Page 17 of Holden: Bucked By Love (Crawford Ridge Ranch #1)

Leni

Holden caught me off guard the next evening by calling – not texting – to ask if he could take Mason and Josi for a few hours the next day.

He'd like their company, and figured I could use a break.

I had nearly fallen off the kitchen chair I'd been sitting on drinking my evening post-yoga tea.

I'd quickly agreed, but right after I'd hung up Mason had reminded me that he had swim practice in the morning and then he was meeting up with friends to go play basketball at the community park afterwards.

I'd thought about canceling all of that and sending him with his dad instead, but then Josi's hopeful little face had made me realize that some alone time with her daddy might be exactly what that little cherub needed.

Mason misses Holden, but Josi longs for him in a different way.

I could hardly sleep that night, picturing all the things I could do with some time totally to myself.

It ran the gamut from doing extreme couch surfing and catching up on my reality TV to hitting the gym with Steph, from reading in bed to going on a donut run and not sharing.

In the end, I decided on going for a trail run.

Blissfully alone. So, once Mason is at swim and Jo-Jo is settled with Holden, I drive the thirty minutes outside of town to my favorite place.

It gets me to a cooler elevation, and I've never stumbled across anyone else in this area.

As always, I have water, bear spray and pepper spray, my phone, a small GPS transponder to share my location, and a tiny first aid kit all shoved in my fanny pack.

I'm dressed in biker shorts and a running tank, with my hair pulled up under a visor, and it feels good – really, really good – to be out here solo.

The terrain is rough under my trail shoes, and I focus on my breathing as I set a steady pace that allows for the occasional shift to miss logs and rocks.

Music plays in my headphones, and I let my mind float away.

Gone are thoughts about groceries and dishes, laundry and bills.

I think about Holden's face at the pie eating contest, and Mace playing football with his uncles, and Steph dragging that poor Ryan guy into some shady area during fireworks.

I think about Jo-Jo dancing with her glow sticks while waiting for fireworks, and then I circle back to my sister.

Mental note: Call Steph and get a Ryan update.

Then, I go to that secret place in my mind and daydream about opening my own yoga studio on the ranch, as sort of an off-grid, nature-inspired retreat.

It's a dream I haven't shared with anyone, and I doubt it'll ever come true, but I love to imagine how I'd arrange it, and the types of people I'd get to meet.

I'd paint all the walls in pastels that bring nature inside, and use scents like sage and pine, or maybe cedar, to make it feel like the walls don't exist at all.

Sometimes you'd hear the cattle mooing, and birds chirping, and it would be so peaceful.

I'm about twenty minutes into my planned hourlong run when my phone rings. I glance at my watch to see Holden's name flash on the screen. I immediately stop running and dig for my phone, still breathing heavily, my heartrate climbing even higher. He so rarely calls.

"Hello?" I breathe when it's in my hand .

"Hey, uh, listen. Josi's pony got spooked and she fell off into some rocks.

Looks like her arm is probably broken. I'm on my way to the clinic.

I thought you'd want to meet me there." His voice is calm and steady, and I don't find that fact annoying like I have in the past. It's a welcome reprieve from my own racing thoughts. "Where are you?"

"I'm out on the Richards Creek trail. It'll take me at least an hour to get back to town.

" I've already started running back toward my parked car.

Running. Not setting a steady pace, but a full on sprint to get back to my baby girl.

"How is she?" I don't hear crying in the background.

I hope that doesn't mean she's passed out from the pain. "Where are you?"

"We're in the truck, just leaving the property."

"Why was she on a pony that spooks?" I ask, agitated.

Go figure the one morning I send them off with someone else, disaster strikes.

"There's a whole barn full of old horses who are deaf and blind and don't shy away from anything.

" That's not actually true – the Crawford horses are work companions, and they're healthy and capable.

They're also reliable and well-trained, which has me confused about this situation.

Maybe he put her on one of the horses that they board.

Can they do that? "Do you know this horse? "

"I know the horse," he says, and there's only stillness in his voice.

"I wouldn't endanger Josi. This was one of those freak moments where Landry came racing around the corner on an ATV and didn't realize she was there.

He had to dart around her, and the horse was forced to side-step quickly.

He tossed his head in protest, and Josi lost her seat. "

"Landry should prepare to be maimed."

"I'll leave him to you, but he feels terrible about it. "

Of course he does. Holden's brothers are cuckoo for my kids, and I can picture Landry's blue eyes filled with remorse. I'm also picturing them filled with pain after I punch him in the throat. It's satisfying.

"Josi's okay," he continues. "I took the time to splint it at the homestead and get her some ice and some pain meds. Right now she's sucking on a popsicle that Grandma gave her. She's been real brave."

"You splinted it? And iced it? And gave her meds?" I ask in disbelief.

His answer edges into sarcasm. "I know how to handle a basic injury."

I shake my head, which is a mistake, because losing focus makes me stumble and I catch my elbow on a tree trunk, giving myself a scrape. I hiss at the sudden pain, but keep moving.

"Leni, honey, slow down. I can picture you up there racing your legs off, but if you hurt yourself then I'm going to have two girls to rescue today and I think one is enough."

"I just bumped a tree, I'm okay."

"Slow down. Josi is really okay. I'm here. There's nothing more important than she is."

His words have their desired effect and I slow from a sprint back to a quick jog. It's more manageable, and my breathing evens out as I listen to him tranquilly describe where he's going and what his plans are.

"What about the ranch?" I ask, my throat dry.

"The ranch can wait."

It's such a simple statement, but not one I'm sure I've ever heard him utter. The thought chokes me up, but I can't do tears right now because they'll blur my vision, and my stinging elbow reminds me I need to fight off distractions.

"Thank you for being there," I say .

"Where else would I be?" he asks, and again, it's said so naturally that I almost forget all the times he had plenty of other places to be.

He tells me they've arrived at the clinic at the same time I spot my car parked at the trailhead.

What took me twenty minutes to do going up took only fifteen coming down.

I will suffer for that but I don't particularly care at the moment.

Holden lets me talk to Josi while he parks and comes around to get her out of the back seat of his truck, and she really does sound okay.

I hang up when they get to the check-in desk and manage to make the thirty minute drive to town in twenty. I figure if I get pulled over, I'll most likely know the cop and can explain the situation. Thankfully, Pinehaven is free from patrol where I'm driving, and I arrive with no problems.

I push through the clinic doors and am almost to the desk when the receptionist sees me. "Oh, Mrs. Crawford, she's going to be just fine. Josi and her daddy are back in room three. I'll buzz you in, go on ahead and join them."

I can't even think of her name right now, but I nod and thank her and am shoving through the door before all the words have fully left my mouth.

I find room three quickly and push open the door to see tiny Jo-Jo lying on a bed with her arm professionally splinted.

Holden sits on the bed at her side, holding her free hand while the doctor explains things, and the scene stops me in my tracks as all three sets of eyes swing my way.

I don't think Holden has been with one of the children at a doctor's office since they were born. It was me. All me. Until this moment I would have believed he didn't know where the clinic was, which is silly because he grew up here, but still.

"Hey," Holden greets as he stands and moves aside to give me access to my girl. "Josi's all right."

He's said that to me no less than a dozen times, which nearly makes me smile. I sit where he was, the bed still warm from his large presence, and run my hand over her forehead and through her hair.

"Hey, baby," I coo. "I hear you were really brave."

"The bravest," Holden confirms, and Josi's eyes crinkle up just like his do.

I take her uninjured hand and look to the doctor. "What's the situation?"

"There's a fracture in her forearm, the ulna.

The swelling is high, so we've got her in a splint for two days and then we'll have you come back and cast it.

She's young, and the break is clean, so she'll most likely only need six weeks," the doctor tells me.

"Your husband mentioned that he thought she might like a waterproof cast, with it being summer, and I agree.

We'll make sure she doesn't miss any pool days.

" He smiles down at Josi and pats her shoulder.

"You did well during that x-ray too. Not all kids can hold that still when they're in pain. "

Jo-Jo, always so serious around people outside of our home, looks up at him. "It's 'cause my Daddy held my hand."