Chapter 6 Jonah
JONAH
I stare down at the hoof in my hand and struggle to understand the depth of damage in front of me. Because in all my years as a farrier, I’ve never seen hooves like this. I’ve never seen a horse so badly in need of hoof care, or so neglected.
“How the fuck did it even get this bad?” I mutter, gently placing the hoof down. I give the shaggy, forlorn beast a pat and a scratch as I stand up, done with my examination.
“This horse rarely left his stall,” Nathan tells me, a frown on his face. “And it was disgusting in there.”
“Still, to see this bad of laminitis, with the infection as well…” I sigh and rub my face.
“It’s inhumane,” Beau says from where he’s leaning against the stall door.
“I’m just happy Candice wasn’t there to see the state of things. She would have tried to kill the owner.” Nathan’s face is somber.
The first time I met Nathan Booth, I thought he was a jealous, cocky asshole.
He was pissed at me because he thought I had a thing for Candice, and he was clearly a bit too rich and polished for Star Mountain.
But having a successful rodeo rider around has its perks, and I know that Nathan has been using his money and connections to help the rescue.
Plus, it’s becoming pretty clear that he genuinely cares about what we do here.
“We should name him,” I say, giving the horse a treat from my pocket.
“We just need to wait for the right one to come to us. It’ll happen once he comes out of his shell and shows us his personality a bit.” Beau gives the horse a scratch.
“You’ll get there, won’t you?” I ask the horse.
A huff sounds from nearby, and I turn to find Winnie leaning against a stall door, looking at me with her arms crossed.
“What?” I ask.
“I don’t know what you mean,” she says, smiling that damn sunny smile at me.
“You scoffed.” I raise a brow at her.
“I’m just surprised is all.” She takes a few steps towards me, and I catch sight of those bright pink boots. Somehow, despite the fact that she’s in a barn surrounded by horse poop and mud, there isn’t a speck of dirt on them. She must have learned that trick in pageant school.
“By what?” I ask, trying not to grind my teeth in annoyance.
“By the fact that there’s a heart in there,” she says, waving her hand at my chest. “At least for the horses, that is.”
“I have a heart for people as well.”
“Try not to scowl so much when you say that,” Winnie replies sweetly. “In fact, you should try smiling more in general.”
“I’m a farrier, not a pageant queen. Smiling isn’t part of my job.”
“And it’s not part of mine anymore, either.”
I raise a brow at her.
“I’m not a pageant queen anymore. I quit.” For some reason, she sounds positively giddy saying this.
“Got tired of being a bimbo?” I say before I can think better of it.
“Jonah, don’t be an ass,” Nathan cuts in.
“Oh don’t worry, sugar, no need to defend me,” Winnie says, hitting Nathan with a smile. “I’ve been called a ditz and a bimbo more times than I can count—always by men who would fall at my feet if I gave them the time of day. It’s just a defense mechanism.”
Behind Nathan, I see Beau try and fail to smother a laugh. It comes sputtering out of him.
I turn and stare at Winnie, assessing her.
I shouldn’t resort to cheap, sexist jokes.
I’m better than that. I just never know what to do with people like her—people who smile that much, who walk through life with seeming ease and uncanny smoothness.
You know, politicians. Cheerleaders. Pageant queens. She’s the polar opposite of me.
She was spitting mad the first time I called her a ditz, though. Her sunny facade darkened when we were trading insults, and something tells me that Winnie has layers, as much as she might try to hide them.
“I’m sorry for the insult, Winnie,” I say, meeting her sparkling blue gaze.
She doesn’t say anything for a moment, and I can see that there’s something at work behind her placid expression. Almost like she’s mulling over whether to accept the apology or not.
“Thank you,” she says.
“Glad you two are playing nice again,” Beau remarks.
“Beau, I, uh,” Winnie starts to say and then trails off. She glances between Nathan and I and then sighs, like she wishes we weren’t going to be here for what she’s about to say. “Um, I couldn’t find Candice and I need to get the car back to the rental company today. Could you take me?”
Beau immediately shakes his head, which is odd, because normally he’s willing to help anyone or any animal in need. “I’m sorry Win, but I’m going to be busy here with our newest rescue for a while,” he says. “But Jonah can take you.”
“I can do no such thing, Beau,” I say immediately. “I need to be here, too. You know that.”
“No you don’t.” Beau crosses his arms and gives me an inscrutable look. “We’ll make the treatment plan together when you get back, but until then I need to conduct a thorough examination and take x-rays. Which I don’t need you for.”
“Nathan can take her, then,” I say, grinding my teeth.
“She is right here,” Winnie mutters.
“I’ve got a commitment this afternoon,” Nathan says vaguely, and then shoots me a wink.
“I’m not getting into a car with a man I barely know.” Winnie looks at me warily.
“Well, the trip will give you the chance to get to know him, Win, think of it that way,” Beau supplies. “Jonah is an upstanding guy.”
“Thanks,” I say sarcastically. “It’s real big of you to say that.”
“Fine,” Winnie huffs a moment later. “You can help me. But only because I don’t want to pay the late fee on the rental.”
I don’t mention that I haven’t even agreed yet, I just sigh and say, “Come on, then.”
I dutifully drive behind Winnie all the way to the rental place, which is forty-five minutes away, outside of Bozeman. Thankfully, it’s clear out and the roads are dry, because the dinky little sedan she’s driving was not made for the snow.
When we get there, she heads inside to deal with returning the car, and I wait in my work truck.
I turn the radio on, and tune into the local music station I like.
It’s run by a couple of guys in Bozeman whose taste in music is similar to my own.
They play jazz, blues, and folk, with a few oldies here and there.
It strikes me as odd that Winnie even has a rental car.
If she’s staying in Star Mountain for a while, why not bring her own car?
She certainly seems well-off enough to have one.
And why, exactly, is she even here? Why pick up her entire life and bring it to a horse rescue, when she clearly has minimal experience with horses?
She can’t possibly be looking for a career here.
When she knocks on my window about fifteen minutes later once she’s done, I’m determined to ask her some of these questions.
She climbs into the seat of the truck, and I can’t help but notice that even doing something ordinary, she’s elegant and composed.
She carries herself with an air of grace that I bet is due to her pageant training.
“So why did you have a rental car?” I ask, as we pull out of the parking lot. “Why not drive your own car up here?”
“I don’t have my own car,” she says simply. “I borrow my parents’ cars.”
“You’re, what, twenty-five?”
“Twenty-six,” she corrects.
“Isn’t that a bit old to be using your mom’s car?” I press.
“I don’t really see how this is any of your business.” A slightly sharp tone enters her voice.
Interesting. Miss Pageant Queen doesn’t like to share, it would seem.
“It’s just weird is all,” I say. “The way you packed up your entire life and moved here, even though you don’t really like horses.”
“Excuse me, but I like horses plenty. And I’m helping Candice out with one of the new ones. I’m in charge of Rosie,” Winnie replies defensively.
“Sure, you’re helping out, of course. But I still don’t get why you’d want to move to Star Mountain, of all places. We have one bar, one bakery, one library, and one grocery store. Hell, we only just got a post office last year.”
“I needed a change, I guess. My old life wasn’t what I really wanted. I wanted to do something new, to be someone new.” Her voice sounds small and uncertain.
“What does your family think of all of this?”
“They’re…fine with it. They don’t really matter.”
“Huh-uh, sure,” I say, sensing that there’s much more to that story.
“Really, they are fine with my being here, I promise. They know that this is the right move for me, and they support me. They want me to be happy.”
“You sound like you have to convince yourself of that fact.”
“My God, Jonah,” she splutters. “Are you always like this?”
“Like what?”
“A dog with a bone.”
Now that makes me laugh. Because it’s something my mom is always accusing me of.
“Yes,” I say honestly. “My mother says it’s my worst trait. The fact that I can’t let things go until I get to the bottom of them.”
It’s how I found out that she might have cancer, a year and a half ago.
She and Dad didn’t want to tell me, not until they knew for sure either way, but I could tell something was up.
So I pried and harangued them until they finally relented and told me what was going on.
Maybe it annoyed them, but I don’t regret it one bit.
Having all the facts meant I could be there for her in the way that she needed.
“Well, I’m not worth solving, Jonah,” Winnie says firmly. “And there isn’t a prize at the end for figuring me out.”
The way she discounts herself so easily knocks the wind from me. It’s like she doesn’t even think that she’s worth getting to know. I grip the steering wheel, hard, and drive on for a few minutes without responding to her.
“It’s not about the prize at the end,” I say finally. “It’s about the solving. And you are worth it, Winnie. I promise. We all are.”