She moved forward and stuck out a hand. “I’m pleased to meet you, and thank you for your hospitality.”
They shook, and then he kissed Retta on the forehead. “I’ve got more work to do. I’ll see you at noon.”
“And I’m Zaylie, and thank you for bringing me the kitties.” Zaylie waved from the basket.
“You are very welcome. I’m sure Gussie will enjoy being in the house.” Cade smiled.
While Zaylie was busy getting acquainted with the cat and kittens, Retta showed Claire the rest of the cabin—four small bedrooms, one large one, a tiny kitchenette, complete with a washer and dryer.
“And now I’ll let y’all get settled in. See you at noon,” Retta said.
“Thanks again,” Claire said.
She took care of herself, her family, and a booming quilting business, but suddenly Claire was completely overwhelmed. Everything had happened in a whirlwind, and she was used to order and schedules. And she did not like the feeling one bit. She grabbed the telephone, sank down on the sofa, and dialed Franny’s phone number.
“Hello,” she answered cautiously.
“Franny, it’s Claire.”
“Well, praise the Lord! I didn’t recognize the number and thought it might be one of them guys tryin’ to sell me more insurance,” she said. “Where are you? Are you and that baby girl all right? I’ve been worried. You should have been home. Did you get stuck down there in the snow?”
When Franny stopped for a breath of air, Claire started answering questions before Franny could fire off more. Claire told her about getting lost and wrecking the van and the rest of the story. When she finished she felt as if a weight had been lifted. Now someone knew where she was and that she and Zaylie were alive.
“Franny, I really don’t like this feeling of dependence. It doesn’t set well with me.” Claire sighed.
“You’re in good hands. Don’t worry. The sun will come out and melt the snow. You’ll be home before long, and this will be just a story that you and Zaylie tell Grant when he comes home,” Franny said.
“How do you know I’m in good hands?” Claire asked.
“When me and my late husband lived on the ranch between here and the Red River, we knew the old Maguire couple. They were fine folks, and I wouldn’t expect a bit less from their offspring. This would be their grandsons runnin’ the place now, I’m sure,” Franny answered.
“I guess so, but it was the foreman of the ranch, Levi Jackson, who rescued us. How do you know the Maguires?”
Franny giggled. “Honey, it’s not that far from where you are to Randlett. We were pretty often at the same ranch sales that they were. Lizzy Maguire and I both had a little taste for a shot of Jack Daniel’s whiskey and gossip. I always looked forward to catchin’ up with her even if she was a dyed-in-the-wool, hardheaded Longhorn fan. And little Levi is the foreman on that big ranch, you say? That means his dad, Skip, has stepped down. Is Mavis still alive?”
“Yes, he is, and I overheard them talking about Levi calling Mavis, so I’d guess she’s still living. But Levi is not little,” Claire answered.
“I guess I should’ve said young Levi. That boy was always big for his age, but he had a gentle way about him. How old is he now?”
Claire’s brow wrinkled as she tried to guess Levi’s age. “I’d guess somewhere near my age, maybe a little older.”
“That’s what I’d think. I remember them being kids back when you and Grant were visiting your grandmother, and y’all were about the same age as those boys. And, Claire, everything happens for a reason,” Franny said.
“You’re the second person who’s said that to me today.” Claire wondered what reason there could be for her vehicle being totaled, for her having to spend the holiday with strangers, or why her life had gone completely sideways. None of it made a bit of sense to her.
“Well, whoever said it first is a smart cookie,” Franny said. “Call me every day, and don’t worry about your place up here. I’ll keep a close eye on it. The storm went to the east of us. We got about half an inch of snow, and it’s already melted, but they’re sayin’ that down around Bowie and Nocona, it might take several days to get back to normal.”
Claire groaned. Two days had just stretched into the better part of a week.
“When life gives you lemons, throw them in the trash and make a chocolate cake. It tastes better.” Franny’s giggles were high pitched enough that Claire held the phone out from her ear.
“You are crazy.” Claire laughed with her.
“Yep, I am. I’ve got your number. If you don’t call me by nine tomorrow night, I’ll call you,” Franny said.
“I’ll keep you posted each evening. You stay warm. Bye now,” Claire said.
The moment she put the receiver back on the stand, Gussie hopped up in her lap, turned around a couple of times, and curled up into a ball. Looking up with big eyes, she started to purr.
“You’re a whole lot friendlier than Franny’s cat, Willie. Is Zaylie babysitting for you so you can have some time away from those kitties?” she crooned.
The cat purred even louder.
“I wish you could talk. I’d like to know if Levi has a significant other in his life, but I don’t want to ask Retta.”
“What’s a giftother?” Zaylie sat down on the floor beside her with three squirmy kittens in her arms.
“Significant other is a girlfriend.” Claire changed the subject. “Let’s put all these cats back in the basket and take a bath in that enormous tub. You want to go first or should I?”
“Me!” Zaylie carefully carried the kittens back to the basket.
“You drop all your clothes by the washing machine, and I’ll start a bath for you. We’ve each got a change of clothes and pajamas in that suitcase. That’ll do until Levi brings the rest of our stuff.”
“Why didn’t you put more in the suitcase like my toys?” Zaylie asked.
“Because I packed it that way in case we got tired and had to stop at a hotel. You didn’t need your toys until we get home to Randlett.”
“Okay.” Zaylie bounced and twirled like a ballerina all the way to the washer where she stripped down to nothing and then ran to the bathroom ahead of Claire. She played in the water until it was lukewarm and then Claire shampooed her hair. When she got out and was dressed in fresh clothing, she wanted to know if she could rest her eyes in the bed in her room.
“Which one is yours?” Claire asked.
She yawned. “The one right next to yours, just like at home.”
“I saw lots of little girl books on the case in the living area. You want to take one with you to look at?” Claire brushed the tangles from her hair.
“Nope. I just want to rest my eyes, and then I’ll read a story to the kittens.” Her tiny hands knotted into fists, and she rubbed her eyes with them.
She was sound asleep before Claire got the washer loaded and headed toward the bathroom for her turn in the big tub. She ran the tub full of water and sighed as she sank down into it. She’d never take warm water or a bathtub for granted again. She leaned her head back and shut her eyes. A series of pictures of Levi flashed through her mind—standing in the cabin door, covered with snow and looking like he was really ten feet tall, and probably even bulletproof, then one of him smiling at Zaylie’s prayers, and an up close and personal one as he carried her into the house.
He’d sure enough proved what Franny said about him having a gentle way about him.
Chapter Four
Instead of calling Mavis right away, Levi went out to the barn to check on Little Bit, the crippled miniature donkey he’d taken in over the summer. He slipped his hand between the rails and scratched the animal’s ears.
“Be glad you ain’t a human, Little Bit. Mamas always want to meddle in your life when it comes to women.” He sighed. “Guess I’d better face the music.”
He used the phone in the tack room, and Mavis answered on the first ring. “I’ve been worried sick about you gettin’ stuck in
that cabin with a woman and a child. What’s her name and where’s she from? What do you know about her?”
“Well, hello to you too. And I’m fine, thanks for asking.”
Mavis chuckled. “Sarcasm does not fit you, my son.”
“Prying fits you real good,” he shot back. “But to answer your question, her name is Claire Mason, and her four-year-old niece is Zaylie. She’s from Randlett and…”
Mavis butted in before he could say another word. “I’ll call you back in a few minutes. You stay right there beside whatever phone you are talkin’ from, and don’t leave.”
He heard the click when she hung up and laid the old corded receiver back on the base. While he waited, he hefted the saddles over to the sawhorses lined up against the wall and did some general straightening. Even though he was expecting it, the phone startled him when it rang.
“Hello,” he said.
“Okay, I called Frances Crocker up in Randlett. She’s an old friend who used to raise Angus cattle and went to a few sales with us back when the old folks were runnin’ the Longhorn Canyon. And she says that Claire is Pauline Mason’s granddaughter. There weren’t no finer woman than Pauline, so I’m sure Claire is a decent woman.”
“Yep,” Levi said, and changed the subject. “How’s Benjy doin’? I miss that boy.”
“He loves the snow. He and Skip have made three snowmen, and now he’s sitting beside the window with his sketch pad drawin’ them.” Mavis went into a long-winded description of each snowman.
“Man, since I’ve got that younger brother, I don’t matter no more,” Levi teased.
“Honey, no one could ever replace you. We had you from the time you were a little thing, but Benjy is sure filling a void in our lives. I won’t keep you from your work any longer, but I’ll expect a call every day until I can get out there and meet this woman.”
“She’ll be gone before then, I’m sure,” Levi told her.
“Well, if she’s still here Sunday and the roads are clear, I’ll expect to see her in church with all y’all. Bye now.”
Justin stuck his head in the door and said, “Hey, if you’re done in here, you could take a four-wheeler and a little trailer out to the old cabin and get Claire’s van unloaded. And on the way, you can make sure there’s not a stray cow standing out there udder deep in a snow drift.”
“Are we missin’ a cow?” Levi asked.
“Haven’t actually called roll, but Cade thinks maybe we’re still half a dozen short, so keep your eyes open. Mavis give you a talkin’ to?”
Levi pulled his gloves from his coat pocket. “Oh yeah, what about your mama? Did you get a call from her?”
Justin nodded. “She called and said that I was to be careful until we got to know this woman better. I told her Claire just ain’t my type, but she was definitely yours.”
Levi frowned. “Thanks for that. Now she’ll talk to Mavis and they’ll nag me to death over the whole thing.”
Justin chuckled. “I was savin’ my own butt. What else did Mavis say?”
“Mavis called a friend of hers in Randlett. There’s not a detective in Texas who can do the job of a couple of mamas who are worried about a strange woman living close to their boys, even if we’re looking thirty in the eye.”
“Hey now!” Justin threw up his hands. “Speak for yourself. I’m not going to think about that thirtieth birthday for two more years.”
“By then your mama might be payin’ women to get stranded on the ranch just so you’ll settle down.” Levi grinned.
“By then maybe Retta and Cade will have a kid or two, and that will take her attention away from me.” Justin followed him out into the barn where the four-wheelers were located.
“Don’t bet on it.” Levi pulled a trailer over and hooked it up.
“Why?” Justin asked.
“Benjy’s not keeping Mavis and Skip from nosin’ around in my business.” He settled into the seat and started up the engine.
“Guess we’re doomed.” In a few long strides, Justin crossed the floor and opened the barn door for him.
“If women start dropping out of the sky with parachutes, I make a motion that we run like the devil is chasin’ us.” Levi chuckled and waved over his shoulder.
Claire was folding laundry when Levi poked his head inside and whispered, “Ready for me to unload your things?”
“Of course.” Claire blushed as she quickly covered her folded underpants with a shirt. “I’ll get my coat and shoes on and help you.”
He stepped inside the house with an armload of fabric bolts. “I’ve got all the stuff from your van out here, but I can take care of it.”
She put on the coat Retta had loaned her and slipped her feet into her shoes.
“Where do you want this?” he asked.
“In any of the bedrooms except the one right there. Zaylie is in it.” She headed outside and brought in a suitcase.
“I said I could do this,” he said.
“I’m not used to people waiting on me. I’ll help,” she said.
He shrugged and picked up another four bolts of fabric. “Sorry to say it looks like the vehicle’s totaled.”
She bit back a groan. She could afford to get another good used vehicle, but it would cut into the money she had saved to put in a quilting store.
Levi laid the rest of the bolts on the bed.
“Looks to me like you’ve got enough stuff to start a store here. Did you buy out Walmart or something?” he asked.
“No, I did not buy out Walmart,” she answered honestly. He didn’t need to know that she had gotten it on a clearance sale that a fabric store was having. Or that she’d gotten the complete twenty-yard bolts at seventy-five percent off, and had hopes that they would be the first inventory in her new store.
“Well, you must make a helluva lot of quilts. Where’s Zaylie?”
“Resting her eyes,” Claire answered. “She’ll be disappointed that she missed you.”
“I can stay a few minutes.” He removed his cowboy hat and laid it on the small table. “I told her that I’d come see her before noon. Got to keep my word.”
“Then take off your coat, and have a seat. You want something to drink?” she asked. “Coffee is already made, but I’ll be glad to fix you a cup of hot chocolate.”
“Coffee is fine.”
“Want some cookies?”
He hung his denim work coat on the back of a kitchen chair and kicked back in a recliner. “Just coffee. First to warm my freezing hands and then to heat up my insides.”
Not that he needed it so much for his insides. Every time that he looked into Claire’s gorgeous eyes and heard her sexy voice, warmth spread through his whole body.
Claire handed him a mug of steaming coffee and carried hers to the sofa. Her long hair was still slightly damp, and she didn’t have a bit of makeup on, but she was still beautiful. She’d changed into a pair of gray sweatpants with a matching shirt, and she looked fabulous even in that. Gussie hopped up on the sofa and curled up beside her.
“Looks like Gussie is making herself right at home.”
“Yes, she is, and Zaylie loves having her and the kittens to fuss over. Thank you again for bringing all my stuff from the van and for taking us in like this,” Claire said.
“You’re not used to folks helpin’ you, are you?”
“Why would you ask that?” Claire asked.
“I could have brought everything inside,” he said.
“I’m perfectly able of doing that myself. Been doin’ a pretty good job of it for the past twenty-eight years with nothin’ more than a temper and a pistol.” She paused long enough to take a drink of her coffee. “Does your girlfriend lean on you for every little thing?”
“Never have been married, and most of my relationships lasted a weekend at the longest,” he answered.
“Not a very honorable cowboy then, are you?” she asked.
“Hey,” he argued. “I never lie, never promise what I’m not willin’ to del
iver, and never, ever give my word unless I mean to keep it. I live by the cowboy honor code.”
“And that is?” she asked.
“There’s ten of them. You want me to say them all right now?”
“Got somewhere you need to be?” She kicked off her shoes and pulled her feet up on the sofa.
“Okay then.” He raised one finger. “Live each day with courage. Take pride in your work. Finish what you start.” He set the coffee on the end table so he could use the other hand, raising a finger for each statement. “Be tough but fair. Do what has to be done. When you make a promise keep it. Ride for the brand. Talk less, say more. Remember some things aren’t for sale, and last, know where to draw the line.” He finished and picked up the mug again.
“I saw that on a plaque one time at Cracker Barrel. Is that where you got them?”
“Nope.” Levi shook his head. “My dad made me memorize them when I was a kid. He said that he lived by them and that if I wanted to be a good cowboy, then I would do the same.”
“He sounds like a good father,” she said.
“The best.” Levi finished off his coffee and went to the kitchen for a refill. “You want more?”
She nodded and handed him her cup.
“Did you call your folks and let them know that you are okay?”
She shrugged. “My mother is in Italy, and my father is in Hawaii. I wouldn’t call them for anything less than a death in the family. And I can’t get in touch with my brother. He calls me when he can.”
Good grief! No wonder she was so independent. She had to be.
She went on, “But I did call my neighbor, Franny. She and my grandmother were good friends, and we kind of watch out for each other. She said that she knew Cade and Justin’s grandparents and Mavis and Skip back in the day,” she said.
“Mavis said that she called someone named Frances to check up on you. Would that be Franny?” he asked.
“It would.” She nodded. “I expect that she’ll call me later to tell me that she talked to your…” She paused.
“Mother does fine even if I call her Mavis.”
Cowboy Honor--Includes a bonus novella Page 6