“I’m here in Texas for the work thing I told you about. There are horses and chickens. I even heard an owl last night.”
He thought the mention of animals would get some response. For the past two years, he would bring Stacey to the zoo on the weekends, and seeing the animals and getting a chance to pet them was the only time he’d managed to eke out any kind of reaction from her. He wouldn’t feel like such a shit person leaving her, even if it was only for three days, if he could get some sign she was okay. His throat closed on him.
“Daddy’s going to ride a horse today. Maybe go in a rowboat. Would you want me to send you pictures?”
Terry clapped her hands. “Don’t you think that would be fun, honey? Seeing your daddy on a horse? Right, Stacey? I know I’d like to see that.”
She blinked and gave one tiny nod and smile, and for Jake, it was all he needed. Sunlight brightened his day, and he could accomplish anything, even spending the day with these incredibly annoying people. As long as his daughter acknowledged him.
He released awhooshof breath. “Okay, baby. Daddy’ll send you tons of pictures. I hope they give me an old horse. Daddy’s never been on one.”
Terry smoothed Stacey’s waves. “Stacey and I are going to see animals today too. We’re going to the zoo, then to the library for children’s story hour.”
“Sounds like a great day. I wish I could be there.” He meant it too. “I love you, baby. I’ll call you tonight at bedtime.”
“Bye.” Terry waved, but it was Stacey he watched. Was it hope and wishful thinking to believe he saw light in her eyes? He couldn’t tell with the glare of the screen.
A few minutes later, as she always did, Terry sent him a text:She’s okay. Really. We had a good night, and she’s been fine this morning. No tears. I think sending her pictures of you on a horse would be wonderful. She was looking at the one of you and her by her bed this morning when I went in to get her.
Followed by:Try to relax and enjoy your time away. You don’t get it often enough. I told her we could make homemade pizza and have a tea party with her dolls. You know I’ll make sure she’s okay.
Every day Jake sent a prayer to whomever for bringing Terry into their lives. When Stacey turned into an active, eighteen-month-old toddler, Brian insisted he needed help taking care of her, claiming he couldn’t work and watch her properly at the same time. It was either a babysitter or full-time childcare, Brian demanded. His job was becoming busier, and he couldn’t hold meetings and take care of her.
Jake had agonized over leaving his child with a stranger—when he and Brian had decided to have a child, Brian working from home had been a big plus, removing the stress of having to rely on babysitters. Now they would be entrusting her to someone they didn’t know. But Terry proved to be a perfect match for them. A retired pediatric nurse, she’d never had children of her own and missed being around “my little ones.” And she was a widow after being married for forty-two years. As alone as he was.
Terry helped steer him through the rough patches of parenthood but couldn’t stave off the loneliness and sense of failure that dogged his steps once Brian left.
Brian walking out on him not only ended their marriage, but irrevocably changed their family dynamic and Jake as a person. He’d lost all trust in most people and no longer believed what they said. Empty words made empty promises.
His heart too, remained sealed off. No one was allowed in to fill the void.
He pushed aside those thoughts before they overwhelmed him, and refocused on the day ahead. Now that the most important task had been taken care of, Jake could deal with the nonsense. He walked down the steps and meandered through the gardens, stopping briefly to take a picture of a hummingbird he caught hovering by a pink-flowered bush. The sun warmed his shoulders, and he slipped on his sunglasses. He heard voices and walked toward them, coming upon three members of his group standing and listening to Shea. The cowboy’s gaze flicked to him for a moment as he said, “So when you go on the trail, keep your hands on the reins and be aware of your surroundings. It’s pretty quiet out here, but we don’t control Mother Nature. You can never tell when somethin’ might jump out from a bush, run across the trail, and scare the dickens out of the horse. These horses have been with us for years. They’re gentled and love people. Ain’t never thrown a person.”
“Yet.” Elspeth McQueen, the obnoxious head of their legal department pursed her thin lips. “You can’t guarantee it.”
“Of course not, ma’am. There’s no guarantee for anythin’ in life. That’s why myself, along with Craig and Johnny, will be out on the trail with you every step of the way, makin’ sure of your safety.”
Poor Shea. At Precision, Jake had staff who dealt with difficult people, only bringing the big problems to his attention when they couldn’t be resolved. He couldn’t imagine being so hands-on and dealing with people like this every day.
“If there are no other questions, those who want to go on the trail, come with me.”
Even though Jake had never been on a horse, he’d promised Stacey a picture of him on one, so he joined the other members of his group and followed them to a fenced-in area by a barn. Five horses waited, along with the two cowboys from breakfast.
Shea chose to help Elspeth first, while the other two cowboys each led a horse to Clarke and to Dick Sterling, the Director of International Investments. Sterling, a lean man with cold, gray eyes and an arrogant tilt to his lips, believed he was smarter than most, and Jake disliked him immensely.
The horses loomed huge, and Jake eyed them nervously, especially the large reddish-brown horse with a white blaze down his face. Jake hung back while Shea and the two other cowboys helped the rest of the group get comfortable in the saddle until he was the last one left.
Never one to be nervous, he was surprised to feel his heart pounding as Shea walked over to him with a cautious smile. Jake couldn’t be certain if he was more uneasy about getting up on a horse or about being that close to the gorgeous cowboy again.
Chapter Five
Was it stupid that his heart beat a little faster when he spied Jake? Shea hadn’t expected him to try horseback riding the day after pounding down so much whiskey, but there he was in front of him, looking adorably scared.
Shea still hadn’t figured out what that kiss was all about, and it had kept him up half the night as he went over it in every delicious detail.
“Ready to get on your horse?” He pointed at Jake’s sneakers and smiled. “Just a hint for next time—you might wanna wear a pair of these.” He lifted his foot to show his boots. “Sneakers tend to slip outta the stirrups.”
Jake’s eyes widened. “Am I going to fall off? I’ve never been on a horse before.”
