by Alex Jane
When they left the shadows of the stable and stepped out into the bright yard, Emmanuel had expected to find Asher's stallion a dot in the distance as he escaped to a brief moment of freedom. Instead, he was right there, pulling up some of the long grass that was growing around the foot of the stables. He whickered when he saw Asher and lumbered over to press his head against his shoulder.
"I thought he'd be long gone."
Asher shook his head and slapped the dun's neck as he rubbed his nose. "Not this one. Hector is the most biddable animal I ever met. I tell him to wait, he waits."
Against Emmanuel's better judgment and without really meaning to, somehow he found himself saying, "Why don't you turn him out into the paddock for a while? The cows are farther down today and there's water. Let him rest up. You look as if you could use a drink, and I have some food ready if you want to eat."
Asher looked over at him with a glimmer of suspicion but after thinking about it almost long enough for Emmanuel to rescind the offer, he nodded. "All right. That's…that's nice of you."
Emmanuel snorted as he started to turn away. "Don't go making something out of it. Just trying to be neighborly. Besides. We need to talk terms."
"Terms?"
Emmanuel smiled over his shoulder. "The terms of you leasing my stable. I'm not running a charity, Asher."
As soon as he was back in the house, Emmanuel did have a moment when he wondered what the hell he was thinking, inviting Asher Franklin of all people in to eat with him. But he busied himself clearing away some of the mess he'd made that morning and making space at the large table so they could eat.
When Asher finally joined him, Emmanuel had laid out the table with plates and flatware, a pitcher of water and a couple of glasses as well as two bottles of sweet cider, a basket of bread, and a tureen of venison stew. Asher stood in the doorway for a moment, holding his hat in his hands, looking oddly nervous, until Emmanuel took his seat and gestured with his head. "Come on if you're coming."
Ladling food onto his plate was a good distraction when Asher placed his hat on the hat stand next to the door. The action was a strangely intimate thing somehow and Emmanuel didn't like the way his belly rolled over at that thought.
"Smells good," Asher said as he took his seat.
"Help yourself." Emmanuel replaced the ladle so the handle faced his guest and reached over to move the bread closer.
Asher smirked but did as he was told. "You not gonna serve me then?"
Emmanuel barked out a laugh. "Nope. Don't want you getting any ideas." As a kid he'd loved hearing about the bizarre circumstances of how his grandfathers had met and about how they had courted the traditional way regardless, starting with serving each other the food they had prepared. It had seemed so romantic and sweet, the simple act of preparing a meal and handing it to someone being the start of a relationship that would last a lifetime. For a long time he'd wished he had someone who he could do that for, although he'd grown out of the childish notion a ways back.
Asher didn't seem quite so amused but nodded and muttered, "Oh, I won't. I think you made your feelings quite clear on that matter."
Something about the way he said it made Emmanuel frown, but he decided to ignore it rather than pushing. Besides, there were more important things to talk about.
"How long do you want to leave the gray here?" he asked instead, in-between spoonfuls of stew.
Asher sighed and shook his head. "I don't know. Will she be in the way?"
Emmanuel put down his spoon and leaned back in his chair to think it over. The horse wouldn't be in the way, but he was under no illusions as to who would end up caring for her, namely him, being that he couldn't see Marshal Franklin riding in at the crack of dawn to feed and water her and clean up after her…except of course, if he did there was the double problem of having to face him.
"I would have thought you'd be keen to get her back to your father's place," he said, trying to think of a logical way out of the situation. He wasn't prepared for the way Asher bristled, his eyes flashing and his shoulders hunkering over as if he was about to shift. "I take it you're not on good terms?"
Asher's father was the Alpha of a pack a few counties over. They bred horses like his grandfathers' and they'd done business together as long as Emmanuel could remember. It was how he and Asher had met—Asher's father dragging him along while they'd negotiated or traded or came around to be social. Emmanuel had been taken along to the Franklin ranch a couple of times too. It had been far grander than the Fletcher homestead, and he'd thought the way they threw around money explained why Asher was such a spoiled brat most of the time. They didn't share much in the way of blood relations—most packs were joined by marriage one way or another, so everyone who was in a wolf pack was basically cousins. They had a connection three or four times removed but had been introduced by friends.
It was unsurprising Asher had reacted as he did to the question. Alphas quite often had a difficult time being around each other. Too much posturing and need to get the last word, his mother had always said. She would tell stories of the fights her fathers would have when their nature got the better of them, and his hair would curl. His Uncle Thaddeus, who was the Fletcher Alpha now, had always been a little different in his attitude but even he'd had a strained relationship with them for a number of years.
What did take Emmanuel by surprise was when Asher glared at his plate and growled out, "We're not on any terms."
"I don't…actually, it's none of my business."
"No, it's all right. You'll hear soon enough. I…" Asher closed his eyes and sat back for a second. "They don't approve of…me, I guess. They don't want me back."
It was a statement he could make no sense of. "What do you…? No pack would give up its Alpha-in-waiting?"
"And yet…" Asher said, gesturing to himself. He smiled, small and reassuring, if a little sad. "My sister's boy will be taking over. He's a good kid."
"And you?" Emmanuel asked almost breathless.
"I manage. I travel some with my job. I like that."
"But…can you not feel it? The bond?" Emmanuel had no experience himself, but his siblings would try their best to explain the pack bonds to him, how the members had this invisible, ethereal tie that connected them. It would stretch thin over a distance, but they were still aware each other. Mated couples had an especially strong bond whereby they could sense what the other was feeling. Not being able to experience it himself, he'd vacillated between bitter jealousy and utter relief at his exclusion, but couldn't imagine what it would be like for a wolf who had always felt it to suddenly lose it. Which was why he almost gasped aloud when Asher shook his head.
"Not anymore." He smiled sadly and took a piece of bread to soak the juices from his stew. "Which is why I won't be taking the mare there."
"No," Emmanuel said quietly, lifting up his bottle of cider and putting it to his lips. Taking a drink afforded him a moment to think and when he put it back on the table, he said, "We should get Ephraim to come down and take a look at her." When Asher only raised his eyebrows at him, Emmanuel went on. "He knows more about horses and healing than any horse doctor in a hundred miles, I swear. He could help. If you intend on keeping her."
Asher watched him for a moment, seemingly evaluating his sincerity, before smirking a little. "You've changed your tune. Half an hour ago you were trying to run me off. I never took you for someone who would give in so easily over a sob story."
Emmanuel chuckled and pushed his plate away. "You call that a sob story? It's like you're not even trying." He was aiming to deflect, to make light of the situation, but when he found himself wanting to tell Asher exactly the kind of sob story he had, he cleared his throat and let his smile fall away. "You were kind to her," he said quietly.
"Why wouldn't I be?" Asher looked genuinely confused.
"You were never kind to me. I guess I never saw that side of you before."
The confusion left Asher's face, replaced instead with hurt and m
aybe a little anger. Then he huffed out a laugh and picked up his bottle, taking a long draft before placing it back on the table, keeping his attention on the wet ring the condensation it made against the surface as he turned the glass with his fingers. "You make me sound like a monster," he said finally.
"Monster might be a little strong."
Asher chuckled, but there was little humor in the sound. "Might?" he asked, glancing up at Emmanuel through his lashes. There was something in the look that made Emmanuel's stomach flip over and he quickly looked away, worried the effects might show on his face. "Did you really hate me that much?"
"Hate might also be a little strong," Emmanuel replied with a small smile he hoped was conciliatory. "You didn't go out of your way to get me to like you very much, you have to admit that."
"I'll admit that maybe, on occasion, my teasing went a little too far."
Emmanuel did laugh then. "Teasing? Is that what you call that?"
Asher threw up his hands. "It was only meant to be a little fun."
"For who exactly?" Emmanuel could feel himself getting angry again. "'Cause it sure as hell wasn't for my benefit."
When Asher covered Emmanuel’s hand with his, the shock of his gentle touch drained every bit of anger out of him. "You're right." Asher's tone was unequivocal. "I was just a stupid kid. It's not your fault I didn't know how to act around you. I apologize. I'm sorry if I hurt you."
Slowly drawing his hand away, Emmanuel couldn't help think that there was still a chance this was a trick, designed to make him look a fool, the same as Asher had always played him in the past. As Emmanuel withdrew, so did Asher, taking his hand away and sitting back in his chair, although he didn't take his eyes off Emmanuel.
Emmanuel was still trying to figure out how to respond when Asher's eyes flicked to the open door, a fraction before Emmanuel heard a voice in the yard, calling out to him.
Grateful for the opportunity to escape, Emmanuel threw his napkin down on his seat as he got up and walked over to the door. Ephraim caught sight of him almost immediately, waving and heading to him.
"Just having a bite to eat, if you want to join us," Emmanuel called out.
"Naw, I'm good. Josh is plating something up at the house. Was just calling in to see if you wanted to come up. You know there's a horse in the paddock?"
"I did notice," Emmanuel said, stepping back to let Ephraim in.
Ephraim paused in the doorway for a second when he saw Asher standing at the table. He glanced quickly from Asher's face, to his plate, to Emmanuel, and then back to Asher before nodding. "Alpha. Didn't expect to see you here." Then he turned to Emmanuel and asked quietly, "Everything all right?"
Emmanuel smiled the best he could, hoping his expression was reassuring without giving away the confusing kaleidoscope of feelings inside him. "We were just talking about you actually," he said as he went to retrieve a bottle of cider for his uncle. It was only just cool from sitting in the water barrel, and Emmanuel wondered if he'd ever stop missing the icehouse back home in New York.
"That sounds ominous," Ephraim said, pulling out a chair and sitting down.
"Asher's acquired a horse who's in a bad way. I said you'd be the person to take a look at her."
Ephraim shook his head and smiled as he brought the bottle to his lips. "Did you now."
"She's scared." Asher spoke finally, appeared oddly nervous. "There are welts and sores that need seeing to. She's skinny as all hell and, uh…" He glanced at Emmanuel and there was a hint of guilt in his eyes. "Well, she's pregnant."
Emmanuel laughed. "Is she? How long were you going to wait to let that slip?"
Asher smiled although he looked as if he was fighting it. "I figured once she'd foaled, I would make out there had been two horses all along and you'd come around."
It was sort of funny, but when Emmanuel pointed at Asher with his bottle and teasingly said, "Monster," Asher went still and any levity evaporated.
"You're right. I should have told you."
Emmanuel thought for a second Asher intended to take his horses and leave, until Ephraim broke the tension. "Well, if you boys have finished eating, we should go take a look. Josh is expecting me."
Their plates were both half-finished, but Asher pushed his chair back from the table, so Emmanuel did too. Although Ephraim looked at Emmanuel in surprise. "You coming?"
"I'll be all right," he mumbled, trying to ignore the quizzical look coming from Asher. He didn't much savor the idea of getting too close to the animal, but he figured he could stand back, provide moral support. And it wasn't as if he didn't know a thing about horses. And besides, if she was going to be staying there, he'd need to know what was going on with her in case of emergencies.
The animal was less than pleased to see them but still calmer than she had been. Ephraim approached with his back to her and waited a while before he turned side on so he could take a look. After a while, he sighed heavily and came to stand with Emmanuel and Asher who were lingering on the other side of the aisle.
"She's in a bad way," Ephraim said, pressing his lips into a tight line. "Where'd you get her?"
Asher looked unsure for a moment about giving away that information before he said, "The old Needham place."
The name piqued Emmanuel's curiosity when Ephraim only nodded and leaned against the stable door. "The Needhams moved away?"
"They had a bad year. Couldn't pay back the crop lend." Lost the farm to the bank went unspoken but Emmanuel got his meaning even though he could hardly believe it.
"They really took his land?" The circumstance was a hard thing to fathom even though he wasn't exactly naïve. When he was a child it had been his Grandpa Henry who had lent people money and organized the co-op to ensure the homesteaders in the area would have a chance to get their crop in. But he'd always been generous and more than fair, never taking a dime in interest or running people down if they owed him pennies.
Asher and Ephraim exchanged a look that spoke volumes. "His and a few others," Ephraim said. "Some business is buying land up cheap for pig-rearing." Ephraim sounded as if he wasn't telling the whole story but Emmanuel figured it wasn't his business anyway, so he changed the subject.
"You think the mare'll make it?"
Rubbing his brow with the tips of his fingers, Ephraim blew out a long breath. "Yeah. But it won't be pretty. Her hooves need trimming, which she won't like. The wounds need treating sooner rather than later, which she definitely won't like. We need to get some food in her but without letting her bloat, which could be tricky if she's not settled enough to want to eat." He looked up at Asher and smiled. "You don't make life easy for yourself, do you, son?"
It was a little odd to hear Ephraim talk to the Alpha that way, but he had known him since he was a boy so it made sense. Even if it did make Emmanuel smile when Asher blushed. "No, sir, I don't. I couldn't have left her there though."
"No. I'm glad you didn't. You buy her or confiscate her?"
Asher laughed. "I guess I could have just taken her but given she's close to foaling, I didn't want them to try to claim either of them back. They weren't happy about it though."
"How much?" When there was only silence from Asher, Ephraim raised his eyebrows and looked like he was about to repeat himself.
"Two hundred." Asher winced as he said it.
"Asher." Ephraim said his name as if it was a punishment. "That's twice what she'd be worth, even if she was in good shape, for god's sake."
"Like I said." Asher smirked even though it was clear he wasn't thrilled about the price either. "They weren't happy."
"I bet they are now," Ephraim muttered as he put on his hat. "Right. Well, we're going to need some things from the house and my mate is waiting—"
Emmanuel straightened up and put his hand on his uncle's shoulder. "Why don't you tell us what's needed and we can take the wagon and get it all from Jonathon while you eat and meet you back here later? It'll give her a chance to settle and there's no need to be using up your su
pplies."
"You sure?" Asher looked rather surprised.
"Sure. Won't take us long."
In the end, it didn't. As the three of them walked up the hill to the house, Ephraim rattled off his best guess of what they might need. Emmanuel wished he had his notebook with him to write everything down, but he figured between him and Asher they should be able to remember it all.
He had half a thought of whether to bring Asher's stallion up to put him in with the other horses where Joshua could keep an eye on him, but as they passed him by Hector was dead asleep on his feet. Then all Emmanuel felt was relief that they wouldn't have to bring him any closer. The animal seemed docile enough but Emmanuel was still a little nervous. He was saved the indignity of having to hide from the two horses Ephraim wanted to hitch up to the wagon by his uncle sending him to the house to tell Joshua he'd be there directly, and by the time he got back, all Emmanuel had to do was get up on the wagon beside Asher, who was waiting, and take the reins.
As he waved to Ephraim and slapped the reins gently on the horses' behinds, a question popped into his head and he had to ask, "What did you mean earlier? When you said that I'd made my feelings clear on the matter?"
Asher looked startled at the non sequitur. "Oh. I suppose…well, I think your exact words were, if I were your mate I'd throw myself into the ravine rather than spend another moment with you. Or words to that effect."
"I did not say that," Emmanuel whispered, mildly horrified at himself and half hoping it was one of Asher's jokes.
Asher chuckled and picked at the seam of his pants. "Oh, I assure you, you did. But it was a long time ago. I'm not surprised you don't remember."
"But you remembered it."
Pulling down the brim of his hat, Asher closed his eyes and looked ready to take a nap. "Yeah, well. You're kinda hard to forget, Manny."
Chapter Four
As it turned out, having a horse in the stable again wasn't the worst thing to happen to Emmanuel in a while. The first few days, Asher was around quite often, as expected, helping Ephraim tend her wounds and trim down her hooves, all of which were made easier with their combined strength. Even if Emmanuel had had the fortitude to assist them, he wasn't sure he would have been much help.