home?”
Joshua looked at her, surprised. “You’d be okay with that?”
Nora laughed. “Well, what the good goddamn hell does that matter? It’s your life, nobody else’s. But in point of fact, yes, I’d be okay with it. Shit on a soap, Joshua. I ain’t that old and narrow-minded. I did live a spell in Minneapolis, you know.”
“Then you’re the only one.” Joshua looked into Jasmine’s soft brown eyes and petted her nose, just to feel something good under his hands. He hesitated. “I… I got the horses and the kids to think about. If folks knew….”
Nora harrumphed. “Well, pardon me, but that load stinks worse than half the patties in your pasture. Joshua, your daddy, at the age of fifty-five, met a woman he was crazy about, and two months later he turned the ranch over to you and moved to Florida.”
Joshua frowned. He didn’t see the connection.
“Do you think it was easy for him to leave everything he’d ever known? Give up this place, and bein’ close to you? He did it because when you love someone, really and truly, that becomes the most important thing. So important that you just—you work out the rest, no matter what.”
Joshua’s scowl deepened. God, he hated change. Why couldn’t things just stay the way they were? Only he reckoned things had never been the way they oughta be—him and Ben, together, here on this ranch.
And for a moment, Nora’s blunt words gave him a spark of hope, like maybe it could be that simple. Then he remembered that Ben didn’t want to come back to Clyde’s Corner anyhow. He’d made that clear. Joshua started to open his mouth to tell Nora so, when he was interrupted.
“Joshua?” came a tiny voice.
“What, Lily girl?”
“Can I get down now and maybe go say hi to Valfront?”
Joshua took a deep breath, brought back to what he owed this little girl. Namely, fun , which he’d done a piss poor job of providing thus far. He felt terrible.
He handed Jasmine’s reins to Nora. “Tell you what, I’ll go bring him out here to say hi.”
Joshua went into the stables and saddled Valmont. He was downright huge for a horse, but Joshua had been working with him for nearly two months now, and he’d calmed down a lot. Whereas before he might have saddled nice as you please, then suddenly bucked a rider off, or taken off at a gallop, trying to drag someone to their death, there was no sign of that in him now. Joshua’s patience had calmed the horse, and the bond they’d formed was mutual—Joshua was good to Valmont, so Valmont wanted to please Joshua.
Joshua clicked his mouth and led Valmont out to the riding arena. He really was a spectacular animal, pure white, with blue eyes and a little bit of gold in his mane. Joshua led him over to Lily, who was still seated on Jasmine’s back.
With wonder, Lily reached out her hand, and Valmont nudged his nose under it, nickering at her softly.
“I don’ think he likes me,” Lily said, her constant refrain for these past weeks.
“He likes ya,” Joshua said. “He told me so when he nickered just now. Wanna ride ’im with me?”
Lily was torn. She looked at Valmont with hopeless love, but her lip trembled. Joshua got up onto Valmont’s back and held out his arms. “Come on.”
Lily hesitated just a moment, then reached up. Nora helped swing the little girl from Jasmine’s back onto the saddle in front of Joshua, where she snuggled in her butt and sat up straight, tense with excitement.
“Ready?” Joshua asked.
Lily nodded fervently.
Joshua squeezed his legs a tad, and Valmont took off at a slow pace. Joshua could feel the excitement radiating off Lily in waves as they paced the magnificent horse around the arena.
She turned her head to look up at Joshua, and her face was glowing. She wore the biggest grin he’d ever seen, like she’d just been made prom princess and rodeo queen all rolled into one.
“He likes me!” Lily said joyfully.
Joshua smiled down at her, feeling a ray of sunshine
Joshua looked at her, surprised. “You’d be okay with that?”
Nora laughed. “Well, what the good goddamn hell does that matter? It’s your life, nobody else’s. But in point of fact, yes, I’d be okay with it. Shit on a soap, Joshua. I ain’t that old and narrow-minded. I did live a spell in Minneapolis, you know.”
“Then you’re the only one.” Joshua looked into Jasmine’s soft brown eyes and petted her nose, just to feel something good under his hands. He hesitated. “I… I got the horses and the kids to think about. If folks knew….”
Nora harrumphed. “Well, pardon me, but that load stinks worse than half the patties in your pasture. Joshua, your daddy, at the age of fifty-five, met a woman he was crazy about, and two months later he turned the ranch over to you and moved to Florida.”
Joshua frowned. He didn’t see the connection.
“Do you think it was easy for him to leave everything he’d ever known? Give up this place, and bein’ close to you? He did it because when you love someone, really and truly, that becomes the most important thing. So important that you just—you work out the rest, no matter what.”
Joshua’s scowl deepened. God, he hated change. Why couldn’t things just stay the way they were? Only he reckoned things had never been the way they oughta be—him and Ben, together, here on this ranch.
And for a moment, Nora’s blunt words gave him a spark of hope, like maybe it could be that simple. Then he remembered that Ben didn’t want to come back to Clyde’s Corner anyhow. He’d made that clear. Joshua started to open his mouth to tell Nora so, when he was interrupted.
“Joshua?” came a tiny voice.
“What, Lily girl?”
“Can I get down now and maybe go say hi to Valfront?”
Joshua took a deep breath, brought back to what he owed this little girl. Namely, fun , which he’d done a piss poor job of providing thus far. He felt terrible.
He handed Jasmine’s reins to Nora. “Tell you what, I’ll go bring him out here to say hi.”
Joshua went into the stables and saddled Valmont. He was downright huge for a horse, but Joshua had been working with him for nearly two months now, and he’d calmed down a lot. Whereas before he might have saddled nice as you please, then suddenly bucked a rider off, or taken off at a gallop, trying to drag someone to their death, there was no sign of that in him now. Joshua’s patience had calmed the horse, and the bond they’d formed was mutual—Joshua was good to Valmont, so Valmont wanted to please Joshua.
Joshua clicked his mouth and led Valmont out to the riding arena. He really was a spectacular animal, pure white, with blue eyes and a little bit of gold in his mane. Joshua led him over to Lily, who was still seated on Jasmine’s back.
With wonder, Lily reached out her hand, and Valmont nudged his nose under it, nickering at her softly.
“I don’ think he likes me,” Lily said, her constant refrain for these past weeks.
“He likes ya,” Joshua said. “He told me so when he nickered just now. Wanna ride ’im with me?”
Lily was torn. She looked at Valmont with hopeless love, but her lip trembled. Joshua got up onto Valmont’s back and held out his arms. “Come on.”
Lily hesitated just a moment, then reached up. Nora helped swing the little girl from Jasmine’s back onto the saddle in front of Joshua, where she snuggled in her butt and sat up straight, tense with excitement.
“Ready?” Joshua asked.
Lily nodded fervently.
Joshua squeezed his legs a tad, and Valmont took off at a slow pace. Joshua could feel the excitement radiating off Lily in waves as they paced the magnificent horse around the arena.
She turned her head to look up at Joshua, and her face was glowing. She wore the biggest grin he’d ever seen, like she’d just been made prom princess and rodeo queen all rolled into one.
“He likes me!” Lily said joyfully.
Joshua smiled down at her, feeling a ray of sunshine
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