“Better treat it as a concussion and be safe rather than sorry,” Addy told her. “Pour yourself a mug of coffee and have a seat at the table. Mia made waffles and sausage this morning, and she’s got strawberries and whipped cream if you’d rather have that instead of syrup.”

“I feel like I’m saying this all the time but thank you. Can I help with anything?” Stevie asked as she filled a mug with coffee.

“Yep, you can.” Mia poured batter into the waffle iron. “I’m studying agribusiness so I can understand more about running that end of the ranch. Here lately I’ve been thinking that I would like to be a vet tech, so I enrolled in a couple of animal husbandry courses this next semester. Can I pick your brain a little while you’re here?”

“Sure, but why do you want to do that in addition to the business part?” Stevie took a sip of her coffee, made strong like she liked.

“That way, I can be of more help on the ranch. I could do some of the things that you do,” Mia answered.

“The courses will help, but hands-on will teach you a lot,” Stevie said. “I can’t pay you much, but if you want to assist me a couple of days a week, I’d be glad to have you.”

“Are you serious?” Mia squealed and dashed across the room to give Stevie a hug. “I would love that.” Then she hesitated and looked over at Addy. “Mama, can you and Dad spare me two days a week?”

“Of course we can when it’s all about learning more,” Addy said, “and we should be paying you, Stevie, just like we pay for college hours.”

Stevie shook her head. “Not after what all y’all have done for me. Besides, it would be nice to have a sidekick a couple of days a week.”

“What days?” Mia asked.

“You talk to Jesse, and y’all decide that. I’m on call right now seven days a week,” Stevie answered. “So, the days and times could vary, but if you’re busy with something here, we can always get together on another day. We’ll just keep it flexible.”

“I’m not glad that you’ve got two flat tires, but I’m glad you got stuck with Uncle Cody.” Mia dished up waffles onto a plate and set them in front of Stevie.

Stevie slathered butter on her waffles and then covered them with maple syrup. “It’s crazy how all this has happened, but I’m glad it did.”

“Us too,” Addy said. “Why did you decide to go to vet school?”

“I loved animals more than people, or I would have been a doctor like Cody, or maybe a nurse like you,” Stevie answered between bites. “Do you like being a concierge nurse with Cody?”