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Putting his hands on his stomach, he rubbed it before deciding. “Fine. But hungry.”

Laughing as she got out of bed, she said to him, “Wait here, I’ll be right back.”

Quickly going to the bathroom and brushing her teeth, she was out in record time only to find the bedroom empty. “Jaxson?” she called as she made her way downstairs.

“Pincess! Come qwick!” she heard him yell from the direction of the kitchen.

Rushing in, she found him on a chair leaning over the sink looking out the window. “What’s wrong?” As she walked closer, she saw the barn doors wide open, which wasn’t normal even when they were in there because of Honey.

“Where’s your dad, Jax?”

Rushing over to the door, she quickly put her shoes on while Jaxson told her, “Him and Unca Case went to get chicken food.”

“Shit,” she mumbled, wishing he had woken her. Not seeing the note he’d left by the coffee pot.

?

??Uh-oh!” Jax screamed.

“What?”

“Raine got out!”

That stopped her in her tracks. He hadn’t scared her the first time she met him until Dom informed her that the horse didn’t normally like anyone but him. She’d been terrified since then. Now, she had to get him back in the barn? Fuck.

“Jax, I need you to stay here; you hear me? You do not move no matter what.”

“Aw ‘ight.”

“Don’t come outside. Don’t answer the door. Nothing.”

“Got it.” She hoped he did.

Taking a fortifying breath, she stepped outside quietly in the hopes of not scaring Raine. It hadn’t taken her long to see the lock on the barn door was broken in pieces on the ground. The paddock gate where the temperamental horse was currently running around was wide open, too. For whatever reason, he hadn’t noticed that yet, so tip-toeing over to the lock, she was going to try and close the gate before he realized it was open. Only a truck door slammed. Damn!

She heard Jax run out the front yelling, “Daddy! Raine’s out!” Startled from his yell, she watched in horror as the beast bolted out of the paddock running straight for her as Jaxson came running around the house grabbing his attention. Knowing what the horse was going to do, she darted for the child, tackling him to the ground just as Dom and Case came around the side of the house and Raine’s big chest hit the back of her head.

Darkness engulfed her.

*****

As soon as he and Case were out of the truck, he saw his son sprinting outside yelling, “Daddy! Raine’s out!” before darting around the side of the house and to the back.

“Jaxson, wait!” he called futilely, knowing the boy wouldn’t stop. The horse let Jax treat him like a big ol’ dog. Nothing fazed him. So long as Jax was doing it.

The scene that unfolded before him as they rounded the corner had his heart stopping. Raine stood in the paddock staring at Deedee as she tried to make her way to close it. As soon as they both heard Jax, though, Dee took off for him just as the animal darted through the fence heading in the same direction. As she collided with Jax, she enfolded his body into hers so that when Raine’s big chest hit them, the boy wouldn’t be hit. She wasn’t moving as his son squirmed his way from under her.

“Deidre!” he cried out, sliding down beside her.

“Pincess?” Jax’s voice was wobbly with his tears.

Gently feeling around her head for blood, he didn’t find any, but she had a bump growing already. “Case!” he called.

“Right here, man. She all right?”

“There’s no blood, but I’m gonna take her to the clinic in town. Will you take Jax to Angela’s? I need to know what’s going on around here.”

“You got it, man.”