Even Lucas, with his silent stares and his mature actions, couldn’t compare.
And Robert didn’t even come close. “I’m still looking for my boots!” Robert called.
“The last time I saw them, they were on the back porch,” his mother said from the kitchen where she was working on lunch. The kids would be hungry when they came back from their last ever horse therapy session.
Larissa, especially, was sad and gloomy, as much as she could be.
Gilbert had decided to take them himself. He was wrapping up loose ends at his business and had almost transitioned out of the office and completely to remote working. He would still pop in from time to time, but he could do it when the kids were at school.
“All right, I’m going to stay and keep an eye on the kids. I might as well watch them at least once and see what I’ve been missing allthis time,” he said. And he wanted to see the property that was going to be his on Tuesday of next week when he signed the papers.
He couldn’t deny that he was excited. He was ready to make a fresh start, to have his children around him, and to become a family again. He thought the kids were ready for that too, although they were going to miss living with Grandma, which had been almost like a year-long vacation for them.
He supposed all of them would have some adjustments to make, including his mother. It was sad to lose the grandchildren she had grown to enjoy making noise around her house.
Of course, Isadora was still there with her three children, but they were much younger, and in Gilbert’s opinion, younger children weren’t as fun as his own children’s age. In fact, so far, this was his favorite age. They were old enough to be fun but not so old that they were constantly challenging his authority or trying to do things that he didn’t approve of. They still looked up to him and respected him, and honestly, they didn’t give him much trouble at all.
He was grateful for that. Maybe the counseling had something to do with it, and he owed someone a huge thank you. Although, again, he kind of thought the fact that he offered her more than her asking price was a pretty big thank you.
He pulled into the farm, thinking that next week this time it would be his driveway and feeling a little thrill of excitement go through him.
The woman with the long blonde hair, Summer, was in the paddock, finishing up with an adult who was grooming a horse that was tied to the railing.
His mother had told him that the grooming of the horses was just as therapeutic as riding them had been. He knew that was true with Larissa. She loved making the horses look pretty. And he had to admit that Summer had gorgeous horses. Both of the horses she had in the parade were absolutely stunning, and he could tell that Larissa was proud to be riding. Although, as Gilbert watched, he found itwas hard for him to take his eyes off the woman, and he didn’t pay as much attention to the horse. He didn’t understand why that was.
Maybe because she had her long blonde hair down, and it flowed in silky waves just like the mane of the horse. Or maybe it was because of the way she sat her horse, confident and sure, so much smaller than the animal under her, but totally in control.
Or maybe it was her smile, despite the fact that he knew that she was facing sorrow and hardship. He admired bravery and self-control, and Summer showed both.
Whatever it was, he felt his eyes drawn to her again, when he would rather have been looking over the property that would soon be his.
“She’s brushing Cricket!” Larissa said. “That’s the horse I usually ride.”
“I wonder where Bunny is? That’s my horse,” Robert said.
“She’s probably in the barn. She said not too many people ride her.” Lucas spoke up from the passenger seat. His eyes were glowing, and he looked more alive than he had the entire week at school.
Maybe this horse therapy thing really was beneficial.
Of course, he knew it was. He’d seen the results with his own eyes, and even if he hadn’t, his mother and sisters gushed over it. Even Jones and Judd, his brothers-in-law, spoke up in defense of how good it was for the kids.
He parked at the front of the stable, noting the flowers that grew there and remembering the plants that had been in the kitchen. Apparently, Summer enjoyed growing things. He appreciated the burst of color, even though it was almost the middle of November.
Usually they had a frost at this elevation long before now, but after a cool, dry summer, they’d been having a prolonged warm spell this fall.
“We’re buying your farm!” Larissa said as she jumped out of the car and started going to Summer who had come out to greet them.
To Summer’s credit, she smiled, and even looked happy forLarissa, as she nodded and said, “I know. Next week, this will be yours.”
Her eyes flitted to Gilbert’s, and Gilbert felt a guilty flush staining his cheeks. He didn’t mean for it to. He had no idea why he would feel guilty. He hadn’t done anything wrong. He’d done this woman a favor. Her farm had been purchased for more than she was asking for it, and she should be thanking him.
He didn’t know why he was so defensive. She hadn’t said a word and just looked happy for Larissa.
“Are you going to leave the horses here? Are they going to be our horses now?” Robert asked as he ran over to Summer, throwing his arms around her waist.
Summer didn’t hesitate but hugged him back. He supposed that was a difference between counseling children and counseling adults. A counselor could never hug a client, but sometimes human beings just needed that reassuring touch, that comfort that only the touch and arms of another human could give.
With children, it was a little different. Especially with a woman counseling them. Affection flowed freely between the three of his children and Summer.
