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Who had harmed that horse? Since Meadow Gracey purchased the mare, Demi had been seeing to its care. She’d been on the Gracey Ranch enough to know what kind of owners they were, and they would never, ever be so careless with an animal, no matter what dollar figure it fetched at auction.
Someone attacked that horse.
Anyone who hurt animals deserved… Well, she kept her opinions on that topic to herself, but most people would agree with her.
Nausea hit her. Between the stress of caring for a horse that could still have a career-ending injury and coming face-to-face with the man responsible for the positive pregnancy test, Demi had been feeling a little lightheaded.
She rolled down the window and pulled in a deep breath of the fresh mountain air.
The cooler air grounded her. She couldn’t risk throwing up while on the job, let alone working around big animals. One false move could spell disaster for her, for the owner or the animal.
When she rounded the last bend in the road before the Springvale Ranch, she spotted movement on the yellow line. Braking, she picked out the whitetail deer in the middle of crossing the road.
In two bounds, it was safely in the brush on the roadside. The next instant, its natural coloring camouflaged it from sight.
Demi checked that it didn’t have a friend on its heels, ready to smash into her car grill, before she continued on.
As if her mind couldn’t latch on to one thing, the image of Ledger’s face when he grabbed her door and prevented her from closing it invaded her memory.
During the weeks since their encounter, she had replayed each moment again and again. Usually when it came to memories, fish got bigger and trophy deer grew more antler points. She had believed the same happened with her memories of Ledger.
Boy, was she mistaken. He was just as big as she remembered.
All over.
He was also just as good-looking.
Turning onto the lane that led to the Springvale Ranch, she took in the property. It was situated on a beautiful spot with big green pastures and a backdrop of mountains and sky. But it had become more rundown since she’d been here last.
She parked in front of the barn and two old hound dogs came out to greet her, barking but with tails wagging. The owner followed behind, moving just as slowly as his old dogs thanks to his rheumatism.
She approached the group with some pats for the dogs and a smile for Mr. Vale.
“How are things looking?”
He compressed his lips. “Not too good. It’s Maple.”
Oh no. The maple syrup-colored horse was his favorite and in advanced years like the owner and his hounds.
“Let’s have a look.” She grabbed her medical kit and walked into the barn.
The horse was lying on its side—never a good sign. Plenty of hay and water were within reach, so she knew Mr. Vale was trying to encourage the horse to get up.
Sinking to her knees next to the horse, she examined it. After a minute, Demi nodded. “It isn’t colic—it’s choke. I’ll need a bucket of water.”
“Sure thing.” He moved off as fast as he could go on painful knees.
She shook her head and got her tubing ready to place down the horse’s throat and rinse the clog down into its stomach. With such an old horse, it still might be a bit touch-and-go, but she felt there was a good outlook for Maple.
When Mr. Vale returned with a bucket of water, she couldn’t bear to watch him struggle with the heavy burden and hurried to take the bucket from him.
“It looks like you could use more help around here.” She grasped the handle.
The fact that he allowed her to take it without putting up a fight spoke volumes about how tired he was. Ranch work took a lot of energy and stamina. Mr. Vale seemed to be lacking both.
“Been trying to find someone to help around here, but the place isn’t big enough to support more. My neighbor trades work with me. You could say he scratches my back and I scratch his.”
“A good way to get it done.” She set up next to the horse and began feeding the tube down its throat. It didn’t like it one bit and tried to roll to its feet.
