“Cute.” Kat patted the young donkey on the nose. “The kids will love her.” She was a chocolate brown animal with a soft coat and a gentle disposition. “She’s perfect,” Kat concluded, patting Dolly on the nose. “Let me confer with my partner first.”
Tony was waiting back at his truck, still chatting with the vet who had come to do the pre-purchase exam, when Kat walked up. “So, how is she?” she asked.
“Looks good,” the vet answered. “I’d feel comfortable with the purchase, especially if she’s going to be working with kids. Shewas quite patient with the exam, and sometimes, you know, they aren’t.”
“Perfect.” Kat reached out to shake the veterinarian’s hand. “Thank you so much for making it out here today, doc.”
“Call me any time.”
As he walked away, Kat pulled out her checkbook. “I’m going to purchase her now, so no one else gets to her first.”
Tony nodded and sat down in his truck with the door propped open. Kat leaned over the hood to write her check and paused. She suddenly felt dizzy and then nauseated. It had been unseasonably warm that day, so perhaps she hadn’t had enough water. Either way, she felt awful. She tried to push through it to no avail. Finally, she was forced to run from the truck to the bushes bordering the property to throw up.
By the time she was finished, Tony was already walking toward her. “You OK? You’re white as a sheet.”
“It’s nothing,” Kat assured him. “I probably ate something that had gone off. I feel much better now that I’ve gotten it out. Honest.”
It was true. She did feel better now. She returned to the truck to finish writing the check and give it to the seller. She patted Dolly one more time and told her, “See you soon, little one,” before leaving the ranch. Not even a stomach bug could ruin her good mood, which was clear evidence of how much she had grown since she first came back to her hometown and inherited her uncle’s ranch.
So many times she’d felt like a stranger in her own town. Even in Houston, she’d felt like she didn’t belong. She was some kindof in-between person, a city girl and a country girl, wanting to live in both worlds at once, waffling between the two like an indecisive child. Who could have predicted she’d finally find a way to embrace both lifestyles? The ranch was her country life, her outdoor, slower-paced, hard-working life. And her social media campaign brought the city back into her world. The people and the faster pace, that feeling of endless possibilities, were all in the palm of her hand.
Truly, she had stumbled onto something perfect, and finally, she felt like she might have found a real home. She would never complain that she didn’t belong ever again, not as long as she had this under her belt. This was where she was meant to be. She could feel it deep down in her bones. The drive back to the ranch was not only a drive back to the ranch. She was driving back home.
CHAPTER 17
KAT
Kat picked up Dolly the following day. They moved the goats in with the lambs, so Dolly could have her very own pen to start. She had fresh hay, fresh water, and Kat spent too much time petting her. But there was still a lot of work to be done. The interiors of the guest cabins still needed to be decorated. She’d already purchased furniture, artwork, and decorative objects to go in each one. Most of it was on the cheaper side, which meant the furniture needed to be assembled after she brought it home.
Every day, she told herself to push through just one more day. As soon as the cabins were ready, she could slow down a bit. And then, when Charlie started, things would be more manageable for her. For now, Kat had to keep going, one hour at a time.
She was just screwing together a couch with a hex key when she started to feel dizzy again. “Shoot,” she said to herself. She’d thought it was maybe indigestion from something she’d eaten, but apparently, it was an actual bug. Ten minutes later, she had to run to the toilet. She tried taking something for the nausea,and that seemed to work for a while. But eventually, it came back.
The next day she told Tony she might have to take it a bit easy. As much as she wanted to get everything done as soon as possible, it was likely overwork that made her get sick in the first place. She’d been staying up late and getting up early, working harder throughout the day, and skipping meals. She was a walking, talking petri dish, just waiting for the right virus to come along, and apparently, it had.
“I probably caught something at the store,” she said to Tony. “I’m going to turn in early tonight and see if I feel better in the morning.”
“Sleep in, too,” Tony insisted. “I’ll take care of the horses.”
“Thanks, Tony. You’re a real one.” She gave him an air-high-five from a distance. “Sorry. I don’t know if I’m contagious.”
“Thanks for caring about me,” he said.
She grinned and winked. “Maybe I just care about the ranch, and you’re my only hand.”
“Now, now,” he said. “I know you better than that. Get some rest.”
That night, she ate some chicken soup and drank ginger tea, hoping it would help. Then she took more medicine and went to bed early. She set the alarm on her phone for seven in the morning instead of five, which was when she’d been getting up lately to make up for the lack of Cole. She didn’t wake up until nine.
Kat leapt out of bed the next morning, shouting, “Oh, no! How did I oversleep so much?” She ran around the cabin like thesmoke alarm had gone off and she couldn’t find the fire. She felt terrible. Tony had been out there making up for her laziness, and he was coming off a recent injury. She was the worst boss ever.
As soon as she was dressed, she ran outside to find him. He was already cleaning up the goats’ enclosure. “Tony! I’m so sorry I overslept. I feel awful. Please, tell me what still needs doing, and I’m on it.”
“Don’t you worry about it, kid. I’ve got everything handled. You just look after yourself and get better.” He kept working, and she kept feeling awful.
“Promise you won’t re-injure your back.”
“I’m being careful,” he said. “I’ve thrown my back out before, so I know what I’m doing. Don’t you worry about this old man. Why don’t you take the day off?”
