Texas Pride

It being her first birth, they had no history with this mare. Horses foaled early all the time, but three weeks – it concerned him.

“Shit,” he muttered opening the barn door. He mentally checked off his men trying to decide which one would be best to leave behind for the day and keep an eye on Lady. Nothing changed as he went through the list, Jose was the only one he trusted enough to stay behind, but he was also the only one who could put in a double day’s work in eight hours.

“How she doing?” He asked as he met Jose halfway to her stall.

“It’s just startin’. She should have a while,” he said, pivoting on his feet. Jose wasn’t a tall man, but kept Kitt’s pace, double stepping each of his steps.

“Did you call Doc? Have him on standby?” Kitt asked opening the gate.

“Yes, sir.” Jose stayed back with all the other men staring over the stall gate watching Kitt adjust his ball cap for her.

“Good. Thanks for callin’ me,” Kitt said absently, his tone getting softer as he entered. He walked the few steps to Lady. He held her attention since she heard him in the barn, nodding her palomino head at him as he entered, as if she’d been expecting him, waiting for him to get there.

“Hey sweet girl, you gettin' ready for your big day, or is this one of those false starts that gets us all worked up?” Kitt asked as he began to rub her gently. He petted her down to her swollen belly, gently touching her udder before moving toward her front. He could feel her tighter, but there was no sign of her milk. The foal moved a little under his touch.

“Yeah, you’re close. You know you could’ve waited until your due date. It would’ve helped me out a lot,” Kitt said, still in the calm sweet tone he used with her. He was right in her face now, looking into her eyes, rubbing her head, and she bent into him knocking his ball cap off his head.

“She’s close. So here’s the change for the day. Jose, I’m gonna need you to stay with her. Get Doc out here to do an exam. Call me when’s he’s done, or if anythin’ changes. I’ll stay with her tonight. Maybe by tomorrow, we’ll have a newborn. Her momma’s records show she was in labor for a full forty-eight hours before she was born. Let’s see if that holds, but I don’t want her left alone.” Kitt said it all carefully, keeping his tone calm. He rubbed her down as he spoke, picking up his ball cap. He angled it on his head as he rose and let her knock it off again before he rubbed down her nose one last time.

“Lady, you still got jokes even now, huh? You wait until I’m here to have this little guy, you hear me?” Kitt asked. He patted her belly one last time before he left the stall.

“Boss, are you sure? I can help you today,” Jose asked. Kitt lifted his ball cap and scrubbed his head thinking over the possibilities.

“No, I can’t take the chance. She needs someone who knows her. You stay.” Kitt looked around at all his men waiting for him to begin. “Let’s get goin’. It’s gonna be a day. I need coffee.”

“Yes, sir!” His newest, least experienced, field hand said.

Everyone scattered as he started toward the small break room in the back of the barn. He moved through the men lifting an arm to his nose. Kitt could smell Austin on him, his cologne lingered, and it wasn’t a bad thing.

He poured his coffee, bent his head down to smell his chest, smiling when he thought of Austin sneaking in to sleep in his arms. No matter how he fought it, it wasn’t just about sex with them anymore. Austin was comfortable enough in his home to sleep. Actually, Austin left his own bed to come sleep in Kitt’s home. Austin still slept in his bed, and for whatever odd reason, it felt deeply gratifying.

He took a long drink of the coffee and left the break room. For the first time since leaving his house, he felt the chill in the air. They kept the barn reasonably climate controlled, but the doors were open, and everyone was preparing to leave. Jose stood at the front, giving out directions, speaking Spanish to most of the men. It was times like these Kitt wanted to hug Jose. His foreman was worth every dime of his salary. Kitt had taken Spanish in school for years, and although he understood most of what was being said, he still sounded like a complete dumbass trying to talk to the guys himself.

“Okay, boss, Jesus is bilingual. He’s staying close by you. You tell him when you need something done, and he’ll get it done for you. Jorge’s and his crew are taking the other cutters out. Half the crew’s going with him over to Smith’s place.”

“Thanks, man. Call me if anythin’ changes,” Kitt said, walking out the door Jose held open.

“Boss, you should let me do this, and you stay with her.” Jose followed him out the door, closing it behind them. Kitt never slowed until he put his Styrofoam cup on the hood of his truck and climbed inside the driver’s seat, digging around the truck for his jacket.

“Keep a close eye on her and take care of things around here. You can go tomorrow. I’ll stay. I’m thinkin’ we have time, but call me when Doc gets here. Tell Lily we’ll be back at lunch.”

They had ten fields scheduled for today and hundreds and hundreds of acres to cover in the next twelve hours. The sun was just starting to rise, and they needed to be in the first field by the time daylight hit full on. Kitt shrugged on his jacket and grabbed his coffee. He took another big gulp, letting the scalding brew burn its way down and warm him up. He headed for the tractor with the cutter ready to go.