“Yeah. I made a pot before I came down. Go to the house and get yourself a cup. You might as well take your suitcase withyou. You’re in the first room on the left down the hallway by the kitchen. I’ll clean up the bathroom after I shower, and then it’s all yours. I’ll get on the road in about two hours. All that’ll be left to do is get ’em up this evening to put ’em to bed.”
Bethany tilted her head. “You don’t want me to ride any of ’em? My outfit in Roanoke is very much like yours. I love working with horses and never mind a nice ride.”
I hadn’t thought about exercising the horses. The previous night, I’d looked up her website to see she had some horses for sale, but I hadn’t thought much beyond finding someone to feed, water, and look after Mom.
“Who’s watching your place?”
She shifted her eyes to glance out the barn door toward her truck and exhaled. “My wife.”
I glanced in that direction, noticing a progress Pride flag sticker on the bumper next to lesbian Pride sticker, and I smiled, stepping forward and extending my hand to shake. “It’s nice to meet a member of the tribe.”
Bethany cracked up, and I laughed with her. I could see her worry fade before my eyes. It was a relief to me as well. Mom had a habit of talking about what a son of a bitch she believed the current president to be and how Congress wasn’t much better, taking away rights from women, minorities, and the LGBTQIA+ community without so much as a blink. At least Bethany wouldn’t be offended or leave when Mom got on a roll.
I went on to show her the book where I kept track of the exercise schedule, then I drew her a map of where the property ended by the creek. “Mom’s old saddle is in the tack room, which should work for you. The only horse that’s stubborn with the reins is that dun gelding. I use a full-cheek snaffle bit with him since I just started working with him about two weeks ago. He’s really the most important one to exercise. I just needed totrain him to carry a rider. He’ll be trained in the finer points of equestrian riding by another trainer.”
Bethany nodded. “I board five jumpers, three dressage, and two dancers, so I’m familiar with the workouts. Any horses besides that little colt you want me to leave alone? A week won’t put them too far behind.”
I grinned. The woman knew her business. “Nope. Oh— Miss Trixie. I only use her to ride the fences once a week. She and I enjoy a nice ride in the evenings for old time’s sake.
“Mom broke her wrist when she fell off Trixie after my father passed. She just finished physical therapy, but maybe you can talk her into keeping up with her exercises? I’ve had no luck.”
Bethany chuckled. “I’m used to dealing with stubborn parents too. I’ll clean out the barn, Jeri. You go ahead and get yourself ready to go. I’ll be right back.”
She headed toward the house, and I started opening the stall doors to let the horses out to the pasture. If Bethany was going to clean the stalls, I wasn’t going to fight her. I went to the feed room and grabbed bags of bedding for Bethany to spread once the manure was removed.
I made a quick note on the whiteboard in the tack room about a few things I might have missed telling her, and then I wrote my cell phone number, with acall me anytimenote at the bottom.
I prayed I wasn’t doing the wrong thing by leaving her in charge, but something in my gut told me I needed to do this. Since I’d been medically discharged, I’d felt pretty useless. Maybe this was a way I could restore my confidence in my ability to do something worthwhile that didn’t depend on how many feet I had, or what kind they were?
“I’m here to see...” I pulled out my phone again, unable to remember the name Lawry had given me to ask for at the concierge desk of Bethesda Towers, “Alan Wallis.” I assumed it was an alias because Lawry had said the man’s name was Sean Fitzpatrick.
The young lady behind the desk tapped something into her computer before glancing up. “And your name?”
As far as I knew, I didn’t need an alias. “Jericho Hess.” I pulled my wallet from my back pocket and handed her my driver’s license.
“Current address?” She pointed to my ID.
I chuckled. “Since the day I came home from the hospital.” I realized I was indoors and had left my cowboy hat on, which was rude. Gayle Hess would pop me on the back of the head if she were with me.
Reaching up, I took it off and held it against my thigh as I ran my other hand through my hair, which was about two months overdue for a trim. I could put it in a ponytail if I wanted, but Mom would have a fit. I oughta do it just to fuck with her.
The woman handed over my drivers’ license and stood from the desk with a set of keys, leading me to the elevator. “Go to the fourth floor. It’s unit four-oh-four.”
She slid the key into the lock and the elevator door opened. I stepped inside, and she pressed the button for the fourth floor. “Have a nice day,” she said as she winked before stepping out of the way of the closing doors.
“Yeah, uh, you too.” The doors closed, and I glanced at the shiny doors showing my reflection. I hoped I wasn’t making a mistake by signing up for this job.
When the elevator stopped on the fourth floor, I stepped off and walked to the right, stopping at unit four-oh-four. I rang the bell and waited, hoping I wasn’t too early. I’d said eight, but I’d gotten on the road much earlier than planned, and with it being a Sunday, there wasn’t much traffic. It was seven fifteen, which made me wonder if I should have stopped for breakfast.
“Who’s there?” The voice was soft from the other side of the door.
I pulled out my license and held it up, facing the peep hole. “Jericho Hess, Mr. Fitz—uh, Wallis.” There was a muffled laugh before the door opened.
There stood a slender man with red hair. He came up to my shoulders and was beautiful, with fair skin and freckles over his nose and cheeks. He caught me by surprise.
I’d always been attracted to redheads, especially fiery ones. I was betting Sean Fitzpatrick was lightning in a bottle with those sparkling leaf-green eyes.
“Come in, Mr. Hess.” He extended his hand in an inviting manner, making me smile.
