He might be just what I need to feel good about myself again, even though I know this rebound stuff is not a good idea. And I know it’s hard to objectively look at yourself when you’re on the rebound, but I feel like I can. I feel like what I see in him is real, even though it’s happening so fast.
And that’s partially what makes it so real. There’s no need to think. My body and my mind are both pushing me to him. They both want the same things. Things I’ve never felt before…not like this at least. It makes sense. Maybe that’s why I was saving myself. For lack of a better way of putting it my DNA was holding off until it knew I’d met the ultimate alpha male with whom I should mate with. And do I ever feel like mating now.
Even the terms that are flowing through my head are animalistic. Mate? When did I ever think like that? Never. And that’s because I never felt like someone was a magnet pulling me to them without any thinking involved.
His hand comes up to my cheek and I know we’re right on the cusp. I’ve never felt so alive and alert in my life, all my blood rushing to only two places. The first being my mind, the biggest sexual organ of all, as I’m already fantasizing about how this is going to happen. The anticipation has my head spinning.
And the second place is my groin. I feel warm in my stomach and my loins and what I really want isn’t exactly to feel warm down there, but to feel something warm in there.
What has gotten into me?
And what’s about to?
He leans in closer and my eyes close as I start to lean towards him.
It’s like time stands still and then…fireworks! I feel his lips touch mine and it’s like I’m melting everywhere…inside, outside, and onto the floor.
His hand finds my waist and the other hand slides through my hair as his kiss gets deeper and more assertive.
Suddenly I hear tires turn on gravel and a horn beep furiously.
“Jed! Get out here. Fire at old man Johnson’s farm. We’ve got to put it out.”
“Awww shoot!” he says. “He’s like a brother to me.”
“Go!” I say. “Save your friend’s farm and know I’ll be here keeping Mandy Sue safe.”
“If it spreads call the number on the fridge,” he says.
“If it spreads?” Now I’m scared.
“But it won’t. I’m not letting any harm come you girls’ way. You can be sure of that!”
He bolts out the door and seconds later I’m at the window watching the truck peel out as he’s already on the way to go save the day.
“Are you kidding me?” I say to myself.
“I don’t know what’s hotter. The way his lips met mine or how he took off out of here like a real modern day hero.”
I didn’t even know men like this existed anymore. I thought they were just legends so grand they were almost superheroish, at least when Clint Eastwood played them on the silver screen years ago. But this is real. He’s real.
And now we’ve kissed and will be living under the same roof for the next week, or maybe more.
And as crazy as it sounds when I say it to myself I can see it quickly turning into much more.
Much, much more.
I don’t think I’m going to be able to get enough of this man. This real man and his chivalry, charm, and ability to protect what he holds dearest.
But I’m ready to find out.
CHAPTER 7
Jed
The next afternoon
I roll over in bed and squint looking at the clock. 1:17 p.m.
The sun is blasting in through the window.
We fought that blaze for hours, well into the night. I was an animal out there. Running around every which way hosing down the barn left and right trying to contain it. And I did.
Even the fireman and the volunteer fireman, like myself, couldn’t believe my energy level.
Under normal circumstances I wouldn’t either, but these weren’t normal circumstances. I was riding high from Laura’s kiss. It had energized me like nothing else. I didn’t notice my sore back from the falls I sustained riding the bronc, and I sure didn’t notice all the smoke I was inhaling or the heavy hoses I was carrying practically all by myself. I was like Superman out there with no possibility of Kryptonite in sight.
You could say that I wasn’t the one who saved that house. Laura saved it. I’m not about to tell any of the guys that. I don’t even care that they’d make fun of me for hours on end. It’s just that they wouldn’t understand.
Sure some of my buddies are happily married to some incredible women, but I don’t ever remember seeing any of them the way I saw myself last night. Maybe they have experienced the same kind of high and I just wasn’t around to witness, but if I was a gambling man I would bet not.
Because there’s only one of her and she’s mine. It may not be official yet, but you can bet the proverbial farm I’m going to make it that way.
And another reason she should get the credit for saving the farm is because she was there to watch Mandy Sue. There’s no way I could have gotten somebody over to my house in time to watch her and leave to help battle the blaze. Absolutely no way.
And the craziest thing is I took off without hesitation, which is absolutely insane.
Insane first and foremost because we just met and I trust her like I’ve known her for years. And secondly because I can’t keep acting like this…like some fella who’s out to save the world. I’m a father now and I’m responsible for more than just myself.
I’m absolutely keen on helping my fellow man, neighbor or not, but my first obligation is now to my daughter. I have to remind myself of that. It’s embarrassing that I’m still processing it. It needs to come naturally. I think with Laura at the house now it’s going to click in my mind a lot easier.
But technically she’s only here for a week, and then she’ll look for her own place. That is if she even decides to stay. She made a major commitment just coming here and she had to have an out clause just in case things didn’t work out between us. It was only fair.
But come a week from now I’m going to dominate the rodeo at the local fair and take home that prize money. And then things are gonna change real quick. There’s a lot of money that comes in from being a cowboy, rancher, or farmer, but there’s also a huge amount of expenses going out the door in order to get those dollars to come in.
One hundred thousand dollars free and clear is a lot of money, and especially a lot for a guy like me right now. I just need to ride those broncs to completion and there’s no way I can lose. And after I win that contest the real test will be to win her hand.
And there’s no doubt in my mind that that’s exactly what I’m going to do.
CHAPTER 8
Laura
I hear the squeaking of the wood floor and know Jed’s up. I’m not sure if it’s just to use the bathroom or if he’s up for the day now. He was out awfully late battling that blaze.
On the one hand I was scared for him. What if something happened to him? What if he, heaven forbid, didn’t come back? That would leave a whole mess of questions.
On the other hand I couldn’t be more proud of him and this community. How incredible that these guys all immediately dropped what they were doing and ran to help a friend in need. I feel like in most parts of the country you can barely schedule a coffee date with someone, and even then it’s still 50/50 if they’ll show up at all.
Not here. That’s not how things go down in the Wild West.
Relationships of all kinds seem to be for life. I’m no expert, but I’m not just going off what I’ve seen in movies anymore. I saw it with my own two eyes last night. And that’s something I’d really like to be a part of. A group of people who truly love each other and care about each other. People who put the community first and they all come together when anyone is in need. And they don’t waste a single second in doing so.
But life involves so many trade offs. What if something would have happened to him when he was out there? Then what? Somebody steps up and r
aises Mandy Sue just like that?
“Morning sunshine,” he says as he slowly glides down the stairs.
“Well look what the cat dragged in,” I say. Maybe I shouldn’t be teasing him like this, but everything just feels so natural with him. He just feels so familiar.
“Do I look that bad?”
“Bad?” I say. “What girl doesn’t like her guy looking a little rough and rugged? A man who looks like he’s living each day to the fullest is a real man, and real men are attractive.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment,” he says.
“You should.” I pause. “Can I make you some breakfast?”
“Again?”
“What? I’ve never made you breakfast before.”
“I know but you made one heck of a dinner. It was so hearty it kept me going all night and I even ate some more when I got home this morning.”
“Oh, so you’re full?”
“Are you kidding me? No way I could ever get enough of your cooking, let alone turn it down.”
“Bacon, eggs, and a coffee black sound good?”
“Sounds like you know me already.”
“I was kind of thinking the same thing,” I say. “I feel like I’ve known you. Maybe in a past life or something.” I wink.
“Or maybe we were supposed to be together in a future life.” He winks back. And then he smirks. Oh la la. Wow, does he turn up the sexy meter even higher with that smirk of his.
“And luckily we’re together in this present life,” I say.
“Lucky for me. That’s for sure,” he says.
“Lucky for us both,” I say. I walk away making sure to sway my hips a little too much and to walk on my tiptoes to make sure my legs look as good as possible.
“Yep! Definitely lucky for me,” he says loud enough so I can hear.
A few seconds later I’m in the kitchen, but I can feel eyes on me. I turn around sure enough there he is leaning in the doorway looking as handsome as ever.
“Mandy Sue taking a nap?”
“Yeah. She seems to have the whole sleeping thing pretty well mastered.”
I turn back to start preparing his very late breakfast and he slides up to the bar in the kitchen.
“Thanks for watching over her last night. We’re really fortunate to have you here.”
“I feel fortunate to be here. And last night…just watching you and the way you immediately took off out of here in a time of need to go help your friend. Those things just really don’t happen anymore. At least not as much as they should. It’s nice to know there are still corners of the map where neighbors come together to help other neighbors.”
“Well I couldn’t have done it without you.”
“Thank you.”
“And I’m sorry I had to leave right in the middle of things.”
I look back over my shoulder at him. There’s that smirk again.
“But I promise to make it up to you,” he says.
“And I promise to look forward to it,” I say.
“And thanks to you Mandy Sue’s got a future to look forward to. With you here to look after her, if you decide to stay, it changes everything for her. It gives her a female role model for when she gets older.”
“Can I ask what happened to her mother?” I hate to be nosey, but I’d like to know just what kind of situation I’m getting myself into if I commit long term. If there’s baby mamma drama I need to not only be prepared for it, but to factor it into my decision making process.
“You can ask. What happened is her mother ran off to South Africa to be with some avocado farmer down there. Apparently he’s also got a bunch of vineyards down around Stellenbosch and a view of Table Mountain. She left our community right after she had the baby. Strangest thing I’ve ever seen. Just a brief note and disappeared in the middle of the night. Field, that’s Mandy Sue’s real daddy’s name, woke up in the middle of the night when she was crying only to find his wife completely gone. No idea why either. He was a great guy. Never looked at other women. Never laid a hand on her in anger. To the best of my knowledge they never even had arguments. I think she just saw a lot of money and the ocean and decided that was all she needed. I know she wanted to be an actress when she was younger so maybe that played into it. I think the fella owned some movie production studios or something. We don’t know to much about him, nor do we care. We just checked when she disappeared because we thought maybe this was some kind of kidnapping or prank. It shocked us that much, but once we found out that she really did just up and leave we let it go. No point in wanting somebody who doesn’t want you. Not a good use of time.”
“You can say that again,” I say, thinking back to my relationship with my ex. “But what about her father? Field was his name?”
“That’s right. Field Yates. He was a cowboy, just like me. He was entered to ride in a bronc riding contest just a couple days after she left and he went through with it. Trouble was I don’t think his head was in the right place at the time. He understandably wasn’t focused.”
Jed pauses and looks up to the ceiling.
“I was in the stands, holding Mandy Sue. Field was thrown off and then things went from bad to worse. Doctors worked on him all night, but he didn’t pull through.”
“Oh my, god. That’s terrible.”
“The worst.” He pauses again. “So Mandy Sue was on my lap when her daddy left us and she hasn’t left my side since, nor will she. She’s mine now. Officially adopted and everything.”
I feel my heart melt right then and there. How much this little girl has gone through already and she doesn’t even know it. And poor Jed, losing his friend, but then like a true hero he steps up and takes care of his daughter. A guy who is obviously not used to having a woman in his house is trying his hardest to raise a little girl.
“But what about you? No romantic interests?”
“No ma’am.” He smiles. “Most nights I fall asleep out on the rang with my boots on surrounded by a bunch of other cowboys. Not exactly the best way to meet ladies.”
“That sounds like a rough life.”
“I enjoy it, except when ol’ Butch has too many helpings of beans before he passes out.”
I laugh quickly making it more of a snort than an actual laugh.
“See. You know exactly what I’m talking about don’t cha?”
“Not from personal experience thankfully, but yes…I can imagine.”
“You probably can actually, but try not to. Butch is a big guy and like they say everything is bigger in Texas…including his, well, the trumpet he plays in his sleep.”
I break out laughing so hard. He’s referring to flatulence as playing a trumpet? I can only imagine, but like he says I don’t want to.
But I know what I can imagine. More time with this amazing man. He quickly diverted from the sad topic right into something funnier, lighter, and more upbeat. I like positive people and he’s definitely that.
And I positively don’t see myself leaving here now. How could I? This is just too perfect.
He’s too perfect.
And not that I think too highly of myself but he’s the perfect guy to give my once in a life gift to, because I know he’ll cherish it forever.
And the more time I spend around him and Mandy Sue it’s not hard to see it’s very possible that that’s exactly how much time we just might be together.
CHAPTER 9
Jed
The next evening
It sure was hard to keep my hands off her these past couple days but I somehow managed.
My secret?
The plan I have in store for tonight.
I knew if I could just make it through then we could really enjoy some time together. At least that’s the plan. I’d never push her, or anyone, to do anything they don’t want to do but I’ve got a good feeling she wants the same things I want.
I can see it by the look in her eyes. The way her gazes linger. I can feel it when she brushes against me when we pass by each other in
the house. There’s plenty of room on either side but we always find a way to make the space smaller so our bodies brush against each other. And I can smell it on her, and she can surely smell it on me. I know it sounds crazy but I’ve spent enough time around animals in my life and you can bet they produce different smells when they’re in heat. Call it pheromones or what you want, but it’s real. And humans are nothing more than animals at the end of the day and I can smell that she’s ready, and does it ever smell sweet.
Cowboy's Babysitter Page 3