Helping Hands

"Our pleasure," Dr. Weber said.

She then turned to Zack and said, "I'm so glad to see you again, Zack. I knew you were coming home soon, but I also knew you'd be busy so I didn't expect to see you anytime soon."

"Well, I guess this was...fortuitous, then."

Kendall laughed and said, "Yes, it was." She took a drink then looked over at Barrett and said, "I also knew you wouldn't be available to help me out me anymore so I had to find someone to take your place."

Zack tried not to let his growing jealousy show as he said, "There really is a lot to do around here. It must be nice to have someone to lend a hand."

"Oh, I don't know what I'd do without him. He's been such a godsend, you know?" Barrett smiled sheepishly but didn't say anything.

Zack decided to mention having seen them and said, "I think I saw the two of you at the theater Sunday evening."

"You were there, too?" Kendall said with astonishment. "And you didn't even say hello?" She was giving a look that was meant to be playfully shaming.

"I didn't want to butt in during your date or anything so I..."

Barrett's loud laughter filled the room with Kendall's echoing his as she spoke. "Date? Oh, my heavens no! Barrett is my little brother! Well, my younger brother. Besides, he wouldn't be caught dead with a woman my age. Your girlfriends are all what, Barrett? Maybe 18 at the most?"

"Hey, I resemble that remark," he joked. "For your information, I've dated girls who are older than that."

"Oh, okay. Then make that 19 or 20," Kendall teased. Barrett put his hands up in an 'I'm guilty' kind of way before Kendall said, "Seriously though, he's been here the last couple of weeks helping me get ready for the summer rush of new riders, setting up a new dressage course, and a hundred other little things. I couldn't have made it without his help."

Zack was so stunned by the revelation he couldn't speak for several moments. "You know, I see the resemblance now," he managed to blurt out. Barrett had those same vivid blue eyes and the same high cheekbones as Kendall, but Zack hadn't noticed before. That was most likely due to his ASS-uming the worst then being unable to think beyond his assumptions.

"In fact, I've gotta be heading home tomorrow. I can pretty much work from anywhere I have a computer, but I do have a couple of meetings I have to attend next week and I really can't stay any longer," Barrett explained. He took a long drink himself then looked over at Kendall and said in his best Terminator voice, "But I'll be back!" Everyone laughed politely before Barrett finished. "I promise. I just need to go home for a few days and then I'll come back and keep helping out for as much of the summer as I can."

He saw the look of relief on his older sister's face then said to Zack, "I was wondering when I'd get to meet you, Zack. You know Kendall talks about you all the time."

"I do not!" she said defensively to her brother. She looked over at Zack then back at Barrett and asked, "Do I?"

Barrett laughed and said, "Not all the time. But his name seems to come up more than anyone's except for maybe Robert's."

There was an uncomfortable pause at the mention of her late husband before Kendall said, "It's okay. I'm not grieving anymore—not outwardly anyway. I still miss him—a lot—but I feel like I'm finally ready to move on with my life. I know he wouldn't want me to spend the rest of my life alone." She paused for a moment then said rather wistfully, "Living alone pretty much sucks."

"Well, you need to keep on moving, Kendall," Barrett said. Everyone was waiting for the other shoe to drop as he added, "If the quality of guys you've dated these last couple of months is any indication, you should not only move on but keep moving, and never stop moving!"

She gave her brother a playful dirty look and said, "Those were my warm-up guys. You know, the ones who set the bar so incredibly low the first decent guy who comes along is gonna look pretty darned good in comparison."

Then she smiled at Barrett and said, "All kidding aside, a large part of the reason I'm doing so much better is due to this big lunkhead's love and support as well as his generosity with his time...and money." She looked at the two veterinarians and said, "I honestly thought we were...I...was going under this winter until my baby brother came along and loaned me enough money to keep this place afloat. Based on the number of bookings we have lined up, I might even be able to start paying him back pretty soon."

"No hurry, Sis," he told her. "I'm doing fine so whenever is soon enough."

"Doing fine?" Kendall snorted. "This guy's in advertising and he's already richer than Job," she said nodding at her brother and making reference to the biblical character who lost his family and all of his riches when the devil supposedly tested his loyalty to God.

"Well let's hope I don't end up like Job. I don't think I'd look good covered in boils," Barrett said with a quiet chuckle. "Those young girls I date don't seem to go for that kind of thing too much these days."

Dr. Weber finished his iced tea and said to Zack, "You ready to go check on our girls again before we head out?"

"Yes indeed," he replied.

As they walked back out to the barn Kendall said, "I know you're busy, Zack, but if you ever have a free evening, I'd love to make dinner for you. You know, so we can catch up and well, it's also a way for me to say thank you for all your help over the years."

Zack laughed and told her, "In that case, I'm the one who owes you dinner, Kendall. After all, you not only taught me how to ride, you let me do so for free for years."

"Yes, but I extracted a plenty of blood...or at least sweat...in return for it. But hey, if you really, really want to buy me dinner..." Kendall was smiling that dazzling smile of hers and playfully biting her lower lip.

Dr. Weber chimed in saying, "You better not pass up an opportunity like that Zack, or you may not get another one. I have it on good word that Miss Kendall here has no shortage of potential suitors lined up." He looked over at Kendall and said, "Of course, I can't vouch for their quality after what we just learned about the early birds."

Kendall didn't say anything in response. She just smiled at Zack and waited for him to speak. "Well, now that I know the guy I did think was one of those suitors...isn't..."

Kendall looked at Barrett as they both said, "Eeeww!" in unison.

"I can't think of anything I'd enjoy more," Zack said joining in with them to laugh about his serious error.

"Okay, great! You have my number. Just let me know when and I'll look forward to it!" she told him.

Both the mare and the filly were doing fine so Dr. Weber felt comfortable leaving them to Mother Nature and Kendall's further care.

"Send me the bill okay, Dr. Weber?" Kendall said as they got in his car. She tapped the glass on Zack's side and said, "And you. Call me!" as she stuck her thumb in her ear and extended her pinky to her mouth as though her hand were a phone.

He rolled his window down and said, "I guess I need to move fast before a guy who catches your fancy comes along first so...you can count on it."

Kendall laughed and said, "You've always been my favorite, Zachary Bartlett. So kind, so sweet, and maybe even kind of cute."

"Me? Cute?" he said playfully.

"Maybe just a pinch," she said holding her thumb and index finger close to indicate a small amount.

As Dr. Weber backed up, Kendall waved goodbye to both of them before heading back inside.

"Nice girl," Dr. Weber said. "Too bad you're not a little older, Zack. I think you two would be a pretty good fit."

Feeling a whole lot better now than he had on the drive in, Zack said, "You never know, Jerry," calling him by his given name for the first time as a way of trying to establish himself as more of a peer. An...older peer, of course.

Dr. Weber looked over at him, pushed his shoulder and said, "Well, if you're gonna dream, dream big, right?"

Zack laughed politely with him as Dr. Weber chuckled over the thought that a 'kid' Zack's age had even the slightest chance at a romantic relationship with someone like Kendall Kelly. Outside, Zack was laughing with him. Inside, the wheels were already turning and that's when he realized he'd been hard for the last hour or so. "Just like old times," he mused to himself as they headed west on 50 toward Pueblo.

That night during dinner Zack mentioned he'd gone out to the Kelly ranch to help deliver a foal. "Okay, I watched Dr. Weber deliver her, but still..."

"That's amazing! So how's the foal doing and how is Kendall? You know, I really need to call her. I keep planning to and never seem to get around to it."

"Both horses are fine and Kendall seems to be doing much better. Her brother's been out here helping her for the last couple of weeks and she said things are looking up for the summer."

"That's so good to hear! I just can't imagine what she's been through."

Zack didn't want to point out how his mother had been through something just as bad if not worse. Kendall had indeed lost her husband—permanently—but his mother and father had slept in separate rooms for years and barely spoke when she was home from work. He wasn't sure which was worse as he'd often wondered how she managed to deal with basically living 'together alone' all these years. It was none of his business so he never asked, and quite frankly he didn't really want to know the answer.

"We're gonna have dinner together one of these days real soon," Zack told his mom.

"Oh, that's wonderful, honey! I know she appreciates all the help you've given her over the years. I hear she's quite the cook."

"I'm actually taking her out to dinner, Mom," he said wondering if he should tell her how he felt about Kendall or if perhaps her mother's intuition had already filled in the blanks. He decided against it partly based on the way Dr. Weber had reacted and partly because he didn't want his dad to find out and start lecturing him about it. Then again, lecturing him would require talking to his son so there probably wasn't any real danger. Still, he decided against saying anything to anyone for now.

"Oh, I see. Well, that should be very nice. So it's not a date then, right?" she asked almost hopefully in the same yet opposite way she'd been concerned about Cass.

Zack couldn't help but think about Cassandra again himself, the parallels between them and what they both wanted as he replied, "I don't know, Mom. What I do know is it's dinner with Kendall and I'm looking forward to it."

Zack didn't want to appear overly eager with Kendall, but he also didn't want to wait too long and give some other guy a chance to win her heart. He'd been thrilled to learn she'd been dating as he didn't want to be the first guy (or even among the first few) she'd gone out with since jumping back into the dating world. Timing was important and he couldn't help but think—or at least hope—the stars might be lining up for him.

In his room, he pulled out his cell phone and dialed her number. "Kendall? Hi. It's Zack. You know, your favorite guy."

Kendall laughed and said, "I remember you. Tall, handsome, smart—and a doctor, as I recall."

"Well, an animal doctor but I could stitch someone up in an emergency."

"So to what do I owe the pleasure of this call, Doctor Bartlett?" she said in her pleasant voice.

"I'm calling to see if you'd like to have dinner with me this weekend. I mean, if some other...suitor...hasn't come along and...suited you."

Kendall laughed at his silliness and said, "No, no one's swept me off my feet in the two days since you were here, but it's a good thing you called because that could happen at any time, you know."

"That's my greatest fear!" Zack said in a way that didn't let her know it really was his biggest concern. "So how about next Sunday evening?"

"Well, let me just check my social calendar." There was a pause while he could hear Kendall pretending to flip through pages. "Did you say this Sunday?"

"I did."

"Well, it looks like I've got a couple of hours free between dates with that handsome senator from Massachusetts and that cute young prince from England so...yes, I can fit you in," she teased.

"Ah-hah! So Prince Harry is my competition then! Good to know. At least you're open to dating younger men."

There was another pause as he floated a trial balloon about actually dating her rather just having dinner with her once. As the pause grew in length, he regretted having said it.

"I guess I hadn't actually thought about that before," she said rather quietly. There was an even longer pause before she said just as quietly, "But...I think I'm at least open to the possibility, though."

Zack wasn't sure what to make of her reaction but was grateful she hadn't laughed him off. "Are you a fan of sushi by any chance?" he asked her.

"I am, actually," she replied. "I tried to get Robert to eat it one time, but unless it once had hooves on it, he didn't want it."

"How about I pick you up around seven?"

"Seven is perfect," she said, her voice back to its normal, pleasant tone.

"Okay. Great! See you then, Kendall."

"Bye, Zack," he heard her say before the phone went dead.

"Don't overanalyze," he told himself. "She said 'yes' and you've got your foot in the door. One step at at time from here on out."

The rest of that week, Zack continued to learn his craft while Cassandra continued to pursue him in more subtle ways. Thursday morning she came in sporting a new, short, sassy hairdo in an entirely new color that caused Zack to do a double take. Her shoulder-length locks were gone and her dark, brunette natural color had been replaced by an almost platinum-looking blonde. Zack noticed both immediately.

"Wow! Talk about cute!" he told her with a smile the first time he saw her.

"Do you like it?" she asked in a way that told him she'd done it to get his attention.

"I do. It looks great on you," he told her honestly.

"I'm glad," she said sweetly. "I remembered you mentioning you liked short hair once."

Zack searched his memory banks to recall having ever said that around Cassandra and drew a blank which was troubling because he really did like short hair. Well, unless it was spiked. But some girls just looked hot as hell with that kind of hairstyle and Cassandra was obviously one of them.

"I don't remember ever mentioning that, but I do like short hair, so all I can say is it's working for you!"

Nothing more was said until just before lunch. "With the way we stagger our lunch breaks now, I was wondering if you might want to join me today," Cassandra asked him.

Zack looked at his watch and said, "I can't believe it's lunch time already. Is Dr. Weber back yet?"

"He just came in and told me, 'It's your turn' so I thought I'd check with you."

"Um, sure. Yeah, we can do that. Let me just finish this one thing and I'll be ready to go."

"Take your time," Cassandra told him. "I'll wait as long as it takes."

Zack caught the implication in her comment and thought about letting her know he was interested in someone else but like so many other things decided to let it go.

"All set!" he said. "So where are you taking us?" he said kidding Cass about paying for them.

"Do you like sushi?" she asked in her sweet voice.

Zack tried not to laugh but couldn't help it. "What's funny about that?" Cass asked. Zack could tell her feelings had been hurt so he stopped the laughter on the spot.

"Sorry. I was only laughing because..." He reversed his previous decision and told Cass, "I'm actually taking someone out for dinner to a sushi place on Sunday, so when you asked me I..."

Cass was clearly crestfallen. "Oh," she said solemnly. "I didn't know you were seeing someone. We don't have to go together. It's okay if you..."

"No, no. I'd love to go with you, Cass." He saw her look up at him with hopeful eyes and said, "Really." He smiled at her and got a strained smile in return.

On the way there Cassandra asked without looking at him, "So who's the lucky girl?"

"What's that?" Zack asked, his mind lost in thought over work-related stuff.

"Your date. On Sunday? Anyone I know?"

Zack glanced over at her and could see her almost wincing as she asked. "It's Kendall. Kendall Kelly."

"Oh, the...older...widow lady at the horse ranch, right? The one who called the other day because her mare was ready to give birth."

Zack knew Cassandra knew exactly about whom he was referring but politely said, "Yes. We've been friends for a long time. I learned how to ride at their ranch and I've worked there during the summers since high school."

"So this is kind of a thank-you thing?" Cass asked in an up-speak voice.

They were at the restaurant and as Zack parked the car he told Cass, "Partly."

He shut off the engine and Cass said with a sense of dread, "And the other part?"

He turned toward her and said, "Honestly? I've had a thing for her as long as I can remember, Cass. I have no idea how she feels about me, but I plan to let her know the way I feel and if there's..."

"I get it," Cassandra said, the hurt in voice showing through, as opened her own door. "She really is a lucky girl. Or...woman, I should say."

They barely spoke during lunch and Zack now knew what he'd suspected all along. "The sushi is really good here," he finally said. "Thanks for asking me to join you."

"Oh, sure," she said taking a tiny bite.

Zack took a sip of his water and asked her, "So, Cass. Are you seeing anyone these days?"

She pushed the California roll on her plate around with her chop sticks and without looking up said, "No, not really. There was a guy I was interested in, but I don't think it's gonna work out, you know?"

"That's too bad. Any guy would be lucky to have a wonderful girl like you," he told her before taking a bite of raw tuna.

Cassandra kind of shrugged her shoulders and said still not looking at him, "Obviously not any guy."

They barely spoke for the rest day and after that it was only when business required them to. Just before he left Saturday evening, Cassandra said to him, "I hope you have a really nice time."

Knowing how he'd feel were Kendall to tell him she was interested in someone else, he felt terribly bad for her. He smiled and told her, "Thank you, Cass. And I meant what I said. You're a really great catch and I know there's a guy out there looking for someone just like you."

"I guess," she said as she hung up her lab coat.

"There is. Trust me on that, okay?"

He opened the door for her and then locked up and headed to the gym with its large indoor swimming pool and swam as hard as he could for nearly hour. Before heading home, he made one more stop to pick up something for his date with Kendall the next evening.

He tried his best to do or think about other things to keep his mind off of his upcoming date, but the hours dragged by until he was finally ready to go. He'd decided he was going to let Kendall know how he felt about her and with that in mind he'd stopped and bought a dozen roses the evening before knowing the shops would be closed on Sunday.

He debated between buying red or yellow and had some trouble deciding. His feelings for her were romantic, but he wondered if that might send too strong a signal for a first date. After all, he might be the only one of them who was considering this a date. Yellow was for friendship and they were indeed friends, but he didn't want Kendall thinking that's all he wanted. In the end, he made his decision and put them in the refrigerator at home for safe keeping. He was very relieved when his mother didn't ask him any questions about the flowers even though he knew she'd seen them several times. She only wished him a good time. He'd thanked her and kissed her on the cheek before leaving.