Ellie seemed almost eager to show her baby off, and Kyra was happy to oblige. She scratched Ellie on the nose and took a moment to pet Stormy, who was not even a little afraid of her. She had expected it to be shy, but the little colt took to her right away. “What a beautiful baby you have there, mama,” she said to Ellie. “Do you mind if I call him Stormy?”
“She approves,” Adam said.
Kyra whirled around to see him standing behind her. She hadn’t known he was there. “How can you tell?”
“I just know.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “Elie was my first boarder, so we know each other pretty well.”
Adam made his way into the stall and crouched down beside the colt. He was so gentle and reassuring with the animal. Kyra couldn’t help thinking that he would make a fantastic father, despite what he told himself. But she didn’t dare say that to him.
When he was finished petting the colt, Adam stood. “I wanted to show you something,” he said. “Are you finished here?”
“Just about.” Kyra got up and finished feeding the rest of the horses. She’d gotten distracted by the baby. “Do we really get to keep him?” she said, giving the last horse in the row its bucket of feed.
“Of course,” he assured her. “I wouldn’t lie to you about that. The owner is on a tight budget. They can’t afford to board another horse here. So they asked if I wanted to keep the colt. I doubt they’ll take it back now that he’s born.”
Kyra brushed her jeans off and joined him outside the stalls. “That’s good because I’d hate to get attached and then have to say goodbye.”
“Even if they did choose to keep the colt as theirs, they’d likely board it with me. So, no need to worry either way.” He walked with her out of the barn and started toward the main house. “They’re not fickle people, though,” he said. “The chance they’ll change their mind on this is slim.”
They chatted casually on their way back to the main house. Adam seemed a little more nervous than usual. Kyra could tell because he was talking more. His natural state was quiet, so when he started getting chattier, she knew there was somethingon his mind. “So, what are you going to show me?” she asked, assuming the answer was related to his sudden talkativeness.
“It’s nothing, really.” He shrugged. “Something I’ve been working on that I thought you might like.”
When they got to the main house, instead of heading inside, Adam took Kyra by the arm and led her to his detached garage. He flipped a switch and the fluorescent lights flickered to life, illuminating the tool-lined walls and what looked like a makeshift woodshop.
“It’s over here,” he said, pulling her around one of his vehicles to see what was sitting in front of it.
Kyra could hardly believe her eyes. Sitting in front of the truck was an unfinished project. That wasn’t the shocking part, though. The shocking part was what the project appeared to be. “Is that a…” She couldn’t finish despite the answer being essentially undeniable. She was worried her heart was daring to hope again and that she’d humiliate herself by letting that hope show. What if she was wrong, after all?
But Adam cemented her suspicions with six little words. “It’s a crib. For the baby.”
She took a step toward the project, barely able to believe it. “You’re… making this?”
“Well, yeah. I thought it might be a nice thing to have when the baby’s born.” He glanced over at her and seemed concerned by her reaction. “Do you not like it?”
She could barely contain her tears of joy. “I love it! Are you kidding? This is the best gift ever.” Cautiously, she approachedthe crib, running her fingers along the smoothly carved, though unfinished, wooden rails. “It’s beautiful.”
His worried expression vanished and was replaced by a wide smile. “I thought you might like it. I plan to paint a horse on the headboard and add some details in relief, but I wanted to ask if you have any color preferences.”
“Oh, I don’t know,” she said, still running her hands along the handmade crib. It really was beautiful, like something you would find in an antique shop. There would be no cheap plastic cribs for her baby. Their father would see to that. She was elated but afraid to show too much of it. She didn’t want him to have to bring her back down to earth. “Something gender neutral would be good since we don’t know if it’s going to be a boy or a girl.”
“How about daffodil yellow?” he asked. “Like your apartment. With a little green trim that matches the barn. I assume you chose those colors because you like them.”
“I love that idea,” she said, and she meant it. She had to restrain herself from throwing her arms around his neck and giving him the tightest hug she’d ever given anyone. “This makes me so happy.” Suddenly, she knew exactly what to say to him — something that wouldn’t assume his involvement but that let him know how much it meant to her that he was willing to offer anything at all. “I can imagine telling my baby that their father made this crib for them. No matter what happens between us, they’ll know they were loved by both parents.”
Adam’s face lit up at that, and she knew for sure she had found the right words to thank him. The look on his face was more than pleased. It was proud, too, and that was something Kyra thought he deserved to feel. No matter how much he may have feared it, he was teaching himself how to be a father.
CHAPTER 12
KYRA
One morning, Kyra woke to the sound of hammering coming from a short distance away. She hadn’t been at all disturbed by the construction of the crib so far, so she had to assume Adam had moved the project out of the garage. Maybe he was doing some finishing work and wanted a better-ventilated area, she thought. But there was so much hammering, she couldn’t quite make herself believe it. Overcome with curiosity, she threw her clothes on and went outside before she’d even eaten breakfast.
The weather that morning had grown a bit cooler, but not so bad that she needed a winter coat. A windbreaker did the trick just fine. It felt like autumn now, which had always been her favorite season anyway.
She followed the sound of hammering around the side of the main house until she found Adam, kneeling before a structure she couldn’t begin to make sense of, hammering together a frame of some kind. It was definitely not the crib.
“What are you doing?” she asked him.
