“Hey,” he said softly.
“Hey.” She’d never said hey to anyone in her life, but it sounded right in this place and time. Voice as quiet as his, she went on, “How’s the mare?”
“Getting close. I thought you might like to be there.”
The foolish happiness expanded. “I was hoping you’d ask.”
He tilted his head, serious green eyes reflecting the spare light from the Christmas tree. “Were you?”
She nodded, staying still, not wanting to move away from the way he was looking at her. “Yes.”
He breathed in through his nose and exhaled. “Smells good in here.”
“Gavin and I made ornament cookies. With cinnamon.”
“Bet he liked that.”
“I think so.”
“You’ve been good for him.”
Jenna’s mind stumbled on the past tense. Was he going to let her go? Or had the turn of phrase been unintentional?
The balloon of happiness deflated but filled again when Dax motioned toward her end of the house. “Get your coat. It’s cold out.”
“Don’t you want something hot to drink first?”
“Later. The barn is warm enough, and as you know, babies don’t wait.” His face lightened at the reminder of Sophie’s untimely birth.
She laughed softly. “No, they don’t.”
Feeling both unsettled and excited, Jenna hurried to her closet for coat and gloves, glanced in on Sophie, then slid the baby monitor into her pocket before returning to Dax.
He was in the kitchen, eyeing the pans of cookie ornaments with an unreadable expression. When he felt her approach, he said, “Ready?”
She nodded and they headed outside and across the glistening yard. The air was every bit as crisp and cold as the frost implied.
Dax took her elbow and guided them through the darkness toward a long, lighted horse barn. Neither spoke, and the only sounds were their soft footsteps and the pounding of her pulse against her eardrums. His touch, his nearness set her entire body a-hum.
She shivered once but otherwise ignored the cold. She felt invigorated, alive, her blood pumping through her veins with new strength and clarity. She was in love with Dax Coleman. In love.
She glanced his way. His face was in shadow but the shape was strong and masculine. She felt comforted and safe in this foreign world of rural Texas with Dax at her side.
Did he know what he had done to her? Did he have any idea how much he’d helped her grow and mature? She’d run away from Pennsylvania a scared girl. Today she was a woman.
He felt something for her, she was certain. But what? Gratitude? Responsibility? Did she dare to believe a man as handsome and honorable as Dax could really find her attractive?
“She’s in the third stall,” Dax said as he released her elbow to slide back the enormous metal door.
Jenna blinked against the bright, overhead light. The barn, surprisingly warm, smelled clean and grassy with the overtone of warm animals. She liked this barn just as she liked the big, soft-eyed horses who resided here. When time permitted, she brought Gavin inside to pet the horses, hoping that exposure would lessen his fears.
She followed Dax inside stall number three, standing just inside while he approached the mother-to-be. Blanca, as white as her name implied, lay on clean straw with her back legs folded beneath her. Her massive chest rose and fell with the effort of labor. Jenna empathized.
“How ya doin’, Blanca girl?” Dax asked as he knelt beside the mare and ran a hand over her glossy hip. He tossed a glance toward Jenna. “Ease on over here. She won’t mind.”
Jenna did as he instructed, crouching next to him.
“Look right there,” he murmured.
Jenna’s stomach leaped. She grasped the thick quilting of Dax’s sleeve. “Is that the baby?”
“Yep. In good position, too, nose and knees first. We should have touchdown any minute now.” There was excitement in his voice that matched the rising tide of energy inside her.
“I’ve never seen an animal born.”
His mouth curved. “First time for everything. I’d never seen a baby born before Sophie.”
Their gazes collided and held, the memory of that first day a bond between them.
“I’d never had one before, either.”
“We did a great job, though, didn’t we? Pretty special watching a life come into the world.”
The mare rose slightly on her back legs and heaved. Both humans turned their attention to her as the foal’s nose and knees inched forward.
“Amazing. So amazing,” she muttered. “Do we need to do anything?”
“Not yet. Let nature take its course.” He hitched his chin toward a box residing along the edge of the stall. “Unless she goes too long or has trouble, all we have to do is take care of the foal when he arrives. The kit is ready and waiting if we need it.”