me how to say hello.” She blinked back tears of happiness.
Kyle opened the gate to the horse’s stable. “Great job, Kassie. Ready to get started?”
Kassie nodded, took the box from her mother and walked inside the stable. Jemma stared in amazement as her baby girl took out her brush and started gently brushing this very large animal as if she’d been doing it all her life.
“Mommy?”
“Mommy?”
Jemma realized the strange voice she heard was her daughter’s. “What is it, baby?” She wiped tears from her eyes, noticing her daughter had the horse by the reins and was leading it out of the stable.
