The next morning dawned cold and frosty, but the snow flurries had stopped. After obsessing over everything he did wrong last night, Jayson vowed to turn over a new leaf. Starting today, he was going to push himself out of his comfort zone and be more social. He planned to spend the morning with Emma then go over and apologize to Sabrina. He’d behaved like a cretin and he wanted to make it up to her. Starting with dinner, if she’d accept.
Jayson microwaved a breakfast sandwich and drank two cups of coffee as he waited for Emma to arrive. Saturday mornings were their time together. Kind of a standing date when they exercised the horses on the trails out back. He’d built a large, heated barn, and his property had a lot of woods and extensive trails for riding.
He was just finishing the breakfast dishes when he heard the front door open. “Hey, Dad!” Emma called from the foyer, stomping the snow off her boots.
“Hi, honey!” He wiped his hands on a dish towel as she strolled in, her face flushed from the cold. She kissed his cheek and poured herself a cup of coffee, adding a spoonful of sugar.
“I need some caffeine before we hit the trails,” she announced, dropping down in a chair at the table. “My fancy machine broke. It’s only three years old and your coffee maker is still kicking twenty years later. How is that possible?”
Jayson grinned. “Because Mr. Coffee is of the highest manufacturing quality.”
She snorted at his cheesy defense of the old-school appliance then took a long sip. His fondness for simpler things wasn’t anything new, and he yearned for the uncomplicated days before technology took over everyone’s lives. He’d much prefer spending the day outside than glued to his phone, scrolling aimlessly.
At least, he used to be that guy. At some point, his ass became reluctant to leave his recliner.
“You’ll always be stuck in the eighties.” Her teasing tone made him grin.
“That’s because the eighties rule. The music and movies from then are still my favorites.”
She sighed, lips twitching. “I know.”
“Although, to be fair, I think Mr. Coffee is from the seventies.”
“Oh, my God, you’re ancient.”
They laughed, then settled into an easy silence. Jayson may not be perfect—and he’d certainly made a lot of mistakes in his life—but when it came to Emma, he’d managed to create the loveliest, kindest and most beautiful creature, inside and out. Considering she also had Tara’s genes, it was nothing short of a miracle.
“I just saw your new neighbor.” Emma set her mug down, eyeing him closely. “She’s hot.”
That perked him right up. “Sabrina.”
Emma arched a delicate brow. “You’ve met?” A Cheshire cat smile curved her lips. “And?” she pressed.
He leaned a hip against the kitchen counter and glanced out the window toward his neighbor’s house. “She is pretty hot,” he agreed.
Emma squealed. “Are you going to make a move? I think you should ask her out.”
For the longest time, they didn’t talk about his dating life. They’d been perfectly happy, just the two of them, and he never wanted Emma to feel threatened or resentful of him spending time with another woman. But after moving out, Emma had started dropping hints that she wanted him to get back out there. “You’d be okay with that?” He wanted Emma’s full approval.
“Of course!” Her green eyes turned serious. They may have started off blue, but they’d ended up being a pretty sage green. “I want you to find someone, Dad. Someone truly wonderful.”
“I’d like that, too,” he said in a soft voice.
If he were being honest, a part of him had been reluctant to start dating again because he didn’t want to get burned by another bad relationship. So he’d focused all of his attention on his daughter.
But now that he was alone, perhaps it was finally time he found his happiness. Hell, everyone else around him was falling in love, so maybe it was finally his turn.
They talked about everything and nothing while Emma finished her coffee, but they both avoided bringing up the possibility of her moving to New York. Neither wanted to put a damper on their time together. After rinsing her mug and putting it in the dishwasher, they bundled up and went out to the barn, saddling up Magnus and Daisy to hit the trails.
Spending quality time with Emma always made him happy. And even when their rides were quiet, each of them lost inwhatever thoughts occupied their minds, being together was good for his soul.
Her long, brown hair was gathered in a high ponytail and swished back and forth as they trotted single file down a narrow path, the snow crunching beneath the horses’ hooves. Eventually, they reined the horses in and slowed down. Side by side now, the horses kept a leisurely pace, winding through the back of Jayson’s property beneath the snow-dusted branches as father and daughter talked.
At some point, they each turned inward, and Jayson remembered how Emma’s love for horses started when she was ten. When she asked for one, he bought her two. Not because he wanted to spoil her, but because then they could do all the things together—ride, brush, feed, muck the stalls. Over the years, they’d spent endless hours bonding while caring for Magnus and Daisy. It filled his heart with so much joy. When the day came when she didn’t come for their Saturday morning ride, when she’d be too busy for her old man, he wasn’t sure how he’d handle it.
Most likely, not well.
They rode for an hour or so, then they made their way back to the barn, took care of the horses and returned to the house.
