“Well,heis in fact ashe,” he gently corrects, petting the appaloosas spotted coat. “And guess what? She’s pregnant.”
“Woah,” Archer says with amazement.
The man smiles. “Wanna know a secret?”
“I do!” Ash shouts, jumping up and down.
I press a hand to his shoulder, keeping him still.
“Calm down, bud,” I murmur, flicking my gaze to the horse. She’s happily munching on hay, not paying us a lick of attention, and I give her a sympathetic look.
Poor thing out here at a petting zoo looking like she’s seconds from popping.
“Tell us,” Archer practically begs, leaning in conspiratorially. “We’re super-dooper good at keeping secrets.”
Super-dooper must be the new word.
“Oh, I’m sure you’re the bestest,” the man agrees. Shiloh giggles, leaning against me. I wrap my arm around her shoulders, committing this moment to memory. “See, our sweet mare here is actually pregnant with twins!”
The boys gasp loudly. My wife and I, however, share matching grimaces. Poor girl, indeed.
“No way!” our kids cry. “We’re twins!”
The guy sucks in a breath and puts a hand to his chest. “Seriously? I had no idea! That’s amazing!”
I chuckle, shaking my head.
The boys are not only identical in all things, including haircut and dimples, they’re also wearing the same outfit: light jeans, red flannels, brown boots and their favorite trapper hats from grandma. It’s not quite cold enough for fuzzy beanies, but they refuse to leave the house without them.
There’s no missing the fact they’re twins, but I appreciate his willingness to play into their fun day.
“She gonna have two babies?” Asher shouts, looking a little green around the edges. “Right now?”
He laughs, shaking his head and pushes to his feet. “No, little guys. Not right now. She’s got a couple more months to go.”
“Poor thing,” Shiloh mumbles as she runs her fingers through the horse's mane. “She deserves to be home resting in bed, not out here dealing with sticky kids.”
Truer words have never been spoken. I kiss the top of her head, not missing the longing in her eyes. I just don’t know if it’s for the horse, her bed, or the horse's pregnancy.
“Actually,” the man says gently, rubbing the horse’s back. “She’s a part of our rescue and rehoming program. All the animals here are.”
“What’s that?” I’m surprised to see so many different breeds of animals in the various large corals around us. “All of them?”
He nods sadly. “Yep. All of them came from less thanidealhomes before being rescued. We bring them around to events like this all over the state, educating people and introducing them to those available for adoption.”
“What happened to her?” Shiloh asks quietly, her body tense.
He palms the back of his neck. “Uh, I don’t think it’s appropriate, with little ears around.”
“We’ve got them,” a deep, familiar voice rumbles.
I blink up in surprise and grin when I spot the small group of people ambling their way toward us.
“Hey guys,” I call, greeting my brother and his family.
It’s been two years since Stephen entered into a polyamorous relationship with his longtime boyfriend, Dominic, and their now husband, Jackson. Stephen and Jack are also with their wife, Addison, but she and Dom don’t have a sexual relationship.
At first, I thought the pairing was a bit strange. Not that I ever judged my brother; he’s the happiest I’ve ever seen him. But knowing how possessive I am over my wife, sharing her isn’t something I could ever stomach. For them, though, it works.
