by Reina Torres
“Usually in a movie the main character does a few things that end up turning out badly before they have a happy ending. Maybe it’s better you make the choices on your own. I think you’ll do just fine.”
She saw the steady look in his eyes, the broad smile on his lips. And with that look, she started to believe his words.
Started, maybe, believing in herself.
She knew, at the very least, that she had two people in her corner.
And that was more than she had before.
Jesse unlocked the door to the room and pushed it open to let her inside first. She stepped inside and smiled. The room was on the small side, but it wasn’t like she had much to put in the room. Setting her package on the top of the dresser she let out a breath.
“There’s soap and towels in the bathroom. If you want, I can get anything you need from your car for tonight.”
“No, no…” she took the other package from him and set it aside. “If you weren’t standing here right now, I would probably just flop down on that bed and be out like a light.”
“Then, I’ll get going. I need some sleep before work tomorrow.”
Now that he was about to leave, Etta wanted to grab onto him and ask him to stay. Just for a minute.
Or two.
But she was going to stand on her own two feet. She was going to have to hold herself together and that meant letting the poor guy get some sleep.
She walked him to the door and he paused just outside the room.
“I’m going to wait outside until you lock the deadbolt.”
It was a simple gesture and she knew he was just worried for her safety as he’d be for anyone else that he knew. Right?
Of course.
Absolutely.
“Jesse?”
“Yes, Etta?”
She grinned at the way he said her name. Her new name.
“Thanks. Thank you so much for taking the time to help me tonight. I bet you would have been done a lot sooner if it hadn’t been for me, and with all the joking back and forth, I wanted to make sure you know that I wasn’t trying to be rude. Or make any problems for you.”
Jesse leaned forward, bracing his arm on the doorframe by her head. “Spending time with you would never be a problem. Now go and get some sleep. If I’m not dead to the world after work tomorrow, I’ll stop by and see how you’re doing.”
“If you put it that way, I better let you go, but,” she laughed and stepped back, taking hold of the edge of the door, she bit the inside of her cheek and released it a moment later, “I want you to know that I’m never going to forget what you did for me tonight, Jesse.”
His smile was infectious and she found herself grinning back at him as he stepped back from the door. “You’re pretty unforgettable yourself, Etta. Now get some rest.”
She closed the door and set the deadbolt with a loud click so Jesse could hear it and know she’d listened.
And true to her word when she walked over to the bed, she just lay down on top of the coverlet and fell fast asleep.
Chapter Four
JESSE
When it came to his father, Jesse was used to having a difference of opinion. Holt had never had that kind of problem with Frank. His mother always said that Holt and Frank had been cut from the same cloth, but Jesse had always had his own way of doing things.
So, when Holt walked up beside his son as Randy Calhoun was practicing on a mounting block and wooden horse frame outside the barn, it was a bit of a surprise to hear Holt growl under his breath.
“If he tries that kind of foolishness around the horses, I may have to yank him right out of the saddle before he hurts himself.”
Nodding, Jesse blew out a breath. “I’m more worried about the horses.”
“Well that goes without saying, son, but if that man hurts himself, this production is over.”
Jesse heard the unspoken words. ‘And we need the money.’ “I know.”
Holt scuffed the hard-packed dirt under his feet with the heel of his boot. “Knowing and doing are different things.”
The words were said in a mild tone, but it hurt like a kick to the gut.
“I think he’ll calm down.”
“And I think he’s going to crack his head open.” Holt spat into the dirt. “They don’t make actors like they used to.”
“No, they don’t, dad. No, they don’t.” Jesse had tried stern and he’d tried friendly. Neither had done much good.
Ahead of them, Randy tried to kick his leg over the apple on the saddle to dismount on the mounting block. He barely made it, but if there had been a horse under him instead of the wooden form that Jesse and a couple of the carpenters had put together, he would have kicked the horse in the neck.
He would have ended up a bloody and broken mess.
“Any chance they can just make it look like he’s riding the horse? Camera angles?”
“They want long shots of him on the horse and riding. I don’t see how they’re going to do that and get away with it. ‘Sides, audiences are getting wise to those kinds of tricks. People want realism.”
Jesse scoffed. “It’s a movie. They know it’s all a trick.”
“Don’t look at me, son. You know as well as I do that the world is full of people wanting things they shouldn’t have. We just have to find a way to make this dolt look like he’s got skills.”
“And keep him from killing himself and our animals while he’s at it.”
Holt turned and Jesse saw the earnestness in the other man’s eyes.
“I can’t tell you how much we need this, Jesse. Things are okay for the most part, but okay isn’t where we need to be. All this land is important to us. We can’t operate with film companies if we don’t have the buffer of all these acres of ours, but to keep all of that in between the jobs takes money. Lots of it. And things have been tight for the last few years.”
Tight was one way of saying it.
He wasn’t going to remind his father that they’d turned down a few films because Holt’s heart hadn’t been in it.
None of them had been really, but if they’d found a way to make even one or two of those films happen, it would have gone a long way to keeping enough in the bank that they didn’t have to worry.
They were lucky to get the call for this film. Other companies had found alternate sites for their films, a space near the border with Canada and down near Tucson. This was their chance to win back business from Hollywood.
And yes, Jesse was all too aware of what this meant to his family, but he was still chaffing over the idea that they had to turn this arrogant dude into an actor akin to the Duke.
“It’s going to take a miracle.”
“Well, son, I’ll head back up to the house and do some praying.” Jesse felt his father’s hand fall heavily onto his shoulder. “See if you can get him to settle down and do a few practice mounts like he actually gives a damn.”
“Then you’re going to have to do a lot of praying.”
At least his father could still laugh. Jesse heard the dry chuckles as the older man walked away.
And Jesse was already walking when he realized that he’d forgotten to remind his father that he was bringing a guest to the ranch in the afternoon.
He’d stop in and remind his folks when he was done with Randy’s lessons for the day.
“Well hell, cowboy!” Randy stood on the top of the mountain block with his arm slung over the saddle. “You come to enjoy the show?”
“Not really. I came to remind you that you need to take this seriously. When you try this on a real horse, you’re doing to regret playing around.”
Randy Calhoun was a major box office draw. Jesse didn’t have to go and see the man’s movies to know that the lanky blond man was a star. He was on enough posters to make that abundantly clear. His smile was pearly white enough and his hair never seemed to move even in the wind, but even his movie star looks didn’t hide the careless bent of his character.
“You exp
ect me to take his hobby horse seriously?” Randy gestured at the wooden mockup and sneered. “It’s like a carnival where the rides are made with cardboard and finger paints! I’ll take this seriously when you give me something serious to do. Right now, I’m pretty fed up with this practice crap.
“The production hinges upon me riding in the saddle of a real horse. That’s what I need to do. And I just can’t see how you’d be the right person to teach me, if this is all we’re going to do.”
Jesse felt frustration build up inside of him like steam in a tea kettle. If the stubborn ass in front of him didn’t step back soon, that steam was going to blow.
“Well, Randy, this is all we’re going to do until you settle down and do what I ask you to do. This isn’t playing. I saw your fancy car when you drove up the other day, and it seems like I remember a few stories in the news about you going out for a drive and pulling pieces off of your car with guardrails and a sign or two. When that happens, I bet you call up a garage and they drag that hunk of metal in and bang out all the dents.”
“Hardly,” Randy laughed out loud, “I’ve got money enough to junk the thing and buy something new. Something better than I had before.”
Grabbing the pommel of the saddle Randy managed to swing himself up into the saddle in a way that didn’t make Jesse grind his teeth together. It was almost as if the man had learned something during all his horsing around.
“See?”
“Oh, I see,” Jesse told him. “What you need to understand is that the horses we’re going to be putting under you aren’t just something you can junk if you damage them. Most of the horses on this property were raised and trained by us. Years of effort and care have gone into each and every one.
“And unlike a car, you don’t control them so much as you work together with them. They’ll do pretty much anything for you if you treat them well and communicate with them the way we’ll teach you to. But just as well as they listen, they’ll communicate back with you. They’ll protect themselves as best they can from abuse and carelessness. You have to understand that unlike a car, just because you have your hands on the reins doesn’t mean that you’re in control.”
Jesse could see it in Randy’s eyes. The man didn’t like what he’d heard, but he’d also decided to think on it. That was just about the best thing that he could expect from him at the moment.
“I know this is different from what you’ve done before, but they’ve asked me to show you what to do and I take my job seriously. If you give me a chance to teach you, I think we can do this. You can learn how to do this.”
Lifting his chin, Randy leveled a look at him. “I can learn anything.”
All he could answer with was a nod, because in his head, Jesse was still saying ‘we’ll see.’
“I need to go into town for a bit. I’ll be back after lunch. Go ahead and take a break. When we get back to work, I think we’ll be in a better place.”
He saw the tick of a muscle in Randy’s jaw and knew the man was itching to say something, but because he actually held his tongue, Jesse was beginning to hope that he’d gotten through to the man.
“All right.” Randy’s eyes narrowed a bit, making it harder for Jesse to gauge his thoughts. “When you get back, you’ll see.”
Jesse took a moment and then stepped away, heading for his truck. With any luck, they’d make enough progress in the afternoon and he’d feel better about where all of this was heading.
But for himself, he was heading into town, and that put a smile on his face.
ETTA
Sitting beside Jesse in the cab of his truck, Etta did her best to relax.
Or at least appear like she was.
During the week that she’d worked at the laundromat Jesse had stopped in nearly every night. It wasn’t as long a visit as they’d had her first night in town, but it was something she’d looked forward to and enjoyed when it happened.
“Hey.”
She heard his voice and turned to look at him, smiling. It was something she couldn’t help but do when he was near. “Hey, yourself.”
“We’re coming up on the gate.” He leaned forward and pointed off to the right. “It’s right up here.”
Leaning forward, Etta put her hands on the dash and turned to look for the gate. She saw the gate and the sign high above it. “I feel like I’m in Texas.”
Oh, she knew how silly she sounded even before Jesse turned to look at her.
“I’ve never seen a gate like this one around. I’ve seen some on television, but they always seem to be in Texas.”
“I guess I can let you off with a warning.”
Sitting back against the seat, Etta looked at him with a bit of surprise. “A warning?”
Turning into the gate, Jesse gave her a quick look. “If you’re going to live in this area, you’re going to see a bunch of these ranches around. If you go around talking about Texas-”
She held her hands up into the air. “Okay, okay! I’ll try not to embarrass you.”
The moment his hand wrapped around her wrist, she was stunned. Jesse lowered her hand down to the bench between them and before she could really look, he let go of her arm and drew his hand away.
If his touch shocked her, his words shook her.
“I’m not worried about that at all.” When he put his hand back on the wheel, he gave her a wink. “Just trying to save you from some odd stares and all the questions that come after.”
“Questions?”
The road into the ranch was well worn and the truck barely bounced at all as they moved along. Jesse slowed the truck as the road curved around a stand of trees.
“Don’t get me wrong, some folks in the area will know you’re not from around here, especially the old timers who seem to think they know everyone. The key is just to look like everything around you is… the usual.”
“The usual,” she nodded, “I get it. I’ve seen the Beverly Hillbillies. I’ll try not to gasp and stare at things.” Sitting back against the seat, Etta folded her arms across her chest. “I’ll try to make Miss Hathaway proud and mind my manners.”
Out of the corner of her eye she saw Jesse give her a look.
“I dunno. I wouldn’t mind seeing you dressed like Elly May.”
That got a laugh out of her. “I just bet you would.”
It didn’t take long for them to drive into the heart of the ranch and the next time he gestured toward the windshield it was to tell her they were coming up on the town, but she had already seen what was up ahead. At first, all she could see was a row of wooden buildings that looked all too familiar to her. “I’ve seen this before.” She leaned forward even more, ignoring the pressure of the seatbelt over her shoulder, pushing into the side of her neck. “I’ve seen this…” Images rolled through her head of a tall man in a dark coat walking beside a woman in a prim dress. She could almost hear the words they spoke to each other. “Marshal Hunter.”
Jesse slowed the truck to a stop and put on the brake. “You watched that?”
She blushed and sighed as she looked out of the windshield with a wistful smile. “I watched it four times at the movies.”
“Four?” Jesse’s laughter was warm and easy. “Why not five?”
She felt her smile fade a little and tears crept onto her lashes. “Things got in the way.” Etta didn’t want to mar the easy feel of their conversation by telling him that it was the last film she’d seen with her mother before she passed away. The last thing she wanted to do was change the feeling of the moment.
“Hey,” his hand was gentle on her shoulder, “are you okay?”
She blinked back the tears. “I’m fine. Just fine.”
Before he could ask her again, she unbuckled her belt, shrugged it off and climbed out of the truck.
With careful steps she moved into the middle of the road and looked down the full length of the town. “It looks exactly the same.”
Etta looked up as Jesse’s shadow fell across her shoulder.
&
nbsp; “I can’t believe you live here.”
“I don’t really live ‘here.’” He shrugged in that easy way of his. “But the view is pretty amazing.”
“It is. Wow.” She felt a little shiver roll through her body. “I can’t believe it.” Turning to look at the building closest to her, she narrowed her eyes to peek into the window. “Do you always keep the insides like that?”
“Like what?”
She lifted her hand and gestured toward the window. “The curtains and I can see a picture on the wall. It looks lived in.”
“Well, that’s because it is.”
Startled, she turned toward him and almost bumped noses. “Oh.”
Straightening up to his full height, he gave her a big grin. “It’s where I live most days.”
“Most days?” Etta covered her mouth with one hand. “Sorry. There’s just so many questions in my head.”
“I don’t mind answering. I used to live up at the main house, but now that I help keep an eye on the town, I live in it. If they need to use it for filming, then I move back up to the house while they need it, or if the weather’s good I might put a sleeping bag in the bed of the truck and sleep outside.”
“It’s like living in the movies.”
Laughing, he agreed wholeheartedly. “That’s a great way to think of it.”
Etta looked up at him, confused. “You don’t think of it that way?”
“I might just be a little jaded about it after all of these years, but hearing you talk about it brings back some of the magic for me.”
“Good,” her whole face lit up from the inside, “I’m glad. It’s like Frontier Land.”
“Ha!” That got a good, solid laugh from Jesse. “I’ve never thought of it like that either. Does it really look like this?”
Etta shrugged. “I’ve seen pictures.”
Jesse set his hat down on his head and tugged on the brim to set it in place. “From the way you said it, I thought you’d been there.”
“No. My friends have gone there for vacation and showed me their pictures, but I hope to go.” She meant the words too, but that wasn’t something she had any concrete plans for. Just dreams.