Her Lone Star Cowboy

by Debra Clopton

  “Nothing’s wrong.” She sighed. “I’m just trying to figure out why God sent you into my life.”

  One thing was for certain, Gabi Newberry was different. “That’s easy enough,” he teased, hiking a brow as he looked back at the road. “You obviously needed someone to rescue you from the water and tell you to stay out of the elements.” He was only half joking.

  “You’re one of those men who has to be bossy, aren’t you?” she asked, reaching to turn up the heat in the truck—since they were both soaked, it was a bit chilly in the cab.

  “I’m just being honest.”

  She gave a short laugh. “You’re being bossy. I wouldn’t have drowned. I can swim like a fish.”

  The rain had slowed up to a drizzle and he could see a patch of sun peeking through the gray clouds. The lightning had moved farther off but still flashed in the distance over Gabi’s shoulder. He glanced at her just as a flash sparked behind her. It mirrored the spark of challenge he saw in their green depths. “Um, you were drowning when I pulled you out. You risked your life when you should have been waiting for help.”

  “I did what I thought I needed to do. I couldn’t just let these little guys stay out there and risk that trailer going over.” As if knowing they were being discussed, the calves bawled louder and stuck their wet noses over the seat.

  “Look, Gabi. I’ve just met you, but out of respect for your grandmother, I need to warn you to be more careful. You need to think smarter if you’re going to be traipsing around out here in the country by yourself.”

  A calf poked its nose in her ear, causing her to laugh. She tucked her legs underneath her and turned to pet the calves that began trying to come over the seat. “You, Mr. Holden, are about as pushy as these boys. Thanks for your concern. I hear what you’re saying, but I did what I had to do.”

  The vet clinic came into view. It was obvious that she was not going to take his advice to heart. Stubborn woman. “Next time you might not be so lucky.” He pulled to a stop beside the holding pens behind the clinic.

  Her gaze twinkled as she placed her hand on his arm. Her touch was warm and a spark of awareness danced along his skin. Her expression was a mixture of humor, laced with a firm you-aren’t-going-to-tell-me-what-to-do attitude.

  “So be it,” she said, pulling away her hand and reaching for the door handle. “Thanks for the rescue and the ride.”

  “But not the advice,” Jess said as he climbed out of the truck. He wasn’t sure if the woman was soft on the brain, stubborn or both. Either way it was bothersome. He strode around to her side of the truck, where she waited with her hands on her narrow hips, her hair hung in tiny curls wisping about her forehead—they’d dried on the trip in and were a pale honey blond. His pulse kicked in abruptly, when she smiled that smile that lit across her face and let the dimple out of its hiding place.

  “You can give me all the advice you want to. I’ll consider it. I’ll even thank you for it.”

  “But you won’t take it. That’s about what I’d expect.” He opened the door and reached for the nearest calf.

  Gabi already had the gate opened. She had a hand on her hip and one hand on the gate as he tramped past her. “Don’t get comfortable thinking you know what to expect. I’m not as easy to read as you think I am, cowboy.”

  He paused to look down at her. She blinked innocently and her smile widened showing a bright white smile. There was nothing innocent in that smile. He had known her all of thirty minutes and he’d already figured her out. “I never said you were easy to read. Matter of fact, I have a feeling you probably work real hard at being complicated.” He went for the other calf.

  Gabi chuckled behind him. “You know what?”

  He was walking past her with the other calf and paused to let it loose before facing her. “What?” he asked, grinning because there was nothing else to do.

  “I like you even if you are bossy. I’m going to have fun keeping you on your toes.”

  If he’d have had a hat, he’d have tipped it at her, but it was somewhere downstream stuck in the mud. Instead he just nodded. “Have at it. I like a woman who keeps me guessing.”

  “Then you’re going to love me,” she quipped, and strode toward the office.

  Chapter Two

  The jukebox was playing a lively country song when Gabi walked in the door of Sam’s Diner after work. Immediately, the aroma of grilled steak and burgers had Gabi’s stomach growling, reminding her that due to the wild day she’d had, she’d missed lunch. The scent of hot coffee pressed through the other unbelievably delicious scents and drew her gaze to the fresh pot of java sitting behind the counter.

  “Gabi! Over here.” Esther Mae Wilcox, her bright red hair bobbing, waved enthusiastically from the back booth. Her neon lime blouse was a splash of color against the backdrop of rustic wooden walls and oak booths.

  Gabi said hello to a couple cowboys sitting at a table as she passed them. She’d helped administer vaccines to some cattle for them the day before. One of them had asked her out, and though she was officially unattached after her recent breakup with her fiancé, she was quick to thank him for the offer but told him she wasn’t dating. He’d been cute when he’d proceeded to tease her that his heart was broken—it had been endearing actually, but nothing more. Where men were concerned she was a little numb, and she wasn’t prepared to go there just yet. She had her life to get in order and her priorities figured out. One thing was certain, when she did start dating again, this time she knew the kind of man she wanted was the complete opposite of the one she’d chosen before.

  Her number one priority when she looked for a husband this time was finding a man who loved the Lord as much as she did.

  But for now, she was happy being here in Mule Hollow with her grandmother and her friends. They were going to help her become the kind of woman she wanted to be. Reaching the booth, Gabi hugged her grandmother, Adela, and her two friends Norma Sue Jenkins and Esther Mae Wilcox, before sitting in the empty seat beside Esther Mae. The three ladies were a contrast to each other. Esther Mae was as vibrant as her colored red hair, bright clothes and personality. Her Gram was a dainty, elegant lady with wispy white hair and a serene, fine-boned face that was dominated by electric blue eyes. Norma Sue was robust with wiry gray hair and a beaming smile.

  “Sit down and tell us about this exciting day you’ve had.”

  Norma Sue’s words startled Gabi.

  “Don’t look so surprised,” Norma Sue continued. “News in a small town travels faster than a greased pig down a water slide.”

  “That’s the truth,” Esther Mae added. “We want all the details. Adela told us you got stuck this morning and that Jess Holden came to your rescue!”

  Before Gabi could answer, the swinging doors of the kitchen opened and Sam came striding out, giving her a reprieve from further questions.

  “Hey, Gabi girl,” he called, his weathered face lit with a grin. A small man, built like a jockey, he moved with brisk intent. Snagging the coffee pot from the burner, he grabbed a cup in the other hand and strode, with his bowlegged gait, to the table and poured her a cup. “What were you a doin’ out thar in the middle of a tornado anyway?” he asked, studying her sternly as he poured.

  So much for a reprieve! Gabi realized she was in for it as all eyes zeroed in on her.

  “It was tur-a-ble out thar. Jest tur-a-ble,” Sam continued, crossing his arms, letting the half-full coffee carafe dangle at his elbow.

  “Terrible is the right word,” Esther Mae gushed, turning in the booth seat so she was facing Gabi. “I’m so glad Jess found you. I can just see that handsome hunk of cowboy rushing in to pull you out of the raging waters. This would make a wonderful story for Molly’s column.”

  “What!” Gabi gasped. She’d called Adela after she’d gotten back to the cl
inic, wanting to make sure Adela had made it through the storm okay, too. How did they know about Jess pulling her from the flooded ditch?

  “You all right, thar?” Sam asked, patting her gently on the back.

  A vivid image of an overblown story about her and Jess meeting in a violent storm with a tornado bearing down upon them popped into her imagination. Molly was a local writer who did a syndicated newspaper article about the little town, the cowboys and the matchmakers. It was hugely popular and she was a fan herself. But… “No—no article,” she stuttered, choking on coffee. “Seriously—no.”

  Norma Sue hooted, slapping the table with her hand. “We’re just having some fun with you.”

  “That’s right,” Esther Mae chuckled. “No need to get all choked up. Who do you think we are?”

  “The Matchmaking Posse, that’s who!” Gabi blurted out. Squinting her eyes she gave them all a teasing, but firm warning. “Gram, please tell them I’m off the market.”

  “That’s totally understandable after what you’ve been through,” Adela said, her smile sympathetic.

  “It sure is,” Esther Mae cut in. “I can’t believe that man broke up with you because of your faith.”

  “Hmmph,” Norma Sue snorted. “You’re better off without him.”

  “Unequally yoked isn’t a good thing,” Adela said. “God has plans for you with a good Christian man.”

  The conversation was bouncing around more than a pair of wet sneakers in a hot dryer. Unwanted, a sense of loss for Phillip stabbed Gabi’s heart. Sadly though, Norma Sue was right. Six weeks ago she and her fiancé had called off their engagement after she’d given her life to the Lord. Looking back now, Gabi knew the relationship had been doomed in the first place. But still, she hadn’t expected the man she’d thought she loved to leave her because he didn’t care for her newfound faith. But then, she knew there was more to the story. More to it than the ladies or even her Gram knew.

  A tight knot filled Gabi’s chest. Her gaze dropped to her empty ring finger and the slow boil of anger and embarrassment bubbled inside of her. “Come on, y’all. You know I’m not here looking to build a relationship with a man. I’m here to build my relationship with God. I’m going to make up for lost time and try to make a difference in someone’s life. I’m here to learn how to do that from y’all, not have y’all match me up with one of your cowboys.” And work on herself—the Lord only knew she had a lot of work to do on herself.

  “And God will use you,” Adela assured her. “I’m so glad you’re safe and you’ve at last made the decision to let Him be the Lord of your life.”

  “Me too,” Gabi agreed, understanding how close she’d come to disaster—both with the car accident and her life in general. “Every time I think about slamming into that telephone pole and how totaled my car was.” She paused, her heart catching. “I just can’t believe I walked away with minor injuries.”

  It had been a horrible wreck…. Gabi pushed thoughts of it aside, not wanting to think on it.

  “I agree,” Esther Mae said, her glass of sweet tea paused in midair before taking a sip. “God’s got a plan for you. He has a plan for everyone and I just love watching Him work.”

  “God still wants you ta use yor head, though. The next time a tornado is coming, you need ta not head out with a load of cattle,” Sam continued admonishing her, not letting go of his role as her protector.

  “Sam, I wasn’t expecting that storm to blow this way.”

  “It wasn’t supposed to.” The frown deepened on his weathered face—Gabi was surprised that it could get any deeper. “Out here, you got ta remember that you jest never know. Like Jess said, ya need ta be more careful. And that means don’t be trying to traipse off across a pasture in the middle of a lightning storm.”

  “Jess told you that?” She hadn’t said anything to Adela about going across the ditch for help. What had the cowboy been saying? Sam’s next sentence confirmed her suspicions.

  “Yup, came in right after he’d dropped your truck and trailer off at the clinic. The boy was still wet.”

  Boy. Jess Holden was a man, not a boy—the fact distracted her for a moment. Over six feet tall, arms like iron and strength to carry her easily up the hill, heart-stoppingly blue eyes, square jaw, dark hair curling with the rain. There had been nothing about the handsome cowboy that reminded her of a boy. Jess’s smile flashed across her mind’s eye—okay, so he did have some boyish charm.

  She was grateful to him for what he’d done, but coming in here and talking about it was not good. “What exactly did he say?”

  Adela smiled gently and worry creased her eyes. “He said you were falling into the ditch full of raging water when he first saw you. That you got swept off your feet and towed underwater before he could get to you. Just a few more seconds and he might not have seen you fall in or go under. He was thankful, and so are we, that he’d managed to be there when he was. God’s taking care of you again, my dear.”

  Good deed though it was, Gabi was having a hard time getting past the fact that Jess had been in the diner talking about rescuing her. Was he bragging? He hadn’t really seemed the type.

  What mattered to her was that he’d been telling details she’d rather have kept silent so as not to worry her Gram. There was no call for that. None at all. And it bothered Gabi more than he could possibly know. She’d put her Gram through enough worry over the years and was determined to protect her from any more. That meant not making her worry over Gabi’s frustrations with the cowboy.

  “Yes, Gram, you’re right,” she managed to say, trying to hide her displeasure at Jess, while also being truly grateful for God’s protective hand being on her life. “God has had His hands full looking out for me.”

  It was so true. Gabi’s life had spiraled out of control before she’d given her life to the Lord. The drinking and partying lifestyle she and her fiancé had been living had been an empty one. Even more empty than she’d realized. And then she’d almost had a head-on collision with an oncoming car. She was still so thankful to the nurse who’d shared her personal testimony with Gabi and awakened her to the dead-end path she was taking with her life.

  “I’d have been all right, with or without Jess’s help. Honestly, it wasn’t as desperate as he’s obviously made it sound.”

  Sam looked less than convinced. “Jess said you were in the water b’cause you were on yor way fer help across the pasture. Gabi girl, you might have made it out of the water, but nothing about any of that’s smart. Par-ticularly, traipsing in the middle of the worst electrical storm we’ve had this year.”

  Gabi took a slow, deep breath. “I was fine. I just did what I needed to do.”

  “I can take care of myself, too,” Norma Sue drawled, jumping on the frown wagon with Sam. “But sometimes that means staying inside where it’s safe.”

  The conversation was going downhill. How had it changed from worrying about some kind of crazy, romantic setup from the posse, to them jumping on her about not being careful? “Sooo, how are the plans for the second homecoming rodeo going?” she asked, deciding it was time to change the subject. She’d come home to Mule Hollow to be closer to Gram and to start a new life here. Adjusting to this many people trying to give input into her life would take some getting used to.

  To her relief, Sam headed off to check on the new cook he was training in the kitchen and the ladies launched into a discussion about the second of three rodeos the town was having over the summer. The rodeos were to draw crowds to the small town but also to honor people who’d once lived here. There was a hope that some of them might move back like Gabi had chosen to do.

  She listened and prayed for patience and the ability to make good choices. It was embarrassing to her to review and see what a mess she’d made of her life. It was hard knowing she hadn’t made good choices, but she was de
termined she was going to do better. Learning to trust herself was going to be hard on so many levels.

  Learning to take advice was going to be even harder.

  But she could do it.

  She would do it.

  God had given her a second chance and she wasn’t about to waste it. She was determined to start making a difference in the world around her. She just had to take a deep breath and stop messing up.

  * * *

  Jess swiped his brow with the back of his hand. There were definitely no storm clouds on the horizon today, like there had been two days earlier when he’d pulled Gabi Newberry from the flood waters.

  “They look good,” he said, gazing from the new bunch of cattle he’d just bought and unloaded, to his older brother. They’d been working cattle in the heat all day and Luke looked as hot and sweaty as he was.

  “Real good,” Luke agreed, a satisfied gleam in his eyes. “With these added to the herd we’re going to look pretty good come next year with calves. The ranch is doing great, Jess. If we get some nice, slow rain soon, we’ll be perfect.”

  “Yeah, would be great.” Jess patted his neck with his bandana.

  “Now you and Colt just need to find someone to love and be loved by and get married.” Though Luke was grinning, Jess knew how serious he was.

  “Never thought I’d see the day, but you surprised us both and bite the bullet,” Jess said and then smiled.

  Luke looked at him, totally contented. “Montana makes me happy—I’m more alive than I ever was before meeting her. I want that for you. I never knew how it felt to have someone love me like she does. I know I sound sappy but it’s true, Jess.”

  “Sap,” Jess grunted and they both laughed, understanding where they’d once been and how far they’d come. He was glad for Luke. The three brothers’ childhoods had been less than perfect and Luke was Jess’s hero.

  Only four years older than Jess when their mother had run off and left them to fend for themselves with their alcoholic father, Luke had taken on a man’s responsibility at the age of fourteen. Jess owed him.