Chapter 16

Austin woke to Max rattling his crate. The pup needed to go outside, so Austin hustled to make that happen.

“Open the back door!” Austin called out as Max charged down the stairs.

He came trotting down and was happy to see Emma had helped the pup.

“Go take a shower and come back. We need to talk,” Grandma Montgomery said over the top of her paper.

“Yes, ma’am.”

He’d learned it was best to be polite when issued an edict of ‘we need to talk.’

When he came back down, Max was following Emma around as she made breakfast, hoping he might get a scrap or three. Emma was a soft touch.

Austin joined his grandmother at the kitchen table, where Emma brought him an orange juice and a bagel.

“Your birthday is coming up, and your mom has asked whether you want a party. If we do have one, it will be at your mother’s or the riding club.”

“I’ve never had a party before,” Austin admitted.

“Never?” Emma asked.

“There was always work to do. Mom used to make cupcakes, but after she left, Dad would let me have a beer at dinner. It was never a big deal,” Austin said.

“That is wrong on so many levels,” Emma said.

“I agree,” Grandma Montgomery said. “When Marie was young, she would’ve already given me a list of gifts she wanted. I’ve been wondering when you would give me one.”

Austin looked confused.

“Gifts?” Austin asked, then added, “I already have everything I need: a horse, Max, and my dirt bike. It might be time to get new boots, but I don’t want anything.”

“Is it me, or is something wrong with him?” Emma asked, looking at his grandmother.

Austin scowled at that comment. Personally, he thought the idea of him asking for stuff was wrong. If he really wanted something, he would figure out how to get it. Austin didn’t expect anyone to cater to his every whim.

All his basic needs were being met. He had a roof over his head, clothes on his back, and food on the table. His grandmother gave him access to beer, and his dad paid his cell phone bill. For anything frivolous he might want, he earned money to pay for it.

As far as Austin was concerned, he had it good. Back in Montana, he knew kids whose basics weren’t always a given.

“Do you want to go back to Texas for your birthday?” Grandma Montgomery asked. “Your dad would like to see you.”

“I can’t, I have to work,” Austin said.

“Miss Sandy can take over your class while you’re gone.”

“That’s fine, but I still need to care for the horses and Max. Besides, there’s other stuff that needs to be done around here,” Austin said.

“I’m making enough from boarding horses to hire someone to handle the animals. And I’ll remind you I did just fine around here before you showed up,” Grandma Montgomery said, a little miffed.

“I also promised Mrs. Warren I’d teach some actors how to ride.”

That was clearly news because his grandmother and Emma both perked up.

“Before you ask, they’re kid actors, and Mrs. Warren didn’t tell me who they are,” Austin said, hoping to stop the onslaught of questions.

“I’ll find out,” Grandma Montgomery said.

Austin resisted doing an eye roll. Instead, he said, “Thanks, but I’ll pass on going to Texas. I might want to go at Christmas.”

“Does that mean you plan to attend Horace Green?” Grandma Montgomery asked.

She was clearly excited at the prospect. Austin had no doubt she would call his mom to share, which would make his mom’s day.

“If I can figure out how to take Max and Red with me,” Austin said.

“No problem; let me deal with that,” Grandma Montgomery said. “I can arrange for you to stay in the carriage house there; that way, no one can complain about having a dog in the dormitory, and you’ll have access to Red. That might be your birthday present from me.”

“Okay, that’s something I would like,” Austin admitted. “Now, what should I tell my mom I want?”

“Let her plan a birthday party for you,” Emma suggested.

“She would love that,” Grandma Montgomery said.

“No gifts, clowns, or bounce houses,” Austin said as he mentally ran through some of the dumb stuff he’d heard.

“How about a magician?” Emma teased.

“Can we fire her?” Austin asked his grandmother. “Right now, that would be a great gift.”

“Then you wouldn’t get my breakfast casserole.”

“You might want to wait until she cleans the house, too,” Austin said.

“Okay, let’s say you get no gifts,” Grandma Montgomery said, making his day.

“Sounds good. Now, feed me.”

As far as ‘talks’ went, this one turned out okay.

Austin noted that on the ride to and from class, Mrs. Draper kept her distance. Part of that might’ve been because Shea, Simone, and Steph monopolized his time. But he feared it might have more to do with what he and Mrs. Draper had done two days before. For the time being, he would leave it alone.

When he returned to his grandmother’s, he hooked up the mower attachment to the tractor. He’d sprayed a field to kill off the clover and planted it with grass seed, and the grass now needed to be cut. The new grass had come up and was tall enough to withstand mowing.

Because it was something to do, Red and the other horses came to the fence to watch Austin work. Once he finished, he decided the pasture needed a few more weeks before letting the horses on it. He finished up and walked to the house, where he found Emma tossing Max his ball.

“What are you doing tonight?” Emma asked.

“It’s Friday night, and I’m single. I’ll probably stay in,” Austin said, mainly because he had zero plans.

“How about you take me to dinner? We could go to the resort and go dancing afterward.”

“What will your boyfriend say about that?”

“Oliver and I had a talk last night, and we decided just to be friends,” Emma said.

“What is tonight, then? A date?”

“How about two friends with nothing better to do, but if it goes well ... who knows?”

“Works for me. I’m hoping you plan to drive,” Austin said.

“Well, I’m not getting dressed up and then riding on the back of your dirt bike.”

“I could call my mom or, better yet, ask my grandmother to give us a ride,” Austin offered with a wink.

“No, I’ll drive, but you have to make all the arrangements.”

“I’ll message you once I get a reservation. But right now, I need a bath,” Austin said.

Max made the mistake of following Austin upstairs and so got another shower. He apparently didn’t remember the first time because he wasn’t happy until Austin used the shower wand on his back. As far as Max was concerned, Austin could do that all day if he wanted. And Max still enjoyed being dried with the towel.