by S. E. Kloos
Her voice was as deadpanned as her face. “But I am scared of him... terrified, actually.”
He cocked a brow at her, “You was scared of dogs when ya got here, too, Elizabeth, but now you the one that feeds ‘em. You stronger than ya think, Sugar, and you need to show him that.”
Elizabeth looked at her uncle for a minute before her eyes slid to the BB gun on the table. After a short debate with herself, she reached to pick it up. “I’ll be out by the barn.”
Marshal smiled widely as she left out the back door, gun and ammo in hand. “Atta girl, Eribeth.”
Chapter 8
The next afternoon at a quarter of four, a pickup pulled into the Johnson ranch. Once the truck was stopped, Kyle hopped out to open the tailgate, grabbing the crutches before holding them for his little brother. Xander hoisted himself to a standing position. As he took the crutches from his brother, all Xander could think was, ‘fucking bull’. It wasn’t the first time he ever broke a bone when getting thrown from something, but it pissed him off every time.
Nodding his thanks, Xander and Kyle followed their parents up the steps to the front door, waiting for it to be opened after their mama knocked.
After the greeting, Mrs. Johnson noticed Xander’s crutches. She blinked at him, bringing a hand to her chest as concern flooded her voice. “What happened?”
Xander shook his head while sighing. “Small accident last night, Ma’am. It ain’t nothin’ ta worry over.”
His mama glared at him. “He was stomped on by a bull ‘cause he was being a cocky little thing, like always.”
Xander gave his mama a look. “Mama, I have every right to be cocky after gettin’ the buzz off that particular bull. ‘Sides, it could’ve been worse. It could’ve been like that sumbitch from Cheyenne last year.”
It was then Mr. Steele cocked a brow at his youngest. “You sassin’ your mama, Boy?”
Shaking his head, “Wouldn’t dream of it Pa; simply telling the truth. That guy’ll be lucky to ever have babies.”
Kyle grimaced. “I ‘member that. Carried on somethin’ awful, too.”
Before Xander could say a word to him about, ‘No shit. His nuts prolly exploded’, Mrs. Johnson cut in, seeing the look Xander was giving his brother. “Well, come on in. Boys, Eribeth’s out at the barn.”
Heading through the house, Kyle took a detour to the bathroom while Xander went straight out the back door into the yard, making his way across to the far side of the barn where he could hear the Little Darlin’ throwing one hell of a fit about something. Peeking around the side, he saw her with a BB gun pointed at makeshift target lined with cans... and wasting the fuck out of some ammo.
Leaning harder on his crutches, he crossed his arms and took a look at her stance, seeing nearly right off what the problem she was having was. Mouth working faster than his brain, he called out. “You droppin’ your elbow.” He grimaced when she shrieked and whirled around, the end of the gun pointed right at him. Raising his hands, he rushed to say, “Whoa there, Little Darlin’. I’m unarmed this time.”
Quick as she could, Elizabeth dropped the gun, covering her mouth with the tips of her fingers. “I am so sorry. You scared me, I didn’t mean to.” Then she blinked in shock, “Jesus, what the hell happened to you?”
Xander shrugged before making his way over to her, his voice off hand. “Pissed off a bull, nothin’ big.” Then he nodded to her, “Let me see your stance again. Let’s see if we can’t fix it for ya.” Taking up a position behind her, he checked her out -in more than one way- but his thoughts on the elbow were right. Before he did anything, he spoke, “Alright, Little Darlin’. Focus right quick on how you standin’ right now feels.” Giving her a few seconds to do that, he then gently pushed one shoulder down while at the same time, lifting the elbow of the other. “Feet shoulder width apart.” Once she had her feet in the right position, he moved back a bit, saying. “Feel the difference between how you is now, and how you was a moment ago?”
Elizabeth nodded. “Yeah, this is a lot more uncomfortable.”
Xander nodded at that while tsking, “That’s how you know you doin’ it right, Sugar Britches. Go’n and take a shot.”
Bristling a bit at the name, she did as she was told, shocked speechless when a can went flying off the wooden horse. Slowly lowering the barrel of the gun, she stared wide eyed for a second before scoffing a tad. “Well, I’ll be damned.” Then she turned to looked over her shoulder at Xander, who was smirking nice and big. “I was doing exactly what Mark told me to do.”
Xander snorted hard at that and shook his head once as he clicked his tongue. “Well, that explains that then. Mark can’t shoot for shit.”
Elizabeth cocked a brow at him, “And you can?”
Grinning wide, Xander nodded a bit. “Youngest ever to get the sharpshooter title in these parts. I can shoot a flea off a pup’s back at fifty paces.”
Giving him an unimpressed look, she really scoffed this time. “Well, looks like someone is just too full of himself.”
Xander groaned a bit and dropped his head back on his shoulders, looking at the sky. “Christ Almighty woman, you sound just like my mama.” Gazing back at her, he cocked a brow, “Not when it’s true, Little Darlin’. I worked at it real hard. I earned every title I got, and with ‘em, the right to be a little full of myself.”
“Don’t be lyin’ on the girl, Xan. You tryin’ ta impress her.”
Turning to his brother who just arrived, he smirked, a chuckle in his voice. “Now, that can’t possibly be true, Ky.” Then he chuckled out loud. ‘Cause the little lady sure ain’t cooperatin’ anyhow. Even after I was all nice like and helped her get a shot off.”
Elizabeth jolted at that, her voice pitched with her rising temper. “I would’ve gotten it eventually.”
Xander smirked at her. “Well, even a blind hog finds an acorn now and then, Sugar Britches.”
Not having the slightest idea what that meant, she took offence to it. Glaring hard at him, she shook her head. “Here’s a title for you.” Then she locked eyes with Xander and sneered, “Savior to asshole in record time. Fuck. You.” Elizabeth then threw the gun at the ground and whirled around, storming away. After reaching the house, she closed the door harder than she meant to, but at the same time not really caring.
Marshal looked up from the cards in his hand at the noise, blinking at his niece when he saw tears in her eyes. “Eribeth, Sugar, what’s the matter?”
Peering over at him, she didn’t answer, instead turning to look at the other man at the table before saying, “I’m sorry, but your son is an asshole.” Then she turned and left the room, heading for her’s.
Head snapping to the girl as she left, Mr. Steele barked. “Which one?”
Elizabeth called back to him, “Take your pick,” as she darted up the steps, slamming her bedroom door once she was in her room.
Growling quietly in his throat, Mr. Steele stood up to head for the door, taking a pause when Marshal called to him.
“Don’t be too hard on them boys now, Jim. Chances are there was some misunderstandin’ on her part, not somethin’ the boys did.” Marshal turned to lean on the back of his chair while watching Jim.
Jim cocked a brow at him and pointed to the steps the little lady had just run up. “You don’t care the little lady was near tears?”
Marshal lifted a shoulder, his voice even. “Course I care. However, she still high off from yesterday, and more skittish than a newborn colt. I'ma guess neither boy did anythin’. She prolly took offence to somethin’ said she didn’t understand. I’m just sayin’ don’t go off half-cocked, is all.”
Mr. Steele looked at Marshal a long second more before turning to look out the window, seeing his boys heading toward the house with Kyle carrying a pellet gun in his hand. He gave Marshal a nod, opened the door, and then took a step out onto the porch, closing the door behind him. Walking to the railing, he leaned on it with both hands, waiting for his boys to notice him.
&nb
sp; Once they did, they stopped and looked at him, neither one saying a word, like he knew they wouldn’t. The two were thick as thieves, and would never out the one that was actually in trouble. It had been that way for nearly 26 years, ever since Xander was born. Giving his boys a hard look, he spoke calm and clear. “I don’t know which one of y’all pissed that young lady off like she is. I don’t rightly care which one it was. All I’m gonna say is, that girl ever leaves either y’alls company in tears again, I’ll knock both ya heads off to make sure I get the right one. Ya get me, Boys? Ain’t neither a ya too old for me to bend over my knee.”
Xander and Kyle both nodded quick, fast and hurried like, then said in unison, “Yes, Sir.”
Giving a sharp nod to his sons, his voice still calm as ever. “Now, I expect the guilty party to apologize and make nice with that girl. She got plenty else to deal with. Ain’t got a need to be picked on or at by anyone else. One boy scarin’ her and makin’ her cry is more than enough, and I’ll be damned if one of MY boys does it, too. I raised you better than that, and know y’all fuckin’ know better.”
“Yes, Sir.”
Nodding one more time to his boys, “Now, I’ll keep your mama off ya this time, but it happens again, y’all be dealin’ with the both of us.” After a third ‘Yes, Sir’ from his boys, he jerked his head to the door. “Now, git your asses in there and fix whatever it was y’all did. She had better be bright eyed and bushy tailed when y’all get called for dinner, or I’ma knock ya heads together.”
Right before the boys went in the house, Mr. Steele stopped them again. He lowered his voice a bit, too. “Y’all gotta keep in mind, she ain’t from these parts and ain’t got the tough skin y’all used too. Comin’ out of the situation she is on top of it, she gonna be easy to upset. Be mindful ‘bout not only what you say, but how it is you say it, Boys.” Then he added one more thing, knowing that it was going to cut deeper and sink in faster than anything he could ever do to them. “Ya mama raised y’all to be gentlemen. I suggest ya act like it.”
It was then Mr. Steele figured out which one of his boys upset the young lady, because Xander couldn’t meet his eye anymore. Of the two young men, Xander was the bigger mama’s boy, so the thought of disappointing her nearly killed that boy. It was also then he knew that he was right in thinking that saying that would cause more damage than actually whooping the boy’s ass. Xander could take a hit better than his brother ever could; the fact that Xander still competed in rodeos proved that much. Kyle quit the first time he got chunked off a bronco, whereas Xander had been laid up more times than Jim could count and still got back in there near as soon the Doc said he could.
Shaking his head, he jerked his head toward the door. “Go’n, boys. Get it done.”
With a nod, Xander and Kyle went in the house, both avoiding looking at their mama and following the whispered directions to where they would find the young lady.
Jim sat back down at the table, picked up the cards, then resumed the game he and Marshal were playing, ignoring the feel of his wife’s eyes on him. What was said between he and his boys wasn’t nobody business, but he and his boys’.
Chapter 9
Once the two boys got up the steps, Kyle whispered in Xander’s ear. “This is all you, Little Brother. I’ll wait outta sight so mama and Pa don’t see me, but if I gotta fix this mess for you, I’ma be pissed.”
Xander nodded at him and whispered back. “Thanks.” Making his way down the hall to the girl’s room while Kyle ducked into the upstairs bathroom, Xander took a deep breath and knocked on Elizabeth’s door, waiting for permission to go in. Opening the door when it came, he poked his head in to see her curled up in a chair in the corner. He cleared his throat, speaking in a quiet, subdued voice. “Howdy there, Little Darlin’. Can I talk to you a minute?”
Elizabeth glanced over at the door and saw him standing there looking kinda upset. With a light sigh, she nodded her consent. Once he came in, she cocked a brow when he closed the door, but said nothing about it while holding out a hand toward her bed. “You can sit down if you want. I’ve been on crutches before, and I wasn’t a fan of standing.”
Surprised at the offer but thankful for it, Xander went over and took a seat on her bed across from where she was sitting.
Once he was down, Elizabeth shoved the footstool that went with her chair to him, a small smile on her face. “It takes the throb out if you elevate your foot a bit. The higher you have it, the better it feels.” She watched as he got himself situated. Once she was sure he was, she sighed again. “Look, I’m sorry I called you an asshole. In light of recent events, I haven’t really been myself. That was way uncalled for, considering what you did for me yesterday. I’m not saying I didn’t mean it, just that I shouldn’t have said it.”
Xander smirked at her. “Naw, you should’ve said it. I was bein’ an asshole.” Leaning back on his palms, he tilted his head to the side slightly. “‘Sides, I ain’t used to hearin’ a lady say fuck. Ladies from ‘round here don’t do that.”
Elizabeth snorted. “I heard one say it just yesterday, actually. This little mutant midget-looking girl at the fair said it, after this fake blonde with even faker tits tried to tackle me from behind and fell flat on her face.”
Xander tsked, his head moving in a slow nod. “Ah, so that’s what happened, huh? Not too surprised, actually.” A smile pulled at Xander’s lips when the girl sucked in a breath. “That was Margaret, though she ain’t no lady. She’s a money hungry gold-digger who’s further up my brother’s ass than the shit in his balls. That little hussy aside, I really didn’t mean to upset ya, Little Darlin’. I would never intentionally hurt a lady, be it any kinda hurt I caused. My mama raised me better than that.”
At that, Elizabeth smiled. “As out of it as I was, I do remember you saying something to that effect.” Looking down, her eyes caught sight of Xander’s knuckles, causing her to point at them while letting her curiosity show. “Hard?”
Xander was taken aback slightly, not sure what she was talking about until he saw where she was pointing, causing him to also look at the back of his knuckles. A small smile played on his lips, then he closed his hands into fists to show her the full ‘RIDE HARD’ tattoo. “I’ve been ridin’ for a long time, and I’m good at it. It’s somethin’ I enjoy and ain’t ever gonna quit doin’. That said, don’t ever think the first thin’ that pops into your head is a good idea, Sugar Britches. This here was somethin’ I thought was a good idea when I was eightteen. While it’s still relevant, I ain’t all that keen on havin’ it.”
Scratching her head, Elizabeth made a face. “But, you have more tattoos than that one.”
All Xander did was shrug. “Your point? The rest of ‘em have a little more thought in ‘em. This one was a spur the moment thin’ when I woke up on my birthday. I didn’t put no thought into it. The others have more meanin’ to me than this one. They have stories. This one don’t really.”
With a slow nod in understanding, Elizabeth dropped her eyes, picking at a loose thread on the chair arm as she bit her lip. After a minute or so, she shook her head, “Can we... I don’t know...” Lifting her eyes to look at him, she continued, “start all over, forgetting everything from both yesterday and today ever happened? You and your brother seem really nice, plus I don’t want all this stupid fucked up bullshit hanging over my head, making things more difficult than they already are. Brandon has ruined enough of my life. I just really want to forget all about him and start over.”
Xander looked at her a short time, considering that before removing his hat, leaning forward while extending a hand. “Alexander Steele, Ma’am. Just so there ain’t no surprises, I have a tendency to be an asshole at times.”
Face lighting up with an amused grin, she put her hand in his. “Elizabeth Mathews. Just so there are no surprises, I’m not from around here, so southern sayings and metaphors might confuse and or piss me off.”
Xander snorted, smirking at her before dipping his head to her
knuckles, then pressing a light kiss to them. He looked back up with a radiant smile, which Elizabeth swooned at nearly as much as that little action. “It’s my pleasure to be makin’ your acquaintance, Little Darlin’.”
Clearing her throat so that a girlish giggle wasn’t heard, Elizabeth leaned back in her chair, propping her chin in her hand. “So, you pissed off a bull?”
Xander dropped his head back on his shoulders, laughing hard at the question for a second before lifting his head to smile at her. “Naw, not really. I had dismounted after the buzzer, but just didn’t get out of the way fast enough. I had to dive to avoid the horns and the damn thin’ stomped on my ankle. Wasn’t the animal’s fault, it was mine.”
Elizabeth grimaced. “That sounds like it had to hurt.”
Xander chuckled. “Sure as hell didn’t feel good. At the same time, though, I have certainly gotten hurt worse than this. Broken ankle certainly beats the hell out of the injury I got ‘bout two years ago. At least I can still get around. Couldn’t that time.”
Surprisingly interested in that, she cocked her head to the side. “What happened then?”
Sighing, Xander leaned back on his hands again. “To get the full picture, you’ll be needin’ to ask Kyle ‘bout it. I don’t really ‘member much before I woke up in the hospital few days later. From what I can recall though, I got thrown from a bull. Not somethin’ all that out of the norm; happens all the time, ‘cause them some mean sumbitches. But this time, my foot had gotten caught in the rope ‘round its belly. I can ‘memeber the first time I hit the ground, but that’s ‘bout it till I woke up again. Was laid up in the hospital for a few weeks, then there was the recreating of the civil war with my mama ‘bout me ridin’ anymore.” Then his face took on a confused look. “To this day, I don’t know how I won that.”
A brow slid up Elizabeth’s forehead as a sly grin pulled at her lips. “So you’re a mama’s boy, huh?”
Xander just shrugged. “And damn proud of it, too. A whistlin’ woman and a crowin’ hen never comes to a very good end, Sugar Britches.” Seeing the confusion on her face he clarified. “I am what I am, Little Darlin’, and ain’t ever gonna be nothin’ else. I’m a good ol’ southern raised country boy that loves his mama. I go to church every Sunday. I help my pa chop wood and patch the barn. I prefer my horse over a truck, and will break a fucker that mistreats a lady in anyway unbecomin’ of a gentleman. ‘Sides, I wouldn’t be here at all if not for that lady. That alone is ‘nuff a reason to drop to my knees and kiss her ass. My mama is my life, and I ain’t ever gonna do nothin’ without her say so.”