Savannah had both hands clamped over her mouth and her eyes were shining with unshed tears. Ben gave her a hard hug, and the look she gave him was pure joy. In just minutes, the little foal was struggling to stand on his impossibly long legs. He wobbled and got halfway up before folding up and tumbling back down. On the third try, he made it to his feet and stood shakily on trembling legs. His audience gave a subdued cheer, trying to keep the noise down. Mamie Harper and the mare's owner had both snapped dozens of pictures and made a videotape by this point.
After the mare delivered the placenta, Ben went in and carefully removed the soiled bedding and added a little more fresh straw. The mare kept a close eye on him, snorting at him a little but not getting too excited. Ben approached her carefully and patted her neck until she relaxed. Then he ran his hands over the little foal, touching him all over and guiding him to his mother's teats. He rooted at her, fumbling until he managed to latch onto her. In a few moments, he mastered the art of nursing, his little tail swishing excitedly.
After the owner had had her chance to touch the baby, Doc Fisher checked them out one last time and said, "Everything looks good. Couldn't have gone any better. I'll be back tomorrow for another look, but I think it's all good. Keep handling the little guy as much as possible; it's a good way to raise a horse who's going to be easy to train."
An hour later, everyone was gone except Ben and Savannah. The little colt had curled up in the straw for an exhausted nap and Belle was resting as well. Ben went to the tack room and returned with a couple of cold beers. They toasted the horses quietly and sat watching them. When the foal woke and struggled to his feet once again, they laughed and softly cheered him on. Ben got up and led Savannah into the stall.
Savannah went to Belle and waited for her to lower her head and nudge her again. Stroking her neck, Savannah talked to her and praised her, making Ben chuckle at her. Then he told Savannah to touch the baby like he had done. She stroked him all over, rubbing his ears, running her hands down his legs, patting his little rump. When Belle gave her a shove with her nose, Savannah laughed and patted the mare. They left the stall, and soon, the foal was busily nursing once again.
Ben and Savannah checked the other horses and then went back up to Ben's place with Savannah chattering the whole way. They washed up and attacked the rest of the pizza, washing it down with ice-cold beer.
"That was the most amazing thing I've ever seen." Savannah sighed happily. "What's up with handling the baby so much?"
"It's good for him, like Doc said. He's accustomed to being touched by humans practically from the minute he's born, and he'll be much better around people for the rest of his life. He'll be easier to train and not afraid of being handled."
"Wow, I would never have known that there was so much to learn about horses. He's so cute! I can't believe he stood up so soon after he was born. It's like a miracle."
"It's pretty special. I'm glad you were here for the whole thing."
"Me too! Thank you, Ben." Savannah snuggled up next to him on the couch, and a moment later, they were sharing a deep, tender kiss.
Their lovemaking was slow and tender as they took their time, touching and tasting with low murmurs of pleasure. It was as if they were moving in slow motion, every touch spreading the low flames of desire. When they built to a crescendo, it was a long, slow tumble down from a climax that had been like a flood of warmth washing over them. Savannah felt something move inside her that she chose not to examine any more closely, instead, tightening her arms around Ben and letting the quivers of sensation slowly fade away. Ben wanted desperately to tell her how he felt, but he knew that he had to let Savannah come to him. He just hoped that she would find her way there.
Chapter 15
GG had made up her mind that this was the week she was going to approach Savannah with her proposition. She had thought about it long and hard and felt that this was the perfect time to convince her granddaughter to make her home in Boone. She had lost Joey, and she had fallen in love with a good man, even though she didn't seem to realize it yet. Her identical twin sister was having her first child, and Savannah was happy. Now she just had to choose the right time.
The weather was beautiful and it would soon be time to plan for the shop's annual gala. GG was thinking that this year's gala would be amazing, with all the new artists and new merchandise to be unveiled, and with the new changes to the ownership and management of the shop. It would be another new beginning. Her doctor had told her in no uncertain terms that she needed to slow down a little. And she had to admit that she was beginning to feel her age a bit.
Savannah was staring at her laptop, her head full of disjointed thoughts. She read the email over again. She had known it would come eventually, and she had known all along that she would be thrilled when it did. It would be the end of her entrapment in Boone, Indiana. It would give her an important, valid reason to say her goodbyes and get back to her own life. Now it had come, and she just felt frozen. It made no sense. It was what she had been waiting for.
Savannah knew that she had accomplished all the things her grandmother had needed her to do. She had been there for Shelby's wedding, just as promised. She had kept her word and then some. She should be ecstatic that the email had come at exactly the right time, and her obligations were neatly fulfilled.
She thought about the tiny, wobbly foal she had seen born. It still gave her a thrill when she pictured it. She hadn't been exaggerating when she had told Ben that it was the most amazing thing she had ever seen. She refused to think about Ben. Anything but Ben. Which led to thoughts about Shelby and the baby she was expecting. After seeing the little horse born, how could she possibly miss the birth of her sister's child?
She would just come back for it. They certainly could predict when her sister would give birth with a lot more accuracy than when a horse would give birth. She would have to come back for it. But she would miss seeing the child grow in her sister's womb. What if she had twins, like she and Shelby were? Could she really be the world's coolest aunt from halfway around the world? She couldn't believe the way she was thinking. She could never make a permanent home in Boone. And her fundraising work was important. They needed her.
A little voice in the back of her mind scoffed at her. All those rich, spoiled, overgrown children didn't need her. She had barely heard from any of them in the time she had been gone. There were plenty of people who were perfectly capable of organizing fancy-schmancy parties, whether it was just because they liked to party or they put a virtuous face on it and raised money for their favorite charities.
The bottom line was that it scared her to death to think of staying in Boone permanently. She would have to face her demons once and for all if she did. It was too hard, and it hurt too much. And obviously, Boone was affecting her, changing her. The little voice laughed at her again and pointed out that the change was for the better.
She thought of the disappointment that would be on her grandmother's face when she told her she was leaving. She thought of Shelby and told herself that she would be fine, she had Sam. She thought of the fact that Carter and Maggie were going to try to have a baby too. She thought of Ben and the look in his eyes sometimes when she caught him off guard.