Lake started to explain to her what was going on and what the goal was, and Mona listened, riveted.
The cabin door squeaked open, and I saw Ben step out. Since his desk faced the arena, he must’ve seen us get there.
He walked to us casually, looking relaxed and happy. It made me feel so good to see.
“Hey, sleepyheads,” he said when he got to us. He leaned in to give me a kiss and wrapped an arm around my waist.
“Hey.” I smiled at him. “Ben, this is Mona, Mona, this is my boyfriend Ben.”
“Hi,” she said distractedly, staring at the mare crossing the poles that were on the ground.
I tilted my head just so to signal that I wanted more kisses. Ben chuckled and leaned in.
Of course that was when my phone rang.
Chapter 18
Ben
River’s phone went off, and he quickly pulled it out of his pocket and tilted it so I could see who was calling. Then he flicked his gaze toward Mona, and took a step away from me.
“I have to take this call,” he said, then walked off toward the office across the yard.
Quickly scrambling for something to distract Mona before she asked if it was news of her brother—which it was, since the caller was Toby—I blurted out, “So, Mona, have you ever ridden a horse?”
She shook her head, gaze firmly locked on Reina. “No…”
Lake glanced at me with understanding in his eyes. “Would you like to try?” he asked her.
Her jaw dropped as she whipped her head to Lake. “Really?”
“Yeah, after Theo has ridden Reina, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind giving you a lesson.”
Her voice took on a younger, more child-like quality. “But what if it’s scary?”
“It is,” I said immediately. “I’ve been learning too, and it is scary in the beginning. But here, with these guys and these horses, it’s pretty damn safe to be scared.”
She contemplated that for a moment, then nodded seriously. “Okay. Then I would like to try.”
Behind us, I heard River say bye to Toby, and then he got back to us.
“Mona?” he started in a neutral tone. When she looked at him, he crouched to her level. “That was Dr. Cobb calling about Madden.”
I crouched down, too, staying by her side just in case.
“What did he say?” she breathed out the question so, so quietly.
“He’ll be okay,” River replied, then held up a hand. “But it will take time. He’ll need meds for a long time, if not forever.”
I could tell by Mona’s expression that this scared her. It took me a moment to realize it was less about her brother being sick and more about how they would pay for it.
She peered at River and frowned. “What else?”
“You guys can’t live on the streets anymore. He needs somewhere safe and clean to recover.”
The way tears started to immediately run down her cheeks was heartbreaking.
“But they’ll separate us!” She sobbed. “They’ll take him away!”
