by Allen, Jewel
Dr. Oscarson had dark hair and a small gleaming handlebar mustache. Surely he wasn’t like one of those old-time vets who just shot horses to get them out of their misery?
“I’d like to try to do rehab for him, doctor,” Talia said, even as she wondered how she would pay for something like that.
The vet pursed his mouth. “See here? This ring of cut flesh? It’s not just a flesh wound. It’s muscle. It won’t heal for ages, and by then, the horse would not lead a very good life.”
“I’m his owner,” Talia declared. “I think I get to decide whether or not his life is good.”
“That’s just a selfish thought, ma’am. Besides, he’s obviously old.”
Talia clenched her fists, wishing she could tell him off. But she caught Jay’s calm expression.
“You will fix him,” Jay said, looking at Dr. Oscarson. “I will pay for it.”
“You don’t need to,” Talia said, her pride warring with gratitude.
“You want to save him, don’t you?” Jay asked.
Talia started crying again. “Yes,” she sobbed.
Jay crouched to Talia’s level and draped his arm over her shaking shoulders. “It’s okay. Just let me, please?”
“Unfortunately, I can’t do much more for your horse, young lady,” the doctor said. “But you can always try someone else. I doubt they’d tell you anything different.”
Talia felt cold, her stomach tight with worry. She looked into Stormy’s eyes and wondered what he’d like to be done. Of course anyone―horse or human―would want to survive. But at what price? He might not be able to walk for months.
“I can get another vet,” Jay said.
Talia shook her head slowly. “No,” she whispered. “That’ll take too long. He’s here now.” Aloud, Talia said, “Let’s go ahead, doctor.”
“Put him to sleep?” the doctor said.
She nodded, the words stuck in her throat. She would do anything for Stormy, even prolong his life, but wouldn’t it be even crueler to extend his agony?
Dr. Oscarson nodded and then grabbed Stormy’s head none-too-gently.
Talia exploded. “What are you doing?”
“Just positioning him for an injection.” He stood up and let Stormy’s head roll back. “I’m going to get the medication.”
“No.” Talia knelt by Stormy.
Jay gave her an uneasy glance. “Talia, in this case, I would have to agree with putting him down.”
Her mouth quivered. “No. I mean it won’t be this so-called vet that will be the last one Stormy will be subjected to.”
The doctor bristled and looked at Jay. “I didn’t come here to be insulted,” he said.
“Well, you were pretty rough with her horse,” Jay said grimly. “He’s her family.”
The vet continued to stare at them from down his nose. “I know that.” He turned at his heel. “Good day.”
Jay was about to call another vet when an ATV came into view. Abe from the Hadley place next door sat astride it, and he dismounted, unsmiling. His hooded eyes took in Stormy on the ground.
“Your horse got hurt?” he said. “That’ll teach you to trespass.”
Talia went rigid. If it weren’t for Jay holding her back, she’d have rushed him and clawed his eyes out. She looked into Jay’s eyes, which held a warning.
“He’s not worth it,” he whispered.
She turned her attention back to Abe. “My horse is dying because of your trap, and that’s all you have to say to me?” she bit out.
Abe didn’t answer.
“Why do you even have those traps anyway?” she asked. “I bet they aren’t even legal.”
“Just don’t want wild animals and snoops around here. If you’d paid attention to the sign, your horse wouldn’t have gotten hurt.”
“Has it occurred to you that your animals could step in them too?”
“None of our horses come out this far.” Abe hesitated. “You got someone coming to help you?”
“Yes,” Talia said.
Abe nodded and then got back on his ATV. As he revved away, Talia took comfort in Jay’s arms.
“He’s an idiot; that’s what,” Jay said.
“The only drawback to living at this rental.” Talia sighed.
Jay caressed her cheek. “I worry about you being out here by yourself. Next to these guys.”
“I’m a big girl,” Talia said, jutting her chin out. “I can take care of myself.”
“Oh, I don’t doubt that at all,” he murmured, just as the big girl continued to fall apart over her horse.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Jay glanced helplessly at Talia. He wished the confrontation between Dr. Oscarson and Talia hadn’t escalated like it did, but he couldn’t blame her. The vet acted like a Neanderthal. Jay knew he had a reputation for being brusque. The vet belonged to the old school way of veterinary care, so Jay had avoided him until now.
“I’ll give Dr. Garcia a call on his cell,” Jay said, not too hopefully.
Talia nodded. Her head was bent over Stormy’s, her posture twisted with pain.
Jay wished he could take her in his arms and soothe away her sadness. But first, he needed to get ahold of the vet.
Relief flooded Jay when a man answered. “Hello, Dr. Garcia?” Jay said into his phone, identifying himself. “Can you come down for a euthanasia?” He listened. “Not right away? Oh, that’s fine. Fifteen minutes is all right.” He looked questioningly at Talia, who nodded.
After Jay hung up, he went over to Talia, his shoes crunching over the grass.
She glanced at his knees. “You’ve got grass stains on your pants,” she said.
He waved away her concern. “No big deal.” He knelt and took her hands in his. “I’m going to call the stables and have them send over a bobcat.”
She froze and then blinked. She took a deep, labored breath, but her eyes stayed dry. “Okay.”
“There’s a horse cemetery in the back of our stables,” Jay said.
“That would be too much to ask of you.” Talia bit her lip.
Jay squeezed her hand. “Please, let me help.”
She stared at their linked fingers. “I don’t like being indebted to others,” she admitted.
He smiled. “I’m not ‘others,’ am I?”
“Well, outside of my family.” She managed a smile. “But that would be great.”
He wanted to give her space to mourn and say goodbye. “If you want me to give you some privacy…” he said.
She let his hand go and stroked her horse’s jaw.
“No,” she whispered. “It’s okay.” Tears glistened in her eyes. “I’d love the company.”
Gladness made his chest swell. He sat close to her, uncaring of his business attire. He extended his hand and gently touched the small of her back to communicate his support.
She gave him a sidelong glance, filled with gratitude. “Did I tell you that Stormy was my first horse?”
“Yes, you’d said that before.”
She looked away, nostalgic. “He wasn’t a good-looking colt. He was all legs and kind of clumsy with his gait. I held an apple out to him, and he accidentally nudged it with his muzzle. The apple rolled off my hand, and I jumped away. It ended up back at my feet. I offered it to him a second time, and this time, his teeth sank into it. He snarfed it down.”
She sniffled. “He was so happy, eating that apple. I mean, it was such a little thing, but he looked like he’d died and gone to heaven. My heart just melted. I was a little scared of horses. I’d never been around them much, but I loved the idea of owning a horse. Dad gave in…and then he and Mom died in the car accident.” She closed and then opened her eyes. “My aunt, however, who housed me and my siblings as a foster situation, complained about the prospect of actually putting a horse in their dilapidated pen.”
“Where were you living then?” he asked.
“Oh, Colorado still, but we had to move from our hometown. We had no family there. I really wanted to st
ay. But, of course, it was impossible. It’s not like I could have raised myself. Well, I could have, but it would have been hard.”
“We have something in common, then,” he murmured.
“Oh?” Her hand stopped stroking Stormy’s neck. “What?”
He hesitated. “I pretty much raised myself.”
She stared and then frowned. “You’re pulling my leg, right?”
“What do you mean?”
“How could you be by yourself?” She scrunched her nose adorably. “You probably had a palace of servants, a kitchen staff, guards, and of course, your parents.”
“Well, yes and yes on all the staff, but no to my parents.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“My brothers and I didn’t have the people who mattered the most. My parents were, shall we say, off around the world, trying to save it one cause at a time.”
Her expression softened.
“Oh,” he said, trying to ward off her pity. “Don’t worry. I had everything a young teenage guy could have, and I wasn’t exactly miserable.”
“Fast cars, girls, and all that?” she teased.
“Anything you can imagine.” He frowned. “I could have gone down a certain path…but I didn’t.”
“Yeah, I could see how that would be tough. Why didn’t you?”
“I saw people do stupid things.” He stared off into space, thinking about the terrible choices he’d witnessed. “Drug overdoses. Horrible things. Suicides. Preventable things. Besides, it’s no fun rebelling by yourself. It wasn’t like I could show off to friends I didn’t have.”
“You had no friends?” she said softly.
“Not real ones. Well, I had a girlfriend. My first love. She was sweet, but we just didn’t have the glue to hold for longer than that summer.”
“Have you…have you dated a lot of other women?”
“Seriously? No. I’ve never had an emotional connection like I’ve felt…” He paused to gaze deeply into her eyes. “…with you.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Talia considered Jay. If they had a future together, which she knew they didn’t, what would be their glue? Certainly not horses. He didn’t seem overly fond of them, though his reaction to Stormy was promising.
Stormy. She gazed once again at her horse. “I wish I could do something for this guy right now.”
Jay laid his hand over hers. “You’re here. That probably means a lot to him.”
“And you’re here for me,” she said.
He squeezed her hand and then lifted it to his lips. She leaned toward him with a little sigh, and he pulled her close.
Soon she felt restless, her mind wandering to her poor horse. She couldn’t focus on Jay. Not while her beloved Stormy was in so much pain. She was usually squeamish about blood, and she kept her eyes averted from his injury, hoping it was all just a bad dream.
A truck rumbled down the lane, and Rascal perked up, watching its progress before letting loose to chase it down as the rental’s self-appointed watchdog. Normally, Talia would have gotten after him for chasing a vehicle, but she had no heart to scold him today. When he came back to her, circling and happy with his tongue lolling and tail wagging, she told him, “Good boy.”
Dr. Garcia arrived, and it was like night and day between him and the other vet. He spoke in a kind, gentle voice and patiently answered all of Talia’s questions. But it didn’t change the expected outcome of him recommending euthanasia.
Stormy was so spent that he only flinched slightly when Dr. Garcia poked a needle in his vein.
Talia bowed her head and placed it near Stormy’s mane, stroking him gently as his spirit ebbed from him. His noble and special life flashed in front of her eyes: his comical entrance into this world, his temperamental tantrums as a two-year-old colt, her wins on him at the barrel, backpacking trail rides up the Rockies.
“Goodbye, Stormy,” she said as the estate’s bobcat lumbered closer.
Then she stepped back and turned blindly into Jay’s arms.
***
As though in a subdued bubble of happiness, Jay walked Talia from the car to the paddock, her hand fitting just right in his. He floated in a sort of wonderment. By not pulling away from his touch, Talia was publicly acknowledging that their relationship had progressed to the next level.
She gave him a sad smile, and he squeezed her hand, his heart going out to her. He could sense her pain and could see right through the bravado she was putting on.
Mother stood in their path, holding Chi-Chi in her arms, as though she had been waiting for them. She wore a polite mask, her smile not reaching her eyes. “Hello,” she said.
“Hello, Mother,” Jay said, keeping ahold of Talia’s hand. “How’s Katy?”
“Fine. No concussion. But she does have to wear an eye patch for a little bit. Mostly cosmetic.”
“I’m sorry I wasn’t there to help bring her home,” Jay said.
“I bet you were,” Mother murmured under her breath. She gave Talia a fake smile. “Do you mind giving us some privacy, sweetie?”
“Thanks again,” Talia told Jay. “I’ll see you later.”
Jay sent her off with a kiss on the temple. His eyes followed her as she headed down to Eula’s paddock. When he turned, Mother’s lips formed a disapproving line.
“Jay, Jay, Jay,” Mother said. “I thought we talked about this fling you’re having with Talia. You said you’d wait until the girls were gone.”
“Mom,” Jay said quietly, “her horse just died.”
“What?” Mother’s eyes widened.
“Her old horse at her rental property had to be put down. His hoof got caught in a trap.”
“Oh dear,” Mother said. “That’s too bad.” She frowned. “And what was your point in bringing that up?”
“We’ve just had a harrowing couple of hours, Mom, and we buried her horse. I don’t know how to explain this, but I’ve never felt closer to her than now.”
Mother blinked, her expression flickering uncertainly. “I’m sorry,” she said. “Tough times. Well, yes, of course you should be there for a friend.”
“Thanks for understanding, Mother,” Jay said, kissing her cheek.
“I’m not as heartless as you probably think I am.”
“I’ve never thought you heartless,” Jay said. “Just…preoccupied.”
Jay left his mother to counsel with Chi-Chi while he went in search of Talia. As he predicted, she was in Eula’s stall, grooming her. Her face looked a bit haggard, but her eyes lit up at his approach.
“Stay with me?” he said. ”Here, on the estate.”
She stopped grooming Eula, letting her arms drop to her sides as she approached Jay. Eula’s half stall door was closed between them.
“What does your mother think of it?” she asked.
“I didn’t ask her.”
He cradled the side of her face, and she rubbed against his palm like a kitten.
“Okay,” she whispered.
His glance fell to her lips, and a sweet zing of desire spread through his body. He wouldn’t push her, if she wasn’t ready in her grief, so he didn’t move for several moments.
When she leaned forward as though to give him permission, he brushed his lips against hers. A gentle yearning in his chest spiraled into a flame, licking at him as he captured her mouth in a deeper kiss.
He wanted to get closer to her, as much as having a half door between them would allow. As he reached for her waist with his other hand, she broke off the kiss and cast her eyes down demurely.
“I guess I’ll see you later?” he murmured.
She nodded, her cheeks blushing a pretty pink.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Something had changed between them. Talia could feel it when Jay drove her home so she could move her stuff to his place.
The thought of her moving in with Jay—more accurately, into the mansion, with his mother as their chaperone—was funny. It wasn’t anything like that, of course. But somethin
g definitely seemed afoot. A sweetness, a connection that was palpable whenever he looked at her.
Rascal loved car rides, and too late, he’d ensconced himself, dusty paws and shedding fur and all, into Jay’s back seat.
“I’m sorry,” she said, mortified.
“It’ll be all right,” Jay said, chuckling. “This will give Eddie something to do.”
“I could have him ride with me in the truck,” she said.
“Really, it’s not a big deal.”
Before she could go to her truck, Jay pulled her down into a kiss that turned her knees to jelly.
Their convoy made its way down the street from her rental to the Royal Estates. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon, reflected in the quiet along the empty paths. Everyone was taking it easy, giving the horses a rest. The bright sun made Talia squint as she got out of her truck.
Jay offered his hand, and she let him hold hers, sending a delicious sensation coursing through her veins. What all their touching meant, she didn’t know, and she wouldn’t think of it until she absolutely had to. What was another week of Jay? She could just enjoy him and not think about the future.
As they walked, hand-in-hand, with him carrying her beat-up duffle bag holding all her possessions in the world, she felt like Cinderella, except she was arriving in her truck escorted by a prince in his Maserati.
Although she still roiled in grief from Stormy’s passing, she reveled in the feel of Jay’s palm against hers. Birds flit from tree to tree. Jay and Talia fell into step to an imaginary song she almost expected could bust out any minute, from one of those musicals swelling with violins and an orchestra.
Jay glanced at her with a smile that lit up his face. Could she truly be the cause of that smile and that glow in him?
The butler didn’t bat an eyelash at their appearance as a couple at the step. And then she realized that maybe Jay had brought home other girls before and it was a normal occurrence. She wondered about his past girlfriends, all the dates that a wealthy, good-looking prince could get at college, and she felt an unreasonable frisson of jealousy.
