Amy Vastine - Catch A Fallen Star

“You think you can help someone like me?” Boone asked, unsure if he really wanted to hear the answer.

“I can help anyone who wants it badly enough and is willing to work hard. There’s no miracle cure for addiction. It’s not easy, and you have to be willing to fight it the rest of your life. Some people have the strength to do that and some don’t.”

This wasn’t a new message. No one ever gave Boone any guarantees. All the doctors and counselors liked to remind him that he was in control of his treatment. Jesse was the first one to make him almost believe it.

“I might be a lost cause.”

Jesse pressed his lips together while he seemed to consider that self-assessment. “If that’s what you truly believe, then what are you doing here mucking stalls with me?”

It was an excellent question. Boone didn’t want to die with a million regrets. He wanted his daughter to answer the phone when he called. He wanted to shake the feeling that everyone was waiting for him to fail. “I don’t want to be one.”

Jesse put a hand on Boone’s shoulder. “Then you don’t have to be.”

* * *

THE TWO MEN had the stall ready to go when Faith returned home with the newest member of the Helping Hooves family. The blue roan filly was a beauty. Her head was dark like her mane and tail, but her body was a bluish gray.

“Isn’t she gorgeous?” Faith asked once she’d backed her out of the trailer. She tried to lead her toward the barn. The horse had other ideas. She wasn’t going anywhere.

Jesse snickered at her struggle. “She’s got a little stubborn streak, huh?”

Faith had the patience of a saint. She stayed calm and encouraged the horse to come along. “We’ve got our work cut out for us, but she’s going to be something special. I know it.”

“What’s her name?” Boone asked.

“They called her Willow.”

Boone stepped closer, and Willow pulled on her lead to back away. “Hey there, sweet Willow,” he said, running a hand down the side of her neck to calm her. “You are a pretty girl, aren’t you?”

“You want to try?” Faith asked, offering him the lead.

Boone took the rope and kept talking to the horse. She seemed to like his attention and took a step forward when he moved toward the barn.

“Well, look at that. I think we have ourselves a horse whisperer,” Jesse said to Faith.

“Or another Boone Williams fan,” Faith joked.

Boone led the horse into the barn. She immediately went to the water and took a drink.

Jesse stood outside the stall. “I may have found the perfect job for you.”

“Dare I ask what?”

“How do you feel about helping us train Willow to do some therapy?”

“I don’t know what that means, but I wouldn’t mind working with this lovely lady.” Boone held some alfalfa hay out for Willow, and she took it without hesitation.

“We need to talk about something first,” Jesse said, making Boone’s stomach turn. He liked the horse-training Jesse better than Jesse the social worker.

Faith took that as her cue to go. “I’m going to clean out the trailer. I’ll check in with you later, Jesse. Good to see you again, Boone.”

Boone could have sworn the stall walls moved inward. His heart beat faster, almost painfully. “What do we need to talk about?”

“I need to know what’s up with you and Ruby Wynn.”

That was not the issue Boone assumed he wanted to discuss. “What does Ruby have to do with me helping you with this horse?”

“Holly threatened your sense of privacy. I get that. What I don’t understand is why that impacted your relationship with Ruby and your willingness to help Violet.”

“Ruby knew I wasn’t interested in being interviewed, and she still brought that reporter here,” Boone answered. His anger reignited. “That woman is a beautiful disaster, and I’m not going to let her bring me down.”

“It was Ruby’s fault you felt anxious, so as punishment you wouldn’t watch Violet ride. Do I have that right?”

The way Jesse said it made Boone sound like a child. “It’s not that simple. I wasn’t punishing anyone. I needed to walk away because I was frustrated.”

“And when you’re frustrated, escaping is the easiest thing to do?”

Boone’s agitation increased. He could feel his muscles tense and his blood race through his veins. “No, the easiest thing to do is scream and yell, but that’s gotten me in trouble, and I was trying not to make a scene. What does this have to do with Willow?”

“First, this horse is going to frustrate you. Screaming at her isn’t going to help. You already know that. Walking away isn’t going to help me. I need to know that you’re willing to try some other strategies.”

“Sure,” Boone replied gruffly. A stubborn horse wasn’t anything like a stubborn woman. He could manage his frustrations with the horse because it wasn’t going to be personal. He could do this. He wanted to do this. He imagined Emmy answering the phone to hear all about his work with Willow.

“The other issue is, I promised Violet I would let her help with the new horse. You can’t join the team if that’s going to be a problem for you.”

The wind was quickly taken from Boone’s sails. Of course Ruby would ruin this for him...unless he didn’t let her.

“I’ve got no issue with the kid. I don’t have to work with her mother. So what’s the problem?”

“Violet doesn’t need to get caught in the middle of two more people who don’t see eye to eye. She can’t be someone you use to show Ruby you’re frustrated.”

Was that what he had done? Inadvertently, yes. He had needed to get as far away from the reporter as possible. He hadn’t thought about how his refusal to stick around to watch Violet ride would affect her. The only person he wanted to hurt was Ruby.

“The kid won’t be put in the middle. I didn’t mean to do that, and it won’t happen again.”

Jesse clapped his hands. “Then we start tomorrow.”

CHAPTER EIGHT

“ARE YOU SURE you want to spend the rest of your summer at Helping Hooves, volunteering?” Ruby wanted to make sure Violet really understood what she was committing to. She couldn’t admit she didn’t want Violet to do it because it meant Ruby would have to drive her there and pick her up several days a week. Each visit was a potential run-in with Boone, a man she’d had the displeasure of knowing for all of a week.

“Oh my gosh, Mom. Jesse is going to show me how to train a therapy horse. Maybe Faith will let me work with her like the high school girls do.”

Not surprising Violet wanted to be like the high schoolers. She was thirteen going on eighteen. There was no way Ruby was going to convince her daughter this was a bad idea. She was much too excited.

“I guess that means yes, you want to do it. What time did he say you needed to be there?”

“Nine. Eat your breakfast faster. I don’t want to be late.” Violet snatched a blueberry muffin off the table and headed back upstairs to finish getting ready.

Ruby should have known Violet was serious about this when she was up and moving before eleven. All Ruby could do now was accept that there would eventually be some sort of awkward face-to-face with Boone.

Letting Holly come along had been the worst idea ever. Boone had proved to be exactly like Levi. Her ex-husband loved to blow everything out of proportion and didn’t care about anyone except for himself.

“Let’s go, Mom!” Violet shouted from the front door.

Ruby stood up and grabbed her purse. The things she did for this child. Although this time, she hoped Boone was there when she arrived, so she could get the awkwardness out of the way.

Her prayers were answered. Boone and Jesse were standing outside the barn when she drove into the farm. They watched the car pull in, and surprisingly Boone didn’t run off.