The Rancher's Homecoming

by Arlene James

  Callie pulled Bodie’s hand away. “Of course it matters. I never said it didn’t matter, just that it isn’t the only thing that matters.”

  “Someone has to take over for me someday,” Stuart went on doggedly. “Ben has a degree in business administration.”

  Ben smiled and nodded.

  “And yet he’s managing a grain silo in a tiny town in Oklahoma,” Rex pointed out. “No offense, Ben.”

  “None taken,” Ben said affably. “At my age, I figure it’s better to be a big cog in a small machine than a small cog in a big—”

  At Stuart’s pointed glare, he broke off and swigged more coffee.

  “The point is,” Stuart stated flatly, “I have to plan for the future, and if my only flesh and blood is going to throw back in my face my every attempt to protect and provide for her, then I have to look elsewhere.”

  Callie rolled her eyes. At the same time, Rex said, “Just to be clear, you’re talking about disowning your daughter and granddaughter.”

  “It’s not what I’d prefer,” Stuart said mournfully. “All I’ve ever wanted was to take care of my little girl, but I can’t fight her forever, and like I said, I have to plan for the future. There are businesses, jobs, the loans that underwrite, all manner of livelihoods at stake here. I need to leave things with someone who I know can handle them.”

  He shifted; then, so did Ben. Callie got the distinct impression that the first event occasioned the second. When Ben spoke, she was sure of it.

  “You know,” Ben said, reaching toward Callie, “this doesn’t mean all is lost.”

  “Oh?” She knew instantly what was coming next. She knew, too, that Ben thought he was holding a winning hand at last. In many ways, she felt sorry for him. He must feel as if he’d won the lottery, that he’d fallen into the best deal imaginable, but she knew better. For one thing, she knew her father. For another, she knew herself.

  Ben smiled. He really was a nice, if clueless, soul. “If you marry me, you can have it all,” he said through a broad smile.

  Rex straightened and put his foot back as if he meant to shove his chair away from the table. Callie quickly moved her foot to intercept his. Then she shifted Bodie onto her lap and reached out to cover Ben’s hand with her own.

  “Ben,” she said gently. “I’ll be glad to call you brother. But I will never call you husband.”

  “Ohhhh.” Ben fell back in his chair, obviously deflated.

  Rex parked his elbows on the edge of the table and dropped his face into his hands. Callie had the feeling that he was hiding a smile. Stuart, on the other hand, exploded. He leaped up out of his chair, throwing his arms about wildly. Bodie jerked, surprised by the sudden movement.

  “Big words, little girl! But stop for one minute and think what you’re giving up!”

  Callie shook her head, holding Bodie close. “Maybe you need to stop and think, Dad,” she said sternly. “Did you really believe this would work? I gave up everything once before to marry the man of my choice. What makes you think I’d marry the man of your choice now just to keep it?”

  “Didn’t you learn anything married to that church mouse?” Stuart demanded.

  “Yes,” Callie said, holding Bodie close and looking up at her father. “I learned what it means to be loved and appreciated, that faith and living in God’s will is more important than anything else and that I can do anything I must as long as I put my faith in the Lord and seek His will. I also learned,” she went on more softly, “how much pain you must have felt when Mom died. I’m sorry for that, Dad. I’m so sorry. But I won’t marry a man I don’t love just so I won’t be hurt when he dies.” She glanced at Ben, murmuring, “Sorry, Ben. I like you, but...”

  “Aw, that’s okay,” he said good-naturedly. “I never could see it anyhow.”

  All the fight seemed to go out of Stuart. He dropped down into his chair again, muttering, “You’re both stupid as bricks.”

  From the other room, Wes called, “What’d he say?”

  “Nothing he meant,” Rex answered loudly.

  Stuart rested his forearms on the edge of the table and beseeched Callie. “I’ve never known what to do for you. Why can’t you see that I cannot just turn over everything to you? You don’t have a clue how to manage it all. At least Ben has a chance to keep it going after I’m gone.”

  “It’s not my fault I don’t know anything about your businesses,” Callie told him. “Since the day I started dating, you’ve never let me do more than fill in here and there for one of your employees.”

  “It’s a man’s job to protect and care for his womenfolk,” Stuart retorted.

  “I agree with you,” Rex put in. “On the other hand, my sister manages one of the major hotels in Dallas, part of a multimillion-dollar corporation. I don’t doubt that Callie could run the Straight Arrow now if she had to and still keep the house, which is more than I can do.”

  Callie looked at him in surprise. “What makes you say that?”

  “Oh, come on. I’m not saying you could practice law, but don’t try to make me believe you haven’t picked up the planting and harvest schedule, the herd inspection routine, the market figures... I know you can balance the books and repair a baler. Maybe you can’t ride herd or care for the horses, but that’s what the hands are for, and you’d learn. It might be a struggle for a while, but you’d get a handle on it.”

  “I couldn’t do as good a job as you’re doing,” she told him.

  “With the right instruction you could,” he refuted. He looked to Stuart then and said, “What makes you think she can’t manage your business concerns?”

  Stuart started ticking off the businesses on his fingers. “Grocery store, café, gas station, Feed and Grain, silo, majority ownership in the bank, various real estate holdings.”

  “Can Ben manage all that?” Rex demanded.

  “Not yet,” Stuart admitted, “but I’m working with him.”

  “Work with Callie,” Rex proposed. “I assume you’ve got managers.”

  “More or less. Ben handles the Feed and Grain and the silo. I concentrate on the bank and real estate. Others handle the day-to-day operations at the grocery, café and station.”

  “I know nothing about banking or real estate,” Callie admitted. “The retail end of things is easier.”

  “Hiring the right help is the key,” Rex said. “It seems to me that what Callie has to learn to manage are the managers. Maybe Ben could take a bigger hand in things. We could draw up a reasonable, executable business plan and start educating Callie about how to run it. With Ben and others to help her, I have no doubt that she can learn to handle it. That being the case, she’ll never have to depend on any man for her financial security.”

  Stuart stared at Callie as if seeing her for the first time. “Is that something you’d consider?” he asked carefully.

  “Much of it is beyond me right now,” she admitted, “but if you’re willing to teach me, I’m willing to learn.” She looked down at Bodie, adding, “I have my own daughter to consider, after all.”

  “Does that mean you’ll come home?” Stuart asked hopefully.

  “Not as long as Wes needs me,” Callie said, “but eventually, yes. I won’t work for nothing, though, Dad. I’ll gladly fill in wherever I’m needed and learn whatever is necessary, but I expect to be paid like anyone else.”

  He nodded slowly. “That’s fair.”

  Callie sneaked a smile to Rex. Then she looked to Ben. “Is all this okay with you, Ben?”

  He seemed surprised that she’d asked. “Oh, hey. I’ve got a good job, and so long as I keep it, I’m happy.”

  “You don’t mind not being adopted?” Rex asked.

  “Well, it’s not like I’m an orphan,” Ben said. “I didn’t know how I was going to explain it to my folks, to tell you t
he truth.”

  Callie bent her head, hiding her smile.

  “So, we’re good here now?” Rex asked.

  “I’d feel better if she was going home with me,” Stuart groused.

  “Oh, shut up and get out of here,” said Wes good-naturedly, hobbling into the room. “You got what you want and now you’re just interfering with my afternoon nap.”

  Stuart half turned on his chair and hung his arm over the back to glare at Wes, but the glare softened when he saw the condition the other man was in. Wes’s clothes hung on his thin frame and his bald head and sparse eyebrows made him look gaunt. Stuart did him the kindness of not letting on how shocked he was, though.

  Huffing, Stuart grumbled, “Cancer doesn’t give you the right to be rude.”

  “No? Well, then, there’s absolutely no benefit in it.” Wes carried his coffee cup to the counter and set it down next to the coffeepot, saying to Callie, “Suppose I could have another slice of that bread?”

  “Sure.” She got up to go after his plate. She started to hand Bodie to Rex, but then she thought better of it. Walking around the table, she plopped her daughter onto her father’s lap and walked out of the room.

  “Hiii,” Bodie said, looking up at her grandfather.

  Callie heard the surprise in her father’s voice when he asked, “Is she talking?”

  “Sort of,” Rex answered. “We doubt she understands what she’s saying, but she’s starting to imitate sounds. She can say ‘Mama’ now.”

  “Mama,” Bodie repeated obligingly. The she suddenly called at the top of her lungs, “Ma-ma!”

  “Coming,” Callie said, picking up the plate from Wes’s bedside table and heading back toward the kitchen.

  “She knows that word for sure,” Stuart said with a chuckle.

  “Ma-ma,” Bodie said again the instant Callie entered the room.

  “Yes, she does know what she’s saying,” Stuart exclaimed, bouncing her on his knee.

  “She’s a smart one, that’s for sure,” Rex said proudly.

  Suddenly Bodie twisted and threw herself backward in an effort to reach him. Stuart squawked and latched on to her. At the same time, Rex caught her.

  “Hey, kiddo. You’re going to crack your skull with that trick one of these days.”

  “Callie used to do that,” Stuart revealed, letting go of her. “Scared me to death.”

  “I survived, Dad,” Callie said, coming to stand at his shoulder. “She will, too.”

  Stuart patted Callie’s back. “Guess you’re right,” he said.

  It was the sweetest moment she’d had with her father in a very long time. She looked to Wes, who kept his distance, leaning against the counter by the coffeepot, and smiled.

  “Believe I’ll go back to bed,” Wes said on a sigh.

  “Let me help you,” Callie offered, leaving her father’s side to offer Wes her arm. “I’ll bring your snack after you’re settled. We’ve got to fatten you up.”

  “If anyone can, you can, Callie girl,” Wes told her as she walked him back toward his room. “Stu, good to see you.”

  “Take care of yourself, Wes,” Stuart said.

  “That’s what I got her for,” Wes returned, winking at Callie.

  Behind her, she heard Rex say, “Tell you what, Stuart, you figure out what day and time works best for you, and the four of us—me, you, Callie and Ben—will sit down and get started on that business plan.”

  “Sounds good,” Stuart said. “Might be best if we work here, though. I can see that Wes doesn’t need to be on his own too long.”

  “I appreciate that,” Rex told him.

  “Well,” Stuart rumbled, “man’s a friend of mine.”

  “He says the same of you,” Rex said.

  Callie pressed her cheek to Wes’s, whispering, “Thank you.”

  He patted her hand and pointed a finger skyward. Nodding, Callie closed her eyes and repeated the sentiment.

  Thank You. Thank You. Thank You. Thank You.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “Go start the car, Ben, and cool it off, why don’t you?” Stuart directed, handing over the keys. Nodding, Ben hurried off to do as told.

  Rex had learned over the last week and more that Ben Dolent—while socially inept, and somewhat lacking in what might be termed common sense—was book smart and well organized, with a good head for numbers. What he lacked in looks and personality, he made up for with an utter lack of ill intent. Rex could see why Stuart had decided he would do as a son-in-law, if one overlooked the fact that he was completely unsuited to a strong, bright, intelligent, beautiful woman like Callie. Pairing the two of them would be like pairing a donkey and a thoroughbred.

  Stuart turned to Rex and offered his hand. “I think we’ve made good headway.”

  Rex shook hands with the older man. “I agree.”

  “You know, we’ve never discussed payment for your services,” Stuart said, glancing around the porch.

  “Oh, you don’t owe me anything.” Rex looked down at his boots, his thumbs hooked in the waistband of his jeans. “I’m an attorney by trade, not a business planner. Besides, having Callie here is payment enough.”

  “You won’t have her here for long,” Stuart remarked gleefully.

  Rex couldn’t be happy about that. He was prepared to argue that even with Meredith arriving soon, they still needed Callie at Straight Arrow Ranch, but with Ann not far behind, that wouldn’t buy him much time. He’d been wondering lately what he’d done.

  Suddenly, thanks to him and his bright ideas, Callie Crowsen Deviner was a bona fide heiress, at least by War Bonnet standards. With this newfound peace between her and her father, she didn’t need a husband, but that wouldn’t keep the single men around town from going after her. Surely even Stuart had to realize this fact.

  “You do know that half the county is going to be lining up to entice Callie away from you, don’t you?”

  Stuart made a face. “A father’s nightmare,” he grumbled. “I’ve known it since she was fourteen years old.” He scraped Rex with a measuring look, adding, “Frankly, I figured you’d be in the hunt.”

  “Oh, I’ll be at the head of the line,” Rex admitted blithely, expecting thunder or perhaps even a fist aimed in his direction. He’d almost welcome either, anything to upset the trajectory they seemed to be on.

  To his surprise, Stuart huffed and stepped down off the porch, saying, “Well, I guess she could do worse. You at least know she’ll be in complete control of her own inheritance.”

  That sounded suspiciously like a blessing to Rex, who quipped, “I’ll have to charge for prenup agreements. Unless they’re my own.”

  Stuart just snorted and walked off into the night, leaving Rex to wonder in astonishment if the lady would be as amenable to his suit as her father seemed to be. As if summoned by thoughts of her, she pushed through the screen door at his back and stepped out onto the porch with him.

  “Oh, it’s beautiful out here.”

  “If you don’t mind hot and sticky,” Rex said, putting his back to the nearest post.

  Callie smiled, wandering closer. “It’s so peaceful, though, and the night sky is amazing.”

  Rex canted his head to look up through the tree branches overhead. “It really is. You forget in the city just how many stars the night sky holds. The ambient light hides them.”

  “That’s sad.”

  “It is. Neon dazzles, but it just isn’t the same.”

  She turned that lovely green gaze on him then. “I hope that means you’re really going to stay.”

  He couldn’t stop his frown. “I keep telling you that I am.” Why wouldn’t she believe him?

  She nodded and turned away, remarking, “You know what this porch needs? A good old-fashioned swing.�
��

  “We used to have one,” Rex told her. “It broke after Mom died, and Dad never replaced it.” An idea struck him, a way to have her to himself for a while. “I think it’s time we do that. I have to drive into Ardmore to see a car dealer. Why don’t you come with me and help me pick out a porch swing?”

  She turned, her own frown in place. “What about Wes?”

  “He’s seemed stronger lately, don’t you think? I’ll get Mrs. Lightner to sit with him and Bodie for a few hours.”

  “Him and Bodie?”

  “Yeah,” Rex said casually. “I have to take my car. It only has two seats.”

  “Oh. Uh. But how will you get the swing home?”

  “Not a problem,” he said with a wave of his hand. “Trust me. Got that part all figured out. I just...” He shrugged. “Well, I’ve never bought a porch swing. Mom’s had cushions and this little wicker table next to it for drinks and things. I thought Dad might like to sit out here sometimes.” He let that hang in the air for a moment or two. “I could just use some help choosing it all.”

  She spread her hands. “After everything you’ve done for me,” she began.

  “Everything I’ve done for you?”

  “Hiring me when no one else would, backing down my father at every turn,” she went on, “even at great expense to yourself. Finding a way to finally make peace between Dad and me. These weeks here at the ranch have been...” She shook her head as if the words escaped her. “Thank you. Especially for your confidence in me and what you said to my dad when he brought up that adoption nonsense.”

  “He wasn’t serious about that,” Rex said with a wrinkle of his nose. “It was just his way of getting his foot in the door.” He tried not to be too happy about her praise, and then she went and ruined it for him entirely.

  “But you—and Wes—you saw what neither my dad nor I did. You’ve ironed out a lifelong problem, and I know it’s going to be better for us from here on out. I’m actually excited about working with him. I can’t thank you enough.”

  Rex shook his head, wishing he didn’t feel as if he’d lost her already. “I’d say you’re welcome, but everything I’ve done has been self-serving, Callie. We couldn’t have made it without you here. I hope you know that.”