Chapter 10:
When Sam told Jen about the events from the night before her friend immediately burst into a loud fit of laughter, causing several other people on the bus turn and look at them.
"Oh my gosh. That's so embarrassing!" Jen said, wiping tears of mirth from her eyes.
"It was definitely one of my most embarrassing moments," Sam admitted. "But at least it's over with now."
"True," Jen agreed. "And I think that Jake's mom was right about having Jake talk to your dad. It's definitely the sort of thing he'd appreciate plus it meant you didn't really have to do anything. I'm just really surprised that Jake found the courage to do it."
Sam laughed. "Me too."
Sam got seats with Jen and Ally that day for lunch and they were soon joined by Jake, Darrel and a few other boys.
"Hello ladies," Darrel said as obnoxiously as ever. "I bet seeing me is the highlight of your day!"
Sam rolled her eyes and Ally merely smiled tolerably at her boyfriend but Jen muttered, "Not likely."
Darrel laughed at the blonde. "Now now," he tutted. "I know I was your first choice in boyfriends, Kenworthy, but Miss Ally here has swept me off my feet. You'll just have to settle for that British guy."
Sam suppressed a smile as her friend turned an angry red and spat, "I'll have you know 'that British guy' is ten times the guy you are!"
"Ouch," Darrel said, clutching at his chest jokingly.
Jake rolled his eyes at his friend's antics and turned to Sam. "So I've decided what we're going to do this weekend."
"If I agree," Sam pointed out teasingly.
Jake smirked. "You will."
"What then?"
"You remember me telling you that my dad was breeding Witch's half sister to some fancy stallion a friend of his put up to stud?" Jake asked.
"No! You didn't tell me anything about it."
Jake grinned. "Musta slipped my mind." Obviously Sam's expression looked doubtful because he hastily went on, "Anyway, she's due any day now and I was thinking if she holds out till Friday maybe we could camp out in the barn and watch the foaling."
"Oh my gosh that would be awesome!" Sam exclaimed excitedly.
Jake gave an embarrassed chuckle. "I know you were there when that filly of yours was born but seems like something you'd never get tired of seeing."
"Definitely not," Sam agreed and tried to picture the mare Jake meant in her head.
It was a mare she didn't see all that often but she knew it was one of Jake's dad's favourite mounts. She was mostly black like Witch, but her coat has a brownish tinge to it and her nose was a chocolatey colour. Similar in conformation to both Witch and Chip but a little lighter (she thought she remembered Jake once telling her she had a bit of Thoroughbred in her), Sam immediately started asking questions about the stallion to try to picture what the foal would look like.
"Is he a Quarter horse too, Jake? What colour?"
"Easy, Brat," Jake teased. "Yeah, he's a Quarter horse and he's bay. I'll show you some pictures tomorrow."
Sam nodded and said happily, "This is so much better than a typical date." She caught Jake's questioning look and added, "You know, like movies and stuff."
Jake cocked his head to the side, considering. "We can see a movie sometime. I just thought this was more your thing...and movies aren't good for first dates. You can't talk or anything."
Sam jumped when suddenly Jen's laughter rang loud in her ears. "Did you hear that, Sam?" the blonde girl asked, laughter dancing in her eyes. "Jake is complaining about not being able to talk! Imagine that."
Jake scowled at Jen but Sam couldn't help but giggle along with her friend. It was kind of funny.
Later that evening Sam brought up Jake's date idea with her family. Brynna immediately seemed to think it was a great idea but her dad was obviously a little more reluctant. "I don't know..." he said slowly.
"Oh Wyatt," Brynna said with exasperation. "I think it's great. It'll be fun, educational even. Sam's already supervised a birth before and she did just fine."
"So you'll be sleeping in the barn?" Wyatt asked, ignoring Brynna.
"Uh, yeah. That's the plan." Inwardly Sam rolled her eyes. Mares most gave birth in the night or early hours of the morning because in the wild, that's when they were safest from predators. Her dad knew this, of course so what was the problem?
"I'll bring the sleeping bag that's designed for winter camping and dress really warmly. It shouldn't be too cold in the barn with the animals inside."
Her dad just nodded noncommittally and suddenly Brynna said, "Wyatt." Sam watched in amazement as Brynna and her dad engaged in a staring contest that seemed to serve as a silent conversation. She wondered if she'd develop telepathy skills when she got married too.
"Show some trust," Brynna said softly.
Sam's dad expelled a deep breath of air. "Alright," he said. "But if you get out there and change your mind, you call me no matter what the time and I'll come pick you up."
"Thanks, Dad," Sam said with a grin, knowing she wouldn't have to.
Even with only a couple days of school separating her from Friday night, Sam felt like time dragged on forever. When Sam finally got home from school Friday afternoon she rushed through her chores and then bolted up the stairs to her room, hastily stuffing a warm hoodie and a pair of worn, soft jeans into a bag. A pair of thick socks, a warm cap and matching mittens followed. As an afterthought, Sam threw her hairbrush and toothbrush in as well. All this was brought downstairs and put beside the sleeping bag and fold-out cot piled by the door.
Brynna watched her step daughter list off the things she had and smiled. "I think you're covered, Sam. The Ely's will have everything else."
Sam nodded. "Want me to hold him for a bit?" she asked, looking at Cody nestled in Brynna's arms.
Brynna smiled. "If you wouldn't mind, that would be great. He's wide awake right now and craving attention. I confess I wouldn't mind checking my work emails."
Sam gently extracted her little brother from his mother's arms and tucked him against her. "Hey there," she cooed, bringing him over to an armchair in the living room.
Aunt Sue was reading a book on the couch and smiled. "You're such a good big sister."
Sam gave an embarrassed shrug. "I feel like I understand baby horses better than baby humans."
Aunt Sue laughed. "Like everything, it just takes practise."
Sam looked down at the tiny thing in her arms. "I guess so."
"So Jake's coming by to pick you up after dinner?" her aunt asked.
"Yeah, Sam said. "We're eating a little early here because his mom wants me to have dessert with the family before we head out to the barn. Jake says the mare is showing all the signs that she's going to foal tonight so my fingers are crossed. I want to be home to spend most of the afternoon with you tomorrow, before you go back to the city."
Aunt Sue smiled. "I'd like that too. I think Grace has a special goodbye dinner planned for tomorrow night so I think you'd be sorry to miss out."
Before Sam could reply Brynna called them to dinner from the kitchen. "I'll take Cody," she said to Sam and proceeded to tuck the baby into his carrier where he could watch the dinner proceedings.
Sam felt her impatience return as dinner began but knew that wolfing down her food wouldn't make the time pass any faster. She forced herself to participate in the dinner conversation and eat her food politely but let out a sigh of relief when six o'clock came around and she heard Jake's truck coming across the bridge. She quickly swallowed the last forkful of spaghetti on her plate and went to rinse her dishes in the sink.
Gram rose too and handed her a small tin. "I know Maxine is serving you dessert and will likely have some snacks to take to the barn too, but I did some baking today and these are one of Jake's favourites."
Sam peeked inside the tin and, seeing cookies, inhaled deeply. "Mmm. Thanks, Gram!" she said, and pecked the older woman on the cheek.
Her dad was greeting Jake at the door and Sam quickly pulled on her boots, coat and hat before picking up her sleeping bag and waving good bye to everyone. Jake had the cot in one arm and her bag in the other and together they headed towards his truck. Sam was just passing through the door when her dad put a hand on her shoulder and said quietly, "Remember, Sam. You just have to call and I'll be there."
Sam smiled. "I know, dad. Thanks." She held back a giggle as all three women rolled their eyes behind his back.
Even though he must have heard, Jake didn't say anything when they were both outside. "My dad is feeling pretty protective lately," Sam laughed as they tossed her stuff into the truck and she squeezed into the passenger side.
Jake quickly joined her in the driver's seat and turned the keys in the ignition. "You're his little girl. I'd be surprised if he wasn't acting that way."
"I guess so. But, it's you. After himself, he probably trusts you with me the most." When Jake just stared at the road without comment Sam added, "Don't think I didn't notice those looks you guys always exchanged whenever you thought I was up to something."
Jake flashed her a grin. "Yeah, but that was before I became the boyfriend. That changes things a bit. Dads are always suspicious of their daughter's boyfriends. My dad told me it stays that way 'till you marry them."
"How would he know?" Sam asked. "He's only got sons."
"Yeah, but that was the way it was for him when he was dating my mom. Her dad didn't really trust him 'till he proposed. Course, could've also had to do with the fact that he's Shoshone. Apparently he wasn't sure what to make of it when she introduced them the first time."
Sam didn't really know what to say about that. After a pause she said, "Well at least that's one thing you don't have to worry about with my dad."
"Yeah," Jake agreed. After a minute of silence he spoke up again. "So I've already set up most of the stuff in the barn. We'll just set up your cot and then head inside. You can change in the house before we head out for the night."
"Sure," Sam said as they pulled into Three Ponies Ranch.
After they had set Sam's stuff up in the barn Jake motioned for Sam to come over. "This is her," he said softly, indicating a stall not far from where they had set up.
Sam peered over the doorway and saw the dark mare she remembered seeing Luke Ely riding sometimes. "How come I never noticed a pregnant mare around here?" Sam asked.
Jake shrugged. "You aren't around here as much as I'm at your place. Plus, up until last week we've kept her in a private pasture with a walk-in shelter. The one that's off to the side of the barn?"
Sam nodded slowly. Whenever she was at Three Ponies Ranch she was in the house, the barn or watching Jake work a horse in the corral. She had probably glimpsed the mare and dismissed her completely.
"Ready to go in?" Jake asked finally.
"Yep."
Jake gave her a small smile. "That's what you think."
When Sam and Jake entered the house a minute later Sam immediately realized what he had meant. They were instantly swarmed by Jake's brothers who all instantly began to tease them and ask her how she had been tricked into dating Jake.
"Did you have another riding accident, Sam? Scrambled your brains up a bit?" Quinn teased.
"That's not funny!" Mrs. Ely scolded as she squeezed her way through the crowded entranceway. She looked even more tiny and blonde than usual surrounded by her tall, black-haired sons. "Now back off and give Sam some room to breathe. I invited her over for dessert, not to be hounded by you."
Sam smiled at the woman. It was sometimes hard to treat her as a close family friend and Jake's mom since she was also Sam's history teacher at school, but Mrs. Ely was so nice that the awkwardness always soon faded.
It was over an hour later when Jake finally convinced his mother that they had to head out to the barn. Sam could tell Jake was a little uncomfortable with everyone making a big deal about their relationship and he seemed worried that she would be overwhelmed by all the teasing from his brothers. She couldn't understand why, as she had been around his family long enough that she was used to how loud and crazy they acted. Coming from a small and much quieter home, Sam loved the busy and noisy atmosphere of the Ely household.
"Thanks so much for the cake, Mrs. Ely," Sam said as she waited by the door. "It was delicious."
Mrs. Ely smiled but waved off the compliment. "It's got nothing on your Gram's baking," she said modestly.
Sam had already brushed her teeth and changed into her warmer clothing and was waiting for Jake to do the same. Jake's coy-dog, Singer was going to spend the night out in the barn with them and was currently sitting at Sam's feet begging for attention.
"Take this out with you," Mrs. Ely said, handing Sam a large basket. "There's a couple thermoses of hot chocolate in there and some brownies in case you get hungry. Oh—and I filled up a couple hot water bottles too. I thought you could stuff them in your sleeping bags to heat them up before you climb in for the night."
"Oh, wow. Thanks," Sam said as Jake joined them by the door.
"If you need anything, just come up to the house. Don't worry about waking anyone up," Mrs. Ely told them.
"If you get cold during the night and need a real man to warm you up, don't hesitate to come to me," Nate said with a grin to Sam. "My room is the second door on the ri—"
Sam missed the rest of his words as Mrs. Ely smacked him on the shoulder and Jake quickly pulled her out the door. Singer trotted ahead of them to the barn and within minutes they had stuffed the hot water bottles into their sleeping bags and set up the snacks on a little table out of Singer's reach.
"I don't think the action will start until really early in the morning," Jake said from where he stood at the mare's stall.
"Probably not," Sam agreed. "Let's just hang out a bit and maybe catch a few hours sleep. We'll wake up when she starts moving around." She opened up the tin her Gram had given her and took a bite out of a cookie. "These are so good. Chocolate-chip peanut butter cookies. Your favourite," she said to Jake, holding out the tin.
Jake took a few steps towards her but instead of taking a cookie from the tin he dipped his head down to kiss Sam. "Mmm. Sure taste good to me," he said with a grin.
Sam blushed, caught off guard by Jake's sudden playfulness, and tried to cover up how flustered she was by turning towards the thermoses of hot chocolate. "We'd better drink these before they cool off," she said, handing one to Jake.
Jake accepted the thermos and nodded but Sam knew from the amused flicker in his eyes that he was aware of how he had affected her.
Some time later Sam yawned and rolled her shoulders to ease the stiffness that had come over her body. Somehow she and Jake had ended up sitting at either end of one of the cots and talking for the last hour or so. It surprised Sam how easily conversation seemed to come to them. She had never sat and just talked with Jake. She was unaware that he was even capable of carrying long conversations. And yet here they were reminiscing over the day she first came home from San Francisco.
"You looked like such a punk when you got out of that truck," Jake said. "Hardly looked a thing like the girl that left with that haircut and those black clothes."
Sam grimaced at the memory. "Yeah, cutting off my hair was a mistake," she agreed, tugging at a few strands of her auburn locks. "It's better now but I want to grow it out long. Like my mom's was."
Jake tilted his head to the side as he looked at her, as though imagining what it would look like and nodded. Sam remembered him telling her right after Brynna cut her hair for school that guys liked girls with long hair. She wondered if that was his preference.
"Your hair is growing out again," she said.
"Yeah."
"Will you cut it again?"
"I don't know," Jake said. "All the first impression stuff with the scholarship people is over so it doesn't really matter."
"I like it when it's long enough to tie back," Sam confessed.
Jake smiled and got up to look in on the mare. "She's pretty quiet right now. We should try and get a couple hours of sleep now for when she goes into labour."
Several hours later Sam woke to someone gently nudging her awake. "Sam," Jake said softly. "The mare's moving around. I think she's ready."
Feeling instantly awake Sam bolted upright, almost banging her head against Jake's. "Easy there, Brat," he said.
It was pitch black in the barn and Sam started slightly as she felt something soft by her feet as she swung them off the cot. Singer's eyes glinted eerily in the dark as he looked up at her from his spot on the ground. "You scared me," Sam scolded, giving the coy dog a pat.
She stood and looked around uneasily, her eyes not yet adjusted to the dark. "Jake?" she whispered, sensing him not far from her but unable to see him.
"Right here," he said softly, touching her arm lightly. "I don't want to startle her, so I'm just going to turn on the far light," he said.
Sam nodded and felt Jake move away from her towards the light switches. A moment later a light went on down at the other end of the barn. Sam and Jake both headed towards the birthing stall and cautiously peered inside. There was just enough light that they could see the mare in the shadows of the box stall. She was shifting around her stall, sweat gleamed on her dark coat and Sam could see the dramatic rise and fall of the mare's sides as she breathed hard.
"She looks really close," Sam whispered to Jake, remembering how Sunny had looked while she was in labour with Tempest.
Sam sensed rather than saw Jake's nod of agreement and they both watched in anticipation as the mare gradually became more agitated. Suddenly Sam saw the mare's belly rippled with contractions and she grabbed Jake's hand, finding it instinctively in the dim light, and squeezing it tightly.
Several tense minutes passed. Sam didn't dare move or make a sound and silently cheered the tired mare on. Finally, with a grunt and one last push, the new foal was brought into the world.
The low lighting made it impossible to determine its exact colour, though it was definitely dark. Mare and foal remained still for a long moment, trying to understand their new situation.
Tentatively the foal stretched its neck and raised its head towards its mother. Without hesitation the mare returned the gesture and began to lick its damp coat.
Sam didn't realize she had let out a deep sigh until she sensed Jake watching her. "It gets me—right here," Sam told him, holding her hand against her heart. She turned back to watch the mare and foal. "Thank you for sharing this with me."
From the corner of her eye, Sam saw as Jake's face broke into a kind of embarrassed smile. "Welcome."
They watched the mare and foal acquaint themselves for another few minutes before Jake turned back to Sam. "I want to towel off the foal, just so it doesn't get chilled. Want to get some warm water for the mare?"
Sam nodded and moved to fill up a bucket of water. Sunny had been very thirsty after giving birth to Tempest and this mare proved no different.
Sam stroked the mare's neck as she drank and watched as Jake carefully ran the towel over the foal's body. His hands were gentle and skilled as they worked over the newest addition to Three Ponies Ranch.
When the mare had her fill of water both Sam and Jake left the stall and continued to watch the pair interact. The foal's instincts seemed to be kicking in and they watched as it made several attempts to stand and walk to its mother. On its third try, the foal succeeded and staggered over to nurse.
I wish I had my camera, Sam thought as she and Jake moved back to their cots to give the horses some space.
"So that's what...three births you've helped with so far, Brat? Two animal and one human."
"Yeah," Sam said, climbing back into her sleeping bag and watching Jake turn off the light. She heard Jake's soft steps as he walked over to his own cot. "And for the record, I much prefer animal births. I mean, it was amazing helping Brynna with Cody but it's made me question whether I was to put myself though that."
"Really?" Jake said curiously.
Sam nodded, forgetting Jake couldn't see her in the dark. "It kind of really freaked me out," she admitted.
Jake didn't say anything for a long minute and Sam wondered if she should change the subject. "I always thought you'd be a good mom," he said, so softly Sam barely heard him. She rolled over onto her side, squinting through the darkness as if that could help her see his expression. After another pause, he gave an embarrassed kind of laugh. "You know, since you care about pretty much every living thing you come across."
Sam felt warm at his compliment. "Well, maybe I'll be braver by then. I've always assumed I'd have kids."
Sam heard Jake roll over to look at her through the dark too. "Good."
Good? Sam's heart skipped a beat as she considered the implications of his words. "Not six though!" she blurted out, thinking of Jake's family, and then immediately covered her mouth with her hand.
"Not six, eh?" Jake repeated. He sounded amused rather than offended but Sam was still embarrassed. "I don't think I could handle as many kids as my parents did," Jake confessed.
Sam couldn't help but smile. She couldn't picture quiet Jake surrounded by tons of noisy kids. "So how many do you want?" Sam asked curiously.
"Two," he answered without hesitation.
"Two is a good number," Sam agreed.
Silence hung suspended between them and suddenly Sam felt awkward. This conversation felt dangerously close to discussing potential children with Jake. Even worse, she found herself trying to picture it. She must be crazy!
"I need sleep," Sam groaned.
Jake gave a low chuckle. "Prob'ly a good idea."
Author's Note:
Hey guys, here is another update! This was a bit awkward to write because so many things had to happen before they actually got to go on their date. I felt like I jumped around place to place a bit but...what can you do? Hopefully you enjoyed it. After another few chapters things are going to pick up in pace so hang in there! Please review, I love constructive feedback of all kinds so let me know what you think.
Also, someone pointed out to me that in my last chapter I said Sam was 15, when really she is 14 in RAH. I actually knew this & forgot to change it before I uploaded. Oops! I will probably go back & edit that in awhile but for now, she is really 14!