Home on the Ranch: Oklahoma Bull Rider

by Christine Wenger

  “If I can find a roving ramrod or five who isn’t assigned to other duties for the rodeo, we’ll just have to manage to meet in the evening.”

  “What are the roving ramrods doing for the rodeo?” Sara asked.

  “Organizing artwork, ceramics, archery, swimming and whatnot. Looks like Camp Care goes all out. And I understand that every kid gets some kind of award at the ceremony on Saturday after dinner at the chuck wagon.”

  Sara sighed. “We’ll be cleaning the kitchen after midnight and getting everything ready for the girls’ program to start, and that includes making a bunch of bagged lunches. August is for the girls. They’ll be moving in Sunday.”

  As the horses walked down the forest path, Sara and Jesse were quiet, each lost in their own thoughts.

  Sara liked the sound of the horses’ hooves on the packed dirt and how the leather squeaked, and seeing the way their heads bobbed up and down when they walked. The scents of cedar and pine wafted around her, and she appreciated the way the sunlight mottled the woods.

  Henderson Falls had its own charm, but Camp Care’s acreage was amazing. To see it on horseback was way different than what she was used to. To see it with Jesse was perfect.

  “I’m going to miss this, Jesse. Won’t you?” Sara shook her head. “Of course not. What a goofy question. You have your own ranch.”

  “Yup. I do.”

  “So you won’t miss Camp Care.”

  “Sure I will. But it’s really the people I’ll miss, like my wranglers, but I told them if they ever got to Beaumont, Oklahoma, to look me up. I have lots of room in one of our bunkhouses, and that goes for you and Mickey. I mean it. Actually, the two of you can stay in the main house.”

  “That’s nice of you.”

  “I’m not just being nice, Sara. I mean it.”

  Her heart did a little flip. “Thanks, Jesse. I might take you up on that if I can’t get a job.”

  “Yeah. Come on down to Beaumont. I’m there when I’m not on the road, and if I’m not there nor my brothers, my sisters-in-law, Amber and Callie, should be home.”

  “They both sound like fun.”

  “They definitely are.”

  “Jesse, if I don’t get a chance to be with you again, I’d like to thank you for a wonderful month. I’ll never, ever forget you.”

  “I’ll never forget you, Sara. You’re a very special woman. And I’m sorry that I couldn’t get Mickey to speak. He’s so close. So damn close, and as long as we still have five days, I’m going to keep on trying.”

  “He definitely is real close to talking. I can feel it. He’s showing emotion now and is participating in activities.”

  “I know he is, and giving Mickey Black Beauty to read was a stroke of genius.”

  Jesse laughed. “I also gave him last year’s PBR World Finals book. He can’t put that down, either.”

  “Thanks so much. I’ll see to it that you get it back.”

  He shook his head from side to side. “Let him keep it. And later get him My Friend Flicka, National Velvet, and Misty of Chincoteague. All horse stories. He’ll love them.”

  “You’re a doll, Jesse Beaumont. Just a doll. And if we weren’t on horseback, I’d give you a big fat kiss.”

  “Later!” He laughed. “But right now, we’d better start back, it’s getting dark out. And I’ll claim that kiss in the barn when we are brushing our horses, and more!”

  “My pleasure!”

  * * *

  A couple days later, the whole camp turned out to watch the unloading of the Beaumont bulls.

  The trucks rolled in a few hours after lunch.

  The Beaumont brothers and their ranch hands placed thick steel fencing in a large square for a pen. More fencing was placed inside the square to make little cubicles for the bulls. Lastly, steel fencing was placed in two rows leading from the biggest truck.

  A large door was released and fell into a type of ramp that led from the truck.

  From her safe vantage point with the kitchen staff, Sara scanned the area for Mickey. He, too, was at a safe point, sitting on bleachers.

  One by one, the bulls started to come down the ramp, down the fenced path and into the pen.

  They were huge and ugly and smelly. Some had huge horns. Some had none. Some had big humps on their back. Some were minus the humps.

  Where was Jesse? He was watching the bulls proudly with two other cowboys.

  As soon as the animals were unloaded, Jesse started walking toward her with his brothers.

  He waved to her to come over, and she walked toward the handsome trio. She knew they were Jesse’s brothers. There was just something about how they stood with their thumbs through their belt loops, the way they smiled and how they tipped their hats.

  “Sara, these are my brothers. That tall drink of water is Luke, and that handsome guy is Reed. Stay away from both. They’re terrible teasers, so don’t listen to a thing they say.”

  There were kisses and hand pumping from these two, with their dimples, sky blue eyes and cowboy hats. They were both handsome in jeans, long-sleeved shirts and boots with huge belt buckles and well-worn cowboy hats.

  But Jesse was the handsomest man of the group.

  Sara felt immediately comfortable with Luke and Reed. They teased like Jesse and were warm and outgoing.

  “Some guys will do anything to get out of helping us build our houses,” Reed said to Jesse.

  “Yeah, some guys will even work at a kids’ camp,” joked Luke.

  Jesse cleared his throat. “You know what, dear brothers? I love it here, and I’m thinking of expanding our equine therapy program at the ranch.”

  Reed shook his head. “That’d be a crazy undertaking, especially with all of us in the PBR.”

  “I won’t be in the PBR forever,” Jesse replied.

  “From what Callie said, the hardest part of her job is the equine therapy program,” Reed said. “Lots of paperwork. Lots of scheduling and a lot of people to work it.”

  “I could do it!” Sara said, then immediately bit her lip. She couldn’t believe that she said that. “I mean, I could help with what I can from Henderson Falls.”

  “Naw, that won’t work,” Reed said. “It’d be better if you were there and working with Callie.”

  Luke looked at Sara, then at Jesse.

  Jesse pulled Sara close to his side. “Let’s think about the logistics, and see if a long-distance person could do the job. How’s that? Reed can call his wife, Callie, and get her opinion. Callie does all the paperwork for the program now. In the meantime we’ll sleep on it.”

  A job! And she’d be working from her house. It couldn’t pay much, but she would find a way to make it work.

  Since it was his idea, it definitely would be a way to keep in touch with Jesse. She’d work behind the scenes, and Jesse and his brothers would be the ramrods.

  “Jesse, you said ‘job.’ Did you mean a paid job?”

  “Of course!”

  Working for Beaumont Ranch’s equine therapy program would be ideal, both for her and for Mickey. She’d stay in touch with Jesse, and Mickey could continue to ride with Jesse’s training.

  Life has a funny way of working things out, doesn’t it? she thought to herself.

  Chapter 14

  “Sara, since all of Camp Care is on the bleachers watching the bulls getting unloaded, I think that the Beaumont brothers should put on a little bull riding demonstration.”

  “Oh, Jesse! That would be a nice treat for everyone.”

  Especially me.

  “I’ll arrange it with Lori. She needs to keep everyone just where they are now—on the bleachers. No closer.”

  “I’d bet that a lot of these wranglers have never seen anyone ride a bull, like Mickey and me. They’ll be ecstatic.”

  As she watched Jesse walk away, a
thrill went through her body and settled in her stomach. Finally, she’d get the chance to see what a real bull rider did—what Jesse did—for a living.

  Jesse spoke to Lori, gave a thumbs-up to his brothers, and then trotted back to the pens.

  They were going to ride!

  Mickey and the other wranglers of Bunkhouse 13 would be walking on air. Their ramrod could ride bulls. Certainly, that was a unique talent that he brought to his wranglers.

  Oh! Sara hoped that Jesse would be careful. Damn. Another thing to worry about.

  No. She was confident in Jesse’s skills. The brothers wouldn’t bring real tough bulls to a children’s camp, would they?

  She relaxed, unlike the rest of the wranglers, for whom the excitement was palpable, real. They couldn’t sit still even if they were promised a week of free snacks from the canteen, but at least they stayed away from the bulls and on the bleachers.

  A buzzer sounded and the spectators became silent. Everyone looked so serious until Luke came bursting out of the gate on a big black-and-white bull with horns. The cheering started, and didn’t stop until another buzzer sounded and Luke jumped off. The bull trotted to an open gate and disappeared. Luke waved his arms and the cheering became louder.

  When the buzzer went off again, Reed came out of the chutes on a white bull with black markings. It looked like Reed was going to fall off and there was a gasp from the crowd, but he righted himself and finished his ride. Everyone clapped and cheered.

  Then it was Jesse’s turn. Bunkhouse 13 screamed when Jesse came out of the chute. Those who could stand did so. She watched to see if Mickey would scream like the rest, but he didn’t open his mouth. Not one sound. Jesse’s black bull, with a big hump on his back, spun like a top. Then the bull reversed, Jesse stayed in control, and when the buzzer sounded Jesse let go of his rope and made a slick jump off that would do a gymnast proud.

  Sara’s emotions went haywire. She was thrilled, nervous and excited, all at the same time. And when he was finally safe, she felt relieved and limp.

  When the bull had left the arena, Jesse bowed to the sound of Camp Care chanting his name: “Jesse! Jesse! Jesse!” She chanted the loudest.

  The three Beaumont brothers all took a bow and announced that there would be a competition with more bull riders on Saturday morning. Some friends of theirs volunteered to be at Camp Care, too, and ride for the audience.

  Sara wondered how Jesse could ride in the bull riding event because he was slated to run the wranglers’ riding competition.

  She shrugged and headed to the chuck wagon to finish cleaning up.

  The first person she ran into was Cookie. “What a great show. Those Beaumont cowboys really can ride. They have guts. And those bulls...” He shook his head. “Amazing.”

  She smiled. “Yes. Absolutely amazing.” And Jesse was the best. She hoped he’d win the Finals in Vegas. Though Mickey could watch all his events on TV, it wouldn’t be the same.

  As Sara scrubbed the big pots, unwanted tears pooled in her eyes. She would miss Jesse more than she expected. She hadn’t even liked him at the beginning of Camp Care, but now...now...

  She really liked him and couldn’t imagine her life without him.

  “Sara, you had a call in the office on the land line,” Lori Floyd said. “Here’s the number.” Lori handed her a piece of paper. “Go ahead, the office is open. He said it was important.”

  She wondered who on earth it could be.

  Oh! She recognized the number. Her old employer. Junior Ryan of Charles Ryan and Son Appliances.

  “Junior, it’s Sara Peterson. Did you call me?”

  “I’ll make this quick. I want you back. My wife can’t get the swing of things, so I fired her, and I want you back. Start tomorrow?”

  “You want me back? I don’t know, Junior—the way you let me go was hurtful.”

  “I’ll give you a ten percent raise and a company car.”

  “Gee, I don’t know. I was offered another job and I’m definitely going to take it.”

  She could work remotely for Jesse and his equine therapy program and work for Junior; she’d just have to juggle her time.

  “I don’t know, Junior. How about twenty percent and a late model company car, not one of your junkers, and another three weeks’ vacation?”

  “Done. So you’re coming back?”

  “Yes. In a week.”

  “Whatever.” He hung up.

  Sara rinsed the pot and set it on the drain area of the sink. Then reached for another one.

  So she had her old job back. What a relief!

  Funny how life worked.

  Junior was a nutcase, but she knew how to handle him. Besides, a twenty percent raise, a car and an extra three weeks of vacation was nothing to sneeze at. That settled that.

  With the extra money, she wouldn’t have to move. She and Mickey could even travel to a few of Jesse’s PBR events!

  But it wouldn’t be the same as Camp Care. Here they spent every available minute together.

  Traveling to visit him with Mickey...that wouldn’t be the same, either. It would be better if she watched him on TV. Then maybe he wouldn’t feel that she was stalking him, or that she couldn’t let go.

  “Hey, beautiful!”

  “Jesse! Hey, you sure can ride bulls!” she replied.

  “And you can sure scrub pots!”

  “And this one is especially challenging—burnt-on mashed potatoes.”

  “I have some bad news for you.”

  Sara gripped his forearms with her soapy hands. “Oh, no! Is Mickey okay?”

  “Mickey’s fine,” he said quickly. “But you can’t help with the equine program at the ranch. Callie said that you need to be on-site to help her. And there’s a lot of things to do when the kids are here.”

  “I understand.” She nodded. What a disappointment. She would have liked to help out to keep in touch with Jesse, but she really did understand. “I have some good news.”

  “Hit me with it.”

  “I’m getting my old job back with a hefty raise, and other benefits.”

  “Oh. That is good news. Good for you.” But Jesse didn’t act like it was good news at all. His voice was monotone and his smile didn’t look genuine.

  “Let’s celebrate!” he said. “Let’s go to town and find someplace to talk. I’d like my brothers to get to know you.”

  “That’s nice of you, Jesse, but I have at least another two hours here at the sink, the dishwasher and putting everything away after it’s dry.”

  “Then I’ll bring my brothers to you. We can help you with your kitchen duties, and we can talk in the main room over coffee.”

  “That’s really nice, but they shouldn’t have to do my work.” It would be fun to get to know Jesse’s brothers, but she should do her own work, and she’d better push Jesse away a bit, or she was going to be a mess when she got into her car to drive away.

  “My mother taught us boys like we were studying for graduate degrees in the domestic arts. She didn’t want our future wives to blame her if we couldn’t cook, or sew, or do laundry, or clean, or wash dishes. I’m quite the catch.”

  He definitely was quite the catch. Some lucky woman would be happy to have him.

  She sighed, feeling empty. That lucky woman wouldn’t be her.

  * * *

  The Beaumont brothers scrubbed, dried, washed and put away pots and pans, dishes and silver. Reed and Luke even mopped the floor.

  Cookie was tickled at having the top three bull riders in the world working hard in his kitchen.

  “Go. Everyone. And thanks for your help,” Cookie finally said. “There’s a fresh pot of coffee ready and some cookies. Go, sit down. Enjoy.”

  After goodbyes to Cookie, they settled down at one of the long tables.

  “Tell me about Amber and C
allie,” Sara said.

  Luke grinned. “Amber is the sheriff of Beaumont County and is six months pregnant.”

  “And Callie runs the Beaumont Ranch and runs us. My wife is a tornado,” Reed said proudly. “What about you, Sara?”

  “I am the accountant and the office manager for a family-owned appliance store in Henderson Falls, New York. It’s small potatoes, but I like my job.”

  “Callie is an accountant, too,” Jesse said. “Sounds like you and she would work great together. I’m sorry that you need to be at the Beaumont Ranch to help her with our equine therapy program.”

  Sara smiled slightly, and Jesse could see that she would have liked to help. Darn it.

  “Sounds like you and Callie would have a lot in common,” Reed said.

  “I think that I’d like both your wives,” Sara said.

  “Sara has a son, Mickey, who’s in Camp Care. You’ll see him when my classes do their riding demonstration Saturday morning. He’s leading the first ride. He’s quite the horseman.”

  “Sounds good,” Luke said. “So, you can’t ride bulls Saturday?”

  “No. Count me out. It’ll work out because you two definitely need the practice, and so do the other bull riders that you brought. I don’t.” Jesse winked at Sara, and she laughed.

  When Sara laughed, it warmed his heart. It took her mind off her problems. The job problem was solved, but Mickey still hadn’t talked. That was disappointing to Jesse. He’d promised Sara that the little wrangler would talk.

  Who am I to make such a promise?

  He still had three days left for Mickey. During the month, Jesse had come to feel like more than just a ramrod to Mickey. He felt like a father figure to the boy. Mickey was a great kid. He helped out his fellow campers; he had been one of the first to call attention to the electrical fire; he was a great reader and horseman, and was just an all-around likable kid.