A Knight In Cowboy Boots

by Quint, Suzie

  “It’s not even dark yet.”

  “Folks are asking to meet you.”

  She turned back to the window. “Did I tell you I’ve never been to a barn dance before?”

  He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. She leaned back into him and closed her eyes.

  “Everything’ll be all right. I ain’t gonna let nothing happen to you.”

  Maddie chewed on a nail, wishing she could be reassured so easily.

  “What’s that?” Zach asked, pulling her hand from her mouth. The diamond flashed as it caught the light from the lowering sun.

  “Sol thought I needed a little window dressing.” The thoughtful look on Zach’s face made her ask, “Do you know where the ring came from?”

  “Yeah, I think I do.”

  His voice was soft but filled with an emotion she couldn’t name. She twisted to try to see his face. “Where?”

  “Later.” He shook off whatever he was feeling as he turned her to face him. “Here’s another bit of window dressing.” He pulled a matching bandana from his hip pocket and tied it around her neck. “Gotta look like a cowgirl at a barn dance.” He held her away from him to look her over. “Oh, yeah.” His smile reassured her that she at least looked the part. “We need to go down now before I start thinking about things I’d rather do with you.”

  She freshened her lipstick before she picked Jesse up, straightening his sleeper, and steeled herself to meet the McKnights’ neighbors.

  Jeb stopped them as Zach steered her out through the kitchen.

  “You look properly Texan,” he told Maddie, “but that young ‘un, he needs something.” From the top of the refrigerator, Jeb took a miniature cowboy hat. He set it on Jesse’s head and tightened the lanyard under his chin.

  Jesse grabbed the curled brim, turning in Maddie’s arms, his eyes wide, as though looking to her for approval. She tugged the brim down over his face just to see him push it back up.

  Jeb’s pleasure was so obvious it made Maddie want to cry. She’d been so lucky to meet Zach and his family.

  “Thanks, Daddy.” Zach nudged Maddie out the door. “Your little man makes a good-looking cowboy. He’d better not try to steal my girl.”

  “Where are the dogs?” Maddie asked as they stepped off the porch.

  “We shut them up in the stock end of the barn. Mamma don’t want ‘em jumping on folks. There’s a couple neighbor kids that’s scared of dogs, too.”

  “Country kids afraid of dogs?”

  “I hear some folks are scared of clowns, too,” Zach said with a grin. “That don’t make no sense to me neither.”

  Long before they reached the barn, people were stopping them to meet Maddie and exclaim over Jesse. They gave a condensed explanation that was mostly true: he was her sister’s orphan child that Maddie was raising. Ruth had been discreet about mentioning him, so his appearance ensured he figured prominently in people’s discussions throughout the night. If Derek did show up, he’d have no doubt his son was within reach.

  When Zach’s arm tightened around her shoulder, Maddie looked up to follow his gaze. A couple about his parents’ age had his attention, but Maddie saw nothing about them to justify the tension Zach exuded.

  He disengaged them from the neighbors he’d just introduced her to and pulled her aside. “You need to keep it together, okay?”

  “Why wouldn’t I?” Maddie asked, picking up his tension.

  “Vince’s folks are coming our way.”

  “God, I didn’t think— Do they know about me? About who I am?”

  “This didn’t seem like the right time to tell them.”

  Figuring that if Derek had discovered her alias, it would look suspicious for her to reclaim her real name, the McKnights had agreed that they would introduce her as Maddie Grey. She was grateful for that since Vince’s parents would have no reason to connect the name Grey to their lost son.

  Vince had clearly gotten his height and looks from his father, though his father’s black hair was heavily shot with gray. His mother was a small bird-like woman, but they both seemed pleased for Zach. If she hadn’t known who they were, she wouldn’t have seen the backdrop of sadness in their eyes. For the first time, the thought of Vince’s death made her ache more for someone else than she did for herself.

  Had she had more forewarning, she would have been too nervous, but as it was, she thought she played her part well. When they told Maddie she was marrying into a great family, she assured them she already knew that, hardly choking up at all.

  Zach made sure they didn’t linger too long, moving her to another group. After introducing Maddie, one of the ranchers asked Zach about his breeding plans for the season.

  Zach kept a relaxed hand on her shoulder, but Maddie’s attention wandered to a conversation between an elderly, white haired gentleman and a younger man. Their easy use of legal terms Maddie had heard but didn’t know the meaning of made it no great difficulty guessing their profession. She listened to them speculating in detail about what someone named Bill was going to use as grounds for an appeal.

  When the younger man was distracted by a new arrival, the older man caught Maddie watching him. He smiled and Maddie slipped out from under Zach’s touch.

  “You must be the prospective bride.”

  “What gave me away?” Maddie asked, smiling.

  “That would be the possessive way young Zachariah watched you until he saw you weren’t going to talk to some young buck.”

  Maddie laughed. “I don’t know about that. Maybe he’s a little too sure of himself. There’s a quality older men have that younger men lack.”

  His silver eyebrows rose as he tsked. “Flirting with elderly gentlemen will get you whatever you want, young lady. Though it can’t be a divorce, since you’re not even properly married yet.”

  “Is that the type of law you practice?” Even if things worked out well, she’d need a good lawyer to cement permanent custody.

  “I used to practice criminal law, but that got tiresome. I switched to family law twenty years ago.”

  Practically made to order. “Do you like that better?”

  “It’s more rewarding, and it eased me into my retirement.”

  “Oh.” Maddie tried not to let her disappoint show on her face, but he was too astute.

  “Now we’ve already eliminated you needing a divorce … unless you have another husband tucked away somewhere?”

  Maddie shook her head.

  “What about a prenuptial?”

  “Oh, no. I just—” Maddie took a deep breath and shifted Jesse to her other hip. “This is Jesse.”

  “Your sister’s boy.”

  “Yes.” Obviously, the grapevine was functioning well. Maddie was grateful not to have to go through the prepared history. “I only have temporary custody.” She raced ahead, forestalling the lawyerly assurances she knew were coming. “Permanent custody shouldn’t be a problem, but you never know.”

  He reached out and let Jesse grab his finger. “One of the nice things about being self-employed is that you can come out of retirement any time you want. The McKnights are good folks. You’re going to be one of them soon, so if you need someone to stand for you, I’ll be glad to.”

  Zach’s hand slid around Maddie’s waist. “You making time with my woman, old man?”

  “Now is that a respectful way to address your elders?” Maddie’s new friend asked with a glint in his eyes.

  “After the way you took Melvin Gunderst’s side against Daddy? I don’t expect I’ll catch any hell over it.” But Zach’s fond smile took the sting out of his words.

  The two men shook hands as though the posturing was part of their greeting ritual then Zach introduced her to Silas Marchbanks, “the most tenacious lawyer in the state.”

  “You’d best be careful, Zachariah. I just promised this pretty girl of yours I’d come out of retirement for her.”

  Zach chuckled. “Don’t get any big ideas, Silas. Your heart’s not that good.
She’d kill you the first night.”

  Instinct drove Maddie’s fist into Zach’s shoulder even before she looked around to see if any of his family was close enough to have heard his indiscreet praise.

  Silas leaned into Zach and in low voice said, “I suspect it would be worth it to die like that.”

  Maddie barely heard Zach’s soft reply. “It’s how I plan to go.”

  *

  Shortly before dusk, the band started warming up, and Maddie put Jesse to bed in Ruth and Jeb’s room. She stepped carefully over blankets and pillows Daisy had laid on the floor for the neighbors’ younger children. Away from the noise and commotion, Zach’s sister would watch over them while their parents enjoyed the dance. She hadn’t even complained, knowing she was being entrusted with a serious responsibility.

  Maddie laid Jesse in his crib in the far corner of the room. Her stomach fluttered with nerves at the thought of leaving him there, and she thought she might throw up from the fear.

  “Don’t worry,” Zach said, his hands warm on her upper arms. “Daddy’s got the hard liquor in the kitchen. As long as that holds out, there’ll be a solid barrier of men between Jesse and Derek. And Daddy laid in extra to make sure the kitchen ain’t ever empty.”

  Maddie leaned over to kiss Jesse’s plump cheek. “I love you, Charlie Brown.”

  As they made their way back to the barn, strains of country swing mingled on a light breeze with the scent of burning tobacco from the area Jeb had set aside for smokers.

  Zach pulled her onto the edge of the floor and led her through the steps. When the song ended, he pulled her to him and kissed her, his hands dropping to her bottom to snug her in close against his loins.

  The sound of a group of young cowboys near them, whooping their appreciation, pushed them apart, faces flaming.

  Zach guided Maddie to the refreshment table. Sol stood next to it like a guard, watching couples dance past. “Don’t touch the punch,” he warned them. “Gideon spiked it earlier.”

  Maddie took a glass of lemonade. Zach went for the soft cider. He kissed her lightly after she’d downed half the glass. “Mmm. Lemon cider. I like it.”

  The band’s pattern was to play three or four fast songs, then a slow one to give everyone a break. When they started Garth Brook’s The Dance, Zach took Maddie’s glass from her and pulled her onto the dance floor.

  “I like this,” he said into her ear. “I get to hold you with everyone watching and no one can say a thing about it.”

  “Just don’t get too frisky,” Maddie warned him, “or your mother will be beating you with everyone watching, and no one will say a thing about that either.”

  Zach spun her across the plywood floor. “Christ! There’s Georgia, dancing with Peter Talbot. Wonder if he brung her. That’ll have Sol’s tail in a knot.”

  “Why?” Maddie turned her head, seeking Sol’s blond ex-wife. Maddie spotted Georgia held close in a tall cowboy’s arms. She still looked like a golden goddess in her form-fitting jeans and cream colored cowboy hat. Georgia filled out her western shirt in a way Maddie could never hope to do short of getting serious breast implants. “You said they’ve been divorced for years.”

  Zach shook his head. “That don’t mean nothing. He ain’t never got over her. Everyone in the family knows he’s still hot for her.”

  “Does she know?”

  Zach shrugged “When he gets crazed, he tells her it’s coz of Eden. That he don’t want whoever Georgia’s seeing playing daddy to his daughter.”

  “And that works?”

  “It’s had limited success,” Zach said dryly. “Do you want to meet her?”

  “I don’t think so. She’s the kind of girl who’s always intimidated me.”

  “Yeah, she’s got a pretty intimidating rack.”

  Maddie slapped his shoulder. “Zach!”

  “Okay. How about ‘she has a pleasantly developed bosom’?”

  “That’s not any better.”

  “Doesn’t matter what I call it; she still draws men like bears to a honey tree. Believe me, I don’t envy Sol. Keeping other men away from Georgia is a full time job.”

  “So you’re happy to settle for someone less attractive,” Maddie said, unaccountably annoyed.

  Zach’s eyes narrowed. “There ain’t no good way to answer that. Let’s just say I know how to set a mean bear trap, so you best be careful where you step.”

  “You’re starting to sound like you’ve bought into our cover story.”

  The song ended and they stopped to applaud the band who announced they were going to pause for the cause.

  “C’mon,” Zach said, taking her hand. “You need to be seen.”

  Zach started introducing her around. The neighbors were generous with their congratulations and seemed willing to accept Maddie into their inner circle.

  “Do you know everyone here?” Maddie asked as they left one group.

  Zach shook his head. “There’s bunch of young folks from town. That’s what we wanted. If it was only folks we knew, Derek wouldn’t feel comfortable enough to try to slip in.”

  “What if he doesn’t?” Maddie asked, her stomach tensing up. “What then?”

  Zach stopped and met her eyes. “Let’s worry about that if it happens. You just keep your eyes peeled.”

  “The men are all wearing hats. It’s hard to tell about anyone from more than a couple of feet.”

  The band was still on break when they made a trip to the house to check on Jesse to ease Maddie’s mind. They found Ruth watching over the children.

  “I sent Daisy out for an hour or so. She’s too young to miss all the fun,” Ruth said.

  Reassured that Jesse was still safe, Maddie and Zach went out through the kitchen where Jeb and his peers were keeping company with Jack Daniels, Jim Beam, and Johnny Walker.

  It was fully dark out. Even with the tiki lights Jeb had set up earlier lighting the way, they stepped carefully as they made their way back to the barn.

  At the refreshment table, Maddie’s hopes of not having to face Sol’s gorgeous ex-wife died a quiet death.

  “Hey, Zach. Congratulations.”

  Zach and Maddie turned as one. “Hey, Georgia. This is Maddie, the light of my life.”

  Politeness demanded Maddie take Georgia’s extended hand. It was a snap judgment, Maddie knew, but Georgia looked like the kind of woman who never had a moment’s insecurity. Or if she did, Maddie couldn’t imagine her showing it.

  “I was beginning to think there weren’t any women who could snare any of the McKnight boys.”

  “I guess that puts me in pretty exclusive company,” Maddie said as Zach enfolded her from behind. She managed to keep her natural resentment of Georgia out of her voice.

  Georgia laughed. “Okay. I can see you’ve heard all about the wicked ex-wife who ran away screaming rather than be part of the family. It’s not quite that simple, but you’ll figure that out eventually. In the meantime, on behalf of my daughter,” she looked pointedly at Zach, “who is part of the family,” her gaze returned to Maddie, “welcome to the McKnight clan. I hope you do better with Zach than I did with Sol. I really do.”

  “Thanks.” Maddie breathed a little easier. Georgia was nicer than she’d expected.

  The band started up again with a line dance and the tall cowboy she’d danced with earlier came and claimed Georgia.

  People started to flow like a river around them, heading for the dance floor. Suddenly, Maddie felt overwhelmed by all the strangers. Derek could pass within inches of her, and she might not know it until it was too late. She turned into Zach’s chest. His arms wrapped protectively around her.

  “This isn’t working. I can’t find him in this crowd. And he won’t make a move in front of this many people.”

  “I know.”

  “Then why are we doing this?”

  Zach took a deep breath. “Don’t get mad, okay? We didn’t tell you about this because we didn’t want you to be nervous and tip our hand.” />
  If his words were meant to reassure Maddie, they failed miserably. Full of dread, she pulled away from him, so she could look up into his face. “Tell me about what?”

  “I’ll tell you in second.”

  His brother Gideon was standing next to the refreshment table, watching the dancers. Zach sent him to find Sol with the message that it was time.

  Zach put his arms around her. “Put your arms around my neck,” he instructed her. He kissed her casually. They maintained the pose, striving to look like a couple in love, talking about things just between the two of them. Instead, Zach started telling her how they planned to draw Derek into the open.

  “There’s gotta be bait. An easy path to Jesse would look too suspicious, even if you’d agree, which you wouldn’t. That leaves you. He’s gotta know you’re his best shot at getting to his son.”

  “You’re going to send me out there alone, aren’t you?” She knew he heard the quaver in her voice.

  “No. We don’t want him skittish about it being too easy. You and me, we’re gonna slip out like we’re looking for a place to be alone. If he’s here, we’re betting he’ll follow us. But we ain’t never gonna be alone. Sol, Gideon, Jake, and Daddy are all gonna be nearby, and I’ll be with you every step of the way, but I’ll be the only one Derek will see. He wasn’t afraid of Vince; he probably won’t be too concerned about me.”

  Maddie swallowed hard then took a deep breath. “Let’s do it.”

  “We gotta wait a few more minutes. Give Daddy and the boys time to get out there and get settled.” He positioned them near the open end of barn and pulled her against him, resting his chin on the top of her head, while they waited. When the band started another line dance on the notes of the last one, Zach tilted her chin up and kissed her soundly. His free hand pulled her against him.

  When he let her go, she said, “Even now?”

  “Well, yeah, but that’s not why. If he’s looking, he’ll see us near the doors, looking all hot for each other. Even if he doesn’t see us slip out, he’ll figure out we’ve gone somewheres to be alone.” As he talked, he put an arm around her waist and pulled her outside.