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Gracie’s hands flew to her mouth. “Oh. Daddy’s not happy about you telling me that horses are your first love. That must be a secret, too. Daddy said it’s a secret that he loves you and me and that we are in his heart. You can’t talk about that at work, Presley.”
This just went from bad to fucked-up in a matter of seconds.
Presley barked out a laugh as I scrubbed a hand down my face. “That’s not what I said. Daddy’s working right now, so I need a lot less chatter so I can figure out what’s going on with Honey, okay?”
“What if I take her a few stalls down to meet Sally? She’s three years old, and she’s really gentle. She’d be a great starter horse.” Presley’s gaze locked with mine. Oddly, she was one of the few people I’d trust with my daughter around a horse. She’d grown up around them, and she wouldn’t risk introducing Gracie to an animal that wasn’t safe.
“Please, Daddy?” Gracie put her hands together like she was praying. The girl was a master at getting her way.
“Fine. No riding. You can just pet her.”
Presley put Gracie down on her feet and took her hand before leading her out of the stall. I checked out Honey’s teeth, moving from the top to the bottom to see how to go about treating her.
I was pretty surprised that it had gotten this bad, considering they had a full-time doctor caring for these horses. I stroked her head a few times.
“We’re going to get you taken care of,” I said.
“Is she all right?” Butch asked.
“She’s got some pretty bad dental issues going on. A nasty infection on one side of her mouth. How often is Dr. Flank out here?”
“He’s been coming once a week for the last six months, but honestly, the guy doesn’t do much when he’s here. He just does a standard check, and he doesn’t stay all that long. I don’t know how good he actually is.”
“Yeah, I’m going to take a look at the other horses, but Honey here is going to need to get some work done because she’s definitely in pain. I can come and take care of that tomorrow if they want it done quickly, which I would recommend.”
“Thanks for coming by so quickly. I know Presley is pretty upset about it,” he said, as he leaned against the stall. “Gracie is loving that horse a few stalls down. I think you might have a horse girl on your hands.”
“I’d prefer she just stay inside and color,” I grumped before moving out of the stall to check the other horses as Butch’s loud laughter bellowed out behind me.
After I’d made my rounds, I paused to find Gracie brushing Sally, with Presley’s hand over hers, teaching her how to do it properly. It was surreal to be here with my daughter, the place where I’d first met this woman, and my whole life had pretty much changed course. She was the reason I’d decided to pursue veterinary medicine. She’d always been so driven with school and everything that she did, and it inspired me in a lot of ways.
“Hey,” she said. “How bad is it?”
“It’s not great.” I ran a hand down my face. “She’s got some pretty bad tooth decay and a nasty infection. I don’t know how often your doctor is checking their mouths, but I’d recommend getting them regularly checked. The others are okay, but Daisy needs a filling in one of her teeth, as well. Honey is going to need to get an extraction. It’s the best option to provide the most relief for her. I can clear my afternoon tomorrow and come out here and sedate her and get it done if you want. But you’re going to need someone to stay on top of this. I don’t think they’re getting regular checkups, by the looks of it.”
“I knew that guy didn’t know what he was doing. And my dad has him driving out to Casper Creek in two days to check on another Dutch Warmblood that he has his heart set on. She’s from the same breeder where we got Honey all those years ago, and she’s really beautiful. But how do we trust a guy who told me Honey was fine and that it was just part of the aging process? He was going to allow her to suffer.”
“You don’t.” It came out harsh, but I’d learned early on that once someone shows you who they are, you may as well fucking believe them. Honey had been neglected, and that shit shouldn’t be happening.
“Agreed. Well, there’s someone else interested in this horse, so my dad is anxious to get someone out there. I’ll just tell him that I can go handle it, and if everything looks good, I’ll bring her home.”
“Because you’re a horse doctor now?” I asked, raising a brow.
“Daddy’s the best animal doctor I know.” Gracie turned and smiled at me. Her dark curls fell all around her shoulders beneath her hat, and her nose was bright pink from the temperature in the barn.
“I’m the only animal doctor you know,” I teased. “Come here. Let me warm you up.”
Presley’s gaze tracked the movement as I scooped up my little girl and tucked her beneath my chin. Her cold nose rubbed against my neck.
“I’ve got Gracie’s Valentine’s Day party in two days, but I could drive out later that afternoon with you and check out the horse, and if all looks good, we can bring her back in the trailer. You need her to be evaluated before you just sign off. Let me just make sure my parents can keep Gracie for a few hours after school.”
“That would be amazing. I’ll let my dad know about Dr. Flank, and we’ll try to find a replacement right away.”
Gracie gasped, and her head shot up. “Presley can come to the Valentine’s Day party, too. Then you can take me to Grammie and Pops and go get the new horse. All the other kids have two parents that come to the party, so this would be perfect, Daddy.”
My chest clenched at her fucking words. I tried hard to soften my tone as I made sure she understood that this was different. This was exactly why I’d never brought a woman into her life. Not that there’d been anyone I’d wanted to introduce her to before now—but she got attached easily, and I was aware of that.
And this woman that she was fawning all over was not staying.
