Johnny trailed Dixie into the kitchen where she stopped at Gavin’s side and kissed his cheek.
Of all his siblings, Johnny was closest to Dixie and he missed not being the apple of his baby sister’s eye. Gavin nodded to Johnny but neither man made eye contact.
As Dixie helped Gavin make the floats, she asked, “What’s this favor you need?”
“I was hoping you could stop by the Triple D tomorrow and spend time with Shannon while I repair a section of fence along the highway.”
“Are you asking me to babysit her?” Dixie smiled.
“Clive’s out of town and he put me in charge of keeping tabs on Shannon so I’ve been sticking close to the ranch house.” Johnny crossed his arms over his chest. “I’ve got to fix the break in the fence before I move the cattle into that area next week.”
“I could open the shop for you tomorrow,” Gavin said.
“You sure?”
Gavin nodded.
Dixie texted on her cell phone. “I told Shannon that I’d be over around eight in the morning.”
“Thanks, Dixie.” Johnny knew his sister would come through for him.
“How do you like having the foreman’s cabin all to yourself?” Gavin asked.
“The quiet takes getting used to.” He steered the conversation to Gavin’s work on a water reclamation project for the city of Yuma and a half hour passed before Johnny stood. “I better go.” He shook hands with Gavin.
“I’ll walk you outside,” Dixie said. When they stopped at his truck she spoke. “I’m worried about Shannon.”
“Why? What did she say in her text?”
“Nothing, but we talked on the phone yesterday and she sounded depressed.”
“You can cheer her up when you see her tomorrow.” He hopped into the truck.
“Why don’t you stop in town and buy her a bouquet of flowers? That will brighten her room.”
I don’t think so. Until he and Shannon figured out what that night in Gila Bend was all about, he didn’t dare do anything that would give Shannon the wrong impression about his feelings—whatever the hell they were—for her.
“Shannon’s always looked up to you as a big brother.”
Why was he everyone’s big brother?
“Back in tenth grade she said I was the luckiest girl in the world because I had you for a big brother and she wished Matt and Luke treated her as nice.”
“I’ve known her brothers for years. They’re not mean.”
“No, but they never make time for Shannon.” Dixie leaned into the truck and kissed his cheek. “Watch over her, okay?”
Johnny shut the door and started the engine. He doubted Dixie would have asked him to look out for her best friend if she’d known he’d already slept with her.
* * *
“OUCH.” SHANNON WINCED when Dixie pulled too hard on her hair.
Dixie smiled at Shannon in the mirror. “Bull riders aren’t supposed to whine.”
Shannon sighed. “Thanks for helping me.”
“You hate that, don’t you?”
“Hate what?”
“Needing help,” Dixie said.
“I was raised to be independent. If I’d had a grandmother who cared about me the way yours cared about you, I might not be stubborn.”
Dixie separated Shannon’s hair into three plaits and braided the ebony strands. “Do you know that my grandma wanted to adopt you?”
“No way.”
“Yes way. Grandma Ada would get so angry when you showed up at the farm with dirty hair and wax in your ears.”
Shannon shuddered. “Remember the afternoon I got my period?”
Both women laughed.
“And your grandfather’s stunned face when we burst into the kitchen and blurted that I was dying of some terrible disease because I had blood in my underwear.”
Dixie laughed so hard tears escaped her eyes. “Grandpa fled the house as if his overalls were on fire.”
“Then your grandma came inside and took us both upstairs to the bathroom and explained how a woman’s body worked and how to use the supplies she’d been keeping on hand for you when your time came,” Shannon said.
“Grandma Ada loved you as much as she loved me, Shannon.”
“I kept the quilt she made for me.”
“She’d be happy about that.” Dixie wrapped the end of the braid in an elastic band. “You know, every time we’ve talked about family it’s always been mine.”
“Your family is more entertaining.”
“I’m serious.” Dixie set the comb on the nightstand, then lifted Shannon’s broken leg onto the bed and arranged the pillows beneath it. “You never mention your mother.”
“Why would I? She walked out on my dad when I was a toddler and I haven’t had any contact with her since.”
“She’s never called you through the years?”
“Never. I overheard Matt and Luke talking about her once and I asked why she never visited us.” Shannon swallowed hard. After all these years it remained difficult to accept that her mother wanted nothing to do with her or her brothers. “Matt said she’d married an older man who didn’t have kids and moved out of state with him.”
“Where did she meet the guy?”
“I don’t know and if my dad knows he’d never say.”
“That’s rough. I’m sorry.”
Shannon blew off the sympathy. “I’m not the only kid on the block who grew up with a parent who didn’t care about them. Your father didn’t want anything to do with you or Johnny.”
“I might not have cared if our mother had paid more attention to us kids instead of spending her time searching for the perfect man.”
It was common knowledge that Aimee Cash’s boys had all been fathered by different men—none of whom she’d married. Most folks claimed Aimee had died of a broken heart, but there had been rumors that she’d overdosed on antidepressant pills.
“At least we had our grandparents. They loved us,” Dixie said.
“Wouldn’t it be nice if every kid had a childhood where both parents loved them?” Shannon said. “Speaking of childhoods...any news on the baby front?”
“Not yet, but the trying is fun.”
After their laughter died down, Shannon struggled to find a way to bring up the subject of Johnny. The longer he avoided her, the more doubts trickled into her mind. Before she considered how it would sound, she blurted, “I heard Johnny and Charlene broke up.”
If the change in subject startled Dixie, she didn’t show it. “Johnny said they’d been growing apart for a while.” She shook her head. “How does that happen to people? They stay together all those years and then call it quits without a backward glance.”
“I don’t know.” Shannon had never been in a long-term relationship.
“After all Gavin and I went through, if he left me, I’d never survive the heartache.”
“It’s too bad about Johnny and Charlene,” Shannon said, not feeling a bit sorry for the other woman.
“Speaking of relationships,” Dixie said. “I’m worried you’re still nursing a broken heart over C.J.”
“Why would you think that?”
“When we talked on the phone the other day, you sounded down in the dumps.”
“I’m over C.J. He can have all the buckle bunnies he wants and I don’t care.”
“I never could figure out what you saw in him,” Dixie said.
“There’s a lot more to C.J. than the public sees.”
“Like what?”
“He wouldn’t want me to share it with anyone, Dixie.” She’d promised C.J. she’d never tell anyone about his dysfunctional family. “Like us, he didn’t have a great childhood, either.” The problem with C.J. was that he didn’
t trust anyone’s feelings for him and therefore couldn’t remain in a committed relationship.
“How are you and your dad getting along?” Dixie asked.
“Fine, why?”
“C’mon, Shannon, this is me you’re talking to.” Dixie rummaged through the cosmetic bag she’d brought to the house and held up two bottles of polish. “Vampire Red or Sorority Pink?”
“I don’t need my nails done,” Shannon protested.
“I went to all the work of giving you a pedicure—”
“Which I didn’t ask for, but thank you anyway.”
“Amuse me and let me paint your toenails.”
“Fine. Go ahead.”
“Which color?” Dixie asked.
“I don’t care.”
“You’re more vampire than sorority girl. We’ll go with red.”
Shannon snorted. “Since when did you get into all this foolishness?”
“I own a gift shop that sells natural beauty products. I have to walk the talk if I want to convince customers that my soaps will make their skin look smooth and beautiful.” Dixie placed a foam form between Shannon’s toes, then applied a base coat on the nails. “Besides, men like painted toenails.”
“Men don’t notice a woman’s feet.”
“Oh, yes, they do.” Dixie’s eyes twinkled. “Until I met Gavin, I never knew that toes could play a role in foreplay.”
“Stop. I don’t want to hear any more.” Shannon covered her ears.
Dixie applied the first coat of red polish and Shannon admired her toes—they didn’t look half-bad.
“What are Matt and Luke up to these days?” Dixie asked.
“Busy preparing for a trial.”
“What kind of case are they working on?”
“They’re prosecuting a man for a gang-related murder along the border. Matt phoned the other day, but we didn’t talk long before he got another call.”
Dixie put away the polish and admired her handiwork. “You’re all set.” She straightened the blanket on the bed. “Next time I visit, I’ll give you a manicure.”
“Dixie...”
“What?”
“Thank you.”
“Text me if you need anything.” Dixie hugged Shannon.
As soon as the downstairs door shut, a feeling of melancholy swept through Shannon. At times she was jealous of Dixie and the love she and Gavin shared.
“Stop being a brat.” She had nothing to be sad about. She was making a name for herself in bull riding, and pretty soon she’d win a national title, which would prove she was the best rodeo cowgirl in the country.
* * *
A BANGING ON the door roused Johnny at midnight. Hank barked from his pillow on the kitchen floor and he shushed the dog as he thrust his legs into the jeans he’d left on the floor by the bed. He wondered which one of his brothers had stopped by for a late-night visit.
“Shannon,” he said when he opened the door.
She moved past him on her crutches and entered the cabin. “I know it’s late but—” Her crutch caught on the edge of the rug and if not for his quick reflexes as he grabbed her around the waist, she’d have landed on her face. “Whoa.” He steadied her, his fingers enjoying the feel of her trim tummy. Reluctantly he released her and retrieved the fallen crutch. He noticed her perspiring face. “You shouldn’t have walked all the way over here.”
“I wouldn’t have to go anywhere on my crutches if you’d stop avoiding me.”
“I’m not avoiding you.” Embarrassed, he went to the fridge and got a bottle of water, then nodded to the sofa.
“We need to talk, Johnny.”
She was right. He’d been running away from this discussion for three weeks. “Okay.” When he handed her the water he noticed the toenails peeking out of the cast on her leg were painted red.
She caught him looking and said, “Your sister gave me a pedicure this morning.” She patted the cushion next to her, but he chose to sit in the chair. He’d gotten a whiff of bath soap and clean woman when she’d stumbled into his arms and there was no way he could sit next to her and not be tempted to touch her.
“About that night—” he said.
“My rodeo promoter Dale Carson’s been calling me nonstop.”
Startled, Johnny asked, “He’s not pushing you to come back before you’re ready, is he?”
“No. But there’s been a development since the Yuma rodeo.”
“What kind of development?”
“Apparently the rodeo fans that afternoon enjoyed the show you and C.J. put on behind the chutes.”
“What show?”
“Your scuffle?”
Johnny’s face reddened.
“The fans think you, me and C.J. are involved in some sort of love triangle.”
“What?”
“Dale said they’ve gotten hundreds of emails wanting to know who the Man in Black is.”
He waved a hand. “It’ll die down in another week or so.”
“That’s exactly what Dynasty Boots is afraid will happen if you and C.J. don’t vie for my attention in public.”
What? “They want us to come to blows over you?”
“I don’t believe they expect you to take it that far, but they want to keep fans interested in my competition with C.J., so they don’t lose ticket sales while my leg is healing.”
“No.” He bolted from the chair and paced across the floor.
“Dale said he’d make it worth your while.”
“What do you mean?”
“If you’re willing to show up with me at two of C.J.’s upcoming events, Dynasty Boots will pay you five thousand dollars.”
Five thousand dollars?
She smiled. “It’s not bad for playacting.”
Johnny was still contemplating the money angle and it took a moment for the rest of her words to sink in. Playacting? What they’d shared in the motel room in Gila Bend sure hadn’t been playacting. Did she think it would be that easy to carry out this charade?
“Dale wants me and you to attend C.J.’s rodeo in Winslow at the end of September.”
“You shouldn’t be gallivanting all over the state with a broken leg.”
“Whether you take the money from Dynasty Boots and help me out or not, I’m going to Winslow.”
“You can’t drive with a cast on your leg.”
She reached for her crutches. “I use my right foot on the gas pedal and the brake.”
Johnny beat her to the door. “Let me take you up to the house in the truck.”
“No, thanks. I need the exercise.”
He stepped outside with her and held the crutches as she hopped down the porch steps.
“This is crazy, Shannon.”
“It’s five grand, two rodeos and a little playacting.” She took her crutches from him. “What are you afraid of?”
Plenty.
“Text me your answer tomorrow. I told Dale I’d get back to him by Monday night.”
Johnny watched Shannon hobble up to the house. Once she’d made it inside, he shut the door. Five thousand dollars was a lot of money—money that would pay the tax bill sitting in his truck.
But playacting? How the hell would he pull that off when he’d already experienced the payoff after all those heated looks and teasing touches?
Chapter Seven
The last Saturday in September Johnny stood next to Clive, one boot propped on the bottom rail of the corral and watched a cutting horse named Odyssey trot in circles. “How’s his temperament?” Johnny asked.
“Good. Doesn’t need much direction when you’re in the saddle.”
“You plan to sell him?”
“Depends—” Clive lifted the empty feed bucket
off the ground and clanged it against the rail. Startled, Odyssey reared, pawing the air. “—on whether or not I can cure his fear of loud noises.”
“If you want me to work with him, let me know,” Johnny said.
“You’re doing me a favor by driving Shannon up to Winslow today.”
Shannon hadn’t told her father about the love-triangle idea Dynasty Boots had come up with to entertain rodeo fans, and Johnny wasn’t about to spill the beans now.
Three weeks had passed since Shannon had talked him into accepting the boot company’s offer of five thousand dollars and still neither one of them had brought up their one-night stand in Gila Bend.
“Don’t know why Shannon’s sponsor is making her show up at a rodeo she can’t compete in,” Clive said, “but I suppose she’s getting antsy. Can’t recall the last time she stayed at the ranch for more than a few days.”
Truth be told, Johnny was becoming antsy, too—not to leave the ranch but to settle things between him and Shannon. He’d done a heck of a job avoiding her since Clive had come back from Wyoming, but she was still on his mind morning until night.
“Watching the bull rides from the stands might give her a different perspective on the sport,” Johnny said. Maybe she wouldn’t be as eager to get back in the arena.
“I never should have allowed her to enter those mutton-bustin’ contests with Luke and Matt.”
“Doubt you could have stopped her. As long as I’ve known Shannon, she’s been determined to keep up with her brothers.”
“I thought she’d outgrow her tomboy ways, but she never did.” Clive shook his head. “I suppose not having a mother didn’t help.”
“Shannon’s made a name for herself in rodeo and she’s brought a lot of awareness to women’s bull riding.”
“I’d rather my daughter makes a name for herself cooking or running a gift shop like Dixie. At least I wouldn’t have to worry about her breaking her neck.”
The front door of the house opened and Shannon stepped out. A week ago the doctor had put her in a walking boot, and she was moving around with ease now. “I guess we’re ready to roll.” He and Clive met Shannon at Johnny’s truck, which he’d parked in front of the house.
“Dad, I’ll text you when we leave Winslow late this afternoon.” She flashed her father a smile.
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