“Come on, baby, we are almost there.” I attempted to soothe her.
“Iris!”
“Here!” I yelled, getting more worried when Snow didn’t move.
“Come on, Snow,” I rubbed her mane. “We got this.”
She started to trot as a figure came towards us.
“Iris!” Nash looked relieved as he saw us.
He came straight to me, pulling me close, kissing my forehead through his bandana and then wrapping one over my nose and face. His hands roamed over my arms as if he were checking me for injuries.
“You shouldn’t be out here by yourself,” he said, grabbing the horse I was able to grab. “Come on.”
Nash stayed in front of us, taking the brunt of the wind as we made our way back to the barn. Theo, Colt and Forest were at the barn when we arrived. I dismounted inside the barn, and I was not ready for the hug that enveloped me.
“Iris, never do that to me again,” Theo said, crushing me. “I told you not to go.”
“I—” My throat tightened. “I’m sorry. I thought it would be easy.”
“I don’t know why I called you. I panicked,” he said, pulling away.
“I love you that you called me,” I said. “That’s what we are here for, right? Plus, these were Mrs. Robbins’ horses.”
“I almost regret boarding them for her,” Theo mumbled, as he tapped his fingers.
“Thanks for saving our asses,” Colt said, hugging me too.
“Good job, Izz.” Forest shook my hair making dirt fly everywhere.
I swatted his hand away.
“There are no fires in the vicinity, right?” I asked, removing Snow White’s saddle.
“Not that we are aware of, but we weren’t supposed to get this wind until tonight. I got the alert as the wind was ramping up,” Colt said, moving some of the goats. “We thought we had more time or we would have had everyone in the barn and not outside.”
I nodded, looking around for Nash, seeing him get Mrs. Robbins' horses calmed and into their stalls. The dark beauty he was giving love to was nuzzling him as he gave her some treats. Leading Snow White to her stall, I made sure it was clean before brushing her, giving her my thanks and leaving her with a few apple slices and carrots.
“Nash,” I said, peeking into the stall he was in.
“Hmmm,” he hummed, not looking at me.
“Thank you,” I said, walking in.
“Of course.” He still didn’t look at me.
I walked to the other side of the horse, hoping he would finally look my way. He kept his head down, avoiding my gaze. I put my hand on his, squeezing it in thanks again.
“You didn’t have to come for me, but thank you,” I said, putting more emotion behind my words.
“As long as I’m here, I’ll always come for you, Iris,” he said, finally looking up at me.
His baby blues were serious, emoting so much that it caught me off guard.
“Scared the shit out of me,” he said, squeezing my hand. “But I admire you working as hard as the rest of us.”
My cheeks grew hot with embarrassment. “Thanks, Nash. I’m not just some soft woman you might think I am.”
