I roll my eyes, but I shouldn't be surprised. Opus is her baby, and there is no changing that. "I'll come with you." I go towards the door to get our jackets from the closest, but before I even reach it, I hear the glass door of the office open. I watch Penny dash across the property to the barn, wearing her elegant pantsuit and heels.
"Hurry up!" she yells back at me.
Grabbing the blanket on the back of the couch, I run after her. My nice Italian loafers are getting ruined from the snow. The barn door is already open, and Penny is right where you can find her most days—sitting in front of Opus's stall—feeding his sugar cubes and giving him kisses.
Walking over to her, I wrap her in the blanket and sit next to her, making sure to give Opus extra space. I will never trust this horse, even if he has good days. I've had too many bites over the short time he's been here.
"I guess you two will never get along, huh?" she lets out a warry sigh.
"Sorry darling, wishful thinking." I look from her to the giant black beast. This horse has given me so much; I don't think I could ever repay him for it all. But if spoiling him is what makes Penny happy, then I help her with that.
I feel a slight nudge on my shoulder and look up to see Opus looking quite like a follicle. I'm still not fooled, but I try anyways. Reaching up, I try to pet him, and to my surprise, he allows it.
"New Year’s Eve miracle." Penny muses.
And as if on cue, Opus tries to nip at me. "Asshole," I mutter, making Penny laugh. She leans against me and sighs in contentment.
"This is my happy place."
"Hey, I thought I was your happy place," I grumble, but she ignores me.
It always warms my heart when she says stuff like that. We've made a wonderful life together, and it's only just getting started. I look down at my watch and see it's only a few minutes till midnight.
"We should get back, ring in the new year with the family."
"Your right." She stands, giving Opus one last pet before reaching out her hand to mine. "Shall we?"
Grasping her hand, we head back to the house. "It's crazy to say, but I think this will be one of my favourite Christmases."
"That is crazy." I muse. "But next year will be better. I can promise you that."
Looking up at me, she smiles. "I'm holding you to that."
That's fine. It's a promise I'm not going to break.
EPILOGUE
PENNY
December, 2 years later
The wrapping paper is not my friend tonight. I've been trying to get all our Christmas gifts done so I can finally put them under the tree. I'm behind on my Christmas list. It's like this every year. But for better reasons than being busy with the farm. During the winter months, we hire extra hands, giving Conrad and myself a well-needed break. Even more so with Conrad Jr, that's arrived. He's only six months old and has kept us busy. As much as I loved being pregnant, I missed being able to ride and train the horses. Watching the trainer we hired to do it and coaching from the sidelines was a pain. It's not that the trainer was terrible; it just wasn't me.
"Hello?" I hear Donna call out; then she enters the dining room. "What's this? You still haven't finished wrapping?" it sounds like she scolded me.
"Please help," I beg. "My parent's brother is arriving in a few days, and this needs to be done."
Donna smiles and sits down next to me. "Where is Conrad Jr?"
"He's napping, I thought it would give me time to get this done, but wrapping paper hates me."
"You need a break, dear. I can easily handle this."
She doesn't need to ask me twice. I jump at the chance; I thank her with a kiss on the cheek before grabbing my coat and heading toward the barn. I go to Opus’s stall to find it empty, then move to the outdoor padlock. I spot him playing in the snow like a little kid.
He's a beautiful horse and has produced us beautiful foals. His first round of babies is currently in training for the next race year. And they look nothing but potential. I cluck my tongue, calling him over. He comes trotting over, eager for his sugar cubes.
"Hey boy, how are you doing?" I scratch his face.