by SJ McCoy
Libby laughed with her. “Err, yeah. I did. I’m too old to be looking, but I saw it all right.”
Frankie’s smile faded. “You’re not too old to look, but you’re still too …” She’d been about to say too married. Libby had been married to Frankie’s brother Maverick, but she wasn’t anymore.
“Let’s not go there, huh?” Libby held up her phone with a grin. “Want to see that photo of him again? In fact, if you make it worth my while, I could text it to you.”
“And what would making it worth your while look like?”
Libby rubbed her chin. “Hmm. You could come out here tomorrow and check on the horses for me. Give me the day off from driving up and down the valley.”
“I wish you still lived down here.”
“What, so that you didn’t have to do it?” Libby tried to keep it light.
“No, because I wish you still lived here. I wish you –”
Libby held her hand up to stop her. “I think we already covered that. It’s good of Mav to let me keep using the place, to keep the program going, but I had to move away. It never works out between us, and neither of us could ever move on while I still lived here. Anyway, do you want me to send you this picture of Spider?” She looked down at her phone. “Oh. There are two of them. You saw his face. This one has him in all his glory.”
Frankie grabbed for the phone, but Libby pulled it away too fast, laughing. “What are you like, girl? I didn’t mean in all his naked glory, calm down. I meant that it shows all his tattoos on his big, strong arms.”
Frankie rolled her eyes, but Libby just laughed. “Don’t worry.” She tapped at her phone. “I’m sending it whether you want to check on the horses tomorrow or not.”
“You know I will.” She pulled out her own phone when it buzzed in her back pocket and let out a low whistle as she stared at Spider’s photo. “That is one good-looking guy.”
“Right? You should ask him out.”
Frankie met Libby’s gaze. “Why would I do that?”
“Because you find him attractive and he’s here visiting mutual friends. And since Tara and Reid have Owen, they’re not going to be able to take him for a night out. It’d be the neighborly thing to do – you should offer.”
Frankie shook her head with a smile. “Nah. He’s good to look at, but I doubt he’s my kind of guy. We wouldn’t have anything in common. He’s from LA. I’m a cowgirl from Montana.”
“Coward!”
Frankie glared at Libby. “You know damned well that’s not true.”
Libby laughed. “Of course, I do. And I also know that you’ll do anything to prove it’s not.”
“Nah. I’m too old to fall for that shit.”
“Oh. I guess you’re really not interested in him then. I’ll shut up. But as far as the two of you having anything in common, you did hear him tell Owen that he rode his motorcycle up here from LA?”
“I did.”
Libby winked at her. “I’m only pointing out that even if you’re not a coward, your excuses are bull and we both know it.”
Frankie looked down at her phone. He was one good-looking dude. And if she asked him out, an evening in his company would be a refreshing change from listening to all the crap she usually got from the cowpunchers. She looked back up at Libby with a smile. “I did say I’d stop by and see Tara this weekend.”
Libby smiled back at her. “I think you should, and while you’re there you can offer to show their guest around town.”
“You know what? I think I will.”
Chapter Three
“Spider’s home, Spider’s home!”
Spider opened his eyes and looked around. It took him a few seconds to figure out where he was. Reid and Tara’s place, in Montana. And the sound that had woken him was Owen. He smiled and got up.
“Spider’s home!” The little sing-song voice was louder this time.
“Owen, shush! Come back to the kitchen and have your breakfast. Spider will be up soon enough. He probably needs to sleep in a bit; he had a long ride up here on his motorcycle. He’s tired.”
Spider smiled to himself and made his way into the bathroom. He wanted to open the bedroom door and say hello, but he knew that once Owen had his attention, he’d want to keep it for a while – he wasn’t good at switching.
Once he’d taken care of business and made himself look presentable, he went out to the kitchen where Tara and Owen were sitting at the island while Reid made pancakes.
“Morning, guys.”
“Spider’s home!” Owen slid down from his stool and came running, holding his arms up.
Spider was amazed at how much more outgoing and physically affectionate he was these days. He scooped him up and hugged him. “Hey, little buddy.”
“Hey, big buddy.” Owen gave him a happy smile.
“Do you want coffee?” asked Reid.
“Do bears –” Spider managed to stop himself in time and gave Tara an apologetic smile.
She just laughed, but Owen gave him a puzzled look. “Do bears want coffee?” He turned to look at Reid. “Do bears want coffee? How could bears get coffee? Bears live outdoors, they don’t have electricity. They can’t make coffee.” He looked back at Spider. “How do bears know that they like coffee?”
Spider felt bad. He knew that Owen took everything literally. He’d always been careful around the little guy, trying not to say anything that would be confusing for him. But he’d forgotten.
Reid smiled at him. “It’s okay. Spider was about to use a saying that means yes, he would like some coffee very much.”
Owen focused all his attention on Reid now. “Do bears? How does that mean that Spider likes coffee?”
Spider watched Reid in much the same way Owen did; he was curious how he’d explain it.
“What Spider was about to say was, do bears poop in the woods?”
Owen giggled. “Of course, they do!”
Reid grinned back at him. “Exactly. Just like Spider of course, wants coffee.”
“Ooh!” Owen smiled at Spider. “That’s a good one. Why did you stop and not say it all?”
Spider looked to Reid for help, not sure if he should admit that he hadn’t been about to use the word poop.
It was Tara who explained. “Spider stopped because he was about to say a bad word and he remembered in time that he shouldn’t say it in front of you.”
Owen’s lips pressed together as he thought about that until suddenly, he giggled. “You almost said shit!”
Spider couldn’t help but laugh and was relieved to hear Tara and Reid laugh with him.
“Sometimes, grownups use bad words with their friends, but I shouldn’t use them because I’m not grown up yet.” He gave Spider a worried look, “But I am your friend?”
“You are! You’re one of my best friends! And because you’re my friend I almost forgot that I shouldn’t use bad words around you.”
Owen nodded happily then turned to Tara. “Frankie’s my friend, too. She forgot and used a bad word yesterday.”
Spider’s heart sank. He wasn’t sure how close Frankie was with Tara and Reid. He’d learned through their conversation last night that she was some kind of teaching assistant who helped Owen when he went to school and that she’d been helping out with non-school stuff, too. He didn’t want to land her in it for saying fuck in front of Owen.
He was relieved when Tara laughed. “Frankie uses bad words a little too much,” she explained to Spider.
“Owen loves Frankie.”
Spider grinned at him. For some reason it made him happy that Owen was so enamored with the feisty cowgirl. It was probably just because it showed how far he’d come. The timid little kid he’d known in LA would have shied away from someone as … as … he didn’t know how to describe Frankie. Well, several words came to mind, she was hot, she was intriguing, she was …
“… if you like?”
“Huh?” He realized that he’d been so caught up in thinking about Frankie that he hadn�
�t heard what Reid was saying.
Reid straightened the collar of his polo shirt and raised an eyebrow at Spider. “I was saying that you could go riding while you’re here if you like?”
“With Frankie?”
The corners of Reid’s lips quirked up. “Well, yes, I’m sure … if you’d like that. We’ve been riding at the Remington Ranch with some other friends of mine. But I’m sure Frankie would be happy to take you out.”
Shit. Spider hadn’t been paying attention and now he’d gone and landed himself in something he didn’t know how to get out of. And he’d obviously alerted Reid to his interest in Frankie. There was nothing wrong with that per se. But he didn’t want Reid getting the wrong idea and trying to fix him up on a date – not that he wouldn’t want to date Frankie. But he was here to see them, to hang out with Reid and Tara and Owen, not to go chasing after the first woman who caught his eye.
Reid winked at him and slid a pancake onto the stack. “I think we’re ready to eat.”
Spider deposited Owen on the stool next to Tara and pulled up another next to him.
“How’s the coffee shop doing?” Tara asked while they ate.
“It’s doing great, thanks. Business is good. The band nights have way more than doubled my income.”
“Who have you left in charge while you’re here?” asked Reid.
Spider smiled. “Daquan’s in charge in the mornings. I asked him if he wanted to run the whole thing, but he was nervous about doing nights.”
Reid nodded. “He’s a wise man.”
“How’s that?” asked Tara.
“Well, I don’t think any one person should ever work all the hours that Spider does,” Reid explained. “He effectively owns and manages two full-time businesses. The coffee shop is a busy place in its own right during the day, serving breakfast and lunch, as it always has. But from what I understand these days, it’s also a full-time bar and music venue in the evenings.”
Spider nodded. “You know how I used to have bands come and play on the weekends sometimes? Well, it kind of snowballed from there. I got the liquor license and the crowd who liked coming to see the bands decided that the place was now their regular hangout and then the bands that they follow started asking if they could play and …” He smiled. “Like your man said, it’s pretty much a full-time gig in the evenings now, too.”
“That’s great.” Tara smiled at him. “So, Daquan’s running the coffee shop and someone else is running it as a bar in the evenings?”
“Yeah. Rocket, a guy Grace and I knew growing up.”
Reid cocked his head to one side. “Someone you … lived with?”
“Yeah.” Spider focused on cutting up his pancake. It dawned on him for the first time that he didn’t even know if Tara knew how he’d grown up. It shouldn’t matter. She wasn’t the kind to judge him. She wouldn’t think less of him. There was no reason to. Growing up in foster care didn’t make him a bad person, or any less of a person. But he’d be damned if it didn’t make him feel that way.
Reid must have sensed his discomfort and moved the conversation along. “I’m sure they’ll both have their work cut out for them. And I hope that you’re planning to stay for a while and get a real break while you’re here?”
Spider looked up again. They’d insisted that he had an open invitation to stay as long as he liked, but he couldn’t see himself stopping for more than a few days. He enjoyed their company and he loved little Owen, but they didn’t need him in their space.
“Of course, if you’d rather be closer to the park, I know a couple of rentals where you could stay.”
“Reid!” Tara slapped his arm. “You can stay here with us, Spider. It’s not that much of a drive to the park from here and …” Her voice trailed off when she noticed the way Reid was smiling at her. “Oh. Sorry. I didn’t realize. I should have guessed. You like your space, too? You’re happy to see us, but you need to be by yourself?”
Spider didn’t want to agree with her. It was kind of her to let him come stay in the first place. He didn’t want to reject her hospitality. Chicks were different about that. They didn’t usually understand.
Reid laughed. “Let’s all remember that not only can we be upfront and honest, but we need to be?”
Spider nodded. He was right. Owen needed everything stated clearly and honestly with no nuance. And so did Reid. The only reason Owen had made so much progress was because he now had a father in Reid who not only understood him but was the same as him. “Okay. I’m so happy to see you guys. I want to spend time with you and hang out with you. I’ve been thinking that this will be a short visit because I don’t want to invade your space too much.” He gave Tara an apologetic smile. “And because I need my own space, too. But if you guys wouldn’t be offended if I stayed somewhere else, then I’d be tempted to stick around for longer. I do need a break and the guys are more than willing to run the coffee shop for me. I’d be crazy not to make the most of the opportunity.”
Tara and Reid both smiled at him. “We’d love for you to stick around.” Tara smiled. “And to be able to see as much or as little of you as suits you.”
Owen turned a syrup covered smile at him. “If you stay in another house, I can come visit you.”
“That’s right, little bud. You can.”
~ ~ ~
Frankie pressed pause on the video she was watching on her laptop and looked up with a smile when Ace popped his head around the kitchen door.
“How’s it going?” he asked.
“Okay, how about you? Are you out on the river this afternoon?”
“Yup. Got myself a whole bunch of floaters.”
Frankie chuckled. “You know you shouldn’t call them that.”
Ace just smirked and headed for the coffee pot. He ran an outfitters operation from the ranch, offering rafting, hunting, horseback riding and some adventure trips. His least favorite offerings were the tame river floats, but they brought in plenty of money from eager tourists. He poured himself a mug and then came to sit at the kitchen table across from her. “What about you? You got anything going today?”
“Not much. Libby’s not coming down so I’m on duty keeping an eye on things.”
“That all?”
“Yeah.”
“How long do you think you’ll stick around for this time?”
Frankie met his gaze and shrugged.
“You know Mav would love it if …” Ace stopped short when Frankie raised her hand.
“Mav doesn’t get a say. And neither do you.”
“Sorry, Shorty.”
Frankie didn’t want to smile, but she couldn’t help it. Ace had been good friends with her older brother Maverick for as long as she could remember. Mav was twelve years older than her and so was Ace. He was just one of a whole group of her brother’s friends who’d hung out together and left town together. Ace had come back, some of the others had, too. Mav had returned but had left again when he and Libby didn’t make it – and that pattern had repeated more times than Frankie cared to count anymore. It seemed like this time he might be gone for good, but Frankie hoped not.
Ace had bought a tract of land from them. Most people would have thought it useless, but Ace had built himself a house up there and lived off grid up in the foothills above the ranch. Frankie was glad he was still around. In theory, she owned half the ranch with Mav, but in her mind, it was and always would be Mav’s place.
“Whatcha thinking?” Ace interrupted her wandering mind.
She shrugged. “That I’m glad you’re here.”
“Why? What’s up? What do you need?”
“I don’t need a thing. I don’t mean like that. I mean I’m glad that you came back. That you live here, and you’re settled here. I don’t think Mav will ever come back now, not to live. And you know what I’m like. I’ll no doubt get a wild hair and take off again soon enough. I’m glad that you manage the place and keep an eye on it.” She smiled at him. “And more than being glad that you’re around
when I’m not here, I’m glad that you’re around now that I am.”
Ace reached over and grasped her shoulder. “Me, too, Shorty. And don’t you go saying that he’ll never come home. He might one day.”
Frankie let out a short humorless laugh. “I think we both know better than that. I think this last time with Libby and him was the last time. Don’t you?”
Ace shrugged. “You know I’m not the best one to ask about how things might work out between a man and a woman.”
“Yeah.” She knew that Ace had some sad history with a woman from years ago, but she didn’t really know what it was. “You should find yourself someone. There are lots of lady preppers these days. I bet you could find one who’d be happy to live up there with you.”
Ace threw back his head and laughed out loud. “I’m not a freaking prepper, Shorty. I just don’t have much time for two-leggeds. I get more than my fill of them running the outdoor adventures. I’m fine with my own company.”
“Sorry.” Frankie knew better than to suggest Ace should find himself a woman. He was a good-looking guy for his age, he’d always been the best-looking one of her brother’s friends, and even now he was nearing fifty he was still an attractive man. Not to her. To her, he was just Ace. Always had been, always would be.
“What about you?”
“What about me?”
Ace raised an eyebrow. “You’re telling me I should I find a woman. What about you finding yourself a man?”
Frankie laughed. “Yeah, right. Who do you suggest? Do you want to be the one who tells Mav that I shacked up with some lonely cowpuncher?”
Ace rolled his eyes. “We both know better than that. We know that you’re better than that. You need to find yourself a good guy.”
“And where do you suggest I might find one of those? Even if I were interested?”
“I dunno. I thought maybe you’d start running into a better class of men now that you’re hanging out with the Davenports.”
“I keep an eye on their little boy, Ace! I don’t hang out drinking cocktails with them!”