A Rancher for Their Mom (Rodeo Heroes) (11 page)

Cora leaned forward and gave him a loud kiss on the cheek.

“That’s a great encouragement. One of the best I’ve had.” Turning to April, he smiled. “You think I could get one from your mother?”

The children looked from one adult to the other.

April gave him a kiss on the cheek. Drawing back, she heard him whisper, “It would’ve been better a little lower and to the left. And with a lot more enthusiasm.”

April scooped Cora out of Joel’s arms. “Be safe,” she whispered.

Something connected between them, which shook her to the core but also warmed her heart.

He turned and walked off.

“C’mon, Mom, let’s go to our seats.”

She shook off the confusing feelings and followed the boys into the arena.

* * *

As Joel waited his turn to ride, he thought of April and the kids out there in the stands, waiting for him. No one else had been there for him, cheering him on. It warmed him.

“You ready to try to gain some points on me, old man?” Shortie teased. “You think you’re going to be able to stay on Hercules?”

“That’s my goal.”

Shortie shook his head. “That horse is mighty good at tossing off cowboys. Not too many stay on him for the full eight seconds.”

“That’s why a cowboy gets good scores on such a contrary animal.”

“Kind of a good combo—old ornery horse and old cowboy.” Shortie wagged his eyebrows.

“Hercules is a smart horse, but I know his tricks and will be watching for them.”

With a shrug of his shoulders, Shortie turned and walked to the chute where the horse he’d drawn stood.

Joel turned his attention on chute two, where Hercules stood.

“Ignore McGraw,” Buck Graham said. “He’s just trying to rattle you.”

“I know. I’ve done my share of razzing my competition.”

Joel slipped his glove on his right hand for protection and climbed up the slats of the chute and slid his boot over the back of the horse.

Hercules stood still, but Joel felt the horse readying himself for when the gate opened. He adjusted his hand on the hack rein and settled in for the ride. He nodded to the cowboy at the gate and it swung open. The horse shot out and started his bucking and twirling.

Knowing the horse’s movements, Joel prepared himself for the dips and the hard-left cut the horse loved to do. Joel kept his arm in the air to get the most points he could out of the ride, and the horse tried his best to throw Joel off.

Eight seconds seemed like an eternity, but finally the buzzer sounded and Joel’s fingers released his death grip on the ropes.

The pickup rider maneuvered close enough so Joel could grab his waist and pull himself off the bucking horse and land on his feet. Hercules spun and kicked out. Joel jumped out of the way in the nick of time, feeling the breeze from the horse’s hooves.

The crowd gasped.

“That was close,” the announcer said over the PA. “You okay, cowboy?”

Taking off his hat, Joel waved to the crowd.

“The score for Joel Kaye’s ride is eighty-seven, which puts him in the lead. Congratulations, cowboy.”

Joel walked toward the gate that allowed contestants in and out of the arena.

“Good score,” several of the cowboys called out.

Joel nodded his acknowledgment. Looking into the audience where he knew the boys sat, Joel located them and waved. They waved back. Grins split their faces. April’s expression puzzled him. It wasn’t a frown, neither was it a smile, and she didn’t wave.

He found himself wanting her approval. He dipped his hat toward her. She returned the greeting, making him smile.

“You flirting with members of the audience?” Jack asked.

“I am. ’Course, I wouldn’t say smiling at the boys would be considered flirting.”

“True, if that’s what I was talking about.”

“That’s all it was.”

“Yeah, and pull my other leg, Joel.”

His attempt to redirect Jack failed. “I’ve got a horse that needs to be saddled for the next event.”

“Good excuse.”

Joel didn’t hang around to argue the point. He needed to think about the next event and not about a woman whose mysterious expression threw him off.

* * *

“Wow, that was quite an exchange between you and Joel.”

April whipped around and found Kelly sitting next to her. When she’d gotten there, April didn’t know. Had she been that involved with Joel?

“Joel waved back to the boys.”

“Yes, he did. It was the look afterward directed at you that I was talking about.”

“It wasn’t anything.” The denial fell flat.

Kelly picked up April’s hand. “It’s okay, friend, to enjoy a smile from a good-looking cowboy.”

“No, it’s not.”

“Lighten up. You don’t have to be a stick in the mud.”

“Am I that bad?”

Kelly laughed. “Oh, honey, there aren’t words.”

April’s eyes widened.

“I’m not saying you haven’t had a reason to be serious, but for tonight, enjoy yourself. Just let a handsome cowboy smile at you and flirt.”

“But—”

“I’m not asking you to run wild and toss caution to the wind, but relax and have fun. I think sometimes we need those moments of laughter. Didn’t Solomon say, ‘A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance’?”

“Maketh?”

Kelly poked April. “I did my Bible memorization from the King James Version. My mom thought that was the only legitimate translation. But what it says is your heart shows up on your face. Enjoy tonight, if only for your boys’ sake. They are laughing and smiling, and if they keep looking back at their mother and you look like a thundercloud, you’ll dampen their fun.”

The truth hit April hard. “You’re right.”

“You better know it.” Kellie pointed a finger at April. “Now, paste a smile on your face and enjoy. You have my permission.”

“You’re just in the pregnancy mode where you want everyone to be happy.”

“Your point?”

“The nesting instinct.”

Kelly laughed and waved off her friend. “Promise to enjoy yourself.”

“I promise.”

“My job here is done.” Kelly stood and walked back to her seat.

“What did Mrs. Baker want?” Wes asked, tearing his gaze away from the arena.

“She wanted me to smile.”

“Huh?”

“I’m supposed to have fun.”

“I agree.”

She did, too, which scared her.

Chapter Eleven

J
oel led Spice back to the area where he could unsaddle her and brush her down.

“You were so good,” Todd called out as he ran toward Joel.

“You had the best score in the saddle-bronc riding and number three in the calf roping,” Wes added, beaming with pride. “Were you scared when the horse almost got you?”

April came to a stop behind Todd. Cora snuggled in her arms, the little girl’s head resting on her mother’s shoulder.

“I was and that’s why you have to be careful when competing in the rodeo,” Joel warned.

Wes nodded solemnly. “I really like the calf roping. I guess if I want to be in the rodeo, I’ll have to learn to throw a lariat,” Wes added. “Spice was real good in staying still when you jumped off.” Wes faced the horse. “You were a good girl.”

Spice nodded her head, accepting the praise.

“Boys, it’s time to go back home. Your sister is worn-out and I need to put her to bed.”

“Aw, Mom. Do we have to?” Wes asked.

Todd echoed his brother.

April wanted the boys to enjoy the moment, but her baby needed to go home.

“April, why don’t you let the boys stay with me while I finish up with Spice? They need to see how to care for the horse after she’s worked. I could drive them home after we’re finished.”

Joel had neatly trapped her. How could she say no? Looking at the boys’ faces, she couldn’t deny them. “Okay.”

You would’ve thought Christmas morning had arrived from the expressions on their faces.

“They can’t stay too late.”

“I won’t keep them much longer. We’ll just take care of Spice and then head on out to the ranch.”

“Boys, I expect you to behave yourselves.”

“Promise, Mom.”

Cora had passed out by the time April got her home. April had just put Cora in her bed when she heard a truck outside.

The boys danced in. Joel followed them. He’d been good to his word.

“Boys, you need to get ready for bed.” Neither boy argued with her, and went to their room. “Thank you for bringing them home.”

“Not a problem.”

Joel’s stomach rumbled. “Down, boy.”

“Have you eaten?”

“Not yet.”

“I have some leftover pot roast with potatoes and carrots. I’d be happy to warm it up for you.”

“You don’t need to do that.”

“Are you hungry, Joel?”

His grin reminded her of her boys when they wanted something.

“Sit down and I’ll warm it up for you. I also have some of the corn bread that I made to go with it.”

“You wrestled me down until I had to give up.” He held up his hands.

“Does that charm just roll off you without any effort?” she asked as she prepared him a plate.

“No, that’s just a hungry cowboy grateful for a good meal. ’Course, don’t tell Hank. His cooking has been the mainstay of my diet over the last year and I appreciate him doing the cooking and not me.”

The microwave dinged and she pulled the plate out and set it before him. After pouring him a glass of tea, she joined him at the table.

“You were good out there competing, but how that horse missed you, I’ll never know. I know the boys were worried.” They weren’t the only ones. Seeing how close he’d come to getting hurt had taken her breath away.

He paused in devouring the meal and looked up and smiled.

“Cora was worried, too,” she hastily added.

He laughed. “She wasn’t the only one, was she?”

Looking down at her hands, she whispered, “No.”

The humor left his face. “I wasn’t hurt.”

“But you could’ve been.”

Placing his fork on his plate, he grasped her hand. “Risks are a part of life. Ranching is risky. Driving to a job in the city is risky.”

“But the risks in the rodeo are greater than if you worked in an office building in Lubbock.”

A slow, heart-stopping smile curved his mouth. “I can imagine lots of jobs I’d like to try. My sis joined the army at eighteen, and I might’ve liked doing that at her age. Working in the Fort Worth stockyards appealed to me, too, and I might have tried it if my parents had lived. But I know I could never work indoors at an office job. It’s not me.

“I’m a cowboy at heart, April. This I know. I wouldn’t be happy indoors. I need to see the horizon, feel the wind on my face and breathe the fresh air of the plains. It appeals to and comforts my soul. My dad and granddad shared that feeling.”

“Wouldn’t you like a steady paycheck for a change?”

He sat back in his chair. “I don’t know what that is. My father and grandfather didn’t know what that was, either. Price of feed, cattle, whether it rains or there’s a drought. I come from a long line of men who’ve lived with the unknown. That’s ranching. And rodeoing. It’s who I am.”

April couldn’t find fault with that. Every rancher in the area lived with that uncertainty. Her father-in-law had always had that insecurity looking over his shoulder.

But his confession confused her. Something wasn’t adding up. “So, you’re following your dream you had when you were eighteen of going on the rodeo circuit? How does that square with ranching and being outdoors?”

He took the last bite of the pot roast. “Seems strange, doesn’t it?”

“Well—”

“Rodeo was quick money to buy my own place, but when that dream turned to ash I concentrated on winning that belt buckle. Haven’t you ever had a dream snatched from you, then later had the opportunity to reclaim it?”

“No.”

“Really?”

She felt uncomfortable. Had she quit dreaming? The prospect shook her.

“We were talking about rodeo and it being inside you and you not liking working indoors.” She wanted to get the conversation back on him and off her.

He shrugged. “These days, most of the rodeos are indoors, but there are still a few rodeos held outside. Cheyenne Frontier Days is one of them and is like nothing else. Still, the day before performances is nothing like working in an office.” He pushed away his plate. “Thank you, April. That was some of the best chow I’ve eaten in a long time.”

She nodded. “I’m used to hungry cowboys.”

Reaching for his tea, he took a swallow.

“But you never told me why you wanted to buy your own place and not ranch your family’s place.”

From the way he hesitated, she wondered if he would answer.

“When you’re eighteen, everything seems possible.”

His answer touched a raw spot in her heart. She knew.

“I thought I was in love. My girlfriend wanted us to marry straight out of high school and live with her parents.” He shook his head. “I couldn’t think of anything less appealing than living with my in-laws. She should’ve just asked me to burn my pride in her parents’ backyard.”

His story sounded familiar, only she had wanted to live with Ross’s parents.

“I couldn’t do that, but I could earn enough money to put a down payment on my own ranch if I rodeoed for a year and made enough. It could stake us. My fiancée didn’t like my idea. We fought and broke up.

“I got to thinking maybe she was right and changed my mind and drove out to her parents’ ranch to tell her.”

He fell silent and April felt her shoulders tighten.

“And?”

“When I pulled into the driveway of her house, my best friend’s truck sat in their drive.”

April’s stomach tightened.

“Unfortunately it was a clear night with a bright quarter moon and I saw my fiancée walking out of the barn picking hay out of her hair. My best friend walked beside her, tucking his shirt into his jeans. When she looked up, I saw the guilt written clearly on her face.

“She ran to my truck to explain. There’s no explanation for a betrayal like that. I started the truck and backed out of the driveway.”

His story wrapped around her heart. She could identify with his situation. “Did you talk to her?”

“No. What justification could she have given me?”

No answer came to mind.

“I left for the rodeo the next morning. I concentrated on winning that belt buckle. I guess in a way it defined me, gave me a goal and something to concentrate on besides the shame of being dumped. She ran off with my best friend, married and divorced within six months. Of course, the incident on her parents’ driveway was the main topic of conversation until my ex-fiancée’s divorce. She didn’t return home.” He shrugged and fell silent.

“What happened after that?”

“I had enough points to go to the finals when the accident happened killing my parents and grandmother. I went home.”

Seeing him in the light of his past put his actions in an entirely new light. He was a man who’d given up his dreams for his sister.

“And you left again because of your sister’s marriage?”

“How would you feel if your brother lived with you after you married?”

“Both Ross and I were only children and when we married, we came to live here with his parents.”

“Oh.”

The standoff ended when she grinned. “But I get what you’re saying. I loved my in-laws and loved this place. It was my parents who didn’t want to stay in one place. Ross loved that. I hated it.”

“Well, uh, I wanted to respect Brenda and Caleb’s privacy. There are just some things that a brother doesn’t need to know. Fortunately, sis thought I might want to try the circuit again. She gave me a good excuse.”

April struggled with her grin, but she lost and laughed. Joel joined in.

“Odd, how a tragedy can be turned around. I poured myself into the rodeo, and that broken engagement was just a stepping-stone.” He stood, grabbed his plate and placed it in the sink. “Thank you.”

Stepping up to the sink next to him, she took the plate. His hand covered hers. She lifted her face to his. “Aren’t you going to let go?”

“I was thinking it might cost you a kiss. The one you cheated me out of at the rodeo.”

A kiss.

It was just a kiss, but—

His gaze searched hers, probing and asking.

She raised her lips and gently brushed them across Joel’s. He didn’t let go of the plate but pulled her closer and settled his mouth more firmly over hers. He slipped his arm around her and drew her closer.

Feeling the strength and warmth in his arms eased her heart.

He raised his head and when she opened her eyes, she looked into the fathomless dark brown eyes of this handsome man.

“I’ll never think of rinsing off a plate in the same way.”

He smiled and turned off the water. “We shouldn’t waste the precious water out here.”

April stared at the snaps on his Western shirt.

“Are you upset?” His breath disturbed the hair around her ear.

Her head jerked up. “No.”

“I was so glad to see you and the kids on the school tour,” he confessed.

“The kids missed you, too.”

He brushed the back of his hand along her chin. “Were they the only ones?”

She could play coy, but that went against her nature. “No.”

“Good. I found myself missing the boys’ questions, holding Cora and—their mom.” He took her hand and her stomach fluttered. He walked out onto the porch and sat on the swing, pulling her down beside him. “So you married straight out of high school?”

“If you spilled your guts, I should spill mine, too?” she teased.

“I think that’s only fair.”

He was right. “It’s not a very interesting story. When my dad’s job brought us out here, he supervised oil platforms, but he’d become an expert at deep-sea oil platforms.” She shrugged. “We were always moving for his job.

“Just when I made friends, we had to move. Mom had moving down to an art and always knew how to make friends, but it was harder for me. When we moved here, I knew I’d found my home. This little slice of Texas is where I was meant to be. Somehow this scenery, the very earth, resonated with my soul.” She broke off her rambling and glanced at him. “You must think I’m nuts.”

“No. I understand exactly what you’re saying.”

She eyed him, wondering if he was humoring her. But she could detect no insincerity in his eyes.

“Go on.”

“I met Ross in high school and fell in love with him.” She wondered if it was the ranch and his parents that she really loved instead of Ross. “Ross and I never talked about what we’d do after we married. I thought we’d live here. Ross didn’t want to be a rancher. He wanted a job like my father’s. I wanted to stay in one place. How opposite was that? We never discussed important stuff, like where we’d live, what Ross would do. I just assumed. So did he.”

She’d never confessed her feelings to anyone about Ross. And the things that had tumbled out of her mouth surprised her. “We definitely weren’t on the same page.”

“I can’t cast any stones. I thought I knew my fiancée. I didn’t.”

“Sounds like we’re a pair.” Joy bubbled up through her body.

“Do you ever plan to marry again?” Joel asked. He blinked his eyes as if the question that popped out of his mouth surprised him, too.

“Hadn’t planned on it, and definitely won’t have more kids.”

The phone rang. She hurried inside. “Hello?”

“How are you doing?” Kelly asked.

“Can I call you back?”

“What?” After a moment of silence, Kelly gasped. “Call me later.” She hung up.

April rejoined Joel on the bench, wanting their time to continue, but the moment had fled.

“Anything critical?”

“Kelly.”

“Ah, girl talk.”

“Sometimes friends can help you through the darkest of times. Kelly’s that friend.”

“I understand.” Joel stood. “I guess I need to go.”

She regretted their time was over. “Thank you for all you did for the kids. The boys will be talking about this for a long time.”

“Now, I should warn you that I invited the boys to share breakfast with the cowboys tomorrow.” He shrugged. “I should’ve checked with you before I said anything.”

“I’m glad you warned me.”

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow morning. I know some of the other cowboys will be willing to help the boys with their twirling.”

He studied her and she wanted him to kiss her again.

“’Night.” He bent down and brushed a kiss across her lips, then walked to his truck.

She watched him drive out of sight, mooning over their time. He’d kissed her. And he made her laugh. And made her believe that things could be right again. Once back inside, she called Kelly.