Cowboy Come Home

by Carly Bloom

  “You drove all this way to give me my cat?”

  “And to call you a fucking asshole.”

  Ford raised his eyebrows. His little brother didn’t often talk to him like this. In fact, this was probably the first time he ever had. And he was on thin ice, because if either of them was an asshole, it was Worth.

  “How could you treat her that way?” Worth asked. “You didn’t even say goodbye.”

  “It was bound to happen sooner or later, and you’re one to talk.”

  “What is that supposed to mean? And why didn’t you come see me at my last rodeo? You said you’d be there, and you weren’t. I guess you can’t keep your word to save your soul—”

  “I was there, you little shit. And it’s a good thing I’m holding this cat, because that’s the only thing keeping me from punching you right in your smartass mouth.”

  Worth’s face went blank with surprise. “Did you see me crash? Man, that was the worst ride of my life. Figures it had to be my last.”

  “I got there after it happened.”

  “Why didn’t you come and find me? I was having a horrible day and could have used the support.”

  “I did.”

  Worth furrowed his brow. “Really? I didn’t see you.”

  “I looked for you at Thirsty’s.”

  “I went to Thirsty’s, but I never even got out of my truck.”

  “Stayed in the parking lot?”

  “Yeah. I was—”

  “I saw you.”

  “Why didn’t you come talk to me?”

  “You were indisposed. Are you still stringing Caroline along? If so, you need to break it off, brother. Don’t do this to her.”

  Worth’s eyes widened. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “I saw you with a woman. And it wasn’t Caroline.”

  Worth covered his face with his hands and muttered, “Oh my God, Ford. You’re a fucking idiot.”

  “I know what I saw.”

  Worth looked at him and shook his head. “No. You definitely do not. The woman you saw me with was Aunt June.”

  What? Aunt June was blond, but why would she be sitting in Ford’s pickup with her arms around him?

  Worth sighed. “Caroline is being deployed.”

  “Wow, Worth. I’m sorry. But I don’t see what that’s got to do with—”

  “She called me and told me just before my go-round. And furthermore, she broke off the engagement. Said I’m too young to have to wait on her. I shouldn’t have taken the call. I shouldn’t have gotten on the horse in the state of mind I was in. But I did. And I missed my mark and then I crashed. I needed to talk to someone. I needed my family, and you weren’t there.”

  “I was just running late—”

  “I texted Aunt June, and she came out to talk with me on her break. I didn’t feel like being around folks, so I didn’t go into the bar. What you saw was our fifty-seven-year-old, three-packs-a-day aunt trying to comfort me.”

  Worth hadn’t cheated on Caroline?

  “I thought it was the curse,” Ford said softly.

  Worth sighed and put his hand on Ford’s shoulder. “Brother, I don’t know what you’re so afraid of. But I don’t believe for one minute that it’s that stupid curse.”

  “But it’s—”

  “Not real. So why did you walk out on Claire when she needed you most?”

  Ford’s mind ground to a halt. There was no answer to that question. None that Ford could come up with, anyway.

  “Do you love Claire?” Worth asked quietly.

  Oh, dear Lord. He did. With all his heart. “Yes. But it doesn’t matter. Not after what I’ve done.”

  “I tend to agree with you. I don’t know why she’d take you back, honestly. But people in love do stupid shit.”

  Maybe Claire had been in love with him at one time. But surely, she wasn’t anymore.

  “You can’t explain anything to Claire until you figure it out yourself. You were looking for an excuse to leave. You thought I gave you one. You thought the curse gave you one. But you were wrong on both counts. Why are you looking for excuses, Ford?”

  Oscar meowed and clawed his way out of Ford’s arms.

  “I don’t know,” he said. “But I miss Claire. I’m walking around with a hole in my heart. And I miss Big Verde, too.”

  “Then, cowboy, come home. But I wouldn’t expect a welcome wagon.”

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Claire dropped orange and grapefruit slices into a plastic pitcher of sangria while Trista dumped a bag of ice into a galvanized tub for the beer. The noise level in the kitchen was through the roof, and the shower hadn’t even started yet.

  She hated leaving her mom today. Her dad had had another appointment on Thursday, and it had been a rough few days. Nobody had slept last night.

  Claire hadn’t been to her own little home in days. Miss Daisy seemed like one of many silly ideas now. Like Petal Pushers and the dream of having her own shop. But the biggest delusion of all had been thinking Ford Jarvis would settle down.

  She’d been duped, and then she’d been dumped.

  Again.

  A foam basketball bounced off her head.

  “Meghan!” Trista hollered. “Get that out of the kitchen.”

  Of all the things littering the kitchen floor—toy tractors, books, and Barbies—Claire didn’t understand why the foam ball was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Maybe because Meghan kept throwing it at their heads.

  “Do you want this transferred to a pretty glass pitcher?” Claire asked. “Or are we serving in plastic?”

  Trista straightened up and blew a strand of hair out of her face. “Do you honestly think there is any glass left in this house?”

  “Gotcha. Plastic it is.”

  The doorbell rang. “Will somebody get that?” Trista yelled.

  Suddenly, the house went deathly silent.

  “Hey!” Trista shouted again. “Somebody get the damn door!”

  “I’ll get it,” Claire said.

  Trista blocked her. “No. Not you.”

  “But I don’t mind—”

  “You don’t understand. At any given time of the day, every single door in this house is open. I’m talking cabinet doors, refrigerator doors, bathroom doors, and patio doors. My kids are freaking experts at opening doors. They just don’t want to open this one because I asked them to.”

  “Okay, so—”

  “Bubba!” Trista hollered, right in Claire’s ear. “Make one of the kids open the door!”

  Bubba entered the kitchen wearing shorts and a T-shirt that said BEER BABY with a downward-pointing arrow.

  “You’re not wearing that,” Trista said.

  “It’s my baby shower shirt,” Bubba said.

  The doorbell rang again.

  “Did you rinse off all the lawn chairs?”

  “Yep. But the cushions are missing.”

  “What do you mean the cushions are missing?”

  A foam ball bounced off Bubba’s head. “I mean they’re missing. I think the kids took them to the neighbors’ place to make a fort.”

  Someone was now pounding on the door, and Claire snuck off to open it. It was locked, and the doorknob was frantically jiggling. She turned the bolt and opened the door to find a very harried and disgruntled Anna.

  “What took you so long? I thought I was going to have to go through a window.”

  “Sorry.”

  Anna stopped in her tracks in the foyer and stared in awe at the baby shower decorations in the dining room. Or maybe it was shock. Shock and awe. “Oh. My. God.”

  “It’s fine,” Claire said. “You’re not in charge of this party.”

  “But—”

  There were spaceships on the tablecloth. Clowns on the napkins. Football streamers, and a boy band poster on the wall. Actually, the boy band might not be part of the decorative theme. Hard to know. The table centerpiece was a cut-out cowboy.

  “It looks like Party Town explod
ed in here,” Anna said.

  “That’s basically what happened,” Claire said. “They couldn’t decide on a theme, so they went with all of them. There’s sangria in the kitchen. Would you like some?”

  A foam ball bounced off Anna’s head. “Are we mainlining it?”

  “No. We’re having it in plastic Solo cups because Trista doesn’t own glasses.”

  Anna sighed and put her gift on the table. “Let’s hit it,” she said.

  Twenty minutes later, the party had moved to the Larsons’ backyard. Claire sat with Maggie, Anna, Alice, and Trista on the deck—not very comfortable without chair cushions—while the men loitered around the barbecue pit.

  “Are Worth and Caroline coming?” Maggie asked.

  Trista refilled Claire’s cup. “They’re supposed to.”

  “How nice,” Claire said. She didn’t have a thing in the world against Worth, except that he reminded her of Ford. Actually, everything reminded her of Ford. She took a huge gulp from her cup and then held it out for more. Trista raised an eyebrow.

  “She’s drinking for two,” Maggie said. “That’s our agreement while I’m pregnant.”

  Trista added a bit more, and Claire leaned back against the hard metal chair slats. Either the chair was more comfortable than it had been a few minutes ago, or she was catching a sangria buzz.

  “Well, I hope they can make it,” Maggie said. “Especially since Caroline’s being deployed soon. It will be nice to see her again.”

  Poor Worth was beside himself over Caroline’s upcoming departure. But at least she was wearing that engagement ring again. Worth had worked super hard to convince her that he wanted to wait. That he wanted to support her while she was deployed. They planned to marry as soon as she returned. In the meantime, he’d promised to make a home for them in Big Verde. And Claire believed he’d do it, too. He was a fixture on the ranch, thank God. He’d joined Bubba’s bowling league, even though the word on the street was that he couldn’t bowl. And it was rumored he’d been to church last Sunday.

  Unlike his brother, he was obviously putting down roots, and nothing catastrophic had happened as a result. Just the opposite, in fact. Worth was living his best life, whereas Ford was living his worst.

  At least Claire hoped he was. Curses of biblical proportion were what he deserved. Locusts. Boils. That sort of thing.

  Anna squealed as a foam dart from a plastic gun bounced off her arm.

  “Sorry,” Trista said, refilling Anna’s cup.

  “When I leave here, I’m getting my tubes tied,” Anna said.

  “File that under Things you shouldn’t say at a baby shower,” Maggie said.

  “No offense intended,” Anna said.

  Maggie patted her belly. “None taken. Motherhood isn’t for everyone, and that’s okay.”

  “I don’t plan to have children,” Alice said. “Although I enjoy being around them.”

  She picked up a faded frisbee and threw it to Henry, who missed it and said, “Shit!”

  “Travis!” Maggie yelled.

  Travis walked over and squatted next to Henry, presumably to tell him to cut that shit out.

  “If you don’t mind me asking, why not?” Trista said. “Why no children?”

  Alice intrigued Claire. She was so independent and happy in her own skin. Claire wanted to be the same, but she’d always had this very strong sense that her “other half” was out there somewhere, and all she needed to do was find him. She didn’t really like being alone. She liked having people around to share things with. Maggie had once said, “If Claire is having fun, and nobody is there to see Claire having fun, did Claire really have fun?”

  She was like that tree that fell in the forest.

  “I enjoy my life the way it is,” Alice said. “I don’t have to consider anyone else’s needs unless I really want to. I don’t pick up after anyone else. I’m not responsible for anyone else’s possessions or behavior—”

  “Please stop,” Trista said. “You’re going to make me cry.”

  Alice laughed. “You’re a wonderful mom, Trista. You’re raising good humans, and the world needs good humans.”

  “Aw, thanks,” Trista said, with her eyes misting up. “Do you think you’ll ever get married?”

  Oh, dear God. Claire hoped they weren’t going to make a party game out of that question.

  “No,” Alice said simply. “I’m not interested in that. And if I were to ever change my mind about having kids, well, there are lots of ways to make a family. JD and Gabriel are prime examples of that.”

  “Yep,” Maggie said. “Look at how I became Henry’s mom. As Grandma Honey used to say, there is more than one way to skin a cat.”

  “That’s a horrible saying,” Claire said, watching JD and Gabriel argue grilling tactics with Bubba. “But I have to admit, it’s comforting to know that I can have a family without a partner, if I want.”

  “There you go!” Alice said. “Who needs Prince Charming? You’re enough all by yourself, Claire.”

  Maggie nodded. “We all are.”

  “Holy cow,” Trista said, looking toward the gate to the front yard. “Look who’s here!”

  “Oh my God,” Maggie whispered. “Claire, honey, don’t stop drinking.”

  Claire turned to see who they were looking at. At first, she didn’t recognize the guy wearing khaki shorts, a yellow polo shirt, and holding two gift bags. But then something clicked, and she realized it was Ford Fucking Jarvis.

  * * *

  Ford had almost turned around about a hundred times. And now, as he stood quietly while an entire party ground to a halt, he wished he had.

  Showing up after what he did to the Kowalski family would have been bad enough. Doing it in the first pair of shorts he’d worn in twenty years was downright unbearable. Even though Bubba and Gabriel were both in shorts, too.

  A wolf whistle rang out—probably Bubba—and then everyone started talking at once.

  Trista came over and took the gift bags. Bubba put a beer in his hand. JD offered him a seat. But all he wanted to do was see Claire.

  The tugging around his midsection had started in earnest as soon as he’d entered Verde County. “Is Claire here?” he asked JD, even though he knew she was. He could feel her.

  “Yes,” JD said, glancing over Ford’s shoulder. “And, oh, look. Here she comes now.”

  Ford slowly turned to look over his shoulder, and his breath caught in his throat. She wore a light green sundress and strappy sandals, and her hair was piled up on top of her head like a cinnamon bun. She was gorgeous, and as he watched her stomp toward him with exaggerated steps, he realized she was also a bit drunk.

  And armed with a Nerf gun.

  “Oh, dear,” Trista said. “Sorry, Ford. She wasn’t expecting you to show up.”

  Bubba pounded him on the back. “You’ve got balls, man. Even in those shorts.”

  “She looks murderously pissed off,” JD said.

  Folks parted like the Red Sea, and Claire marched right up to Ford.

  “Let’s give them some privacy,” Trista said.

  “Ah, hell no,” Bubba said.

  Claire poked the gun in Ford’s chest. “Who invited you?”

  “I did,” Bubba said, stuffing a chip in his mouth. “Trista sent me to the post office with the invitations, and I dropped them in the box.”

  “I forgot to take Ford’s out,” Trista said apologetically. “I addressed them, you know, before.”

  Ford’s face became hot with embarrassment. Worth had warned him there would be no welcome wagon, and he was right. None of these folks wanted him here. And yet, he so desperately wanted to be here. With these people he’d come to think of as friends.

  “I’m sorry,” Ford said. “This was a mistake. I should go.”

  “Ya think?” Claire asked. Then she pulled the trigger and six Nerf darts bounced off his chest in quick succession.

  “Do you need another cartridge of darts?” Trista asked in a stage whisper.<
br />
  Claire nodded. “Bring me all the ammo you’ve got.”

  Ford just stared at her, and suddenly he was overcome with the urge to laugh. He was so happy to see her that he didn’t care how many Nerf darts she shot at him. Hell, he was happy to see everyone.

  “How far is that drive from West Texas?” Gabriel asked.

  “A little over nine hours,” Ford answered.

  “You came all this way to be with us at the shower?” JD asked.

  “Yes. And well…”

  Here was the hard part. The part that had kept him up all night last night.

  “I’m planning to stay here in Big Verde if I can find a job.”

  Trista handed Claire another cartridge of darts, and she reloaded. “Oh, I don’t think so, cowboy.”

  Maggie walked over with Travis. “What have we missed?” she asked.

  “Claire just told Ford that this town is not big enough for the two of them,” Bubba said.

  “And this party definitely isn’t,” Claire said, glaring at Ford. “So, you need to be moving on down the road.”

  “Neither one of you is going anywhere,” JD said. “You’re both our friends, and we want you here. We’re going to have cake and open gifts. Nobody has to talk to anybody they don’t want to talk to, and nobody is going to shoot anybody.”

  Claire pulled the trigger again, and this time she’d aimed the darts lower, at his knees.

  “Claire,” Ford said, trying to dodge the last dart. “Can we talk?”

  Everyone but Bubba started to drift away, and Trista grabbed him by the arm and dragged him off.

  “I don’t have anything to say to you.”

  “I know I don’t deserve—”

  “My time,” Claire said. “You don’t deserve my time. And JD said nobody has to talk to anybody they don’t want to talk to, so…”

  She walked away, and Maggie sidled up next to him. “Not that I care, but are you okay?”

  “I shouldn’t have come.”

  “But you did. You drove nine hours to bring us a gift.”

  “It’s nothing much,” Ford said. “Just a package of those little blanket things. The lady at the store said you can’t have too many.”

  Maggie smiled and rubbed his arm. “Thank you. I’m sure she’s right.”