Page 14 of For the Love of the Broken Man

“She’s Ray McCarren’s daughter-in-law. He’s been the vet here for several years, and he brought her on board about the same time Jon and I moved here. She’s an equine specialist, which is great for us. I was afraid we were gonna have to send Josie home to y’all. Under that damn shoe, I couldn’t see an abscess. I said the stupid thing was too big, but the farrier, Pete Cross, thinks he knows a lot more about it than me.

“Anyway, seems Doc’s got this under control. Let’s go get Jase settled. I cleaned out the apartment over the garage because we thought you might be more comfortable in your own space. The furniture up there is old, but it’s still functional. That okay, or you wanna stay in the house?” Mickey grinned at Jase, his mere presence making Jase feel better.

Jase watched as Dan grabbed Mickey around the neck and pulled him close, kissing his cheek. “I knew that little country boy was still in there. We can get Jase settled in the apartment. You got somewhere for me and Kayley to bed down for the night? I’d like to see how Josie is tomorrow before I call Josh. I know Meg likes to ride her, and until Blossom gets to be of a size where she’s ready to go, he’d hate to leave Meg without a mount.”

Mickey laughed and hugged Danny in return. “Nonsense. You can stay the weekend. We’ll have a little party tomorrow since it’s been so long between visits. We need to celebrate, don’t we, Kayley?” The blonde girl nodded, giving the cowboy a glowing smile.

“Okay, okay. I need to call Matt and let him know. I didn’t tell him what I was doin’ today. I just told him I’d be back. He’s probably wonderin’ where I am.” Dan turned to Jase and grinned. “Get your pack outta the back and let Mick show ya where you’re gonna live. I’ll be along directly.”

Jase nodded and turned to go to the pickup, reaching over the side to get his green duffel and his backpack, along with his muck boots. He turned to see Mickey was talking to the vet again, so he waited.

Kayley stood next to Danny, playing with his fingers, which looked like it might hurt the way she was bending them back, but Dan was busy on his phone and didn’t seem to notice until one of them popped loudly and he jerked his hand away. “Damn, girl, that hurt!” The little girl started laughing loudly.

When Mickey came out of the barn, he swept the girl up in his arms and brought her along with him to where Jase was waiting. “Okay, let’s get goin’.” Mickey proceeded on a path of stones that led from the barn to a detached garage behind the large house.

“This is what they call a carriage house, but I call it a garage. Upstairs is where the apartment is located. It’s a one-bedroom with a full bath, living room, small kitchen, and a back balcony. There’s a gate over there so you can get to the pool without having to come through the house, but I’ll warn you, Jonny and I like to s-k-i-n-n-y d-i-p some nights, so if the pool lights are off, don’t come knockin’.” Mickey let out a huge laugh.

Jase needed clarity. “Who, um, who’s Jonny?” He’d heard the man referred to, but he didn’t know what the relationship was, and he didn’t want a repeat of what happened at the Circle C.

Mickey’s robust laugh made Jase grin. “Jonny’s my partner. My mister, I guess you could say. We didn’t get married like Tim and Matt, but we’re no less committed. We have two kids, a foster daughter, Megan, who’s almost six. She goes to school in Richmond.

“Our foster son, Terry, is almost fifteen. He goes to school here in town and should be home about four o’clock. He’s on the track team, and they have practice today. The last track meet is on Monday. You’re welcome to go with us if you’d like. Jonny’s only working a half day so he and Meggie can go. More the merrier.” Mickey’s welcoming attitude made Jase feel at ease. He was beginning to think Miss Katie was right. Wonderland Farm seemed to be the perfect fit.

Chapter Seven

“I’m at Wonderland, and the vet’s here with Josie. She got an abscess on her right front hoof. Mick says it’s from the shoes the farrier put on her. Says they don’t fit right.” Danny was reporting to Matt as Mickey led Kayley and Jase up toward the house.

“Shit. Is she gonna be alright?” Based on the fact Matt didn’t seem too surprised Dan was in Dillwyn, he guessed Katie or Josh had called him and filled him in on what was happening.

“Yeah, she’s gonna be fine. Vet drained it and has her soakin’ it ‘fore she wraps it up. Seems the vet’s an equine specialist, and Mick trusts her. Anyway, Kayley and me are stayin’ the weekend so y’all hold down the fort. If any semen comes in, make sure ya put it in the tank, Matt. If it thaws, it’s ruined.” Dan hoped his boss listened to him. That shit was expensive as hell.

They were about to begin the breeding season, and Dan knew Tim had ordered some specialty semen out of an Amerifax bull from some place in Nebraska. He and Matt had read an article on the breed in a cattle magazine and were excited to use it for the first time.

The calves were supposed to be easily birthed but grew to be large animals. Cows from the breed were touted to be breedable for a long time with no fertility issues. Dan read up on it, and it sounded like something they should test, especially with the other breeds they had on the ranch, which would be prime to crossbreed. It sounded promising.

“Yeah, well, I could hold it against Tim’s ass, and it would stay frozen.” Matt’s comment made Dan laugh.

“You brought that shit on yourself—all by yourself. Jason Langston is a nice kid who woulda been a damn good hand, but you let your insecurities show and everybody, includin’ me, treated that guy like shit. We all oughta be ashamed of ourselves. Anyway, you better work on thawin’ out Tim before you become a miserable bastard and the hands all go on strike. I’ll see y’all sometime on Monday mornin’.” Dan said goodbye and hung up.

Danny hopped in the truck to move the trailer off to the side, away from the vet’s truck so she wouldn’t be blocked in. He grabbed his and Kayley’s bags and headed toward the house, where Jase, Mickey, and Kayley were standing by the swimming pool in the backyard.

Kayley reached down to put her fingers into the water, and it seemed as if on instinct, Jase reached for her and held onto her waist so she wouldn’t fall in. It touched Dan and made him totally uncomfortable in kind, because he thought it was adorable the young man would worry so much about the child’s safety.

Dan walked up to the gate and opened the latch, placing their bags atop one of the many tables surrounding the pool deck. The whole area was beautiful, and he was happy for Mickey. He’d settled into a nice life, and as Dan thought about it, it was a privilege to witness.

Of course, it reminded Dan how he had nothing to offer a guy if he’d ever let himself have feelings for anyone. He’d tried with Sean O’Dowd, but they were just too different to make a go of it. Sean was a car salesman who seemed to long for the finer things in life—things Dan couldn’t give him on a ranch foreman’s salary, much less a ranch foreman with a daughter and mother under his care.

When Sean moved to Roanoke to work for a bigger dealership, Dan thought they’d do the long-distance thing for a while and maybe decide to get serious in a year or so. He didn’t love the man, but he liked him enough to think they could make a life together, eventually.

Dan found out the hard way that Sean’s move to Roanoke was because he didn’t want to be a surrogate parent to Kayley. He never wanted kids at all.

“Look Dan,” Sean had said. “I’m not the parenting type. Don’t get me wrong—Kayley is a sweet girl, and if she came to visit on occasion, I’d be happy to go out for pizza and a movie with the two of you. We’d have fun, and you’d drop her off at home with her parents. That’s not the case, and I’m not a babysitter.

“I moved here because you need to think about which one of us you want in your life full time—your niece or me. I was all prepared to give you the ultimatum, but it’s a moot point now.”

Dan’s stomach had climbed into his throat, but Sean wasn’t done with his speech. It was about to get a whole lot more painful.

“I’ve met someone, Dan, and we’ve been spending a lot of time together. He’s not into playing daddy to anyone but me if I’m interested. You won’t need to make the trip anymore. It’s best if you go your way, and I’ll go mine.” That was the final nail in the coffin.

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