The Rancher's Surprise Son (Gold Buckle Cowboys Book 4)

by Christine Wenger

  Laura nodded to the woman. “Cody, this is Cricket Adams. She’s on the school board with me and we’re on a couple of other committees together.”

  Cody held out his hand to shake hers, and she looked down at him as if snakes were crawling out of his ears.

  He lowered his hand.

  Laura didn’t miss the snub and immediately became defensive. “What did you call about, Cricket?”

  “There was an emergency meeting of the executive committee of the school board. It was decided that your talents are best served elsewhere,” she said. “I volunteered to tell you the news.”

  “I don’t understand, Cricket,” Laura said. “Why the emergency meeting? What’s really going on?”

  “It was felt that your, um...choice of acquaintances does not reflect positively on you.” She looked down her nose at Cody. “That school board members should set a good example for our youth, and you aren’t doing that by being seen with a...a...”

  “I believe the word you are looking for is murderer, Cricket,” Cody said.

  She grasped the gold chains at her neck. “How rude!”

  Cody picked up Laura’s hand. “I think you’ve cornered the market on rudeness. So has the school board.”

  Laura sat stunned until Cody squeezed her hand, and finally she gathered herself enough to speak. “It is none of the board’s business who my friends are. Cody did his time, paid his debt and saved three hundred people from a fire. I’m sure you know that.”

  Laura stood, dismissing her. “Excuse me, Cricket. My son is done with the caterpillar, and we have time for another ride before he goes mutton bustin’. Please give the school board my best.”

  Cody turned to Laura and winked. “Geez, Laura, weren’t you just going to give each of the school board members a cruise to the Bahamas as a gift for their service? That’s too bad that you won’t be there anymore to do that.” He shrugged. “Well, let’s go get Johnny. The ride is over.”

  Cody followed her to the ride, and when he looked back at the glittering Cricket, her mouth was hanging open, and she was frozen in position. Then a little girl holding a fresh cone of pink cotton candy bumped into her. Cricket squealed and began picking the stuff out of her sequins.

  He nudged Laura and pointed to Cricket. “Sometimes you get what you deserve.”

  But Laura didn’t laugh. She had tears in her eyes.

  * * *

  The mutton bustin’ cheered her up. The kids couldn’t have been cuter, clinging to their furry sheep as if they were stuck on them like burdock.

  “Johnny’s age group is up next,” Cody said, leaning on the wooden fence.

  Laura grabbed his hand, squeezing it hard. She’d told her parents earlier about Johnny’s event, and Cody could see them in their private box, on their feet, cameras at the ready.

  He had to give them credit. They adored Johnny.

  Georgianna and Cindy had made it to the first row of cheap seats, one flight up. Not bad seats; nothing like what the Dukes had, but they adored Johnny, too.

  Johnny won third prize for staying on his sheep. The poor little guy started to cry when he was told that he wouldn’t get another turn because his age group was completed. He wanted to ride again.

  Cody glanced over at J.W., and it looked as if he was going to have Johnny ride again. Laura caught his eye and mouthed the word no.

  “Good call, Laura. Johnny has to learn that he can’t have everything, unlike your father.”

  “My father worked for everything he has, Cody.”

  “Haven’t we all?” Cody asked.

  “Yes. Yes, we have. You’re right.”

  * * *

  Laura just wasn’t the same. Up until Cricket came chirping about the school board, Laura had been happier than he’d seen her in a while.

  “If you stick with me, Laura, you’re always going to be guilty by association. And there’re always going to be people like Cricket. It won’t matter what wonderful things you’ve done before or are currently involved in.”

  “I’m beginning to realize that. I mean, I thought of it before, but only in terms of Johnny having a father who is a convicted murderer. I think I can take it, but Johnny will have it tough throughout his whole life.”

  There was silence between them as they walked to claim Johnny. No wonder Laura was hesitant to tell her parents and his mother about him being Johnny’s father. She didn’t want Johnny to bear the weight of his father being a convict in small-town Duke Springs.

  As far as Cody was concerned, children could almost be as cruel as adults.

  “So you don’t want to tell your parents or my family that I’m Johnny’s father because of how my murder conviction would trickle down to you and Johnny. That’s correct, isn’t it, Laura? That’s why you don’t want to marry me, and with your job, you can somewhat control the people of Duke Springs. You wield a lot of power with the fund.”

  “And I wouldn’t hesitate to use it. In that way, I’m like my parents,” she snapped.

  Cody shook his head. “And I can save hundreds of people from a fire, but I can never wipe my slate clean, can I?”

  “No. You can never do that.”

  “I think that Cricket did me a favor.” He whistled long and low. “And to think that I was going to risk my neck riding bulls for us, but that’s only money, and it isn’t going to get to the heart of our problem, is it?”

  She didn’t say a word, but there were tears in her eyes.

  “And the truth is that you’ll always be ashamed of being with me. So will Johnny. After all these years, we just don’t know each other, do we?”

  “Cody, I—”

  Johnny was approaching, swinging his ribbon. He was finally smiling, so someone had had a talk with him. And here he was ready to give his son a discussion about how there was no crying in rodeo!

  Johnny didn’t need him.

  Laura didn’t need him.

  “I have to go,” he said. “I’ve decided to ride bulls, after all. I can’t think of a better way to take out my frustration.” He tweaked the brim of his hat. “Goodbye.”

  “Cody, I’m so sorry. I—”

  “Goodbye. Tell Johnny I’ll see him tomorrow for his riding lesson. And, Laura, maybe you should listen to everyone and stay away from me.”

  * * *

  Laura felt miserable. It was as if she’d betrayed and hurt her best friend.

  Cody had guessed the reason why she didn’t want to get married—not yet, anyway. It was bad enough that Cody was a community pariah, but why should she and Johnny suffer the same fate?

  Just how shallow can I be?

  So now it was out in the open.

  Was she ashamed of being seen with him? Maybe. Sometimes. But not when she could control the situation, like the church picnic. With him bidding on her box lunch, she had an excuse to be with him in public.

  She had just experienced firsthand how awful people could be.

  Could she handle getting kicked off of her various committees?

  She probably could, but hated the thought. As head of the Duke Foundation, she wielded a lot of power, but even that and money didn’t protect her from being kicked off the school board.

  And, most important, there was Johnny to consider. His hand was in hers as they walked, and he was holding his third-place ribbon as if it were a bridal bouquet.

  Johnny was just so cute and kind to everyone he met. It was hard enough being a kid, without having a felon for a father.

  She didn’t want the kids to taunt him.

  She didn’t want her son hurt in any way.

  Cody had become distant after the Cricket disaster. He was ticked at her, and hurt, and deservedly so.

  But maybe Cody should try to understand where she was coming from.


  Oh, he probably did.

  As they waited in line for cotton candy, Laura decided that she’d give Cody a couple of days to cool off and then they’d talk.

  Does absence really make the heart grow fonder? Or does it just postpone the inevitable?

  And just what was the inevitable?

  Was their love going to survive the sinkhole that was threatening to suck them both in, or would it be stronger than before?

  * * *

  Cody saw Laura and Johnny in the Duke Ranch boxed seats. Johnny’s face and hands were deep into the cotton candy of his dreams—blue.

  J.W. and Penny weren’t there yet.

  Laura and Johnny couldn’t see Cody watching them behind the chutes near a curtain that led to the locker room. As he watched them, he wondered if they’d ever become a family.

  “So, are you going to win this thing, Masters?” It was J. W. Duke himself. Cody was so deep in his thoughts, he hadn’t even seen J.W. walking toward him.

  “I sure as hell am going to try.”

  “How about a small wager?” J.W. asked, chewing on the stub of a cigar.

  “No. I’m not going to put up our land, our home, our barn or our stock. But I wouldn’t mind if you put up Cowabunga. If I win, I get him. And he’s a beauty. Good breeding stock.”

  The shifting of the cigar stub in his mouth led Cody to believe that J.W. was actually thinking about it.

  “Okay. If you win this thing on Sunday, you get Cowabunga. If you lose, you owe me thirty days without pay.”

  “I can’t afford to lose a month of pay,” Cody said.

  “Then you’re not as confident as you seem to be.”

  “Confident?” Cody grunted. “I must be a good actor.”

  “You’re a better magician, always showing up at places where Laura is, even when I ordered you not to go near her.”

  “Did you ever think that she turns up at places where I am?”

  “Do you think I built an empire by being stupid?” J.W. asked.

  Cody bit back a grin. “I’ll take the thirty days without pay, but I can’t do it in a lump. If I lose, I’ll have to spread it out.”

  J.W. nodded and held out his hand. Cody didn’t hesitate, but returned the handshake. This wasn’t being friendly—J.W. was hardly his friend. It was a business agreement.

  “I’d better see if my chaps fit. And my vest. And I have to see if anyone will lend a helmet to an ex-con.”

  “Good luck with that.”

  Cody nodded and ducked into the locker room. Looking back, he saw J.W. walk around greeting everyone and shaking hands as if he were campaigning to be president of the United States. Then Cody took a last look at Laura and Johnny in the bleachers.

  He couldn’t believe that Laura was ashamed of him. He’d told her that he was innocent, and she believed him, but the stigma of his conviction would never be erased. He could understand her reasoning, but where did that leave him? He couldn’t imagine not being with her or Johnny.

  He was still going to ride for them. If nothing else, he’d give Laura the money to put toward college for Johnny, and in the meantime, he was still going to give Johnny a riding lesson every day.

  But as he told Laura, maybe she needed some time alone to work things out in her mind.

  Until then, he was going to cowboy up.

  * * *

  Cody was up next, and Laura could barely breathe. Johnny was jumping out of his skin waiting for “Mr. Masters to ride Cowabunga.”

  Johnny liked saying Cowabunga. He must have repeated it a hundred times. Cowabunga was a very sweet two-thousand-pound Brahma with horns on his head that were so thick and big they looked like two baseball bats.

  Cowabunga would let Johnny pet him, but when he had a rider on his back...watch out!

  As the camera followed him to the chutes and they broadcasted every move Cody made on the big screen in the middle of the arena, Cody looked every inch the cowboy. He wore a black hat, a nice pastel-plaid long-sleeved shirt and jeans, of course. His old chaps, black with red fringe, looked good on him, too.

  Laura wished she could tell Cody that she was wrong. That she didn’t mean what she’d said, but she couldn’t do that.

  She did mean it.

  The cowboy had saved her life, and she was worried about her reputation.

  Something was wrong with her. This was her Cody.

  Yeah, her Cody with a criminal record.

  He nodded and the chute gate opened. Cowabunga burst out as if he had been shot out of a cannon.

  Cody hung on. One second.

  He was getting off balance as Cowabunga kicked up his back legs and spun into circles at the same time. Three seconds. Four seconds.

  Cody was able to get back to the center of the bull. Five seconds. Six seconds.

  Laura stood up and so did Johnny. “You can do it, Cody. Ride. Ride!”

  “C’mon, Mr. Masters,” Johnny echoed.

  He was getting off center again. Seven seconds.

  Cody was hanging precariously off the side of the bull, his face near the bull’s sharp, stomping hooves.

  She held her breath. “Careful, Cody. Careful!”

  Eight seconds!

  He did it!

  “Johnny, he did it!” They hugged and Laura picked up Johnny and swung him in a circle. “And he’s okay.”

  Laura looked at the people around her. The usually boisterous crowd was unusually quiet, but a good portion of them clapped and cheered, drowning out the boos.

  She sat down and patted the chair next to her for Johnny to sit.

  Her face flamed. How ridiculous. Why did the crowd bother her? The truth was, she cared about what people thought. And she cared about what they thought about Cody.

  She turned around and found Georgianna and Cindy and gave them a thumbs-up. They did the same in return.

  Out of the thirty riders, Cody came in third in points. He had to do better on his second bull.

  He did, and he moved up to second place.

  Then he won the short go—the final round of the top fifteen best riders—and won the event for that day.

  Cody rode a total of three bulls, and would receive twenty-one thousand dollars.

  Laura was so happy for him, but then it came time for the presentation of the gold buckle in the middle of the arena. Again, there were some boos, not only from the crowd, but from some of the other riders, as well.

  She could see Cody’s face flame, and she felt sick to her stomach. This should be a triumph for him, but instead it was a negative experience.

  Like a true cowboy, Cody tipped his hat to the crowd, then disappeared quickly.

  * * *

  At eleven o’clock the next morning, Cody met Johnny and Laura at the main Duke barn for Johnny’s lesson. He had to get to the rodeo arena soon after.

  “Hey, Mr. Masters! You won! You sure can ride those bulls.”

  “Thanks, Johnny. I appreciate it.”

  “Can you teach me how to ride bulls like you?”

  “Someday. When you’re older and if your mom says it’s okay.”

  “She won’t.”

  Cody laughed. “You’re probably right. Now let me watch you walk Pirate around the corral by yourself. I’ll tell you when to stop and go. Then we’ll brush Pirate and clean the tack.”

  His cell phone rang just after the lesson as he was getting some water for the horse. “Hi, Mom. What’s up?”

  “Cody, you have to call a number that I’ll text to you. It’s important.”

  “What’s it about?”

  “You’ll see. I don’t want to spoil it for you.”

  Cody’s interest was piqued. “Okay, I’ll call them back.”

  “M
ake sure you do. And then call me right back.”

  It turned out to be the sheriff’s department.

  “Dammit! What the hell did I do now?” he said under his breath.

  Lieutenant Foxworth was very complimentary. “Cody Masters, you’ve been nominated by the Duke Springs Citizens’ Committee to receive our Person of the Year award in the safety category for evacuating the crowd at the hotel. The committee wishes to honor you at a dinner and awards night. We will pay for you and a guest. If you wish to bring more guests, I can get you tickets at half price. The more the merrier, Mr. Masters.”

  “Person of the Year?”

  “Yes. We have different categories—safety, community service, law enforcement, volunteer—that kind of thing. As I mentioned, you are getting the safety award.”

  “I’m honored, sir, but I’m going to pass. I don’t need an award in recognition of doing the right thing. Besides, some of the good people of Duke Springs just booed me at the rodeo, so it would be ludicrous to accept their award. Thanks anyway, Lieutenant.”

  Cody hung up the phone. Even good news made him miserable.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “The sheriff’s department wants to give Cody an award?” Laura asked, intrigued.

  “Yeah. Doesn’t that beat all?” In his office in the ranch house, J.W. leafed through a bunch of invoices and whatnot, barely paying attention to her.

  He looked up at her. “And he turned it down. He said he was booed at the rodeo. Said the people wouldn’t want him to get that award.”

  “He was. You were there. You must have heard. Wasn’t it awful?” she asked.

  He shrugged.

  “Oh, forget it, Dad. You were probably one of the ones booing him.” When he didn’t respond, she said, “I’m going to go downtown. Johnny is with Cody for his riding lesson. I think they are done now, though. Then Clarissa will watch him for about an hour or so until I get back.”

  “Okay.”

  “Okay. See you later.”

  “I’m thinking of sending Johnny to nursery school during August. Maybe it’ll make it easier for him to transition to kindergarten. And he’ll make some friends,” Laura said.

  “Johnny has everything that a boy could want right here.”