by Joanna Sims
Dr. Brand released Visa back to his stall, and by the time Kate returned, the vet was ready to discuss the results of the X-ray. With her arm around Callie’s shoulders, as much for her own support as to comfort her daughter, Kate stood close to Dr. Brand so she could see the X-ray of Visa’s hind leg projected on the screen. The news wasn’t good—she could see that before he even began to point to the hairline fracture in the short pastern bone.
“I-is he going to b-be okay?” Callie already had tears in her eyes; yes, her daughter had a serious intellectual disability, but she understood much more about life than most people would give her credit for.
Kate tightened her arm to hold her daughter to comfort her.
“Well.” Dr. Brand’s words were measured as he addressed them both. “If Visa was going to have a fracture on his leg, this is the best place to do it.”
She had been holding her breath again; Kate told herself to keep on breathing. She was fully expecting Liam to tell her that Visa, only five and so young, would have to be put down.
“If you keep him on stall rest for two months, I can come back and take another X-ray to see if he’s done some healing,” Dr. Brand said. “Of course, Dr. McGee would be able to help you with that, as well.”
Kate took a second to process the information before she replied, “You’ve started with him. I’d feel better if you just stayed with this case.”
“I’d be happy to do it.”
All three of them turned to walk in the direction of the vet’s truck; Kate already had her checkbook in her back pocket to pay.
“How much do we owe you?”
“I don’t really handle that part of the deal. Go ahead and call the office tomorrow. Ask for Irene—she handles all the billing.” He pulled a card out of the console of his truck and handed it to her. “She’ll take care of you.”
“Okay,” Kate said, surprised that Liam didn’t take payment on the spot. “Are you sure?”
“Yep.” Liam opened one of the storage lockers built onto the back of his truck.
“Do you like chili?” Callie asked the vet.
“Sure do.” Dr. Brand loaded his mobile kit into the locker.
Kate liked that Liam didn’t disregard her daughter—he included her, he looked at her directly and spoke to her like she had value.
“Do you want to have chili with us? That’s what we’re having for dinner.”
Kate hadn’t expected her daughter to extend a dinner invitation to Liam; even more unexpected was her own follow-up to Callie’s invitation.
“We have plenty,” she told Liam. “It’s the least we could do. I’m sure you skipped dinner so you could come out here.”
Liam didn’t say yes or no as he loaded his equipment into his truck.
“Do you like orange or grape soda?” Callie asked Liam. “Which do you want?”
Kate put her hand on her daughter’s shoulder. “He hasn’t accepted your invitation yet.”
Liam locked the back of his truck. “I like grape.”
For the briefest of seconds, Liam caught Kate’s eye, and she saw something so strong and kind in those blue eyes that she had to remind herself to look away.
“I—I like grape, too!” Callie told the vet excitedly, as if she had just discovered that they had something very special in common.
Her daughter spun around and headed off in the direction of their modest ranch-style house with the new steel roof and fresh coat of moss green paint.
“I’m sorry,” Kate told him when her daughter was out of earshot. “I hope she didn’t put you on the spot.”
“I’m hungry, and all I’ve got in my icebox is a piece of suspicious cheese and condiments.” Liam adjusted his long legs so he could keep pace with her.
Kate cracked a smile. “Well, then, I’m glad she invited you.”
She caught Liam staring at her profile. “I don’t usually say yes. But we’re talking about chili and grape soda. An offer like that doesn’t come up every day.”
* * *
It had been a long day for Liam Brand; he was grateful and honored that a man like Dr. McGee—a man he admired—would send his clients to him when he was out sick. But the 50 percent increase in appointments, which entailed juggling his already booked days with Dr. McGee’s overflow, had put him under the gun and way behind. He was exhausted—and he usually wasn’t exhausted. If it had been anyone other than Kate King and Callie who invited him in for dinner, he would have gracefully declined and headed home.
“We weren’t expecting anyone,” Kate told him as she picked up random items on the way to the kitchen.
The King home was cozy and lived-in. The outside of the house had some updating recently, but the inside was like stepping back in time to the 1970s. Kate was known in the greater Bozeman area as one of the best horse trainers and breeders in the state of Montana. Her techniques for training horses and riders in a humane manner was the stuff of legends; on the other hand, homemaking did not seem to be much of a priority. The furniture hadn’t been updated since Kate was a kid. In fact, Liam remembered sitting on that same forest green and navy blue plaid couch back when he was in elementary school one summer when his father came out to the Triple K to buy some new horses from Kate’s father. It was obvious that every bit of her heart, her soul, her time and her money went to taking care of her daughter and her horses. That was her love, and he could appreciate that about her because that was exactly how he felt about life: family and horses mattered more than stainless-steel appliances and granite countertops.
“Something smells mighty good in here.” Liam sat at the small kitchen island with the sunshine-yellow laminate countertop.
What the King house lacked in decor, it more than made up for it in the homey feel and a tantalizing aroma permeating the kitchen.
“Grandpa taught me.” Callie lifted the lid off the large pot on the stove.
“I didn’t know you were the chef of the family,” Liam said to Kate’s daughter.
“Callie is the only chef in this house,” Kate gave her daughter a quick hug from behind. “Thank goodness she loves to cook, or we’d both starve. Isn’t that true, kiddo?”
Callie nodded seriously. “That is true. I-I have saved us from starving.”
Liam sat at Kate King’s counter, watching the horse trainer interact with her daughter, while he gulped down grape soda, which he hadn’t had since he was a kid. This visit to the Triple K Ranch was an unexpected blast into his past.
Every time he emptied a can of soda, Callie would put another cold can of it in front of him. He didn’t even have to ask. It had been a long time since Liam felt like he was part of a family; he’d been separated for several years, and the divorce had finally been settled the year before. The judge had granted full, physical custody of their two children to his ex-wife and liberal visitation to him; now he was a long-distance father to two teenagers. His son and daughter lived in Seattle, Washington, with his ex-wife and her new husband. Although he had known that his ex-wife, Cynthia, had been dating during their separation, it had still been a shock when she remarried so quickly after the divorce had been finalized. He hated being a video-chat father and a “see you on your next school break” dad. But, that fight was over and he had lost—big time.
He’d always been the kind of man who wanted to be married, to have kids, to make a home with a woman. But it hadn’t worked out that way. Liam had his work—his salvation—and a big family with lots of siblings, yet he always went home to an empty house. He liked being in Kate King’s house, chitchatting and laughing about nothing in particular while Calico stirred the chili and put an extra place setting on the table.
Once Callie announced that she was ready to serve, Liam joined them at their little square table, wobbly on its legs, and hungrily dived into the large bowl of chili. Perhaps he shouldn’t have been so shocked at how good
the chili was—perhaps he underestimated Callie because of her disability—but Callie’s chili was incredible.
Two bowls later, Liam was completely stuffed and wishing he hadn’t been so greedy. He felt more like curling up on Kate’s old plaid couch than driving forty-five minutes back to his family’s ranch, Sugar Creek.
“That was the best chili I’ve ever had,” he told Kate’s daughter. “Hand’s down. The best.”
Callie smiled shyly with pleasure, sometimes finding it difficult to look him in the eye.
As she picked up his bowl to take it to the sink, Callie said, “I-I’m making steak and garlic mashed potatoes tomorrow night.”
Liam smiled at her. “I’m sure that’s going to be another masterpiece of a meal, Calico.”
She stood by his chair, his bowl in hand. “Do you want to come for dinner tomorrow?”
Liam saw Kate’s expression, fleeting as it was; she had no idea Callie would invite him for a second dinner, and she wasn’t on board with the idea. Kate sanitized her expression quickly as she said, “Callie, I’m sure Dr. Brand can’t come out all this way just for dinner.”
“Actually—” he didn’t plan it; the words just popped out of his mouth “—I think that steak and garlic mashed potatoes are definitely worth the drive. What time’s dinner?”
Chapter Two
“I still don’t know what possessed you to invite Dr. Brand for dinner tonight, Callie!” Kate said as she was attempting to stuff a family pack of paper towels onto the top shelf of her pantry.
“He likes my cooking.”
Kate had been irritated all day about their dinner guest. She was annoyed with her daughter for extending the invitation, and she was even more annoyed with Liam for accepting.
“Everyone loves your cooking.” She shoved the paper towels hard with both hands.
Callie put her hand over her mouth and giggled. “True.”
No matter how hard she shoved that stupid pack of paper towels, it refused to fit into the space. Kate stared at the offending paper towels before she sighed, grabbed ahold of the plastic encasing the paper towels and yanked on it until she pulled it free and dropped it onto the floor.
“We don’t have company during the week.” She picked up the paper towels and put them on top of the refrigerator.
“I—I know.” Her daughter was busy gathering the ingredients she would need to make dinner. Callie always needed help with measuring, but she could follow her list of ingredients and then double-check after she was done. “B-but,” her daughter said as if she were the parent, “you’re gonna need someone to eat dinner with when I—I’m living in New York.”
This had been a conversation that had been going on for years. In spite of her disability, Callie was a very goal-oriented young woman. She wanted to live in New York City on her own, go to culinary school and then open a restaurant. Kate had always supported Callie’s dreams, but there had to be limits.
“You know that New York isn’t an option, Callie. Our life is here at the Triple K.”
“That’s why I—I’m going without you.” Her daughter put her armful of ingredients on the counter. “You stay here, and I—I go to New York.”
This was said with another giggle.
Kate walked up behind her daughter, wrapped her arms around her shoulders and kissed her on the cheek. “I love you, sweet girl.”
Always affectionate ever since she was a baby, Callie turned in her arms and hugged her tightly. “Don’t be afraid, Mommy. I—I’ll be okay.”
“If you want to move out, Callie, you know I support that. But you’ve got to take baby steps. Get a place in town.”
“I-I’ll live in New York first.”
This wasn’t the first, or last, discussion about New York. Down syndrome hadn’t quelled Callie’s ability to dream big for herself; she was goal-oriented and ambitious, dreaming of attending culinary school in New York City. For someone born with Down syndrome, Callie was on the higher end of the spectrum as far as her IQ was concerned, but there would never be a time when she could live independently in a small town like Bozeman, much less in the largest city in the country. Her daughter was so full of life, so full of dreams, but simple, daily tasks, like taking money out of an ATM machine, stumped Callie.
It was important to Kate that her daughter gain as much independence as possible; they had often spoken about Callie finding an apartment in town. Kate had even been in touch with a local, non-profit organization that supported individuals with disabilities to review options for transitional living in Bozeman. But every time they discussed moving, Callie inevitably circled back to her goal of moving to the Big Apple.
“You may move out and hate it,” Kate teased her daughter.
“No.” Callie said, emphatically. “I-I know what I want.”
She waited for Callie to slowly go over the ingredient list, check each item off as she doubled-checked to make certain she had everything she needed. Her daughter leaned her elbows on the counter, her face very close to the enlarged print on the recipe card, talking aloud to herself as she went along. It had taken years to develop this routine, this step toward independent life, and Kate was proud to watch Callie make continued progress. Her daughter had gotten the King stubbornness and determination quite honestly.
“I—I’m ready,” Callie told her.
Kate stayed with Callie, making sure all of her measurements were accurate, before she headed back to the barn. The barn, the ranch, was both her albatross and her solace. When she was angry or upset, there was nothing better for it than mucking out stalls. But the work was never ending and there was always something that needed to be fixed.
“Well, Visa.” She had ended hours of work back at the injured horse’s stall. Now that he was stall bound, she spent more time with him. He was a young horse and to be stuck in a twelve by twelve space for months was going to be tough for him.
Kate rubbed the space between Visa’s eyes, then twirled his long, black forelock around her finger.
“Guess who’s coming for dinner?” The horse trainer frowned at the thought.
Halfway through her work, she had thought to call Liam and give him a chance to get off the hook. But in the end, she thought better of it. Liam was a smart man; he’d figure out that she was trying to revoke her daughter’s invitation. No, if he wanted out, he’d let her know. She knew that she had a reputation in Bozeman for being private and a bit standoffish, but no one could legitimately pin rudeness on her and she’d like to keep it that way. All she could really do was hope that Liam’s schedule would prevent him from coming all the way out to the Triple K. The rest of the afternoon, while she paid bills in the office above the barn, Kate hoped that her phone would ring. But often times, hoping wasn’t enough to make something happen.
* * *
“Howdy!” Liam Brand had been looking forward to heading out to the Triple K all day.
In fact, the day didn’t seem to go by fast enough.
“Hi, Dr. Brand.” Kate was kneeling at the front of the barn, surrounded by a pride of ragtag barn cats who had seen better days.
Liam sensed that the horse trainer was still in the process of warming up to the idea of him having dinner at her ranch for the second night in a row; even when she wasn’t smiling, with the light of a smile reaching her eyes, Liam still thought she was mighty pretty.
“I’d appreciate you callin’ me Liam.” He stopped a few feet away from her. “We go back an awful long way.”
Instead of responding, Kate finished feeding her barn cats. “I have to have the oldest barn cats ever. I’ve got to feed them now—they’re too old to catch mice anymore.”
Liam laughed. Kate’s cats were bony from old age, with noticeable cataracts, scraggly fur and weak meows. One brown tabby cat with narrow shoulders, curled white whiskers and a barrel belly broke away from the group to greet hi
m. Her scratchy meow touched his heart as he knelt to pet her.
“Sissy.” Kate glanced up from her chore. “She’s the flirt of the barn.”
The old feline rubbed her face and body against Liam’s knee, purring hard and loud, before falling onto her side at his feet. Sissy gave him a slow blink, a sign of love from a cat, while her paws curled under happily.
“Love has always been more important to her than food.”
Liam petted the retired mouser until the feline decided it was, indeed, time to fill her belly. Kate stood and he joined her. They watched the ex-mousers make short work of the food she had put down for them.
“I can’t seem to get her eyes cleared up,” Kate said after a minute or two. “They’re always so swollen. Allergies, I suppose.”
“I’ll give you one of the ointments I like to use with cats before I leave.”
“Thanks.” She seemed surprised when she said, “I’d really appreciate that.”
Liam wanted to check on his patient, swinging by Visa’s stall before he strode beside Kate back to the house. It occurred to him, as he walked next to the horse trainer, that he didn’t have to measure his stride. She had some long legs of her own, and it was nice to walk beside her.
“Look who I found!” Kate said to her daughter when they entered the small ranch house.
“Hi, Dr. Brand!” Callie immediately met them just inside the door and hugged him in that friendly way of hers.
“It smells mighty good in here again, Calico,” Liam told the young lady.
“She’s been cooking all day.” Kate shut the door.
“I’ve been thinking about your cookin’ all day,” he said.
