Page 10 of Moonlight Over Montana

“Sure.” He handed it to her, unsure how much time she had spent around horses.

But she held the carrot out in her flat, open palm and with the other hand stroked the golden coat of Bowie’s neck and creamy white mane. “Hey, girl. You’re so pretty.” She looked over the stall door and said, “Where’s her baby?”

“Beau’s in the paddock right now, getting some fresh air. Want to see him quick before we have to get your momma?”

“Yeah.” She leaned in and kissed Bowie’s snout. “Bye, girl.” She gave her a longing look.

“Do you ride?” Jed led the way out the back door to where they’d have easy access to the paddock and where Beau and a couple of other yearlings would be with Zak. He was the primary caretaker of them, and Jed was the lead in the breeding program Annie had started.

He stepped up on the bottom rail of the fence, and Susie mimicked his stance. He pointed to a golden foal on the opposite side of the corral. “That’s Beau.”

“Whoa. He does look just like his momma.”

As if Beau sensed he was being watched, he tossed back his head and frolicked around the outer side of the fence, slowly making his way to where they were.

“My dad rides rodeo,” Susie said. “He left when I was a baby, but Mom said he was good.”

He continued to watch Beau. “I never met your dad, but riding the circuit and making a livin’ at it, is no place for a child.”

“That’s what my mom said too, but I wonder if my dad would like me now that I’m almost grown.”

Jed wasn’t sure what to say, so he said the only thing that came to mind. “Any man would be proud to have you for a daughter.”

“Thanks, Jed.” She looked at him. “Do you think I could learn how to ride while we’re staying out here? There won’t be much else to do, and I’m not sure when Mom is going to let me go back to school.”

“We could work something out. I’ll talk to Zak Dawson. He’s familiar with all the horses; I’m sure he could find a good mount for you.”

She slipped an arm around his and hugged it. “Thanks, Jed. Now, if my dad ever does call, I can tell him I know how to ride too.” Her face dimmed. “Fat chance of that ever happening though. He hasn’t called in sixteen years.”

The walkie-talkie clipped to his belt crackled. “Jed, it’s Annie. Over.”

“I’m here,” he answered. “Maggie ready? Over.”

“She’s on the front porch. Over.”

“On my way. Over.”

Jed jumped down and held out his hand to Susie. But she easily jumped off the fence. Before he could walk even one step, Susie said, “Jed. I’m scared.”

The tremor in her voice caused his heart to constrict. “It’s okay to be nervous, but there is one thing I can promise you. And that is you and your momma don’t have to go through this alone.”

“Because we have you, and everyone else here at the ranch.” It wasn’t a question, but a statement.

“That’s right.” He started walking and she fell into step beside him, her long legs matching his stride with ease. “There’s one thing you need to realize about Grace Star Ranch.”

“What’s that?” She scuffed the dirt path with the toe of her sneaker.

“We might not all have the same last name, or share DNA that makes us family, but we are one nonetheless. Annie and Linc are the glue that holds this eclectic group of people who have chosen to live on Grace land together as one big, boisterous family. And good or bad, kid, you and your momma are a part of that.” Jed talked as if it was Annie and Linc who thought that way about the Brady women, but he wouldn’t mind calling them his real family. Not that he was ever going to tell anyone, even if Annie Grace-Cooper had figured it out on her own.

“Just because of the fire?”

“No, because your mom and Annie have been good friends for a long time and that kind of relationship is rare—sometimes better than blood.”

“Like my dad.”

He didn’t want to touch that comment since he couldn’t fathom how any man could walk away from a daughter and the woman he must have loved at one point. “Blood doesn’t mean you have to love someone.” And he knew better than anyone that blood could mean just the opposite.

He caught sight of Maggie sitting on the top step and his heart constricted. Despite all that she had been through in the last sixteen-plus years, she looked as fresh-faced as her daughter, and in his mind, that pretty bow mouth was an invitation to be kissed.

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