Page 76 of Just Say When

But I didn’t care. Even if both competitors scored higher than Essie and Pirate, that would put them in third place. That ride deserved to be celebrated, no matter how points shook out in the end.

Apparently, James agreed, because I found Essie and James wrapped in a hug, swaying side to side as they laughed giddily.

“Brax!” Essie pulled free of James and rushed into my open arms.

I picked her up, lifting her off her toes, and then set her back down again. “Congratulations, hellion,” I murmured against her hair. “That was a hell of a ride.”

“Right? Pirate was amazing!” Her eyes sparkled with joy and adrenaline.

“Youwere amazing,” I said, rubbing a bit of dust from her cheekbone with my thumb.

She gave me an impish look beneath her lashes. “I was, wasn’t I? And you know, even if we take third, that’s still a hefty chunk of cash for Mom to buy Sweetie Pie. Plus, Pirate is still young. He’s only going to get better from here. He’s going to be a brilliant sire, I just know it.”

I shouldn’t have been surprised that Essie was thinking about how her ride could benefit her mom and Lodestar Ranch right now, and really, I guess I wasn’t. I was in awe of her and her big, beautiful heart, but surprised? Nah.

That was Essie, through and through. She wasn’t selfless, and she wasn’t a pushover. But she cared. She cared so damn much.

God, I was so in love with this woman.

“Essie, you did good,” Adam said, coming up behind us.

“Thank you,” she said. “We couldn’t have done it without James. I don’t know if anyone else could have brought Pirate along as fast as she did. When you thinkabout where he was six months ago, it’s honestly a miracle.”

“No miracle,” Adam said, looking at James with that way he had. Like she hung the moon, and the sun and stars to boot. “Just talent and hard work.”

“Maybe,” James said, even though her cheeks turned pink from Adam’s praise. “But I think a lot of his success today was you, Essie. The bond you share…it’s special. I think you know that. He wanted to win for you.”

Essie’s eyes looked suspiciously shiny as she nodded rapidly.

We were so busy feeling good that we almost missed the announcement.

“And in first place, Essie Price on Pirate! Winners, please come to the arena for your victory lap.”

Essie stared at me with wide, shocked eyes. And then the most gorgeous smile split her face from ear to ear.

My wife had just made another dream come true. And there was nowhere I would rather be than by her side when it happened.

30

Essie

Everyone decided to meet up at the Painted Cat to celebrate the day we got home to Aspen Springs. James and Adam arrived with Zack on his crutches. Chloe and Hannah were there, as well. Janie had the night off, so for once she got to drink with us instead of serving us.

But she still snuck behind the bar to make me a special cocktail. “It’s a black and white, in honor of Pirate.”

She poured white rum, coconut rum, simple syrup, and cream over ice, then topped it with cocoa-infused dark rum. The result was a stunning black-and-white layered drink that made us all gasp in appreciation.

It tasted good, too.

“Yum.” I wiped the frothfrom my upper lip.

Brax took a sip from my glass and his eyebrows shot up. “If you drink more than one of these, I’ll have to carry you out. Not that I’m opposed to that.”

I laughed. “This is going to be my only drink tonight. Five a.m. comes early.”

Brax smirked in the knowledge that he could sleep in until eight. “Mind if I go keep Zack company?”

I glanced past him to where Zack was sitting sideways in a booth, his cast stretched out on the bench. “He looks like he could use some cheering up.”

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