“Ruth, how are your hands? I trust the medication helped?”
“Yes, my hands do feel better.” She lifted her hands to show him.
“How is Muse?” she inquired as she helped Matthew with his food.
“She’s doing great!” Jimmy reported. “She had a colt, and it looks like he may have coloring similar to hers. He’s a real beauty.”
“You know, Ruth,” Daniel smiled, “I was thinking you might like to choose a name for our new colt.” His smile reached his eyes which shone with pride.
There it was again—her name on his lips, which made her heart beat faster. She hoped she always felt that way every time he said it. The sound of her name on Daniel’s lips simply brought her joy.
“I would love that, Daniel, thank you,” she said with delight.
“Well then,” Jimmy jumped in. “Here are some ideas. It should be a noble name and one of strength—”
“King!” Ruth exclaimed without hesitation. “That was the name of my father’s horse,” she explained.
Daniel smiled his approval, Jimmy looked surprised, and Elizabeth nodded her head. Matthew laughed, responding to the happiness all around the table, and his father smiled indulgently.
“That’s settled, then,” Daniel declared. “Your horse is named King.”
“Myhorse?” Ruth said, blinking a few times in surprise. Had Daniel just gifted her the newborn colt? “Are you giving him to me? I don’t know what to say,” Ruth said, shaking her head, nonplussed.
“I am indeed,” Daniel assured her with a warm smile.
“Thank you—what a beautiful and unexpected gift,” she smiled at Daniel, holding her hands to her cheeks.
Daniel gazed at her and for a long moment, they were the only two people in the room, watching each other with newfound awareness. Ruth was still marveling at the fact he had decided to give her the newest thoroughbred acquisition of the Grant ranch. She knew King was worth no small amount of money, and he had chosen to give the colt to her. It would take some time to take in the meaning of his gesture, and she wondered where things would lead them from here.
They all tucked into their meal, and Ruth noticed that whenever Matthew was around, Daniel abstained from whiskey and drank water or coffee.
“Daniel,” she said began. “I’m taking Matthew to the pond tomorrow and wonder if you’d like to join us. It would be a perfect way to spend time with him.” She stopped, worrying that he would find the idea silly or a waste of his time.
Daniel paused, looking at her thoughtfully. “Yes, I like that idea,” his face lit up with a grin. “Come to think of it, I haven’t spent enough time with Matthew lately and I would like that very much.”
At the sound of his name, Matthew began a singsong of syllables to the delight of everyone at the table.
Soon they joined Matthew’s impromptu chatter, and Ruth was thrilled to see Daniel and his son interacting so freely together. She looked around the table, expecting Daniel to be laughing along with Jimmy and Elizabeth. Instead, she saw him watching her with gratitude, an unusual sheen to his eyes.
***
Matthew was dressed in a warm smock the following day as Ruth noticed the mountains in the distance occasionally blurred by scudding gray clouds. The cool breeze suggested their trip to the pond might be a short one. Perhaps when they returned, she’d ask Jimmy to take her to the barn to see Muse and her new colt.
“Mornin’ Ruth,” Jimmy waved from the barn. “Would you like to see King, your new colt?”
Ruth glanced around and didn’t see Daniel anywhere. “Yes, please,” she answered excitedly, looking over at Matthew who had found Coyte lying by the barn door. Matthew’s head lay on top of the dog and he was patting her gently. As long as he was within her sight, it shouldn’t be a problem to have a quick peek at the colt.
Ruth followed Jimmy inside and found the beautiful mare cuddled next to King. The colt was identical to his mother, and he took Ruth’s breath away. Muse stood, nudged her colt to his feet, where he took several tentative wobbly steps.
“If the weather holds,” Jimmy said, rubbing the back of his neck, “I’ll let them out for some exercise and fresh air.”
“Thanks, Jimmy, I—” Ruth stopped as Matthew shrieked suddenly and began to wail.
She started and raced out of the barn and found Matthew down on the ground where Coyte had been rest. She had moved further down, and lay on the grass, her back resting against the barn.
Ruth ran to Matthew, whose bleeding knee appeared to have been scraped after tripping on gravel. She scooped him up and ran back to the barn where she found the medical case Daniel kept there.
Ruth dug into its contents and found an antiseptic sponge, adhesive rubber plaster, gauze, and a small bandage. She stopped the bleeding quickly and within a few minutes, Matthew’s knee was covered with aa clean square bandage. His wails had faded to sniffles and he watched, fascinated, as Ruth nursed his skinned knee.
