Jesse

by Reina Torres

  Etta lowered her soda down to the table. “Randy-”

  “I’m only asking because it involves someone you know.”

  Laughing, she sat back again, shaking her head. “I only know a handful of people here, Randy. I can’t imagine any one I know-”

  “It’s Jesse.”

  Etta felt like she’d been slapped. “What?”

  “Jesse Sutton. He’s the one making my life hell.”

  JESSE

  Jesse stayed at the house long after dinner and ended up on the porch staring down the dirt road toward town. He barely moved when the front door opened and closed again.

  “Jesse?”

  He almost wished it was his father coming out to talk to him. Holt’s conversations were legendary. He’d spout a few cowboy-isms and then he’d slap Jesse or Frank on the shoulder, give them a meaningful look, and then nod. It was over in less than five minutes.

  The same could not be said for his mother.

  Mama was another story all together.

  Caroline Sutton, matriarch of the Sutton family, stepped up beside him and stared out in the same direction he was.

  “Hello, Mama.”

  He could see her beautiful smile out of the corner of his eye. “Hello, son.”

  He tensed a little before he spoke again. “Are you planning to smack me upside the head?”

  Her laughter was magic and went a long way to easing the ache in his chest.

  She shrugged and leaned her shoulder against his arm. “Well, you would know if I needed to. So, you tell me.”

  “Tell you what?”

  That got him a smack on the arm. “Jesse Wayne Sutton!”

  “Uh oh. She broke out all three names. I’m in trouble now.”

  “Jesse,” her voice was full of love, but it also had the hard edge that told him to stop playing around, “talk to me.”

  “Nothing to say, really. I’m just… thinking about something.”

  Jesse felt his mother’s hand on his arm. She gave it a squeeze. “You mean, you’re thinking of someone.”

  “Yeah.” He leaned down and placed a kiss on his mother’s head. “I don’t know where I went wrong.”

  “About…”

  Laughing, he continued on. “That’s the thing. All during lunch, Etta hardly said a word to me and after, she disappeared into the office.”

  “And then after that,” his mother added her own words, “when you came up here to get her to drive her back to the motel…”

  “She’d already left.”

  “And you don’t know why she was so-”

  “Eager to get away from me?”

  “Oh?” Caroline sat on the porch rail and looked up at him. “You think she was running away from you? Should I know what you’ve done to make her do that?”

  “Done?” He scoffed. “Nothing. We talk. I pick her up. I drop her off. It’s not a good idea for her to drive around at night until she gets familiar with the area.”

  “Familiar?” Caroline leaned back against the post. “Sweetheart. She’s worked here for over a week and there’s but one turn between here and the Sagebrush. I doubt that she would have any trouble finding her way.”

  He shrugged. “Maybe.”

  “So why don’t you tell me what your real worry is and we’ll see if we can’t fix things. Hmm?” She gave the railing between them a gentle pat. “Sit.”

  He shook his head. “If I sit, I’ll be within striking range.”

  She pursed her lips and looked up at him. “You may be taller ‘n me, son, but if you’re standing, I can spank you.”

  “Mama-”

  “Fine, you stay standing, I can still talk your ear off. So, here goes.”

  Jesse turned, facing his mother and making sure he wasn’t going to miss a word.

  Caroline tipped her chin down and looked straight into his eyes.

  “Talk to her.”

  She nodded. Got up. And walked inside, leaving him alone on the porch.

  “Talk to her,” he muttered under his breath, “I could have thought of that.”

  ETTA

  Driving back toward the Sagebrush Motel, Etta was even more conflicted than she’d been on the way to the diner. They’d both fallen into silence as the wind whipped through the windows and Etta looked out the window, much as she’d done on the way out, but the world zipped by and she didn’t bother to try to remember the way they were driving.

  The food had been good, but she didn’t want to go back there again. She had a feeling it would only bring up bad memories. Listening to Randy talk about Jesse had put a bad taste in her mouth, warring with the burgers they’d had and the ice cream that they’d shared for dessert. She just couldn’t see the same things that Randy saw and when she’d tried to tell him that, she’d seen flashes of the same temper she’d seen before.

  She’d dropped her arguments then. It was easier to let it go. Easier to let things pass until she could get back to her room and then she’d try to figure out why they could see two different sides of one person. There were differences, of course, but there was just such a gap between their opinions. Like Grand Canyon different.

  “Hey,” Randy’s voice brought her back from her thoughts, “you look beautiful in the moonlight.”

  She smiled and turned to look at him. “Thank you, Randy.”

  “Gorgeous, even.”

  Her cheeks warmed and she felt his hand cover hers again. Goodness, she was exhausted. “Thanks.”

  It only seemed like a few more minutes passed before he turned into the parking lot of the Sagebrush Motel. The song on the radio was Pillow Talk and she tried to ignore the words and sound of the music as it traveled over her skin like a touch. Etta drew in a deep breath and sighed, almost eager to get out of the car. “Home, sweet home.”

  He laughed. “Tired?”

  “Yes.” She smiled at him. “I want to thank you for taking me to dinner tonight, Randy. It was… really nice.”

  “Nice?”

  He parked in a spot at the end of the row instead of the spot that was open next to her car.

  “Yes,” she cleared her throat, “it was very nice. Thanks.” She reached for the handle of the door but she felt Randy’s hand settle on the back of her neck. She hadn’t expected that. Not at all. She turned. “Randy, please. I-”

  He kissed her.

  He was impossibly close. She felt like he’d only pulled her an inch or two but she felt him pressed tight against her from her belly to her chest. “Ra-”

  She couldn’t say anymore than that.

  Randy was kissing her.

  And she couldn’t quite wrap her mind around the idea.

  His lips were on hers, his hand on the back of her neck and with a click she was free of her belt. And then she was closer, his hand on her waist.

  And then it was on her ribs.

  He moved his mouth away from hers and she heard his voice rasping in her ear. “I want… I want to go inside with you.”

  She could only blink as he kissed her again, his hand moving up until she felt his thumb under her breast.

  “No.”

  Etta lifted her hand and tried to get it between them, but it was stuck.

  “No, Randy. I-”

  He kept kissing her and she reached out her hand for the handle on the door, but he just pulled her closer.

  His hand went higher. His palm closed over her breast and she bit down on his lip.

  Randy all but shoved her away. “What the hell?”

  Etta cringed away from the anger in his eyes. “I- I’m sorry… I’m so sorry, Randy. I just- You just… you didn’t stop and I-”

  “You what?”

  He swiped his thumb over his lip and looked down at it. “At least you didn’t break the skin.”

  “It was an accident. I didn’t know how else to stop you.”

  “That’s the thing,” he told her as his gaze raked over her body, “you’re not supposed to stop me. Now, why don’t we go inside and we can ta
lk this over.” He looked over the seat into the back. “I’ve got a bottle of Scotch we can crack open and I’ll show you just how beautiful you are.”

  She would have laughed if she wasn’t sure he actually meant what he said.

  “I can’t.” She edged back. “I have to get some sleep so I can go to work in the morning.”

  He moved closer. “There’s plenty of time before you have to get to sleep, Etta.”

  “I can’t.”

  She opened the car door and scrambled out, closing the door behind her.

  “Etta, get back in the car.”

  He reached out for the handle, probably to open the door for her, but she kept moving.

  “I’ll see you later, Randy. Thanks for dinner. Really, it was great.”

  He disappeared back into the shadows of his car and she let out a sigh of relief. With a smile she turned to make her way to her room and walked smack dab into a hard wall.

  “Hey, careful.”

  Stumbling, she felt hands take hold of her arms. “Wow, warn a girl.”

  “Sorry.”

  Oh heavens. It was Jesse.

  Looking up at him was instinct and she regretted it as soon as she saw the look on his face.

  “What happened to you?”

  “What?” She blinked up at him, realizing exactly how exhausted she was.

  “I said, ‘What happened to you?’.”

  She felt a hand lift off her arm and then felt a gentle touch on her lower lip.

  Etta shrank away from his touch when it hurt her. “Ow.”

  “Etta?”

  His voice was heavy. Darker.

  And it suited her mood.

  The man holding her arm with his gentle strength hardly resembled the spiteful man that Randy talked about. She knew she should ask Jesse about it, but she’d promised not to say anything about what Randy had confided in her.

  It was already weighing on her.

  “What is it, Jesse? I’m tired.”

  He kept silent and she pulled out of his hands.

  A few steps away she felt a chill pass over her but she kept walking. Confronting Jesse was something she couldn’t do, but heaven help her, she wanted to spend time with him. She wanted to know if she was right about her own feelings about Jesse.

  Something inside of her needed to know, but she also needed time.

  “Etta, wait.”

  He caught up with her after a few steps, but he didn’t touch her again. He walked at her side, easily keeping up with her shorter strides.

  “I just want to talk to you.”

  “No,” she wrapped her arms around herself, “you don’t. What you want to do is ask me questions and I don’t have any answers for you right now.”

  “Etta, please.”

  “What, Jesse?” She stopped just outside of her door and dragged her gaze to his face. “What do you want to know?”

  “I,” he looked away before he met her eyes again and she couldn’t help but see there was something in his eyes that she felt connected to, but she didn’t understand, “I wanted to talk to you about today.”

  Today.

  She’d heard enough about ‘today.’

  “I’m tired. No, I’m exhausted, Jesse. I want to get some sleep.”

  He looked like he wanted to argue and then he just gave up. She could see that easily enough.

  “Just tell me one thing.”

  She groaned and regretted it, but there it was. “What?”

  “Can we talk, tomorrow?”

  Etta really didn’t have an answer for that. She really didn’t. The way she felt, she could go to sleep and not get up for days.

  “Etta?”

  “I don’t know what you want to talk about, Jesse.” She felt her heart squeeze in her chest like someone had wrapped their hand around it. “But I know that I need some time to think. Can you give me a day or two to put my thoughts together?”

  He looked… shocked.

  Hurt.

  “Jesse, I-” she reached out to touch him, but he flinched away. “I’m sorry. About everything. I’m just tired and-”

  “No,” he looked down at the ground, “I get it. I don’t really… but yeah. Look. I’ll see you tomorrow when I pick you up. Okay?”

  When she didn’t answer him, he looked up into her eyes.

  “I’ll drive myself in tomorrow. That way you have more time… to prepare for the film. Okay?”

  Etta pulled out her key and shoved it in the lock. “I’ll see you.”

  Jesse stepped back and waited while she opened the door and walked inside.

  “Good night, Etta.”

  Turning around she looked back at him. “Good night, Jesse. Drive safe.”

  She closed the door and stood there, wondering if she’d just made a huge mistake. “Why not?” She asked herself. “Just add it to the pile. At least that’s what I’m good at.”

  And for the second time, she fell asleep in her dress.

  Chapter Eight

  JESSE

  Patience. That was one thing Jesse struggled with, especially when it came to Randy Calhoun. The man practically oozed confidence and he could imagine what others might see in the man. He just couldn’t.

  It had been a few days since he’d seen Etta getting out of Randy’s car at the Sagebrush Motel and Jesse was nearly climbing out of his skin. She’d been upset when he’d spoken to her, but ever since then, every time he tried to speak to her and find out why, she avoided him like he had the plague.

  The only good thing that he’d found out was that Etta wasn’t going anywhere near the town and the trailers, so Randy wasn’t seeing her either. That was just a bit of cold comfort.

  “Looks like you’re miles away.”

  Jesse looked up at Randy and shrugged. “Just thinking over your progress.”

  Randy’s expression said he didn’t believe a word, but he kept quiet and that was really all that Jesse could have hoped for.

  “You’ve made a lot of progress.”

  Slapping his hand on the pommel of his saddle, Randy leaned forward. “Can you say that again?”

  When Jesse didn’t, Randy sighed and sat up tall in the saddle. His seat looked more comfortable than ever and the way he was treating the horses had changed for the better as well. “I think you’re ready for more.”

  Randy’s smile actually looked real. “You mean I get to go faster than a trot?”

  “We’ll play it by ear.”

  Leaning side to side in the saddle, he grinned. “I’ll be playing it by rear. I’m already sore. Can we start this new… whatever tomorrow?”

  Jesse’s mood took a turn, dipping down again. “We’ve only been working for a little over an hour. When you film, you’re going to be in the saddle for hours.”

  Randy waved off the idea. “They’ll give me breaks. You don’t have to worry about me.”

  I’m not.

  “You’re going to need some endurance. There will be scenes where you’ll need to dismount from the horse and continue to walk. Sometimes run.”

  “If it gets to be too much, they’ll just dress you up for those scenes. They just need me for the pretty face and to have me ride past the camera for the wide shots.”

  “Still,” Jesse didn’t want to argue, “even for those few shots, it’s going to take time to look like you’ve been years in the saddle. You need to spend as much time in the saddle-”

  “Hey!” Even though Randy kept his smile in place, the corners of his mouth were tight and lined. “Look, I get it, okay? I’ve got work to do, but I need a rest.”

  And Jesse knew, he did too. “Fine.” Moving along the edge of the corral, he unhooked the gate and swung it open. “Take Tango back to the barn.”

  There was a moment when Randy looked at him. Jesse was sure that Randy could decide to change his mood back into who he was when he’d first arrived at the ranch. When he moved, touching the heels of his boots against the sides of the horse, Jesse thanked heaven for it. Randy was
improving on his riding skill, but he still wasn’t sure about the man’s character.

  After Randy walked the horse past Jesse, he stopped. Jesse turned around and squinted up into the sunlight that was pouring over Randy’s shoulder.

  “Something wrong?”

  Randy leaned forward in the saddle and touched Tango’s neck with a gentle pat. “I was wondering if your friend has any skill on a horse.”

  That caught his interest. Raising a questioning brow, Jesse had to know. “What friend?”

  Randy’s smile set Jesse on edge, but his answer made the edges of Jesse’s vision turn grey.

  “That pretty little thing, Etta. She and I hit it off and she’s just pretty enough to make a man stupid and hungry at the same time. I bet you’ve had a taste, right?”

  Fire crawled along the back of Jesse’s neck. “A gentleman wouldn’t ask that.”

  With a grin, Randy shrugged. “Never said I was a gentleman. I’m a star. People forgive me a lot of things that they’d crucify you for.”

  “I don’t care who you are, or what you do. You’re going to stop talking about Etta like that. To me. To anyone else.” Jesse felt like yanking the man out of the saddle and kicking him in the kidneys, but he managed, barely, to hold himself together. “Take the horse back to the barn, Randy. And when you get there, you get to help me give Tango a rub-down and help me clean the stalls.”

  “You said,” Randy’s face was more than a little red, “that I could take a break.”

  “You said,” Jesse reminded him, “you wanted a break from riding. That’s what I’m giving you. The horses need to be cared for and that’s part of your training.” He waited for the words to sink in, but Randy seemed to be struggling with the concept. “The faster you get started…”

  “You’re a first-class asshole.”

  “Maybe you forgot the point of all of this. If you want to look like a star on the screen, you have to put in the work. I have to clear you to do the riding.”

  “And maybe you,” Randy didn’t miss a beat, “need to remember that I’m already a star and this is my film. And… I don’t think you understand exactly what that means. This film needs me more than it needs you and this place. So do your job and we’ll get along just fine.”