“So am I,” Brittany said softly. She would never have been able to deal with the dangers he would face as a bull rider. It was just too scary in her opinion. She couldn’t live with not knowing if he would survive the next ride. She knew some women dealt with that type of thing on a daily basis, but she just couldn’t be one of them.
Matt frowned at the look on Brittany’s face. After knowing her for less than twenty-four hours, he knew that she would never be all right with him returning to bull riding, and that meant he had to not even think about it. No more bull riding for the rest of his life. “Thanks for caring,” he said softly, wishing it were otherwise. He wanted her to care, of course, but he didn’t want to stop. There was no choice, though. Olivia was too important to keep going.
After they’d finished lunch, Olivia wanted to walk around the vendor tables and see what was there. Matt didn’t, but he was willing to for Olivia.
Brittany saw the look on his face. “Why don’t you go watch the rodeo, and Olivia and I will walk around looking at what people are selling? We’ll have fun, won’t we?”
Olivia nodded emphatically. “I like Brittany.”
Matt pulled out his wallet and handed Brittany a wad of twenty-dollar bills. “If she needs anything, feel free to get it.”
Brittany took the cash. “We’ll spend it, won’t we, Olivia?”
Olivia grinned. “I like spending money!”
Matt simply laughed and walked back toward the box. He called over his shoulder. “Bring her back to me before you have your next shift at the table.”
Brittany and Olivia held hands as they walked from table to table in the heat. The Texas sun was pounding down on them, and Brittany wished for some cold water. “Let’s go to my table,” Brittany said. “We have water bottles, and I’ll get us each one.”
“Yes!” Olivia was just as hot as she was, apparently.
Emily had just taken over her turn at the table, and she happily handed Olivia and Brittany bottles of water. “What are you two up to?”
“We’re shopping. We like to shop!” Olivia said.
Emily smiled. “I wish I could shop with you.”
Stephanie was still at the table, about to leave. “Would it be okay if I shopped with you?”
Brittany looked at Olivia. “What do you think? Should we let my sister shop with us? Her name is Stephanie.”
Olivia nodded regally. “You can shop with us.”
The three of them set out going from table to table. Olivia spotted a small table with handmade goods. There was an older woman sitting at the table.
She smiled at Olivia. “Well, hello. Do you like Barbies?”
Olivia nodded emphatically. “Of course I do!”
“I have some clothes here that I made for Barbie. Do you want to see them?”
“Yes!”
The woman held up outfits for Barbie and matching clothes for a girl. “I have the same for Cabbage Patch Kids.”
Olivia frowned. “What’s a Cabbage Patch Kid?”
Brittany watched the little girl, knowing they were going to walk away with more stuff than Matt would have liked, but she didn’t care. Watching Olivia shop was fun for her. “It’s a special kind of doll. Do you have any here?” Brittany asked.
The woman pulled two Cabbage Patch Kids, new in box, out from under the counter. “I have two. Do you like them?”
Olivia touched first one and then the other. “I like this one. She looks like me.” The girl had dark curls and a Hispanic look to her.
“How much?” Brittany asked.
The woman named a price that sounded like it would have been the same as the store. “We’ll take the one that looks like Olivia and matching pajamas. Which pajamas do you like Olivia?”
“I like the ones with the horsey.”
“What size are the ones with the horse?” Brittany asked. She flipped out the tag on Olivia’s shirt, so she could be certain she was buying the right size.
“They’re a six.”
Brittany frowned. “She’s wearing a size five, but that means six will be next, and it shouldn’t be too horribly big. Yes, we’ll take the horse pajamas for girl and doll, and then we probably need the dress that matches Barbie, too.”
“I have one of those in a six as well. Does that work?” the woman asked.
“Perfect.” Brittany paid with the money Matt had given her, and she accepted the purchases in a bag. “There, now what should we look at?”
Stephanie wandered along with them, adding very little to the conversation but obviously happy to not be alone.
Olivia went to a little tent that had boxes that had been carved from wood.
“Do you see any you like?” Brittany asked. She would have hesitated if it had been her money, but she really had no trouble buying stuff with Matt’s money.
Olivia chose a unicorn-shaped box, and the proprietor showed them how to unlock it with a special piece of wood and how the box lid slid off. “This one is perfect.”
Brittany purchased the box, and the man carefully wrapped it for them. “Where to next?”
As they walked through the tables, Olivia became happier. “This is just like shopping with my mama!” she finally said as they finished.
Stephanie looked sad at her words, but Brittany crouched down. “Did you like shopping with your mama?”
“It was our very favorite thing, but it wasn’t as much fun when Daddy was there. He didn’t let us buy as many fun things.”
Brittany laughed, hugging the girl close. “Okay, I have to sit at the table again in a few minutes. Let’s get you back to your uncle Matt.”
“I want to stay with you!” Olivia said. Her brown eyes pled with Brittany to let her stay.
“I need to pay attention to the customers who want to buy CDs . . .” Brittany wished she could watch the girl and sell, but she didn’t know how it could work.
Stephanie nodded. “I’ll sit there, too, and you can help us both.”
Olivia jumped up and down, clapping her hands. “Thank you!”
“Let’s go tell your uncle what we’re doing,” Brittany said as she headed toward the arena where the rodeo was taking place. They wound their way through the crowd until they found Matt, sitting alone in his box. “Hey.” Brittany sat next to him for a minute. “Olivia wants to stay with me, so Stephanie is going to work with me.”
Matt looked at the little girl. “Are you sure? Brittany is going to have to pay attention to the people who want to talk to her.”
“I’m sure. I like Brittany and Stephanie.”
“All right. That sounds really good to me.” Matt watched as Olivia left with the two sisters, knowing deep inside that Brittany was what the little girl needed. He’d wait the two weeks she’d asked for before officially asking her to marry him, but he was already planning the grandest proposal he could think of. He and Olivia needed her.
Olivia sat in a chair between Brittany and Stephanie, and Brittany took the lead, talking to anyone who came to the table.
“Are you the lead singer, the one who writes lyrics, or the one who plays all the instruments?” a young girl asked her.
“I am the one who plays all the instruments, and my sister Stephanie there is the one who writes the lyrics.” Brittany waved her hand to indicate her sister.
“You’re all just amazing,” the girl said, buying three CDs. “And they’re autographed, right?”
“They are,” Brittany told her, handing her the change from her purchase. “I appreciate you listening to our music.”
“Well, I think you’re the next big act, and I’m just glad I got to see you perform before anyone else did.”
“I hope you’re right. We’re playing at Rebel’s Saloon a week from Saturday. I hope you can make it there, too.”
“I’ll tell all my friends!” The girl happily rushed away, hugging the CDs to her chest.
Olivia smiled. “She thinks you’re special cuz you’re famous, but I know you’re special, cuz you’re my
friend.”
Brittany laughed. “I am your friend. I think you’re an amazing little girl.”
“You’re not just being nice to me because you like Uncle Matt?”
“I’m not at all. I do like your uncle Matt, but I like you, too.” Brittany couldn’t help but wonder if Matt had brought home a girl who had only pretended to like Olivia.
Olivia nodded. “I’m glad, because we need to be friends.”
“Yes, we do.”
Stephanie watched the whole thing with a surprised look on her face. “I’m glad you two are friends already.”
Olivia looked at Stephanie. “You’re my friend, too. But I think Brittany is my best friend, and you’re just a regular friend. Sorry, but there’s only room for one best friend.”
Stephanie laughed. “There sure is, and Brittany is a wonderful best friend.”
“I chose well.” Olivia watched as more people came up and her new best friend sold several more CDs.
Finally, their hour was up, and Brittany looked over at Stephanie. “Thank you for helping us.”
“No problem. I enjoyed myself.”
“But now you have to sit here for two hours in a row,” Brittany said. She hated doing that to her sister.
“But I’ve had a wonderful time for the past two hours. So I’m glad.”
Olivia just smiled as she got to her feet. “Let’s shop more!” Brittany waved at her sister as the little girl dragged her off.
Four
By the end of the day, Brittany was exhausted but in a good way. She spent almost all of her time with Olivia, and the two had become fast friends.
“Why don’t I take my two favorite girls out for supper tonight?” Matt asked as Brittany stood with her sisters at the table.
Brittany nodded. No matter how tired she was, she wanted to spend more time with Matt and little Olivia. “I’d like that a lot. Where should we go?”
Olivia clapped her hands together in front of her chest. “McDonalds!”
Brittany had to laugh at the girl’s response. She obviously knew what she liked and knew it well.
Matt shook his head. “If we’re doing fast food burgers, we’re doing Whataburger, but I was thinking of something a little nicer than fast food.”
Olivia sighed. “I thought it was a good idea.”
Brittany squatted down until she was eye level with Olivia. “It was a good idea for a different day. Tonight, Uncle Matt wants to eat somewhere where people will bring our food to us. Right, Uncle Matt?”
“Right!” He had no idea where she was thinking of going, but he’d agree, because it seemed important at the moment. He was glad she was so good at communicating with Olivia.
“I guess that’s okay,” Olivia said. She took Brittany’s hand, then looked at Stephanie and Emily. “I’m taking your sister.”
Emily grinned, leaning on the table and looking at Olivia. “I see that. Don’t keep her out too late. We have to be back here tomorrow.”
“I’ll make sure Uncle Matt has her home at a decent hour.”
Stephanie and Emily exchanged a glance and burst out laughing together. “We would appreciate that,” Stephanie said.
Olivia looked at her uncle. “Didn’t you hear? We have to have Brittany home at a decent hour. Let’s go!” She made a shooing motion, as if hurrying him on, and Matt shook his head. What had happened to the little girl who hid in her room all day and didn’t talk to him? This little girl was bossy!
Matt shook his head. In one day, the girl had transformed from staying in her room all the time and looking sad to bossing him around. He wasn’t sure how he felt about it yet, but he had a feeling he didn’t like it a whole lot. He reached for Olivia’s free hand and walked toward his truck.
He used the remote for his vehicle to start the truck, wanting it to cool at least a little before he got there. The Texas sun combined with the greenhouse effect was absolutely brutal.
As they walked, Brittany kept up a steady stream of conversation with Olivia, asking questions he never would have thought to ask a girl so young. “So if you could be any animal in the whole world, what animal would you be?”
Olivia scrunched up her face for a moment. “A kitty. Then I could touch people if I wanted, but if I wanted to be alone, I could climb a tree and get away.”
Brittany laughed. “Good answer.” She was a little surprised at how well-thought out the girl’s answer was.
“What about you?” Olivia asked.
“I think I’d want to be a penguin, so I could walk like this!” Brittany said, putting her feet together and waddling strangely.
Olivia giggled. “We could be penguin friends.” She started waddling as well, taking her hand from Matt’s so she could participate in the strange walk more fully.
Matt looked back and forth between the two of them, realizing they belonged together. There was some sort of magic that Brittany had with Olivia that surprised him. She really was the perfect person to be his wife . . . and a new mother for Olivia. He wanted to ask her again right away, but he’d give her the two weeks she’d asked for. He had to.
When they got to the truck, Brittany picked up Olivia and put her in the backseat, carefully fastening her into her car seat. “All comfy?” she asked.
Olivia nodded. “You did it just right!”
Matt realized he’d never gotten approval from Olivia, and she was praising Brittany right and left. He couldn’t help but wonder why. Not that he needed approval from a small child, but it would be nice if she at least acknowledged the things he did for her.
He drove to a chain restaurant that he knew Olivia liked but wasn’t a place where they’d have to stand in line for their food. Olivia clung to Brittany’s hand as if she had known her for years, ignoring Matt’s offer of a hand.
When they were seated, Olivia wanted a booster seat to sit beside Brittany. He watched it all, absolutely astonished the little girl liked Brittany so much. Once they were all seated, Brittany pointed to the pictures on the kids’ menu that was on the table in front of Olivia. “What are you hungry for?”
“I think I want mini corn dogs,” Olivia said. “And I think I need something really cold to drink.”
“Like lemonade or ice water?” Matt asked. He knew her parents had never given her soft drinks, so he didn’t even offer one, wanting to obey their wishes.
Olivia shook her head, glaring at her uncle.
Brittany smiled. “You need a shake, don’t you?” She wasn’t sure how Matt didn’t understand that a shake was really cold, while lemonade and water were merely cold.
“Yes!” Olivia smiled at Brittany, taking the crayons that were offered. “I’m going to color the corn dog on the menu.”
“Good idea,” Brittany said, giving her attention to her own menu.
Matt wasn’t sure if he should be amused, thrilled, or offended, so he decided on amusement. Why be upset when he could laugh?
After they’d all given their orders, Olivia looked at Brittany. “I think you should marry Uncle Matt and live with us.”
Brittany smiled. “I think I need to get to know him just a little bit better first. I mean, I want to live with you, but what if he has yucky habits?”
Olivia nodded seriously. “That’s really smart of you to see first. I’m not sure he should get to live with you.”
Brittany looked over at Matt with a grin, noticing the look of surprise on his face. “I think Olivia and I are friends.”
“I can see that.” He shook his head. The entire time Olivia had lived with him, he’d worked to get her to be friendly with him. And Brittany was her best buddy the first day. How had she done it? “You’ll have to teach me your tricks.”
“No tricks. We just like the same things, because we’re both girls.”
“I think I can understand that.”
Brittany picked up her phone and texted Matt, not sure how else to handle things in front of Olivia. I have a feeling she was closer to her mother, and because I’m a girl,
I make her feel safer.
Matt read his text and nodded. It really did make sense. Thanks for the explanation. I feel like a total failure as an uncle.
Don’t. I’ll help you, and we’ll make it all work.
Matt nodded. Thank you.
After their short text conversation, Brittany looked over at Olivia. “So what is your favorite thing to do with your Barbies?”
“I like to have them ride horses, and I like to play with the camper.” Olivia looked excited to talk about her favorite thing in the world.
“Wow. The camper is amazing, isn’t it? Do you know how to ride a horse?”
Olivia shook her head slowly. “My daddy always said he was going to teach me, but he never had time.”
Brittany glanced at Matt, who was listening to every word, before she leaned close to Olivia and said in a loud whisper for Matt to hear, “I think Uncle Matt could teach you to ride.”
Olivia’s eyes grew wide, and she looked at Matt. “You could?”
Matt nodded. “I’ve been riding since I was younger than you. I’d be happy to teach you whenever you want.”
The little girl smiled. “Tomorrow!”
Matt grinned. “Tomorrow is a rodeo day.”
“Do I get to go and be with Brittany again?”
Matt’s eyes locked with Brittany’s. “I think that’s up to your new friend. She has work to do at the rodeo, and I don’t know if you make it harder or not.”
Brittany grinned. “She doesn’t make it harder at all. I had a great day with her. And we sold lots of CDs, didn’t we, Olivia? You have to remember that when I have my time at the table, you either need to sit quietly next to me, or you need to sit with your uncle.”
Olivia nodded, a big smile on her face. “I can do that.”
Looking at Matt, Brittany said, “I think you should bring her. We need some more girl time.”
He nodded. “All right. I think tomorrow is a rodeo day for Olivia as well.”
“How many more rodeo days?” Olivia asked.
“Just two. Saturday and Sunday. Then when Monday comes, it’s back to normal.”
“Will we still get to see Brittany?”
“Absolutely, as long as she’s not sick of us!”
The Musical Cowgirl (Bear Creek Rodeo) Page 3
