Dream Kisses (Romance on the Ranch Series #1) (9 page)

"Sure,
Dad."

After
he left, Jacob asked, "Is your dad okay?"

"Yeah.
He's just got a lot on his mind," she hedged. "Hey, since it's free
time, do you want to go for a horseback ride before supper?"

"That
sounds great! Do you think we could ride to the river?"

"Oh,
yeah. Why don't you bring your rope and we'll practice some tosses?"

"That's
a great idea. Your dad was watching me earlier today and said I'm learning
fast." Jacob looked kind of embarrassed and started to say something else,
but stopped.

"What?"

"I
was just going to tell you how much I like the cowboy life—never thought I'd
say that."

Julie
grinned. "Sure wish you were staying for the wagon train next week."

"Me,
too. I asked my mom and dad if we could stay, but Dad said no cause he's got
too many obligations, although I think my mom wants to stay. She's been acting weird
all day. She always caters to my dad and now she's practically ignoring him.
She even looks younger and keeps getting this grin on her face. I can tell it's
driving my dad crazy. He hasn't pulled his laptop out all day."

"Yeah,
my dad is acting strange, too," Julie admitted. "Well, let's see if
Mims…er…Sarah, is ready to be shown to her room."

"Why
do you keep calling her Mims?"

"Ah,
I know someone who looks like her and that's her name."

"Oh,
okay."

Julie
and Jacob walked to stand beside Sarah who politely excused herself from talking
with Mr. and Mrs. Tully. After showing Sarah to her room and helping her
unpack, Julie returned to the great room where Jacob was waiting. The twins had
disappeared. They were probably trailing her dad around the ranch, which would
no doubt put him in a worse mood. Jacob's mom was now exercising with the
aerobics video and doing a pretty good job of keeping up. His dad sat in one of
the recliners watching her with a sullen expression.

A
knock on the door interrupted everyone. Julie opened it. "Hey, Jackson,
good to see ya. You just missed my dad. You might catch him at the barn. Want
me to call him on the walkie-talkie?"

"Uh,
yeah. Can I come in a minute?"

Julie
stepped aside. "Sure. Hey, were you at Boot Bustin' Barn last night? Did
you meet our guests?"

Jackson
removed his Stetson. "Yes, I met everyone last night." He glanced
toward Mrs. Hackstetter who had stopped exercising. Julie couldn't tell if she
was red-faced from exertion or blushing. Mr. Hackstetter's face was red as a tomato.

Jackson
said, "I'm…ah…delivering the last of the fence posts Sage bought from the
Triple T. I thought he might be here."

Duh,
since when do you look for dad when delivering fence posts?

Mrs.
Hackstetter said softly, "Hello Jackson. It's nice to see you again. Last
night was fun."

"Thank
you, ma'am. I enjoyed myself."

Curley
walked in from the kitchen with a fresh pot of coffee that he always kept brewed.
"Hey, Jackson, haven't seen you for awhile."

"Howdy,
Curley." He held his hat in front of him and nervously played with the
brim.

There
was an awkward silence and then Julie said, "Curley, will you call Dad on
the walkie-talkie and let him know Jackson's looking for him?"

"Sure
thing." Curley got to the kitchen door then turned back around. "Hey,
Jackson, why don’t you join us for supper? I'm servin' stew and cornbread."

Jackson
smiled. "I'd like that."

Julie
glanced at Mrs. Hackstetter. She looked delighted. Mr. Hackstetter looked mad.
Jacob looked confused.
Jeez, have I stepped into an alternate reality?

Sarah
unpacked her suitcases, grateful to be alone. The atmosphere had gotten tight
when Jackson arrived. She remembered him from the previous night. He'd danced
several times with Mrs. Hackstetter, who'd obviously enjoyed his attention. She
couldn't blame her. Jackson was handsome and Mr. Hackstetter didn't appear to
be a very attentive husband, although the look he'd given the cowboy had
jealousy written all over it. Perhaps Jackson was just the kick-in-the-ass Mr.
Hackstetter needed to kindle something with his wife. Sarah stuck the scene in
the back of her mind; maybe she'd use it in one of her stories.

After
unpacking, she stretched across the homemade quilt on the four-poster bed in
her temporary home. Unwanted emotions, buried for a long, long time, surfaced
with Sage's haunting words.
You need to see a shrink, Mims.

She
covered her eyes with her forearm, remembering things she wanted to forget—a
failed marriage at the age of twenty-four, a miscarriage at five months
gestation, and then depression so deep she hadn't wanted to live. Maybe she was
having a relapse and Sage was right about her needing to seek help. What did
they call it—Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome?

She
sighed and rolled onto her side. Her thoughts retaliated against Sage. He didn't
have dibs on the heartache market. Although losing his wife and child certainly
outweighed her tragedy; watching her baby's twenty-four hour struggle for life
while caressing his tiny hand was enough to send anyone to the loony bin.
Closing her eyes, she drifted and relived bits and pieces of her life—meeting
John Carter, a man eighteen years her senior and being swept off her feet;
planning her beautiful wedding; believing the lies John told her about
out-of-town business trips and late night meetings; accepting the reality of
his infidelity after being confronted by a jilted lover; listening to his
harangues about her weight problem; being overjoyed to discover she was
pregnant; losing the baby; blaming herself for the miscarriage; garnering the
courage to leave John; working low paying jobs to keep a roof over her head;
and the list went on. She opened her eyes and swiped away tears.

* * *

Sage
and Jackson unloaded the last of the fence posts and Sage reached into his
pocket. Pulling out his money clip, he slipped out two twenties and handed them
to Jackson. He'd already paid the other two guys in his scheme. "Thanks
for playing along last night. Mrs. Hackstetter had a great time; better than
anything that old fart of a husband would have shown her."

"I
don't want your money. I had fun dancing with Annie; taking it doesn't seem
right." Jackson pushed Sage's hand back.

Sage
blinked. "Annie, huh? Do I detect a note of fondness in your voice?"

Jackson
turned red. "Give it a rest, Sage."

"Shit,
Jackson, she's married. I only asked you to dance with her to make her husband
jealous. Thought it might make him pay attention to her."

"Whatever.
Curley asked me to stay for supper and I accepted."

"I
don't need this bullshit. You stay away from her. Besides, they're leaving at
the end of the week."

Jackson
merely shrugged and climbed into his truck. Sage watched him drive the short
distance back to the dorm. Sarah already had her panties in a wad. He didn't
need Mr. Hackstetter getting pissed, too. Rubbing the ache in his forehead, he
stalked toward the house to change and wash up for supper.

Curley
set a crock of beef stew on the sideboard along with cornbread floating in
butter, green beans simmered in bacon drippings, coleslaw, and fried potatoes.
Sage loaded his plate and sat at the head of the table. Thankfully, Mr. and
Mrs. Tully had saved him from the twins tonight by sitting on either side of
him. Next to them, Julie and Jacob sat across from each other. Mr. and Mrs.
Hackstetter sat side-by-side next to Jacob, and Jackson sat across from Mrs.
Hackstetter. Sarah was next to Jackson and the twins flanked Newt at the
opposite end of the table. Curley said a quick prayer and conversation buzzed.
Sage politely made small talk with his guests. He glanced at Sarah. Her face
looked puffy, like she'd been crying again, and she was rubbing the back of her
neck. Hell, he felt like crap. She glanced up and met his gaze and quickly
looked back down.

After
supper, while Curley passed around plates of hot apple pie topped with homemade
vanilla ice cream, Sage asked for everyone's attention.

"I
thought this would be a good time to discuss and answer questions about our Annual
Covered Wagon Three-Day Trail Blaze sponsored by the Lazy M Ranch and Triple T
Ranch. Some of you will be leaving at the end of the week, but we had some last
minute cancellations if you change your mind. The wagon train consists of six
replicas of covered wagons, otherwise known as prairie schooners, three
buckboards, and one chuck wagon. So far, we have a total of twenty 'dudes' and
'dudettes' registered." He made quote marks with his fingers and everyone
chuckled. "The wagon train will have a wagon master, which is yours truly;
a cook, Curley; and about twelve cowboys either driving the wagons or riding alongside.
Newt, Beaner, Ned, and Skipper from the Lazy M are working the train. The rest
of the cowboys are from the Triple T, including Jackson." He paused, but
before he could continue his spiel, Mrs. Hackstetter said, "I'd like to
sign up. Who should I see?"

Sage
glanced at Mr. Hackstetter. The man looked like he'd swallowed his tongue. The
shit-eatin' grin on Jackson's face confirmed the fact that he was attracted to
Mrs. Hackstetter. He heard Jacob exclaim, "Right on, Mom!"

Inwardly,
Sage sighed, but outwardly he said enthusiastically, "You can sign up with
Newt after supper." He wondered if Mr. Hackstetter would be staying too.

Continuing
his discourse, he glanced around the group. "I hope y'all realize this
trek is as authentic as we can make it. You'll even be wearing period
costumes."

Mindy
and Mandy squealed and one of them said, "We want to be saloon
girls!" The other one vigorously nodded. Sage rubbed his temples. The more
the night wore on, the less he felt like smiling. He forced a smile at the girls.
"I think that can be arranged, ladies. Costumes will be delivered the day
before we leave. At that time, role playing will also be assigned. Are there
any questions?"

"How
many days will we be traveling?" asked Mrs. Hackstetter.

"Three
days; the wagons leave Triple T around eight on Thursday morning and arrive at
my ranch Saturday night. Just so everyone's clear, you will
definitely
get a taste of pioneer life. So, having said that, if you're not ready to leave
modern conveniences, including a bathroom, this may not be the adventure for
you."

The
group chuckled and glanced nervously at each other.

* * *

After
getting her ankle wrap off the day after moving to the dorm, Sarah had been
anxious to experience ranch life. She'd been given a tour of the Lazy M by
Beaner with an overview of its operations. Cows were more complicated than
she'd imagined. Later, she'd watched Jacob practice roping, and that same
afternoon, Julie had demonstrated trick riding. In the evening, Curley had
revealed secrets to preparing savory beans, fluffy cornbread, mouth watering
bread pudding, and perfect lemonade. After supper, while the guests lay
sprawled on couches and recliners in the great room, Newt had regaled them with
stories of the Old West. Copious notes filled Sarah's journal. She had some
good stuff.

Now,
two days after her emancipation from convalescence, Sarah looked into the eyes
of the horse in front of her and told herself,
You can do this.

"Miz.
Carter, this is our oldest and most gentle gelding. He wouldn't hurt a fly.
He's used to inexperienced riders, so you don't need to be scared," Newt
tried to reassure her.

Sarah
followed his instructions and put her foot in the stirrup while he hoisted her
atop Safety Blanket. She sure hoped the horse's name was an accurate depiction
of his personality. She squealed and grabbed the pommel.

"Now
you don't need to be so stiff. Try to relax and hold the reins."

Inhaling
a calming breath, Sarah forced her muscles to relax. After a minute she felt
better…and proud of her accomplishment. This was a
real
experience for
her book.

Newt
made a clicking sound and Safety Blanket started forward. Sarah's muscles
tensed again and she bit her bottom lip. The horse followed Newt around the
corral while he gave Sarah instructions about handling the beast. On her third
circle she was getting the hang of it. She glanced toward the barn to see Sage
leaning against the siding. His lips twitched and he tipped his hat. She
inadvertently pulled back on the reins and the horse stopped.
Okay how do I
make him go again?
Her brain wouldn't function clearly.
Oh, yeah, nudge
him with my feet.
She looked up again to see Sage was gone.
Thank goodness.
For the next hour, Newt taught her the basics of horseback riding.

The
day after her riding lesson a van that had Triple T Ranch written on the side,
arrived with costumes. Mindy and Mandy spotted some saloon girl outfits and
snagged them out of the hands of Jackson who was hauling them into the great
room to hang on racks.

Sage
called for everyone's attention, "Listen up, cowboys and cowgirls, Newt
and I put together some role playing assignments and here's what we've come up
with. Mindy and Mandy, you'll be saloon gals headed for San Francisco."