Chapter 44
Work in general was fine for Lisa after Georgie left. The first few days went well. She had developed a good rapport with her employees, and she felt fairly confident at Fairfield. It was dealing with anyone outside of Fairfield who made her doubt herself. She began to wonder if she should have come clean about her memory loss. The whole thing was so complicated and it made her vacillate between the desire to focus all her energy on her work to the detriment of everything else and the need to be in the safety of Heartland where she had Jack to help her and be her safe place.
It had been nice for Lisa to be out in the open about her relationship with Jack. She liked being able to be affectionate with him without worrying about who might see them. Even just holing his hand while eating dinner or while going for a walk made her so happy. She loved Jack so much, and she was falling more in love with him every day. It still surprised her how much she cared for this man. The love that they shared was not what she had expected of her life. Waking up in the hospital having a completely different life than the one she remembered was wild. It had been her plan to retire early to France and live out the rest of her days there. Thinking about it now, she realized what a lonely existence that would have been. It made her thankful that her life had turned out the way it did. She had a wonderful husband as well as granddaughters and great granddaughters.
Thursday morning, Lisa was sitting at her desk at Fairfield. She was going over some paperwork for a horse that they were selling and working on plans for horses that would be bred. While she was in the midst of that, she heard someone knock on the open door and clear their throat. Looking up, she saw someone she didn't really remember but knew through her research. She hoped that she could get through this interaction without having any issues.
Lisa stood up and walked towards the door. "Brian Anderson! Hello! How are you doing? Please come in and have a seat."
"Hi, Lisa." The man walked into Lisa's office and sat in one of the chairs in front of her desk. "I"m doing well. You look like you're doing pretty well, too, since the accident. Everyone on the circuit was so worried when we heard about it"
Lisa sat down at her desk. "I am doing well. It has been a struggle getting my strength back. As much as my physical therapist hurts me with his exercises, he has helped a lot. I could barely pull myself up on a horse right after I got my cast off. I'm still working on being able to do it without any assistance from my husband. So, what brings you in today?"
"Oh, I was in Calgary visiting friends, and my son came with me to spend time with some friends he met through a camp he attended," responded Brian. "I just dropped him off at the Westfields and remembered that you live in the area, so I decided to stop by.
Lisa was suspicious of this visit but didn't want to give away what she thought for the moment. She was thankful for all the stories she had been told so that she did know a little about the Westfields. "Yes, I know the Westfields. I know all the stable owners in the area. Plus, my granddaughter has worked with Peyton's horses, and my great granddaughter has competed against her as well."
"You have grandchildren and great grandchildren?" Mr. Anderson looked a bit confused.
Lisa chuckled. "Yes, they are through my husband. This is his second marriage. Well, it's my second marriage as well, but he's older than me and brought offspring to the relationship."
"Ah, that explains it," said Brian. "I didn't think you were old enough to have great grandchildren, especially ones who were old enough to compete against Peyton Westfield. So, will you be at any upcoming races? You have been missed on the circuit."
Lisa didn't feel like explaining that Georgie was adopted, which explained why she had a great granddaughter who was that old. "Um, I'm working on that. I still get tired easily so I haven't been traveling. It's something I need to get back to doing, though."
"Well, we look forward to seeing you on the circuit whenever you're ready," responded Brian.
"Thank you. I do miss it. I just haven't been out of my cast long and haven't really had a chance to travel yet. I'm sure I will be on the road soon." Lisa wondered when she would end up traveling again.
"I need to get back to Calgary. Peyton is going to drive my son back to our hotel later. I'm glad to see you are getting back on your feet." The man stood and moved to the door.
Lisa got up and walked to where Brian was standing. "Thanks for stopping by. It was good to see you."
Mr. Anderson stuck out a hand to shake Lisa's. "It was good to see you, too."
Lisa shook Brian Anderson's hand "Have a safe drive back to Calgary. I hope you enjoy the area."
Once Brian left, Lisa let out a sigh of relief. Her interaction with a colleague had gone well. It gave her a lot of confidence while looking to the future. With all the confidence Lisa felt, her day at work flew by. Before she knew it, it was time to go home. Lisa gathered her things and made her way to her SUV.
When Lisa got back to Heartland, she wanted to go for a ride and wondered if Jack was around. Walking into the house, Lisa suddenly felt a little girl run into her to give her a hug. Lisa looked down at her great granddaughter and smiled. "Hello, Lyndy! How are you? Are you excited about your last day of school tomorrow?"
Lyndy's face lit up. "We are having a party tomorrow! We're going to have pizza and cupcakes and watch a movie!"
Lisa chuckled and the girl's excitement. Walking into the living room, she saw that Kate was sitting on the couch reading a book. "Hi, Katie, Have you seen your GG?"
Katie looked up from her book and smiled at Lisa. "Yeah, he said the needed to go out otht he barn to talk to Grandpa."
"Okay, I'll head out there." Lisa started to head to the barn, but turned back to ask Katie, "Are you ready for your last day of school tomorrow as well?"
Katie nodded. "Yes. Ellie and I are going to go dirt biking this weekend. Brandon is going to visit his grandparents so he can't come too, but we already made plans and don't want to skip out just because he can't come."
"Good. I'm glad you two are able to be friends on your own. Well, I'm going to go find Jack." Lisa walked out to the barn.
Jack had finished talking about plans for the herd with Tim and was checking on the horses when he saw Lisa walk into the barn. He smiled and walked over to greet her. "Hello, Lis. How was work?"
Lisa kissed Jack and stepped back. "It was okay. A racing colleague came in to see me today. He happened to be in the area and said he wanted to see how I was doing."
Jack looked surprised. "Oh? How was that?"
"It was okay, I think. I'm really grateful for how much I studied photos and messages and memorized people's faces. I guess I'll find out soon enough if I said something wrong. I can't do anything about it now." Lisa shrugged and leaned in to hug Jack. "I hope I didn't say anything wrong."
"I'm sure you were fine. If you did say something wrong, we'll deal with it. I'm so proud of you. Jack wrapped his arms around Lisa and gave her a big hug. "I love you."
"I love you too." Lisa leaned back into Jack's arms and looked up at him. "I kind of want to go for a ride. Would you have any interest in that?"
"That sounds like a good idea to me. How about you go tell the girls where we're going, and I'll get the horses saddled," suggested Jack.
"Okay, I'll be right back." Lisa left to tell Katie and Lyndy that they were going for a ride and would be back later.
As the couple headed out on their ride, Lisa smiled over at Jack. "Thanks for agreeing to this. It's nice to get out and go for a ride."
"Thank you for thinking of it," replied Jack.
Lisa felt her strength returning to her the more she rode. She thought back to the first ride she went on after the accident when she could barely get up on the horse and was limited to moving the horse with the reins in her left hand. Realizing that she had the use of both hands made her feel relieved.
Jack looked over at Lisa and smiled. "You always look good on a horse, but you're looing more comfortable and relaxed. It's nice to see."
"Thank you." Lisa beamed at Jack's comment. "I do feel more comfortable. I'm still getting used to being older and not in the same shape that I was in 17 years ago."
"Well, you're as beautiful as ever, said Jack while smirking at Lisa. "I told my old friend Will Vernon that you're the most beautiful woman in the world when I told him about marrying you. I meant it then and it's still true now."
Lisa rolled her eyes at Jack. "You're ridiculous. We need to get you in with an optometrist."
"My vision is fine. The only thing I don't fully understand is how I got you to fall in love with me twice." The two had come to a stop on their horses. Jack leaned over and kissed Lisa.
"Well, I can't speak to how you did it the first time, but if it was anything like now, it's because you're kind, loving, and loyal. Plus, you've got this whole handsome, rugged cowboy look going on that doesn't hurt."
"Yeah?" Jack sat up a little straighter in the saddle and puffed out his chest a bit, too.
Lisa just shook her head in amusement and rode off. Jack had to trot to catch up with Lisa by the time he realized what was happening. Lisa laughed when he caught up. "Nice to see that you could join us." She then cantered away on her horse while laughing, leaving Jack behind again.
The two of them were laughing and relaxed by the time they arrived back at the barn. THey got off their horses, and Lisa was about to walk hers into the barn to unsaddle him and brush him down. Jack grabbed Lisa's hand and pulled her to him. He wrapped arm around her back and kissed her. Lisa wrapped her arms around Jack's neck and kissed him back.
Tim walked out of the barn and saw the couple lost in a kiss. "Come on, you two. I'm glad you're back together, but nobody wants to see that."
Jack and Lisa pulled apart, looking a little embarrassed at having been caught like that. As if you and Jessica aren't kissing each other all the time. I"ve caught you two making out more than once," pointed out Lisa.
Tim started to protest but then stopped. "Okay, fine. You got me there, but Jessica and I are not old like Jack."
True…" Lisa couldn't help but giggle.
"Hey!" Jack protested.
"But I'm younger than you, TIm." Lisa laughed and grabbed the reins of her horse to bring him into the barn like she was going to before Jack kissed her.
"You know, being in love makes your wife a little feisty," said Tim.
Jack's eyes lit up at that. "It does, and I'm enjoying it."
"Oh, god. Don't go there. I can't have that image in my head." Tim looked like he was going to be sick.
Jack laughed at Tim. "I didn't mean it like that. You're the one with the dirty mind. Although, now that you mention it, that does apply as well." Jack walked into the barn with his horse to join Lisa. He was laughing as he heard Tim making gagging sounds behind him.
Lisa looked around Jack at Tim's display outside the barn. "Why is Tim gagging? Do I even want to know?"
"No." Jack kept a straight face and didn't give anything away about why Tim was behaving that way.
Lisa shrugged and went back to working on her horse. "Okay, I've done everything I can do. Can you take off the saddle? I can't wait to be strong enough for that again."
"I don't mind doing it for you," said Jack.
"I know, but it's something I used to do on my own all the time, and now I can't. It's frustrating." Lisa's shoulders dropped in defeat.
Jack walked over to Lisa after he revoked her horse's saddle. "Oh, I get it. I don't like not being able to do things on my own, either. You'll be able to completely tack and untack your horse on your own soon. I'm sure of it. You're pretty close to it now."
Lisa looked up at Jack. "I know. I'm just feeling impatient about it."
Jack kissed Lisa. "I understand. Let's take care of the horses. Then we can go inside for dinner."
THe following morning, one of the Fairfield trainers brought her info on a horse that was for sale. Lisa thanked them for the information and said that she would take a look at it later. The reality was that she was still nervous about traveling. She knew that she'd have to get over it eventually, but she just wasn't quite there yet. Part of her wondered if she should let her trainers know about her amnesia, but she wasn't sure if it would be a smart decision. She made a mental note to talk to Ediwn and Jack about it and get their opinion.
Looking over the hose sale information she had been given, Lisa thought it looked promising. It was exactly the kind of horse that she was interested in buying. The only catch was that it was in Kentucky. Lisa wasn't anxious to travel that far with her memory being gone. She was hopeful that she could work it out so that Edwin could travel with her. It meant that she needed to talk to Edwin about two things. Not knowing exactly where he was at the moment, she sent off a text to find out if he could meet her for lunch at the house.
Lisa had received confirmation that Ediwn could meet her at the house for lunch. THey had important things to discuss, and she didn't want an audience. She walked over to unlock the door to the kitchen, set out her lunch and pulled out some snacks that Georgie hadn't opened and left behind.
Once Lisa and Edwin sat down to eat, Lisa knew that she needed to start their conversation. "So how have you been doing? How do you think my employees are doing? Do you think that they suspect anything?"
"I'm doing well. This job is perfect for me. I still get to work with horses, and it's challenging in a good way. I think the other employees are doing well. They don't seem to suspect anything. Sometimes, I think they wonder what's going with you, but they gossiped about that before the accident. You are a bit of an anomaly."
"Any anomaly? How?" Lisa didn't understand what Edwin meant by that.
"Well, you're this wealthy and successful horse breeder and owner, and you are tough and expect the best from everyone. However, you're not someone who does unscrupulous things, and you are loyal. I think your family situation also adds to that. You have this beautiful home here, but you live at Heartland. I don't mean this in a derogatory way at all. I just think that it's an interesting dichotomy, and people don't always understand it." Ediwn looked a little nervous that he had said too much.
Lisa pursed her lips. She couldn't exactly argue with any of Edin's observations. They were all correct and very astute. "You're not wrong. I didn't move in with Jack right after we got married though. Apparently, I didn't want to live alone anymore when I did make the move."
"Edwin nodded. "That makes sense. Family seems to be very important to you."
"It is. It always has been. Now, I'm adjusting to living with everyone at Heartland while also trying to navigate my relationship with Jack."
"So, I assume that you two are together again?" asked Edwin.
Lisa smiled and answered, "We are."
"Good. I'm glad." Edwin looked happy for his boss.
Lisa decided to change the topic to the main reason she had asked to have lunch with Edwin. "So, Chuck gave me info on a horse that is for sale. I haven't traveled anywhere beyond a day at the fishing cabin, and I'm a little nervous about it. Are you free in the next few days to travel with me?"
Edwin looked thoughtful. "Wouldn't it make more sense for Chuck to travel with you since he found the horse?"
"I thought about that, but he doesn't know about my memory loss. Wha do you think about telling him? Do you think it would be okay?" Lisa wasn't sure if it would be a good idea. She hadn't really gotten a feel for how Chuck would react.
"I don't know. It probably would be, bu t he can be a bit of a gossip. He's the kind of person who would need an NDA," said the stable manager.
"Hmmm. Okay. Well, I'll have to think about that. What about you traveling with me? Are you available?" Lisa was hopeful that she wouldn't have to travel alone.
Ediwn pulled out his phone to look at his calendar. "I'll have to check with my ex-wife and see if she has anything she needs me her for with our daughter. I can't think of anything at the moment, and there's nothing on our shared calendar, but that doesn't mean that there isn't something."
Lisa nodded. "Of course. Check with her and get back to me. Depending on when the owner is available, I'd like to leave on Sunday if possible.
"Okay. I will let you know. If you don't have anything else to discuss, I do need to get back to work." Edwin threw away trash from his lunch and headed for the door.
""You're good. I need to get back to work as well." Lisa pulled out her phone to send a text to Jack so that they had a heads-up about her possible work trip. She was incredibly anxious about traveling and didn't know what she would do if Edwin couldn't come with her.
A text came back from Jack. "I'll support you no matter what, but I will also miss you like crazy if you have to go."
Lisa smiled as she reread the message from Jack. His support was so important to her. It blew her mind just how quickly he had become so important to her. Feeling like she couldn't focus anymore, Lisa decided to head home. She kind of wanted to be home with Katie and Lynyd arrived home from school as well. They were both very excited about their summer breaks starting. Lisa sent another text to Jack to let me know she was going home early. She hoped that they could have some time together before the house got busy after school.
When Lisa arrived back at Heartland, most of the family was gone. Only Jack's truck was still around. Entering the house, Lisa was relieved to see Jack sitting at the kitchen table. She wanted to talk to him and get a hug.
"Hi, Lis." Jack walked over to her and kissed her. "I'm glad you're home early."
"Me too. I just wanted to see you while I wait to hear from Edwin if he can travel with me next week. I need to do a little bit of work and set up a time to go see that horse, but otherwise, I'm fee." Lisa wrapped her arms and Jack and gave him a big hug. "Okay, I already feel better. I'm going to send a message about going to see the horse so they can let me know when they're available. When I'm done with this, can we spend some time together before everyone gets home?"
Jack's eyes lit up. "Of course."
Lisa chuckled at Jack's eagerness and walked into their bedroom and shut the door while she finished up her work. After quickly siding messages to schedule a visit to see the horse and also respond to a couple of other emails, she put her phone down and walked back to the kitchen.
"Are you all done with work for now?" asked Jack.
"I am. I still need to schedule flights, but I'm waiting to hear from Edwin if he's available to travel with me." Lia walked over to where Jack was standing by the sink and kissed him. "What are you feeling about spending time together in bed?"
"My feelings are very positive about that." Jack took Lisa's hand and led her to the bedroom, shut the door and locked it.
To Be Continued
Author's Note: Sorry for the delay on this chapter. I knew that it was going to be a little delayed because my husband and I took a little trip up to Lake Erie, but I ended up throwing out my back and then getting really sick. It didn't help that I was in the midst of reworking the next couple of chapters. I wrote and edited a lot yesterday and today. I wanted to get things figured out so that I could post a new chapter today. I'm feeling much better and it's so nice to be able to be out of bed. I was basically stuck there for all of last week. Although the at-home test was negative for covid, I'm not entirely convinced that it wasn't covid. The headache, eye pressure, and eye pain were certainly the same as was when I had it last year. God bless my husband for taking care of me and working full time. He's the best.