“Interesting. I wonder how the Robin Hoods knew about him.”
“That will be a question I’ll ask them when I finally get to interview them. I remember this time last year one of Byron’s ranch hands stole five cattle from him. Maybe the twins overheard something. Thankfully we caught the guy before he could sell them. I have a feeling both Gareth and Winston know a lot of what goes on around here, especially at their father’s ranch.”
“Having lived under a heavy-handed tyrant, I feel sorry for the boys.”
Lucy mounted the steps to the porch. “But you didn’t steal from others.”
“I had Grandma Mamie to rein me in. I often wonder what I would have done without her. She has kept this family together and been a great example of how you should live. I don’t think Byron’s wife would stand up to him. My grandmother did with Dad when she thought she should.”
Lucy’s heart broke as she listened to Ben talk about his relationship with his father. She cherished hers with her dad. “So you think we should give the boys a break?”
“I didn’t say that. Grandma never intervened when I deserved a consequence from my actions. If Gareth and Winston did it, they should pay, but as juveniles. I know some will want the book thrown at them because of Byron. He isn’t a loved man. But that shouldn’t color the decision against Gareth and Winston either way.”
“I thought the stealing split the town down the middle, between the ones who benefited from the Robin Hoods and the ones who didn’t. This may be worse.” The scent of coffee enticed her finally to take a long drink. “This is delicious. Did you make it?”
“Not if I don’t have to. My coffee is never like Mamie’s.”
After another sip, Lucy said, “Ultimately the charges will be up to the DA.”
“You can’t tell me you don’t have input with him.”
“Yes. What do you think is fair?”
“Tried in juvenile court. Maybe juvenile detention until eighteen, then some kind of probation at least until they are twenty-one. They need counseling. They need ways to channel their anger, because if they stole from their father, they are two angry teens who need help to see the right path.”
The fervent tone of Ben’s voice made Lucy wonder if he was partially speaking from experience. Had he turned his anger into playing recklessly and having fun? “You aren’t Gareth and Winston” slipped out of her mouth uncensored.
His eyes grew round, his mouth dropped open. “I wasn’t talking about me.”
“Are you sure you weren’t thinking about your teenage years?”
He stared off to the side, his forehead furrowing. When he looked back at her, whatever he’d been wrestling with had been resolved. “Maybe I was. I had some intense feelings concerning my dad. Most of the time I thought he hated me, so I hated him. But now I see I was wrong. It wasn’t hate I felt for him but anger. He was hurting physically and emotionally and lashed out at the people closest to him. Grady left. I didn’t, so I got the brunt of it.”
“Maybe your father needed counseling to deal with the pain.”
“Probably. But that is behind me. I’m not letting that influence me now. It did for too many years.” He pivoted and opened the front door as though he was signaling the topic of conversation was off-limits. “Cody is walking along the furniture more each day. Wait till you see him.”
When Lucy entered the living room, Cody stood at the couch and sidestepped down its length. She went to Mamie and gave her a hug. “Has he exhausted you yet?”
“Give him another hour. I asked Maddy to help me after church tomorrow. Too bad she isn’t older. She would be a perfect nanny.” Mamie sank against the cushion. “When are the kids going to be here?”
Ben checked his watch before he bent down to pick Cody up. “Fifteen minutes or so. If you have anything to do, Grandma, please do. I’ll watch Cody, even during the meeting.”
“If you’re sure. There’s always something to do around here. When will you go to the barn?” Mamie pushed herself to her feet, her movement slower than usual.
No doubt, the wedding preparations on top of an eight-month-old baby in the house were taking its toll on Mamie.
“I have a new horse being delivered today. I want to be there for her arrival. Her foals will bring in some good money for us. I need to make sure she settles in all right. For a mare she is high-strung. It’ll be at two.”
“Although Cody will be napping most likely at that time, I’m gonna call the ladies at church and tell them I can’t make Bible study today.”
“No, Mamie. You should go. I can watch Cody while Ben is dealing with his new horse,” Lucy offered.
Ben’s grandmother shook her head. “I can’t ask you to hang around that long.”
“I don’t mind. It’s probably only going to be an hour or so after the teens leave.” Lucy wrapped her arms around the older woman. “You go. Have fun and enjoy yourself. We’ll take care of things here.”
When Mamie pulled back, a light brightened her eyes, and the tired lines around them didn’t seem as deep. “Thank you, child.”
As his grandmother left the living room, Ben came to her side, still holding Cody. “I can wake up my son and take him to the barn or have Maddy come up and look after him while I have to be gone. You don’t have to do it.”
“I know. I want to. Being with Cody reminds me of all the good things in life, and as a police officer, that’s a nice feeling to remember.” She stroked Cody’s back as the baby started to wiggle in his daddy’s arms.
Ben’s son stopped his restless movements and looked at her. Cody held his arms out and leaned toward her.
Ben passed his baby to Lucy. “He likes you. He doesn’t do that to everyone.”
“I’m glad. It’ll make it easier if he wakes up and sees me this afternoon.”
The bell rang and Ben strolled toward the front door to answer it. Lucy cuddled Cody to her because she knew when the teens came into the living room, he’d be curious about them and want to check them out. His scent of baby powder and lotion stirred a dream she’d locked away when Jesse betrayed her. She’d wanted children.
“Look who’s here. Cody, my little man, did you sleep well last night?” Maddy took the baby from Lucy and hugged him. “He’s wonderful to watch,” she continued to say to Lynne and Christie.
Ben came into the living room with Gareth, Kent and Rob right behind him. Gareth’s gaze sought Maddy, and as they sat to start the meeting, he rarely took his eyes off her.
After everyone was settled and Cody was showing them how he could walk holding on to a piece of furniture or their hand, Lucy knew she needed to find a way to talk to Gareth without seeming as if it was part of her job.
* * *
Ninety minutes later, Ben put his pad down. “I think we’ve covered everything about next Saturday. If each one of you can recruit another teen to help, we should have enough helpers with the arts-and-crafts tent and the races. Any questions?”
“Are we using hard-boiled eggs in the races?” Gareth sat cross-legged on the floor and tried to persuade Cody to come to him.
“Yes for the younger kids, but for the older ones the eggs will be raw. It makes it more fun.” Ben watched as his son, at the end of the couch with one hand on the cushion, assessed Gareth and the distance to him. Cody released his hand, wobbled, then grabbed onto the sofa.
Sitting next to Ben, Lucy nudged his leg and pointed to his son. “It won’t be long. He wants to go so badly.”
“Yeah, I know.” To the group Ben said, “We’ll need you here an hour before the Easter-egg hunt starts. I’ll have the tent set up, but there will be some last-minute things to do. Okay?”
Everyone responded with a yes or a nod.
Grandma Mamie stepped into the living room. “We have refreshments in the kitchen. I hope y’all
stay and enjoy them. Nothing much. Just some pizza, Cokes and chocolate-chip cookies.”
His grandmother knew what people enjoyed eating.
As the teenagers followed Grandma to the kitchen, Ben grabbed Cody and trailed after the group. He came up behind Lucy and whispered, “Are you going to talk to Gareth?”
“Only with the group. I’m gonna ask you about Betsy and see where it leads the conversation.”
After the teens and Lucy filled their plates with pizza and cookies, they sat in the kitchen at the large table that held eight people and dug in.
Mamie took Cody. “I’ll feed him and put him down while you eat.”
Ben dished up some food and joined the rest, taking the last place. “I have another project I hope y’all can help me with.” When they looked at him, he continued, “The Little Horn sign has been recovered and been returned to where it belongs, but the area around it is weedy and overgrown. I’d like to have the students in the intern program take it on as a project. I thought I would bring it up at the Lone Star Cowboy League meeting, but in the meantime, this afternoon after my mare is delivered, I’m going to the sign with my interns and whoever else wants to. We can at least mow the weeds and grass, then if any of you want, we could finish planting some flowers and shrubs tomorrow.”
Maddy grinned. “I love that idea. I’m in for tomorrow, too.”
“I can’t. We’re going to see my grandfather in the nursing home in Austin after church,” Lynne said.
“I can.” Gareth picked up a slice of pepperoni pizza. “And I’ll get Winston to help.”
Ben slid a glance toward Lucy. “How about you?”
“Sounds great.”
“I’ll help today and tomorrow,” Rob said, quickly followed by Christie.
Kent frowned. “Sorry, I can’t either day, but it’s about time we got our sign back. I think our rival school took it. Why would the Robin Hoods do that and then bring it back?”
“We checked into that when it happened during football seasons. If someone at Blue Creek High School did, they have kept it awfully quiet. Same with the other schools we have a big rivalry with.” Lucy took a swallow of her drink. “That reminds me, Ben, have you had any success in finding Betsy?”
“You’re looking for my cousin?” Gareth asked, his eyebrows raised.
“Yes. I want to make sure she’s all right. Do you know where she might be, Gareth? Or any of you?” Ben shifted his gaze from one teen to the next, ending with Gareth. “Maybe we can help her even from afar if she needs it. She left so suddenly.”
Sitting next to Gareth, Maddy turned toward him. “Didn’t you tell me you and your brother tried to find her?”
His grip on his fork tightened, his knuckles whitening. “We tried. She disappeared,” Gareth said, then under his breath muttered, “Thanks to my dad.”
Ben wasn’t sure exactly what he heard, but Lucy sat across from the teen and might have heard it clearer. “I’m glad my brother has returned to Little Horn. Family is special. It takes them being gone sometimes for us to appreciate them in our lives.” As he said that, Ben realized he meant every word. It didn’t make any difference what kind of relationship or problems he and Grady had had in the past. It was what they did from here on out.
Maddy stared at her empty plate. “Sometimes it takes you losing them to—” she paused, swiping her hand across her eyes, keeping her head down as she finished “—realize how important they are to you.”
Gareth touched her arm, then took her hand, his jawline sharp as though he was wrestling with himself about saying something.
Using her napkin, Maddy dabbed her eyes. “Sorry to get all down. This is the month my parents died in a car crash.” She raised her head. “But the Derrings are good foster parents.”
Uncomfortable with the silence, Ben grabbed the plate of cookies and took one. “Anyone else want dessert? I know our cook makes the best in the county.”
Rob took one and passed it to Kent. “I totally agree.”
Lynne asked the group about the spring dance coming up. Who was going? The girls began chattering about it while the boys remained quiet, but Gareth didn’t let go of Maddy’s hand.
Later when Ben walked the teenagers to the door and thanked them, he watched Gareth stroll with Maddy toward the barn, off from the others. The young man slid his arm around her shoulder. If he was one of the Robin Hoods, he hated to think what kind of uproar would occur when the town found out. He felt for the twins. He sensed smoldering anger barely held in check under the surface.
“I’m more convinced than ever he and Winston are the Robin Hoods.” Lucy came up behind him and stood in the doorway with Ben.
“I’m afraid you’re right.”
“You don’t sound happy the problem plaguing us for months will finally be over soon.”
Ben faced Lucy. “I was much like Gareth when I was his age.”
“No, you weren’t. He and his brother often bully when they don’t get their way. Or so I’ve heard. No one will come forward against them. You weren’t like that.”
“I used the rodeo activities I did to get rid of my anger toward my father. That helped me, but I still did things I’m not proud of. I see the potential in Gareth. He really cares for Maddy in spite of what his father would say if he knew. He’s here helping with the Easter-egg hunt and the town sign.”
“Because Maddy asked him.”
“But he got into the planning like everyone else. I could tell he enjoyed himself.”
Lucy clasped his arms and gazed at him with a softness in her eyes. “This is why you’re good working with kids. I’m glad you’re thinking of expanding what you already do.”
Her words washed over him and lifted his spirits more than winning the championship at the rodeo. “Thank you. That means a lot to me.”
He wanted to kiss her. Awareness he was standing in the doorway with a partial view of the barn didn’t deter him. Lifting her chin, he looked into her beautiful eyes that sparkled, then bent his head toward hers. Their lips touched, a gentle kiss that quickly evolved into a deep one that made Ben realize he would never think of Lucy as only a friend. In that moment their relationship changed.
When he drew back to look at her, her face glowed, much like he felt inside. The moment hung between them, neither saying a word.
Until a cry resounded through the house at the same time a truck hauling a horse trailer came toward the barn.
Lucy glanced outside, then said, “I’ll get Cody. You go see to your horse.”
“They’re early.”
“That just means we can go take care of the sign early.” Lucy hurried toward the back of the house where Grandma Mamie had put Cody down to sleep.
Lucy had been trying to set Ben up with others when she was the one he was interested in. She was caring, someone he could share himself with, and whenever he saw her with children, she was a natural with them. He started for the barn, whistling the song “The Yellow Rose of Texas.”
* * *
When Lucy arrived at the location of the town sign off the highway, it looked as if she was the last one to come. Gareth, Winston and Rob were unloading the back of Ben’s and their trucks while Maddy, Christie and Ben were putting up a border around the sign, leaving an area of six feet square to plant bushes and flowers.
Lucy parked on the shoulder behind the pickup and approached Ben, who was digging a place for the border while the girls set up the interlocking stone pieces. “Sorry, I’m late. I had to go into the station and take care of a problem.”
Ben stopped and smiled. “I thought Sunday was your day off.”
“In my dreams. Remember, 24/7. A rancher in Blue Creek reported some cattle missing, but as I was driving toward his place, he found them in the field one over. Apparently when he was searching, they were sitti
ng down under a tree and a small raise in the land blocked his view.”
Ben’s gaze skimmed down her length. “You didn’t even get a chance to change.”
Lucy still had on the clothes she had worn to church, a blue dress and flats. “Nowadays when I hear cattle are missing, I go right away.” Off to her side, she noticed Gareth laying the bag of river rocks by the border near her, his attention drifting to Ben and her when she’d mentioned that cattle were gone. “I thought by the time I went home and changed, you all would be almost finished.”
“Tell you what. While we finish the border, why don’t you arrange where we should plant the bushes and flowers?”
“I’ve got some boots in my trunk.” Lucy traipsed to her Mustang, retrieved her boots and returned ready to do what she could. “Who donated the plants?”
“Carson and me.”
“Our dad took care of the rocks, and Lynne’s dad bought the edging for the border,” Winston said as he put down the last sack. “So where do you want us to dig a hole for these?” He gestured toward the bushes.
“The ones that grow taller ought to go in first.” Gareth grabbed one bucket with a shrub. “I think this Texas purple sage should go near the sign. Its flowers through the summer will add color and allow the sign to stand out.”
“Have you done landscaping before?” Lucy asked.
“Yes, at the ranch.”
Surprised the boy had, Lucy decided to work with Gareth laying out the plants where they would go. Then they all stepped back to take a look. “I like this. Gareth, you have a good eye.”
“I’m glad you appreciate it.”
The way the teenage boy stressed the word you made her wonder who hadn’t appreciated his work. “I sure do. A pretty garden makes a drab place look good.”
“Tell that to my dad,” Gareth mumbled, snatched up a shovel and started digging the first hole.
When the border was completed, the girls planted the flowers. Ben stepped back to watch the five teens work. “We should be through soon.”
A Baby for the Rancher Page 12