Gracie Dutton

4

Gracie was throwing herself into her schoolwork, wanting to be done for the fall semester. Beth found her sitting on the couch in the living room on her laptop. "What are you doing?" Beth asked casually. "School," Gracie responded as she typed away. "Want to take a break? Travis is here showing off horses." Gracie glanced over at Beth then back at the paper she was writing. "Fuck it," she said to herself and closed the lid to the laptop. She walked with her mother down to the corral that Travis and his team were in. "Well well look who it is!" Travis smiled when he saw Gracie approaching. She smiled back at him. "Hi, Travis," she greeted. Gracie went and stood between Rip and John. "Didn't know you were in the market for new horses," Gracie told John. He smiled at her. "Just looking," he told her. Gracie leaned against the railing and watched as Travis showed the horses off. She was impressed with the skills each horse had. "I like that five million dollar one that just spun a hole in the ground, but it ain't my money," Rip told John.
***
Gracie looked over at Rip as they rode side by side through the woods. She knew she couldn't say no when he asked if she wanted to go for a ride. She loved being outside and with how much school she has been doing, she could use the fresh air. "How you doing with all that school work?" Rip asked, breaking the silence. "Good. I'm learning a lot." Rip gave a curt nod. "You'll be able to run this place good some day then," he told her. Gracie looked over at him and smiled. "I hope so," she said. Rip noticed how her blue eyes held a glimmer of hope and excitement when talking about the future. He smiled at her. "You got your mama's smile, you know that?" Gracie glanced over at him. "I know. You aren't the first to point out the similarities we share." Rip just chuckled. "You have her personality too. You got any of me in you?" He teased. "I have your eyes and your love of the outdoors and the ranch. I have your hair color and my hair has some curl to it like yours." Rip just admired his daughter. "I suppose we do have some things in common then, huh?" He grinned and Gracie laughed. "I'll race you back to the barn!" She called out and took off.
***
Gracie nervously approached the door of her parents bedroom, laptop in hand. Gracie had eaten dinner, showered, and just finished writing her essay. She needed someone to read over it before she submitted it and she knew Beth was the only one that could do it. She knocked lightly on the closed door. She stared down at her slippers as she heard footsteps coming to see who it was. She looked up as the handle twisted, showing Rip on the other side. "Gracie? Is something wrong?" He asked. Gracie cursed in her head knowing he was picking up on her nervousness. "Is Beth here?" She asked. Rip nodded and stepped to the side, letting his daughter into the room. "Beth, honey, Gracie needs you!" He called out and closed the bedroom door once Gracie was inside. Beth was in the bathroom doing her nightly skincare. She froze as Rip's words hung in the air. Beth stared at her reflection. 'Gracie needs you' kept playing on repeat. Beth quickly finished up and anxiously opened the bathroom door. She spotted Rip sitting in bed, Gracie sitting on the edge with her laptop open. They stopped their conversation once they heard the bathroom door open. Gracie turned and looked at her mother. Beth walked over and fought the urge to reach out and brush a hand over Gracie's wet hair. "Everything okay?" Beth asked, trying not to worry. Gracie nodded. "I finished my essay and I need you to read it and tell me if it's good." Gracie stood up and held the laptop out towards her. Beth, as well as Jamie, had done this in the past for Gracie, but obviously Jamie was not an option at the moment and this time it was different. Gracie wasn't asking her big sister for help, she was asking her mother and it filled a void in Beth's heart she didn't even know was missing. Beth tried to fight the smile tugging up as she nodded and took the computer. She walked to her side of the bed and slipped on her reading glasses then climbed into her side of the bed. Rip patted the middle of the bed for Gracie. Gracie awkwardly stood at the foot of their bed unsure of what to do. That was her parents bed and she was almost 21 years old. 'Wouldn't it be weird?' Crossed her mind but she dismissed it as being a dumb question and climbed onto the bed. She settled between them and watched as her mother read her essay. Rip kissed Gracie's head as he settled in for the night. Gracie's essay was over seven pages long so staring at the screen was making her eyes heavy. She leaned her head on Beth's shoulder as her mother typed a few corrections onto the document. Beth felt tears prick her vision as Gracie's head rested on her shoulder. This was all Beth had ever wanted and knowing that Gracie wasn't supposed to find out and open this new chapter in their lives made this moment even more special to Beth. She took a deep breath and glanced up at the ceiling thanking the universe for giving her her baby back.

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Hi! I hope you all are enjoying this story so far! I'm really enjoying writing it. Trying to figure out where I want this to go. If anyone has ideas/suggestions let me know!!