Miss Winters left. Henry Jepps laughed and put a hand on Ruby’s back to move her forward in the line. “I’d dare say your Granny Iva is praying for our Miss Winters, too. The lady hasn’t been happy since she was twenty and her soldier boyfriend decided not to come back and marry her.”
At that, Ruby turned and watched out the window as Miss Winters got in her car. She was Miss Winters. The thought unsettled her. What if in forty or fifty years she was the angry, bitter woman terrorizing her neighbors?
For a few minutes she’d been relieved to know that others were receiving gifts. It meant that maybe no one would point fingers at Derek. Now she had other worries. She didn’t want to be Ella Lee Winters—bitter and alone. And she didn’t want her neighbors to believe she’d received stolen property.
She stepped forward to take care of the postage for her mail and to retrieve a package that was too big for her mailbox. The postmistress handed over the package and then rested a hand on hers, stopping her from turning away.
“Ruby, I wanted you to know that we’re praying for you all. I know this has been difficult for you, coming home to Iva’s failing health.” She patted Ruby’s hand. “And don’t you let the gossips get to you.”
“Thanks, Linda. I appreciate that.”
“Well, it isn’t much, but you let us know if you need anything at all. Vince isn’t so laid up that he can’t help you out if you need something done out there. I know Derek is able-bodied, but sometimes things pile up on a person.”
“Yes,” Ruby agreed, sometimes things did pile up.
Right now was one of those times. And it wasn’t the work. It was Iva. It was the thefts. The gossip. And feeling so alone that her heart ached. She couldn’t share her concerns with Iva. She definitely couldn’t tell Derek. There were days she didn’t know if they could keep the ranch going. There were days, or maybe just moments, when she let the suspicions over her brother get to her.
She said goodbye to the postmistress and Mr. Jepps, and left the post office. The sun had gone behind clouds and rain had started to fall, just a light mist that made the air smell of moisture and warm asphalt. With her head down, she came to a sudden stop when strong hands grabbed her arms.
“Are you going to walk off that curb without looking?”
She spun to face Carson and then she glanced back. She had been about to step down off the curb and a car was pulling into what had been an empty space next to her car. She closed her eyes and shook her head.
“I didn’t...”
She was not going to cry. She wasn’t going to let him know that it was too much. All of it. Iva. Derek. Him. He was too much.
Maybe they should put the ranch on the market and move to Oklahoma. She could get her old job back. She could find a nice house where Iva wouldn’t feel the need to mend, fix and garden. Derek could have a fresh start.
“Ruby, are you okay?”
“Of course I am.” She raised her chin a notch and managed to move her mouth into something she hoped reflected that she was good. Everything was fine. She wasn’t going to lose it right there on the sidewalk in front of the Little Horn Post Office. Wouldn’t the gossips love that?
“That’s not a smile. It’s a grimace,” he informed her.
“Well, I was going for a smile.”
He laughed a little. “Good try but you failed. Let’s have coffee at Maggie’s.”
“No, thank you.”
He pushed his hat back as he looked down at her. “A piece of pie?”
She shook her head and looked down at the sidewalk. She couldn’t look up at him. She didn’t want to see this man who had once been the boy she loved. She didn’t want him to look too closely for fear of what he’d see in her eyes. And she couldn’t face his sympathy right now, not when she was barely holding on to what remained of her composure.
“Something happen in the post office?” Carson asked, moving a little closer.
“No.” Yes. “I’m just too exhausted to deal with this town. And if I go to Maggie’s, that’s what I’ll have to deal with.”
“So you’re going to hide away on the ranch?”
“Yes.”
His hand came to rest on her back and somehow they were heading for his truck. The big, dark blue vehicle glistened in the misty rain. The engine was still running.
“I’m not going to Maggie’s with you.” She tried to dig in her heels. She quickly pulled the keys from her pocket. “I have Iva’s Home Shopping Network purchase. She’s been waiting for this. Some type of herbal cure-all.”
“Maybe it’ll help.”
“Stop.” She pulled away from the comfort of his hand on her back. Not because she didn’t want it, but because she was afraid she might need him too much.
“We’ll go to the steakhouse and not Maggie’s. This time of day there’s no one in there.”
His offer vibrated over her. For some foolish reason she nodded, and the next thing she knew she was in his truck. The air conditioner was on and it blew against her rain-dampened skin. She shivered, and he reached to turn it down.
“We need some real rain,” he observed as he glanced in the mirror to back out of the parking space.
“I know. Believe me, I know. I’d like a good weeklong soaker so I don’t have to buy so much hay. If we could get some rain, I know the grass would grow and we’d be in good shape for a little while.”
“I have hay,” he said. And then he shifted and drove down the street in the direction of the steakhouse. “I can spare a few bales.”
“We’ll be fine.” She meant it. She wasn’t merely being stubborn.
“Of course you’ll be fine.” He pulled into the parking lot of the one restaurant in town other than Maggie’s.
They got out of the truck and headed for the entrance of the restaurant. The rain had stopped and the sun had peeked back out. The air was warm and heavy with humidity. Ruby swiped a hand across her brow.
“This is miserable.”
“Yeah, it is. Hopefully we won’t get a storm out of this. We’re supposed to have a cool front coming in sometime tonight.”
“I hope by cool you mean real cool and not just the lower sixties.”
“Real cool,” he answered as he opened the door for her.
She stepped into the dimly lit restaurant aware that Carson stood behind her. His presence was so real, so comforting. The scent of him was familiar, even after all of these years. His touch on her back made her feel safe.
Time went by but the memories hadn’t faded. For a couple of short years she’d been Carson Thorn’s. He’d been hers. They’d been a whole.
She shook free from thoughts that were dangerous to her heart.
* * *
The hostess led them to a table in the corner of the restaurant. She handed them menus, offered them coffee and walked away. Carson looked at the woman seated opposite him. She kept her gaze on the menu but he saw the shadows under her eyes, the weariness in her shoulders.
And he cared. He told himself it was because at one time she’d been important to him. More than important. She’d been everything. It only made sense that he’d still care.
“I’m not here to eat,” she said, putting the menu aside. “That isn’t why we came here, is it?”
“Yes, we’re here to eat.”
He put the menu back in her hands and saw the dip of her head. She’d never been fragile. Tiny, compared to him, but not fragile. To him, she’d always been one of the strongest people he knew. She still came off that way. But today he’d seen a chink in her armor.
“Thank you,” she said quietly, her head still dipped as she studied the menu.
In the dim light he watched as she swiped at her cheek, removing the single tear that had slid down. He swallowed the crush of emotion that walloped him with that single tear. That’s what it took to knock a man to the ground, a tear. One single, solitary tear sliding down a pale face.
He felt destroyed in a whole new way. He’d been crushed when she’d lef
t without saying goodbye. He’d spent years telling himself he didn’t care. He’d buried himself in the ranch.
And now, undone by a tear.
“What happened in the post office?” he asked in a quiet voice that seemed too loud in the nearly empty restaurant.
The waitress reappeared. She started to speak, but he waved her away. She scurried away after leaving ice water for each of them. Ruby lifted hers and took a sip.
“Nothing happened,” she finally answered.
He arched an eyebrow at the answer and she half-smiled.
“Okay,” she admitted. “Miss Winters was in there, and she had to share her opinions on everything.”
“She does have strong opinions.”
She shrugged slim shoulders. “It was just one of those last-straw moments. I’m just tired, Carson. I’m worried about my grandmother and about Derek. I actually contacted a Realtor the other day.”
“Iva couldn’t handle selling that place, Ruby. She’s always said that she lost her husband, her son, she nearly lost her grandkids. She couldn’t lose that ranch. It’s the foundation. It’s the place you come back to when everything else lets you down.”
She nodded, agreeing. “She’s always told us that. But what can I do? I can’t support us on what I’m making giving riding lessons. I can’t get a job in town and leave Iva alone. Derek has a job, but it’s part-time.”
“And you’re trying to carry the load on your own. You’ve always done that, you know.”
“I know. But there’s never been anyone else.”
He started to tell her there was someone else. He could have been the person helping her if she hadn’t left. Now? As he looked at her, auburn hair framing her face, her eyes dewy, he still wanted to be the person who picked up the pieces for her.
“There’s me.” He said it reflectively. “I haven’t gone anywhere.”
“No, you haven’t. Here we are, full circle. My family is still trying to get their feet on steady ground. And you...”
He waited.
“You’re still strong. You still know who you are. And the last thing you need right now is my family depending on you.”
“I’ve got broad shoulders.”
“Yes, you do. And you’re taking care of Brandon. He’s the important one right now. He needs you.”
“I can do more than one thing at a time.”
The corner of her mouth lifted, revealing the slightest dimple in her cheek. “I know. And I also know the gossips will eat you alive if you attach your name to ours. This town is determined to hang my brother. They’re determined to see me as the gold digger who only wanted money from your father to walk away.”
He didn’t know what to say to that.
She reached across the table and touched the tips of her fingers to his. He looked at their two hands, his large and suntanned. Hers was dainty for all the work she did, and fair. That little hand couldn’t fool him. He knew she was strong.
And she’d just revealed the elephant in the room with them. The check. The last thing he wanted to talk about.
“They’ll talk,” he admitted. “But I’m offering to help and I don’t really care what they say.”
“I know, and I appreciate it.” She drew in a breath and sighed. “It isn’t the work, Carson. It’s worry. I’m worried about Iva and Derek, and of course I’m worried about the ranch. But the ranch is just a thing. It’s our home, but we can have a home anywhere. But if I lose Iva or Derek... I’m just not sure what I’d do without them.”
“I know.” He moved his hand. This required more contact. It required him sliding his fingers through hers, not caring what the gossips said.
She lifted her free hand and covered her eyes. “I’m so sorry.”
He didn’t know what the apology was for and he didn’t question it. She sniffled and pulled free. As he tried to gather his wits, she headed for the front door. He tossed a bill on the table and went after her.
She didn’t go far. Not far at all. When he walked outside, she was sitting on the tailgate of his truck. A few tears trickled down her cheeks, and he didn’t have a thing to offer. He dug around in the cab of his truck and found a small package of tissues.
When he sat down next to her, he held them out and she took them, wiped her eyes and then blew her nose. She didn’t look at him.
“You probably wanted lunch,” she said.
“No, not really. What I really want to do is go for a ride.”
That got her attention. She looked up. “What?”
“When was the last time you went riding for fun?”
“It’s been a long time,” she said as she tucked herself against him. He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer.
“Yeah, me, too.”
“Why?”
He looked down at her. “Busy with the ranch, with life. I ride every day. But days off, those are few and far between.”
They sat there a few more minutes before he forged ahead with the invitation. “Go for a ride with me, Ruby. Let’s make a picnic lunch and ride to the spring.”
“That’s a long ride.”
He smiled at that. “Yeah, it is. We could leave early, when Brandon gets on the bus for kindergarten and be back by the time he gets home.”
“I’m not sure if it’s a good idea.”
“What isn’t a good idea, Ruby? The ride? Or us?”
She hopped down from the tailgate and moved to stand in front of him. “Us.”
He wanted to ask why, but he decided maybe he didn’t want the answer. Maybe he’d been right about not trusting emotions. Once again he’d started thinking that together they were a lot better than they were apart.
Chapter Ten
The fence had been cut. Ruby leaned down from her saddle and touched the fence where once upon a time she and Carson had made a hidden gate between their two properties. She’d fixed it a long time ago. But someone had definitely made cuts in the barbed wire. Several strands were hanging loose. Two of the five strands of fence had been reattached, though. As if the thieves almost had gotten caught or maybe had changed their minds.
She swung down off her horse and reached into the saddlebag where she had tools. She’d been working on fences since breakfast, going back to the house for lunch with Iva before heading out to check this last section. She told herself she wasn’t keeping busy to keep her mind off Carson and their run-in the previous day. Not a run-in...a moment?
As she stood there, her gaze drifted across the rolling fields in the direction of the Thorn ranch. She hadn’t crossed that property line in a dozen years. She remembered the last time well. She and Carson had taken a late-evening ride before he left to go back to school. She’d been in her sophomore year. He’d graduated from high school and still had been trying to make a plan for college.
On impulse she used wire cutters and snipped the two strands of barbed wire. They recoiled, snapping back and leaving an opening. Her horse danced a little away from the snaking wire. She led him through the opening and then she pulled wire out of her bag and quickly fixed the fence. It wasn’t perfect, but it would keep their small herd in.
She put her left foot in the stirrup and swung her right leg over the saddle, settling into the seat and heading her horse toward the Thorn home and stables. She didn’t give herself time to reconsider; instead, she kept her horse at a steady lope, eating up the rough terrain.
As she neared the stable she saw someone in the arena. A man on the back of a beautiful chestnut. She slowed her horse to a walk. Even from a distance she knew it was Carson. No one rode the way he did, all strength and confidence. He trained cutting horses and he had several champion show horses.
She watched the man on the back of the golden-red chestnut. His face was shaded by the white cowboy hat, but she saw the firm, determined line of his jaw. She could see his mouth in a straight, unwavering line. He wasn’t ruggedly handsome. He was all straight lines and perfection. The kind of handsome that took a girl’s breath.
>
He used his knees more than the reins to guide the big animal. The horse was attentive to his gestures and reacted, turning right and then spinning back to the left. Carson looked up, saw her and smiled.
After a few minutes he headed her way. He brought the horse up to the fence and eased him to a stop.
“I didn’t expect you today,” he said.
She eased her horse forward. “I was checking fence. I...” She stopped.
He waited.
“The old gate,” she admitted. “I was actually fixing it because someone cut it.”
“They cut the fence between your place and ours?”
“Yeah, I don’t know why they’d do that.”
He swung his leg over the back of the horse and dropped to the ground. “They hit the Hansens’. Maybe they were confused. Your place, ours, theirs. We do have a triangle. If someone didn’t know better, they might get the fences confused.”
“So you think the thieves have a conscience? The Hansens have more, so they stole from them and not me?”
“I don’t know what else to think,” he said as he leaned on the fence, watching her.
“I guess in some strange way it does make sense. And they hit you, too. But no one is talking about those ten head of Angus.”
He shrugged one powerful shoulder. “I don’t have any cattle missing.”
“Okay,” she said, but they both knew he did. They both knew that his cattle had been left at the Bunkers’, a family desperately in need with hospital bills piling up.
“You ought to take your horse over and give him a drink,” he added and pointed to the trough at the front of the stable. “I’m going to cool this guy down and put him out to pasture. Your brother is out helping my guys tag calves.”
She nodded and dismounted to lead her horse to the trough. “And where’s Brandon?”
“I had to borrow a backhoe from Ben. When I went to take it back, Brandon met Eva and somehow he convinced her to let him stay there. She didn’t seem to mind.”
“She’s a sweetheart,” Ruby said as she stood next to her horse, watching Carson walk through the door into the stable. It seemed the lamest thing to say.
A Reunion for the Rancher (Lone Star Cowboy League 1) Page 10