“Right. Another thing you brought onto the property without any warning or even a heads up.”
“Not sure you’ve noticed, but I live here, too, Tanner.”
“Sure, but this place isn’t yours. It’s not even mine yet. It’s Mom and Dad’s and as far as I’m concerned, they call the shots about who or what gets to come and go on their land,” Tanner stated. “They were pretty happy to finally get Dominic’s old hunk of junk off the property and now there’s another one right back in its place.”
“Josie’s fifth wheel isn’t a hunk of junk.”
“Well, it’s not classy, that’s for sure.”
“Oh, and we are?”
“I’m not saying we’re classy, but we’re definitely not trailer trash.”
Seth sat back fully in the saddle, slack jawed, head shaking. Scout planted his hooves beneath him. “If you ever call Josie trailer trash again you’ll have a few less teeth in that mouth of yours to utter the words around.”
“Just calling it like I see it.” Tanner’s horse continued sauntering ahead while Seth’s remained rooted in place. “I think you can do better, is all,” he called over his shoulder. “Maybe it’s time to cut ties and see what else is out there. Really explore your options. Take your time before settling down for good.”
Seth tapped Scout’s belly with his spurs to push the horse into a trot to catch up with his brother. “You only say that because you want me out of the picture when it comes to the business.”
“I only say that because I think Josie isn’t good enough for this family. She’s not like Amy. Not like Mom. She doesn’t fit in.”
And that’s a good thing, Seth thought silently.
“That girl is rougher than a sandpaper massage,” Tanner added before turning his head to spit into the dirt. “I’m just saying she could use some polishing up, is all.”
Sure, Josie was a little rough around the edges, but Seth would take that over fake, drab, or boring any day. “I’m done talking about Josie. I suggest any other opinions you have of her you keep to yourself.”
“Fair enough. But just know she’s not doing you any favors.”
That was far from the truth. Having Josie by his side was a huge favor and Seth was well aware of that fact. She might not win Tanner over, but that was neither here nor there. Seth’s father approved. Maybe it wasn’t Josie he specifically approved of, but the fact that Seth had a woman at his side made a difference in his father’s eyes. A big one.
With the conversation sufficiently buttoned up, they kicked their horses into gear and rode hard back to the barn. Seth made quick work of untacking Scout and sending him into the nearby grazing pasture, but it still wasn’t fast enough to beat the veterinarian’s arrival. The white pickup truck had pulled into the ranch sometime while Seth was still out with the cows. Dr. Cranford was already at the fence with Josie and another woman Seth figured must be the vet tech. Out of breath, Seth jogged up to greet them and when the trio turned around, he just about toppled over.
“Bridgette.” Seth all but coughed out her name.
“Hey, Seth.” Bridgette flashed her knee-weakening smile but luckily Seth’s were already locked in place from the sheer surprise of it all. He stood stock still. “I thought I would come out with Dr. Cranford to check out the horses. He was just over at our place and mentioned he would be heading your way after. I hope you don’t mind.”
“No, not at all.” Seth gulped. “You’ve met—”
“Your girlfriend?” Bridgette finished for him. She gave him an unreadable look. “Yes. Josie just introduced herself, but her reputation as a farrier precedes itself. I’ve been passing along her info for years now. She’s undoubtedly the best.”
Standing several feet away, closer to the horses than the grouping of people, Josie’s expression was cloaked in apology, aware that she’d said too much. Seth wanted to assure her it was fine, but Bridgette bulldozed right through any attempt at making that happen.
“I should be able to take the horses off your hands as soon as the stallion and colts are gelded, which, Dr. Cranford says, could happen as early as next week. Isn’t that great news?”
“I thought you had the horse with strangles.”
“We do, but he’s recovering nicely and should be in the clear soon. We’ve had him quarantined to limit exposure to the rest of the animals and so far, no one else has come down with it. We’ll be good to go before you know it. It’ll be great to get these horses in a proper setting where they can finally relax.”
In Seth’s periphery, he could see Josie take another step back, peeling herself away from the conversation. She wrapped a hand around a pipe panel and slumped her weight against the fence.
“I don’t know that they’ll be ready by then, Bridge. They still need a lot of work.”
“And I have a lot of volunteers to help with that.” She touched Seth’s forearm in a familiar move. “Remember that grant I applied for last spring? It finally came through. I was able to set up a huge round pen and purchase five more pens with the money. Coincidentally, that’s the perfect amount for this little herd. It’s like it was meant to be.”
Something resembling disappointment slid across Josie’s face. When Seth tried to give her a reassuring look, she diverted her gaze to her boots like they were the most interesting thing in the world. She wouldn’t look back up.
“We’ll see,” was all Seth could commit to in the moment. “Dr. Cranford, what are your thoughts on gelding them? You think they’re ready?”
“I will really need them halter broke before we do any procedures involving sedation. And hopefully that happens sooner than later because the colts are definitely of age,” the veterinarian said. “Wait too long and you’ll have to pull them from their mothers. You might also want to think about removing the stallion from the paddock, unless you want the mares bred back this quickly.”
“Good advice,” Seth said with a nod. “Josie’s been working with them everyday. Shouldn’t be long before we can get a halter on them.”
“But that’s a pretty big task to do one handed, isn’t it?” Bridgette’s eyes shifted toward Josie’s cast and she spoke low near Seth’s ear like two parents discussing their child in hushed tones.
“I’m handling it just fine.” Josie piped up and took a step closer.
Bridgette turned to Seth completely. “Seth, I’d be happy to send over a few of my volunteers to help Josie out. I can spare them, no problem. I want to make sure she’s not biting off more than she can chew—”
“Didn’t you just hear her say she’s doing just fine on her own?”
“I did, but—”
“We’ll have the horses halter broke by early next week, Dr. Cranford.” Seth skirted Bridgette and thrust his hand forward to shake the doctor’s. “I appreciate you coming out to the ranch today. I’ll call the office this afternoon to get an appointment on the schedule for the procedures.”
Seth made a movement to walk away, but Bridgette grabbed his elbow. “Can I speak with you in private for a moment?” she said in a breathy almost-whisper.