Page 36 of Fall or Nothing

Ash showed Carter how to do the first feeding, Carter never having done it before. I snapped photos of him and his adorable face as if he were the proud father as the foal took to him.

All gangly legs and too-big eyes, the little guy already showed spunk. Once the emergency vet finally arrived, we moved the foal into the adjoining stall. Ro and Eli crowded at the stall door, eyes huge, arms extended, itching to give the foal some pets.

“Is the baby horse okay?” Eli asked, barely above a breath.

“He’s going to be just fine, thanks to Carter.” I wiped a tear from my face with the back of my wrist and hoped nobody noticed.

“He needs a name,” Ro decided, as if this were the most obvious order of business in the world.

“He does,” Carter agreed. “Got any ideas?”

Ro and Eli huddled together at the stall door, whispering and arguing, until she finally straightened up with the announcement.

“Flurry!”

“I like that. Flurry,” Carter tested the word out loud. “What do you say, fellow?”

With the emergency vet, we could spy Ash working on Sassy a while longer. He eventually eased back on his heels, exhaling hard enough that I felt it through the walls.

“She’s weak, but stable. Dusty can take it from here when he gets here,” the vet instructed. He left, and we all let out a collective breath that Sassy would pull through.

Eventually, the rest of the ranch hands started filing in, drawn by whatever word had traveled the property. Jake first, then Pete and Trig, Eldon and some others, too, all elbowing past each other for a first look at Flurry, who had fallen asleep with his head across Carter’s lap.

“Heard you played midwife to a horse, pretty boy,” Trig teased, a grin breaking wide across his face.

“Damn near gave myself a heart attack doing it.” Carter chortled, and it came out shaky and real in a way none of his other laughs ever had around me.

“Didn’t think you had it in you, honestly.”

“Knock it off, Trig. Carter earned his paycheck today, and then some,” Ash commended him.

Jake let out a low whistle, slipping in beside me. “Quite an afternoon.”

“Yes. It all happened quickly. I’m so glad Carter found Sassy in time.” I grinned despite myself.

“Yep. Carter is quite the cowboy,” he chuckled. I caught a hint of sarcasm, but the two men shared a nod and smiles, so maybe I read into it.

I admired every inch of the man with the foal on his lap, down his body and back up, at the ruined shirt, the blood and birth fluid drying on his arms up to the shoulder, and the absolute wreck of him. And still desire stirred deep inside of me to get to know this cowboy even more.

One by one the guys returned to work, maybe with newfound respect for Carter, unless I was mistaken. I watched all of it from the door, arms wrapped around my middle, totally lying to myself if I didn’t have a thing for the mysterious cowboy, no matter that I had told him I could control my feelings.

He glanced up then and found me across the stall. He motioned with his head for me to join him. I quietly entered and crouched beside him, softly petting Flurry’s dark brown and white coat.

“I’m starving,” he started. “Can I see you tonight? Or are you working?”

“I’m free.” I should have made him work harder for it, but after a day like this… Besides, I’d been thinking way too much about him all week. “What did you have in mind?”

“What do you say I pick up some ingredients at thegrocery store and meet you at your place? I’ll whip us up some dinner.”

“You cook? I’d like that. On one condition—you get cleaned up first.” I wrinkled my nose.

He looked down at himself and his ruined clothes. “Yeah. For sure. Do you think I could buy a new shirt?”

“I can probably help you with that,” I winked. “On one condition. You let me pick the shirt this time.”

TWELVE

Simmered