“I’m sure they’ll fix the truck soon.”
“How far is it?” Robin asked. “To Grand Junction?”
“Four hours.” Laredo drummed his fingers atop a tall laminated counter. “Jimmy, would it help if I picked up the parts for you?”
“Thanks, but it’s still early. I’d hate for you to go all that way only to have them call and say they figured out a fix.”
“Roger that.” Laredo turned to Robin. “Look, I didn’t expect to be in town this long. I guess that leaves two options. Either you and the baby camp out here, or you could tag along with me to the feed store, then pick up my new goats.”
“Thanks, but I’ll—” Robin had been on the verge of telling Laredo she’d wait at the shop as long as it took to get new tires, but then she got a nasty shock when a flash outside caused her to glance beyond the office’s large picture window.
Pulling into the lot was an SUV marked SHERIFF.
Her pulse raced nearly as hard as it had the previous day when that man had taken her car and baby. Had the sheriff found out what she’d done? Was he here to arrest her?
She gripped her baby tighter. “Um, Laredo, I think it might be fun for Lark if we tag along. She’s never seen a goat.”
“I’ve got your cell number.” Jimmy waved them on their way. “You two get going. It’s time for Kyle’s regular oil change. At least that’s something I can do without new parts.”
Yes. Robin willed her heart to slow. Let’s go now.
“Sounds like a plan.” Laredo already stood at the office door, holding it open for her. “Catch you later, Jimmy.”
The phone rang. Jimmy waved again before answering.
“I thought that was your ride,” Kyle said. “Ma’am, did Jimmy get you hooked up with your new tires?”
“Not yet.” Robin prayed the sheriff would enter the shop through the open garage doors. Instead, he stood between her and Laredo’s truck. She shuffled past. “Excuse me. I need to change my baby’s diaper.”
“Sure.” He tipped his uniform hat. “Nice seeing you again. Hope you get back on your way soon.”
Robin held her breath until safely reaching the truck.
Lark’s diaper was fine.
Robin’s pounding heart told another story. Until her tires were replaced, she had a new primary goal—staying as far from the sheriff as possible.
Chapter 3
“That gal’s as skittish as a day-old colt.”
“Worse.” Laredo shared a laugh with Kyle.
What he didn’t share were his suspicions that Mary was hiding from something. Most likely causes? An abusive ex. Trouble with the law. Evading debt. There were any number of reasons that could explain her standoffish behavior. What Laredo couldn’t explain was why he felt protective toward a woman and baby he barely knew.
“What’s the story on her tires? I figured a car as common as hers wouldn’t be a tough fit.”
“It’s not.” Laredo explained the delivery truck issue.
“Ah... The joys of small-town living. Might be faster to order from Amazon.”
“True.” Laredo removed his hat, using it to fan the day’s rising heat from his face. With the morning fog burned off, endless blue sky crowned the day. If it hadn’t been for the tumbleweed at his feet and swaying brown grasses on the horizon, he might have been back at sea. Sometimes he missed aspects of his former life. The camaraderie. The intensity. His full eyesight. “Hopefully, Jimmy will get the tires sorted out soon.”
“Agreed. Need me to take the gal and her baby off your hands? She’s welcome to hang out at the station. The break room’s set up for overnights. I’ve got extra deputies hired for Wing-Ding Days.”
Laredo winced. “Is it that time of year again already?”
“’Fraid so, my friend.” Kyle laughed, landing a pat to his shoulder. “Chin up. It’ll be fun. It brings a truckload of cash into local businesses. Sarah says the motel is already booked and Lulu’s making extra pies to sell at the arts and crafts show. The mayor’s expecting a few thousand folks.”
Laredo snorted on the way to his truck. With a backhanded wave, he added, “That’s my cue to stay out at my place till next week.”
“Party pooper!” Kyle shouted.
After climbing behind the wheel, Laredo backtracked. “Forgot the dirty diaper. Hand it to me, and I’ll toss it in Jimmy’s dumpster.”
“Oh—” She looked down, fastening the baby’s safety harness. “False alarm.”
Was it? Or had she invented the diversion to avoid Kyle?
Keeping his suspicions to himself, he started the engine, backing up before heading through more traffic than he’d seen since leaving San Diego.
“Is there something going on in town?”
“Wing-Ding Days.” He groaned when it took a few minutes’ wait to make a simple left into the feed store lot.
“Come again?” She flashed what he suspected was her first genuine smile since they’d met. “That sounds odd.”
“It is.” He steered through the temporary clearing. “The way I heard it explained is that the annual chicken races are in celebration of the town’s founder who owned the state’s first chicken farm. Sadly, they all died—George Whitlock and his fowl—in an epic 1913 blizzard. Can you believe they had thirty-eight inches of snow? Denver had forty-five.”
“Wow.”
“I know, right?” He parked in front of the store.
“But how did that tragedy result in chicken racing? And how does one even go about racing chickens?”
Laredo laughed. “No clue on both counts. Don’t forget funnel cakes, corn dogs and carnival rides. This time tomorrow, the whole town will be a madhouse. Kyle even hired extra help.”
“Thankfully, I should be long gone by then.”
“Lucky you. But I’ll be fine. My place is a good hour outside of town.”
She nodded and smiled.
Something about the way the sun shone through the window, backlighting her hair, squeezed his chest. She was impossibly pretty. And smelled good—clean and soapy. Like the wholesome new mom from a baby shampoo commercial. It was a struggle to force himself to remember she wasn’t selling hair care products, but a lie.
Something about her didn’t ring true.
“Hang tight,” he said, hating the war inside himself. For the few more hours he’d be with her, he made the conscious decision to become the proverbial ostrich sticking his head in the sand. “I need to grab a couple bags of feed for my chickens, then we’ll pick up the goats.”
“Sounds fun.” Another genuine smile warmed him in places where it had been years since he’d last seen light. “I haven’t pet a goat in forever. Had to be back when I was little, and my folks took me to the county fair.”
“You and Lark’s father never took her?” Go in the store, Laredo. Don’t be an idiot by getting any more involved with a woman who not only has something to hide but is leaving town in a few hours.
“He, um, didn’t care for things like that.”
Go inside, stupid. Why was he short on breath? “Are you still with him?”
She shook her head. Was it his imagination, or had the color left her face as if his question had been the plug on an emotional drain?
“Never mind. None of my business.”
“It’s okay,” she said. “No. We’re no longer married.”
“Oh.” Shoving his hands into his pockets, he nodded. “Well, I’m sorry to hear that.” No, you’re not. “Let me grab the feed, then we’ll show Lark her first goat.”
Her smile was faint, but the light behind Mary’s eyes held an emotion on which he couldn’t quite get an accurate read. Maybe hope?
He caught her stare and in that frozen moment found a kindred spirit. Another soul who was a little lost. Alone. The notion was as disconcerting as it was ludicrous.
“Right.” He marked the official end of the conversation, the moment, the crazy yearning for something he hadn’t realized he’d been missing, with a nod. “I’m gonna get that feed.”
Only after trudging ten yards into the store did Laredo realize he still hadn’t breathed.
The sooner Mary left town, the better.
* * *
“Aren’t you an itty-bitty slice of sweet potato pie?” The woman who’d introduced herself as Augusta Wren jiggled Lark’s pink-covered foot. She held out her arms. “I can’t remember the last time I got to hold a baby. Would you mind?”
“Um, I guess that would be okay. Should we sit down?”
They backed onto old-fashioned white metal gliders, then Robin passed the baby to her new friend. Augusta seemed like a nice-enough lady. Tall, she wore khaki shorts and an orange-toned tie-dyed T-shirt. A huge, flowery floppy hat shaded her face from the harsh sun. Cowboy boots protected her legs and feet from ground hazards. She and her husband ran a goat farm, and while Laredo and her husband, Ned, loaded his new herd, Robin had chatted with Laredo’s neighbor on their shady back porch that was an oasis of green in the otherwise brown landscape.
A fountain made from an assortment of stacked metal parts merrily tinkled, sending an occasional cool spray riding the soft breeze.
Hanging ferns and spider plants mingled with the tops of potted palms and fig trees. Colorful glazed Mexican pottery bowls had been filled with H2O, providing homes for water hyacinth and lettuce.
“This is beautiful,” Robin said with genuine awe. She’d always envied people born with green thumbs.
“Thanks. It’s a lot of work, but a labor of love. Ned and I enjoy our exotic paradise right here in the middle of our dust farm.” She smiled Robin’s way before returning her attention to making goofy faces at giggly Lark. “How long have you known Laredo?”
“Gosh...” Robin had to stop and think. “You know, I don’t think it’s even been twenty-four hours.” She gave the CliffsNotes version of her carjacking and Jimmy’s woes with the delivery truck. “As soon as my tires are replaced, I’ll be on my way.”
“How awful. We’ve never had anything like that happen in town—and I should know. Been here all my life.”
“It’s okay.” Robin looked to her clasped hands on her lap. “I mean, it’s not, but everything worked out fine. Thank goodness Lark didn’t get hurt.”
“Amen.” The older woman kissed Lark’s cheek. “Are you thirsty? I’ve got tea or could make lemonade. It’s from a mix, but still tasty on a barn burner of a day like this.”
“Thank you, but it’s probably almost time for us to go.”
“Probably so. But let me know if you change your mind. Your hero has always been a favorite of mine.”
My hero.
That’s exactly what Laredo had turned out to be. How would Robin ever repay his many kindnesses? Her ex had done nothing for free. Payment in one form or another was always expected. The sobering thought shocked her back to reality as effectively as a glass of ice water sloshed in her face. As much as she may be enjoying this time with Augusta, Robin had to get back on the road. Soon. The farther she got from the mess she’d left in California, the better.
Augusta said, “Ned told me that Laredo’s partially blind. That’s why he had to leave the Navy. And why he never drives at night.”
But he did drive in the dark last night—for me.
“Ned was a Marine. I sometimes envy how military men seem to belong to a brotherhood. I suppose it’s the same for women who’ve served.”
“Probably. My grandfather was in Vietnam. He didn’t speak of it much, but then one of the guys he’d fought with came to town. The two hung out in Grandpa’s office, talking for hours. I remember hearing a lot of laughs—even some crying.”
“That was a terrible time.” Augusta focused her stare on the horizon. “Ned broke his leg in two places during a training exercise and never had to go. I still feel guilty about being relieved when I heard the news. We had so many friends who died.” The woman seemed to have retreated inside herself, but then swiped tears from her eyes and forced a smile. “Gracious, how did we get turned around to such a deep topic? Should we grab a few smiles by seeing how our men are getting along down at the barn?”
“Sounds good.” Robin could use a smile. She’d seen more than enough sadness in her life. “Let me take Lark. She weighs more than you’d think after carrying her for a while.”
Augusta laughed, holding up the infant to Robin’s waiting arms. Taking the baby hurt her many bruises, but she soldiered through.
The two walked the hundred yards to the barn in silence save for the sounds of their feet crunching the winding, pea gravel path and the faint rush of a breeze caressing the valley floor. The activity worsened her pain, but she’d long since learned to compartmentalize. This hadn’t been the first time Chuck beat her, but it was the last.
Laredo had built a raised wooden pen around his truck bed that currently held four goats. While the furry beasts contentedly munched hay, Laredo and Ned were out of breath, laughing.
“Now, you show up.” Ned leaned against the truck, wiping his sweaty brow with his forearm.
“Those little ladies can kick.” Laredo hunched over, bracing his hands on his thighs.
“My girls?” Augusta laughed. “Never. They’re always well behaved.” She cast Robin a conspiratorial wink.
Ned snorted. “Woman, when’s the last time you carried one of your ladies to a truck?”
“Always complaining,” Augusta teased. “Remind me why I married you?”
“Hmm... Was it my devastating good looks or my empty bank account? Remind me.”
She kissed him with the passion of the young woman she must’ve been when she’d found out about his broken leg. Because the love Robin believed she’d shared with Chuck hadn’t been real, she could only imagine Augusta’s relief.
While the older couple canoodled, Robin shared a sideways glance with Laredo. He seemed as uncomfortable with Ned and Augusta’s PDA as Robin. Had he also been burned by love?
Turning her back on the happy couple—not because she begrudged them their joy, but because she’d once wanted that sort of connection so desperately herself—Robin gravitated toward the pen holding more does and their kids.
“Look, sweetie,” she said to Lark. “Those are babies like you.” She knelt to pet one of the tiniest kids through the chain-link fence.
Lark kicked and gurgled with excitement, pinching her fingers toward the adorable creature.
Laredo entered the yard though the latched gate, then scooped up the furry baby, carrying it to Robin and Lark.
At first, it bleated, but then settled into Laredo’s arms.
“What do you think?” Laredo crouched in front of Lark.
The baby bucked and squealed.
Laredo turned the tiny goat sideways, securing and stroking its head so Lark could safely pat the creature’s soft, spotted fur.
“Is it just me,” Robin said, “or if this adorable pair starred in a YouTube video, would they have five million views?”
“I was thinking more around seven...”
Their shared laugh felt as good, as innocent and pure, as Lark’s blissful expression.
“Aw, aren’t they the sweetest...” Augusta and her hubby strolled over arm-in-arm.
“Mary,” Ned said, “I can already tell you’re gonna have to buy that little gal a goat for a pet.”
“Not today.” With a sigh, Robin rose.
Lark screamed with displeasure, bucking and reaching for her new furry friend.
“I’m sorry, angel.” Robin angled Lark’s back to the kid. “Mister Laredo probably has things to do, and we need to get you to your great-grandma and grandpa.”
“Where do they live?” Augusta asked while Laredo returned the
kid to his or her pen.
“Arkansas. In a small town in the Ozarks called Eureka Springs. It’s not easy to get to, but worth the steep and winding trip. Tons of Victorian architecture and charm.”
“Sounds nice.” Ned turned to Laredo. “Now that I finally talked our neighbor into learning how to care for goats, I can sneak Augusta away for a much-deserved second honeymoon. It’s been too long since we’ve been away.”
“Why would I want to go anywhere when I have everything I need right here?”
The two shared another kiss.
Talk about a couple being lucky in love. Outside of movies, based on her own experience, Robin no longer believed real love existed. Could she have been wrong?
Laredo cleared his throat. “Thanks again, Ned. Once I get the girls settled in and introduce them to Charger, I’ll come back for lessons on making cheese and butter.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
After settling still-huffy Lark into her safety seat, Robin gave Augusta a goodbye hug. She couldn’t say why, but she’d felt an instant affinity for the woman. She was sorry this would be the last time she saw her.
Laredo took it slow on the dirt road leading to his homestead. Three of the lady goats comfortably rested, but one bleated and fussed—kind of like Lark, who could hardly keep her eyes open but was determined to fight a much-needed nap.
Exhaustion also clung to Robin, but it was more of a weariness of her soul than her body.
“Do you think we should go ahead and call Jimmy?” she asked. “Just in case there’s been a delivery truck miracle?”
“Good idea.” He pulled his Ford to the side of the road. Though he needn’t have bothered as they hadn’t seen another vehicle in fifteen minutes. “Mind fishing my cell from the glove box?”
“Sure.” She wiped her sweating palms on the thighs of her jeans while he made the call.
Her car had to be ready.
She needed to escape the feeling of wanting to belong. Augusta and Ned had seemed like the sort of people with whom you’d want to share dinner and game night—not that she’d ever indulged in such a thing, but she’d always wanted to. And Laredo was proving kind. But looks could be deceiving. No matter how tempting it may be, she couldn’t afford to lower her guard.
Home on the Ranch: Colorado Cowboy SEAL Page 3