Chapter 37
thirty-seven
. . .
Wren
We’d been back in Rosewood River for a few weeks. All the media attention had finally died down, and I was relieved. I’d done a few interviews about my decision to retire, and now I was done talking about it and ready to just start living.
So that’s exactly what I was doing.
I’d decided to use a portion of the money in my trust to start an official equestrian school for kids.
Axel and I were partners in the business, which we’d named the WRAX Riding School.
Work. Ride. Achieve. eXcel.
Of course our first student to sign up officially was Melody Chadwick. She loved her time out here on the ranch, and I loved working with her.
And we’d had a dozen kids follow and sign up over the last two weeks.
With all the kids back in school now, it meant working with my students in the late afternoon and on the weekends.
I spent my days working with Axel on the horse trailers, riding Wrax as far as we wanted to go every day, and working with Emilia to bring a bit more of a feminine touch to our home.
I’d never been so content in my entire life.
My mom had just officially moved back to town. She was renting a house while her new home was being built on the water here in Rosewood River. I was thrilled to have her close by again.
“You seem happier than you have in a very long time, Wren,” my mother said as we walked the property. I’d taken her out to show her where we were putting in a larger ring to train the more advanced students.
“I am, and it feels good, you know?”
“Yes. I think it’s part of life to know when it’s time to change course,” she said as we paused to sit on the patio, looking out at the gorgeous mountains with the river in the distance.
“And to know it’s okay to do so. It was more challenging for you because so many people were pushing you in one direction.
It’s hard to see clearly with so many voices in your head. ”
“Exactly. And I think it’s hard to change course when you’re experiencing success. There’s this natural need telling you to keep conquering, to keep pushing. But when you allow yourself to dig deep inside, to question if this is actually serving you—I think it’s important to listen.”
“I’m very proud of you for doing that, my love. I know it wasn’t easy. Your father has finally accepted it, at least from what he’s telling me.” She sighed. “Has he backed off with you?”
“Yes. I think he’s finally retired his dream of me going to the Olympics.”
“It’s easy to push someone else toward a dream when you aren’t the one out there sacrificing every day. And I hope he finally gets it.”
“It’s weird that you two are friends now.” I shook my head with disbelief. The friendship was a bit more one-sided on my father’s part. My mother had gotten over a lot of the anger and given in to his relentless need to be in her life.
“I’ve had years to process his affairs. I stayed longer than I should have, and that’s on me.
But I think we fell out of love a long time ago, and we were more like friends than lovers these last few years.
But it doesn’t mean I condone what he’s done.
I’m not in love with your father any longer, but I do love him, because he gave me my two greatest gifts and many years of happiness. ”
I nodded. “He doesn’t seem that happy with Chrissy.”
“I think your father is a man who is never completely happy. He’s always chasing the next thing. He always wants more. Nothing is enough. It’s an exhausting way to live, and I’m happy that I’m no longer feeling that sort of pressure in my day-to-day life.”
“I get that. And I’m happy that you moved back here, Mom.”
“So am I. And I’m excited about building a home that’s everything that I want it to be. You being here is just the icing on the cake. I always thought you’d end up with Axel. You two just had such a special connection.”
“I’m glad we found our way here,” I said.
“How are you and Collin doing?”
“We’re making progress.” I reached for my water bottle and took a sip. “He’s still going to therapy, and I do think it’s helping him.”
“Good. I’m glad he’s owning up to what he’s done and trying to make things right. That’s the best we can ask for.”
“Yes. I am glad he’s trying.”
“Hey,” Axel said as he came around the corner.
He took long strides toward me with his cowboy hat on his head, his boots clanking against the pavement.
I could swear my stomach fluttered every time I laid eyes on this man.
I’d known him most of my life, yet his presence still did something to me.
“Did you get to show your mom the plans for the business?”
“She did. It’s quite amazing what you two are building out here,” Mom said.
He scooped me up without saying a word and sat on the chair as he settled me on his lap. “She’s amazing.”
“She is.” My mother smiled.
We spent the next thirty minutes chatting, just the three of us, before she said she had to meet Emilia at the flower shop. She’d hired her to design the new house, and they were working on ideas.
“Did you have a nice visit with your mom?” he asked.
I knew Axel worried because my relationship with both my father and my brother was strained. I knew he didn’t like the things they’d done, but he also knew they were my family, so he encouraged me to work on things with them.
And I was thrilled to have my mother living here again.
My family was finding our new normal, and it would take time to heal from all the hurt. But I did believe we would get there eventually.
“We had a great visit. I’m so happy she’s back. And she and my father have the weirdest friendship, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was happy about it. It wasn’t that long ago that I didn’t think they could be in the same room without killing one another.”
“Time has a way of healing, doesn’t it?” he asked as he wrapped his arms around me a little tighter.
“It does.”
“Can I show you something?” he said against my ear before nipping at the sensitive skin, making my head fall back with a laugh.
“That depends, Cowboy. Where are you taking me?”
He set me on my feet and interlaced his fingers with mine. “Trust me. You want to see this.”
We walked into the barn, and I gasped when he opened the first stall. I moved toward the beautiful brown baby horse as he lay in the corner.
“Got a call about a colt that had been neglected and was in need of a home. He’s around fourteen months.”
“Is he a thoroughbred?” I moved slowly toward him, and he made no attempt to move. I bent down and stroked the top of his head. “Hey there, little guy.”
“He is.” Axel lowered himself as well to look at him.
“He’s beautiful,” I said. “We’re going to give you a great home, buddy.”
“Wrenny, are you in here?” Melody’s voice came from outside the stall.
“Will you bring her in here?” I asked as I continued stroking the colt’s head.
Axel stood and returned with his niece and Archer, who stood in the doorway.
“Come here, I want to show you something.”
“Is he a pony?” Melody asked as she came to sit beside me. She had a comfort with horses that I recognized.
“He’s over a year old and he’s a boy, so we call him a colt,” I said as I took her hand in mine and ran it along his back. “He’s sweet, huh?”
“He’s very sweet. Where’s his mama?”
“We don’t know much about him,” Axel said from behind us. “Just that he needed a good home.”
“Daddy, he’s just like me. He doesn’t have a mama, either,” she whispered, and I glanced over to see Archer wince at her words.
Ever since she’d started kindergarten, the topic of her not having a mother had come up a few times. He’d been caught off guard by how much she talked about it now.
“Yes. But Uncle A and Wrenny are his family now, and that’s what’s most important.”
“And I’m his family, too, right, Wrenny?”
“You sure are, Mel,” I said.
“Can I ride him?”
I chuckled. “He’s a little too young for that, but he can be your friend for now. And when he’s three or four years old, you can start riding him, and you’ll already know him so well.”
She smiled. “He can be my bestie?”
“He sure can.”
“What is his name?” she asked as she moved even closer.
“Hmmm… we should give him a name, shouldn’t we?” I glanced over at Axel, who was just smiling at us as he stood next to his brother. Just watching two girls fawn all over a young horse. “Should we let Melody pick out the name?”
“I think that’s a great idea. Do you need to think it over?” he asked her.
She put a hand on his cheek and studied him for a few beats. “Hi, Biffle.”
“Biffle?” Axel chuckled.
Melody turned to look at me. “A girl in my class said when you have a best friend for life, it’s called your biffle. And I think I just found my best friend for life.”
“I think Biffle is a fabulous name. You know I named Wrax after me and my best friend, your uncle A. That’s where his name comes from.”
“Biffle Chadwick. It’s got a nice ring to it,” Archer said with a laugh. “But I thought I was your biffle?”
“You’re my best daddy. Biffle is my best friend,” she responded with all the confidence in the world.
“Okay, how about we get you up on Honey for a ride? Are you ready?” I asked as I stood up.
“I’m ready.” She leaned forward and kissed the young colt on the forehead and then spoke directly to him. “I’ll come see you before I leave, Biffle.”
Once I got her up on Honey and walked them out to the small training ring, I smiled at the sight of her up on this giant horse. Melody was in her element out here, and I loved it.
“Wrenny, do you think I can grow up and be a horse girl just like you someday?” she asked as I led them in a circle.
“I think you can be anything you want to be. And guess what?”
“What?” she asked.
“You can figure it out as you go.” I smiled up at her. “Today you might want to be a horse girl. Next week you might want to be an astronaut. And next year you might want to be a doctor. You can be or do whatever you set your mind to.”
“I like that. ’Cause sometimes I want to be a baker or a princess. But mostly I want to be a horse girl.”
I chuckled. “I think you can do it all.”
We finished up our lesson. Afterward, Axel and Archer were waiting for us in the stall with Biffle. She said goodbye to her new best friend and then hugged me and her uncle goodbye. We waved as she and Archer walked hand in hand to his truck.
Once they were gone, I pushed up on my tiptoes and kissed Axel. “I love that you rescue horses and give them homes or find them homes if needed.”
“It’s a good life, Horse Girl.” He moved forward as my back pressed against the wall of the barn.
I chuckled as I took his hat off his head and popped it on my own. “It’s a damn good life.”
“Did you put that hat on your head for a reason?”
“You know I’m a girl who likes to follow the rules. And the cowboy rule is one of my favorites.”
“You want to ride the cowboy, baby?”
“It’s the rule, right?”
He moved so fast that he caught me off guard as he tossed me over his shoulder. He started jogging toward the house as loud laughter escaped my lips and I held the hat on my head.
Yeah, it was a damn good life.