Forever My Cowboy

by June Faver

  Ollie’s face morphed into an expression of concern. “Oh, you poor dear. Your brother was Jason LaChance? Such a nice young man. He and Sara were members of our church.” She clucked her tongue a few times.

  Jenn nodded, wiping her eyes on the edge of the towel. “I just need to get through the next couple of days. I need to find the children.”

  Ollie frowned. “The children? I understood a social worker had taken them to Amarillo.”

  “Oh, great,” Jenn said. “I’m sure I won’t be able to find them until they open on Monday. Poor kids.”

  “I’m going to the funeral… The whole town will be there. Everyone loved Jason and Sara.”

  Jenn nodded. “I’m just going to dry my hair now and go to bed.”

  “Yes. Yes, of course. You get some rest. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She patted Jenn’s damp shoulder and left the bathroom.

  Jenn still felt more than a little shaky. “Tomorrow,” she whispered.

  She wiped the steam off the mirror and peered at herself. Her eyes were red, but that was probably from the tears and getting no sleep. She slathered several layers of skin products on her face, neck, and body, hoping it would make up for her lack of rest.

  She slipped her robe back on and tied the sash. Although she was twenty-six years old, she had never held a real job outside of academia, where she had acted as TA and tutor occasionally. She hoped to be able to get her butt in gear and find a job. Any job.

  When she tiptoed across the hall to the room, she felt pleasantly relaxed. She locked the door behind her and let the robe slip to the floor before falling across the bed naked and instantly descending into a deep slumber with Minnie nestled against her side.

  Chapter 3

  Cade woke up to find two pairs of eyes gazing at him. Garrett-blue eyes.

  Or perhaps it was the smell of urine that roused him.

  Cade opened his own eyes fully and stared back at the two children, at least one of whom needed to be changed. “Morning,” he mumbled.

  Leo looked somber, and Lissy was sucking on her index finger.

  “Are you kids hungry?” he asked.

  There was no response other than an occasional blink of the eyes.

  “Mmph,” Cade said. “Let me get up, and I’ll fix your breakfast.” He struggled to sit up and swing his legs over the side of the bed.

  “Lissy do poo-poo.” Leo pointed at his sister, who continued to munch her finger with even greater enthusiasm.

  Cade raked his fingers through his hair. I can do this. Sara would have wanted me to raise the kids. He hoisted himself to his feet and surveyed his two miniature responsibilities. “C’mon.”

  He shuffled down the hall to the bathroom, lowered the lid on the throne, and took a seat. “Okay, let me figure this out.” He leaned over to turn on the water in the bathtub. “I think this situation calls for a significant amount of bath time.” He adjusted the temperature and turned back to the children.

  “Um, let’s get those clothes off.” He gestured to Leo and helped him strip off the oversize T-shirt and underpants. He eased Leo over the side of the tub and told him to sit down.

  Heaving a sigh, he pulled the T-shirt over Lissy’s head. Her diaper was wet and contained a full load in back. Cade’s gag reflex was working overtime. He turned off the bathwater and handed Leo a washcloth and a bar of soap. “Go ahead and get started, Leo. I think you’re going to want to wash up and get out while you can.”

  He took a moment to center himself, reminding himself that he was able to geld young animals on the ranch. He should be able to de-poop his young niece.

  After a great deal of wiping down with toilet paper and wet wipes, Lissy was howling but clean enough to take a turn in the tub.

  Cade helped Leo out, wrapping him in a towel, before easing Lissy into the water. He lathered a washcloth and gave her a quick once-over. When she was also wrapped in a towel, he heaved a sigh. This parenting thing was definitely more difficult than he had thought.

  Sara and Jason had made it look easy. Well, there were two of them. Cade just needed reinforcements.

  Thankfully, Mrs. Reynolds arrived early.

  “I thought I would get a head start on breakfast today.” She was breaking eggs into a bowl.

  “Thank God!” he murmured fervently. “I have no clothes for these children. I don’t have a key to their house, and they didn’t have anything other than the clothes on their backs when Social Services took them. Can you watch them while I run to the store? I have to hurry and get them outfitted, so I can get dressed for the funeral this afternoon.” He shook his head. “I’m so glad you’re going to be here with them, Mrs. R.”

  She smiled and gave him a long, somewhat pitying look. “Do you even know what size to purchase? Or what to have on hand for children this age?”

  “Um, no. I have no idea.” He sank onto one of the chairs at the dinette table.

  “In that case, I will whip up these eggs and run to Walmart.” She arched an eyebrow. “Just fork over that Visa card, cowboy, and I’ll get you fixed right up.”

  “Deal!” Cade surrendered the plastic and went to wrap Lissy with a small towel around her lower half. He hoped that would be absorbent enough to get her through the meal.

  Mrs. Reynolds had breakfast on the table and gave him a sassy salute as she headed out the door. In a remarkably short time, she returned, flipped him the card and a receipt. She plopped down on a chair across the table from Cade. “I have a degree in power shopping.” She displayed two large plastic bags.

  Cade heaved a sigh. “Obviously.” The process of getting food into the two youngsters had proven to be frustrating, but he had managed the task. He sat in a semi-stupefied state as he watched the industrious Mrs. R remove tags and get the clothing items ready to be slipped on the children.

  Leo looked interested, but Lissy was sniveling and, once again, had the forefinger inserted in her mouth.

  Cade made a deal with Mrs. Reynolds, who would wrangle the little ones while he grabbed a shower and got himself dressed.

  Once in the shower, he let the hot water soothe him and calm his frazzled nerves. He hadn’t considered that taking over for his baby sister would be so grueling, but surely he was up to the job. “I’m a Garrett. We don’t back down.”

  * * *

  Jenn was awakened by the sound of a message arriving on her cell phone. She raised her head, flinching when the pain caught up with her, but stretched out to grasp the device. “Please…please…please…”

  She retrieved the email message, sitting on the edge of the bed.

  Sorry, Ms. LaChance. The position has been filled. Thank you for your interest. Your résumé will be kept on file for a period of three months. Please check back for future openings.

  She reeled back on the bed, flinging her arms and legs out and lying spread-eagle to stare up at the ceiling. Oh no! How can I have become so worthless…at least to employers?

  Jenn gave in to tears, silently allowing them to roll back into her hairline and tickle their way through to her scalp. She whimpered a bit and tried to imagine how she would support two young children with no income. She had seen on the news that people were living on the streets in big cities and tucked up under overpasses, but she couldn’t imagine how they were subsisting.

  No! She would find a way to survive and thrive. She had to—for the children.

  She thought about selling the house in Dallas…the house where she had hoped to raise her niece and nephew in relative comfort and security. That thought brought her renewed pain. She sucked in a deep breath and blew it out. I’ll find a way.

  Jenn sat up and walked, nude, to where her large handbag hung on a hook inside the closet. She rooted around until she found what she was looking for. Her last link with Jason. It was a card he had sent with a family photograph. She stared at his kind face and those
of his now-deceased wife, sweet baby girl, and young boy with very blue eyes. She swallowed hard, hoping that someone nice was caring for them. The children’s fate was gnawing at her gut. Where are Leo and Lissy?

  * * *

  “You look fine. Stop fussing.” Mrs. Reynolds straightened Cade’s tie and went back to arranging Lissy’s hair. Mrs. R had tied it up in two ponytails on either side of her head and now brushed the curls into ringlets around her finger. Lissy looked angelic.

  Cade swallowed hard. He couldn’t imagine how his housekeeper had transformed the finger-sucking tot into this little doll, but he was extremely grateful.

  Leo had been easy. Getting him dressed in his new clothes had been a breeze. What had not been easy was dodging his questions as to where his parents were and when were they coming to pick him up.

  “I’ll see you after the service. People have been dropping off food, so I presume they will show up here. I’ll have everything ready,” Mrs. Reynolds called as Cade sailed out the door, leaving her to care for the children and evade the questions Leo was asking.

  It was early, but Mrs. R had assured him he should be on hand well before the service began. As Sara’s closest relative, the congregation would want to express their condolences to him, so he owed it to her to present a solemn facade and look as though he was able to provide a responsible upbringing for the surviving children.

  * * *

  “Miss LaChance! Miss LaChance!” It was Ollie, the innkeeper, beating on the door.

  Jenn was sitting on the edge of the bed, dreading the event to come.

  She had dreamed she was painting. Standing on some beach, with her easel in the sand, adding strokes of paint to the canvas. A seascape with a white sand beach.

  She awakened with renewed pain. She had lost her brother and her father…perhaps the only two men who would ever love her.

  More frantic beating on the door.

  “Yes?” she shouted.

  “Miss LaChance. The funeral is going to start in a short time. You need to get to the church right away.”

  Jenn stood up quickly. It felt as though all the blood had drained from her head. To the church. Her mouth was dry. Her tongue was glued to the roof of her mouth.

  The funeral. Jason’s funeral.

  More knocking. “You know where the church is?” Ollie asked.

  Jenn reached for her handbag. “I think so. It’s the one with the tall, white spire on the street a block over. The one I can see out the rear window, right?”

  “Oh, you’re so right. I’m leaving then. See you there.”

  Jenn heard her clomping down the stairs and then silence.

  She hurried to run a brush through her hair and took a second look at herself in the mirror. Her eyes were bloodshot and red- rimmed. They were so puffy she looked like Mr. Magoo’s little sister.

  “Oh no!” she wailed. Running cold water over a washcloth, she made a compress for her eyes, but it didn’t help much.

  “Can’t be helped.” She dashed downstairs and recoiled as the first stab of blinding sunlight assaulted her. Blinking, she felt her way to her car and, once inside, groped in her bag for her giant sunglasses. She let out a sigh of relief and started the vehicle, turning the air conditioner up to full blast. For a moment, she sat in the idling car, inhaling cold air, but then, resigned to her fate, drove the few blocks to say goodbye forever to the one man who had never let her down…until now.

  The church parking area was overflowing, and she had to park in the street almost a block away. It was impossible to run in her heels, but she managed to make headway doing a mincing little trot.

  The church doors were closed, and she heard organ music as she rushed up the steps. She was perspiring and out of breath when she threw the door open and stepped inside.

  People were standing and had been singing some kind of mournful song, but they stopped and turned to stare at her. The organist carried on, but the singers fell silent.

  Jenn swallowed, looking around for a place to sit.

  Then, Ollie Enloe strode down the center aisle with her arms outstretched. “Right this way, honey. Come sit by me up front.”

  Jenn started to demur, but with Ollie in charge, there didn’t seem to be any choice. She allowed herself to be escorted to the front pew, where she was seated next to a big, irritable-looking man. She didn’t know how his face could get any grimmer.

  She sat down and determinedly kept her face averted. She could feel his warmth through both of their clothing. His man-sprawl caused him to be pressed against Jenn on the thigh until she edged away.

  * * *

  The sister.

  Cade couldn’t believe this woman was late to her own brother’s funeral…and she looked like she’d just crawled out of bed before bothering to make her appearance.

  At least she was dressed in mourning. When she scooted away, he glimpsed a pair of nice-looking legs. She crossed them, giving a view of slim but well-toned calves.

  He adjusted his jacket, holding his Stetson in his other hand. Some fragrance this woman was wearing had invaded his space. Something sensuous. Not at all appropriate, he thought, although he couldn’t say what scent would be more appropriate for a funeral.

  The preacher took his place behind the pulpit looking properly somber. He read a Bible verse and went on to extol the virtues of Sara and Jason LaChance, the young local couple who had been ripped from the arms of their loved ones by virtue of an unfortunate accident. He offered a prayer and then a woman sang a very mournful song.

  The woman to his right groped for a tissue and blotted her eyes under the ridiculously large sunglasses. Her hands were shaking, and she gripped them together.

  Cade felt a pang of sympathy for this woman who seemed to be in the throes of sincere grief. Cade himself was of the “stiff upper lip” camp, preferring not to put his grief on public display.

  Ollie Enloe sat on the other side of this woman. Ollie placed an arm around the woman’s shoulder and patted her.

  Cade knew Ollie. She was a good woman, and she seemed to have taken Jason’s sister under her wing. But how well did she know this stranger?

  When the preacher asked if anyone would like to say a few words, Cade stood. He was prepared. He knew that Sara was well thought of in this small community, but he wanted to let them know how special she had always been. He talked about their childhood, growing up on the sprawling ranch, about her scholastic achievements, and about her marriage and the subsequent birth of their two children. He talked about her beautiful spirit and how she had always seen the best in her fellow man.

  When he finished, the preacher shook his hand, and he returned to his seat. He glanced at the woman sitting beside him.

  Okay, he admitted she looked pretty good in spite of her late arrival. She was tall and slender, with very shapely legs.

  One of Jason LaChance’s in-laws took a turn on the dais. Tyler Garrett affirmed that Jason had been the best person on the planet, telling stories about Jason’s love of family, loyalty to friends, and business acumen, having acquired the small airfield and running it with the help of his wife, Sara.

  Ollie nudged the sister, hoarsely whispering, “Go on up there. You need to tell them about your brother.”

  The woman shook her head and gasped, “Oh, no…I couldn’t.”

  More whispering, and finally, the woman stood and walked hesitantly up onto the dais. She took a deep breath, the picture of anguish.

  “M-my brother, Jason…” Her voice wobbled. She cleared her throat and started again. “My big brother, Jason, was always my hero.”

  Cade frowned, reluctantly acknowledging her bereavement. She had tons of long hair cascading down over her shoulders. It seemed to be several different colors, so he wasn’t sure if she had light-brown hair or dark blond, but there were some light strands close to her face. She was talk
ing, but he stopped listening when Ollie Enloe groped for a tissue and let out a loud sniffle.

  The sister returned to her seat. She sank onto the pew beside him and hung her head.

  At the end of the service, the two coffins were carried from the church by friends of the deceased.

  Cade stood and gripped his Stetson, looking around at the packed interior of the church…the church he had attended all of his life—Sara’s church. This was the last time she would be here, at least physically.

  Jason’s sister rose and stared up at him for a moment. At least that’s what he thought, since her huge sunglasses were still in place. Then Ollie took her in hand and gestured that she was supposed to follow the caskets.

  She heaved her shoulders in a huge, dejected sigh and stepped into the aisle.

  Cade followed behind her.

  She held Ollie’s arm, so that anchor must have been helping her not to fall over in a heap. Her head was held high, and she looked neither right nor left.

  Cade stomped down church steps behind them.

  The coffins had been loaded into two identical hearses.

  Cade looked around, intending to climb into his truck for the trek out to the cemetery, but a neighbor grabbed his sleeve, pointing to the vehicle behind the second hearse.

  “There! The family is supposed to be driven to the graveside ceremony.”

  Cade thanked him and started walking behind Ollie and the sister, heading toward the long, shiny, black vehicle. A stretch limousine. A funeral home employee held the doors open and helped her inside.

  Cade had no choice but to follow. He stooped to get into the interior.

  “Over here, Cade,” Ollie Sue instructed. She patted the seat beside her.

  The interior of the vehicle had seats facing forward and seats facing backward. Unfortunately, the forward-facing seats were occupied by Jason’s sister and Ollie.

  Cade sat on the rear-facing seat and stared at Jason’s mournful sister and Ollie Enloe, sitting across from him.

  “Hello, Cade.” It was Ollie who broke the ice.