***The next morning***
Jonathan and Jennifer woke up around 7, and got ready and headed downstairs to breakfast.
"Morning, sweetheart. Morning Jonathan".
"Morning Pa".
"I take it you are going to ride your new horse this morning?"
"Yes. What did you name her?"
"Nothing. She's your horse, so you should be the one to decide her name. She's only been here about 4 weeks. The stable hands have been calling her Sassy, because of her attitude".
"Sassy would have definitely fit Sweet Sue".
Walter brought in breakfast for them then.
"Miss Jennifer, in honor of your visit home, I made my famous artichoke benedicts. Enjoy".
"Well, thank you, Walter. That's very kind of you".
She turned to Jonathan.
"You like artichokes, right?"
"Yes, very much so".
"Good, then we can start eating them more often".
After a nice breakfast, she and Jonathan headed to the stables.
She practically ran to the new horse, and started petting her.
"Darling, she's so beautiful!"
She was a light brown color, with a very light brown mane, and a prominent white stripe down her nose. Her tail was just a slight bit darker than her mane. Her eyes were a green color, and they seemed to sparkle when she looked at you.
Jennifer started feeding her carrots and apple slices, and brushing her and talking to her.
"You are such a gorgeous girl, you know that? So pretty".
Jennifer saddled her up and took her to the corral where she started her in a trot line. Jonathan hung back and watched.
After she got her broke in pretty well, she climbed up and rode her a little faster than a trot.
After about 20 minutes, she stopped in front of Jonathan.
"Want to ride with me?"
"Sure".
He climbed up and sat behind her on the saddle and wrapped his arms around her waist.
She told the stable hand they were going to go on a short ride and be back in a couple hours. He handed her a feed bag with snacks for the horse.
She turned back to Jonathan.
"This might be a little bumpy, I am going to try and increase her speed gradually. Just hang on".
"Got it".
They took off on a slow trot, and then gradually picked up speed. She took her down a couple trails to see how she would handle them, and she did fine. After about an hour, she stopped by the pond that she always stopped the horses at, and they dismounted.
She tied the horse to a tree with a long rope so that she could drink from a trough, and then she and Jonathan sat on a bench under a nearby tree.
"That was a fun ride".
"Yeah, she handled really well. You also handled it really well".
"So, how do you like her?"
"She's quiet, reserved, but stable. She's a great horse. I think she trusts me, but I'm not positive yet. I can feel a stubborn streak in her, but I can't tell yet how stubborn she is. She takes to direction well for the most part. I know that we won't have the same relationship that Sweet Sue and I had, but that's only because I was living here then and riding her every single day. It might take some time for her to really trust me. I also need to figure out her name. I'm not sure I like Sassy".
"I do. It fits her. And it fits you, too".
"Jonathan! I am not Sassy".
"Darling, when you get fired up, you start at Sassy. You end up at Feisty".
"Ok, maybe you're right. I suppose she could be called Sassy Sue, in homage to her grandmother. Although, I kind of like Sassafras a little better."
"Sassafras is cute, I like that too".
They brainstormed a few more names, but Jennifer kept coming back to Sassafras.
"I need to get Pa's papers on her and see if she already has a name. If she doesn't, I think Sassafras is the winner".
They sat there a little longer, watching her graze and drink in the trough.
"Jonathan, I need to tell you something. I hope that you will be ok with it. I've given this a lot of thought, and I really think this is the best option."
"What is it?"
"I don't think we should tell my father about the baby. I mean, I know that he said we could stay together while we are here and he obviously knows that we are living together. But, I just think it's going to cause him pain, and I don't think we should tell him. I don't want to cause him pain, and I think he will be even more worried about me if we tell him, and trust me, we don't want him to worry about me, or you, or the both of us".
"If you think that's best".
"I do. It's not like I'm trying to forget her or say that she never existed, that's not it, I swear. It's just….at this point he's going to be upset that I didn't tell him sooner, and it's going to drag up all the Elliott stuff again, and Lord knows we don't want that".
"It's ok, babe. I completely understand".
She placed her hand on his.
"Thank you".
"I know that we had said we would go see a professional. Do you still think we need to?"
"Not at the moment. I think I just naturally found a balance".
"If you ever change your mind, I am more than happy and willing to go with you, whatever you need".
She kissed him.
She rested her head on his shoulder for a little bit.
"You know, growing up in the orphanage, this is what I dreamed of."
"Really?"
"Yeah. I probably can't explain it right. But, when you live in that kind of environment, your mind just sometimes naturally tends to wonder about what kind of parents will eventually pick you. I used to dream that I could be a cowboy, and ride horses all over the place, mainly because I watched a lot of westerns."
"That's so cute. I never knew you liked westerns".
"I don't really, anymore. Every now and then I will watch one. But back then, it's all the nuns would let us watch. I used to dream I had a black stallion and I would name it Bandit, and we would be the best of friends".
"I like that name, Bandit".
She went over to the horse and fed her some carrots.
"Honey, you ready to head on?"
"Certainly".
He hopped up on the saddle and then helped her up. They got settled and slowly took off.
She took them down another trail, and back to an area where she hadn't taken Jonathan last time.
They came upon a nice shaded, garden-y area. Jennifer slowed the horse down.
"See that area over there? That's where Momma is buried".
"If you want to stop, I don't mind".
"No, it's ok".
She blew a kiss in the general direction, and then they kept on going.
The horse was doing great, and really handling the ride well.
"I'm so impressed by her calm demeanor".
"She's a great horse".
They rode back towards the house, taking another trail Jonathan hadn't seen.
"I'm going to see how fast she can handle. Hang on".
Jennifer kicked her heels several times, speeding up the horse. They were practically flying across the field, without a care in the world. That was Jennifer's favorite way to ride.
She slowed the horse down and then they trotted back to the stables.
"How about we go back to the house for some lunch, and then we can come back and go again?"
"That's a great idea".
He dismounted first, and then helped her dismount.
"Thank you, darling".
She handed the reigns to the stable hand, and asked him to brush her and let her run in the pen.
"We'll be back to take her back out in a little while."
She gave her a few kisses and a sugar cube, and then she and Jonathan headed back to the house hand in hand.
They came in the house and headed for the kitchen.
Pa and Walter were sitting at the kitchen table playing cards.
"How was your ride, sweetheart?"
"Fun. She's a wonderful horse. And by the way, do you have the papers on her?"
"Yes, they are in the study, on my desk".
"I'll be right back".
"Jonathan my boy, help yourself to whatever you want. Walter made up some sandwiches and lemonade".
"Thank you, sir".
Jennifer came back with the papers and sat down next to her dad.
"Ok, let's see here". She opened the file and read all through it.
"It appears as though the breeder gave her the name Lollipop. I was thinking more like Sassafras".
"I like Sassafras. It's bold, but not mean. I think it fits her very well. And besides, you had a horse when you were a baby named Lollipop".
"I did?"
"Yeah, it came here when you were about 8 months old. Your mom and I let you ride her for the first time when you were about 2. She didn't have the best temperament, and there was an incident one day that resulted in her having to be put down".
"What was the incident?"
"She kicked you in the back of the leg. For no apparent reason, really. She didn't have the best mindset. She spooked extremely easily, usually in an angry state. She was too unpredictable, and your mother told me that if you hadn't been holding her hand at the time, the kick would have sent you flying".
"So, why did she have to be put down?"
"No daughter of mine is going to be attacked by a horse that stays on this farm. If it attacks you, it goes away".
"Well, Sassafras seems to be a bit calmer than Sweet Sue. She's quiet, but she really opens up when we get her going. She loves carrots more than apples, just like Sweet Sue".
"How was she when you tended to her?"
"She was fine. She didn't seem to mind me touching her, and I brushed her coat, her mane and her tail. She didn't even flinch".
"Well, I'm glad to hear it. If you and Jonathan get a place to board horses, you can take her with you".
"Well, we have a house, but we don't have stables. And I'm not sure how I would feel about someone else taking care of her. I'll have to check that out more thoroughly".
She put the papers back in the file.
"Her official name is now Sassafras".
She leaned over and kissed her dad's cheek, and then went and made herself a plate.
Jonathan was standing by the counter.
"Did you get something, honey?"
"Not yet. I was waiting on you. I kind of made a turkey sandwich, but I was hoping you could add your magic".
"I would be delighted".
She fixed his sandwich really fast for him, and then made herself one, and they sat down to eat.
"I can't believe we have to go home tomorrow. I'm so not ready for that".
"I know, your visits always seem too short. Maybe I can fly out west one of these days".
"We would love to have you, Pa. We have lots of room".
After they finished eating, they went back out to the stables, and found Sassafras in the pen.
Jennifer informed the stable hands that her name was now officially Sassafras, and that they were taking her out for another ride.
She turned to Jonathan.
"Honey do you want to ride with me, or do you want your own horse?"
"Miss Jennifer, the saddle that you were using on her lost it's buckle. I'm sorry, but there isn't another 2 person saddle available."
"Well, that settles that. Pick whatever horse you want".
Jonathan picked Cyclone, and got all saddled up.
They rode out in the same direction they had ridden that morning.
They got about ½ way to the first trail, when Jennifer stopped.
"Honey, she doesn't feel right. It's like she won't go when I tell her too, and she isn't remembering my commands as long as she was this morning. I think we need to take her back".
"Fine with me".
They headed back towards the stables. Jonathan went first and put his horse into the pen. He dismounted and tied his horse to the rail, like he had seen Jennifer do earlier with Sassafras.
Jennifer was slowly brining Sassafras back. She was barely willing to trot.
They finally got back to the pen, and she rode her in there, and handed the reigns to Jonathan so that he could tie her up while she dismounted.
Just as she handed the reigns to Jonathan, a large dark cloud covered the sun.
Cyclone started to get antsy.
The stable hand saw it coming, but couldn't get there in time.
Cyclone started to buck, which spooked Sassafras. Sassafras let out a loud neigh, and then reared back, causing Jennifer to fall off and land on the ground, in a heap.
The stable hand managed to get Cyclone away from the pen and off into the stable. Jonathan got Sassafras outside the pen and tied to the rail.
He went back inside and ran to Jennifer.
"Darling, can you hear me? Jennifer, can you hear me?"
He looked up to see the stable hand coming.
"Call an ambulance. And call the house and tell Stephen to come here".
"It's ok, Jennifer. I promise, you're going to be ok".
He held her hand and kissed it as she laid there, totally unconscious.
