of the yard.
“Moo thinks she’s a pet ‘cuz Daddy fed her with a bottle and kept her alive when she was a calf. She’s spoiled. Daddy’s good at feeding babies with bottles because of all the practice he got with me. Hey, Gramps, can we take Clarissa out to see Flower and Blue now?”
Jed’s father sent Clarissa a long look when she didn’t respond right away, almost like he was sizing her up again, like maybe she wouldn’t meet his expectations. But after a few seconds, he seemed to see something in her she didn’t know for sure existed.
“Sure can, Little Bit,” he said opening the gate and starting to walk through.
But Susie must’ve been watching from inside because no sooner had he made his way to the other side of the fence than she was running outside.
“Don’t you even think about trekking across to the barn without your cane, you stubborn old grumpy gus.”
Clarissa held her breath, not really sure why Susie Dillon’s opinion mattered so much. But either Mrs. Anderson hadn’t convinced her that Clarissa was a criminal or worse or Jed’s mother was a mighty fine actress. Clarissa wasn’t sure which was the case, and she decided she didn’t care. She was going to take today off. Enjoy everything about it. Try to find a place inside her she hadn’t realized existed. Ignore the reality that she was a criminal.
“Come on, Clarissa!” Mackenzie called.
Clarissa laughed then, really laughed, for the first time in years, and followed the little girl who’d stolen her heart.
Clarissa told herself she wouldn’t let her fear of big animals show as they approached the horse corrals. But then she saw Blue, the supposedly tame horse, and all her good intentions were gone.
“She’s big, but she’s the gentlest horse I’ve ever owned,” Paul Dillon said.
“I learned how to ride on Blue, and Daddy said any horse that could take me could handle anything,” Mackenzie said with pride.
Jed’s daughter pulled her hand over to a nearby corral where Flower stood whinnying as they neared.
Once they reached the pen, Mackenzie was lost, totally and completely focused on the horse. And watching them together, Clarissa saw the horse felt the same about the little girl.
When they entered an arena with a dirt floor, Mackenzie took the horse out and started leading her through her paces. She was as at ease on the horse as she was on her own feet.
The smell of dirt and animals and sweat blended together with a light breeze blowing because of the open garage type doors on both sides of the arena. This place was as foreign to her as the sunlit kitchen had been. She didn’t belong here with these people, this family. They were going to make her soft if she wasn’t careful.
“Mack sure has connected with you.” Paul Dillon’s voice startled her.
“She’s an amazing kid,” Clarissa said, repeating the words she’d said so many times over.
“Glad you see it,” he said. “Sometimes people don’t.”
Clarissa bit her lip because she didn’t want to talk about Mackenzie. About how much she liked the little girl. About how much she respected Jed for raising her on his own.
“Her momma left less than a year after she was born. We haven’t heard from her since.”
Clarissa’s heart hurt, but she didn’t want to encourage the conversation. It was Jed’s to tell if he wanted. If she stayed long enough to hear. Paul Dillon somehow understood.
“I’m telling you now because the girl’s got a tender heart, and I’ve seen eyes like yours before. If you’re going to leave, it might be best to do it sooner rather than later.”
Anger sparked through Clarissa, even though he was simply giving voice to what she’d been thinking.
She felt the red splotches on her cheeks and wished she could tamp down anger as well as she could other emotions.
But then Paul shocked her.
“Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying you should leave. Those eyes I’ve seen before were mine. If you want to talk about it one day, let me know. I will say there’s nothing God can’t forgive.”
Clarissa’s anger turned to an ache for the impossible. She didn’t look at Paul, didn’t say a word. Curiosity warred with the knowledge that Paul Dillon was way too astute and the need to push him away because of that fact. She didn't say what she was really thinking, that maybe God could forgive, but she wasn't sure she could ever forgive herself.
In the end, Clarissa was saved by a loud