Where all the horses roam

Standing on the white gravel driveway Derrick stretched the muscles in his legs, the trek out to the ranch ending up being just over a two hour trip. He could remember long trips in the car when he was growing up as they went off to a state park to go camping. His parents kept him occupied with word search puzzles and car games. He had even thought to try a few to pass the time, but it mostly ended up just being him and Amanda, the girls spent most of their time on their phones. Though Bailey seemed particularly flighty this morning and considering how she was a ball of energy practically vibrating in her seat the closer they got to Heavenly Hoofs ranch it was easy to connect the dots.

Looking off to the side a bright smile came to his face seeing Amanda and Candace interacting with a grayish brown horse with a white patch on its forehead. His little girl was holding her belly, her other resting gently on the side of the horse as she laughed at the animal's antics as it nuzzled his blonde eyed girlfriend’s cheek. He couldn’t blame it for wanting Amanda’s attention, it was something he often thought of. He had seen her dressed up, dressed down and wearing nothing and he couldn’t imagine her looking less than beautiful. Today she wore a pair of dark, tight blue jeans that stopped just above her ankles, a pair of black ankle boots with a two or two and half block heel, a deep V necked long sleeve shirt that had criss-crossing strings that did little to hide the hint of her breasts. She had a braided brown leather belt strapped around her waist, over her shirt that amused him. The jeans had loops for a belt, so this one wasn’t about function, something he never understood about women’s fashion.

Seeing both his girlfriend and his daughter smiling and laughing together made his heart sing. Moments like this made him feel like he was making the right choices, not just for himself but for his little girl… who wasn’t so little anymore.

Shifting his gaze Derrick blinked a few times as he looked at Amanda’s little girl. Bailey was standing with her hands folded together behind her as she bounced on the balls of her feet, the heels of her boots lightly touching the ground before she bounced again. She seemed oblivious to the bouncing show she was putting on as her breasts moved with each bounce as she happily looked out across the field, her attention shifting from one animal to another in cadence with her movement. While the pretty girl was oblivious to her actions, one of the workers, a dark haired hispanic man who looked to be in his late twenties, had given his full attention to the girl. “Bailey!” He yelled, waving his hand in a come over here motion when her attention snapped to him. Derrick knew every child had their own quirks, Candace had plenty and while her, nor Bailey really needed help attracting male attention. He wished Bailey was a bit more in the moment to see how she acted and well… moved, drew the attention of most nearby males.

When the platinum blonde teen moved over to him wide eyed and looking hopeful he motioned with his head to an elderly man walking down the gravel driveway. “I think that just might be the man who has your horse.” Derrick said his heart felt like it could take flight seeing her give him a wide toothy grin. It was easy for him to see what the girl’s boyfriend saw in her. Amanda had beauty, confidence without arrogance, a mind that remembered things far beyond what he could. While her daughter had confidence in a different way, one that he had seen come into its own from the much shyer girl he met at the company picnic. The girl was pretty, he imagined she looked a bit like her mother when she was younger, but unlike Amanda, Bailey moved with a natural feminine grace. Derrick shook his head slightly at the thought, it wasn’t that his girlfriend didn’t have that it was just… he couldn’t imagine the highschool version of himself not fighting to have the girls attention and with how she acted now he wasn’t sure she would pick up on anyone’s interest in her. Shaking his head once more Derrick banished thoughts about Bailey, taking another look at the other two before stepping forward to meet the ranch owner.

Bailey had been bouncing on his feet as he looked around the front field of the Heavenly Hoof ranch. There were a few people riding out in the distance, more than a few grazing and even a dog that looked to be a mix between a lab and a basset hound. It looked like someone had stretched a lab’s body to be longer and then did the same for their ears. Seeing the dog's tongue hanging out of its mouth as it ran around, ears flopping about made him smile and almost giggle at how funny it looked. None of the horses was his Cherry, a small voice in the back of his mind told him that his pony would be gone, sold off before he could see her again. The smile on his face almost slipped, but seeing how his best friend was laughing as horsed nuzzled the women he loved made it reassert itself. ‘Even if Cherry is like, gone, today could be a good day.’ Taking in deep but short breath Bailey's chest heaved. ‘Today could totally be a great day.’

Hearing Candi’s father call out to him he ran over, thoughts of the day being good or great despite Cherry not being here vanishing as hope filled him that Derrick had spotted the reddish brown pony. Forgetting completely that the older man had never seen the horse, despite setting up today’s visit for his birthday. When Bailey moved up to Derrick the feminized man cocked his head to the side slightly, the smile not wavering from his face as the bearded man looked at him funny before shaking his head. With Derrick mentioning the old man in the white stetson hat being the man who bought Cherry, Bailey gleefully walked with Derrick up to him.

“HI, HI, HI!” Bailey said, before holding back and admonishing himself. ‘Calm down, we are like eighteen and shouldn’t be acting like a child… eighteen? Oh my god, like really brain? I’m not…’ Bailey fluttered his lashes a few times as he blinked, realizing the man who looked two be in his late sixties had said something and was holding out his hand. “Umm…” Bailey started to say before Derrick took the man's hand, shaking it twice.

“Good morning to you as well, I appreciate you working with me. It means a lot to all of us.”

Taking a step to the side Bailey once again cocked his head to the side this time more than before as he looked at Candi’s father appraisingly. “It means a lot to you?” Bailey could easily admit the man was nice… too nice really. It had been an amazing gift that him and his daughter tracked down a horse that his own father had sold off when money was tight. Really that was kind of insane, but Bailey couldn’t imagine it meaning anything really to him.

Giving the platinum blonde girl a smirk, Derrick put his hand on her shoulder. “Princess, if something means a lot to you then it means a lot to me too…” Derrick mentally winced, quickly correcting himself. “All of us. What makes you happy or sad is important, because you are important.” He had been on his own for so long it was sometimes hard to shift gears, but one thing the parenting books Darrek had read agreed upon was speaking in one voice. Use we, us instead of I and me. He knew self esteem was an issue for kids, every adult should and he was guilty of being so preoccupied with his own life that he didn’t consider things like that in the past. He wasn’t blind enough to not see Candace was spoiled, his little girl knew she was loved and important, he was just eternally grateful she also had a big heart to balance it. Something her peers had taken advantage of and he felt blessed to find Amanda and her daughter who fit together with him and Candace like puzzle pieces.

“Wha.. wha… what?” Bailey said, fumbling with his words. He had heard the older man and was already struggling to contain the tears flooding his eyes.Bailey hated how his emotions were constantly out of wack and couldn’t wait for the medication from the doctor to finally take hold. The headaches had subsided, but it was still he couldn’t help crying for almost no reason.

“You're important, just one of the reasons I call you princess.”

Bailey felt his lower red painted lip quiver. “I’m… I’m like not a princess.” He said, his voice strained from his attempt to hold back tears. Bailey disliked being called princess, and he knew he was important or at least he told himself he was. He could remember his mommy… mom his real mom telling him that he was a man now when he was just thirteen. It had felt wonderful to hear and to see the pride in her eyes. It wasn’t something he had felt, not with being smaller than the other boys his age, but she had proven it to him by putting him to work. Saying how he was and adult and she could prove it by working him in their store. It was a good memory, Bailey knew both of his parents thought he was important, they gave him free reign, they had given him responsibility, but they had never said he was important… not like Derrick. It made Bailey hate the man, or at least want to hate him. “I’m not… “ The rest of Bailey’s words were muffled as Derrick pulled him into a hug, his face pressing into his chest as he wept.

Giving the ranch owner an awkward grin Derrick held the emotional girl to him. Candace was like this too at times, but he never dared to ask if it was a monthly thing. He had learned that lesson more than once when his wife punched his shoulder for jumping to that anytime she had been what he thought was overly emotional. Bailey clinging to him like this made him think of the last time Candace had done something similar and he knew it wouldn’t be too long before those moments would be gone.

“Well.” Carl, the owner of the property said before clearing his throat, feeling out of sorts as the girl cried at the drop of a hat. I take it they are all with you then?” He motioned with his head at the blonde blue eyed woman and the other platinum blonde teen approaching.

Without moving his body Derrick looked over his shoulder to see Amanda raising an eyebrow, an unspoken question about what was going on passing between them. He gave her a smile and a wink before turning back to the man. “Yeah, they are all with me, luckiest man alive.”

Carl chuckled looking at the family. He couldn’t tell if the girls had inherited their mothers blonde hair, he doubted the platinum color was natural, but he could see their fathers green eyes in both of them. “Suppose so.” Carl said, having to make an effort to not stare at the man’s wife. It wouldn’t do him any good if any of the ranch hands told his own wife he had been leering at the paying customers. “How about we all head over to the stables over yonder and see if one of my lazy sons can spare some time to help you all out.” He said flexing one of his hands that bothered him too much that day to properly saddle a horse, let alone go riding with the right proficiency.