Texas Ranch Justice

by Karen Whiddon

  “Maybe we should wait until he’s around to decide,” Scarlett said, eyeing them. “I hate to get all excited about something and then have him say no.”

  Both Delilah and Vivian chuckled at that. “That’s not how it works, darlin’.” Delilah winked. “You just choose, get the costume and then give it to him. Don’t give him a say.”

  “That hardly seems fair,” Scarlett protested. “He’s the one with the biggest stake in all this.”

  “Bull.” Vivian pooh-poohed that notion. “For as long as I’ve been going to that ball, the women choose the costumes and the men go along. Men generally don’t expect to have to make that type of clothing selection.”

  About to comment on what she thought of that remark, Scarlett closed her mouth. What did she know? She’d never been married and her last serious relationship had been a couple of years ago.

  Vivian smiled sweetly and indicated the papers. “Let’s go through these.”

  Maybe she was making too big of a deal out of this. Pulling out a chair, Scarlett sat. Vivian did the same. Delilah even came over to the table and sat, so she could be in on the discussion.

  Vivian eyed her. “You are still going with us, right?”

  “Definitely,” Delilah answered. “Y’all are a lot more creative than my family. My husband will wear whatever I tell him to.”

  “See?” Vivian crowed. “That’s how it works.”

  Deciding to let that topic go, Scarlett thought of her one ally. “Where’s Amber?” she asked. She really valued the younger woman’s input, especially since Vivian could be a bit overbearing.

  “She’s volunteering up at Will’s school. Today is the kindergarten harvest party. They’re also having a festival this weekend.”

  “Oh.” Disappointed, Scarlett eyed the older woman. “Don’t you think she should get a vote?”

  “She doesn’t care,” Vivian answered emphatically. “If she got to choose, we’d all go as vampires and werewolves. Since we aren’t, she’ll go along with anything as long as she can have the opportunity to make it dark.”

  Right then and there, Scarlett decided to call Amber later that evening. She truly liked the other woman and would have welcomed her feedback in selecting a costume. Which meant she’d delay making any sort of decision until she talked to both brother and sister.

  Slowly, Vivian flipped through pages. Roman nobles, Greek gods and goddesses, all clearly photocopied from a costuming magazine. Nothing caught Scarlett’s eye until she saw a page of elves. “Wait,” she said. “Let me see that. It’s kind of interesting.”

  But after she looked it over, she realized Travis wouldn’t appreciate any of the men’s costumes. “Never mind.” She slid the page back to Vivian.

  The next one that caught her eye was 1920s style gangsters. Now that she could picture Travis wearing. “What about this?” she asked. “Has he done anything like this before?”

  “Nope.” Vivian smiled. “He could be an Al Capone type. We could be flappers.”

  The more she thought about it, the more Scarlett liked that idea. Especially when she thought of all the other choices she’d seen so far. “Those would be easy costumes to make or rent, wouldn’t they?”

  “They would.” A gleam of interest shone in Vivian’s eyes. “Is that your choice? Or—” she indicated what had to be at least thirty more pages “—do you want to keep looking?”

  Suddenly weary of the entire thing, Scarlett decided to make a quick decision. “I think this will work. Let’s go with it. I’ll let Travis know the next time I see him.”

  In fact, she resolved to tell him as soon as possible. That way, if he had any issues with her choice, she’d tell him to talk to his mother and choose something on his own.

  * * *

  The next morning, Travis stopped by the main house before heading out into the fields. Though the sun had just begun to rise, the instant he pulled up and parked, Scarlett came out onto the front porch. Almost as if she’d been waiting for him.

  The early autumn air carried a pleasant crispness, even though the leaves had barely begun to turn.

  He walked up, pleasantly surprised when she handed him a steaming mug of coffee. “Thanks,” he said. “But how’d you know I was coming by this morning?”

  “I didn’t. But I’d gone out onto the porch to get a bit of fresh air, and I saw your headlights coming down the road. Since I’d already started a pot of coffee brewing, I poured us both a cup. No big deal.”

  No big deal. Yet, the simple kindness touched him.

  “We decided on costumes yesterday,” she blurted out, her gaze flying to his. “We’re going with Roaring Twenties era gangsters.”

  He kept his face expressionless, though he found her earnestness interesting. “You want me to be a gangster, huh?”

  She nodded, lifting her chin while holding his gaze, almost as if daring him to say something about her choice. He thought about his conversation with Amber and realized his baby sister was right. Maybe he had been making a big deal out of nothing.

  “That sounds good.” He kept his tone mild.

  Visibly relieved, she finally looked down and took a long drink of her cup. “I’m glad.”

  “I assume you’ve told my mother and she’s working on it?”

  “Yep. She stopped by yesterday. She and Amber and I are going to drive into Dallas to pick up the costumes. She’s already reserved them at a costume shop.” Excitement made her emerald eyes sparkle. Fascinated, he forced himself to look down and take a drink from his own coffee cup.

  “Great. Have fun.” He started to turn away. But she caught his arm, holding him in place. The touch sent a jolt through him, making him freeze.

  “Wait.” She tugged to get his attention. “I just have one question. You had problems with being Lancelot or King Arthur, but a gangster is fine? I don’t get it.”

  “A gangster is generic. The others were specific individuals, so their stories are known.” While explaining this way made him feel slightly foolish, he also didn’t want to mention that his ex had always wanted to be Guinevere.

  “I see. You’re a complicated man, Travis Warren.”

  One second more and he wouldn’t be able to keep from kissing her. “Thanks. I’ll take that as a compliment.” Gently pulling his arm from her grasp, he headed toward the door to go inside. “I’ve got to grab some breakfast,” he said. “I’ve got a long day ahead of me.”

  Though she made no comment, she followed him inside. Delilah had made an egg casserole the day before and all they had to do was spoon it onto their plates and then nuke it in the microwave.

  They ate in companionable silence. In days past, Hal would have popped in to the kitchen. He’d always been an early riser. Clearly, not any longer. The mysterious illness continued to take its toll.

  They both ate quickly and silently, each lost in their own thoughts. Travis finished eating, rinsed off his plate and drained his second cup of coffee. “Tell Hal I said hello,” he told Scarlett. She promised that she would. Then he headed out to start his day.

  Travis started to feel queasy before lunch. He put away his horse, brushing him down like usual, but the thought of trying to eat anything made him break out into a cold sweat.

  Instead of stopping at the main house, he went home. If he was coming down with something, he didn’t want to pass it on to Hal. Any additional illness could seriously incapacitate the older man.

  The only one home when he arrived was Amber. She took one look at him and scrambled up from the couch. “You look like death,” she said. “Don’t come anywhere near me.”

  He still felt well enough to be able to tease her. “Nice try at being sympathetic, sis,” he growled.

  In response, she snorted. “Good thing Mom and Scarlett and I are heading to Dallas tomorrow. Not only are you probably contagious, but you’re an absolute pain
in the rear when you don’t feel good.”

  Pretending to be wounded seemed like too much effort, so he shrugged. “I’m going to bed. I’ll have my phone if anyone needs me, otherwise tell them to leave me alone.”

  Wide-eyed, Amber nodded. “Sounds good. I’ll, uh, let Mom know. And warn Scarlett.”

  Ignoring that, he stumbled into his room. His head had started to ache almost as much as his body. Closing his blinds, he stripped down to his boxers and climbed into his bed.

  * * *

  About to leave for one of her walks, Scarlett smiled when her cell phone rang and Amber’s number showed up on the screen. They were all looking forward to their road trip to Dallas in the morning. Girls’ day, Amber had taken to calling it.

  “Hey, what’s up?”

  “Pray for me,” Amber replied. “Travis has come down with something—flu or virus, I’m not sure. He’s an absolute bear when he’s sick. I’m so glad we’re getting out of the house all day tomorrow.”

  Scarlett blinked. “Someone’s going to stay with him, right?”

  “Um, no. He’s a grown man. He can take care of himself.”

  While that might be true, Scarlett felt a twinge of concern. “How sick is he?”

  “No idea.” A tiny bit of impatience crept into Amber’s voice. “I know you’re soft on him, but don’t be thinking of doing anything crazy, like canceling going with us so you can take care of him, you hear?”

  The instant Amber finished speaking, Scarlett knew that was exactly what she wanted to do. If he was truly ill, that is.

  “Maybe he’ll feel better in the morning,” Scarlett said. “It’s possible he only needs to rest and drink lots of fluids.”

  “That’s the way to look at it. Anyway, Mom will be home soon and she’ll check on him. I’ve got to go get Will at school. I’ll be keeping him away from Travis too. He doesn’t need to get sick right before Halloween.”

  “Neither does Travis.” Scarlett couldn’t help worrying. “Please keep me posted.”

  “I’ll give you a full update in the morning when we pick you up,” Amber promised and ended the call.

  Ridiculous to worry so much about Travis, who surely could take care of himself. Scarlett wished she could make herself stop.

  Pacing, she glanced at Hal, slumped in his usual place in front of the TV. She wouldn’t have believed it possible, but he had less and less fight left in him with each passing day. And he now stubbornly refused to go to any more doctors, claiming they didn’t know what they were doing. While he was right, she also wondered if he was worried about finances.

  Since she didn’t want to wake him to discuss her concerns about Travis, she headed into the kitchen to talk to Delilah.

  As soon as she heard the words Travis is sick, Delilah’s eyes widened and she shook her head. “You want to stay far, far away from that one. Travis is generally an easygoing sort of man, but when he feels poorly, it’s like he has a personality transplant.”

  Fascinated, Scarlett asked her what she meant. “I mean, I’ve heard all my life that some men can be difficult when they’re sick.”

  “Oh, difficult doesn’t even begin to describe him. For as long as I’ve known him, I’d have to say that’s Travis’s major flaw. Everyone who knows him is well aware to keep their distance when he’s ill.”

  Some of Scarlett’s thoughts must have shown in her face. “Oh, no, no.” Delilah wagged her index finger. “Don’t even be thinking about trying to look after him. I promise, you’ll regret it if you do.”

  Scarlett smiled. “Forgive me if I feel like you’re exaggerating. I’ve gotten to know Travis. I find all this difficult to believe.”

  “You’ll learn,” Delilah said, her tone dark. “Believe me, you’ll learn.”

  Later that evening, Scarlett called Amber. “How is he?” she asked.

  “No idea,” Amber said. “I’m not even home. Mom checked on him, so you might call her. Or—” she paused “—give Travis a ring. If he even answers, you’ll see what I was telling you about earlier.”

  Though she hated the idea of bothering a sick man, Scarlett decided to try. After all, if he felt too poorly to talk, then she figured he wouldn’t answer. In that case, she’d simply call Vivian.

  To her surprise, he answered on the second ring.

  “What?” he mumbled. Since he sounded as if he’d just woken up, she felt fairly contrite.

  “I’m sorry. I hope I didn’t wake you. I just wanted to check and see how you were feeling and see if there’s anything you need.”

  “I need to be left alone,” he snarled. A fit of coughing took over. In the middle of that, he ended the call.

  “Wow,” she mumbled to herself. Maybe there was some truth after all to what everyone had said. Still, Travis had sounded as if he felt pretty horrible. She decided to call Vivian.

  “Oh, hello, Scarlett,” Vivian practically sang. “I’m so looking forward to our girls’ day tomorrow.”

  “Me too. I’m calling to check on Travis,” Scarlett said, feeling better. Things couldn’t be that bad if Vivian sounded so positive and happy.

  “I made him some chicken noodle soup and left it in the fridge for him,” Vivian replied. “I made sure to let him know on my way out the door.”

  “You left him there alone?”

  “He’s a grown man, honey. This ain’t my first rodeo. He just needs to sweat it out and he’ll be fine. I couldn’t take a chance of catching anything and ruining our trip tomorrow. Plus, I don’t know if anyone has mentioned this, but Travis is a horrible patient when he’s sick.”

  “So I’ve heard,” Scarlett drawled. “Do you know what’s wrong with him exactly?”

  “Probably the flu. He most likely picked it up at that gym in town where he goes to work out.”

  A gym? Possibly a good place to catch something.

  “The flu can be serious,” she pointed out. “Don’t you think someone should stay with him, just in case?”

  Vivian snorted. “No. Unless you’re volunteering?” And she laughed.

  That laugh did it. “I am,” Scarlett said, her voice firm. “You and Amber will have to go to Dallas without me. I’m going to stay here and look after Travis.”

  No amount of cajoling from Vivian changed her mind.

  Even Amber called later that night to state a case why staying was a bad idea. “Have you even asked Travis?”

  “I’m not going to. He’s sick. I’m going to help him out. If he doesn’t like it, that’s tough.” Scarlett lifted her chin. Her mother had always said that the Kistler women were stubborn as heck. As it turned out, she was right.

  “It’s your funeral,” Amber sighed. “You really have no idea what you’re letting yourself in for. And now you’re letting my mother choose your costume. You’d better hope it’s not too ugly.”

  “That’s what I’m counting on you for,” Scarlett pointed out. “You know I’d do the same for you.”

  “Fine. All I can say is, you must really have a thing for my brother. However, I’m betting that might change after you spend one day in sick Travis’s company. We’re leaving at nine, so you’ll need to come by before we go so you’re not locked out. And bring some sort of protective gear so you don’t carry any germs back to Hal.”

  Chapter 12

  For the first couple of hours, Travis guessed he must have slept like the dead. He woke up sometime in the middle of the night, twisted up in his sheets and burning up from the inside out. Cursing, he pushed himself up out of bed and stumbled to his bathroom. He located a bottle of ibuprofen and took two, choking them down dry. Damn, he hated being sick.

  Splashing water on his overheated face, he peered at himself in the mirror and immediately wished he hadn’t. The last time he’d looked like that, he’d been sick with the flu for a week. Since then, he’d made sure to get his flu shot, t
hough he hadn’t this year. Heck, it wasn’t even flu season yet.

  Whatever this was that ailed him, it made him feel like hell. Somehow, he made it back to his bed and dropped back into it.

  For the rest of the night, he alternated between freezing and shivering and dying of heat. He tossed and turned, alternatively wishing for sleep and an ice bath. Finally, he managed to doze into a kind of catatonic state.

  When he opened his eyes again, bright sunlight streamed in through the blinds, making him wince. Never had he been so glad to realize this was the day his mother and sister, along with Scarlett, were all driving into Dallas for the day. On the rare occasions he fell ill, they all knew there was nothing he wanted more than being left alone. It looked like this time, this wish would be granted.

  The nightstand clock said it was after nine, which meant Will would be at school and the women most likely had left. The silence of the house attested to that fact.

  Coughing and wheezing, he made it into the bathroom and brushed his teeth, hoping to rid his mouth of a horrible taste. He located a throat lozenge and popped that into his mouth. He needed fluids and since the thought of coffee made his stomach churn, he decided to see if they had any ginger ale.

  Padding into the kitchen barefoot, wearing only his boxers, he saw indeed that Vivian had bought a couple of two-liter bottles just for him. Still dizzy, he managed to grab a glass and pour himself some, without ice.

  The carbonated bubbles tickled his nose as he swallowed. Though he knew he should eat something, the idea of actually doing so made his stomach clench. For now, he’d settle for the drink.

  He turned to make his way back to bed and stopped short. Scarlett sat at the kitchen table, silently watching him.

  “Hey,” she said, her voice soft. “How are you feeling?”

  “Go home,” he ordered, too ill to waste time on pleasantries. A bout of coughing broke up his words. Raspy, he continued. “You’re supposed to be on your way to Dallas anyway.”

  “I canceled. Vivian and Amber went without me.”