Page 16 of The Little Things
I quickly finished my beer and called it a night, saying goodbye to my family before jumping in my truck and getting the hell out of there before my mom got any other crazy ideas in her head. The empty ranch house loomed ahead of me, its solid shape a dark mass against the star-speckled sky. I still wasn’t used to seeing it so dark. Until my grandparents moved out, it was always so full of life. It was where everyone gathered. Family gatherings were always in the big house. There was no shortage of friends swinging by for a quick visit that usually turned long.
I understood that it had become too much house for my grandparents, but I missed it. I just couldn’t bring myself to move in there.
As I passed, my attention caught on the barn beyond. All the lights inside were on. It wasn’t like Hal or one of the crew to forget to shut the place down at night. We kept a few on for the horses, but the place was currently glowing and the doors were still open. With a muttered curse, I turned the wheel, guiding my truck toward the barn instead of home. I climbed out of my truck and stomped to the barn, thinking over what I was going to say when I ripped my crew a new one in the morning for forgetting to shut the place down. Only, my boots skidded to a stop right as I entered and spotted the last person I would have expected standing at the stall of that red roan mare.
The horse’s head was hanging over the stall door, her nose twitching as she sniffed around Rae’s waist. The woman in question giggled as she ran her hands over the temperamental horse’s mane.
“I told you to hang on,” she told the horse, her voice coming out soft and sweet. “Man, you’re impatient, aren’t you?”
My heart lodged in my throat when the horse’s head came up, her lips pulled back from her teeth like she was prepared to take a chunk out of the woman standing in front of her. I took a step forward, my mouth dropping open to shout at her to step back before she got hurt, but before I could get a word out, Rae reached into her pocket and pulled out a peppermint, holding it just out of the horse’s reach.
“Ah-ah. We’ve talked about that, haven’t we? No treats for you if you can’t be nice.”
The horse tossed her head, shaking her mane like she understood everything Rae was saying.
“If you want the peppermint, you have to behave. We agreed.” My heart skipped two solid beats before flipping over and taking off like a rocket as she extended her hand slowly, palm up, offering the piece of candy.
The horse took it far more gently than I thought her capable of, causing Rae’s entire face to break out in a beaming grin. “There you are. See? I knew you were a sweetie under all that sass,” she cooed as she stroked lovingly between the animal’s eyes. “You just need someone who gets you, huh?”
To my shock, the horsed extended its head, hooking its chin over her shoulder and pulling her in, as if to hug her. Rae laughed again and wrapped her arms around the horse’s neck.
“There’s my sassy, beautiful girl.” I caught her pull back, her eyes darting to either side of the stall door like she was looking for something. “What’s your name, huh? All the other horses have their names on their stall doors. A pretty girl like you should have an awesome name.”
“She doesn’t have one yet.” My mouth opened and the words came spilling out without any input from my brain.
Rae startled at the unexpected sound of my voice, whipping around and taking two huge steps back from the stall. “I-I’m sorry. I know it’s late. I probably shouldn’t be in here?—”
Damn, I felt like shit, knowing I’d been such a prick that she felt she should apologize for being nice to the animals. I held up a hand to stop her rapid-fire apologies. “It’s fine, really. I was on my way back from dinner with my family, and I saw the lights on. Figured I’d come and see what was up, that’s all.” Her shoulders drooped on a breath of relief. “You can be in here as late or as early as you want, just as long as you close up.”
She bobbed her head vehemently. “Oh, I will. I promise. I just...” She trailed off, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth and twisting her fingers together in front of her. “I’d never been around horses before I came here.” Her gaze returned to me, a shy smile pulling at her lips. “They really are amazing. So big and intimidating. But so sweet underneath all that.”
I moved closer slowly, feeling drawn to her in a way I couldn’t ignore but also not wanting to spook her and send her running off. “That’s a pretty accurate description. Well, for most of them anyway.” I jerked my chin toward the horse she’d just been loving on. “I think you’re the only one on the ranch who would call that one sweet.”
Rae’s face fell, a deep frown marring her beautiful features as she reached out to caress the mare’s cheek. “What? She’s a big old teddy bear! She’s just misunderstood.”
Something about the way she stared at the horse while saying that led me to believe that was something they shared, a connection that bonded them. It would definitely explain why the damn animal seemed more than happy to stand there with her chin resting on Rae’s shoulder.
“Tell that to all the cowboys she’s sent airborne any time they try to ride her.”
She looked back at the animal with a thoughtful hum, absentmindedly stroking her. “Huh. Maybe she’s just not ready?” she offered hesitantly, like she was afraid of sounding ridiculous. But she might be on to something.
“How do you mean?” I asked curiously.
“Well, Hal told me she’s new here, right? You guys only just got her? Maybe she’s not comfortable with her surroundings yet.” It sounded as though she was speaking from experience. And I hadn’t done a damn thing to make her transition here any easier. “Maybe all she needs is a little more time.”
And the right person, I thought to myself. “You know what? I think you may be right.”
Her eyes lit up in a way I’d never seen before, her smile so fucking brilliant it nearly blinded me. “You think so?”
I nodded, something in my chest feeling heavy and warm at the same damn time. I was hit with the realization that I would do anything to keep that smile on her face. “Yeah. She seems to like you, so maybe you should be the one working with her for now.”
Her mouth fell open. “Oh, no. I can’t. I don’t know the first thing about horses.”
“I’ll teach you.” The offer spilled out before I could think it through. There was a huge difference in making things right by helping Rae feel welcome and throwing myself in front of her every chance I got. But I was in it now. There was no going back. “Look, I know I haven’t exactly been the most welcoming?—”
I knew she didn’t mean to let out a snort when my eyes jerked up at the same time she slapped a hand over her mouth and bugged her eyes out. “Oh my God. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to make that noise.”
One corner of my mouth hooked up in a smirk I couldn’t hold back. “Yes, you did.”