started she became so enthusiastic her nervousness went away She described several of the horses and Grace chimed in about her favorites Their twelve-year-old sister Natalie leaned in and listened intently Natalie was crazy about horses That would be awesome to rescue a wild mustang she said Emily smiled at her One of Natalie’s jobs was overseeing everyone’s chores in the stables If Natalie got excited about the idea she might help to convince Mom and Dad to bid on one Well Mr Ramirez said when she’d finished I guess we’ll have to look at the site after dinner to see what we need to do I have the information right here Emily waved the notepad with her notes on it Mrs Ramirez smiled Seems like you’re really prepared but let’s finish dinner first Emily set her notes down with a sigh All she wanted to do was talk about the mustangs The last thing she wanted to do was eat dinner Natalie was a good cook but she liked to make spicy dishes when she helped out in the kitchen Tonight it was chiles rellenos Grace insisted the poblano peppers inside the outer crust tasted mild but even with the cheese filing they stung Emily’s tongue and made her eyes water Although they were twins she and Grace often had the exact opposite reactions to things Reluctantly Emily cut a small bite and put it in her mouth then picked up her water glass to wash it down She was a macaroni-and-cheese kind of eater The blander the better She even preferred plain macaroni with butter on it to spaghetti with
sauce and so did her ten-year-old sister Abby although for different reasons Abby was on the autism spectrum so she liked her foods mild and in separate places on her plate with nothing touching anything else She also disliked loud noises and bright lights but her responses to these things improved when she got her service dog Amigo Maybe if Emily got her mustang she could have a close animal friend like Amigo or Grace’s cat Chances Emily loved their emu Chandler and could pet him and talk to him But emus weren’t cuddly like cats and dogs And they didn’t have soft coats she could lean against and couldn’t talk to them the way she could horses Although she’d probably not get to do that with a wild mustang At least not at first Emily was so engrossed in her daydreams about mustangs that she was startled when she noticed everyone in her family was staring at her What she said We’re waiting for you to finish Em Grace said pointing at Emily’s almost-full plate No one left the table at the Ramirez house until everyone was done eating The rest of the family had cleaned their plates already and they were all waiting for her Oh sorry Emily shoveled a big bite into her mouth and tears sprang to her eyes She wished it were a night Mom had cooked instead of Natalie Mom had explained that Abby’s senses were more easily overwhelmed than other people’s so new experiences or strong sounds tastes and lights bothered her Mom had also found some articles on supertasters and suggested Emily might be one Supertasters had extra
taste buds They could taste bitterness or spiciness even in foods that others thought were mild When Mom cooked she often made the bland things Emily and Abby preferred Grace and Natalie doused Mom’s meals with hot sauce or fiery salsas But there wasn’t a way to make hot things less spicy With everyone staring at her Emily managed to choke down the rest of her meal with many gulps of water She reminded herself that the faster she finished the faster they could talk about the mustangs When Emily finished her last bite Mr Ramirez said Why don’t we skip dessert for now so we can look at the information Emily found
He set his napkin on the table and stood Maybe we could have s’mores later under the stars Natalie smiled and Grace cheered Abby bent to pet Amigo until Grace quieted S’mores sounded great but all Emily wanted was to discuss the auction Then she’d enjoy the dessert especially if Mom and Dad agreed She hoped they would but what if they said no
