Chapter Eleven #3
The water treadmill was enclosed, the water level adjustable depending on the horse and what they needed. Sawyer talked to the mare slowly, giving her time to get used to the feel of the water rising around her legs.
“The treadmill’s good for building muscle back without stressing what’s already compromised,” Sawyer said, watching her move. “Buoyancy takes the weight off. She can work without the work hurting her.”
Ethan stood at the glass panel and watched the mare move through the water. She was cautious at first, then steadier, her ears relaxing as she figured out what was being asked of her.
“She’s going to be alright,” Sawyer said beside him. “She’s got good instincts. Just needs time and consistency.”
“She’ll get both.”
Sawyer looked at him. “How long was she with him?”
“Eight months.”
Sawyer shook his head but didn’t say anything else about it.
They watched her for a while longer and then Sawyer walked him through the pools, pointing out the straight-line design where horses swam against resistance, the four circular pools with their surrounding decks, the largest pool at the far end that was reserved for horses strong enough to swim on their own.
“Each pool has its own filtering system,” Sawyer said.
“Chlorination, pH, tested every day. I won’t put a horse in water I’m not certain is clean.
The circular pools are the safest for animals that get distressed.
They’re only a few strides from the deck at any point.
The straight-line pools are in-ground.” He nodded toward the far end.
“That big one we won’t touch for a while. She needs to earn that.”
“How long before she’s ready to come home?”
Sawyer looked back at the mare on the treadmill. “Depends on her. Could be weeks, could be longer. But she’s in the right place now. That’s what matters.”
Ethan looked at the mare moving steadily through the water and thought that was about the best thing anyone had said to him in three days.
He asked about Piper on the way out and Sawyer’s whole face changed like it did when a man was asked about the right woman.
“She’s good,” he said simply. “Real good.”
“And Colson and Lydia?”
“Both are good.” Sawyer grinned.
Ethan shook his hand at the gate. “Tell them I said hello.”
“I will.” Sawyer looked at him for a moment. “You doing alright? You seem like you’ve got something on your mind.”
“I’m fine.”
Sawyer nodded once and had the decency not to push.
“We’ll take good care of her,” he said, nodding back toward the barn. “I’ll call you when she’s ready to come home.”
Ethan climbed into the truck, drove back toward the ranch, and thought about Naomi the whole way home.
He pulled up to the house, sat for a few minutes, then stepped out. He went inside, and after removing his boots, he headed for his bedroom where he sat on the edge of the bed and picked up his phone.
Naomi picked up on the second ring.
“Hey.” Her voice was warm and that loosened something in him.
“Hey.” He leaned back against the headboard. “How was your day?”
“Good. Vader had his best run yet. His times are coming down.” A pause. “How did it go with the mare?”
“She’ll be alright once she gets some weight back on her.
She’s also lame so I took her straight to Sawyer’s place.
He’s a Certified Equine Rehabilitation Practitioner.
His practice involves hydrotherapy for horses.
” He felt his jaw tighten at the memory of her dull eyes in that stall. “The owner wasn’t happy about it.”
“I imagine not.” Her voice went quiet. “Was it bad?”
“Bad enough.” He didn’t elaborate. “She’s safe now. That’s what matters.”
“You did a good thing today, Ethan.”
He looked at the ceiling. “I did what the contract states.”
“You did more than that and you know it. You drove eight hours to get her.”
He didn’t say anything to that.
“I’ve been thinking,” she said after a moment.
“About what?”
“About us.” He heard her take a breath. “About how angry I was and whether I aimed some of it at the wrong person.”
He sat forward. “Naomi—”
“Let me finish.” Her voice was steady. “You pushed me toward something I didn’t want to be pushed toward and that was wrong. But Serena said something that I keep turning over. She said you only did it because you wanted me to be happy.”
“She’s a smart woman,” he said.
“I know,” Naomi said softly. “I know she is.”
He closed his eyes briefly.
“I’ll see you in the morning. I’m tired,” he said.
“I bet.” A beat. “I’ll have coffee waiting.”
He felt the corner of his mouth lift. “On the fence post?”
“Where else.” He could hear the smile in her voice.
“Goodnight, Naomi.”
“Goodnight, Ethan.” A pause. “Get some sleep.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
He hung up and sat there in the quiet bedroom with the phone in his hand and looked out the window at the dark ranch.
He thought about the mare settled in at Sawyer’s and the woman in the apartment above the hay barn and felt something in his chest that had been wound tight for days finally start to loosen.
He went to bed and slept better than he had all week.