Cowboy Bold

by Carolyn Brown

“Wow!” Nelson exclaimed. “You ought to be an artist when you grow up.”

  “Anybody can draw,” Kirk grumbled.

  Skip shot a look his way that made him clamp his mouth shut and then said, “But not everyone can do it as well as Benjy. That takes understanding the subject.”

  “I’m going to give this to my mama.” Alice held it close to her chest.

  “Pizza!” Justin said. “Who’s ready for a pizza supper? Afterward we can all go out to the corral and learn how to sling a lasso.”

  “Do we get a peek at the donkey?” Retta asked Levi.

  “Maybe a peek but he’s not familiar enough with things to pet him. Give him a few more days.”

  Retta had learned to handle a rope when she was a teenager and she’d seen her dad lasso a rangy old cow from the back of a horse many times. She’d never been that good, but Levi, Cade, and Justin were excellent. Cade didn’t miss a single time when he threw it at a fence post.

  “He and Justin team roped when they were in high school.” Skip walked up beside her and leaned his elbows on the top rail of the fence. “Didn’t know for a while if he was going to go pro-rodeo or if his love of football would win out. He couldn’t do both justice and in the end he chose football.”

  “Was Justin disappointed?” she asked.

  “Nope, Levi stepped up and helped him with the team ropin’ and they both rode saddle broncs at the rodeo. Don’t think his mama liked it none too good. I know Mavis didn’t. She lived in fear that Levi would get hurt and he did a few times, but it toughened him up,” Skip answered. “What about you? I hear you played a little football. Did you ever do much with a rope?”

  “Little bit. But nothing like those guys are doing.” She put a boot on the bottom rail and leaned forward like Skip. Cade was sure enough a fine specimen out there with a rope in his hands. For a few moments she was downright jealous of that damned fence post and her mind conjured up all kinds of delicious scenarios where he’d rope her and drag her toward him for more of those steamy kisses they’d shared in the tack room.

  Cade nodded toward the fence where eight ropes, all cut to the same length, were hanging. “Okay, kids, each of you claim one of those and then show me if you’ve been payin’ attention.”

  “First thing you have to do is tie the knot,” Levi said.

  Cade wound up his rope and tossed it over a nail on the back of the barn. He put a hand on the fence post nearest to Retta and jumped it without any effort at all. “Who do you think will get the knot tied and the fence post under control first?”

  “Probably Benjy. I’m amazed at how good he is at physical things,” she said.

  “If he likes something, he’s good at it. If he doesn’t, wild mules couldn’t make him do it. He likes animals, ranchin’, and drawin’ and he loves to read. Want to bet on who’ll be next?”

  “Faith, because she’s got something to prove.”

  “I think it’ll be Kirk for the same reason. About that bet?”

  “What are we betting? We’ve already got one going about the OU/Texas game, remember?”

  “Five bucks,” he said.

  She held out her hand. “You’re on. Faith can take Kirk standing on her head in hot ashes and blindfolded. That girl has a stubborn streak.”

  His big hand wrapped around hers firmly. It didn’t matter if it was only a bet, it still sent a flash of heat through her body. “Now I’ve got this picture in my head of that little girl upside down with a bandanna over her eyes.”

  She dropped his hand reluctantly. “She could run Attila the Hun some competition.”

  Cade propped a leg on the bottom rail so close to hers that she could actually feel the sparks jumping back and forth. “So tell me, Retta Palmer, in one word, what do you want out of life? When you come up to the end of your last words, what do you want to think?”

  “Want to explain that a little more before I choose one word?” she asked.

  “If you were looking eternity in the eye how would you finish this sentence, ‘I have been a success because I was’? Happy? Successful? Rich?”

  “Happy,” she said without hesitation. “And you?”

  “Happy,” he said. “Now what makes you happiest?”

  “I’ll have to think about that. Is there a time limit on this?”

  “No, ma’am.” He pointed toward the corral, grazing her shoulder with his finger as he did so, and sending more sparks flitting around. “Look at that. Faith and Kirk have their knots done and are both about to see if they can master the art of a sling.”

  They slung the lassos around their heads, kept their eyes on their individual posts, and let them fly at the same time. The moment the lassos fell, Faith drew back on it hard to tighten it up and Kirk did the same. If there was a millisecond’s difference in their timing, it was unnoticeable.

  “You two should work together as team ropers,” Cade yelled. “Your timing is great. Now let’s give Benjy and Sasha a chance to show us what they can do.”

  “I’m not betting with you anymore. It’s always a tie when I do,” Retta teased.

  “And I was depending on that five dollars to buy you a hamburger on the half-price night at a greasy burger joint in Bowie,” he flirted.

  “Tough break, cowboy. Now I’ll just buy two and eat both of them myself.”

  “You’d let an ugly old cowboy starve while you eat two burgers?”

  “No, but I might let a tall, dark, and sexy one go hungry until supper time,” she shot back at him.

  He cut his eyes around, caught her gaze, and held it. “So you think I’m sexy?”

  “Oh, come on!” She laughed. “Don’t give me that shy crap. You’re as bold as a big Angus bull. I bet you can run fast too.”

  “What’s that got to do with anything?” he asked.

  “You’re not married so you must be able to outrun all the women in north central Texas.”

  His expression said that she’d driven a sharp needle into a raw nerve. “Maybe they don’t want damaged goods. At least not on a long-term basis.”

  “What was her name?”

  He nodded. “Julie and everyone in this part of the state knows all the gossip about the breakup.”

  “Did you love her?”

  He nodded. “I did, but looking back I’m not sure I was in love with her. We’d dated since junior high school, went to college together, lived together the last year we were in college, and I came home to run the ranch and she worked in Dallas at a big law firm. I proposed but she didn’t want to get married right then so we had a really long engagement. We spent more than a year planning the wedding.”

  “What’s the difference in loving and being in love? Aren’t they the same?” She moved from the fence to sit on the grass.

  He followed her, leaving a foot of space between them. “They are similar but one goes so much deeper than the other. In love is one of those things that goes all the way to eternity and beyond. We were happy the whole time we were dating and really got along well that last year in Austin. She loved the city life and having everything right there.”

  “So what happened?” She nodded toward the corral. “Benjy won that round. Gabby will be practicing for a rematch. She’s almost as competitive as Faith.”

  “I’m proud of him. To answer your question, she gave Justin a note to give me on the morning of our wedding. It said that she simply could not live on a ranch and that she’d been offered a job in Hawaii with her firm. She left that day and I stayed here to face all our friends and families. I haven’t seen her since then,” he said.

  “How cruel.” Retta gasped.

  “I thought so that day, but since then I’ve come to realize that real cruelty would have been going through with the wedding when she would have hated the ranch and we’d have both been miserable.”

  She laid her hand on his knee. “You are a good man, Cade Maguire.”

  “I’ve had two years to think about it and I think I’m starting to move on.” He laid his hand
over hers and held it there. “She’s done the same. Married some high-powered CEO last December.”

  “Good for you, and I hope she thinks of you every day and regrets what she did,” Retta said.

  Cade cocked his head to one side. “Why?”

  “Because that was downright mean. She knew what you were and who you were. To wait until your actual wedding day? Come on, Cade. That’s criminal. She should have done time in the county lockup for a crime like that,” Retta fumed.

  His grin widened, deepening the cleft in his chin. “Maybe you and Faith share DNA with old Attila.”

  “We just might at that,” she said. “But that is wicked. I bet you had to be responsible for returning everything while she went off on a lark to a tropical island. And the embarrassment. She should be shot.”

  “Look!” he pointed. “Nelson and Sasha are competing. And would you look at that, Faith is cheering her on. This lasso business might teach some teamwork after all.”

  “And you are changing the subject,” she said.

  “To be honest, I wouldn’t have made it without Ruby and Mavis. They got all the gifts returned and I didn’t leave the ranch for a month because I didn’t want anyone’s pity. Still don’t.” He looked her right in the eyes. “And yes, I changed the subject, but I do appreciate that you’d like to shoot her.”

  “She’d best stay in Hawaii as long as I’m on the ranch,” Retta said. “Now back to the kids. I believe they are learning a little bit of teamwork. It’s magic that Faith is cheering anyone on.”

  Cade nudged her with his shoulder. “The Longhorn Canyon has been known to work a little magic in the past.”

  When they’d each had a turn, Cade praised the kids for their quick learning. “Before the summer is over, we’ll run some real calves in here and you can each choose a teammate for the roping contest. A boy and a girl on each team, so be thinkin’ about who you trust enough to work with them.”

  “I call Benjy,” Alice said.

  One of his shy grins said that he liked that idea, but he just shrugged and handed Skip his rope.

  “And now,” Justin said. “The new little donkey told me that he was ready for y’all to meet him after all, so I’m going to let him loose in the corral. Remember his little leg doesn’t work right yet so be easy with him. And while Levi is getting him out of the barn, I’ve got another announcement. He’s not named yet and we’re going to have a little name-choosing contest. Each team, boys and girls, can come up with two names that they really think fit him. Skip and Retta will choose one name and then Levi gets to choose from the two finalists.”

  “What do we get if we win?” Kirk asked.

  “The team that wins gets the braggin’ rights to having their name chosen,” Justin said loudly. “Sometimes that’s even more important than a prize.”

  “Yeah and the girls are goin’ to get them.” Gabby bowed up to Kirk. “Boys don’t know nothing…”

  Levi returned to the barn and turned the little donkey, no bigger than a small collie dog, into the corral with the kids.

  “Ohhhh.” Gabby clamped a hand over her mouth. “He is so so cute. I could just take him home and let him live in my bedroom. My foster sisters would just love him.”

  Braggin’ rights. Retta pulled her dark hair up into a ponytail and secured it with a holder from her jeans’ pocket. What did she want braggin’ rights to when she came to the end of her life? For being successful, even if it cost her happiness? For being happy, even if she had to pay for it by giving up her life plan? It was a lot to think about but that could wait until later. Right now she wanted to be out there with the children, loving on a tiny little donkey.

  Cade still couldn’t believe that Retta wanted to go back to city living. The way she climbed over the fence and then dropped down on her knees in front of the crippled donkey with kids all gathered around her screamed that she was a country woman at heart.

  Skip scooted over next to Cade and leaned his elbows back on the fence. “That woman will make a fine mother someday. Look at the way the kids are gravitatin’ toward her. And the donkey has lost that scared look with her right there beside him.”

  “Yep,” Cade said.

  “You got a thing for her, don’t you, son? I could see it from the first time I saw you with her.” Skip shooed away the flies with the back of his hand.

  “Yep, but that don’t mean anything can happen,” Cade answered.

  “Never know what Miz Fate has in store for you until it happens. Just don’t slam any doors until you’re sure you don’t want to see what’s behind it.”

  Cade nodded. “Nice for the first Sunday in June, ain’t it?”

  “I see you ain’t in the mood to talk about Retta so I’ll change the subject. What movie are we watchin’ tonight?”

  “Because of Winn-Dixie. We got it in the closet and it’s fit for their age.”

  “I like that one and it’s so old that they probably haven’t seen it. You goin’ to let ’em watch Old Yeller while they’re here?”

  “Absolutely not!” Cade said. “The boys would cry just like the girls and then the girls wouldn’t let them live it down.”

  “How about Ferris Bueller? Didn’t we let them do that one last year on Sunday night movie time?”

  “That would be a good one for sure.” Cade nodded.

  “Can’t keep your eyes off her or your mind on the kids, can you?” Skip laughed.

  Cade slapped his forehead. “What movie did you say?”

  “You heard me. I’m sure the boys would get quite an education with that one. What’re you going to do about this thing with her?”

  “Probably nothing.”

  “Why?” Skip asked. “You ain’t looked at a woman like this since Julie.”

  “It all boils down to what she wants and ranchin’ ain’t even on the list,” Cade said.

  Retta left the donkey in the children’s care and climbed back over the fence. “Don’t tell Gussie because she really likes me, but that little donkey’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. You should hear the names they’re throwing around out there. Everything from Buttercup to Beastie.”

  Skip laughed out loud. “He don’t look like a Beastie to me and if Levi names him Buttercup, it might be the first time I’ve ever seen a donkey blush. Beau and Gussie would tease him something terrible.”

  “You should write children’s books with your imagination, Skip.” She plopped down on the grass and watched the kids through the railings.

  “I ain’t smart enough to do that but I used to tell Levi stories when he was a little kid. Me and Mavis, we sure did like havin’ him in the house. Missed him when he moved to the ranch permanently. Even though we see him every couple of days, it ain’t the same.”

  A soft breeze carried the remnants of her perfume to Cade—a tantalizing scent that brought visions to his mind of her sleeping beside him after passionate sex. He focused on the donkey to get the picture out of his mind. “So what would you name him?”

  “Elvis, because when he brays, it’s kind of like he’s trying to sing,” Retta answered.

  “Or maybe Willie after the great Willie Nelson,” Skip said.

  “That’s even better.” She laughed.

  “Movie time in fifteen minutes,” Levi finally called out. “Popcorn and cookies will be served along with the leftover pizza while we watch a movie about a dog called Winn-Dixie.”

  “That’s a crazy name for an animal,” Ivan said.

  “Isn’t that a grocery store?” Alice asked.

  “Wait and see. Be thinkin’ of a name for this little feller but make sure it’s one that he’ll like. Until then let’s call him Little Bit.” Justin made his way through the crowd and led the donkey back inside the barn.

  Kids scrambled over, through, and under the fence and headed back to the house in a dead run with four adults coming along behind them at a slower pace. Cade’s hand brushed against Retta’s and the electricity was greater than anything he’d ever experi
enced with Julie or any other woman.

  Four boys lined up on the floor in front of the television. Elbows on the floor, heads resting in their hands. The girls were two feet away sitting in a row with their chins resting on their drawn-up knees. A bowl of popcorn and a platter heaped high with chocolate chip cookies sat between them.

  Levi and Justin had begged off from watching it again and had gone out to check on a prize cow about to give birth. With Skip in a recliner over by the boys, that left the sofa for Retta and Cade.

  He placed a bowl of popcorn and a small plate of cookies between them. Then he passed out bottles of root beer to everyone. “Get comfortable because the movie is about to begin. Lights out.”

  Retta jumped when the room went totally dark but then the movie began and the lights from the television lit up the place somewhat. It was an old movie about a little girl and a big, scraggly mutt, who brought a whole new level of friendship to a small town. The lessons in it would hopefully speak to the children’s young hearts and they’d find the joy, not only in it, but also with each other.

  Without taking her eyes off the television, Retta reached into the bowl but instead of wrapping her fingers around a handful of popcorn, she closed it around Cade’s hand. She jerked it back and glanced at him.

  He picked up a double handful. “Let me help you.”

  She cupped her hands and he filled them. Holy smoke! No make that holy blasted fire. Every time he touched her, heat rushed through her entire body. It had to be because she hadn’t had so much as a dinner date in three years. She’d feel the same if Levi or Justin had either one put popcorn into her hands.

  Halfway through the movie she leaned over in the semidarkness to be sure Cade didn’t have a hand near the cookie plate. He’d done the same thing and their faces were only inches apart. His dark lashes fluttered and she moistened her lips. His hand moved to her cheek and she leaned to the side. Her eyes were almost shut when the lights came on and she jerked all the way back to her side of the sofa.

  “Intermission for five minutes.” Skip laid the remote to the side and lowered the recliner’s footrest. “Bathroom break or stand up and stretch. I don’t think any of you’ve moved a muscle since the movie started.” He groaned as he got out of the chair and headed down the hallway.