Authors: Cat Johnson
Midnight Wrangler (11 page)
Chapter Eleven
The surprise early-morning phone call from Rohn was enough to get Bonnie moving for the day, no matter how groggy she felt from the pharmacy sleeping pills that hadn't helped her sleep all that great.
As her mind spun she headed to the bathroom. She needed to dress for the day. Rohn's hired hands would be coming over to help soon and Rohn was apparently delivering breakfast.
Her face burned as she remembered his comment on the phone when he'd told her to
put some clothes on
.
put some clothes on
.
Bonnie hadn't felt attractive, or like a real woman, in a long while. She'd kind of sidelined that portion of her life and concentrated on safer things. Work. Her mom. Their home.
Rohn made it seem as if it would be easy to fall back into things with him. Was he just being friendly, or was he looking to pick up where they'd left off? He wouldn't be if he knew the complete truth.
When
âifâ
she ever told him, he'd hate her. No doubt about it.
âifâ
she ever told him, he'd hate her. No doubt about it.
Keeping that in mind she pulled her hair back and splashed cold water on her face. She needed the icy dose of reality. Because of the past, she could have no future with him. The sooner she accepted that, the better.
Face washed and teeth brushed, Bonnie flipped open the lid of the small carry-on-sized suitcase she had with her in the bathroomâone of the only two clean rooms in the house. Since she'd be cleaning again today, she should put on a T-shirt and shorts. Even so, she had the urge to put on one of her better tank tops.
She wanted to look good and she knew why. Rohn.
Forcing herself to stop trying to be pretty for him, she grabbed the T-shirt instead of the tank. Bonnie had just pulled it over her head when she heard the distant sound of her cell phone ring.
Now what?
Drawing in a breath, she ran for the kitchen, where last night she had plugged the phone into an outlet to charge.
The readout said
Mom
. Bonnie had texted just to say she'd arrived in town safely, but she hadn't had a chance to call her mother yesterday. She'd intended to, but she'd become so involved with cleaning, she'd never gotten around to it.
Mom
. Bonnie had texted just to say she'd arrived in town safely, but she hadn't had a chance to call her mother yesterday. She'd intended to, but she'd become so involved with cleaning, she'd never gotten around to it.
She grabbed the phone and yanked the cord out, hitting the button to answer the call before it went to voice mail. “Mom. Hi. Sorry, I was at the other end of the house and had to run for the phone.”
“Oh, I'm sorry, baby. So how's it going there?”
“It's . . . going.” Bonnie glanced around the kitchen. She couldn't bring herself to say it was going well. At least she could say she'd made some progress in the short time she'd been in Oklahoma.
“That doesn't sound good.”
Her mother knew her too well. She would know if Bonnie outright lied and said everything was fine. “There's just a lot to be done, that's all. Nothing I can't handle.”
“I knew I should have gone with you. I'm going to call my boss and take off workâ”
As a teacher, Bonnie had the summer off. Her mother didn't, nor did she have paid vacation time at her job as a receptionist. Their finances were fine, but still things were tight enough that she and her mother needed both of their incomes to live comfortably.
“No, Mom. Really, I'm fine. Actually, cleaning out is kind of cathartic. You won't believe what I found last night in the kitchen drawer.”
“What?”
“The tassel from my graduation cap. It was stuck in the program along with my prom picture. I guess you stashed it there twenty-five years ago. Crazy it's still there, huh?”
“Uh, Bonnie. I never put those things in the kitchen drawer.”
“What do you mean?”
“I never saw your cap or the tassel for that matter after you graduated. I assumed you had it put away somewhere.”
Now that she thought about it, she had. Both the tassel and a copy of the graduation program had been stashed on the top shelf of her closet. She'd been meaning to make a scrapbook and had never gotten around to it before leaving for Arizona. So how did it get in the kitchen and into the program?
“Are you sure you didn't move the tassel into the drawer? Maybe you forgot?”
“Baby girl, I might be old but I'm not forgetful. I never saw that tassel except on your head when you walked up to get your diploma.” The conviction was clear in her mother's tone.
“Okay. I believe you.”
Could it have been her father who'd gone through her closet and stuck it in the kitchen with the prom picture? That was something she'd need to wrap her head around when it wasn't spinning with shock.
“You sound overwhelmed. Are you sure you don't need my help there? I can look at flightsâ”
“Really, Mom. Don't waste the time or the money coming here. I, uh, actually have help.”
“Colleen and Andrew? They always were so sweet.”
It wasn't the neighbors Bonnie had been thinking of, but she didn't correct her mother. “Yeah, they are sweet. They came over to see me right after I arrived yesterday.”
“Good. I'm glad you're not alone there.”
“Nope. Not alone.”
What would her mother say if she knew Bonnie had seen their old farmhand, Rohn? Had shared ice cream with him. Had been invited to stay at his house. That she was about to have breakfast with him.
Knowing her mother, she'd think it was great, because even to this day Bonnie had never revealed that she and Rohn had been secretly dating that summer.
She didn't have time to get into anything with her mother now. Rohn's guys would be over soon. She should probably wrap this up before they arrived.
“So I was about to get started on all I need to do today. Can I call you later?”
“Of course, baby. Don't work too hard. Okay? And accept help when it's offered. Don't be stubborn.”
“I'm not stubborn.”
“Yes, you are.”
Bonnie drew in a breath. “All right. I'll try.”
“That's all any of us can do. Bye, baby.”
“Bye, Mom.”
She disconnected the call and laid the cell on the counter. That one conversation had raised more questions than it answered. Bonnie yanked open the drawer in the kitchen, curious now as to what else it contained.
Pawing through the menus, pens, rubber bands, and assorted crap, Bonnie finally excavated to a level that revealed more personal things. She pulled out the items she'd found last night and laid them on the counter.
Beneath that she found even older pictures. Photos that could only be from the time period when her father and mother were dating. Before they'd gotten married. Had her father put those there too? Did he miss her mother so much, he kept the pictures in the kitchen so he could look at them?
He had never remarried and Bonnie had always assumed it was because he was such a miserable bastard that no woman would put up with him. But in light of this evidence, she had to wonder, had her father not remarried because he'd never stopped loving her mother?
She pawed deeper. One picture stopped her dead. It was her, as a baby, held in her father's arms, and he was smiling. This baby picture. The one from her prom night. The graduation stuff. Had he actually missed her, too, after she'd left?
A knock on the front door startled Bonnie. She swept all of her finds back into the drawer to deal with later and turned toward the living room.
Unlike last night, she had the front door closed and locked. The only thing she could see was a cowboy hat through the small window, but she knew who was there anyway.
That was Rohn's hat.
Flipping the top lock with one hand, she turned the knob with the other and pulled the door open.
“Good morning.” His smile made her heart skip a beat and she knew she was in trouble.
“Good morning.” She couldn't help the smile that bowed her lips. “Come on in.”
He stepped forward into the room, glancing around as he did so.
“I haven't started working yet today.” Bonnie felt the need to explain, to make excuses why the living room was still as cluttered as it had been last night when he'd left.
“We'll get it straightened out today. But breakfast first.” He held up the white paper bag in his hand.
She lifted her brows at the size of the bag. “That looks like a lot of food.”
He grinned. “I bought enough for the guys. They'll be here right behind me and they can really put away the food. Believe me.”
Bonnie followed him into the kitchen. “I'll have to run out and get something for them for laterâ”
“Stop. I'll grab them lunch later, and if they need anything before then, they can go and get it themselves.”
“I don't even have any bottled water for them to drink.”
“Bonnie.” Rohn grinned wider. “I know you've been away from farm life for a while, and maybe things are a bit more refined where you live now, but I can tell you that these guys are used to drinking straight out of the hose at the ranch. They'll be fine with tap water. Hell, using a glass will be a step up.”
She had been away for a long time. It was easy to forget things like swimming in the pond to cool off in summer, and, as Rohn had said, drinking straight out of the hose.
There had been life before bottled water. Sometimes it was hard to remember that. She missed those good old days. Some parts of them, anyway.
“All right. I'm still buying you all lunch though since you're helping me.”
“How about we debate that when the time comes?”
“Okay.” She had a feeling he'd fight her tooth and nail about buying lunch. She'd have to sneak in a call to the pizza place later and order a delivery before Rohn had a chance to buy something else. But lunch wasn't nearly enough for all he was about to do for her. “I don't know how to pay you back for all your help.”
“That's easy. You don't have to.”
“No, Rohn, I want to.”
“A'ight. If you insist, I have an idea of how you can return the favor.” He pulled out an envelope from the back pocket of his jeans and held it up.
“What's that?” She frowned at it.
“You didn't get one in the mail?” He seemed surprised she didn't recognize the square white envelope that didn't have any identifiable markings on it.
“No.” She shook her head. “And my mail goes to Arizona, not here.”
“I thought maybe they'd sent it to this address. Anyway, hereâ” He thrust the envelope toward her.
Still not knowing what it was, she lifted the flap of the already torn envelope and pulled out the thick piece of paper inside. The words
25th High School Reunion
sprang out at her.
25th High School Reunion
sprang out at her.
“Go with me for old time's sake. Just as friends, and nothing more, if that will make you feel more comfortable.”
Comfortable? Being around Rohn made her heart beat faster. Her pulse race. Her mind reel.
Old slippers and worn pajamas were comfortable. Being with him was anything but that.
“When is it?” She eyed the invitation again, supposing if she could get her brain to function, she'd be able to read that answer for herself.
“It's in a couple of weeks.”
“I don't know if I'll still be here.” She had a life, a job, and her mother in Arizona to get back to. The thought of leaving, of going back to Phoenix and never seeing Rohn again, had her heart hurting.
“If you are still here, will you go with me?” He shrugged. “You know, just to save me the embarrassment of having to go alone.”
Why a man like Rohn would ever have to go anywhere alone was beyond her, and suddenly, she felt insanely jealous of any other woman he might choose to go with him if she said no.
It was a bad move. She was crazy, but she said, “Okay.”
“Well, a'ight then.” His grin made him look twenty years younger. “Let's eat.”
“Okay.” Her stomach was so twisted from his invitation and her answer she wasn't sure she could eat, but she'd have to try since he'd gone to the trouble to bring breakfast.
At the kitchen table, he reached into the bag and pulled out two wrapped bundles. “I hope you like egg and cheese on a roll.”
“Yes, thank you.”
“Hello? Anybody home?” A male voice she didn't recognize came from the front door Rohn had left open.
He grinned. “That will be the hungry hordes here to work. I told them I was picking up breakfast to make sure they'd finish up at my place quick and get right over here instead of dilly-dallying.”
“Smart man.” Bonnie stood and moved toward the doorway. “Come on in.”
Three men came through the front door, each one as good-looking as the last. Their presence filled the room, which was already so full it barely accommodated their bulk. All three wore jeans, boots, and cowboy hats, and she had no problem envisioning them working Rohn's cattle ranch.
A cowboy with eyes so pretty she was sure they had won him more than a few girls during his young life was standing closest to her. He smiled and tipped his head in her direction. “Hey, I'm Tyler.”
A handsome blond man who was slightly taller and maybe a little bit older than Tyler moved a step forward. “Ma'am. I'm Justin.”
“And I'm Colton.” The third cowboy tipped his hat in her direction. He, too, would have any farmer keeping a close eye on his daughter.
She should know. Bonnie had been that farmer's daughter one summer, back when Rohn was the handsome hired hand.
“Nice to meet you. I'm Bonnie.”
“Or
Miss Bonnie.
” Rohn had snuck up behind her. “Food's in the kitchen. Eat up. After, we'll figure out a game plan.”
Miss Bonnie.
” Rohn had snuck up behind her. “Food's in the kitchen. Eat up. After, we'll figure out a game plan.”
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