He paused to give Wild Thing a little additional attention before leaving. The extra exercise the stallion had been getting every day by going up to the cabin and running in the paddock all night was doing him a lot of good. He was starting to be a lot more responsive and a lot better behaved. When Crystal was able to ride again, she was going to have a much better mount as a result.

As the horse trainer left the stall, the stallion stuck his head over its door and nickered hopefully at Sarah Jo’s gray mare. Alannah was stabled directly across from him but all she did was back her ears and shake her head in response to his entreaty. Farmer Grey chuckled. The mare was plainly not interested in Wild Thing at all, and was unlikely to be until she came into season in the spring, but the stallion seemed to be completely infatuated with her anyway.

Grey rubbed the stallion’s ears in sympathy, he was feeling the same way himself towards the mare’s owner as of late. He had made it a habit to ride out with her nearly every morning if he could, and the more he got to know the cheerful nurse, the more he liked her. The freedom of Sims City was taking some getting used to, but he was starting to get a sense of how things worked. He knew Sarah Jo was living with two men already, but apparently she was free to seek other relationships if she wished.

Pausing to wipe the dust from his riding boots and to shake any hay from his coat, he bid farewell to Silas and left the stables to cross the bridge and head into town. It felt strange going on foot but he was able to make good time by cutting across town rather there skirting around it’s edge on the beach. He had been making the journey on horseback morning and night since he had moved into Sarah Jo and Katherine’s quaint little cabin located in Rayden’s magical backyard. Eventually he hoped to have a place of his own, preferably one where he could have some other farm animals such his own sheep and cattle. But in the meantime, he was enjoying the place he was staying in, even though it was in a very remote location and away from other people. That was its only drawback as far as he was concerned.

Along the way, he passed several people he knew from the steeplechase and he nodded pleasantly to them, still humming happily. When he made it to Valley View and turned towards the condo Sarah Jo resided in, he could smell the wonderful odor of the meal she was preparing for them. Roasted turkey with some type of fruit pie if his nose was telling him correctly, he surmised. As he sniffed the air, his stomach rumbled loudly; reminding him it had been a while since he had eaten any cooking other than his own poor efforts.

He stopped in front of her door and straightened the coat he wore over his shirt and vest and ran his fingers through his hair in an attempt to get it under control. Farmer Grey knocked on the door firmly and he could hear footsteps approaching it. A moment later, Sarah Jo opened the door, smiling brightly at him.

"Hello! Welcome to my home! Come on in," she said happily as she held the door open wide for him.

"I’m glad to be here, miss," he replied as he entered the condo, looking his friend over in appreciation. She was wearing an expensive looking silk blouse and a knee length tweed skirt that outlined her hips nicely. Her hair was caught up in an elaborate french braid along the sides of her face and around to the back of her head where it was held with a mother of pearl hair clip before cascading down her back in soft waves. He couldn’t help admire the way she looked. It had been the first time he had seen Sarah Jo in something other that jeans or riding apparel.

"I must say that you look absolutely stunning, Miss Sarah Jo," he said gallantly. His compliment made her blush.

"Why, thank you!" Sarah Jo said sweetly, patting him gently on the cheek.

"Thank you, miss, for having me here tonight," he said with a broad Beanio smile. "And for lending me the use of your wonderful cabin until I get me own place."

"Least ah could do," Sarah Jo replied. Her charming accent was mostly southern Appalachian mountain drawl with just a touch of the Scotch-Irish way of speaking in it. It always made him smile to hear her talk. "The men folk are in the sittin’ room. Ah’ll take you there and you can chat with them while ah’m finishing up the last of the dinner."

Farmer Grey followed her into the living room where he saw three men chatting away. They all stood up politely when Sarah Jo entered the room. "Farmer Grey, ah believe you know Duende already, but these other two gentlemen are Dani Servigo and Father Alec." After they had all shook hands, she excused herself and left the room to finish the dinner preparations.

Duende offered Farmer Grey a drink which he accepted gladly as he sat down next to the young priest. "Sorry I haven’t been to the services yet, parson," he said apologetically.

"It’s quite alright," Father Alec said with a gentle smile. "But you are more than welcome to attend whenever you can. I know they are keeping you very busy out at the stables."

"That’s for sure," Duende said with a grin. "Thanks to your able assistance, Rio is almost manageable now." Earlier in the day, Duende had experienced several extremely wild rides on the stallion, but with Farmer Grey’s help he was beginning to get the unruly horse to listen somewhat to his aids. "And since I don’t dare ride out with Sarah Jo with him behaving the way he does, I really appreciate you going with her in the mornings when she exercises her mare."

"Its my pleasure," Farmer Grey said, blushing slightly. "Alannah is very well trained but I feel nervous about her riding alone at that time of the morning. Some of the men I’ve seen hanging around the other side of the river where the stables are..., well, they are not exactly choir boys." Sarah Jo’s three charges chuckled as his comment.

"Well put," Dani said with a laugh. "Our OIC is a very capable and accomplished young woman, but she tends to be rather naive when it comes to men. It eases our minds knowing someone is keeping an eye out for her safety when she is riding. I would ride with her more often but I usually spend more time picking myself off the ground that actually being in the saddle," he said ruefully. He and John Clayton had purchased Jinx together, but she had turned out to be way too much horse for his questionable riding abilities.

"OIC? I’ve heard that term several times since I’ve been here. Does that mean she is in charge of you?" Grey asked. He was still a little confused about the way things were run here in the city.

"More like she is responsible for keeping track of us," Duende said with a grin. "All three of us are very honored to be called her *charges*."

"Speaking of OICs. Sarah Jo wanted us to ask you something," the priest said with a chuckle. Once he had the Beanio’s attention he continued. "She was wondering if you would like her to be your OIC as well."

Grey choked on his drink and Father Alec patted him on the back till he was able to breath again. Wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, the horse trainer managed to smile happily. "I would love that! I really would!"

"Good!" Duende laughed. "Because we have the paperwork from the Office of Non-Highlander Affairs right here and ready for your signature." He produced an official looking document and a pen.

Farmer Grey scanned it over quickly and then signed it without hesitation. Once that was done, the others congratulated him on his new OIC and welcomed him warmly. "Consider yourself part of the family," Duende said sincerely. "If there is anything any of us could ever do for you, don’t hesitate to ask. We are glad to have you one of us."

"I really appreciate that," Farmer Grey said with a happy grin. "Feels good to be part of a family again." He meant every word, even though he wasn’t sure just exactly what his relationship with Sarah Jo would be just yet. She was apparently the lover of two of her charges, and a good friend to the other one. He cherished the growing friendship he had with Sarah Jo McCants, but he was not ashamed to admit he wouldn’t mind that friendship going to the next level. He couldn’t help wondering what the two men she lived with would think of that idea.

About that time, Sarah Jo came back into the living room, wearing a colorful apron over her good clothes. "Dinner’s ready," she announced with a bright smile on her face. The four men jumped up and followed her to the dinning room where a wonderful looking feast had been spread out on the table. Besides a roast turkey breast, there was herb dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, candied baby carrots, green beans and bacon, a gelatin salad and huge homemade rolls that filled the room with their delicious odor. A tall Carolina Jam cake and several different pies sat on a side board letting them know they had better save a little room for dessert. Grey’s stomach wasn’t the only one that rumbled at the sight.

Sarah Jo took off her apron and laid it aside. Duende held her chair out for her as she sat down and then he and the other men all found a seat. Sarah Jo asked Father Alec to say the blessing over the food and when he was done, her charges all dug into the food like they had been half starved. Sometime later, her stuffed and satisfied menfolk sat back in their chairs with glazed looks on their faces as they thanked Sarah Jo for the wonderful meal she had prepared for them. Groaning slightly from their overfull tummies, they all got up and helped her clear the table while Sarah Jo put up the leftovers and Dani loaded the dishwasher with the plates.

With many hands helping, the chores were quickly done, and they led Farmer Grey down to the basement to look at Sarah Jo’s tapestries and pottery. Afterward they walked out into the backyard, and were immediately mobbed by two long legged Irish Setter pups and a smaller black and white dog. Sarah Jo’s cat, Huckleberry Finn was curled up on top of the kiln, staying well above the rampaging dogs and glaring fiercely at them.

"This is my dog, Padraigh. Also know as Paddy," Sarah Jo explained as Farmer Grey knelt to greet the dogs. "And the lighter colored one is his litter mate, Bridget. She belongs to Father Alec."

Grey showered attention onto the two Setters and then onto the Border Collie that had managed to wiggle into his lap. "And who is this?" he asked as he gave that dog his share of the petting as well.

"The sheep farmer who had him just called him Lad. He’s about 10 months old and shows a lot of promise as a working dog," Sarah Jo said with a chuckle. "And he’s yours. A little gift from all of us to welcome you into our family."

"Mine?" Grey said unbelievingly. "Is he really mine?"

"Aye, laddie, he is," Duende laughed as Sarah Jo’s new charge got his beaming face washed by all three of the dogs. "A good dog for a good man."