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James called out to a young man headed toward the barn. “Hey, where are the goats?”
The kid jumped as if he wasn’t used to being noticed by anyone. His brows creased and he glanced around like he wasn’t sure who James was speaking to.
With deft fingers, James untied the rope he had around Calliope’s nose, then he practically swam through the thick layers of straw that lined the ground before he climbed through the rails. “I need to know where the goats are. Can you show me?”
“I’m actually supposed to be giving this horse a—”
“Then if you don’t mind, you could just tell me. I’m sure it can’t be all that hard to find.”
The young man nodded and lifted his arm, pointing in the opposite direction Constance had taken just a little while ago.
“Are you certain?”
He gave James a funny look.
Of course he was certain. He worked here. But now James had a new puzzle to solve. Why had Constance lied about visiting the goats? It was probably nothing. Wherever she went, she had a good reason. But that meant if he headed over to where the goats were located, he’d be there by himself looking like the idiot that he was.
Whatever. He needed to get away from the blatant flirting that was occurring several yards away.
It had been years.
Years.
When he’d dated Brielle, they had been young and inexperienced. He’d had an optimistic view of how relationships were supposed to go. He’d even been naive enough to believe that Brielle’s father would approve of him and give them a pass.
He might have, too, if he had pushed Brielle to finally tell someone about them.
But none of that mattered anymore. She was the same old Brielle, but he was different. He’d grown. He’d matured. And he knew better than to pine after a woman who wasn’t going to do him any good.
What James needed to do was bury himself in work. Relationships would only distract him. And now that he had two horses on therapy, he would need all the focus he could get.
The bleating of the goats reached him before he turned the corner of the barn and came across a pen full of white, brown, and spotted goats. Their strange eyes blinked at him and for a few minutes they went quiet. He wandered toward the fence and rested his folded arms on the top bar.
It must be really easy being an animal, driven by innate desires. They only ever needed to worry about where their next meal would be coming from. That was it. Eat, sleep, and die. At the moment, that sure sounded preferable to dealing with the anguish in his chest that shouldn’t even be there in the first place.
Shane had a point. Trying to forget Brielle by putting someone or something in her place might be the only option he had. There was only one problem. Work wasn’t doing it for him. So a relationship—or maybe a new friendship—could do the trick. He just needed to stay busy.
“What are you doing out here?”
He jumped and turned his head, finding a young woman he hadn’t met before. Her blonde hair was a little darker and could be mistaken for golden brown. She had the same brown eyes that Constance had. They were soulful and warm.
While he’d spent a lot of time with Brielle when they’d dated, she had never let him meet any of her family. The only times he’d interacted with anyone in her family had been after he’d graduated college and started practicing as the town vet.
There was only one thing he knew about this family. They were named alphabetically. But seeing as all the Callahan daughters were old enough to be out of high school, it was getting harder and harder to tell them apart.
He cleared his throat. “I should know your name.”
She arched a brow. “Why are you out here?”
James let out a sigh and sent his gaze toward the goats. “Constance said she’d be out here—something about checking on the goats.”
The girl’s lips quirked into an amused grin. “Constance doesn’t take care of the goats. I do. Lately, she’s been trying her hand at breeding and training. Dad let her start with Calliope but based on the way the last foal was born, she might have to find a new interest.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t think you told me your name?”
She moved forward, coiling a rope she held in a large circle. “I’m Dianna.”
“So, Dianna. What do your other sisters take care of?”
