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Jenny held up the bowl. “Well, I hope I can do her justice.”
Shep cocked his head, watching the two of them. He liked the way Emma looked at his mother. He suspected this was how she had looked when she spoke with her grandmother. There was a softness in Emma’s expression that Shep hadn’t seen yet from her.
“Shep, we’re going to need your help here.”
He blinked out of his thoughts and away from the two women, removing his arm from around Emma’s shoulders. Alan held a long tube in his hand, while Cheryl began opening the tub of mineral oil. Shep sighed. Bentley wasn’t going to like this one bit.
Before he headed off, he pulled Emma in close again and brought his eyes level with hers. “Don’t listen to a damn word she says.”
Emma laughed. “Oh, that means I should listen to every word.”
“See? I like her already,” Jenny replied, placing a hand on her hip. “There was absolutely no reason for us not to meet. You’re so silly, Shep.”
Emma winked.
Shep heaved a long-suffering sigh and strode away, hearing their laughter, hoping to hell his mother was going to help his cause, not hurt it.
* * *
A handful of minutes later, the screen door shut behind Emma as she strode from the house, carrying two glasses of cold sweet tea. Jenny sat in the rocking chair that Grams always sat in, and Emma thought out of all of the brothers, Nash resembled his mother most. When Emma stopped next to her, emotion tightened her throat a little. The way the sun hit Jenny’s hair, it was easy to forget that it wasn’t Grams sitting there. They had a similar round body type; Jenny’s salt-and-pepper hair was even pulled back in a bun like Grams’s always was. Though when Jenny turned her head and smiled, that glimmer of Grams faded away.
“Here, I hope this hits the spot,” Emma said, handing Jenny the glass.
“Thank you, honey.” She sipped her drink.
Emma sat in the other rocking chair, crossing her legs. She downed half of her drink, not realizing how thirsty she’d been from walking Bentley. With the liquid swirling in her mouth, she looked in Bentley’s direction and she nearly coughed, quickly swallowing and placing her glass down on the table before she spilled all over herself. “What are they doing to him?” she gasped.
“It looks worse than it really is,” Jenny said, rocking herself in the chair, holding the glass on her lap.
Emma blinked once, realizing she was seeing things right. Shep pressed one hand to Bentley’s neck, the other hand holding the halter, while the vet fed a long tube into Bentley’s nose. “What it looks like is murder,” Emma commented.
Jenny laughed softly. “That tube is going into his belly, is all, to flush him out. Alan will want to make sure whateve
r caused the colic in his guts is washed out.”
Emma wasn’t sure she felt any better. Poor Bentley. “He’ll be okay after that?”
“He’s okay now.” Jenny gave a soft smile. “This is a precaution, nothing more.” She took another sip of her drink then turned to face Emma, apparently unconcerned. “So, you’re from New York City?”
Emma nodded. “Born and raised.”
“That’s quite the change, from that to being here in River Rock.”
“It’s a huge change, for sure,” Emma agreed.
Jenny tilted her head, examining Emma with a motherly stare, almost as if she could see right through her, just like Grams used to. “Are you not missing the big city at all?”
Emma almost answered, but then she paused. Up until this point, she’d been forcing herself not to miss New York City, telling herself it sucked, the people sucked, and her life there sucked. Because that’s what she had to do to move on. Now she supposed she didn’t need to lie to herself anymore. “I do miss New York City and the life I had there. I miss seeing my parents every day. I miss the smells, the unique people, the noise. Living in the city was what I thought I always wanted.”
“That kind of fancy life, you mean?”
Emma nodded. “The corporate life. I loved working in a high-rise, walking with the crowds in the morning, the dinners, the parties. I loved every minute of that life.”
“It does sound very exciting.” Jenny rocked in her chair, giving a gentle, warm smile. “I always knew I’d be a rancher’s wife.”
Emma’s friends in New York City would think that such a boring life, far too simple. Emma knew better. “Grams shared that dream too. She loved being outside all day, cooking for her family, making them a priority.” Emma remembered the advice Grams gave her: The people you love are who matter in the end. Emma’s heart squeezed; she’d been so busy in New York City, so far from Grams when she passed away. Regret on top of regret, Emma wished she could change so much.
Emma’s emotions must have shown on her face because Jenny’s voice warmed. “Daisy was quite the lovely woman. She’d be so delighted you were here, taking care of things. Every time I saw her, she always mentioned you.”
