Cowboy Take Me Away (31 page)

“And after the championship,” Luke said, “I want to stay here.”

Shannon was stunned. “Here? In Rainbow Valley?”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure? So much has happened. I was afraid you’d never want to live here again.”

“This is your home. I’d never take you away from it. I don’t know what I’ll do here, but wherever you are, that’s where I want to be.”

Shannon couldn’t believe it. It was as if every dream she’d ever had was coming true.

“I don’t know if I can give you anything,” Luke said. “I honestly don’t know if I have it in me. But I’ll try, Shannon. I’ll try so hard to make you happy.”

“Luke,” she whispered, “you’ve been doing nothing but give since the moment you showed up.”

Another hour passed. Luke and Shannon huddled together in front of the television, and eventually word came. The evacuation order for Rainbow Valley had been lifted.

Luke let out a breath of relief. “It’s official. The town’s safe.”

“But we don’t know if the fire reached the shelter. I can’t stand not knowing.”

“This storm is still too strong. The wind. The lightning. We need to stay put.” He looked down at himself. “But I do need to get cleaned up. I’ll go to my truck for a change of clothes.”

Shannon ran her hand along his shoulder, then placed it against his neck, her thumb stroking his jaw back and forth. Then she leaned in and kissed him.

“Don’t bother right now,” she said. “You won’t need them.”

Shannon rose from the sofa, took his hand, and led him to the bathroom. They took a shower together, kissing, caressing, and occasionally even washing. They stepped out and dried off. Luke went to Shannon’s bed, turned the lamp on low, and lay down. The effort he’d expended getting Manny away from that fire had made every muscle in his body ache, and his eyes were heavy with exhaustion. In the bathroom, he heard the whir of a blow dryer. A few minutes after that, Shannon came into the bedroom wearing a short black robe. Her feet were bare, and her dark hair hung in glossy sheets over her shoulders.

She sat down on the bed beside him. “You look tired.”

“Just a little.”

“How’s the knee?”

“A little sore. But no more so than any other place.”

She stroked her hand up and down his arm. “Tell me where it hurts and I’ll kiss it.”

Luke sighed with contentment. He’d taken care of himself for so long that he didn’t know how to act when somebody was taking care of him. To feel her soft, gentle hands wanting nothing more than to ease his discomfort and soothe his pain was a dream he never could have imagined living.

“Everywhere,” he said.

Shannon smiled. “That might take all night.”

The tie of her robe had loosened, allowing the front of it to fall open slightly. A droplet of water still clung to the swell of one breast, and he couldn’t take his eyes off it. At the same time, he slid his hand beneath her robe to caress her bare thigh.

“The robe,” he whispered.

“Yes?”

“Take it off.”

W
ith no hesitation, Shannon stood up. She unwrapped the sash, then pushed the robe off her shoulders and let it fall to the floor behind her. For a moment she stood naked in the dim lamplight, and Luke truly believed he’d never seen anything more beautiful in his life.

She stepped back to the bed, and Luke’s heart beat wildly with anticipation. She sat down beside him, stroking her hand over his chest. He reached up to touch her cheek, then her temple, where he brushed a strand of hair away from her face.

She leaned over and touched her lips to his. Her blood coursed wildly through his veins, echoing inside his ears, sending a hard shudder of desire racing through him. He curled his hand behind her neck, angled his head, and kissed her deeper. He was hard and hot and he needed desperately to take control, but every time he tried to rise, she pressed his shoulder back to the mattress. As she kissed her way down his chest, he lay back and closed his eyes, squeezing his hands into fists as she made love to him in an adoring, heartfelt way he’d never experienced before.

Since leaving Rainbow Valley, he’d been with plenty of women, but none of them had known a damned thing about him. He was simply a good-time guy out for an evening of fun, and then he said good-bye. He never put too much control into somebody else’s hands, because trust came harder than anything else. But this was Shannon. She knew all about him. The good, the bad, the awful.

And she still loved him.

A moment later, she moved on top of him. Never in his life had he wanted a woman this much. Never in his life had one been so willing to give herself to him. She slid along him, once, twice, feeling so slick and hot it that he wanted desperately to turn her onto her back and plunge inside her. When she finally took him inside, he arched his hips up to meet her, feeling as if he’d been transported to heaven.

But she moved slowly. Too slowly. An involuntary groan rose in his throat. He wanted her to move harder, faster.
Needed
her to. He took hold of her hips, trying to guide her. But she seemed intent on driving him insane.

“Shannon,” he said, breathing hard. “Sweetheart.
More
.”

But she continued to move slowly, taking him deeply, grinding against him, then drawing back completely. He’d never felt anything like it in his life. He clasped her thighs, trying to rise to meet her, trying to ease the torment, but she was having none of it.

Soon her breath came faster, but still she insisted on moving at her same maddeningly slow pace. Then all at once her hands tightened against his shoulders. A gasp escaped her lips. She threw her head back and then brought it forward again. A hard shudder of pleasure traveled the length of her body, and he felt her muscles tighten against him.

That was all it took to push him over the edge.

Sensation slammed into him, ripping a groan from his throat. All the slow-motion movement culminated in a climax so hard and so complete he thought he just might die from the feeling. All his adult life, all he’d known was sex for the sake of sex, with nothing of the love that was supposed to come along with it. But this was it. This.

This.

When he could finally breathe again, he looked up at Shannon. Her eyes were still closed, her hands still pressed against his shoulders. Soon her breathing slowed, the last tremors of pleasure fading away.

“Look at me,” he whispered.

She opened her eyes and met his gaze, and he saw it in her eyes.

Love.

He’d been waiting for it all his life. How could he have imagined he’d have to return to Rainbow Valley to find it?

For a long time afterward, neither of them spoke. They just lay together in bed as the storm raged outside. It was the most blinding rainstorm Shannon could remember, complete with thunder and lightning that rattled the old apartment building until it seemed as if the walls were going to come crashing down.

As she slowly emerged from her blissful haze, she found herself thinking about the shelter. And about the animals. One in particular.

“Manny,” she said. “I’m so worried about him.”

“I know. Dr. Adler will do all she can.”

“Of all the animals at the shelter, why did it have to be him?”

“I don’t know,” Luke said.

“I should have found a way to replace that barbed wire. I knew it was dangerous.”

“There’s barbed wire all over the state of Texas. You can’t do it all.”

“But what if he dies? Now, when he’s finally getting a chance at a decent life?”

“He’ll go to the Rainbow Bridge,” Luke said.

Shannon closed her eyes, her heart dangerously close to breaking.

“He won’t be in any pain there,” Luke went on. “All his scars, inside and out, will disappear. And he won’t bite anymore, because everything there is perfect and any memory he has of somebody hurting him will be gone. He’ll spend every day eating to his heart’s content, dozing in the sunshine, and just being happy.”

By the dim lamplight, Shannon saw his eyes glisten with tears. In that moment, she knew how much the little horse meant to him. She slid her hand down his arm and took his hand.

“If the worst happens, you’ll be the one,” she said.

He turned slowly to look at her. “The one?”

“The one Manny waits for at the Rainbow Bridge.”

A single tear trickled down his temple. She brushed it away with her thumb, then touched her lips to the place where it had been. He turned and enveloped her in his arms, holding her tightly. A prayer circled through her mind that when tomorrow came, Manny would be okay and the shelter would be intact. But no matter what happened, Luke would be there with her, and they’d face it together.

They were quiet for a long time, but she knew he hadn’t fallen asleep. Something suddenly occurred to her, a question she had to ask.

“The stuffed dog you had when you were a kid,” she said. “The one you hid beneath the floor board?”

“Yes?”

“What did you call him?”

Luke stared up at the ceiling. When he finally spoke, his voice was hoarse and raspy, barely above a whisper.

“Fluffy.”

Shannon felt a wave of understanding that shook her to her soul. She couldn’t even imagine the desperation he must have felt as a child, wanting so much to feel love from someone. Something.
Anything.

“Suddenly I like that name a lot,” Shannon whispered.

“It won’t matter what his name is. Not when it comes to him being adopted.”

“Why is that?”

“Because I think he’s already found a home,” Luke said.

His eyes drifted closed, and Shannon smiled to herself.
I think you both have.

At six fifteen the next morning, Luke heard Shannon’s phone ring. She sat up instantly, shoved the covers back, and went to the other room. Luke heard her answer the phone, but he couldn’t make out what she was saying. A few minutes later she came back into the room, and he could tell she was on the verge of tears.

He sat up suddenly in bed. “Shannon? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Nothing. I just—it was Dr. Adler. She says Manny’s going to be okay.”

Luke bowed his head, relief surging through him.

“She gave him blood and fluids and stitched his wounds, and he’s much better this morning.” She put her hand over her mouth and closed her eyes. “I’m going to cry. And it’s not going to be pretty.”

“Come here,” he said.

He pulled the covers back, and she’d barely laid back down before the tears came. He took her in his arms and let her melt into him, thinking once again about Rita’s words. This time he wanted to tell her,
Yes. I’ll watch out for her. How about for the rest of her life?

“Do you know how Dr. Adler knew Manny was going to be okay?” Shannon said.

Luke thought for a moment, only to realize it was a no-brainer. “Let me guess. He tried to bite her.”

Shannon smiled through her tears. “I guess you’ll have to teach her how to scratch behind his ears.”

Luke heard the slightest pattering of rain against the window, and the barest hint of light filtered through the bedroom blinds. They relaxed in bed for a few more minutes as the room brightened with dawn.

“The shelter,” Luke said. “We need to know.”

She nodded. She ran out to Luke’s truck and grabbed him a change of clothes. By the time they dressed and left the apartment building, yellow-orange light was spilling over the horizon. They got into Luke’s truck, and minutes later they were driving down Highway 28 toward the shelter. Neither one of them spoke, knowing quite well that in a matter of minutes they could discover that the worst had happened. Shannon took a deep, calming breath, but it did nothing to ease her apprehension. Then she steered the truck around the last bend before the shelter came into view, and she felt like shouting with joy.

All of it was standing. The shelter and all its buildings—still standing. Flames hadn’t touched any of it.

“It’s there,” she said with disbelief. “Oh, my God…Luke! It’s still there!”

She pulled to the side of the road. The odor of burning brush still hung in the air, but the buildings were intact. Luke could see an actual line in the distance the fire had burned to before the storm hit and snuffed it out.

“This place is blessed,” Shannon said quietly. “I don’t know how. But it is.”

Luke looked farther up the road. “Keep going.”

For a moment she looked confused. Then she touched the gas again and drove farther down the highway toward his father’s property. Luke’s heart pounded as he waited for his first glimpse. Then it came into view, and he couldn’t believe what he saw.

The trees near the front of the property had been consumed by fire, leaving a clear view of the rest of the acreage. The house that had haunted him, the house where his innocence had been destroyed, the house that had lived in his nightmares from the time he was old enough to walk…

Nothing was left of it but a soggy, harmless pile of ashes.

“It’s gone,” Luke said, his voice filled with disbelief. “The fire burned right through it.”

“But before it got to the shelter—”

“The rain came.” He grasped the arm rest until his fingers whitened.

“Luke? Are you all right?”

“I hated that house,” he said, his voice tight with anger. “
Hated
it.”

“I know. But it’s gone now.”

He swallowed hard. “Drive closer.”

Shannon pulled onto the property and headed down the gravel road to the place where the house used to be. Luke opened the passenger door and slowly got out of the truck, unable to take his eyes off it.

Shannon walked around the truck and came up beside him, tucking her hand inside his. “You never have to think about it again, Luke. Never again.”

Never again.

In that moment, whatever anger and bitterness he’d held on to all these years seemed to flow right out of him, mingling with the ashes of the past to be carried away on the wind. Soon his old life would be over and a new one would begin, a life filled with endless possibilities.

He thought about how this twenty acres belonged to him. How much he liked kids. It was just a glimmer of an idea floating around in his mind, but once the championship rodeo was over…

Maybe I could start a rodeo school.

The very thought of it excited him. It would take more work than anything he’d ever known, but he had no doubt it could be part of his future if he decided he wanted it.

He turned to look out over the valley. Pale gray clouds still filled the sky, but the rainstorm had cleansed the air, making it feel fresh and new and full of promise. Then, rising over the tree-covered hillside, Luke caught a glimpse of something that blasted away any last shred of cynicism he might have been holding on to.

A rainbow.

A beautiful, mystical, life-affirming rainbow.

Shannon saw him staring and looked, too. When she spotted it, her eyes widened with wonder. “My God,” she said on a breath. “It’s beautiful.”

Growing up, Luke had always felt the irony of living a black and white existence in a place where rainbows happened more often than just about any place in the country. But as he looked at this rainbow now, it was as if that black and white existence had faded away and his life had exploded in Technicolor splendor.

Shannon turned and slid into his arms. “I’m going with you.”

“What?”

“To Denver,” she said with a smile. “I want to see you win.”

When Luke drew a bull named Son of Satan for the final ride of his career, he knew it had to be a sign.

As he climbed the chute and stepped off the fence onto the black monster, the odor of dirt and sweat filled his nostrils, and his heart smacked his chest like machine gun fire. The bull shifted beneath him, reared, then slammed his forelegs down again, snorting wildly. Luke adjusted his grip on the rigging, then positioned his spurs. The hazy cloud of dust from the last rider still swirled through the arena, giving it a misty, otherworldly feeling. But Luke was ready. Only a few points separated him from Hanson, and it all came down to this ride.

Luke nodded for the chute to open, and before a full second had even elapsed, he found out just how inappropriately that bull was named. Forget Son of Satan. The creature was Satan himself.

The bull lunged out of the gate, but Luke managed to keep his spurs over the animal’s shoulders to avoid disqualification. The bull spun to the left, then reversed direction and twisted hard to the right. Then he leaped into the air, all four feet off the ground, writhing like a bass on the end of a hook. Luke hung on for eight bone-jarring, neck-snapping, arm-wrenching seconds. When the horn sounded, he let go, and the bull’s next buck sent him flying through the air. A second later, he landed on his feet on the arena floor, exhilaration surging through him.

Everything after that seemed to move in slow motion. Luke ripped off his helmet. He wiped the sweat out of his eyes with his shirt sleeve, then turned to the scoreboard. He’d ridden the bull the full eight seconds, but he still needed a score of ninety-one to beat Hanson. The arena fell silent as everyone waited to find out who was the new world champion.