A Cowboy in Her Arms

by Mary Leo

  “It’s okay, Miss Callie. They can’t hurt me now. They’re all tied up.”

  “Yes, they are.”

  “Should we go inside?” Polly said to Emma, taking her hand as Callie’s mom came to the door to greet them. Within moments, Polly and Emma disappeared inside, leaving Joel on the porch with Callie.

  “Sorry about that. Emma has a very active imagination, and sometimes it gets the better of her.”

  He blamed Emma’s behavior on the fact that up until he’d moved to Briggs, Emma’s home life had been chaotic, and once Sarah died, Emma sometimes spun the simplest of events into crazy tales.

  “I know. I’ve had to deal with it during class,” Callie answered.

  He’d figured as much, but hoped it wasn’t too bad.

  “Is this something we need to officially talk about?”

  Callie smiled. “Not yet. Plus, seeing how you handled her just now will help me in the future.”

  “Great. I really want this to work, Callie. She loves it here in Briggs, and so do I.”

  Just seeing Callie again, in her own element this time, made him want to kiss her and never let her go. He was still so very grateful for her quick thinking behind the wheel. Besides, he couldn’t shake the memory of her warm response to his holding her in his arms.

  “I’m glad, Joel. It’s a great place to raise a child.”

  He liked her response, liked how she’d looked at him and smiled when she said it, as if she really meant it.

  Things were looking up.

  The only reason he’d agreed to this dinner was precisely because of that moment in the barn. He’d thought about backing out a couple times, but then always reconsidered. Even though she’d stopped him from kissing her, he could tell somewhere deep inside she still cared for him. He’d decided he could cope with the awkwardness of meeting her family if that was what it took to get back in her good graces again.

  He had hoped to get some alone time with Callie, but from the sound of all the voices coming from inside the house, he no longer thought that was possible.

  “Seems like you have a houseful,” Joel told her as they stood next to each other. Glancing along the front porch, he noted the comfortable-looking chairs, rockers and a wooden swing that hung from the ceiling at the far end.

  “We have about fifteen tonight,” Callie answered, her face beaming. She wore tight-fitting jeans, tan cowgirl boots and a crisp wine-colored Western shirt open at the collar, revealing something pink and lacy underneath. He couldn’t help the bedroom thoughts that meandered through his mind at the sight of all that lace.

  Oh, yeah, he had it bad for her, and there was nothing he could do to change that.

  “Dinner won’t be ready for another half hour or maybe longer. Mom invited our cousin, Father Beau from St. Paul’s Church, and he had a late baptism to perform. We’re holding dinner until he gets here. I thought we could take a little ride first. Are you up for it?”

  Joel wasn’t too keen on riding yet. Polly had been trying to teach him, and he’d gone out once on his own, but so far, he didn’t particularly like it. Mostly, he’d been nervous about getting up on a horse. Worried that he’d fall off, or the horse would run off and he wouldn’t know how to stop it.

  “Sure,” he told her. The old Joel would lie about his abilities, but this new guy who wanted nothing more than to be the best man he could be decided to come clean. “To be honest, though, I’m not very good at it.”

  “Don’t stress. My brother, Carson, will be joining us to give you a few pointers.”

  So much for being alone with Callie, he thought.

  “Wait. Your brother? The bronc rider? The rodeo hero? He’s going to give me a few pointers?”

  Joel knew all about Carson. You couldn’t live in Idaho without knowing about Carson Grant, even if you didn’t really follow the rodeo circuit. Callie’s brother was by far one of the best bronc riders in the history of bronc riders. The man was a legend, a hero, winner of every title he could win in his category. This man would be giving Joel pointers?

  She nodded, smiling. “Yes. Don’t be intimidated. He’s a sweetheart. He’s not going to give you a bucking horse, if that’s what you’re worried about. He teaches kids how to ride over at M & M Riding School. He and his wife, Zoe, have our more friendly horses saddled up and ready to go. Zoe is six months pregnant, and won’t get on anything that goes faster than a steady walk. Carson, well, he might take you up to a canter.”

  Callie took his hand and led him out to the stables, which were only a few yards away from the house. When they arrived, she pulled Joel inside, and with each step, he started thinking worst-case scenario—as if this was going to be her brother’s way of getting even for all the pain Joel had inflicted on Callie back in college.

  “Hey,” Carson said as they approached him, a big, warm smile on his face. Joel recognized him from news articles he’d seen about Carson Grant over the years. He had to admit he felt honored to meet him.

  “Carson, Zoe, this is Joel Darwood, and he’s super excited to be getting a few riding tips from you, Carson.”

  “My sister is one of my biggest fans. I hope she hasn’t put the fear of God in you. I’m not going to teach you how to buck off a horse, I promise.”

  Joel chuckled, relieved that her brother seemed like a stand-up guy and wouldn’t do anything crazy to punish Joel for his past transgressions...at least not tonight. “That’s a relief. But honestly, I’ve heard about you for a long time, and it’s great to finally get to meet you.”

  Joel hoped that by telling Carson the truth, he might go easy on him.

  Carson chuckled and stuck out his hand. The two men exchanged a firm handshake. “Thanks. Great to meet you, too, Joel.”

  Then he took Zoe’s hand, but with a much less aggressive handshake.

  “I’m sure you’ll enjoy the ride, Joel,” Zoe told him, a sweet smile on her pretty face. She had possibly the reddest hair he’d ever seen, and skin so white it looked like porcelain. They seemed like a good match: the rugged cowboy and the lady. Joel wondered how long they’d been together and if their love affair had had a rocky start? After all, a guy like Carson must be on the road for most of the year. That had to be tough on a relationship.

  But then Joel realized he was merely comparing it to his own failed romance, competing in a sense, and he didn’t want to be that guy anymore. No, he wanted what Carson had: a loving wife, a home, an extended family, a baby on the way and a thriving career.

  Now all he had to do was figure out how to get it.

  He turned to Callie. “I’m ready whenever you are.”

  “Then let’s get this show on the road,” Callie said, and they mounted up and headed out with Joel feeling a lot more confidant.

  * * *

  “WHOO-HOO!” JOEL YELLED for about the hundredth time, slapping his cowboy hat against his thigh as he and Callie made their way back to the house after the ride of his life. It was the first time he’d ever enjoyed riding a horse. Up until Carson had taught him how to handle a full gallop, he’d been afraid to move in the saddle, afraid that he was pulling on the reins too tight and afraid that he wouldn’t be able to guide or stop a horse. “That was really terrific! I had no idea riding a horse could be that much fun.”

  He felt exhilarated and confident that he could eventually be a darn good horseman. All he had to do was sign up for a few more lessons at the riding school Carson had mentioned, and he’d have this thing nailed. He planned on signing Emma up, as well.

  “You’re a natural, Joel. When you relax, you have the balance and control of a true horseman, something that not everyone has.” Callie walked alongside Joel as dusk settled on the land, giving everything a fiery orange glow. The Grant ranch was a thing of beauty with rolling hills, tall pine trees, and a clear view of the Teton mountain rang
e.

  “It helped that I was riding next to your brother. I felt almost impervious to falls or missteps. Besides, he said all the right things to get me to relax.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like the horse wants to please me, and how I have to show him who’s in control. I never thought of it like that before. Since Polly brought those two mares home, I’ve been trying to ride them with the...”

  “...the help of an online video, no doubt.”

  He gently chuckled while he settled his hat back on his head. “No doubt. I’m learning that having a real live person teaching me things really makes a difference. Especially since I can ask a question and they’ll respond.”

  “Funny how that works,” Callie told him, smiling. His heart bounced in his chest. He hadn’t felt this happy in months, possibly years.

  “It’s something I have to get used to. My parents weren’t much on teaching me how to accept help, and whenever I went to them for assistance, they’d tell me I needed to figure it out on my own. I had to learn how to tough it out. Stand on my own two feet. It had the opposite effect on me. I felt insecure about almost everything.”

  She nodded in his direction. “That had to be tough. My parents are the exact opposite. Mom will get the pom-poms out whenever she even suspects one of her kids needs help with a subject, and my dad will gather all the information he can, sort it all out, present all the facts on the subject in a chronological order and even give you a history. Then there’s each of my siblings, but I don’t think we have enough time for me to list everything they want to do to help.”

  Joel wished he’d grown up with all of that, and only recently was trying to do some of that for his daughter.

  “You’re lucky to have them, Callie.”

  “I know. And what’s even better is you get to meet them all in...well...now.”

  They’d walked back up on the front porch, and she was about to go through the open doorway when Joel took her hand in his and stopped her. Now that he’d brought up his folks, it might be the perfect time for a talk. He wanted to clarify a few more things.

  “Can we take a few minutes, Callie? There’s more I’d like to tell you. Why I reacted the way I did back in college. How I feel now.”

  He guided her off to the side of the front door for some privacy. She seemed willing to follow.

  “Joel, I don’t know if this is the right time. Everyone is waiting for us to come inside.”

  “We can’t keep avoiding the elephant in the room.” He looked around. “Or in this case, the elephant on the ranch.” He took a step closer to her, and when she didn’t back away or pull her hand from his grasp, he felt certain that she was ready to hear more of the truth about why he took up with Sarah when the only person he had cared about was Callie. “It might help you to understand.”

  “You and Sarah really hurt me, Joel. I almost dropped out of school because of it. You have to understand, that even now, this minute, I still have my doubts.” Her eyes were moist. He hated that she suffered from his reckless behavior.

  She didn’t let go of his hand, but she took a step back.

  “I know and I don’t blame you, but please believe me when I...”

  “Daddy! Daddy! We’re sitting down to have dinner now.” Emma bounded through the doorway, waking the two dogs who’d been sleeping. They both stood, as if waiting for Callie to release them from their shackles so they could play. “Auntie Polly told me to come get you, Daddy. And Miss Callie, too.”

  Emma reached out and grabbed Joel’s free hand and pulled him toward the door. Much to Joel’s regret, Callie instantly let go of his other hand, then walked over to soothe her dogs. He felt as though the rug had just been pulled out from under him. He was all set to spill everything, and Callie was finally willing to listen with an open heart.

  “We better go in,” she said, approaching Joel. “My mom will hold up dinner until everyone is seated. She likes to serve her meals piping hot.”

  “Couldn’t we just skip...”

  But Callie wouldn’t listen, and instead walked right past him and disappeared inside.

  “Come on, Daddy. You don’t want to miss dinner. Mrs. Grant made chicken and dumplings, corn on the cob and mashed potatoes and, well, all sorts of stuff. She even has a homemade cherry pie and a blueberry pie to go with our carrot cake for dessert. And apple fritters. They’re my favorite.”

  “Since when?”

  “Since I got to help make them.” Emma pulled harder on his hand. “Come on, Daddy. You don’t want to miss the apple fritters, do you?”

  “Not the apple fritters. They’re my favorite!”

  “Oh, Daddy!” Emma giggled, then they walked inside.

  * * *

  CALLIE HAD WANTED to linger out on the porch for a few more minutes and hear Joel out, but Emma had taken center stage. Even during class, Emma tried her best to pull all the attention to herself, so much so that Callie had to sometimes take a firm tone with her.

  Heaven help her, but Emma was sometimes a challenge so forceful that it took everything she’d learned about tolerance and calm behavior around children not to lash out with a terse word or comment she would later regret.

  She didn’t know how Polly and Joel could be around her 24/7 and not give her a time-out every other minute.

  Callie rotated her tight shoulders and released her clenched jaw as she took her seat next to Joel at the dinner table. Fortunately, Polly sat on Emma’s left side, and Polly seemed to have more control over Emma than her dad.

  Callie was anxious to get Carson’s opinion of Joel. With some fifteen or so people around the dinner table, that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.

  The entire Grant clan had shown up for dinner. Coco—who’d brought along Punky, whom Emma seemed to like just fine despite his somewhat reluctant behavior to warm up to her—had helped their mom in the kitchen with a last-minute dinner crisis. She sat at the far end of the table, near their mom, with Punky curled up in Coco’s lap.

  Kenzie, who still looked a little dusty from both working the ranch all day and stalling the horses for the night, poured the water and opened the bottles of wine.

  Father Beau, wearing his black cassock, sat next to Callie’s youngest sister, Kayla, while her husband, Jimmy, sat right next to her. Their toddler son, Hunter, slept in a stroller, draped with a thin blue blanket—he’d eaten earlier and was now down for the count. Carson and Zoe took the two empty seats directly across from Joel and Callie. Her dad and mom sat at either end of the massive table.

  The unexpected guest was Miss Sargent, who Callie had replaced at school. She sat next to Polly. The two women seemed to not only know each other, but from the way they were chatting, Callie got the impression the two women were still good friends.

  All the food on the table smelled delicious. Even the okra, Callie’s least favorite veggie, smelled delectable. Callie never took to cooking. Sure she knew how, living in this house—even Carson knew how to make a standing rib roast—but she never took to it like Coco, had who found it therapeutic. Callie just found it to be a nuisance.

  “Is it always like this on Sunday night?” Joel asked as he placed a white napkin across his thigh.

  “Every Sunday. Mom doesn’t like anyone she knows to be alone on Sunday night. There’ve been some dinners where we’ve had to bring in extra tables from the barn. There was even a night when the town experienced some flooding, and our house and barn became a shelter. She says it’s her way of giving back to the community that’s been so good to our family.”

  “How so?”

  “When my dad had his accident on his tractor and nearly lost the use of his right hand, our neighbors along with most of the shopkeepers took up a collection so he could go to a specialist at UCLA. That doctor saved his crushed hand. And when my mom fell and broke her hip
when we were kids, our neighbors pitched in to bring us meals for weeks while she was recovering. Then there’s the town’s phenomenal support for Carson. Once he started winning, most everybody contributed and bought him the best bronc saddle money could buy. My parents never quite got over that one. Sunday dinner is just one way they give back. There’s so much more they both do, but we’d be here all night if I had to list everything.”

  “Your parents are very special people.” She could see the sincerity on his face. “My parents are nothing like yours. I barely saw them when I was growing up, and Emma hardly knows them. They’re always too busy working.”

  Callie couldn’t imagine what she would do without her family around her. They meant everything to her.

  “I remember you telling me something about them when we were in college. I’m really sorry, Joel.”

  “It is what it is. At least Emma and I have Polly. She’s a jewel.”

  “Always has been. And, I can’t forget my siblings. They’re the best, but I would never tell them that.” As she said it, she turned toward Carson so he could hear what she was saying.

  “You’re just trying to butter me up so I’ll agree to give a talk to your class,” Carson teased. He wore his emotions clearly on his face. If he hadn’t wanted to give the talk, he’d be dead serious right about now, but a smirk always told her he was on her side.

  “You know how much they would love it.”

  “Fine,” he agreed. “But we’ll have to go over my schedule first.”

  “Any time you’re available. Whenever you’re free,” Callie told him. “You’re such a great brother. There isn’t a sister on this planet who has a better brother.”

  Carson raised an eyebrow. “If only that were true.” He turned to Joel. “Do you have any sisters, Joel?”

  “I’m an only child.”

  “What a concept,” Carson said. “My life would be so much easier.”

  “And dull,” his wife told him.