Page 45

As the early morning sun rose over the island, Asher led Gus and Ginger to the carriage he’d managed to haul out of the corner of the barn where it had been abandoned for too many years. He didn’t doubt their strength or abilities. More like he needed to be sure the carriage drove the way it was supposed to.

Comforting scents of hay and warm animals breezed over him. Gus eyed him and flicked a tail as Asher slid the bridle in place and adjusted the bit so it sat comfortably in the Percheron’s mouth.

“Good morning.”

Asher turned at the sweet sound and smiled as Sadie approached him, carrying a foil-covered plate. “Good morning. I was beginning to wonder if you changed your mind.”

She shook her head and bit the edge of her lip, which he found endearing. “Not at all. Doris Poe dropped off some fresh Michigan blueberries, so I made a batch of muffins for our trial run.”

Asher shook his head and patted his stomach. “You Hudson women really do know the way to a man’s heart, don’t you?”

Sadie lifted a shoulder. “Worked for Gran.”

He didn’t want to take time and ponder what she meant by that because he had a feeling it would lead to nothing butheartache. Instead, he focused on a safer subject. “How is Hetty? Did you see her this morning?”

Sadie shook her head. “I’m going after our ride. I called first thing this morning, and she was doing physical therapy. I talked to the nurse who said Gran had a good night. Thankfully her fall didn’t cause more injury to her hip. She’s just a little sore. By the time I get there, she may be allowed to leave.”

“I hope so. I’m glad to hear she’s okay.” He lifted a head toward Ginger. “I’m tacking the horses. Care to learn something new?”

Sadie eyed the large animals and took a step back. “Only if it’s a demonstration and not a hands-on learning experience.”

Asher waved her closer. “Come on. They’re gentle giants. Besides, I won’t let anything happen to you. Promise.”

Sadie set her foil-covered plate on a vintage barrel sitting outside the door of the stable and inched closer, staying behind Asher.

He picked up the matching leather harness. “I just put this on Gus, but I’ll show you how I put it on Ginger.” He slipped the straps over the horse’s head. “This is the noseband and this metal piece is the bit, which helps me control their heads.”

Sadie moved a little closer as he picked up one of the collars. “This padded piece fits around their neck.”

“It looks pretty thick.”

“It needs to be. It helps to distribute the weight so they can pull the carriage better.”

For the next five minutes, Asher demonstrated how to harness the horses and couldn’t help the pleasure he felt at Sadie’s attention to what he was doing.

Confident the horses were comfortable, Asher moved to the side of the carriage and held out a hand to Sadie. “Your chariot, m’lady.”

She put her hand in his and shot him another one of those dazzling smiles.

Oh, man. This ride was going to take more out of him than he’d expected. She’d be sitting inches from him. Hopefully, he didn’t screw up too badly and look like an idiot in front of her.

Once she was settled on the coachman’s box, he climbed up next to her and reached for the reins. His phone vibrated in his front pocket. He pulled it out, found his mom’s number on the screen, and shot an apologetic look at Sadie.

“Hello?”

“Hey, honey. I’m sure you’re busy, so I’ll make this brief. I’m finalizing the guest list for your dad’s sixtieth birthday party and wanted to see if you planned to come.”

Asher glanced at Sadie, who had her head turned. Kind of hard to have any privacy when they were only inches apart.

“Hey, Mom. Now’s not a great time. I’ll give you a call later, okay?”

“Okay. Love you.”

“Love you too.” He ended the call and gripped the phone. He forced a smile in place and glanced at Sadie. “Ready?” At her nod, he flicked the reins. “Giddyap.”

Next to him, Sadie giggled.

He shot her a look. “What’s so funny?”