Julian reached out from behind his mother and shoved his sister, sending her staggering.
“It was an accident,” Celine explained, wearing a compassionate expression. “I should have checked first. I didn’t realize he’d made a cake for my birthday.”
She leaned down and kissed his head.
He immediately swiped his hand over the spot, wiping it off.
Ellie was still staring at me, as if daring me to make some kind of comment.
Knowing better, I walked over to the oven. As I got close and assessed the mess, that irritation was back and growing.
“It’s fine,” I said a little too sharply. “I’ll deal with it.”
“We don’t need help,” Ellie snapped.
Teeth gritted, I surveyed the girl. She was so young, but she had an attitude that only came from carrying trauma around.
Her mother elbowed her. “Thanks, but we’re okay.”
“So about those horses,” Maggie added.
“Dat’s a horse.” Julian pointed behind me to Wayne,who sat patiently, puffing his doggie chest out like he appreciated the sentiment.
I choked out a laugh. “That isn’t a horse, bud. It’s my dog.”
His little eyes widened and he shrunk a little farther behind his mom.
“It’s okay,” I added. “He’s very gentle.”
“He looks like a horse.”
I snapped, and Wayne immediately padded over and sat in front of Julian, his eyes bright and his tail wagging.
“If you hold your hand out like this, he can smell you.” I showed him. “That’s how he gets to know people.”
The boy did as I said, letting Wayne sniff him, only pulling back once before gaining confidence and sticking his hand out farther.
“You can pet him.”
He looked up at his mom, his teeth sunken into his lip, searching for reassurance.
When she nodded and gave him an encouraging smile, he tentatively patted the top of Wayne’s head.
Wayne, good boy that he was, stayed still, as if he could sense Julian’s apprehension.
The little boy patted his head a few more times, then turned and smiled at his mother.
And if I wasn’t mistaken, she let out a breath of relief.
“So do you have horses?” Maggie asked. The girl was persistent. “What about goats?”
“He only has tractors,” Julian told her. “Giant ones.”
“Gross,” Maggie said.
“I saw apple trees,” Celine said encouragingly.
Ellie grumbled. “What kind of farm doesn’t have horses?”
