Chapter 4

4

TRISTAN

O nce again, Dianna had surprised Tristan. This time in more ways than one. With the way she'd chastised him yesterday about his parenting skills, he had expected that she'd side with Shane about staying.

He hadn't decided what he wanted to do yet, but it was looking more and more like he would end up staying if only to put Mathew through the entire program. Walking away from an opportunity like this felt wrong on so many levels. He was Mathew's parent, and as such, he needed to be the one to help him in any way possible.

Right now, money wasn't a problem. He was able to work remotely and the therapy was free. Mathew's schoolwork would need to be figured out, but he'd found someone he liked as a tutor already.

The second Dianna left, Mathew asked when she'd be coming back. Their conversation revolved around how much she knew about horses, how nice she smelled, and the fact that she'd told him he could ride Molasses soon. Mathew was smitten.

When Tristan found the two of them seated in the booth, he'd half-expected Dianna to just sit quietly with him, waiting for Tristan to finish up his meeting.

Instead, she'd taken it upon herself to read to his son, connecting on a level he'd only ever seen happen one other time—with his parents.

Tristan couldn't tear his focus from her as he wandered in her wake. She strode beside Mathew all the way to the barn, chatting about the animals she had on her ranch. She was so at ease with Mathew it almost made Tristan worry that when the time came to leave, Mathew wouldn't be able to without a major meltdown.

They entered the barn and Mathew ran ahead, his hand trailing along the stalls as he went. Tristan moved up to walk beside Dianna, but the words he'd rehearsed in his head wouldn't come. He needed to break the ice somehow. They'd be working together for the next several weeks and he couldn't stand the tension that had built between them.

"I wanted to apologize," she said quietly, not meeting his gaze.

Tristan slowed his gait. "What?"

She clasped her gloved hands together, then broke them apart and let them swing at her sides. "I shouldn't have said what I did yesterday."

"But you made a good point," he said. Why was he arguing with her? She was apologizing for something she'd said. He should just accept her apology and move on.

"Oh, I know I was right. I just shouldn't have said it in a way that could be construed as judgmental. You're obviously a great father. Raising Mathew on your own can't be easy."

Her words rammed into him, knocking down every defense he'd managed to erect before getting the nerve up to speak to her. What was he supposed to say to any of that? "Thanks," he muttered. It was a lame response. But his mind was blank. He could blame it on the traveling they'd done or the exhaustion she'd mentioned. But the truth was, she had thrown him off balance. "Do you have children?"

A bark of laughter burst from her lips, startling him and the nearby horses.

"I take that as a ‘no'?"

She shook her head. "No, I don't have children. Sometimes I forget that you're not a local."

"What does that have anything to do with being a mother?"

Dianna chuckled. "It's a long story. I don't have any plans of being a mother any time soon—mostly because I don't have plans to find and marry anyone. I have other priorities right now." Her gaze shifted to Mathew and something warm flickered across her face.

"What did you have in mind?"

Her wide gaze shot to his and her cheeks filled with color. "What? I meant my priorities are?—"

"No, I mean, what did you mean when you said you had some ideas in mind to help Mathew stay?"

She worried her lower lip. The color in her cheeks deepened and she offered him a small smile. "Oh. Well, my sister pointed something out to me this morning. I'm not certified in education, but I was always really good at school. I could help tutor Mathew if you wanted to enroll him in an online school or try homeschooling."

His brows shot up. He hadn't even considered doing something like that. All of Mathew's support team was back home. Granted, this would be temporary. He could see about finding therapists out in this area if Mathew needed additional help, but knowing that they didn't have to return home right away was a very attractive option to have at his fingertips.

"Of course, you don't have to do that if you don't want to. I'm sure we could find a tutor?—"

"That's a great idea. Like I told Shane, Mathew really took a liking to you yesterday."

Her brows pulled together and she nibbled on her lip once more as if she didn't believe a word he was saying.

Tristan smiled. "Seriously. Whatever you're doing, it's working. I still don't know if he'll be comfortable enough to let you tutor him, but he likes you."

She dipped her head and tucked her hair behind her ear. Whether she wasn't used to compliments or getting them made her uncomfortable, he couldn't be certain. Regardless, it was refreshing to see someone who didn't automatically act like they were better than everyone around them.

Dianna cleared her throat and peeked at him. "Well, if you'd like to move forward with that plan, I suppose you'll need to contact his school and talk to Shane."

"I'll go ahead and do that after our session. I want to be here in case Mathew needs me."

Dianna nodded. "That works too. Seeing as it's cold outside, I think we'll stay in the barn today and work on getting to know the horse and the tools we use when riding."

"That sounds like a great idea."

She hovered for just a moment before she headed toward Mathew. His son was standing outside of the stall, his eyes bright and a smile on his face. It almost looked like he was talking to the animal, but when they drew closer, he didn't hear anything coming out of his lips.

Dianna opened the stall door and let Mathew in. She shot a glance in Tristan's direction and smiled. The tension in the air had lessened and it felt more natural to be here and observe.

Immediately, she picked up a brush and held it out to Mathew. He reached for it with his free hand, his horse still clutched to his chest. Dianna dropped down to his side and gestured toward his toy. "Did you know that we have a special place for your horse? We wouldn't want him to get lost or stepped on. And sometimes Molasses likes to chew on things he's not supposed to."

Mathew's eyes widened and he glanced at Tristan.

Tristan nodded to Dianna. "Sounds like she's got a plan for you, bud. How about we find out where we need to put it."

He shook his head, clutching it even harder than before.

Uh-oh. This was it. The moment Dianna wouldn't be able to figure out what to do with Mathew. His son wouldn't be happy with that, and their budding relationship wouldn't continue. Tristan nearly stepped in, but Dianna gestured behind him.

"Behind your dad there are some aprons. I bet we can find one that will fit you and you can put your horse in the pocket. Then your hands would be free to work. What do you think?"

Mathew's expression relaxed and a smile spread across his face.

Dianna met Tristan's gaze and nodded to the hooks he'd only just noticed. "Would you mind finding the smallest one you can? We might have to tighten it up a little, but I bet we can make something work."

The aprons were leather. He imagined they were used by stable hands, veterinarians, or even trainers. His fingers trailed across the set until he found one that looked to be the shortest. It only wrapped around the waist so there would be nothing weighing on Mathew's shoulders. Tristan grasped the apron and held it over the stall door for Dianna to take.

Like before when she'd handed him the keycards, their fingers touched. A short electrical current passed between them. His eyes met hers.

Did she feel it too?

Or was it all in his head?

Probably the latter. Hadn't she said she wasn't interested in anything besides her work right now? He was just reading into it too much.

Besides, to allow himself to get close to someone right now wouldn't be wise. They didn't live here. He was just feeling impressed by her ability to communicate with Mathew. From what Shane had mentioned, Dianna didn't have any education in working with children. She had the usual training that would be needed to work at Owens Therapeutic Horsemanship, but that was it. Her training allowed her to work with several people who needed therapeutic services.

That was why he was so interested in her abilities. If she didn't have the training, he wouldn't think she'd be doing this well. Her natural talent drew him in, making him curious about how the rest of this trip would go.

That was it.

Yes, she was objectively attractive, but he wasn't attracted to her in that way.

Tristan leaned against the stall door and observed as Dianna once again chatted with his son about how to help a horse trust him. "Now, Molasses is generally very trusting. He's also been trained to sense anything you need or anything you might do. That way he won't get nervous around you. But that doesn't mean that you can just do whatever you want. We still have to show him that we deserve his trust."

Dianna placed a step stool on the ground and hovered close enough to make sure Mathew wouldn't fall from it. He got to the top of the stepstool and immediately started brushing.

"Hold on, buddy. We need to go slow. Usually, a horse really likes it when you talk to them. It makes them feel more at ease. But I can help with that for now." She moved closer to Molasses's head and rubbed his nose. "Hey, Molasses. This is Mathew. He's going to brush you down so your coat can be all shiny and clean." Her gaze dipped to Mathew and she let out a little laugh. "See? Like that."

Mathew grinned, and this time his brushing was less aggressive.

Dianna must have felt Tristan's eyes on her because she shot a quick look in his direction. Their gazes locked. He couldn't tear his focus from her even if he had wanted to. Her warm brown eyes were soulful and soft. She didn't wear any makeup, and her chestnut hair was pulled back into a ponytail at the nape of her neck. She wore a knit hat to cover her ears, but she'd removed her coat at some point. She had a trim form beneath a turtleneck sweater, and she wore jeans and a pair of cowboy boots. But the one thing he liked the most was the freckles across the bridge of her nose.

She broke eye contact and pointed at the next spot for Mathew to brush. "We want to get Molasses completely brushed down. You should always brush down your horse before and after a ride. Do you know why?" Dianna didn't even wait for him to respond before answering. "When you do it before, you're making sure he doesn't have any dirt that could irritate him under the saddle. You're also making sure the tack sits properly on his back."

Mathew was soaking up every single thing she'd said.

"When you brush him down after a ride, you're soothing his itchy and sweaty skin and getting rid of any dust or dirt you might have come in contact with while on the ride." Her smile widened and she winked at him. "Besides, they like it a lot, so it's kinda like a reward for them."

Mathew returned her smile and continued to brush the horse down, then ran his hand over the animal's back.

She moved away from the horse and pressed her back against the stall door. The wood was the only thing that separated them and he could smell her floral perfume in the air. A knot tightened in his stomach. Anything he was feeling for her was all in his head. It was a known fact that impressive actions cause people to develop an attraction for others. Dianna was just exceeding his expectations, and for some reason, his heart was interpreting it in such a way that it was messing with his head.

Tristan moved away from her, edging to the far side of the door, but that only allowed for about a distance of three feet. He cleared his throat, causing her to glance his way. "You're really good with him. You make it look so easy. I don't know how you do it."

She returned her focus to Mathew. "It's like I said yesterday. I'm not putting any overwhelming expectations on him. I'm teaching him in a way that helps him learn. And I figure just because he's not saying anything, doesn't mean he isn't soaking it all in."

"But that's just it," he said. "The typical person doesn't usually understand that. Even I don't get it half of the time. Sometimes, he'll be fine one minute, then have a meltdown the next. And when he refuses to speak to someone to tell them what made him feel upset, how are they supposed to know what went wrong?"

She lifted a shoulder, her arms folded across her chest. "I guess I've just got good instincts."