Reuniting with the Cowboy

by Shannon Taylor Vannatter

  He had to stop thinking about things he couldn’t pursue. “I could build you a few extra pens above the ones you already have to solve your cat problem.”

  “I’d always planned to do that, just haven’t had time.” She bit her lip. “That would be great, but if you really want to help me, there is something else you can do.”

  “Just ask.”

  “Would you sell me a few acres? I had my eye on five, but one would get me out of a bind.”

  He’d have loved to. But the problem with that was that he was only leasing. Yet he needed his family to believe he was willingly retiring to become a rancher. Otherwise, they’d get curious and if they learned about his health situation, they’d hover and he’d have no peace while he decided what to do.

  He couldn’t burden her with his secret.

  “Well?”

  “Ally?” A man’s voice called out, cutting off any response he might have given her.

  “Over in the neighbor’s barn,” she yelled.

  Footfalls crunched across the gravel and a shadow fell over the doorway.

  A gray-haired man wearing scrubs stepped inside. “Everything go okay with the mastiff?”

  “She’ll be fine.” She nodded. “The car just grazed her. Lacerations and contusions, but no internal injuries or broken bones. Most of her damage came from the highway.”

  “Ouch.” The man winced. “Poor girl. I finished the vaccinations. Derek filled out all the records and he’s putting the ranch file in the office. Just thought I’d check in before I go.”

  Ally gestured to the man. “This is Dr. Lance Bridges, the other vet here at my clinic. Cody is our new neighbor. He took Bruno and the three strays I got in yesterday, just in the knick of time. I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow.”

  “Nice meeting you.” Cody clasped hands with Lance.

  “Likewise.”

  “You go on home. I’m sure Erin has your supper ready.”

  “See you tomorrow.” As Dr. Bridges turned away, a younger man approached. Blond, midtwenties.

  “Some first day, huh, Derek?”

  “I loved every minute of it.” The younger man smiled, scratched the kitten Ally held under its chin. His hand dangerously close to hers.

  Huh? Was he flirting with Ally?

  Was this guy an assistant? Or working on being her boyfriend?

  Ally pushed stray strands of hair away from her face. “You tell that sweet wife of yours I’ll try not to keep you this late on a daily basis.”

  Whew. Thankfully the guy was married.

  But what should it matter? Ally’s love life was none of Cody’s concern. It couldn’t be.

  “Don’t worry. Brandy understands my work.” The guy turned to the door.

  “Where are my manners?” Ally stood, brushed the hay off the seat of her jeans. “This is Cody Warren. We were friends all through school, and now he lives next door. Derek Tatum is my new veterinary technician.”

  “It’s nice to meet you. I’ll see you tomorrow, Ally.”

  “Make that Tuesday. Have a nice, long Labor Day weekend. With so many ranches in Aubrey, we have more cattle vacs scheduled as usual. But maybe there won’t be any emergencies.”

  “But you’re working tomorrow and Monday. If it’s all the same to you, I’d just as soon do the same.”

  “If you’re sure.”

  “I am.” With a wave, Derek left them alone.

  Ally set the kitten down and it curled around her ankle. “So what about the land?”

  He’d hoped she’d forget about the issue. “I can’t sell you any of it.”

  “Why not?” Her shoulders slumped. “Just an acre? A half an acre?”

  His only option was to be as honest as he could. “I’m only leasing it.” What were the odds of her talking to his parents about his land anyway?

  “But yesterday you said you bought it.”

  “No, you said I bought it. I decided to test the ranching thing out before doing anything permanent.” Great. He’d just reinforced her notion that he had commitment issues.

  “Oh.” The corners of her mouth tipped down and she stood. “I’m really tired and I can’t wait to get cleaned up. Do you want me to walk you across the yard?”

  It was tempting to lean on her. But not advisable.

  “I’ll be fine. I’ll go nice and slow.” He opened the door for her.

  She exited and he followed. By the time he’d made five steps, she’d already reached her back door. Not sparing him another glance, she slipped inside and closed it.

  So much for talking about the kiss. It seemed as if without saying a word, they both agreed to forget it. At least things weren’t quite as strained between them. Though maybe that would’ve been preferable.

  Ally was his friend. And that was all she could be. So why did he have to keep reminding himself of that?

  * * *

  Ally stepped into the mudroom, where excited yips greeted her. “Hey, Foxy. Hey, Wolf.” The two puffballs danced for her attention. “Did y’all miss me today?”

  Peering through the blinds, she watched Cody slowly hobble to his house. He’d saved her from a written reprimand. But he wouldn’t sell her any land, because he was only leasing. Which meant he probably wasn’t staying.

  He frustrated the daylights out of her. So she wouldn’t coddle him. He was an adult. If he was goofy enough to insist on living alone and walking on his bad leg without any help, that was his problem. She didn’t have the time or energy to babysit him while he played rancher next door. On the land he’d leased right out from under her.

  She pulled off her manure-caked boots and picked a Pom up in each arm, snuggling them close. They stilled, except for their noses.

  “Busted. Mama traitored—petting countless other dogs and cats again.” The sniffing stopped and kisses took over. With both cheeks sufficiently licked, she set them down.

  “Mom?”

  “In the living room. Did the emergency surgery go okay?”

  “Yep, she’ll be fine. Derek was a great help to Lance with the vaccinations.” She strolled into the living room. Home. She loved this house. The worn plank flooring and walls, beams across the ceilings, and ancient windows. Comfortable, unpretentious and cozy.

  “Did Dr. Bridges leave already?” Mom was in her jammies, curled up on the couch with a book.

  “A few minutes ago.” Ally couldn’t wait to soak in the bathtub for an hour. Except for Mom’s weekly book club meetings, they both were usually in for the evening by six o’clock. Such exciting lives they led. Probably should get out more.

  Maybe she’d have more oomph at the end of the day with Derek around. Most applicants would have waited until Tuesday to start work, but she was thankful for his eagerness.

  Today’s ranch vaccinations had been so much easier with help, and when she’d gotten the emergency call, Derek had been able to stay with Lance and finish. Best of all, she didn’t ache quite as much with an extra set of hands at work.

  Wolf and Foxy pranced circles around her, offering unconditional love—even though she’d been with other critters all day.

  “Y’all don’t care who I play with, do ya?” Her high-pitched tone sent the tiny bundles of energy into excited jitters and she settled on the floor, leaning against the couch. The Poms fought for lap space, then stilled as she stroked their soft coats. “You’ll never guess who showed up after you left, though.”

  “I saw you with Cody after I got out of the shower.”

  “He arrived just as the state inspector was about to write me up for having too many cats. Cody took Bruno and the three I got in yesterday and saved the day.” And rubbed her shoulders. She could still feel his touch.

  “I wonder why the inspector came again. Good thing Cody was there
to be your hero.”

  “Until I asked him to sell me an acre and he admitted he’s only leasing the land.” She picked up Foxy and rubbed noses with her. “What’s up with that, Foxy?”

  The only problem with furry friends—they never answered back.

  Wolf let out a yip.

  Not in people language, anyway.

  “Maybe once his lease is up, you can buy the acreage. It’ll work out.” Mom gave her an encouraging smile. “Just have faith.”

  Mom’s words stung. Faith was exactly what she didn’t have.

  Why couldn’t her new neighbor have been someone else? A single woman living alone, or a family with a mom who needed adult companionship. Someone who could have at least sold her an acre or two. And who didn’t stir such confusing feelings in her. Even some animal-hating grouch. Anyone other than landlocking Cody.

  Though he probably wouldn’t even stay put. Which, as her mom had pointed out, could be good for her. He wouldn’t even be here if not for his injuries and she was sure he’d head back to the circuit just as soon as he could hobble there.

  If Cody moved on, she’d get another chance to convince the owner to sell her a parcel of the land. But that meant Cody would run out on her like before. When she’d needed him most. She had to stay away from him in order to survive this go-round.

  For as long as she could remember, Cody had gone from one obsession to the next, never sticking with anything for long. Baseball, basketball, fishing, hunting, soccer, football, racquetball and finally rodeo. He’d pursued rodeo far longer than anything else.

  Wolf was hanging off her lap and Ally shifted her legs into a crisscross position to give the dogs more room. Closing her eyes, she twirled the end of her braid around her finger.

  Sometimes she could still imagine it was her dad doing it. Even after twelve years, she longed for his presence, his sound counsel. He’d have known what to do about her shelter. But he wasn’t here.

  “Ally?”

  She looked up. Mom had clearly asked her something. “What?”

  “Are you ready for supper?”

  “You can go ahead. I need a bath.”

  Her only hope was to buy the land once Cody got bored with playing rancher and his lease was done. And that would be best for her wayward heart, too.

  A hot bath and a bowl of soup later, she crawled in bed thinking about her predicament.

  And Cody. She wouldn’t be his new short-term diversion.

  Stop thinking about him.

  She closed her eyes and snuggled under the covers—exhaustion fogging her brain.

  Dogs barking. Ally opened her eyes. Lots of yapping. And they were close. How long had she slept—minutes or hours? It was still dark outside. She was used to the sound. In fact, she usually woke up only when they weren’t barking. But this frenzied chorus seemed to come from right under her window.

  She rolled over, squinted at the green digital numbers on her clock. Four twenty-three. Why were the dogs stirred up in the wee hours of the morning? And why did they sound so near? She threw the covers back, jumped up and hurried to the window.

  Three dogs surrounded the live oak in her yard. Barks, yips and growls filled the early-morning air. As her eyes adjusted to the moonlight, she spotted a cat clinging to a gnarled, twisted limb high in the tree. In the distance, the lights were on in the barn.

  What were they doing loose? Her heart lodged in her throat. She flipped her lamp on, tugged a warm-up suit over her pajamas and darted down the hall.

  “Mom.” Ally knocked on her bedroom door. “The animals are loose.” Flashlight in hand, she bolted through the house and jerked the front door open. A light blinded her as she barreled into something solid.

  Someone solid.

  She screamed.

  Chapter Three

  “It’s me.” Cody’s strong arms steadied her. The soft flannel of his shirt warmed her against the chill of the night air as his familiar spicy scent surrounded her.

  Ally pulled away from him. “Are you all right? I didn’t hurt your knee, did I?”

  “No.” He lowered the beam of his flashlight and she got a glimpse of his denim clad legs. “Why are the animals out?”

  “I have no idea.”

  “I’ll help you corral them.”

  “You can’t.” She stepped around him. “It’s dark and you’ll step in a hole or something and hurt your knee. If you want to help, though, go to the barn. I’ll catch the dogs and bring them to you. Just put them in pens and I’ll sort out who goes where later. Once I get all the dogs, then I’ll be able to lure the cats back.”

  “I’m on it.” He limped toward the barn.

  She ran to the clinic. The door stood wide open. Odd. She grabbed several collars with leashes and a handful of treats, then scurried back out to the gathering under the tree.

  “Here, Spot.” The splotched mutt ignored her as he jumped, his front paws running up the tree with each lunge as he growled at the terrified cat. “I’ve got treats.” She dug a biscuit out of her pocket and held it just out of the dog’s reach. Spot’s nose twitched and he lost interest in the cat long enough for her to clasp a collar around his neck. “Gotcha.”

  She stood on his leash while she went through the same routine with the Border collie mix and the terrier mix. With all three dogs leashed, she tugged them with all her might toward the barn.

  A flashlight beam shone from the house. “What can I do?” Mom hollered.

  “Catch dogs. Then we’ll worry about the cats.”

  “I called Lance—I mean Dr. Bridges—to help.”

  A truck turned into her drive. Lance? No, he couldn’t have gotten here from Denton so quickly. Who could it be? Please not an emergency. Pressure mounted in her chest.

  The engine died and doors slammed. “Hey, it’s Raquel. Cody called us to help.”

  Ally could have cheered. “Y’all are awesome.” The Walkers were her closest neighbors other than Cody. Ally usually handled the health needs of their four-legged menagerie.

  “How many are accounted for?” Slade, Raquel’s husband, hurried to take the three unruly dogs from Ally.

  “I’m not even sure.” Ally scanned the area with her flashlight. “These are the only ones I’ve caught. I didn’t want Cody hobbling around in the dark, so he’s in the barn waiting to put them away as I catch them.”

  “Hunter, you help Mom catch dogs.” Slade roughed up the young boy’s already tousled hair with his free hand. Although the dogs fought against the leashes, he didn’t budge. “I’ll haul this rowdy handful to Cody and then Ally can see who’s missing. I’ll be right back to help.”

  “I’m so grateful y’all came.” Ally surveyed the threesome clad in wrinkled jeans and jackets.

  “This is gonna be fun.” Seven-year-old Hunter darted around the back of the house.

  “Watch for snakes,” Raquel called.

  “Probably too cool for them and I don’t usually have any in the yard.” Ally jogged to the barn, opened the door for Slade and took a quick inventory.

  Some of the missing were boarders. She had to find them and keep this incident quiet. Strays roaming free could jeopardize her shelter. But if word got out that people’s pets had gotten loose, her clients would lose trust in her.

  As she stepped outside, another truck pulled in the drive. The door opened and shut. “How many are loose?” Lance’s flashlight bobbed his approach.

  “Thirteen dogs, nineteen cats—some strays and some boarders. Not all of them at least. I’m sorry to drag you out this time of night all the way from Denton.”

  “It’s only fifteen minutes and we’re in this together.”

  Over the next couple of hours, Hunter caught two dogs, while Slade rounded up three. Raquel manhandled a smaller breed and Lance nabbed
another, while Ally wrangled an elusive wienie dog boarder who seemed intent on playing hide-and-seek.

  “I heard some barking in the woods behind the barn.” Slade headed back out. “Raquel, Hunter, y’all stay here—might be dangerous.”

  “Be careful.” Raquel shuddered.

  “I’ll go with you.” Lance followed.

  Hunter and Raquel helped soothe the dogs, and as the sun began to rise, Slade and Lance returned with the last two Lab mixes.

  “What about the cats?” Hunter helped her get the last two in their pens.

  “They won’t come out unless it’s quiet and calm.” Ally hugged Raquel. “Thanks so much for coming. I’d still be at it if y’all hadn’t.”

  “We were glad to help. Hunter had a blast.” Raquel tousled his hair. “You can tell all your friends about your dog-wrangling skills.”

  “Um...about that.” Ally bit her lip. “Would y’all mind keeping this incident quiet? I don’t want the people who board their pets here to lose confidence in my services.”

  “Good point.” Slade gripped Hunter’s shoulder. “Hear that? We’re keeping this a secret.” Hunter nodded and Slade turned to his wife. “We better go so Ally can tend to her cats.”

  The threesome waved goodbye as Ally thanked them again.

  “Go home, Lance. Get some rest. I can handle things here today.”

  “Not happening. Saturday’s always our busiest. If your mom will ply me with coffee, I’ll be good to go.”

  “Great idea.” Mom covered her yawn and the two strolled toward the house.

  Leaving only Cody. “You should get some sleep. All I have to do is call the cats.”

  “I’ll stick around.” He scanned the pens lining each side of the long barn. “I doubt any of the dogs are in the pens they’re supposed to be in. Once you retrieve the cats, I’ll help you sort it out. Besides, I need to talk to you.”

  “Okay.” About what? “Can it wait?”

  “Go call your cats. It’ll keep.”