Second Chance Ranch

by Jenna Hendricks

  Judith walked next to Elizabeth as they followed a little behind John and Ana. “This might be interesting.” She raised her eyebrows and looked pointedly at John.

  John smiled down at the girl in his arms and chuckled. Ana must have said something, but Elizabeth couldn’t hear her.

  “Did you hear what she said?”

  Judith slowed her pace even more. “No, but I imagine she and John have already hit it off.”

  Elizabeth frowned and worried for Ana.

  Her mother put a hand on her forearm. “Don’t worry. I’ll have a talk with John, and all the boys, to make sure they understand to be nice and perfect gentlemen with Ana. You know they would never do anything untoward to the girl, right?”

  “Of course, Ma. But I don’t think they should be flirting with Ana until she’s healed and feels more comfortable here with us. I think the girl might have a lot of demons she needs to slay before she’s in a position to date.” The last thing Elizabeth wanted was for Ana to fall for one of her brothers only to get her heart smashed. Her brothers weren’t exactly boyfriend material. Especially the younger ones.

  They were all good boys, but not one of them had said anything about wanting to settle down. They didn’t date much; they all believed that dating around wasn’t smart. They were more into courting a woman than just dating. But that didn’t stop them from flirting with all the pretty girls in town.

  “Don’t worry, dear. I’ll have a talk with the boys. They’ll be on their best behavior, or their pa will have something to say to them.” Judith nodded with a glint in her eye.

  No one went against her mother. Well, no one who was smart, anyway. All the Manning kids had tried as children to best their mom, but she was too smart and stubborn for them. If they went too far, their dad stepped in and they were punished. Every one of them learned the line pretty early on and did everything they could to not cross it.

  Elizabeth hoped that her brothers would listen to their mom.

  Chapter 17

  Two days passed so quickly that Elizabeth didn’t have time to go out to the ranch and check on Ana. But her mother did call her each day and give a status update. The girl was shy, but who could blame her? And the boys were behaving, which was a huge relief to Elizabeth.

  On Wednesday her schedule was light, and one of the ranches she had to go out to was just past the Triple J, so she stopped in to see her family and Ana.

  Judith greeted her daughter with a hug and a smile. “Just in time for lunch. Care to join us?”

  “Thanks, Ma. Don’t mind if I do.” Elizabeth’s eyes scanned the living room for Ana but didn’t see her. She furrowed her brow. “Where’s Ana?”

  Her mother smiled. “Follow me.”

  The two of them walked into the large kitchen, where an overstuffed recliner sat in the corner with the patient lying back in the comfy seat.

  “Hi, Ana. How are you feeling?” Elizabeth noticed that the girl was already looking better; she had bathed and was wearing fresh clothes. Plus, her hair was no longer greasy, and she had a smile on her face.

  “Much better, thanks to your ma. She’s an angel.” The girl looked at Mrs. Manning as though she were truly an angel sent down from heaven to look after her.

  Chuckling, Elizabeth nodded. “Yes, she really is. I see you have a nice set up here in the kitchen. Do you stay here all day long?”

  Ana shook her head. “No, just when Mama Judith is cooking. If she’s not in here, then I’m either napping in my room, or in the living room watching TV.”

  Elizabeth’s raiser her brows and looked to her mom before she mouthed, Mama Judith?

  “Yes. Now that Ana is going to be living with us, I told her she could call me Mama Judith.” She bristled a bit at the accusation on Elizabeth’s face, but stood her ground.

  “I think it’s a great idea. I was hoping Ana would become part of our family.” Elizabeth was happy that everything was working out for Ana. If Ana felt like she was part of the family, then she would stay, and once she was healed she could help with the ranch. It really was a good situation for Ana, as well as Elizabeth’s family.

  Without giving it another thought, Elizabeth walked to Ana and looked at her ankle. “How’s the ankle? Any more pain? Are you keeping off your foot?”

  Ana nodded. “The boys take turns carrying me around. Honestly, I feel a little like royalty with how they’re all treating me.” A little bit of pink stained her cheeks, and she looked down at her foot.

  This was the most Ana had spoken to Elizabeth so far, and she realized how good her family was for Ana. She hoped that Ana felt comfortable opening up to her mother and would get the guidance she needed, as well as feel like staying here forever, if going home wasn’t possible.

  Elizabeth wanted the girl to stay, but she also thought Ana must have a family somewhere who were worrying about her. They would want to know she was alright and most likely would want her to come home to them. She knew her mother was already forming a strong attachment to Ana, and she would have to talk to her about that.

  Until they knew for sure what Ana was going to do, keeping some sort of emotional distance from the girl would be the safest way to go for them all. It was how Elizabeth had gotten through these past ten years.

  Now she wondered if letting herself like Max was the right thing or not. He’d not called her since she came back from Bozeman. Even when she called him, he didn’t answer, or return her messages. She knew he was in town; she had heard as much. And his big race was in just a few days. She still planned to attend and support him even though they were having trouble. It was something she wanted to do for him.

  Lunch was uneventful, but it did show Elizabeth how much Ana had changed in the short time since she’d arrived at the Triple J Ranch. Which was a good thing. The girl fit in with her family, and she was very happy to see it. She was going to have to let Chloe know. Although, Chloe had probably already been out here to see the girl.

  Come to think of it, Elizabeth wondered why she hadn’t heard from her sister since Sunday. They rarely went a day without at least a text message exchange. It wasn’t like her sister to be so quiet. She’d have to call her later after she finished her paperwork for the day. Thankfully, she only had two more ranches to stop by, and then she could go back to her office and finish up on time for a change.

  This was a busy season for the cattle ranchers. Most of them sold their cattle at market in the third and fourth quarters, as that was usually the time when they sold for a higher price. This year was no different. So she had a lot of cattle to check on and make sure they were healthy and ready for slaughter. She wanted all her clients’ cows or steers to be ready for human consumption.

  The rest of the week passed by quickly, and it was already time to head out for the demolition derby race. When Elizabeth had spoken to Chloe a few days before, the two decided to get a large group from town to head out for the races and support Max. She hoped that by doing something nice for her boyfriend, he would be in a better mood.

  Logan had been one of the group of twenty people from Beacon Creek who went to support Max.

  “Chloe, why did you invite Logan?” It wasn’t that Elizabeth felt so mad at the guy anymore—it was that she felt awkward. She was still mad at him, but her anger was beginning to give way to something else. She wasn’t sure yet what that something else was, but she still felt strange around her old boyfriend.

  Chloe blinked and shook her head. “Not everything is about you, sis. Please remember that Max is the local John Deere rep, and he sells a lot of equipment out of the general store. Logan and Max work together.”

  Elizabeth winced and knew her sister was right. She was just being selfish not wanting Logan around. She was going to have to get used to him being a part of town life again.

  Thankfully, Logan drove his own truck with Leah and a few of his friends.

  Elizabeth, Chloe, Harper, Jonathan, and Drake all rode the thirty minutes together to the demolition derby semi-fin
als. If Max could earn enough points tonight, he would qualify for the finals. It was something he’d never been able to do before, and she knew he wanted this more than anything else right now.

  “Drake, have you ever been to the demolition derby races?” Elizabeth walked next to her old high school friend.

  “Of course, I even participated a few times. But the last race completely destroyed my engine, so I haven’t raced in a few years.” Drake shrugged and kept his eyes on the crowd.

  “Wait, you’ve raced before? How come I never knew this?” Elizabeth thought she knew Drake. While they had never dated, they were friends most of their lives, and she saw him regularly.

  “Huh?” He looked back at her. “Oh, it was while you were away in college. I went to school in Wyoming, where I didn’t know anyone. My roommate was really into it, so I thought it would be fun to join him. I got into it and eventually got my own car from the junkyard and fixed it up. I never did very well. The engine kept sputtering during the events and usually gave out on me. Then the final race it went kaput, as did my aspirations of a drag racing trophy.”

  The group with them laughed and peppered Drake with questions about what it was like to constantly crash a car. Some even teased Drake, but he took it all in stride and had fun.

  Drake spotted a hand in the air. “Look, it’s Logan. Let’s join him and the rest of the town.”

  Elizabeth and Chloe both nodded, and they all headed to where Logan was standing. She knew she needed to get along with him, but her stomach was all tied in knots and she wasn’t sure she’d be able to keep up a good conversation if he was anywhere near her. So she pulled Chloe to the side. “Let’s sit on the other side of group. I haven’t had a chance to speak with the Diner Divas in a while.”

  Chloe chuckled and nodded.

  It wasn’t five minutes before Elizabeth regretted sitting with the divas. All they did was gossip. The women were sweet, but they just couldn’t seem to stop their gossip.

  Cindy Macon and her bobbing pink pouf of hair kept peppering Elizabeth with questions about Logan and Max. “Are you and Max doing alright, dear? I heard you two were fighting and that you’ve spent a lot of time with Logan lately.” Her brows raised in anticipation of something juicy she could share.

  “Now, Miss Cindy. You know better than to listen to gossip. What does the pastor say about gossip?” Elizabeth wasn’t usually so direct, but she was so tired of the gossiping group.

  They weren’t always this bad, it was just lately. She thought they needed a project to keep them busy. Idle hands and all that was probably what had caused this group of women to be worse than the Presbyterians when it came to gossip.

  Cindy sighed and took Elizabeth’s hand. “You’re right. I don’t need to know what’s going on with you and Max. But if you ever want to talk to someone, you know you can come to me, right?”

  Elizabeth bit back the retort on her tongue. She didn’t want to be disrespectful, but Cindy was the last person she would confide in.

  “Miss Cindy, I thank you for your concern. I do have something I could use your help with. How about we meet up Monday for lunch to discuss it?” Elizabeth realized in that moment, Cindy and her divas had the most contacts in the area. They would be fantastic help with her latest problem, and it would keep them busy.

  Elizabeth wondered how four women who had been retired for so long spent their days. She thought maybe it was boredom that brought them to their gossiping ways. Giving them something to do just might help them, as well as the rest of the town.

  Cindy’s eyes brightened, and she sat up taller. “Of course. I love to help you in any way I can. Even though my Stanley passed away years ago, I still remember what it was like to be married to a headstrong man. I’m sure I can help you with your Max and Logan issues.” She nodded.

  Elizabeth groaned inwardly and wanted to tell her what the topic was, but just then the announcer came on and everyone’s attention turned to him.

  “Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the semi-finals of the North American Demolition Derby Competition!” The announcer’s deep voice came over the loudspeakers, and everyone began to clap.

  Elizabeth heard the engines rev and watched as the first group of banged-up cars with different numbers on their doors made their way to the starting line. She looked at each number, hoping to see Max’s number: 66. She knew there would be three sets of races tonight, and the top ten would be moving on to the finals. It wasn’t so much about who lasted longer; it was all based on points. She didn’t totally understand the point system, but knew enough to know that a good crash was worth a lot of points for both involved, as long as they were both still running. So was the person who had the best time overall for the race. It was a combination of racing and crashing that earned each driver points.

  The crashing was what drew the crowds, but the overall competition was what drew the drivers. None of them would ever be professional race car drivers, but all of them had a chance at being champions on the demolition derby circuit.

  The first race was exciting. Within the first five minutes, half the cars were down. The other half had crazy dents or missing parts of the body. The crashing was exciting, and the entire crowd went wild whenever someone hit another car.

  Elizabeth was just as excited by the action as the crowd was. She was so into the race that she forgot all about her troubles and the gossiping ladies next to her. The Diner Divas had even stopped their gossiping long enough to watch the competition. She knew that come tomorrow, this race would be all the divas would talk about. In fact, they would probably talk about it for a few days.

  All of a sudden, Elizabeth was very grateful these ladies came along for the ride. They really did need to get out more. Their boredom was probably what spurred their worst gossip. No one minded a little bit of talking, but the way the divas had been hounding everyone lately was getting on her nerves.

  A project was exactly what they needed, and Elizabeth had just the thing for them.

  Chapter 18

  When the final racers made it to the track, Elizabeth was biting her nails—something she never did. Max was finally in the race, and after the carnage of the first two, she was a bit worried for him. Each race was timed, and only stopped when there was just one car left or the timer ran out.

  In the first race, only one car remained, and it almost ran the clock out. Which made for an exciting race, but all those cars that were destroyed made her a bit nervous for Max.

  In the second race, the clock ran out with three cars still running. She didn’t know how the number thirty-two car was still running. Both front fenders were missing, the hood was bent like an aluminum can, and the rear of the car where the engine had been moved didn’t have anything but the frame protecting the engine. And even that was bent. Not to mention the side doors. The guy would have to crawl out the open window. She was very grateful that no one was allowed to have glass in their windows. It made sense, since the object was to destroy the cars. Making sure the glass was all gone would help keep the drivers safer.

  Now it was the final race, and Max was in it. Somehow he was in the back of the pack. She wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or bad. No one would come up from behind for a little while, and he could easily rear-end others, but was that better?

  She watched while nibbling on her nails, and without realizing it, both her feet were bouncing up and down.

  “Stop that.” Chloe took Elizabeth’s hand out of her mouth and put another hand on her knees to stop the bouncing. “He’s going to be just fine. Keep in mind that he’s been doing this for years.”

  “I know, but did you see those other cars? I swear, this is the most brutal of all the races I’ve seen all year. Two guys were taken away in an ambulance already. I hadn’t seen that before.” Elizabeth knew the contest was dangerous, but she didn’t realize how dangerous it could be.

  Her sister rubbed her back. “Don’t worry, he’s going to be fine. Max is a big, strong guy who’s had plen
ty of experience.”

  Cindy joined in and agreed with Chloe. “Don’t worry, dear. I’ve seen Max race before, and he’s going to win. In case you haven’t noticed, the winners of each match walked away. It was only the early losers who needed medical attention.” She patted Elizabeth’s knee like she was a little girl who needed reassurance.

  Elizabeth felt like a little girl who needed reassurance that her favorite toy was going to be alright after one her brothers got their hands on it. Her head told her all would be fine. They had pretty strict safety protocols in place. The drivers all wore helmets and even fire-retardant safety vests that helped to protect their bodies from the brutality of the crashes.

  But she still worried.

  Her heart hadn’t received the memo about the safety protocols or about how well Max drove and how experienced he was. Instead, her heart kept watching the other car that rolled over several times and then caught on fire. That was one of the guys who was rushed away in an ambulance.

  Logan watched Elizabeth as she worried over the race. During the previous heats when he looked at her, she appeared to be enjoying herself. Now, she was a mess. He knew when she was upset, and she was most definitely worried about her boyfriend. It was understandable, but it still grated on his nerves that she was sitting so close and there was nothing he could do to help her.

  Jonathan nudged his arm. “Dude, just go over there and tell her it’s all good. She’ll probably be happy you said something to her.”

  He shook his head. “No, man. She has all of those women telling her all will be well. She doesn’t want to hear from me.”

  “You won’t know until you try. I thought you weren’t going to give up on her?”

  Logan shrugged. “I wasn’t, until just now. Seeing how much she cares for Max tells me the gossip around town isn’t exactly reliable.”

  “I saw them arguing the other day around the corner from the diner. All’s not well with them. They may still be together, but something has gotten between them lately.” Jonathan smirked and gave his friend a knowing look.