by Donna Alward
The music stopped and the caller ID on her phone announced, “Call from Ray.”
A jolt of excitement sizzled within. He’d managed to text or call every day since she’d left him. Not that he was much of a talker, but it warmed her to know he was thinking of her as obsessively as she was of him. She pressed the button on her steering wheel to let the call through.
“Ray, you know if you keep calling me every day, I’m going to get used to it.”
“You go ahead and do that.” His smile came through in his voice. “What are you doing tonight? I have a shopping list a mile long, so I have to go into town.”
Her excitement fizzled. Little things like this kept coming up, reminding her that he thought she lived much closer to him. “Dinner with the family. I’m completely committed.”
“Maybe we should move our dinner up to Friday.”
“That’s tomorrow, and I have to do dirty work.”
“Dirty work?”
“Examining steers before they get processed. It’s a holistic farm-to-plate operation, so they’ll need me as long as there is daylight.”
“Ah, well. Can’t blame me for trying. I ought to get on your schedule for next weekend right now.”
“Um, about that.”
“Babe, if you’re playing hard to get, you’re hammering it home. You don’t have to pretend to have to wash your hair.”
“Aw, it’s not that. But I’m shadowing at a bison ranch in Sisters next weekend. It’s not part of my rotation for the practice, so I’ll have to make it up to you the following weekend. Unless you’ve tipped your hat at someone more available.”
She meant it as a joke, but it came out harder than she’d planned.
“I haven’t been on the site. Have you?”
“Cowboy, I’m having a hard time juggling you.”
“Well, maybe you shouldn’t.”
She gasped and cornered a bit too sharp on the curve.
“Damn, I mean you shouldn’t bother with the site. This is why people should talk in person.”
She cleared her throat, not sure what to say. She had no intention of ever using the site again, but she wasn’t sure she should own up to that just yet.
“We’re still on for Saturday, right?”
“Yes. I don’t want you to think it’s you. Large animal vets travel a lot for work since farms are so spread out, and I want to learn as much as I can while people are open to teach me. The partners in the clinic don’t get offered the same opportunities because it’s assumed they’re too busy with the practice. I haven’t had enough experience working with bison, and this outfit is doing elk as well, and the whole thing is just fascinating.”
“I’ll either get used to it or you’ll just have to move closer.”
“It’s good to have options.” That annoying niggle of guilt returned with a vengeance. She’d have to get on with another clinic to be closer to him. “What do you want me to wear?”
He gave a low chuckle. “You don’t want me to answer that.”
“At dinner. What should I wear to dinner?” The zing of excitement returned. After their date, they’d be together. It seemed understood between them, which set her at ease. She wouldn’t have to try and force anything, it would just happen.
“Whatever you’ll be comfortable in. I’m thinking of ironing a shirt.”
“Fancy.”
“After calling you all week, it’s the least I can do.”
“Are you going to call me tomorrow?”
“After dark?”
“Scandalous, I know. How about we go really crazy and I’ll call you so you can take the drive with me again.”
“Again?”
She put the truck in park. “I was driving home. I have to get the gate.”
“Okay. Three more days.”
“Seventy-two hours.”
“Not that we’re counting.”
Ray leaned against the wheel well of the restored 1950 Chevy pickup and watched people leave the rehab clinic. They served all kinds here, some ran out of the place in workout gear while others were in wheelchairs. Three times a week, his mom drove his dad into Medford to the state-of-the-art facility, and while the old man’s progress had slowed, every little win mattered.
While he waited, he pulled his phone from his pocket and texted Jacy a quick, “What are you up to?” As much as he had hated texting before, he’d done plenty of it this week. Because of the nature of their work, they both kept odd hours, and the messages helped keep the conversation going. He’d only been talking to her for a week, but her stories and opinions made things more interesting and enjoyable.
“Herd check at an Asian water buffalo dairy. Don’t trust them enough for a selfie.”
“Buffalo dairy?”
“You know, mozzarella, super premium ice cream.”
“I’m bored and playing chauffer for my old man.” If anyone had told him last week he’d be taking a selfie with his dad’s pickup, he’d have laughed like crazy. He sent it and checked the parking lot to make sure no one had spied him.
“Gorgeous, but if you want ice cream, you’ll have to take your shirt off.”
His bark of laughter caught more attention than his selfie. “Tomorrow.”
“I’ll bring it to you tomorrow, if I get a hot shot today.”
So not happening. No matter how much he liked how her mind worked.
“Blackberry, hazelnut, cherry, and sweet cream. All you have to do is send a little man chest my way.”
“Sweet cream. Not buffalo.”
“I just screamed a little.”
“What are you doing with my truck?” Rick Mitchell’s gruff voice caught him by surprise. “What the hell did you do there?”
Ray followed the direction his father’s cane pointed. “Running boards. Factory stock, not custom. You’re welcome.”
“Caught by my old man. Thirty hours.” He shot the quick text to Jacy before tucking his phone away.
His father struggled towards the truck, but Ray knew better than to help. “Took a couple months to get here, but it should make it easier for short people to climb in.”
Even the old cowboy’s drooped eye glared at him.
“I was talking about Ma and Ryan. What’s got you so punchy?”
“Where’s your mother?” He placed both hands on his cane, as if he’d rather walk home even if he had to drag his sagging left side through the dirt.
“A retirement lunch for one of her music-teacher friends. I overheard the call and talked her into it.”
“So you could get at my truck like some vandal?” He shuffled towards the door and leaned on his cane to inspect the running boards.
“Dad, maybe we should have you checked out for dementia, because I’m not the son who steals cars. That’s Rowdy. I’m Ray, the good one.”
The glare returned with a vengeance. “I wish my mother had never started that.”
Ray let his grin widen. Grandma played favorites and he’d loved it. “Hey, she loved you best. Every generation has one of us.”
“Oh yeah? Then where are my grandsons? Still getting poured down the drain?”
“Ugh, Dad.” He winced, because a passing stranger heard that one and the woman’s mouth had dropped open. “We’re supposed to hide our crazy when we’re in town.”
“At least she knows you’re available.” He shuffled close enough to lean on the truck while he used his good arm to pull open the door. He sighed and looked back at Ray. “You should go get my physical therapist. I want credit for this.”
Ray moved to stand behind him, a little unsure the running boards would be enough. Rick had only recently mastered the steps at home and it took him a half hour to make it up to the front porch.
“You know, this will be easier on the driver side. Give me the keys.”
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br /> “Nice try. But I’ll tell you what. You get in, and I’ll let you drive once we’re through the gate.”
Rick set the base of his cane on the floor boards and used the leverage to make it up on the running board. With a little twisting and another push off the cane, he plopped down on the seat.
Ray closed the door and circled around to the driver side. He climbed in as his father fastened his seat belt.
“You’re staring.” Rick reached out and thumped the dash. “You’re not driving Miss Daisy. We have things to do today.”
“I didn’t know you were working on the seatbelt thing.” He knew his father hated all the little ways he had to be looked after. That was why he worked so hard at physical therapy even though doctors had told him to adjust to the new normal. Rick went after his independence with the same tenacity he’d used to make a name for 3R as a bucking-bull breeder.
“It’s a lap belt. Don’t get all soft. Do I need to drive or are you going to be able to suck it up, buttercup?”
Ray started the truck and shifted it into gear. “To think I was going to take that mouth of yours to Becky’s for lunch. I even called and asked her to prep you some sliders.”
“Well, if you called, we have to go.” He sat up straighter in the seat. For years, burgers had been off the table since he could only eat with one hand. Becky put the tiny burgers on special over the summer and Rick had welcomed bacon cheeseburgers back into his life with gusto.
“If we must.”
“She’s going to ask about that girl, you know.”
Ray guessed as much. “Doesn’t mean I have to answer.”
“But you’re taking her out tomorrow, right? Your mom said you’re planning on staying the night in town.”
Ray shifted in his seat. He did not want to discuss his plans with anyone. Hell, he hadn’t even told Jacy he’d chosen a hotel restaurant in case they wanted to get to know each other better after dinner. He guessed from the way she flirted that she might, but he didn’t want to presume.
“It’s your first second date all year.”
“I’m sorry. Did you change bodies with Mom today?”
“It makes your mother happy. And Deke said she’s a pretty girl, so there’s no harm in seeing where things go. That’s all I’m saying.”
“First off, she’s not a girl, she’s a woman. She’s a veterinarian, not some teenager. And I have to see her in town or else we’ll be followed around by all you nosy Nellie’s.”
“The food-animal vet here has to service three counties.”
He cast his dad a look that screamed cease and desist.
“I’m just saying…a good vet is hard to find. Would be damned convenient to have one closer. Plus, the upstairs of the house hasn’t been used since Kendra got her walking papers.”
Ah, yes, the ex-wife who’d thought his cabin too small and rustic. What’s life without wi-fi and cable?
“There’s even my old office in the shop if she wanted to start her own practice.”
“Dad, it’s our second date. I’m not rushing into another marriage that seems like such a good idea but in reality is a nightmare. Besides, she has a practice two hours from here, and we both know I’m not good at long-distance relationships.”
“That wasn’t you. Kendra is a slut. She used you for money and fooled the lot of us. But you can’t blame all women because you got hooked by a rotten one.”
He’d thought supporting Kendra’s decision to get her degree was the right thing to do. He’d even moved her into the studio apartment off campus and tried to be understanding when she said she had too much studying to do to come home most weekends. Hell, if she hadn’t gotten pregnant and if he hadn’t done the math, things might have turned out differently. Though, since the baby was Chinese, he would have clued in at some point.
She’d left him with a lot of regret and a strict abhorrence of liars. Hypocrisy and half-truths started out small, but the more lies the mark believed, the deeper the duplicity could go. Internet dating brought them out of the woodwork, from fake pictures to an age being a decade off. And he’d fired good hands at the ranch for lies he would have settled with a conversation before. Lies were the gateway drug to betrayal, and he was never going down that road again.
Chapter Six
“Do you smell like barn, or is it your boots?” Carly wrinkled her nose as she held open the door to her trailer.
Jacy sat down on the step and took off her boots. “I took a shower after dinner.”
“Thanks for that. And no working in my clothes. I want you to look good for tomorrow night, and the effect will be ruined if you’re covered in shit.”
“I feel more attractive already.” She got up and followed her best friend inside. “Sorry I didn’t have time to go shopping.”
“We do need to work on your wardrobe, but this limits your choices to sexy and sexier. At a store, you would have found something more Little House on the Prairie, when you need Sex and the City.” They walked into Carly’s bedroom, where she pulled open her closet.
“I’m not looking for a makeover. I just want to borrow your black wool slacks and a sweater or something. And a pair of shoes that aren’t sneakers or work boots.” Her phone vibrated in her pocket. She smiled as soon as she checked the simple message.
“Twenty-two.”
“Is that him?” Carly had a dress in each hand, a strapless red and a bright blue with the sides missing.
“Yes, but no to both of those. I don’t know how to sit in a dress, or get in and out of a truck. And if I ever wear a dress again, it will be a whole dress. Those seem to be missing vital parts.”
“That’s the whole point.” She tossed them on the bed and grabbed two more. A strapless black and one more lace than dress.
“I’m two seconds away from cinching up my mom’s pants and wearing one of her tunics.”
“You’re the one trying to get laid. Speaking of…” She took a wrapped box from her dresser and placed it on the bed. “Some things you can’t borrow.”
“My birthday’s not until Sunday.”
“You don’t want to open this at the party, I promise.”
Jacy undid the pink bow and then opened the box. She peeled back the tissue paper and gasped. The strapless white lace bra and panties were like nothing she’d ever owned. Not at all practical, because while the underwear covered, they didn’t cover anything up.
“Send him a picture of that. I dare you.”
Jacy’s cheeks heated and she had a twisty feeling in the pit of her stomach. “I can’t do that.”
“Then give me your phone and I’ll do it. Unless you want to make the first move, you want him on edge. After last week’s failure to complete the transaction, this is your last chance to leave your virginity in your twenties.”
Except the timeline didn’t matter as much anymore. If it took months to be with Ray, she’d wait. But that would mean extending her cover story, and she struggled with it already.
“Don’t give me sad eyes. With the way you two are on the phone constantly, I’m sure he’s as moony as you. Which means your original plan of a zipless encounter with a stranger is shot to hell. He’s not a stranger anymore, and you’re going to want to be with him after, not walk away.”
“I know. I need to tell him about my profile on the site. I don’t want him to find out any other way.”
“Well, yeah. But not tomorrow.”
“I think I’m going to open with it, so we can discuss it over dinner. He’s wonderful, and I want things to work out. I think he’s the one.”
“Well, that escalated quickly. You’re going to need to dial down this sudden call to matrimony. Take this one step at a time. It might turn out that he’s not all you’re building him up to be. Let him seduce you with the fancy restaurant and all. Talk logistics with him the next day, when he’s all s
atisfied and happy.” Carly went back in the closet for a dress fit for Marilyn Monroe and another that rivaled one for Jessica Rabbit.
“It’s like you don’t know me at all.” Jacy put the lid back on the box and pushed it aside. “Anything that you wear to church would be fine.”
“At church, most of the people are in jeans, so I only look nice in comparison. And while you’re looking to get biblical with Ray, you’re not taking him to church.”
“I need to be comfortable so I can relax and have the nerve to go through with it.”
“Don’t worry about that. You want him bad,” she said from the closet.
“I do worry. I’ve never done this before.” Carly was right. She needed him to want her so bad he didn’t notice her awkwardness. She shored up her courage and took a picture of her lingerie.
“Good girl.” Carly beamed from across the room. “Now send it before you over think it.”
She winced as she did, because that message couldn’t be brushed aside as teasing or flirting. “Okay, now can I wear what I want?”
“Of course not. Trust me about the dress. Have I ever steered you wrong?”
“You steered me into a ditch once.” She grinned, remembering how her fifteen-year-old self thought her best friend could teach her to drive. The lesson had lasted all of five minutes.
Carly rolled her eyes and held out the latest two options. “Which do you think would make him drool more? Naughty cowgirl or the sweet seductress?”
She got up to get a better look at her options. An A-line white eyelet dress with a wide leather belt, or a ruffled floral with spaghetti straps. She’d feel exposed in both, though she tried to reason that she’d be covered up less in a tank top and shorts.
“Come on. You can borrow my bluebird boots with this one.” She wiggled the floral number.
“I’m not sure I can pull off ruffles.” But she did love the leatherwork underlay on Carly’s dress boots. Not that she’d ever be able to feel comfortable in something like that.
The white dress joined the pile on the bed. “This is soft, not frilly. The pattern is tiny purple hyacinth, you love those.”