A New Life

by Mildred Colvin

  She tackled the stack of dishes with a melody of praise on her lips to lift her spirits. She thought of Brent and Trish. They’d been her friends a long time. After Colin’s death, Trish told her, “We can’t always walk in sunshine, but we can walk with Jesus by our side.”

  How right she’d been. Looks like she’d driven from one rain storm to another, but she could still feel God’s sunshine surrounding her. She smiled and looked out the window toward the barn. Her smile froze. Where was Jamie? Surely not the barn again. Movement under a lone tree in the yard answered her concern. Her son sat leaning against the tree, his jeans crawling with tiny kittens. He was too far away for her to hear, but she saw him laugh. He picked up one kitten and set it in the grass only to have it crawl back on his leg while he removed a second kitten. How dare Travis think her son could create a problem on his precious ranch?

  She smiled and picked up her pace. She finished the dishes, cleaned the stove and counters, then swept and mopped. The place looked better, but the floor needed another scrubbing to be really clean. Not tonight, though. Her muscles ached, and her feet and legs hurt. She’d been up since five this morning, and she’d have to get up at least that early tomorrow.

  She located the food she’d need for breakfast then stepped outside on the back porch into the cool evening air of late May. A gentle breeze lifted her hair and she smiled. The sharp bark of a dog stopped her heart. She grabbed the porch post and held on. Jamie!

  She looked toward the sound as the dog barked again. Jamie’s giggles floated across the yard to her. Colin had never let him have a puppy. He didn’t know how to behave around dogs. She stumbled down the porch steps to the yard and hurried toward her son.

  “Jamie, come here.” She almost choked on her heart when the black and white dog jumped up at Jamie’s raised hand, its sharp teeth coming within inches of snapping through his small fist.

  “Jamie!” She screamed.

  “Trixie! Down.” The dog drew back at the sharp command. Travis stepped close to Jamie and crouched down beside him. He held his hand out to the dog. “Come.”

  Kimberly pulled Jamie away. Her eyes widened as she watched the dog turn to Travis and lick his outstretched hand. Man and animal became a blur of motion as Travis rubbed the dog’s head and back while he jumped against Travis’s leg. Travis fell backward and they both rolled.

  They were playing. That dog tried to bite Jamie, and Travis rewarded him. She tugged on her son. “Come on, Jamie. Let’s go to the cabin where we’ll be safe.”

  “Kimberly.” The one word stopped her as she started away.

  She turned back with a sharp look. “What?”

  His gentle smile drew her. “This is Trixie. She’s one of the best herding dogs I know. She’s pure-bred collie and is as gentle as a puppy with kids. She won’t hurt your son.”

  Kimberly saw the brown color on the dog’s long, narrow face and legs, the wide ring of white around its neck. Its feet were white, its head and back were black. She should have recognized the breed from the Lassie shows she’d watched as a child.

  “Would you like to meet her?” His eyes questioned.

  She opened her mouth to say no.

  “Please, Momma.” Jamie twisted in her hands to look up at her with pleading eyes. “She’s a nice doggie. We were playing.”

  “Are you sure?” She saw the sparkle in his eyes. Maybe she had overreacted. She wasn’t normally afraid of dogs, but when she saw what looked like a dog attacking her son, she thought the worst. She loosened her hold on Jamie.

  “Okay, how does one go about meeting a dog?”

  Travis’s laugh had a welcome sound. “Stick your hand out palm down and let her sniff you. That lets her get your scent so she’ll recognize you later.”

  “Or she’ll recognize dishwater.” Kimberly murmured.

  “Better than what she smells on me sometimes.” Travis chuckled an honest-to-goodness chuckle that brought warmth to Kimberly’s heart.

  She’d almost forgotten his sense of humor. Colin certainly hadn’t been blessed with the same. She smiled and let Trixie sniff her hand, then ran her palm over the dog’s silky, soft hair.

  “She’s a good dog, isn’t she, Momma?” Jamie threw his arms around Trixie’s neck and held on. Boy and dog fell to the ground with giggles and mock growls.

  Kimberly sank to the grass. Jamie’s obvious enjoyment both thrilled and worried her. Had she made a mistake coming here? So much could go wrong. Jamie had never had a pet. He asked Colin once for a dog and got a curt refusal instead. Now his laughter rang out across the quiet evening.

  Travis crouched on his heels a few feet from her. He smiled and held her gaze. “What’s wrong? Surely you can see there’s no danger from Trixie.”

  An answering smile curved her lips. “Maybe not a physical danger.” Her smile faded. “But what if Jamie becomes too attached? He’s never had a pet. He could get hurt when summer’s over and we leave. This isn’t our life. We can’t have dogs and horses or even kittens.”

  A frown replaced Travis’s smile. “Why on earth not? What kind of life have you been living where a little boy can’t have a pet?”

  “Colin didn’t like animals.” She whispered the words and knew he heard when his frown deepened.

  She turned back to Jamie. Why did it matter to Travis if her son didn’t have a pet? A few minutes ago, he made it clear he didn’t want her city boy on his ranch. His voice had been harsh and unbending in the kitchen. Now he thought Jamie should have a dog?

  A sharp whistle brought Trixie to her feet. The dog trotted over to Travis and sat on her haunches as if waiting for a command. Jamie sat up with a stunned look on his face.

  “Good girl.” Travis cupped the dog’s face between his hands and rubbed her neck on both sides. He pointed at Jamie. “Bring him here.”

  With a sharp bark, Trixie ran back to Jamie and nudged him from behind. With nudges and barks, she pushed the little boy to stand.

  Jamie laughed and ran the opposite way. Trixie was faster and stopped him. She continued to intercept his every turn.

  Kimberly cried out. “What are you doing?”

  When she started to stand, Travis caught her hand and as quickly let go. “It’s okay. She won’t hurt him. Look at him. See his smile?”

  Jamie was smiling. A giggle came from him. “What am I? The robber and you’re the cop?”

  “Jamie, are you all right?” Kimberly wanted his assurance.

  “Sure, Momma. Trixie’s a smart dog. She won’t let me get away.”

  “She’s well trained.” Travis spoke beside her. “She brings in cattle the same way. She doesn’t hurt them either.”

  With Jamie’s every effort to get away, Trixie nipped at his heels and Jamie moved closer to Travis and Kimberly. Travis knew his dog, and he had no reason to hurt Jamie. He might not want him here, but he wouldn’t do anything to hurt him. Travis wasn’t Colin. She needed to remember that.

  “Look, Momma.” Jamie grinned as if the dog’s ability was his idea. “I can’t get away from her. Looks like I’m captured.”

  He ran the few feet to lean against Kimberly. Trixie barked and tried to push him closer to Travis. When Jamie resisted, Kimberly held him close. “Call her off, Travis. This game’s over.”

  Travis did as she asked, but she saw the confusion in his eyes. She didn’t fully understand the workings of her son’s mind, either. Maybe he sensed Travis didn’t want him just as Colin hadn’t. He’d made friends with Elliott quickly enough, but she figured the kittens had a lot to do with that. He didn’t warm up to most men in a first meeting.

  As Trixie lay down to watch, Travis knelt before them and looked into Jamie’s eyes. “Do you understand Trixie won’t hurt you on purpose? We were only playing.”

  Jamie nodded.

  “You can play with the kittens and with Trixie when she isn’t working, but I don’t want you to ever go near the horses or cattle. Do you understand?”

  Jamie pressed against his
mom. She held him close with a hand on either shoulder. “Travis, you don’t need to scare him.”

  Travis looked up at her. His eyes seemed darker than usual with an intensity she didn’t understand. “I need an answer from him, Kim. This is something I can’t overlook. His life . . .”

  He looked away, a muscle in his jaw flexing. When he turned back, he ignored Kimberly and again asked Jamie. This time his voice was softer. “I don’t want to scare you, Jamie. But if that’s what it takes to keep you safe, I will. Just promise me, man to man, that you will stay away from the big animals.”

  He held his hand out to Jamie. “Can we shake on it, son? Like men?”

  Jamie twisted to look up at Kimberly, his eyes showing his confusion and fear. Kimberly nodded because she couldn’t speak. Travis had looked into Jamie’s eyes so like his own and called him son, but he still didn’t know. Didn’t he see the similarity? Where did the man think her son got his dark hair and eyes? Not from her. Colin had sandy brown hair and blue eyes. But Travis had never met Colin.

  “Then you agree to stay away from the horses?” Travis’s face relaxed into a half smile.

  Kimberly focused on Jamie’s nod and saw Travis’s hand swallow Jamie’s. Her son looked at the man before him, the fear gone from his face. His expression said Travis was almost as wonderful as Trixie. The dog was bad enough, but a father who didn’t want him? Had she brought Jamie here to get his heart broken? She’d thought she was doing right. Travis deserved to know he had a son, but Jamie didn’t need another father’s rejection. One was enough.

  “If you’re finished emphasizing rules I’ve already laid down, Jamie and I need to get ready for bed. Morning promises to come early around here.” Kimberly turned her son toward the cabin. She would keep him from hurt if she could, even if she had to take the secret of his paternity to her grave.

  Travis fell into step with her as Jamie ran ahead with Trixie. “Yes, it does. I think it’s safe to say, your three admirers will be here with bells on for another taste of your cooking. They don’t always stay for supper since they don’t live on the ranch.”

  He nodded toward a low building a few yards away. “That’s the bunkhouse. Gramps had hands that lived there years ago, but now it’s set up more as a home away from home for the guys. If we work really late, sometimes they’ll sleep here. With your cooking to look forward to, they may all move in.”

  “What about you, Travis?” She couldn’t resist asking. “Did my cooking satisfy your exacting standards?”

  Something flickered in his eyes as he held her gaze. He gave a curt nod. “I’ll have to admit you can cook. Maybe you’ll want to enter your chili in the local chili cook off this fall. That is if you’re still here then.”

  “I guess that depends on when fall roundup and the chili cook off is, doesn’t it?” She spoke in a light vein. “I plan to stay as long as I’m needed or wanted. You’ll have to tell me when that is.”

  Travis’s voice dropped so only she could hear. “Fine. You laid down the gauntlet. It’s mine now. Don’t forget, because I won’t.”

  Her heart raced as she realized where the conversation had gone. She hadn’t meant to say she’d stay indefinitely. She’d only meant as long as Linda needed her or until Travis ran her off. The spark burning in Travis’s eyes stopped her from retracting her words. She looked away, and they walked in silence.

  Travis stopped at the cabin’s porch steps. He spoke low for her hearing. “Night, Kim.”

  “Good night, Travis.” She hurried up the steps, and he chuckled. She turned. “Don’t forget to take care of your finger.”

  He glanced down at his hand and shrugged. “I always wash my hands when I brush my teeth.”

  “Put some antibiotic ointment on it, Travis. And a bandage.” Before he could respond, she called her son. “Jamie, come on.”

  Jamie ran through the door she held open as he called good-byes to both Travis and Trixie.

  Kimberly closed the door and helped Jamie get ready for bed while she tried to shake Travis’s dark good looks from her mind.

  Later she lay in bed staring into the darkness while she thought of another time. Another place. She was eighteen. He was twenty-one. The night before he returned to California they drove to a deserted stretch of road in the country outside Omaha and stopped to talk. She’d cried because she didn’t want him to go. He took her in his arms and held her as if he, too, hated the thought of leaving her. He’d kissed her, and they hadn’t stopped there. Afterward he begged her to come to California with him. They’d get married, and if he had to drop out of college, he would. He said he loved her. She’d cried even harder then.

  A tear rolled down her cheek toward her ear and she brushed it away. What good did it do to go over the past? She hadn’t been able to defy her grandfather back then. Only now when he refused to believe the truth about Colin, and she’d learned the truth about her son, had she gathered enough strength and courage to break away from his control.

  Travis might send her away, but she’d never go back to her grandfather. She’d find a new life for her and her son. Somewhere and somehow.

  Chapter Five

  Kimberly turned the sizzling bacon and checked the biscuits in the oven. They needed a few more minutes. Linda pushed through the café doors.

  The older woman greeted her with a smile. “My, it smells good in here.”

  Kimberly returned the smile. “It’s the bacon. Travis said fix hearty, so that’s what I’m doing. Coffee’s ready. I’ll get you some.”

  Linda stopped her. “I can get that. You’ve got plenty to do without waiting on an old woman with a banged-up arm.”

  “If you’re sure.” Kimberly wasn’t. “Part of my job is to make things easier on you.”

  Linda threw back her head and laughed. “Now who thought that one up? Let me guess. My grandson who thinks a broken arm is a death sentence for his poor old gran.”

  Linda got her own cup and filled it with coffee. Kim smiled and went back to stirring a pan of oatmeal and took up the bacon. Linda sat at the table with her coffee. “I went along with the afternoon naps mostly because I was bored.”

  Kimberly turned in time to see a teasing sparkle in Linda’s eyes and couldn’t stop her own smile. “Does that mean you aren’t bored anymore?”

  “Could be.” Linda chuckled. “I heard you have a son. Actually, I must confess, I eavesdropped last night. My open bedroom window overlooks the backyard. I’m especially fond of little boys. Is he still sleeping?”

  Kimberly turned back to the stove as something squeezed her heart. Maybe guilt for withholding her secret. Maybe the sudden realization that this woman was her son’s great-grandmother. Or maybe fear of sharing Jamie with people she didn’t know.

  She busied herself, as she spoke over her shoulder. “Yes, he was when I left the cabin. I’m sure he’ll come looking for food as soon as he wakes though.”

  “Sounds like a typical little boy.”

  “He’s been raised in the city. This is all new to him.” Kimberly tried to keep from sounding defensive.

  The back door opened and Travis stepped in. He headed for the coffee and poured a cup before speaking. “How’s it coming? The men should be here any minute.”

  Kimberly secured a heaping plate of bacon in her hand and lifted the steaming bowl of oatmeal in the other. She started toward the dining room, tossing a remark over her shoulder as she pushed through the café doors. “I hope they come before everything gets cold.”

  Linda’s laughter followed her as Travis growled out something she didn’t understand. She set everything on the table and turned back to the kitchen.

  Jason, coffee in hand and a welcoming grin on his face, held one café door open for her. “Morning, Kimberly.”

  “Good morning and thank you.” She flashed a smile for the handsome cowboy as she walked past. Travis’s scowl and Linda’s amused expression registered in her mind at the same time the two remaining ranch hands walked in the back d
oor.

  “Good morning, Cletus. Elliott.” Kimberly put a cheerful note in her voice, while she kept her gaze from staying too long on Travis. Ignoring him might not be easy, but for now it seemed to be wise.

  Cletus and Elliott filled their coffee cups before moving into the dining room. Must be a ritual.

  “Come on, Gran.” Travis offered his arm to his grandmother. “Looks like our cook has everything well in hand here.”

  Linda chuckled and stood without his help. “Why don’t you carry the coffee pot in, Travis? You know the boys will want a refill.”

  The door opened before he could respond, and Jamie stuck his dark, tousled head through the opening. “Am I s’posed to eat now?”

  His hesitation tore at Kimberly’s heart, while anger toward Colin and at herself burned inside. Colin had always insisted Jamie be fed first, so he wouldn’t be bored with adult conversation. She hadn’t agreed, but she’d allowed him to have his way rather than cause a fight. Why had she been so slow to understand what was going on? How could she have been so naïve to think that abuse meant only physical when there were so many other ways to abuse a child. And a wife. Colin was gone. Already Jamie seemed more relaxed than he had six months ago.

  “Is this the young man who’s come to live on our ranch?” Linda turned to Jamie with a wide smile. “If you’re hungry, you’ve come to the right place. I heard you outside my window last night playing with Trixie. Do you like dogs?”

  After a quick look at Kimberly, Jamie slipped the rest of the way through the door and closed it. He nodded, staring at Linda. “Are you a grandma?”