Page 31 of Home Hearts Hooves

“I never liked that guy.”

“I never met him.”

He dries off his hands on a towel and passes it over to me.

“So…you’re a dad.”

“Yep, I’m a dad. I’ll tell Mom tomorrow. I can’t wait to see her face.”

“You told me before your mom?” he asks, and my stomach swirls at the way he smiles.

“I wanted you to hear it from me, the whole story, not whatever rumors start after Mom finds out, because you know she can never keep a secret, and this town loves to talk.”

“Yeah, coming out in this place took one kiss behind the popcorn stand at the spring fair and about twelve hours.”

“I didn’t know that.”

He rubs the back of his neck again. I want to take over, massage away any tension he carries, and make him feel good, so I shove my hands into my pockets to stop myself from doing exactly that.

“Billy Robinson, a year after graduation. He tasted like popcorn and shoved his tongue so far down my throat, I gagged.”

“That wasn’t your first kiss, though, was it?” I ask.

“Yep. With a guy. It was almost…” he turns away and walks toward the stall with Patrice inside. When he said, “It was almost,” the memory of a teenage me, drunk and sad, leaning in towards his big soft lips surfaces again. Could he be talking about that almost kiss? Did I miss out on the chance for us to be each other’s first kiss with a guy?

“So, how is it?”

“What?”

“Being a dad,” he says, leaning on his elbows against the gate of the stall opposite and propping one boot on the lower rail. His strong jaw and slight stubble just top off the perfect scene in front of me, and I have to shake away the thought of him exactly where he is, but shirtless, before I start drooling on the mini barn floor.

“To be honest, it’s amazing. She’s been hanging out after school at the clinic, and I’ve just been getting to know her. So far, I’ve learned that she’s incredibly smart. Way smarter than I was at her age for sure, and she likes animals, cows being her favorite. She’s tried to convince her grandparents to get one for her as a pet for the last four birthdays. I’m worried about what to do when she gets bored with the clinic. I don’t know how to entertain a ten-year-old.”

“Bring her to the ranch. She loves to cuddle cows already. With you, she could visit with the other menagerie of madness residents, too,” he says, his lips picking up in a sweet grin.

“Thanks, I’d like that.”

“Me, too.”

“So, you’re cool with it?”

“With you being a dad?” he asks, brows pinching together a little.

“Yeah.”

He chuckles. “Sure. Kids are great. Well, most of them.”

“Yeah, I’m still trying to think of a way to stop the murder twins from adopting another bunny at the fair. I’ve got six that need homes, and I can’t bring myself to let any of them go home with them.”

“Tell them they’re already adopted.”

“But what if they come at the end of the day and see pets left over?”

“Tell them you’re just holding onto them for me.”

“Really?”

“Hey, you know if you can’t find them homes, you’d be coming to me with them soon enough, anyway.”

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