Vicki Lewis Thompson - Cowboy All Night

The phone lying on the passenger seat of his truck remained silent, which was a good sign. Rosie, his foster mom, had promised to text if the mare gave birth. It looked as if he might make it in time.

Herb, his foster father and a crackerjack veterinarian, would be down at the barn monitoring the situation. Cade Gallagher, one of his many foster brothers, would probably be there, too. With those two in charge, he didn’t absolutely have to be on hand for the birth.

He just liked it better when he was. Aside from the thrill of watching a new life enter the world, the training process worked better if he could bond with the foal immediately. Herb was a mild-mannered guy, but sometimes Brant had encountered tense owners and vets.

He didn’t like any nervous energy in the birthing stall and he always did what he could to calm things down. By lowering the anxiety level, he could begin socializing a foal immediately. Not a single one he’d worked with from birth had turned into a skittish horse.

His business grew along with his reputation for successfully starting foals, which gave him work he loved and the personal freedom he craved. He would have done this particular job for free in return for the safe haven his foster parents had provided when he’d been a homeless teen. But Rosie and Herb had insisted on paying so he’d gone along with that.

They weren’t hurting for money anymore, thank God. The serious financial issues they’d had a year ago had been resolved with the formation of Thunder Mountain Academy, a residential program in all things horse related. Sixteen high school juniors and seniors had attended the spring semester, which had ended a week ago. Another sixteen were enrolled for the summer session starting in three days.

Rosie and Herb had hoped Lucy would stick to her due date of mid-June so the summer session kids could watch a foal being born. But, like her Peanuts namesake, Lucy had a mind of her own. He’d left for Sheridan on a hunch this morning. Sure enough, Rosie had called him while he was on the road to say the mare was in labor.

Personally he was glad that Lucy had jumped the gun. He’d wondered if having sixteen kids grouped around the birthing stall would have made his job tougher. He could have handled it, but now he wouldn’t have to.

The students would still get to watch him work with the foal as part of their summer curriculum. He’d have three days to establish a routine before they arrived, though, which suited him. He’d never considered trying to pass on his knowledge before, but the more he thought about this gig, the more he liked it.

The sun had begun its descent behind the Big Horn Mountains by the time he arrived at the ranch. He drove straight to the barn and parked next to a cherry-red van with a wheelchair mount on the back and a vanity plate that read COOKIN. The van was empty but the driver’s door was wide-open.

The van probably belonged to the mare’s owner, Aria Danes. According to Rosie, Aria had been three years behind him in school, so he didn’t remember her, but now she worked at the bank where Rosie and Herb had an account. Weird license plate for someone who was in banking, but maybe the lady had a dark sense of humor. If so, he’d enjoy that.

The foal was intended to be a morale booster for Aria’s older brother, Josh, who’d taken a bad fall during a riding event and had mobility issues. Brant vaguely remembered the guy although they’d never been friends. Rosie had heard about Aria’s plan and had offered to board Lucy in exchange for the educational value a pregnant mare and her foal would bring to the curriculum. Rosie loved win-win situations like that.

Brant walked over and closed the van’s door. Aria had left her keys in the ignition and her purse lying on the passenger seat, but that was no problem around here. She and her brother were probably too excited to think about the van.

He understood that. He’d begged to go along every time his foster father had been called out to deliver a foal. Watching the process had convinced him that his future would involve helping those vulnerable babies get a good start in life.

The sound of low-pitched voices drifted through the open barn door. According to Rosie they’d created a birthing stall by taking down the partition between two regular stalls at the far end of the barn. That was where everyone was gathered, including Rosie, Cade and Cade’s girlfriend, Lexi. Herb was probably inside the stall with Lucy.

Brant spotted Cade’s easygoing gray cat sleeping on a blanket thrown across a hay bale. There was no sign of a guy in a wheelchair, but a young woman paced the width of the aisle, head down and arms folded against her stomach. Because he was a guy, he noticed the curve of her breasts and hips.

But he was also a horse trainer who recognized the tension eddying around her. Unwelcome tension. If she had a sense of humor, dark or otherwise, it wasn’t showing.

The skirt of her purple-flowered sundress swirled around her knees with each impatient step. Wavy dark hair that hung to the middle of her back rippled as she moved. Aria Danes was wound tight and that was not good for this impending birth.

Rosie started toward him, followed by Cade and Lexi, but just then the woman glanced up, unfolded her arms and marched in his direction. Rosie paused and motioned Cade and Lexi to do the same.

“You’re Brant. I remember you now. You look the same, only bigger.” Her eyes, an unusual shade of violet, reflected her agitation.

Time to diffuse this bomb. He touched the brim of his Stetson and smiled. “Bigger and I hope better. Pleased to meet you, Aria.”

“Thank God you’re here.” She didn’t return his smile as she tilted her chin to meet his gaze. “Rosie says you have a magic touch with newborns.”

“Now that’s a fact.” He lifted his hat slightly and settled it back on his head. “I can make them appear and disappear, float three feet in the air, change color—”

“Rosie also warned me you like to kid around.”

“On occasion.” And that obviously wasn’t working for her, although he’d heard a muffled snort from Cade.

“I’m not in the mood for jokes.”

“I can see that.” He snuck a quick glance over Aria’s shoulder and his three railbirds were still there taking in the show.

She folded her arms again and frowned. “It’s very important to me and to...to my brother that this foal gets a good start in life.”

“I promise to give it my all, ma’am.” He adopted the soothing tones he used with a nervous horse. “But with all due respect, things will go a lot smoother if everyone stays calm and relaxed.”

She blinked. Then her cheeks turned pink. “Oh, um, I didn’t mean to sound so...” She trailed off with a sigh. “I’m sorry. I’ve been on edge ever since Rosie called me at the bank this afternoon. She said you were on your way, but when I got off work and found out you weren’t here...”

“Well, I made it.” From the corner of his eye he caught Rosie giving him a thumbs-up.

“Yes, you did.” Some of the strain eased from Aria’s expression.

He counted that a small victory. “What about Josh? Couldn’t he come with you?”

Disappointment flickered in her eyes. “No, he... I couldn’t convince him to come. And, to be fair, there’s no set timetable for this, is there? It could be awkward for him if it goes on all night.”

“I suppose it could.” But he wished she’d been able to talk her brother into coming out to be a part of this. It might have done him a world of good. “What do you say we go on down there and check on Lucy’s progress?”

“Absolutely.” She clapped her hand to her forehead. “And I just realized I’ve been keeping you from your family. Not nice.”