Mel saw Isobel looking at it. “I like fresh eggs. It used to be a dog kennel but it’s hard to keep dogs around the place because of the horses, so we repurposed it.” She ran her hand along the chain link fence and smiled like she was laughing about some inside joke.
Beyond the chicken coop were big fenced off pastures with a few horses in them. It wasn’t until they rounded the side of the house that Isobel’s breath caught, though.
It was a real horse ranch.
There were two big stables and beyond them, fenced off horse paddocks as far as the eye could see. They were mostly empty at the moment, except for one in the near distance where a man was standing in the center, running a horse in a circle with a lunge line. Even from this distance, Isobel could tell the man was huge—similar in size to Nicholas.
A boy stood outside the paddock, leaning with his arms on the fence. Mel’s other son?
Isobel looked back to the man guiding the horse. “Wow, is there something in the water here that makes the men come in extra large?”
Mel laughed at that. “But Nicholas is from Bama, remember? That’s my husband, Xavier. The little one is our son, Dean.” She pointed at the boy on the fence. “And I thought shopping for groceries was bad when it was just me, Xavier, and the boys. Ever since we expanded the rescue and brought in the guys last year, I have to buy everything in bulk and I still go shopping once a week!”
Isobel laughed. “I can imagine.”
“Come on, the rest of the horses are stabled in preparation for getting vaccinated.” She gestured toward the closest stable.
Isobel was immediately hit by the familiar smells of hay and horses as they entered through the wide double doors. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say the summer she’d spent with Rick and his family working at Northingham stables had saved her life. Seeing a functional family, feeling accepted for who she was—whatever her shape or size—and working every day with the animals had given her stability and sanity at a time when she was barely hanging on by a thread.
She hadn’t been in a proper stable in almost a year and the scent memories were so strong, it was like she was that sixteen-year-old girl again. The sense of at homeness that washed over her was almost dizzying after being so desperate for a lifeline. For a ridiculous moment, she had to swallow against tears.
“Isobel?” Mel questioned when she saw Isobel had stopped.
Isobel blinked and hurried to join Mel’s side.
Hunter was set up in the center of the stable with Reece, who held the reins of a brown mare. Reece rubbed down the horse’s nose, murmuring to her while Hunter leaned over and opened up a tool box. Instead of tools, though, there were medical supplies inside.
Isobel’s eyes were stuck on Reece, though. In the short time since she’d last seen him, he’d changed clothes. He’d exchanged his linen hippie duds for jeans, a sleeveless shirt, and cowboy boots. And wait—his hair. She did a double take. Hadn’t he had dread locks? Now his blond hair was cropped close to his head.
“Who’s this?” Reece asked Mel as she and Isobel arrived at the men’s side.
“Um,” Isobel laughed a little, confused. “It’s me, Isobel. You met me up at the house just a little bit ago?”
Mack walked by carrying a water bucket. “Didn’t your last girlfriend have trouble telling you two apart, too?”
Oh. Duh, now it made sense. “Twins.”
“Reece will tell you he’s the better half, but it’s all lies. I’m Jeremiah.” He dipped his head in a nod. He couldn’t exactly shake her hand since he was holding the horse’s reins.
“If you’re done with pleasantries, I’ve got a job to do,” Hunter interrupted.
Jeremiah’s eyebrows went up as he looked Hunter’s way, but he didn’t say anything else.
“I’ll be upstairs in the office if you need anything.” Mel squeezed Isobel’s hand. “I’ll probably see you later but in case I don’t, I’ll leave a set of keys and the wifi password by your bedside.”
“Thanks so much. For everything.” Isobel flashed her a warm smile that she returned before turning to go.
Leaving Isobel with the surly vet. At least Jeremiah was still here. He seemed as nice as his brother.
“How can I help?” Isobel asked.
Hunter didn’t look her way, he just opened a sealed syringe packet. “You’re familiar with giving equine vaccinations?”
His brusque manner was such a one-eighty from the man she’d met in the bar she would have thought this was the man with a twin, but nope. Apparently this was all him.
“Yes. I’ve done it before.” Once. She’d done it once before, at least on a horse, when she was at Rick’s stables. Her only other experience was the semester she’d volunteered at a veterinary clinic near Cornell, but it had been a strictly small animal operation. She’d given tons of vaccinations to dogs, cats, and several guinea pigs. Since she’d been in her first year, the doctor hadn’t let her get much more hands on than that.
She’d been more of a glorified animal wrangler, holding disgruntled cats and dogs down while the vet looked them over. But she’d die before admitting that to Hunter, especially after his intimidation tactics earlier when he’d been trying to talk her out of taking the position.