Page 53 of Rescuing Abbey

Having babies hadn’t ever crossed my mind. Although, that was likely because I knew Jeff wasn’t the right guy for me. But since starting a relationship with Duke and Liam and seeing all the happy couples around the ranch, babies seemed like more of a possibility. For the first time, I could picture the three of us with a tiny little baby to love on. Did Duke and Liam want to have kids?

We discussed the remaining details of the baby shower for two more hours before it was time for Jessie to get the rest of lunch ready. I helped her prep the sandwiches. She’d made it simple, so we would have more time talking.

Duke was due home from his shift around dinnertime, and we’d planned on having dinner in the dining hall with everyone. I still had a few hours to check on the paintings to see if they were dry enough to continue.

I made a detour through the barns to see what everyone was doing. In the second barn, I found Maverick peacefully munching on his hay. He came to the stall door to investigate if I had any treats. Which, of course, I did. He happily took the apple and completely slimed my hand as he ate it. When he was finished, I gave him a kiss on the nose before I made my way to the next barn, stopping outside to wash my hands at the hose.

Hunter and Kyle, two riders for Team Kingston, were near the wash stalls when I rounded the corner.

“Hey, guys,” I called out.

“Hey, Abbey. Will you come here for a moment? Maybe you can help us with something.” Kyle waved me over.

“Sure. What’s up?” I wiped my hands on the sides of my pants.

“At the horse show in New York, Hunter found this amazing woman he spent the night with, and she ghosted him in the morning. He still thinks there’s hope he’ll see her again and thinks she could be the one for us,” Kyle explained as he sprayed down his horse.

I rested a comforting hand on Hunter’s arm. I hated to even have to ask this next question. “If she ghosted you, then do you think she wants to be found?”

Hunter sighed. “We had a connection that night; I’m sure of it. She told me she felt it too.”

“What if you find her, and she says no?” I asked.

He ran a hand through his short, dark brown hair. “Then I’ll walk away. I’m not going to pressure her into being with us, but I want to know if there’s anything I can do to help her or even give her my contact information, so she knows I want her. I can’t let her slip through my fingers without trying.”

I looked at Kyle to get his thoughts on this.

“I trust Hunter. He has good instincts. If he thinks she might be the one for us, I want us to follow through and see if she might want to give us a try.”

“Okay, so tell me what you know about her.”

“Her name is Chloe. She’s sweet, determined, and a hard worker. She was one of the staff for the catering company there for the event. When I was with her, the world made sense.” Hunter’s eyes got a far-off look.

“That’s not a lot to go off of. Didn’t Tori put on the event?”

“Yes...”

“Have you asked her if she knew anyone by that name, or if she could give you the contact for the company she used for the catering? I bet they can tell you if they have an employee listed with that name. Or, if they won’t give you her name because of confidentiality, they might be able to get her a message.”

“I hadn’t thought about that.” Hunter’s face lit up with the idea.

“Well, that would be where I’d start. Ask Tori. What are you going to do about the distance from New York to here? I’m guessing that’s where she lives.”

“If I can get a phone number, I’ll start there. We have to at least try. I honestly think she is the one for us, dude.” Hunter’s jaw tightened as a determined expression crossed his face.

I laughed. “I think he’s got it bad, Kyle.”

“Yup, and with any luck, I might be the same once we get the chance to talk to her.” Kyle winked.

“Please tell me theseles jeunesaren’t bothering you.” Liam wrapped his arms around me from behind, and I squealed.

“Just asking me a question,” I said through a fit of laughter as he tickled my sides.

“How did your meeting with Jessie go?”

I turned in his arms to face him. “I’m all done. I just said hi to Maverick and was on my way to see if you had finished and needed anything.” Reaching up, I swept his sweaty blond hair from his forehead. It was getting long enough for him to need a haircut.

“I just finished with Blake. I was going to give Zeus a bath, but it seems like these two have taken up the wash stalls.” He nodded at Hunter and Kyle, who turned their hoses in our direction. I ducked for cover behind Liam, laughing as he spun around, picked me up bridal style, and rushed us into the barn.

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