by Linda Ford
“Tell me what you did while you were living in town with your mother,” she said after they’d discussed the view from where they sat. “Who did you spend time with? I’m assuming you didn’t spend it all with your mother.”
“No, she wouldn’t allow it. Said I should be with people my own age.”
Josie darted a look at him out of the corner of her eyes. “Did that include young women your own age?”
He tucked a smile into her heart at the way she pretended to be only casually interested. “There was a mix of both ladies and gents.”
“Hmm.”
He knew what she wanted to know, but he’d make her ask.
“No special young woman?”
He grinned, pleased she cared. “I told you about Dianne. She wanted to settle down. She constantly talked about having a big house. She begged me to go into partnership with her brother. I didn’t much care for that. Her brother was overbearing. Didn’t care who he hurt in making a dollar.”
He’d told Josie much of this already but found he wanted to give her more details.
“When her brother found another partner, Dianne switched loyalties really fast. Said the new guy—Denton—was far more ambitious than I was. More what she wanted in a man. My mother was dying, so I couldn’t leave town. But I sure did my best to avoid Dianne. She tracked me down once several months later and said she’d made a mistake. Denton wasn’t what she hoped for. She begged me to take her back. But she’d already made it clear that I wasn’t what she wanted either, and I told her so. I said I hadn’t changed, and I didn’t expect she had. I made sure to avoid her after that even if I had to be rude.”
“That must have been painful.”
“It was at the time.” He let the words hang there, wanting her to ask more. Wanting her to care.
Josie kept her attention on the trunk of a nearby tree. Of course, he’d had lady friends. Likely lots of them, but she didn’t want to hear about them. And to think that a young woman had broken his heart…well, maybe it helped explain why he didn’t want to settle down.
“At the time?” She wondered what he meant.
“It always hurts to be rejected, but it didn’t take long for me to realize her feelings were fickle, and I was fortunate to discover it. I realize now it was my pride that was hurt more than my heart.”
The way he looked at her made her eyes sting. Was he offering her something? His heart?
She turned back to the tree and kept her gaze glued to it.
“What about you?” he asked. “How many young men have broken their hearts over you?”
“None.”
“No beaus? I find that hard to believe.”
He wouldn’t if he knew how she deflected any male attention. “Maybe once, if you count Percy Condor. I was persuaded to go with him to a social event. He called on me a few times after that.”
“What happened?”
“Nothing. I just couldn’t imagine him in my life.”
“That’s right. Josie said you think love is too great a risk.” He crossed his arms and for a moment seemed dismayed by her attitude then he gave her hard study. “What is it you fear?”
The truth. She feared people learning the truth. But she could not say that. She held his gaze without faltering as she answered. “The only thing I fear is being without a home.”
Their gazes locked, went on and on. He would never understand what her childhood was like, and she would never tell him.
“Someday,” he murmured. “You’ll tell me why.”
She scrambled to her feet. “It’s time for me to go.”
He fell in at her side, lengthening his stride as she rushed homeward. Realizing she could not outdistance him, she forced herself to slow down and act as if nothing was wrong.
She ached to tell him. But it was too great a risk.
The next few days passed quickly. She finished the shirt. Walker declared it was the nicest shirt he’d ever seen, and he went with her to display both the shirt and her finished dress in the store. He had even helped her design a poster advertising her sewing business and made certain she mentioned that each cowboy shirt would be different.
Pa was feeling well enough that he rode his horse and made calls on those who needed his attention.
Ma sang as she worked, happy to see Pa doing better.
Even Stella was getting stronger.
Josie was grateful for all the improvements, but they made her feel less and less needed. She consoled herself with the hope of soon having her own source of income and her own place to live.
Josie had promised herself she would avoid spending time with Walker. Being with him threatened the walls around her heart, and that frightened her as much as meeting a gunman with his gun aimed at her chest. But she found it was easier to plan to avoid him than to actually do it.
Once the sewing projects were done, they walked along the river in the evening. She allowed herself several reasons for sharing the evening hours with him.
They needed to review the rodeo. They never did.
She wanted to pray with him for good weather. That only took two minutes of the hour or two of time together.
She needed his advice on designing shirts.
Even she didn’t believe that one.
Saturday finally arrived. The day of the rodeo. They went to the corrals early in the morning. Animals milled about, mooing and neighing. Mickey gave instructions to a dozen cowboys on horseback.
“They’re in charge of bringing out the animals as they’re needed,” Walker said.
Two hours before time to start, the place was crowded with wagons and horses. People packed the benches and the grassy area. Sylvie’s coffee sold as fast as she could make it.
Mickey had offered—maybe even begged—to be the announcer and entered the corral with a megaphone. He soon had everyone’s attention.
“Let’s find a place to sit,” Walker said.
Josie had seen her family on the far side of the corrals, but Walker didn’t make any attempt to reach them. They found a spot where they could sit side by side if they crowded close together. She told herself it was okay because they didn’t have a choice. But she secretly rejoiced at it.
The first event was team roping, and Josie watched in admiration at the skill of these cowboys. Steer wrestling followed. She marveled at the brute force needed for a man to throw a big steer to the ground. She knew it couldn’t be as easy as they made it look.
The wild horse riding was next.
She shuddered at the way the men were tossed about in the saddle. Most of them ended up in the dirt, but each got up and waved his hat to the crowd and was cheered for his effort.
Mickey introduced Roper, and Josie had to agree that the young man was very skilled. He twirled the rope over his head and close to the ground. He made a huge loop parallel to his body and skipped through it. He swung two loops at once, and if that wasn’t hard enough, he jumped in and out of the two loops going at the same time.
“I’m impressed,” she whispered to Walker.
“Me too,” he whispered back, his breath warm of her cheek.
She sighed with contentment. She had nothing to do but sit back and enjoy the day. And the pressure of Walker’s arm against hers.
“I think you’ll like the wild cow milking,” he said.
He was right.
She laughed and cheered at the scramble of cowboys and cows. By the time one team had successfully gotten a few squirts of milk into the pail, she was wiping her eyes.
The cows were chased from the corral. Mickey announced the horse races would begin. The crowd moved toward the roadway where the race was to start.
Walker pulled Josie to her feet.
There was a commotion behind them. Someone screamed. Walker and Josie turned to see what the cause was. Before she could make it out, Walker raced away, pushing through those around them.
Curious, Josie went to the fence where she could see. She gasped. Her heart thudded against
her ribs. Her breath stopped halfway down and would go no further. A steer raced toward the crowd, its eyes wide with fright, spittle flying from its mouth. A young family—a mother and two children—were directly in its path. Men waved their arms at the animal, but it charged onward. Why didn’t the mother get up and drag her children to safety? But she didn’t move.
And then Josie saw Walker. And everything slowed down. He ran directly toward the animal, jumping over objects in his path. She watched his feet clear a basket. Dust billowed up when his boots hit the ground. His feet lifted again. Both feet were off the ground at the same time as he rushed onward, closing the distance in strides that ate up the air. She saw his legs pump. The muscles in them flexed with the effort.
He reached the steer and grabbed for the horns. Long white horns with sharp tips. Their span was almost more than a man could reach. He caught the nearest horn, but the animal lowered his head and tipped his spear-like horns toward Walker. The animal’s intent was plain to see. He meant to gore Walker.
Walker stayed upright. The strain showing in the way the fabric of his shirt stretched across his back. Again, he reached for the far horn. The steer swung his head. Walker’s feet went one way as he went another. Somehow, he managed to keep his balance.
The steer continued to try and snag Walker with its horn.
Josie couldn’t bear to watch as she imagined him falling under those pounding hooves and being trampled, his insides ripped open by those horns. But she couldn’t look away. Silently she breathed a prayer. God help him.
One of Walker’s hands touched the ground, and he righted himself. His feet fought for traction. He stretched, his arms wide. He managed to get hold of both horns and hung on as the steer lifted its head. Walker’s feet barely remained on the ground. He threw himself away from the animal, using his weight to try and twist the animal’s head and force it to stop. Instead, he was dragged, his heels digging uselessly into the grass.
Bits of dirt flew from his boots.
Someone had snatched the woman and children to safety.
Now Walker was the one in danger as the animal roared and fought Walker’s grasp.
Help him, Josie tried to call, but her voice refused to work. Why wasn’t someone rushing in to help?
The steer swung his head. Walker dug in his heels and wrenched the horns. The steer changed direction. Walker pulled again, pushing his weight into the turn. He kept twisting. The steer went down, Walker clinging to the massive horns. Half a dozen cowboys rushed in, roped the animal, and took it back to the pen with the others.
Walker lay on the ground, not moving.
Josie rushed forward but was blocked by dozens of others. She couldn’t see him. She couldn’t get to him.
She wouldn’t cry.
A cheer went up. The crowed parted, and Walker limped toward her.
She grabbed the rail of the fence for support as her legs turned to water.
He slapped his hat against his leg, raising a puff of dust. His clothes were soiled. But he was whole.
She squinted to clear her vision and studied him. But she saw no sign of blood. The fact did not reassure her. He could have internal injuries.
He reached her side. “Shall we go see the races? Maybe Flora will win.”
She couldn’t move. Couldn’t speak. Wasn’t sure she even breathed.
He leaned closer, squinting. “Are you okay?”
“Okay?” The word squeezed past her clenched teeth. “I saw you almost killed. I’m not okay.”
“I’m fine.” He stayed close, his gaze watchful. “You aren’t going to collapse, are you?”
“That was too close for comfort.” If there hadn’t been a crowd around them, any number of which would gladly report a lapse in proper conduct to her parents or anyone else who cared to listen, Josie would have wrapped her arms about Walker and held on to him until she stopped shaking. Instead, she mustered every bit of strength she could and straightened.
“Somebody had to stop the critter before someone got hurt.” Walker made it sound like it was the most reasonable thing in the world to tackle a raging animal who was many times heavier than he.
In Josie’s mind it was anything but normal.
A man took Walker’s hand and shook it vigorously. “You saved my wife and children. Thank you.”
Several others came up to him and shook his hand or slapped him on the back. Some called him brave. Some called him a hero.
Josie couldn’t see it that way.
Walker pulled her to his side, and they made their way to the road where the contestants were lining up for the horse race.
By the time they found a place to watch, Josie had stopped shaking and began to hear what the others were saying. Slowly her fear changed to admiration for what Walker had done. He’d seen the danger and sprang into action before anyone else could think what to do. He’d taken a risk, but through it all, she had to admit he seemed to know what he was doing.
She knew an incredible sense of pride.
She leaned close to whisper, “That was the bravest thing I ever saw.”
He looked surprised and then pleased. “I just did what needed to be done.”
She smiled up at him, letting him know he had impressed her.
Chapter 13
She thought he was brave! Walker held the thought to him. He could have said it wasn’t bravery. He simply knew what needed to be done and how to do it. Not once had he considered there to be any risk to himself. But there wasn’t a chance to tell her as they watched the horse racing, cheering for Flora, who came in second to a spunky young cowboy.
The rodeo was over, but no one seemed anxious to end the day. Groups gathered round and visited as they shared the lunches they’d brought.
Sylvie spied Walker and Josie and hustled over with a tin full of money. “Did pretty good if I do say so myself.”
Norm jogged over with another tin heavy with coins. He’d been in charge of taking admission. “I would say the day was successful in every way.” He handed the money to Walker.
“What are your plans for the evening?” Sylvie asked.
“We have to take the money home,” Josie said.
The elder Kinsleys had already left, and Josie’s sisters visited with friends.
Sylvie got a gleam in her eyes. “I think you two deserve a treat for all your hard work. Tell you what. I’ll prepare a picnic lunch for you to share.”
Mickey had joined the conversation. “Good idea. I’ll lend you a buggy. You two go enjoy having done such a good job.”
Walker was about to protest that everyone had had a part in the event when Josie said, “I don’t know. I really should get home.”
At that, Walker changed his mind about refusing the offer. “We accept.” He turned to Josie. “You deserve a little enjoyment.”
She raised her eyebrows. “I just had an afternoon of enjoyment.”
“Let’s make the day complete then. And, at the same time, please Miss Sylvie and Mickey.”
“You do know how to convince a girl.” She turned to the others. “Very well. We accept your offer and thank you.”
They made their way back to the manse. The journey took longer than usual as people wanted to talk to them, to thank them for the rodeo. Many thanked Walker for stopping the steer.
At the house, Josie put both cans of money in the cupboard with the square one holding the entrance money. “We’ll count it later,” she said. “Ma, Pa, Sylvie has prepared a picnic for us, and Mickey has lent us a buggy. We’ll go for a drive if that’s okay with you?”
Both parents waved them away. “Enjoy the rest of day.”
Walker and Josie sauntered back to Main Street and picked up the picnic basket from Sylvie then made their way to the livery barn where Mickey had a horse and buggy ready to go.
“I feel like royalty at the way they treat us,” Josie said as they drove away from town.
Walker stopped the buggy and jumped down. He plucked some spindly yellow flow
ers and twisted them together then climbed back to the wagon. “Lean over,” he said.
“Why?”
“Just do it.” He waited to see if she trusted him enough to obey without knowing why. His heart expanded three times when she did. He wrapped the rope of flowers around her head.
“I hereby crown you queen for the day.”
She grinned. “What an honor.” He was about to drive on when she said, “Stop.” She climbed down and picked some long blades of grass and wove a bit of rope then stuck in three flowers. She got back up.
“Lean over.” Their eyes locked together. Did she mean to ask him to trust her? He bent his head. She fiddled with his hat. “There. You are the conquering hero.”
He lifted his hat from his head to see that she had wrapped the green and yellow rope around the brim. He replaced his hat and grinned at her as they drove onward.
“Where shall we go?” He didn’t know the country well enough to choose a spot.
“There’s a nice little hill a mile down the road.”
“Then we’ll go there.” A few minutes later they reached the place she meant, and he helped her down. He half considered pulling her into his arms, but she stepped aside and pointed. “We can sit there to eat.”
He lifted out the picnic basket and saw that Mickey had put in a blanket. He spread it for them to sit on.
As they munched on thick roast beef sandwiches, they went over the events of the afternoon.
“I was scared”—she looked down—“when I thought you were hurt.”
He caught her chin and lifted her head, waited for her to meet his eyes. “I didn’t mean to frighten you.”
Her gaze dipped deep into his thoughts. He wanted nothing more than to assure her he would never hurt her. He lowered his head and kissed her gently even though he yearned to deepen the kiss, hold her to his heart, promise her…
She sat back, her head turned down.
“I’m not going to say I’m sorry,” he said, brushing the back of his hand across her cheek. “Because I’m not. I’ve found something here, with your family…with you…that I’ve been looking for since the ranch sold.”
