Chad released his mom and murmured, “Believe me, it wasn’t my choice. So don’t be mad if we don’t stay long, okay?”
“Whatever works. Let’s go see if Ryan has picked a name for the foal yet.”
As they walked down the middle of the barn, Jo searched on both sides of the aisle for the foal she’d gotten to name many years ago. But none of the horses looked familiar, and her heart sank a little. It was probably silly to think he’d still be there. Chad’s parents bred horses to sell. They only kept a few for themselves.
Then she saw him, his head bobbing up and down as if he recognized her and was waiting, and she let out a squeal. “There you are, Black Jack.” The huge horse was entirely black except for a perfect diamond of white on his forehead. Mary grabbed an apple from her apron and handed it over.
“I’ve missed you, buddy!” Jo blinked back tears of joy as she held out the apple while she stroked his muscled neck. She’d always wondered what had happened to him after she and Chad broke up. “I can’t believe he’s still here.”
Chad moved beside her. “I keep my promises, Jo. He’s all yours. We can go riding anytime you like.”
Black Jack had been born a few months after she and Chad had begun to date. She’d have known the horse was still there had they spoken in the last nine years. He’d promised her that if he ever got an NFL contract, he’d buy Black Jack from his parents for her. That he’d kept his word chipped away a large chunk of the wall she’d erected around her bruised heart. “Thank you, Chad.” She wiped her tears and smiled at Mary. “And thank you for taking such good care of him.”
Mary kissed Jo’s cheek. “It was my pleasure. Now let’s go see the new baby!”
Jo lagged behind for a moment and patted Black Jack a little more before she whispered that she’d be back soon, and then followed behind Chad and his mom. When they got to the birthing pen in the rear, Linda was staring at her phone while Ryan pet the foal’s head through the fence. “There you are, Grandma! Now can we go in and play with her?”
Interesting that Ryan called Chad’s mom Grandma, but he didn’t call Chad Dad. While Mary opened the gate, both Jo and Ryan quickly followed, but Linda grabbed Chad’s arm and tugged. “Can we talk for a minute?” Linda glowered at Jo and then turned back to Chad. “Alone.”
Chad drew a deep breath, like he always did when he dug for patience. “Fine.” He slid his arm from her grasp and held out his hand. “After you.”
The smug look Linda sent Jo’s way would have been annoying if Mary hadn’t murmured, “I never understood what high maintenance meant until I met Linda. I’m indebted to her, because I now know just what that means.”
Jo laughed. Mary never said an unkind word about anyone, but that was as close as Jo had ever heard. Jo shook off Linda’s slight and turned to the foal. She caught the excited little spotted brown horse and held on tight to the adorable, spindly legged baby. “What do you think Ryan? What will you name her?”
Ryan patted the horse Jo held. “She looks like a chocolate chip cookie.”
She withheld her chuckle. Ryan always had junk food on the brain.
Mary said, “Then how about Coco? That’s a pretty name for a girl.”
Ryan shook his head, and then his face lit with an idea. “How about Bambi?”
The horse did look the part for now, but Bambi had been a boy. She glanced at Mary to see if Jo should break the bad news, but Mary just smiled and said, “How about Cookie, then, Ryan?”
Ryan still frowned as he considered, so Jo leaned over and whispered, “It’d be like a joke, right? For all the cookies Chad wouldn’t let you have?”
Ryan smiled. “Yeah. Let’s call her Cookie, Grandma! I can’t wait to tell Chad.”
Mary’s right brow popped up, and she tilted her head. “I’m glad to see you haven’t changed a bit, Jo. Because Chad’s going to need a challenge if he can’t play football anymore. No one challenges him better than you do.”
Had that been a compliment or not? As Jo pondered, Mary said, “He needs you now more than ever. And I’m not talking about just his knee. It’s the bigger person who can forgive, you know?”
Yeah. But could she ever fully forget?
That was the real question.
9
OH WHAT A TANGLED WEB WE WEAVE, WHEN FIRST WE PRACTICE TO DECEIVE.
“I know I messed up, Chad. Please. Can’t we try again?” Linda pleaded.
Chad crossed his arms and leaned against an empty stall. What a load of BS. Weary of it, he held up a hand to stop her. “Jo and I are very happy, and I hope you’ll be again too. Now can we talk about Ryan?”