A Wild Ride (Jessica Brodie Diaries #3) (20 page)

I nodded. I was so drained I didn’t care for humor. I already missed William. I was already worried about him.

I felt Denise’s hand on my shoulder. “Heal for him. He needs you healthy. Sick men are a lot of work.”

I nodded again, tears springing to my eyes.

I let Tom lead me away and put me in the car.

“Jessica,” he said as we started driving, “when Adam told the story, he tried to leave out a lot of what you did. Willie saw right through it. Adam did try to keep his word. I thought you should know.”

“I knew he would eventually give me away. He always does. It was probably better this way because William didn’t have the strength to get as mad.”

Tom chuckled. “Well, the Davies family will be eternally grateful to you.”

“You shouldn’t be, really. I almost got him killed once. Only fair that I tip the scales back to zero.”

“Except that I doubt he will ride a bull after this. Not after what happened. Not after you saying you would risk yourself again. If he doesn’t do it for himself or his family, he’ll do it for you; even though I know you won’t ask. Maybe especially because you won’t ask.”

“Least I could do, Tom.”

I was met with silence.

“Sorry,” I continued, “I’m not at my most witty right now. I didn’t know what else to say.”

“It has been a long week.”

“Yes. It was. Longest week in history, I think.”

I noticed that we were going to Gladis’s house. “Oh Tom, I guess no one told you. Uh, I am living at William’s now.”

He laughed. “Yes, I know. I am just picking up someone that missed you is all.”

When he stopped Tom told me to get out and grab my buddy. It dawned on me that he meant Fred. I opened the car and called his name. He would come at my call. Discipline got a little lax where my laziness got in the way.

Sure enough, Fred came running at a dead sprint. He was so glad to see me he jumped up onto my lap to get at my face. He licked and licked despite me pushing him away. I finally got him settled down and in the back seat. Tom had leather, so said nothing needed to be put down.

“Ginger?”

“She’s at the ranch. We tried to leave Fred there, too, but he kept bothering every ranch hand and visitor—he’s no longer used to the outdoor life with a bunch of dogs.”

I laughed. “He’s a people dog, now. Good boy!”

I walked in my house with a sigh.
Home.
Without ceremony I put my crap down on the little round table, locked the door, and fell into the bed in a heap. I was asleep moments later.

As promised, William was released from the hospital a few days later. However, he was bed-ridden and checked by a hired nurse. Aside from moral support, I didn’t actually need to do all that much for him. Just another difference between a poor man and a rich man—and I was not complaining!

The nurse had it easy the first day, mostly because William hurt too much to cause a fuss, but as time wore on he got more ornery about his confinement. He wanted to move to the living room to watch TV—no,
without
the cursed sickbed. He wasn’t sick, damn it! He was perfectly fine to go outside to get the paper—undo these tubes! He didn’t care in the slightest the extra work involved in constantly doing and undoing medical monitoring equipment—it was his house, he would move around as he pleased.

Being that the nurse was no Camille, William got away with quite a lot before I got home. Too much. I had to put the hammer down nearly as soon as I walked in the door. Then, like a child, he’d get a choice: he could either move the
healing
bed into the living room and watch TV from there, or he could stay in the bedroom and watch that TV. But he would
remain
in the bed for another week, like the doctor said.

"No problem, honey, if you want to get the paper, then Nurse Hatchet—me—will wheel you out for all the neighbors to see so you can get it. How’d that be?" He never liked that offer.

When he did get out of bed, he set up shop in
my
library/office. He moved all my papers around, he didn’t put office supplies back where they went, and he never cleaned up after himself. I was okay with sharing everything—like with a new sibling, you get used to that in the end. But him leaving a mess in my personal world, which was always hyper organized, sent me into a fit.

I stormed into the living room, threw pens at him, and threatened him with locking that door. Being that he was bitchy from being an invalid, he tried to pick a bigger fight, saying he knew how to pick locks. Then I turned into a five-year-old.

He had a collection of baseballs he’d gotten signed through the years, and other corresponding memorabilia, on display in a hallway curio cabinet. I ravaged it. I messed it all up, stuff on all different shelves, this player’s ball on that player’s shelf… I screwed it all up, closed and locked the cabinet, and wandered away.

The phone call I got the next day was a screaming William. I put the receiver on the desk and let him yell. The apology I got when I got home was heartfelt.

My office stuff was 95% put away from thereafter.

Sometimes you just had to be the alpha dog.

In three months he was finally healed enough, and strong enough, to go to the ranch and check on the bull riding. It was way past time in William’s mind. The ranch and its projects were his baby, and even though Adam had his own ranch growing and prospering, William didn’t fully trust him. Nothing personal to Adam, but in William’s mind, if he wasn’t doing it, something was missed.

I got home from a busy day to William shouting, “Hurry up! We’re late!”

Refusing to let him harry me, I put my stuff on its table, made my usual route through the door, into the kitchen where I got some water, and into the living room where William was dressed in spiffy jeans and a crisp plaid shirt.

“Nice to see you, too, dear,” I muttered as I stood in front of him. “I thought we weren’t supposed to be there until seven?”

William looked at me impatiently. “We aren’t, but I want to drive by the ranch and see how things look. I also want to get there early.”

I sighed and nodded. “Alright, let me change.”

I busied myself with changing and getting ready. William was on the couch, waiting “patiently” for me to be finished. Once I was out of my work clothes, into my crap clothes, and had my hair back in a ponytail, I went out to meet the monster.

“Okay.”

He looked at me with barely contained excitement. Then he got serious and his aura seemed to dull somewhat. “I wanted to talk to you before we went, Jess.”

His face was somber, almost sad.

“What’s up William?” I asked as I climbed into his arms.

He hugged me tight and put his head in my hair. He sighed in content. “I don’t think I am going to be able to make the San Francisco trip. Can we postpone a little until I have my dancing feet back?”

I laughed, straightened, and kissed him on the tip of the nose. “Of course, you ninny! Talk about stating the obvious. C’mon, let’s go. You were squawking about being late two seconds ago, now you are dilly-dallying.”

We got to the ranch, tried to drop off Fred and Ginger, but they wouldn’t get out of the truck, so we gave up and did a drive around William’s property so he could check everything out. He was a hands-on type, and it showed. Adam had kept up with everything, instructing the various ranch hands what was needed and when, but William still made notes and muttered about changes he’d make.

When we got to the bull area the regulars were already there. Early. Adam milled around, not doing a good job of looking busy, eagerly waiting for William to get out. It was clear how much Adam missed William. And just as clear the reciprocation, when William bustled over, a huge smile on his face to match Adam’s.

They had talked on the phone nearly once a day, mostly about ranch stuff, but they hadn’t seen each other in three months. William hadn’t wanted Adam to see him weak and vulnerable. That was a long time for BFF’s, but they were men, and not prone to squealing. Instead, like men, they shook hands forcefully, squeezing each other’s arms and clapping each other on the back.

“Good to have ya back, man! Just weren’t the same without ya!” It was as close as Adam would come to screaming and dancing around like a tween.

William just nodded and looked around. I could tell he had missed it.

Adam saw me and crossed the space in a couple strides, his smile bubbling over into his crushing hug. He was allowed to show affection for a girl. Thankfully I’d changed my clothes—he left a big body’s worth of dirt on me.

“Hey Jessie girl! Good to have you back!”

“
Ow!”
I wheezed.

“Adam, she’s still sensitive.” William grabbed Adam’s shoulder.

“Oh right. Sorry.” Adam put me down immediately. “Just damn glad to have you back!”

Ty nearly danced up next, ready for his manly shake and his back slapping. Then another few guys. I shook my head with a half-smile and joined the girls, who were in their usual spot at the side of the arena.

“What have you been up to Jessica?” Candace asked, beaming. “I hear you got another promotion at work. I told you you would climb to the top! Too smart for the bottom.”

“Yeah. I think I had help with that, though. I think Mrs. Davies got her nose in it. She is ten times more connected than William or Tom when she wants to be. No one seems to say no to her.” My eyes followed a large bull being loaded into the shoot.

“It would have happened anyway,” Candace said.

“Are there more people here than normal?” I scanned the various groups clustered all over the grounds. Some were slightly older, bull-riders-past by the looks of them, but many were waiting to ride. More than a few were complete strangers, all geared up and ready to go.

“Which group of men are you referring to?” Lump asked, glancing behind her. “The group of guys anxiously waiting to ride Willie’s famous bulls? Or the ones waiting anxiously to ride Willie’s famous woman?”

I glanced behind me again. “What do you mean?”

“The ones that are waiting to ride bulls heard about the bull that nearly killed Willie. It was great marketing. It led to questions about what other kinds of bulls he’s got. If that one was a fluke or not. Willie’s got a few bulls in the rodeos, and more here to test. All these guys want to be bull testers. They want the practice. Some the glory. Mostly they are a bunch of idiots, but there are a couple big time riders here, so the word’s out.”

“That’s good for William, right?”

Lump shrugged. “You’d have to ask Adam. Or Willie. Adam seems to think so--“

“Ty, too,” Candace added.

“Anyway, the other guys heard Willie was making it out tonight. They want to see the town celebrity.”

“So where do I fit in?”

Lump laughed. “
You
are the town celebrity. They want to see Willie, too—he had a narrow miss. He is well respected among these guys. But no, they want to see the rodeo goddess that jumped in front of a lunatic bull, took off her shirt, and saved the day.”

Candace giggled.

“Wait. What? Why?” I looked around again. Now that she mentioned it, some of the groups of men were glancing in our direction, talking while they did.

“What do you mean
why
?” Lump was saying, her and Candace looking at me now. “Four reasons, actually. First, when things were looking bad, the heroic girlfriend jumped into the ring and flagged down a giant, angry bull.
Then
she led it to the holding pen to get locked in, thus saving her man from certain death. She saved Ty as well, of course, because he would’ve been caught up and killed most assuredly, they say. Most men would think you are crazy, true, but bull riders are crazy themselves, and they think you are heroic.”

I scoffed.

“Second, it is legend how far that bull head-butted you while you were in the air. I saw it myself. My God, Jess, it was pretty vicious! You were on your way down one minute, then the next you flew another twelve feet! It was measured.

“Third,” she held up three fingers with a smirk. “Is it not the most noble thing that a woman risks herself to save her man? But it doesn’t stop there. You tried to fight your way out of your death bed to get to William’s side, they say. You assaulted half the staff to get there; to sit with him day and night. You wouldn’t even get up to pee or eat, they say.”

“That is just stupid,” I interjected, even though it was mostly true. I did sound a bit crazy.

“Fourth,” Lump went on. She started laughing, as did Candace. “Fourth, Jessica Brodie, and the biggest wonder of the story—the detail that will get you a date with any of the guys in the rodeo world, even enabling you to steel Adam and Ty if Willie would allow it—you did all this in nothing but jeans and a lacy, black, see-through teddy.”

Lump and Candace started laughing harder. I felt a weird smirk creep up my face.

“At first,” Candace said, “no one believed the bit about the teddy. I mean, what woman would try to rescue someone without clothes? How would no one see that she was walking around before the incident, naked?”

“Yeah,” Lump picked up the story again, having a hard time with a straight face. “That is until they were told you took off your shirt to wave in the bulls face. You had the teddy on underneath. That made you the sexiest bull-rider’s girlfriend
ever!
Now all the single bull-riders look at Candace and I with wondering glances to our chest. No doubt wondering if we, too, are wearing a black, lacy, see-through teddy. We are incredibly sexy by default.”

“But it was a bra." My face was as hot as the sun.

“Guys don’t know the difference. Teddy sounds better.” Candace waved the thought away with her hand.

We went back to watching the bull riding, Candace and Lump still chuckling.

Ty came over a while later with a smile on his face. “Jess,” he said merrily. “Can I have an autograph? I already got one from Willie.”