“I can see being rich is quite a strain on you,” Alex said wryly. She glanced at her watch. “It’s too late today and the stores will be closed tomorrow. We’ll go into town Friday and get one. I take it you want to be certain before you let Jake know?”
Claire nodded.
“Not afraid he’ll stop trying, are you?”
Claire rolled her eyes, and Alex chuckled. “Good for him. But how is this going to work out, with your new job and all? Won’t that take a lot of time?”
She frowned. “It does take a lot of time. I’m just hoping I’ll be used to it by the time I have the baby. I want to see my child grow up, not hear about it from a servant. Sometimes I wish I’d stayed at Whitaker. I could take as few or as many clients as I wanted to there, so I could have as much time with my baby as I want.”
“That’ll be twenty-four hours a day,” Alex said. “What does Jake think about you working?”
Claire frowned at the carrot in her hand. “He insisted I take the job, so I guess he’s okay with it.”
“You guess? You and Jake don’t discuss much, do you?” Alex asked shrewdly.
Claire shrugged. “He knows I’ll never be a housewife like you. Though I think he’d rather I spent twenty-four hours a day thinking about him.”
“What man wouldn’t?” Alex asked with a grin. “I have my own good news, you know. I’m pregnant again, too.”
Claire drew her into a hug. “That’s great, Alex. I know you’ve always wanted a big family.”
“Yes, well, four’s my limit. I already told Hank he’s going to have to turn himself into a steer.”
“And my brother agreed to this?”
“You bet he did—after I gave him the choice of that or abstinence.” Alex went to the stove to check the roast. “So my youngest will be the same age as your oldest. That’ll be nice for them to have a cousin the same age.”
Claire studied the only “sister” she’d ever had. Like Jake, Alex had been an only child, though she grew up in an orphanage after her mother died. But at least her mother had loved her. “You haven’t said anything about Jake. So—what do you think about him?”
Alex smiled warmly. “He’s exactly like I thought he’d be.”
“Just like Hank,” Claire said with disgust. “Strong willed, opinionated, has to have his own way.”
“Yep. I know you didn’t want a man like that but Claire, honey, it’s the only kind of man you could’ve fallen in love with.”
Claire glanced up sharply. “What do you mean?”
Alex placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. “I’ve watched you the past ten years. You try to date weak men, guys you can wrap around your pinkie, but they don’t hold your interest. And you’re so stubborn you didn’t give the strong ones a fighting chance. Jake must’ve been ten times more pigheaded than any man you’ve ever met if he broke through your defenses.”
Claire’s gaze dropped to her hand which held the last carrot. “I never thought about it that way.” She sighed. “At least he’s not a cowboy.”
“He’s not?” Alex asked in surprise. “Those jeans and boots looked well-worn to me.”
Claire frowned. “He told me he’s had them for years.”
“I hate to tell you this, hon, but if he’s not a cowboy for real, it’s obvious he’s one at heart.”
Claire groaned inside. She had more than a sneaking suspicion her sister-in-law was right.
“No, Daddy.” Sarah, seated in front of her father, pushed his hand away from the reins with a petulant frown. “Let me.”
“Cricket, we need to catch up with JJ. and Matt.”
The adorable three-year-old—or three-and-a-half-year-old as she was fond of reminding everyone—kicked the gelding with her stubby legs, but the horse didn’t respond. Jake, beside them on his own horse, blessed Hank’s foresight. Since Hank was riding with his daughter in front of him, he’d asked for an older horse with a dead mouth and an easygoing nature. The man knew his daughter well.
Hank glanced at Jake with a wide grin and rolled his eyes. “She gets this streak of mule-headedness from her mother.”
Jake chuckled. “You want me to ride on and see what the boys are up to?”
“Nah, they’re all right. They’ll swing back around in another few minutes. They know the rules of the trail. So, you were telling me about your bulls....”
They talked ranch operations for the next half hour. The boys checked in with them once, then went veering off in another direction with an admonition from their father to keep their pace to a lope until they learned the lay of the land. Jake stayed with Hank, who plodded along at a walk, letting Sarah pick their course. She invariably chose to go up a hill instead of around it, through the deepest part of the stream instead of finding a shallow spot.
But Jake was too fascinated by his brother-in-law to mind. The man’s love for his children showed in every word he said, every look he gave them. Jake couldn’t help but contrast Hank and his own father. The difference between them was as great as the difference between the plains of eastern Colorado and the Rocky Mountains. One was hard and cold and barren, the other sustained life in abundance. It was easy to see why Claire believed in love that lasted.
Jake took careful note of the way his brother-in-law interacted with his children. Jake wanted his family to be just like Hank’s. He wanted to be a father just like Hank. He was going to watch Hank carefully in the next few days. He knew he could learn a lot. He already had.
They topped Black Horse Hill a few minutes later, the highest point for ten miles around.
Hank stopped his mount, soothing his daughter’s protests, and gazed around. He sent Jake a shrewd look. “Claire claimed your ranch was just an investment. But I think it means a helluva lot more to you than that. You’ve been able to answer every question I asked.”
“Investment?” Jake asked in surprise. “Is that what she told you?”
Hank nodded. “She claims you’re not a cowboy. Are you?”
Jake shifted in his saddle and turned to look over the land that had been in his family for generations. His cowboy family. “I’ve always thought of myself as a cowboy, even though I wrangle more mutual funds than cattle these days. But if Claire doesn’t see it, and she grew up with cowboys, then maybe I’ve lost touch with my roots.”
“Claire doesn’t see it because she doesn’t want to see it.”
Jake sent his brother-in-law a penetrating look. “What do you mean?”
“Claire always swore she’d never marry a cowboy. Didn’t date much in high school or college because that’s mostly what we grow in Wyoming.”
Jake winced and looked away. And a cowboy was exactly what he wanted to be. Yet another reason for her not to love him. He thought he’d made it clear how he felt about his ranch, but maybe he hadn’t.
“You two didn’t talk a helluva lot before you got married, did you?” Hank asked.
“We spent time getting to know each other before we made the final commitment, but I guess some things just didn’t get said.”
“Well, hell, don’t worry over it too much. Like you said, you wrangle stocks and bonds and such. That’s the kind of roping Claire likes. And she’s crazy about you. A blind steer could see that.”
Jake’s gaze traveled over the horizon. Was she crazy about him? Or was it all an act for her family? Did she...
His thoughts trailed off as his eyes fell on two horses racing up a hill half a mile away. The boys. But something wasn’t right. The mare in front gained a stride on the other one for every four it took, even though the boy in the saddle pulled at the reins with all his might. “Damn!”
Hank must’ve seen the same thing at the same time. “J.J.’s on a runaway.”
Even as they spurred, Jake knew saving the boy was up to him. Besides having Sarah in front of him. Hank’s gelding would never be able to catch up with the bay mare riding hell-bent for leather toward—“Damn it! They’re headed straight for Dead Man’s Ravine.”
“Is it jumpable?” Hank yelled.
Jake shook his head as he dug his spurs into the stallion beneath him. No time for explanations now. Every second counted. Thank God Ray had suggested he exercise the stud. The black stallion named Night Wing rapidly picked up speed, stretching his long legs in a stride that ate up the small ridges at a dizzying pace.
Jake knew he couldn’t catch the boy from behind. His best chance would be cutting him off, so he angled across the hills, aiming directly for Dead Man’s Ravine. Standing in the stirrups, he leaned close over the stallion’s neck, praying Night Wing’s hooves wouldn’t find a prairie dog hole. With every stride, he squeezed the stallion’s side, urging him faster, farther.
Riding the length of a long ridge, he saw the runaway mare cresting a hill a hundred yards away. Nose down, the horse had the bit between her teeth. Suddenly the mare leaped over a small ridge, twisting her body in midair. J.J. lurched to the side, dropping halfway out of the saddle.
The wind ripped a curse from Jake’s mouth.
“Grab the mane!” he yelled, though he knew he was too far away for the boy to hear.
Ninety yards. Eighty. Night Wing rapidly closed in on the smaller mare. Would he make it in time? Could the boy hang on?
Fifty yards away, Jake saw J.J. haul himself back into the saddle with every ounce of eight-year-old strength he possessed.
“The mane! Grab the mane!”
The boy whipped a walleyed look over his shoulder, then looked down at his hands as if willing them to obey. First one hand let go of the saddle horn to latch onto the flying brown hair, then the other.
Knowing he’d need one hand free, Jake crossed his split reins over the stallion’s neck, then grabbed both mane and reins with his left hand.
Twenty yards. Ten. They dropped into a narrow valley. Dead Man’s Ravine lay fifty yards dead ahead.
As Night Wing drove in behind the mare, Jake squinted to avoid the dirt and pebbles spewing from the mare’s hooves and the froth flying from her mouth. A length behind, a loose rock cut a gash across his cheek. Jake’s eyes never left J.J. Such a small body on such a massive, heaving animal.
Thirty yards short of the ravine the mare seemed to catch a second wind, lunging and gaining half a length on the stallion. Night Wing gamely responded, surging forward.
His horse’s nose came even with the mare’s flank, but Jake could see the ravine up ahead. J.J. must’ve spotted it at the same time. The boy dropped a rein and started to yank the mare’s head around, but Jake knew that would send the animal down, possibly crushing the boy in the process.
“No!” Jake shouted. “I’ll get you. Drop your stirrups when I turn her.”
Another stride and the stallion was even. Another, and he was a nose ahead. No time to gain any more. With pressure on the stallion’s side, Jake guided the horse to the right, into the mare. For two strides she refused to give ground, but finally she turned just enough to slow down.
“Now!” Jake yelled. “Drop your stirrups.”
Losing your stirrups on a galloping horse meant losing most of your control, but J.J. obeyed without hesitation. As soon as the boy kicked free, Jake reached across and grabbed him around the waist. Hauling his nephew in front of him, he drew back on the reins and the stallion slowed to a stop.
J.J.’s arms shot around his waist and the boy buried his face in Jake’s chest. “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!”
Knowing the boy needed the security of his big body more than anything, Jake wrapped his own arms around the small shuddering boy and held on tight. “Why are you sony?”
“I lost control.” JJ. wailed like it was a sin worthy of the death penalty. “Dad’s gonna kill me.”
“From what I’ve seen of your father, I know that’s not true,” Jake said soothingly. “Can you tell me what happened? What spooked her?”
Between loud hiccups, the boy choked out, “A snake. I almost had her back under control. Honest I did—just ask Matt. But then she stumbled in a hole. My foot slipped and my stirrup caught her ’cross the stomach. That’s when she shot off like a rabbit chased by a coyote.”
“This kind of thing happens to everybody at one time or another.” Jake rubbed his hand down the boy’s slender back, amazed the boy had held on as long as he did. “You’re a brave, strong boy. It took a lot of courage to let go of your stirrups like that. You did a fine job. No one could’ve done it better.”
J.J. pulled away enough to look up at Jake with a tearstained face. With a loud sniff, he wiped his sleeve across his nose. “You’re not mad?”
“What for? You’re okay. The mare’s okay. No harm done.” The boy looked over his shoulder at the mare who’d stopped thirty yards away. Lathered and blowing, she held her head down as if trying to figure out what the reins were doing around her feet. Jake’s own horse was breathing just as hard.
As J.J. turned back, his eyes caught on the ravine just ten yards away. Twenty yards across at this point, it was so deep they couldn’t see the bottom from where they were.
A violent shudder shook his small frame, then he looked up at Jake with awe. “Thanks for coming to get me, Uncle Jake. I didn’t know that gully was there. I’d a been dead.”
Jake smiled. “Of course you didn’t know it was there.”
“But you did.”
He shrugged. “I grew up riding these hills like you ride on your ranch.”
“Mama said Aunt Claire told her you weren’t no cowboy. But she’s wrong, and I’m gonna tell her.” The boy said those words like he thought being a cowboy was equal to being Superman.
An hour ago Jake would’ve been proud to have his nephew brag on him, now he wondered how he could keep J.J. from talking to Claire.
“Mama! Mama! Aunt Claire!”
“They’re back,” Claire called to Alex as she opened the back door. Expecting to see the men and children hiking back from the main ranch complex half a mile away, Claire stopped dead.
Jake rode a black stallion that wended its way toward the house. Sarah sat in front of him. The implications of her niece riding with her husband hit Claire like a mule’s hind legs.
“Lookee, Aunt Claire! Lookee what Unca Jake let me ride!”
The stallion shied at Sarah’s squeal, but Jake easily controlled the animal with his knees.
Claire heard a small gasp and felt Alex step onto the porch.
“Where’s Hank and the boys?” Alex asked as Jake rode close to the steps.
Jake threw a nod over his shoulder. “They went on to the barn. I thought I’d bring Sarah back before I took Night Wing in.”
Alex stepped down and reached for her daughter, who made a kamikaze dive into her mother’s arms. Still in shock, Claire couldn’t move.
“Unca Jake saved J.J.’s life,” the three-year-old said brightly.
“He did?” Alex’s head snapped up. “What happened? Are they okay?”
“Everyone’s fine. We had some trouble with J.J.’s mount. I’ll let Matt tell it. He’s got the best version so far.” Jake lifted his dark eyes to Claire’s. “You okay?”
Claire nodded, then took a halting step forward as she spied a rivulet of dried blood on his cheek. “You’re hurt.”
Jake rubbed a hand across his cheek and glanced down at the blood on his hand as if surprised. “It’s nothing.” He wiped his hand on his jeans, then held it out to her. “Want to help me rub down Night Wing?”
“I...Alex needs me to help get supper on the table.”
Jake studied her closely, then nodded. “We’ll be home in a few minutes.”
As he rode off, Alex climbed the steps with an arch expression. “You know there’s only one other person in the whole wide world that Hank trusts his precious daughter with on horseback, don’t you?”
“Unca Travis,” Sarah said proudly.
Claire winced. “I know.”
“You know why, don’t you?”
She nodded bleakly. “Because he’s a cowboy.”
“Now
we have irrefutable proof.” Alex grinned. “You’ve married a cowboy.”
“All right, out with it.”
Claire lay on her side, facing away from her husband’s side of the bed. She should’ve known he’d want to talk about her discovery that day, but she hadn’t decided how she felt about marrying a cowboy and was in no mood to make it easy. “I already thanked you for saving J.J.”
His weight descended on the queen-size mattress, and with a firm hand on her shoulder, he pressed her onto her back. “That’s not what I’m talking about and you know it. You’ve been quiet ever since we got back from our ride. I don’t like you like this. I’d rather have you screaming at me like you usually do.”
“I don’t scream at you,” she insisted. “Much.”
“You’re angry.”
“Why would I be angry?” She sounded petulant, but she couldn’t help it.
“Because your family thinks I’m a cowboy, and you hate cowboys.”
Feeling vulnerable lying on her back, Claire scooted up to lean against the headboard. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Would it have made a difference? Would it have kept you from marrying me?”
She plucked at the blanket. “Maybe.”
“Then I’m glad I didn’t.” When she glared at him, he spread his hands. “I thought you knew. It’s such a part of me, and you were raised on a ranch—I thought it was obvious. What did you expect me to do, blurt out, ‘By the way, I’m a cowboy’?”
“Yes. No. I don’t know.” She laid her head back against the headboard. “It’s been a long day.”
Jake leaned against the headboard beside her and drew her into the curve of his arm. Claire settled against him with another sigh.
“Does it make that much difference?” he asked. “You have to admit I’m not much of a cowboy. With my obligations in Denver, the best I can manage is being one on weekends. And those are few and far between.”
Because her eyes were closed, she plainly heard the anxiety threading through his voice. Did he think she was going to leave him? Probably. Every person he’d ever loved had left him.
And Cowboy Makes Three (Cowboys To The Rescue 2) Page 13