Second Chance Ranch
Leann Harris
Former soldier and rodeo rider Zachary McClure's war injuries are far deeper than physical. Skeptical that anyone can reach the dark place in his soul, he visits an Albuquerque equine therapy ranch with no expectations. How can horses possibly mend his physical and emotional injuries when nothing - and no one - else has?He finds the answer when he meets Sophie Powell, an ex-army medic with a sunny smile, gentle touch and a determination to help others through horse therapy. But behind her big hopes and cheerful attitude lurks pain - and Zachary is just the man to change that. He can make Sophie's dreams a realityand she may be the woman to heal this wounded hero's heart.
As Sophie watched Zach drive out of the parking lot, she suddenly felt overwhelmed.
She wondered what was happening. Dinner with Zach’s parents tomorrow night was simply business. They wanted to know about their son’s progress. Nothing more.
So, why did she feel so confused? Zach’s kiss.
Obviously Zach had feelings for her as proved by what just happened, but where had those feelings sprung from? Gratitude. Simply gratitude for his recovery. Nothing more.
She’d pushed him into riding again, forced him to face the life he’d left. She demanded the best from him and didn’t accept excuses.
He’d responded to that tough love with an eagerness that surprised her.
So had he misinterpreted his own feelings?
And what about her feelings? Zach tapped into the attraction she’d felt for him so long ago, but watching him struggle and watching him interact with the kids, she gained a respect for the man. She admired him. That was it. Nothing more.
Too bad that logic didn’t feel right.
LEANN HARRIS
When Leann Harris was first introduced to her husband in college she knew she would never date the man. He was a graduate student getting a PhD in physics, and Leann had purposely taken a second year of biology in high school to avoid taking physics. So much for first impressions. They have been married thirty-eight years and still approach life from very different angles.
After graduating from the University of Texas at Austin, Leann taught math and science to deaf high school students for a couple of years until the birth of her first child. When her youngest child started school, Leann decided to fulfill a lifelong dream and began writing.
She is a founding member and former president of the Dallas Area Romance Writers. Leann lives in Dallas, Texas, with her husband. Visit her at her website, www.leannharris.com.
Second Chance Ranch
Leann Harris
I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you…
—Ephesians 1:18
To the men and women of the U.S. Military, all current and former members. Thank you for your service to this country.
Acknowledgments
I want to thank:
Brenda Rozinsky and Ariane Mele at Equest Therapeutic Horsemanship Ranch for their help.
Donald R. Cummings at Scottish Rite Hospital in Dallas for his generous time and explaining to me how prosthesis limbs work.
Theresa Zumwalt and Jane Graves for your insight with horses.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Epilogue
Letter to Reader
Questions for Discussion
Chapter One
Zachary McClure closed his eyes and breathed in the calming and familiar smells of the barn—horses, grains, leather and liniment. He hadn’t smelled anything that comforting in the past four years. Dust, diesel and fear had filled his days in Iraq. Disinfectant, moans and sickness had filled his last year in the hospital. The smell of horses took him back to pre-army days. That was before—
He stopped the thought. He couldn’t change the past.
“You all right?”
Zach opened his eyes and looked into his sister’s concerned face. Beth had always looked up to him, but lately they argued a lot. He hadn’t wanted to come today, didn’t want to face the ghosts of his past and the limitations of today, but she kept badgering him with phone calls and coming by his apartment, telling him he needed to start riding again. He tried sending her home, but somehow she got him to agree to come once here to the New Hope Ranch.
“I am.”
“C’mon. My friend Sophie is waiting for us.” Beth linked her arm with his and started moving forward. “You remember her? She was my roommate in college.”
He definitely remembered Sophie Powell. The weekend Beth brought Sophie home he’d been thunderstruck by the coltish girl. She wasn’t model-beautiful, but there’d been a beauty about her. It had been her eyes, piercing blue. And her smile set him back on his heels. She had a crooked nose with freckles scattered across it and her cheeks. But that only added to her beauty. “I remember,” he muttered. Only too well, he silently added.
Beth leaned close and whispered, “I think she had a crush on you.”
“What?” Zach’s head jerked around and his gaze clashed with Beth’s. Her grin told him she was teasing him. Yet, there was a twinkle in her eye that made him wonder if maybe it was true.
“And she’s ex-army, too.”
This had the smell of a setup.
They walked down through the walkway between the stable and the office. Children’s voices filled the air with laughter and excitement.
When they emerged, he could see the two practice rings. In the far ring a horse with its rider and two spotters moved around the enclosure. On the far side of the rings stood bleachers where three people sat, watching. In front of the closest ring, a woman knelt before a horse. A young boy, maybe six or seven, stood beside her.
“Will he bite?” the boy asked, eyeing the reddish-brown horse.
“No, she won’t. You should give it a try. Samantha, or as we call her, Sam, is very gentle.”
Zach remembered that low, rich voice. Sophie’s. He often wondered what had become of his sister’s college roommate and had wanted to ask, but that would’ve given his sis ideas.
Sophie held an apple in her hand. “Put your hand out,” she instructed, “and I’ll give you the apple.”
The boy frowned at Sophie, then at the apple.
“You sure? I saw the b-i-g teeth.” The boy kept his hand clenched in a fist.
Zach felt a smile bubble up, but he knew Sophie wouldn’t appreciate his reaction.
She nodded. “I’m sure. Sam’s my friend. She can be your friend, too.”
The boy glanced around and saw Zach and Beth.
Without thinking, Zach walked over to the pair and took the apple from Sophie’s hand. Her startled gaze locked with his. The connection was instantaneous and well remembered. Silently, he asked her permission.
Her nod was almost imperceptible.
Zach hooked his cane over his left forearm and put the apple into his right hand.
“You need to make sure your hand is flat. It makes it easier for the horse to get the apple if your fingers are not in the way,” he explained. “I’m sure Sam wouldn’t want to bite your fingers, so you have to make it easy for her.”
The boy’s eyes widened.
Zach showed the boy how to hold the apple, then offered it to the horse. Sam opened her mouth and took the apple.
“Wow. Can I try?”
“Sure.” He looked at Sophie.
She stood and walked over to the barrel by one of the wooden porch columns, opened it and pulled out another apple. She gave it to Zach.
“Open your hand,” Zach instructed the boy. When he looked up, doubt colored the youngster’s eyes.
“Would you like for me to help?”
He nodded his head. “’Kay.”
Zach moved behind the boy. Zach wished he could’ve squatted, but the prosthesis wouldn’t allow it. Instead he put the apple in the boy’s outstretched hand. “Now, be sure your fingers are out straight.”
Zach slipped his big hand under the boy’s and they moved their hands to the horse’s mouth. Sam’s lips and teeth picked up the apple.
The boy giggled. “That tickles.”
Sam chewed happily. Zach grinned.
Sophie’s eyes twinkled. The lady’s impact on him hadn’t diminished over the years.
She stepped to their side. “Would you like to ride Sam?” she asked the boy.
“Okay.” He turned to Zach. “My name is Andy. I come here to ride. Mom says riding’s goin’ to help me. Is that so? What if I fall off the horse?”
He was way over his head here. Zach glanced at Sophie, hoping for some sort of direction.
“You don’t have to worry about falling, Andy. You see all the other people around here walking beside the riders? That’s to make sure no one falls.”
Andy looked around. “Oh.” He turned to Zach. “Are you here to help me? Will you walk beside me?”
The question took Zach by surprise.
“This is Zach’s first time here,” Sophie explained. She stood on the other side of Andy. “He doesn’t know how to be a sidewalker.”
A mulish frown settled on Andy’s face, and he crossed his arms over his chest. He looked at Zach. “Would you ride with me?”
Zach swallowed. “Well, Andy, I haven’t been riding in a few years. Besides, my leg doesn’t work as well as it used to.”
Andy looked at Zach’s legs, then at the cane hanging over Zach’s arm. “Why?”
Suddenly the air filled with tension. He glanced at his sister, then Sophie. Did they think he’d go off on the kid? Zach leaned close and whispered, “I have a fake foot and calf.”
“Calf?” Andy frowned.
Nodding, Zach pulled up his pant leg and showed the prosthesis on his right leg to Andy.
“That’s cool. Can I touch it?”
“Maybe—” Sophie started.
“Sure.”
The boy squatted and touched the artificial leg. His eyes widened. “Wow. How’d that happen?”
Sophie stepped in. “You want to ride, Andy?”
“Can Zach help? He can walk beside me.”
“Sophie knows how this works. I don’t.” Zach turned to her. “What do you want me to do?”
The tension seeped out of her shoulders. “I’ll lead Sam and you can walk on one side of Sam, and Beth on the other. Will that work for you, Andy?”
“Yes,” he crowed, hopping to his feet. He patted Zach’s arm. “It’s okay about your leg. I’ve got Down’s.”
“Really?”
Andy nodded. “Mom says I’m extraspecial.”
“She’s right.”
Sophie smiled at Zach. “Thanks,” she mouthed.
Satisfaction spread through Zach’s chest.
They walked to the mounting steps. Sophie got the horse into position. Andy scrambled up the steps.
“Put on your helmet, Andy,” Sophie called out.
He raced back down the steps and over to the row of helmets sitting on a shelf at the end of the stalls. He grabbed a helmet and put it on. He raced back to the steps. Zach rested his cane against the side of the stable by the mounting steps.
“Let Zach help you get on the horse, Andy,” Sophie instructed.
Whoa, he didn’t know how he was to help. Glancing at his sister, he silently questioned her.
“Just support him as he slips his leg over the pad,” she instructed, “then guide his foot into the stirrup.”
Resting his hands around Andy’s waist, Zach lifted the boy onto the saddle blanket. A smile curved Andy’s mouth.
Beth helped Andy put his leg in the stirrup attached to the blanket.
“Now, just hold his leg to make sure he doesn’t slip,” Beth instructed her brother. Beth had been here before and worked as a sidewalker.
“What do you say, Andy?” Sophie asked from her place by Sam’s head.
“Go forward,” Andy crowed.
Sam started walking.
Zach grabbed the front of the saddle pad and his other hand rested on Andy’s leg. Andy turned and smiled at Zach. His heart overturned. With the warm New Mexico sun on his back and the feel of the horse under his hand, Zach felt a peace in his soul—a peace he hadn’t felt in a long, long time.
Oddly enough, Zach, Beth and Sophie worked in tandem, he on the left side of the horse, Beth on the right, and Sophie leading Sam.
After three times around the ring, Zach felt the strain in his arms and legs. He stumbled, and his artificial leg folded underneath him, and he fell to the ground.
Andy cried out in dismay. Beth raced to Zach’s side. Sophie started to move away from Sam, but Zach waved her back.
“I’m okay.”
All the activity in both rings stopped. One of the sidewalkers from the next ring came to Zach’s side. The man stopped and said, “How do you want to handle this?”
He would’ve rather faced a terrorist in the streets of Baghdad, instead of being facedown in the dirt in front of his sister and the woman he’d been attracted to. He rolled to his side and told the man how to help him stand. It was slow and awkward as he struggled to his feet. When he stood, Andy clapped.
“You need any more help?” the man asked Zach.
Zach shook his head. He limped over to a bench under the stable’s awning, which sheltered the entrance to the stables. He’d been thrown by plenty of wild broncos and bulls in his rodeo days, but there’d been no shame in it. This time, he’d fallen flat on his face walking.
Walking.
What kind of man can’t walk?
He closed his eyes and rested his head against one of the porch posts. He knew that coming here this morning was a mistake. He just didn’t know how big a mistake it would be.
Sophie looked at Zach. Her heart had skipped a beat earlier when she glanced up and saw him standing above her. Beth had called Sophie at the beginning of this week begging for help with Zach. Beth and Sophie had kept in contact since their college days when they roomed together and Sophie was more than happy to offer her friend a helping hand.
Zachary McClure still took her breath away. Tall, with wide shoulders and narrow hips, he cast a large shadow. Somehow, that handsome face seemed to have aged more than the few years since she’d last seen him. The weariness in his deep blue eyes matched the new lines bracketing his eyes and mouth.
“Is Zach feeling okay?” Andy asked, snapping her out of her memories.
Turning to Andy, Sophie saw the frown crossing his young face. “I think he’s fine.” She prayed he was.
For the next few minutes Sophie walked Sam, but Andy remained quiet. When she guided Sam toward the steps, she motioned for another sidewalker to help Andy dismount. The instant Andy’s feet touched ground he raced to Zach’s side.
“I’m sorry you fell,” Andy whispered, tears in his voice.
Sophie’s heart contracted.
Zach opened his eyes. Sophie felt Beth stop behind her. They both waited breathlessly for Zach’s answer.
Reaching out, he ruffled the boy’s hair. “I’m okay. Only my pride was damaged.”
Andy nodded and moved closer. “I hate it when I trip and the other kids laugh.” His lower lip trembled.
Zach slid his arm around Andy’s shoulders and pulled him to his side. “I do, too. Makes me feel bad.”
Andy nodded. “That’s why my mom wanted me to come to ride on the horse. She said it would help me.” He touched his stomach. “She said it would make my tummy stronger. Maybe it would help you, too.”
Zach’s brow arched and he glanced at Sophie as if accusing her of planning that little scene. He couldn’t believe that, could he?
“Thanks, buddy.”
The boy accepted the praise and leaned against Zach. “Will you be here next time I ride?” The youthful hope in Andy’s expression pulled at Sophie’s heart.
Zach rubbed his neck. “Well—”
She knelt by Andy’s side. “Zach isn’t trained for this. He only came today to see what we do here.”
Andy faced Zach. “I’m learning. So can you.”
Well, Andy certainly didn’t beat around the bush.
Andy’s mother walked up to the group. “Did you enjoy your ride?” After two sessions when Andy hadn’t left his mother’s side, she agreed to disappear until the session was over.
“I rode Sam,” Andy explained, throwing out his chest. “And I met a new friend, Zach. He’s got a fake leg. But he helped me get on Sam. You want to show my mom your funny foot and leg?”
Andy’s mother’s face lost all color. “I’m—”
Zach stood and smiled at the woman. “I’m glad I could help Andy.”
“I asked him to help me again next time, but he told me no.” Andy crossed his arms over his chest and stuck out his bottom lip.
Things were quickly getting out of control.
“Andy, Zach needs some practice himself,” Sophie gently explained. “Why don’t you come back next time and we’ll see what we can work out.”
Andy glared at the group. “I’d want Zach to help.”
Andy’s mother stepped in. “We need to get going. Why don’t you put up your helmet?” She unbuckled the strap and Andy ran to put his helmet on the rack.
“Thank you,” Andy’s mother said. After shaking everyone’s hand, she led her son down the breezeway to the parking lot behind the stable.
Zach sat back down and closed his eyes.
Sophie faced Beth. Before Sophie could say anything, Beth shook her head.
Sophie knew brother and sister needed time to themselves. She turned and headed toward Sam, who’d been left tied to the ring by the mounting steps and needed to be unsaddled.
Tears gathered in Sophie’s eyes as she walked Sam back to her stall. She knew the battle that raged inside Zach. She’d seen that clash countless times in each of the men she treated in Iraq as a medic. She helped soldiers, airmen and civilians survive their wounds. Now she wanted to help those brave men and women win the heart-and-soul skirmish to gain back their lives.
She stopped and pulled off the saddle blanket, resting it on the half wall of the stall.
“I want to save as many as I can,” she whispered into Sam’s neck. And maybe, just maybe, she could atone for the one life she couldn’t save.
Zach sat in the tack room. The humiliation this afternoon hadn’t been any worse than when he fell off his horse at his parents’ ranch in full view of his family and all the ranch hands. It was the first time he’d been on a horse since before the attack. He’d tried to ride away from the stable and his mount spooked and he fell off. Unfortunately, his prosthesis didn’t come out of the stirrup and he’d been dragged around in front of the stable. When his brother, Ethan, caught the horse, he hit the release button, breaking the vacuum holding the prosthesis onto Zach’s leg. His mother had cried, rushing to his side, and his father yelled for his brother to get the horse out of his sight. This afternoon wasn’t that gut-wrenching, but had left a mighty bad taste in his mouth. Literally as well as figuratively.
The door to the tack room opened and an old man walked in. He nodded.
Zach acknowledged the greeting with his own nod.
The old guy went about putting up tack. “I saw you ride at the Frontier Days Rodeo in Ocate. It was a great win.”
Zach remembered that rodeo held in the little town in northeastern New Mexico. It had been his first all-around championship. He’d been a senior in high school and full of himself. “Thanks.”
“You’ve got a natural talent, Zach McClure.”
“Had.”
The old guy stopped. “I didn’t know talent was in your foot.”
The unexpected comeback stunned Zach. The old guy had a point. A smile curved Zach’s lips. “I didn’t know it, either.”
The man walked over to where Zach sat. “When I was young and riding the circuit, I had more drive than sense. I got tossed off a bull. He was a nasty piece of work. Once he throwed me, he came back to stomp on my arm.” He shook his head. “I never saw a clown move so fast as to get that bull’s attention on him.
“It took me six months to heal. It took another six months for me to get my body back into shape. I kept falling off those mean critters until I built my body back up. I figure with you being in the hospital a while, you got the same problem.” He started toward the door. “You might cut yourself some slack, son.” He continued toward the door.
“You know my name. What’s yours?” Zach called out.
“Ollie Morton. I’m foreman here.”
“Thanks.” Zach closed his eyes and shook his head. Was he feeling so sorry for himself that he couldn’t see the obvious?
“Did Ollie hit it on the head, Lord?” Zach asked when Ollie had left. As he thought about the foreman’s advice, Zach realized he may not have been thrown by a bull, but he might’ve stumbled onto the truth.
Sophie walked back from stabling Brownie, the small chestnut mare they used with the younger children.
Other riders were exiting the arena and the chatter of happy voices surrounded her. There would be no other lessons today and all the horses needed to be unsaddled, watered and fed.
There were two other hands to help with the horses, but they needed more help. Sophie’s boss, Margaret, couldn’t help anymore since her stroke six weeks ago, and Margaret’s children wanted nothing to do with the facility.
Sophie worked for twenty minutes, putting the horses in the corral on the east side of the barn. Each of their stalls needed to be mucked out, and fresh water, feed and hay put in each one. The large metal building had two main halls that ran parallel. Stalls were on either side of the hall and an enclosed tack room stood at the far western end of the building closest to one set of large double doors. At the end of each hall was another set of double doors leading to the outside corrals.
She tried not to think, but went on automatic with the chores. She prayed under her breath, asking the Lord for wisdom and to comfort Zach’s heart.
“Sophie, I’ve finished. So has Marty,” David Somers called out. “You want me to put the horses back in their stalls?”
“No, go on. I’ll see to it.”
He nodded and disappeared.
Each of the horses had earned an extra treat and praise for their performance today. She wished Ollie was still here, but with her encouragement he’d gone to the hospital to see Margaret.
Sophie put new hay in Sam’s stall and walked to the tack room to put up the lead ropes she used. Sitting on a bale of hay was Zach. In his hands he held one of the bridles. Those strong hands worked over the leather, cleaning it.
Sophie stopped and stared at him. “You’re still here?”
“I am.”
Now what? Zachary McClure had a way of rattling her that no other man had. She had no trouble dealing with the soldiers in her unit or her patients. None of them had this effect on her of making her stomach flip-flop. She tried to ignore the feeling.
Zach’s hands stilled. “I’ve been thinking a lot about what happened this afternoon.”
He hadn’t been the only one. She’d played the scene over and over in her mind, wondering what she could’ve done differently. She knew that Beth had worked weeks to get Zach here, and then to have him trip in the middle of the ring… She wanted to run over to him and help him up, but she knew he wouldn’t appreciate it. He’d been rodeoing since he was in middle school and had been on track for a championship rodeo buckle before he joined the army.
“This afternoon with Andy has been the best afternoon I’ve had in a long time.” He closed his eyes, and a satisfied smile curved his mouth. “I wanted to get up on Sam myself and ride.” His wistful smile nearly brought her to her knees. “It’s a dream for me.”
Sophie held her breath. There was hope here.
He opened his eyes and his gaze met hers. “Beth told me you wanted to start a program for wounded soldiers.”
“That’s true. One of the guys I treated when I was a medic in Baghdad was a double amputee, losing both his arms. But when I saw him riding at the stables near Walter Reed with such joy on his face, I knew what I wanted to do.” There’d been a certainty in her heart she knew God had given her. “I knew Margaret had started a therapy group here. She and I talked about expanding the program to include vets, also. We wanted to approach the army to see if they would use our program for their wounded vets.”
He nodded and went back to working the cloth over the bridle.
There was more she wanted to say to him, she knew, but she didn’t know how to bridge that gap. “Want to help me bring in the horses for the night? Ollie’s off visiting Margaret, the ranch owner who’s in the hospital, and the rest of my help has left.”
His head came up and she read hunger in his eyes. “Yeah, I’ll help.” He hung the bridle on a hook beside the other tack, placed the rag in the bin below and grabbed his cane.
As he walked to the door, Sophie saw flickers of the old Zach she knew. Her nerves danced with excitement and hope.
“Lead the way, Miss Sophie Powell.”
“That’s Lieutenant Powell.”
“I outrank you. I was a captain.”
“A smart officer listens to his subordinates who know more than he does.” The instant the words left her mouth, she wanted to snatch them back.
His mouth curved into a smile. “You’re right. A smart officer listens to his men.”
“And you’re going to listen to me?”
He nodded. “You’re the expert.”
“Smart move.”
“Finally, after months of knocking my head against the wall.” The corner of his mouth tilted up.
She knew about knocking one’s head against the wall. She’d been an expert at that.
The day had cooled and the sweet smell of pine filled the air as they walked in silence to the corral behind the barn. Sophie’s heart soared with hope—the hope Zach wanted to ride.
“How long have you been working here?” Zach asked.
“I mustered out nearly twenty months ago. I started riding here in high school.” She didn’t mention she’d wanted to feel closer to her brother, who died in a riding accident. “In college, I came whenever I was home. I knew Margaret had started working with Down’s children when her first grandbaby was born with Down’s.” She rested her arms on the top rail of the fence. Too bad that daughter had moved to Oregon, leaving her brother and sister here who opposed using the ranch to help children with disabilities. “She and I talked about my dream of seeing if we could help the wounded vets. But just as we were going to present it to the army, she had a stroke.”
Sam trotted to the fence and nudged Sophie’s hand. She laughed and stroked the white blaze on her nose. “Oh, you’re so spoiled.”
The horse turned her head toward Zach, nudging his hand. He obliged Sam and patted her neck. “I felt like a fool out there today, eatin’ dirt.”
Sophie didn’t respond.
“I know Beth’s been after me for a while to start riding again.” He continued to stroke Sam’s neck. “She was right. I miss the horses. I miss the physical activities.” He turned, facing her. “I’m not in good physical condition, which I’ve found out the hard way. But maybe I can be your first test case to show the army what equine therapy can do?”
Not sure she heard correctly, she turned toward him. “Really? You want to be my test case?”
“I do.”
His words floored her.
“I also want to help around the stable, too. Maybe I could be a sidewalker for some of the kids you deal with.”
“I know Andy would love that.”
Zach grinned. “Yeah, you’re right. He’s a persistent little boy.”
Here was the dream she had for the future, of helping vets overcome the physical wounds of war. Zachary McClure, ex–rodeo champ and army veteran, wanted to be her first client.
“You sure this is what you want to do?”
He nodded, a grin creasing his mouth. “I spent the afternoon wrestling with my pride, which took a beating. I also questioned God. He and I talked, and it’s what I want to do.”
“All right. Let’s do this.”
Chapter Two
After they finished putting the horses in their stalls, they walked to the stable’s office.
“When would you like to start?” Sophie asked, collapsing into her chair.
He settled in the chair beside the desk. “Work me around the other therapy sessions.”
“How about tomorrow morning?”
Zach leaned back in his chair and laughed. “You’re not going to let me chicken out, are you?”
Sophie felt the heat in her cheeks as she blushed. “That’s what the army taught me. You get permission, you act.”
“How long were you in theater?”
His question caught her by surprise. “I did a full tour there, plus my tour was extended twice. I was all over Iraq, but mostly around Baghdad and Fallujah.”
He nodded. “Summer’s a killer.”
“You want to start tomorrow?” she pressed, refusing to be diverted.
“Fine. Tomorrow it is. What time?”
She glanced at the schedule. “8:00 a.m. We’ll do it before any other appointments.”
He studied her. “I’ll be here.”
Her tension melted away.
“You need a ride home?” Sophie asked going to the door.
“I’ll just call for a taxi.”
She shook her head. “No. I’ll drive you home.”
He opened his mouth, then closed it, stood and joined her at the door. “So you had a crush on me in college,” he said, his voice full of mirth.
Sophie’s hand froze on the key in the office door. Zach leaned his shoulder against the building, his body filling her vision. He arched his brow as he waited.
“Wh-what are you talking about?”
He lifted one shoulder. “The last thing Beth whispered in my ear before we emerged from the breezeway earlier today was that you had a crush on me while you were in college.”
She was going to kill Beth. “I think maybe your sister tried to appeal to your masculine ego. If you knew that I found you attractive, you might be more willing to—”
“You think I’m handsome?”
He wanted to provoke her. She pulled the key from the door. “I’m going to plead the Fifth.”
His satisfied grin told her that he understood she hadn’t answered the question. He fell into step beside her.
One car stood in the parking lot. Hers. As they approached it, a truck pulled up in front of them.
Zach laughed. “My sister called in the cavalry.”
“She called the army?” Sophie asked, totally confused.
“No. She called my brother, Ethan.”
Ethan was Zach’s older brother. When they were in college, Beth told her about the adventures of her two older brothers. They had tolerated a younger sister until she turned thirteen and started attracting male attention. Much to Beth’s chagrin, her brothers decided to be her guardians and ran off more boys than Beth could count. It wasn’t until she was at the University of New Mexico campus in Albuquerque that she had her first serious boyfriend.
The truck door opened and Ethan got out and came around the front of the truck. “Hey, bro, Beth sent me to pick you up. She said you were kinda prickly.” Ethan grinned, wagging his brows. Sophie choked on a cough.
“So she chickened out, did she?” Zach remarked.
Ethan laughed. “No one said Bethie was stupid. A royal pain, yes, but she knows how to save her own skin.”
A smile spread across Zach’s face and he shook his head. “I assume you agree with her that I needed to get off my backside and start living again.”
Ethan crossed his arms and leaned back against the front fender. “Couldn’t have said it better myself.”
The strong family resemblance between the brothers made one look twice. Ethan and Zach could’ve been twins. Zach was an inch or so shorter than his brother, and his eyes were blue while Ethan’s were gray. But both men were handsome, with dark hair, strong cheeks and full mouths. Ethan grinned easily. Zach didn’t.
Apparently, Beth wasn’t the only McClure sibling who wanted to help Zach. Interesting.
“Well, I’m glad that you feel that way. I’m going to have my first session tomorrow morning at eight.”
Ethan jerked up straight. “Really?”
“That’s right, and I’ll need someone to help in the session, won’t I?” Zach directed the last question at Sophie.
“Huh, yes.” Zach’s question surprised her, but if he wanted his brother to be the sidewalker, she’d welcome the help. “Since both of you are horse people, I think that Ethan should do fine. I’ll have another sidewalker here, but I’d love to have Ethan work with us.”
Without any hesitation, Ethan answered, “I’ll do whatever you need me to do.”
“Then it’s set.”
“I’ll see you all tomorrow.”
It took a few moments for Zach to maneuver himself into the passenger side of the truck. He jerked the door closed, rolled the window down and rested his arm on it. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Sophie.”
“Be prepared to work, Zach.”
“I’ll be ready.”
Alleluia, there was hope. “See you tomorrow.”
She stood watching the truck disappear down the road.
Lord, I see the open door and I’ll walk through it, but could it have been with someone else? Someone else who hadn’t captured my heart and left it in jail.
“Have I been that much of a pain?” Zach asked his brother.
“Well, let me put it this way. I’ve been tempted to punch you. My prayer life has certainly increased, little brother.”
Zach knew his brother was at the end of his rope. He got called “little brother” only when he was in major trouble.
“I’ve been that much of a jerk?”
Ethan glanced at him. “Yeah.”
This afternoon had torn away the apathy Zach had wrapped himself in. When he woke in Walter Reed Army Hospital and looked at what was left of his leg, he wanted to shout and throw things. He’d reached for the bedpan, but the guy in the next bed stopped him.
“Go ahead and throw it. It won’t change anything.”
When Zach looked over at the guy, he was minus both of his legs and his left hand and forearm.
After that warning from Bill Jensen, the two men became fast friends. Bill’s wife and family had adopted him, and when Zach’s mom came to D.C., she considered Bill another son.
There had been so many times after a therapy session when he’d question God about why this happened. Why him? What had he done? The night he read in the Book of Luke about Jesus’s death on the cross, he realized that there was nothing He did to deserve such an awful death. What was his loss compared to Jesus’s?
Zach had slowly worked through most of his anger. Bill had gone back to his job, teaching in a community college in Wichita Falls, Texas. But what was Zach going to do? Before, he’d planned on following the rodeo circuit, trying to earn a championship belt buckle.
“Today, being with the horses gave me hope. I want to ride again.”
“About time.”
“So you’re ready to come with me each time I ride?” Zach asked.
“I am, and I’ll spring for breakfast.”
“I really must’ve been a pain if you’re willing to pay for breakfast.”
“And then some.”
Sophie walked back to the guest cabin. She moved there after Margaret had her stroke. Margaret’s son, Austin, had asked her to stay on the property while his mother recuperated. He wanted Sophie to take over the day-to-day running of the ranch since none of Margaret’s kids wanted to divide their time between their jobs and their mother’s ranch.
Austin complained about having to continue with the equine-therapy sessions, but several of the parents had bought package sessions for their children, and Austin didn’t want to refund the money. The ranch foreman, Ollie Morton, had planned to retire at the end of the month but he agreed to stay until Margaret could hire a replacement.
Sophie let herself into the cabin. No welcoming aromas from a cooked dinner filled the air. The hum of the refrigerator cut off, leaving the house silent. Sophie loved being with the horses, but she needed a maid. Or someone to take care of the mundane things like fixing dinner and washing her clothes. In the army, she had three square meals a day and clean clothes.
She pulled a frozen dinner out of the freezer compartment and popped it into the microwave. What had the women a hundred years ago done after a long day of working on the farm? The phone rang the same instant the microwave dinged. She picked up the wall phone. “Hello.”
“You’re a miracle worker, Sophie,” Beth gushed.
“I wish.”
“You don’t know how hard I had to argue with Zach this morning. I had almost given up when I told him that his heart wanted to be back on a horse. And then I prayed under my breath.” She laughed. “I’m surprised I didn’t have a wreck on the way to the stable. Every time I stopped at a light, I closed my eyes and prayed.”
“Well, your prayers were answered.”
“Oh, Sophie, I thought it was all over when Zach tripped. I wanted to die.”
“I’m glad you were strong, Beth. He had to face the truth that he needs to rebuild his strength.”
“You’re right. I tell you the first time I saw him without his foot and on crutches, I wanted to break down and cry.”
“He needs you to treat him as you always have—like a pain-in-the-neck big brother. He’s the same man.”
Beth remained quiet.
“He needs that consistency. He needs to know that the essence of the man Zach was is still there, and his family still sees the old Zach.”
Sophie thought she’d gone too far, but she heard Beth sigh. “You’re right. And he’s coming tomorrow to ride.”
Sophie heard the tears clogging Beth’s throat.
“This afternoon when I walked into the tack room and saw him, I didn’t know what to think. I know some demons were defeated in that room today.”
“Mom and Dad are excited and want to come and help.”
News in the McClure family traveled fast. She wished it were the same in her family. Her mother hadn’t talked to her grandmother in over fifteen years, and they both lived in the same little town of twenty-four hundred people. “Let’s give him a few times before he has an audience, okay? I don’t know how things are going to go tomorrow, and I think if Zach doesn’t have an audience, it will be easier.”
“I hadn’t thought about it. I’ll call them.”
“I do have a bone to pick with you, friend.”
“Oh?”
“Why did you tell Zach I had a crush on him in college?” When he’d thrown that out at her, Sophie didn’t know how to answer. Sure she’d been attracted to the handsome cowboy. His loose-hipped walk and cocky grin appealed to anyone with two X chromosomes. And she fell into that category.
“Hmm, I thought it would ease him into the situation. It certainly gave him something to think about besides his discomfort.”
It had done that. “I think we have Andy to thank for our success. And your prayers.”
“Will you let me know how the session goes tomorrow?” Beth asked.
“You’re not coming with Zach?”
“No. I’ll let Ethan do it instead of me. He’ll be more help than I could be.”
“Okay. I’ll give you a call.”
After hanging up, Sophie took her dinner out of the microwave. Settling at the kitchen table, she pulled her Bible toward her and opened it up to the book of Psalms. The twenty-third Psalm was her favorite. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
In high school, her best friend’s family were shepherds. She’d had some wonderful insight as to how the author of the Psalm felt. Her friend explained how they were responsible to move the sheep from one pasture to the next where there was abundant grass. The sheep didn’t move until the shepherd led them to another place.
“Okay, Lord, You’ve led me here. Help tomorrow to meet Zach’s needs.”
At seven the next morning Sophie walked out to the stable, heading for the office.
“Want some coffee?” she called out to Ollie who was inspecting all the horses’ tack.
“Sure. Bring it black, none of that fancy stuff,” Ollie answered.
“Fancy stuff?”
“Cream and sugar.”
“And do you eat your steak still mooing?” she retorted.
“Is there any other way?”
Sophie grinned. She walked into the office and poured two mugs of coffee. Ollie always started a pot of coffee when he arrived at the ranch. She opened the mini-fridge, pulled out her favorite French vanilla creamer and poured it in her mug. When she carried the mugs outside and gave Ollie his coffee, he glanced at the brown coffee in her mug and shook his head.
“Sissy.”
She shrugged her shoulder. Looking out over the rings, and hearing the morning sounds, Sophie knew this was where she belonged.
“You’re going to miss this when you retire, Ollie.” She took a sip of her coffee.
“Nope. I’m going to sleep in until seven and get up and spend hours reading the newspaper.”
“Fibber.”
He simply grinned.
“Will you help me this morning with the rider who’s coming?”
“Sure. Who’s comin’?”
“Zach McClure.”
“Ah, the guy with the fake foot.”
She winced. Ollie didn’t pull any punches, but there was not a mean bone in his body. “He was a wonderful rider. Watching him ride…” She could still remember how awed she’d been watching him practice calf roping. “It’s like he was born on a horse.” She heard the wistfulness in her voice.
Ollie’s mug stopped inches from his mouth.
Sophie realized her feelings colored her comments. “Zach’s sister was my roommate in college,” she hurried to explain. “I went home with her several times. She was with him yesterday.”
Ollie took a swallow of his coffee. “I saw him when he was a teenager. He had a talent.”
“Really?”
“Best I’d seen up ’til that time.”
Then Ollie would understand. “He lost his foot when a roadside bomb caught his patrol in Baghdad.” She looked down into her coffee. “I think that talent awoke yesterday. He’s willing to work to get stronger.”
Ollie nodded. “My son was in the First Gulf War. He needed help when he came home. I’ll do it.”
Those were the most words that Ollie had spoken since she knew him. And she never knew he had a son. Maybe Zach’s rehab would touch more than Zach himself.
She heard a car pull into the parking lot. It was seven-thirty.
“Looks like your client is here,” he murmured, looking down at his watch. “And I think he’s eager.”
She prayed Ollie was right.
Chapter Three
Ethan pulled the key out of the ignition. “You ready to do this?”
Zach had tossed and turned all night and finally gave up trying to sleep at five this morning. He spent the time praying and reading his Bible. For the first time in a long time he felt like himself. “I am.”
They got out of the truck and walked toward the office. Some of the horses were in a corral on the other side of the stable.
“There’s some good-looking horse flesh out there,” Ethan commented.
From what Zach saw he had to agree with his brother. “I’ll have to ask where they get their stock.”
They emerged from the tunnel and saw Sophie and Ollie resting up against the hitching rail. The sun kissed Sophie’s skin and her brown hair danced with red tones in the sunlight. The braided tresses nearly came to her waist. She’d been beautiful at eighteen, but now there was a maturity about this woman. That coltish girl had become a stunning woman.
“Good morning,” Ethan called out, touching the brim of his cowboy hat.
“Good to see you this morning,” Sophie replied, pushing off the rail. She introduced Ollie.
“We’ve met,” Zach said, meeting Ollie’s gaze.
Sophie looked from Zach to Ollie. Apparently the old guy hadn’t told Sophie of their little chat. His opinion of the ranch foreman went up.
“You ready?”
“I am. And Ethan’s up for the session.”
“He couldn’t keep me away,” Ethan added.
Zach didn’t know whether to be encouraged by his big brother’s eagerness or insulted.
“Let me go get Prince Charming, and we’ll start.” Sophie put her mug on the apple barrel and turned to Ollie. “You want to go get the tack?”
Ethan straightened up, then glanced at his brother. He grinned. “Prince Charming?”
Ollie nodded. “He’s the right size for a man of Zach’s stature—sixteen hands.” He nodded at Sophie. “She calls him Prince Charming.” He shook his head. “What kind of name…” He headed for the tack room.
A whirlwind of feeling churned in Zach’s stomach. He lifted his hat and wiped the sweat off his forehead. He wanted to ride so much he could taste it. He watched as Sophie pulled a halter out of one of the stalls, grabbed a lead rope and carrot from the pail on a bench in front of the stalls and walked to the corral beside the stable.
At the gate, she called out. A handsome black horse with a star on his nose and his left hind foot with a “white stocking” trotted up to her. She crooned to the magnificent gelding and offered the carrot.
The man in Zach reacted to her tender treatment of the horse. He glanced at his brother and saw Ethan smiling at him.
As Prince Charming ate the carrot, Sophie rubbed his nose. When he finished the carrot, he nudged her hand. “No, I don’t have another one. It’s time to work, big boy.”
The horse nodded and allowed Sophie to put the halter over his head and attach the lead rope. She opened the gate and led him to where Zach stood.
Ollie quickly put the saddle blanket and pad on Prince Charming’s back. He handed Ethan one of the stirrups to attach to the pad.
“No saddle?” Ethan asked.
She shook her head. “I’ve been in constant contact with the folks running the rehab program outside of D.C. For the first few times, we want to have Zach ride without the saddle. It will exercise his muscles.”
Doubt colored Zach’s eyes. “I could’ve jumped up on his back in my rodeo days, but now—”
“That’s why you should try the mounting block. You’re going to be asking your body to do a lot of work today, Zach, which it hasn’t done in a while. You’ve got to focus on the final goal.”
His pride fought with his common sense. Lord, this is hard to swallow.
His gaze touched each person’s face. He saw only support, but in Sophie’s eyes, he saw something else. A promise. He reached out and stroked the horse’s nose. “You going to be nice to a rusty cowpoke?”
Prince Charming nudged his hand. Zach patted the horse’s neck. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
Taking a deep breath, Zach walked up the steps of the mounting block. Ollie and Ethan took their positions on either side of the horse. Zach handed his cane to Ethan, put his foot into the left-side stirrup, then threw his right leg over the horse’s back. He tried a couple of times to get his prosthesis into the stirrup attached to the saddle blanket. Ollie helped. He pushed back his cowboy hat and a spark of admiration lit his eyes.
Using the mounting block wasn’t as big a deal as Zach had thought it might be. He looked down into Sophie’s face. She smiled. “You look good.”
He felt good. The world lay at his feet. “Let’s move.”
“You want a helmet, Zach?” she asked. “It’s just a precaution.”
He was willing to go just so far. “I’m okay.”
She didn’t try to argue but led Prince Charming into the arena. She walked around the perimeter of the ring.
“Things look much better up here,” Zach commented.
“Amen, brother,” Ethan quietly said. A hint of moisture gathered in his eyes.
They walked around the arena for close to thirty minutes. Zach realized the muscles of his stomach and thighs were protesting.
“How are you feeling?” Sophie asked, looking over her shoulder.
He didn’t want to admit weakness. “I’m okay.”
She accepted his word and they worked for another ten minutes before she called a halt to the session. She led the horse toward the mounting block.
“I won’t need that,” Zach told her.
“Zach,” Sophie said, touching his leg, “I don’t recommend that.”
“I can dismount by myself.” Pride cometh before a fall. The verse ran through his head.
She looked to Ethan for help.
“Uh, maybe she’s right, Zach.”
There was no saddle horn for him to grab on to to keep his balance and he felt a cramp in his injured right leg. There were a lot of scars up and down that leg.
“Okay.” The word tasted bitter in his mouth.
She walked the horse to the mounting block. Zach pushed up on his left leg and swung his right leg over the horse’s rump. When his prosthesis hit the wood, it folded on him. He tumbled back off the horse. Ethan stepped up and caught him. His left foot remained in the stirrup. Prince Charming didn’t dance or spook. He stood calmly. Ollie sprinted around the horse and disengaged Zach’s foot.
Ethan pulled Zach backward so his feet could touch the ground. His right leg didn’t hold. Ethan’s arms clamped around Zach’s chest, holding him upright. Zach’s hat fell to the ground.
Zach struggled to make his right leg work. Quietly, Sophie handed him his cane. He grabbed the lifeline and used the cane for balance. After struggling for a moment, he found his balance. Ethan picked up Zach’s hat.
“We probably worked too long,” Sophie said.
Zach wanted to rail that Andy had more endurance than he did. He nodded. “Ethan, you want to drive me home?”
Sophie dropped the horse’s leads. “Zach—”
He shook his head and started to walk away.
Prince Charming turned his head and caught Zach’s attention. The horse bobbed his head.
“He’s expecting a carrot,” Ollie offered. He nodded toward a pail on the bench. Zach took two steps and looked inside. Carrots. He pulled one out and turned toward the horse. Prince Charming readily accepted the treat.
Sophie stood on the other side of Prince Charming, gently rubbing his neck, her eyes dark with worry. He didn’t—couldn’t—acknowledge her.
With a final pat on Prince Charming’s shoulder, Zach turned and walked toward the parking lot.
What made him think that he could be the man he used to be?
Sophie buried her face in Prince Charming’s neck, taking comfort from the strength and smell of the horse.
“Give him a few minutes.”
Her head jerked up and she found Ethan standing beside her. “We never scheduled another lesson,” she said.
“I’ll talk to him.” Sadness and concern creased Ethan’s face. “Seeing him on a horse was great. I’ll have him call you to set up another appointment.”
She nodded and watched as Ethan walked toward the parking lot.
“Lord, touch his heart,” she whispered.
“Don’t you worry, Miss Sophie. I saw a spark in that young man’s eyes. Once he wrestles his pride down, you’ll see him again.”
She glanced over Prince Charming’s neck to Ollie. “I pray you’re right.”
Over the next week, Sophie held on to Ollie’s words. She heard nothing from Zach. She called Beth, asking about Zach.
“He’s not taking my calls,” Beth informed her. “If I was in town, I’d drive out to his apartment and face him down again.” Beth did a lot of traveling for her job with a big department store headquartered in Santa Fe. “I told Ethan to talk to him, but I haven’t heard back from him.”
Sophie couldn’t wait any longer. Andy’s next session was scheduled for tomorrow. “Give me your brother’s address.”
Beth gave her the street number of the new and trendy condominium and town house.
Sophie helped Ollie finish putting out feed for all the horses. She stopped by Prince Charming’s stall. “Hello, handsome.”
The big horse stuck his head out of the top half of the door. He nudged her hand.
“You are so spoiled,” she said, rubbing his nose. “I’m going to try to get Zach. You were great with him. Now he needs to understand that he needs you.”
Prince Charming nodded.
“You like him? He’s a real cowboy. Well, I like him, too. I’ll see what I can do to bring him back.”
Driving to Zach’s place, she prayed for wisdom and the right words to touch the stubborn man.
The new complex of town houses stood on the eastern edge of the city, built at the foot of one of the mountains surrounding the city. She found the number of his town house and parked. She whispered the opening lines of the twenty-third Psalm as she exited her car and walked up to the door and knocked.
Nothing.
She knocked again. “Zach, it’s Sophie.”
After several more seconds, the door opened. He was unshaved, and his closed expression didn’t give her any hope.
“I was hoping to talk to you.”
He studied her. “Why?”
Well, at least he didn’t shut the door in her face. “I wanted to talk about your next lesson.”
He shrugged his shoulders and walked back into the living room.
She followed him, closing the door gently behind her.
“How have you been doing?”
He shrugged again, settling into a leather recliner in front of a sixty-inch plasma TV. A baseball game flickered on the screen.
She walked to the sofa. “I think we pushed your first time too far. We should’ve stopped earlier.”
He didn’t respond.
“Zach, talk to me.”
He turned to her and nailed her with his blazing gaze. “What do you want me to say? Yeah, I didn’t tell you the truth when you asked if I was tired. I’m less of a man now than I was when I blew you off when Beth came home during college.”
It was a reaction, but not the one she hoped for. “What I see is a man who’s trying to come back. What I see is a man who helped a young boy overcome his fear and enjoy his ride on a horse.”
He turned away from her, staring down at the head of his cane.
“Zach, the man I met in college was full of himself and knew his strengths. One of those strengths was a faith in God and a determination to do the right thing.” She pulled a pamphlet out of her purse and put it on the coffee table. “This is from NARHA.”
He gave her a puzzled frown.
“North American Riding for the Handicapped Association. It talks about equine therapy and its benefits. What you expected from your body was unreasonable.”
His head came up and he looked at the pamphlet.
“When I fought for the guys who were wounded on the battlefield, I wanted to save them all. The ones who survived were blessings. You have a duty to those who didn’t make it. You lost a foot, but I don’t think you lost your soul. The Zach McClure I knew is still inside you. You just have a challenge you’ve never faced before.”
She stood. “Andy’s session is tomorrow morning at ten. He’s told all his friends about you, and I’ve had two more mothers of Down’s children call me, wanting to start with equine therapy.” She started for the door. Pausing with her hand on the knob, she turned to him. “I will never leave a fallen comrade.” With those final words she walked out the door.
I will never leave a fallen comrade. The words of the U.S. Military’s Honor Ethos echoed in Zach’s brain. How many times had he gone back to get a fellow wounded soldier. With the guys who were gravely wounded, their survival depended on their individual will to live.
He’d made it. The roadside bomb that wounded him had killed two members of his team. He didn’t remember much after the bomb, except his good buddy calling for him to hold on and telling him that they’d get him help.
They kept him sedated until he woke up in Walter Reed Army Hospital.
He picked up his Bible and turned to Exodus. The story that always amazed him was Joshua’s. This was a man who led Israel after Moses’s death in their fight to conquer the Promised Land.
Zach turned over to the book of Joshua and read the first three chapters, where Joshua faced his first major obstacle—the Jordan River. Not just a normal river but a river ten times its usual size. That crossing was a major miracle.
He faced his own Jordan River.
God gave Joshua a plan, and if Zach didn’t miss his guess, God just gave him a plan. And it started with showing up to help Andy.
Chapter Four
Zach took a deep breath and glanced at his brother, who sat behind the steering wheel of his truck. Zach chaffed at having to be driven, but he didn’t want his truck fitted with hand controls. He wanted to be able to build up the strength in his leg to be able to drive his own truck.
“You sure you don’t want me to stay?” Ethan asked.
Ethan had quickly covered up his surprise this morning when Zach called, asking for a ride.
“I’m sure.”
Ethan studied him. “I’ll stop by after I finish the business at the bank.”
Zach put on his straw hat. It was already warm beyond normal for an early spring morning. “I’m okay, Ethan.” He clamped his hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Thanks.”
Ethan nodded.
Zach opened the truck door and carefully rested his feet on the ground. He used his cane for balance. Hopefully, he could permanently retire it in a few weeks with hard work and exercise.
He walked down the breezeway to the open rings. The first thing Zach saw was Andy. The boy sat on a bench by the helmets. He stared at the ground. Glancing up, he spotted Zach.
“You came,” Andy yelled, launching himself off the bench.
Zach braced himself for Andy’s hug. The boy stopped and looked up at Zach. He reached out and grasped the boy’s hand. Andy snuggled close to Zach’s side.
“I see your sidewalker is here.”
Zach’s head snapped up. Sophie stood before him, her blue eyes glistened with moisture, and he read approval and something else there. But before he could analyze it, Andy raced toward Sam.
“Hi, Sam.” Andy stroked the horse’s shoulder.
Sam turned her head toward the boy.
Pride for Andy’s actions filled Zach. The boy overcame his fear. It was something Zach needed to do.
“Get your helmet, and I’ll take Sam to the mounting ramp,” Sophie instructed.
Andy dashed off.
A smile curved Sophie’s mouth. “I’m glad you’re here. Andy was disappointed when he didn’t see you.”
“What did you tell him?” He waited, curious for the answer.
“I told him that Sam was glad he was here.”
“Is that all?” He moved toward her and lightly ran his hand over Sam’s withers.
She held his gaze. “When he asked about you, I told him that things would be okay. I prayed. I know Andy is happy you’re here and…”
Zach understood the unspoken part of her sentence. She was glad he was here, too.
“I got my helmet,” Andy yelled, waving it above his head.
“We’re coming,” Sophie replied.
Suddenly Zach knew that his “Jordon” could be divided.
Andy cheerfully waved one last time at Zach as his mother pulled him down the walkway. “I had fun. I’ll see you next time.”
Another child called out Sophie’s name as she rounded the corner. “Miss Sophie. I’m here.” The little girl’s braids bounced as she waved.
“Go put your things in the office.” Each rider had a small cubbyhole on the inside wall of the office for their things. “I need to take Sam back to his stall.” Sophie lightly patted the horse’s withers.
Zach grasped Sam’s leads. “I’ll take care of Sam.”
She hesitated. “You sure? I didn’t expect you to work.”
“I’m sure. I’ve been doing this kind of thing since I could walk.” He paused. “I think before I could walk. I remember my mother talked about taking me out to the barn and something about a pen.” That sounded bad to his ears.
She laughed.
“Take care of your other clients. I’ll take care of Sam.”
Her eyes danced with mirth and the corner of her mouth kicked up. “You’ve got a deal.”
Satisfaction raced through him. As he watched Sophie walk toward her next client, Zach’s heart lightened. He was where he belonged. Sophie somehow touched his heart in a way he didn’t understand.
Sam nudged his arm.
“What? You want a carrot, or are you thinkin’ the same thing I am?” Zach rubbed Sam’s nose. The horse lipped his hand.
“A carrot is what you want?” Zach walked to the barrel where the treats were kept and pulled out a carrot. Sam took the offered treat. Zach glanced at his cane propped in the corner behind the mounting steps and decided he felt strong enough to leave it there.
Over the next hour, Zach plunged into the wonderful pattern of caring for a horse. After removing Sam’s tack, he walked the horse down to the shower stall and hosed him off. Even this early in the spring, the day would be a scorcher and Sam deserved a cooling shower.
Sam also ate up the attention. She was a flirt.
“I see you found the shower,” Ollie said, walking by.
“Sam worked hard and I thought she’d like a little refreshing.”
Ollie pushed the straw hat back on his forehead. “I’m glad to see you here.”
Ollie’s words surprised him. “I couldn’t disappoint Andy.”
“You need a sidewalker, count me in.”
Ollie’s offer touched Zach.
“Thanks.”
“No thanks necessary. It’s my privilege.” He nodded and walked down the row of stalls.
Shock and amazement held Zach motionless. Ollie obviously was a man of few words, but each one held power. Ollie believed in him, which humbled Zach.
Untying Sam’s lead, he said, “C’mon, girl, let’s go.”
Sophie grabbed an apple out of the mini-fridge and walked out of the ranch office. There’d been no time to eat and this would be her lunch. Things had happened so quickly this morning that it reminded her of the mornings in the field hospital in Iraq when she went on autopilot.
Finally, things had settled down and no clients were scheduled for the next hour and she could think. She’d panicked when Andy and his mother had shown up and there was no Zach. Her heart soared when Zach walked out of the breezeway.
Where was he now? She moved down the row of stalls and found him outside, looking at the horses in the corral.
“I was worried that you might have disappeared.”
He turned to her and flashed a wide smile. “No, I haven’t left.”
She noted a hint of satisfaction in his voice. “You were great with Andy.”
He took off his hat and ran his fingers through his hair. “I couldn’t have disappointed him, but I’ll admit I was nervous when I got here today.”
He didn’t know how much prayer went into today. “It did go well. Andy didn’t tire as easily as he did last time. You didn’t, either.”
“You’re right. My leg held up nicely. Of course I took my time with Sam. She didn’t mind if I sat down and caught my breath.” He shook his head. “It was a one-sided talk, but Sam didn’t mind.”
“So, you ready to ride a little today?”
He glanced around. “You’ve got time today?”
“We have an hour, and I have Ollie and another volunteer to be sidewalkers if you’re willing.”
He nodded. “Let’s do it.”
“If you want to get Prince Charming, I’ll get his tack and meet you at the mounting steps.”
Zach walked to Prince Charming’s stall while Sophie grabbed the tack and blanket and walked to the mounting steps.
Ollie and Ethan stood with Zach. Zach held Prince Charming by his halter.
“I see we have a new sidewalker,” Sophie greeted as she walked to the group.
Ollie took the tack, and Sophie threw the blanket over Prince Charming’s back. Quickly they got the horse ready for the ride. This time when Zach mounted the horse, things went smoothly.
Sophie led Prince Charming into the ring. She stopped and glanced over her shoulder at Zach. “When you’re ready, tell Prince Charming.”
He nodded. She could see the excitement in Zach’s face.
Zach patted Prince Charming’s shoulder. “Let’s go.”
Prince Charming started forward.
After their first time around the ring, Zach asked, “Why’d you name him Prince Charming?”
Ollie snorted.
“What’s that mean?” Ethan asked.
“’Cause this guy was an unruly beast when we first got him.”
“So how’d he get the name Prince Charming?” Zach asked.
Sophie shrugged, but didn’t turn around. “Because he reminded me of the horse in the storybook I read as a girl. I thought there was a wonderful horse under all that bad behavior. I was right. I worked with him and earned his trust. Prince Charming is only used with adult patients.” She glanced over at Ethan. “We all have our bad moments. The place where Margaret got Prince Charming was a ranch in southern Colorado. Something happened. I think the owner was some city dude and didn’t know much about horses.”
They worked for close to twenty minutes, making rounds of the corral.
“Let me know when you’re tired.”
“I think a couple more times around, then we can call a halt to it.”
Both Ollie and Ethan nodded in approval.
With a final round of the corral, Sophie guided Prince Charming to the mounting stairs. She held her breath as Zach swung his prosthesis over Prince Charming’s back. His artificial foot rested on the platform.
She held her breath and Ethan tensed, ready to dart forward and help his brother.
Zach continued to hold on to the saddle blanket and slipped his good leg out of the stirrup. He paused for a moment, getting his balance. Slowly he released the saddle blanket and stood.
Tears welled in Sophie’s eyes. Zach took a step back, turned and smiled at her.
“I listened to my body this time.”
“That’s good.” She forced the words around the lump in her throat.
He held on to the railing as he walked down the stairs. Prince Charming nodded his head, as if agreeing with Sophie.
“I think this guy needs a carrot.”
Sophie grabbed a carrot and gave it to Zach. Prince Charming took the offered treat.
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