Şahin laughed as the colt fell and whickered encouragingly at the boy as Dia helped him back to all four hooves. The chestnut was all legs. Şahin watched him with warm eyes, insufferably pleased to have been part of what created such a wonderful creature, and flicked one ear toward the pretty palomino as she spoke. They were joined mid-sentence by Sylvia— and her boy, a buckskin colt with big spots that marked him an overo like his mother.

The Nez Perce blew out a welcoming breath to the pale mare, and judged from the way Dia included her that Sylvia had met at least one other mare in the herd and made a favorable impression. But, he thought as he looked at Dia again, noting how bright the Akhal-Teke’s eyes were and how she seemed to glow, could anyone really get on Dia’s bad side? His son moved toward him and Şahin glanced back, side-stepping away from the colt instinctively as he ducked his head under the blanketed palomino’s belly. Laughing, he tugged on Dia’s name as she herded the colt back.

“He’s a lot of fun already. Sokka, you say? Well.” Şahin’s eyes dipped to his nursing son, a smile still stretched across his black lips. “I’m more than pleased to meet him.” His attention shifted back to Sylvia and her colt as Dia rested her head on his back, and Şahin leaned into the slender Akhal-Teke a little as contentment settled over him. This, this was family. He had missed it.

“Your boy takes after you, in looks at least,” he said, his gaze shifting to linger on the somber colt. Elliot’s mature and controlled nod to Dia and himself was vastly different from Sokka’s behavior. “Shy, Elliot?” he asked, addressing the boy as he would any other horse. Someday the foals would be adults, full-blown mature stallions engaging in lives and drama of their own. Şahin had no interest in giving them memories of being infantilized or treated with condescension while living in Paradise. That sort of thing lingered. “We won’t bite.” Şahin lowered his head and blew a soft breath at the boy, inviting him to come closer and see for himself.