Page 47 of Back in the Saddle

“Aren’t you lucky?”

“Where’s Ciaron? Did you let him off the ball and chain?”

“I decided he’d earnt a day of freedom.”

Mum laughed. “Only a day.”

Dan examined the wound. He uncurled his wiry, tall body. He was still spritely for a sixty-something year old. “It looks pretty clean. No real tissue damage. It will just need a flush and a lot of stitches.”

“Good.”

He started cleaning the wound. “Is Isabelle looking forward to her work experience with us next month?”

“Sure is.”

I hoped I sounded convincing. I didn’t even know she had work experience coming up.

“She will get to come on rounds with me and watch some surgeries as well.”

“Excellent.”

“Ciaron told me if she got stuck doing generic shit, he’d make sure I was called to flush the mares out.”

Mum laughed. “That man has a way of convincing people.”

Dan chuckled. “He convinced Taylor to marry him in less than twenty-four hours.”

“In my defence, I thought he was joking.” For the first few hours, that is. After that first night, I knew he was serious.

“And then he followed you all the way here,” Mum said.

Gosh, I’d missed him while I waited for him to get here. It had been like I was an eventing horse with no obstacles to jump. “I couldn’t deny him after that, could I?”

“Hell no,” Dan said. “Dedication like that should be rewarded.”

Up until our split, I thought we’d been dedicated to each other, but my dedication had strayed. I thought saving the farm was important for my family, but what they really wanted was me. I’d had it all wrong in my head. I wasn’t going to give up on the farm. It had survived many natural disasters. But if I had to choose, I’d choose Ciaron and my children.

Dan stood straight. “All done.”

I looked at the wound. It was a neat stitch job.

“Thanks.”

“Give her oral antibiotics twice a day for a week. Keep her in a yard to restrict her ability to run.”

“OK.”

“Back to the subject of dedication.” He faced Mum. “Are you ready to go on a date with me yet?”

My head whipped in Mum’s direction. He’d been dedicated to asking her out for the last twenty years. They had a great rapport and joked with each other all the time. I knew they liked each other because they’d often speak or ask about the other. I never understood why she kept saying no.

She gave him a sly smile. “You can be my date for Isabelle’s party.”

“Finally.” He grinned and did a happy dance. “It’s only taken twenty years for you to say yes.”

“Persistence pays off,” she said.

Interesting. Why had she said yes after all these years of denying him?

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