“You like Branwen?” Kieran asked suddenly, catching you off-guard — causing you to jump and drop the horse brush in your hands. With wide eyes, you met his gaze — unable to speak as you held the stare.

With a couple more moments of silence, the man cleared his throat awkwardly. Maybe he hadn’t thought this through.

“He’s uh — he’s quite the sweetheart.” He continued, more softly this time. You felt oddly comforted by his presence.