Her Rodeo Cowboy Page 6

  “Guys, I can take care of myself.”

  Sam wagged his head. “It ain’t got a thang in the world ta do with that. My Adela called me while I was back thar gettin’ this ready and I told her you was takin’ it out to Stanley and she said I was not to let you go alone. Under no circumstances were you to head out thar without Luke here drivin’ you.” He dropped his chin. “And if my Adela tells me that, then that’s what I aim ta tell you.”

  Montana would have protested and done exactly what she wanted. However, she glanced over at Luke, who gave her a what-are-you-afraid-of look. What was she afraid of? Nothing. She wasn’t scared of him. She could let him drive her out there and it made no difference to her.

  “Load up then. What are we waiting on?” Taking the soup, she headed toward the door. When she got there, she turned and gave App and Sam warning looks. “But you two better not make anything out of this little trip, other than me letting Luke take me out to Stanley’s.”

  Two sets of bushy brows rose to meet thinning hairlines despite both men trying their hardest to look innocent. She almost laughed, but one glance up at Luke and she scowled instead. The man was simply too good-looking for his own good. Okay, the man was too good-looking for her good. As he held the door open for her and she squeezed past him with the bag of soup, she reminded herself that she wasn’t supposed to be thinking about how good he smelled, how good he looked or how nice he was going along with two old men with matchmaking on their minds.

  “It’s nice of you to take this out to Stanley.” Luke held the door of his truck open for Montana, and just naturally took her elbow to help her up into the seat.

  “It’s the right thing to do.”

  He liked that, he thought, as he closed the door and headed around to his side. He glanced toward the diner’s big window and there stood Sam beside App’s table. Both men were grinning like two kids thinking they were pulling a good one. He chuckled as he got behind the wheel.

  “They think they’re so sneaky. Do you believe the story about Miss Adela calling?” Montana asked.

  Luke started the truck and backed out before he answered. He wanted to get away from prying eyes. He had seen a few other eyes staring out windows, too. From over at the candy store. And he thought he’d seen Esther Mae looking out of Ashby’s Treasures—the ladies’ clothing store that was directly across the street from Sam’s diner. Everyone in town would know about this little trip before they even made it out to Stanley’s.

  “It sounded like something she might say, so it could be true. If not, Sam’s getting pretty creative, isn’t he?”

  She laughed at that. “Oh, yes, he is. So, is Stanley’s place really that hard to find?”

  “Oh, yeah. The man lives down by the river, and you have to drive halfway across Texas as the crow flies to get there.” He grinned at her. “You’ll see. And you’ll be glad you decided not to be scared of me and let me drive you.”

  “I wasn’t scared of you.”

  “Yeah, you were. Are.”

  She shot him a glare that would have stopped a raging bull in its tracks. He challenged her with his expression before turning back to the road. Even ornery, she interested him. He wondered what it was that had her so mad and tense half the time. He aimed to find out, just like he aimed to get her to go out with him. He liked a challenge, and if there was one thing about Montana Brown that was as clear as the blue sky in front of them, it was that she was a challenge.

  He sometimes wondered how his life would be if God hadn’t created him to be as stubborn as he was, and as determined to meet a challenge head-on. Jess and Colt always called him bullheaded, but it was his bullheadedness that had helped them all cope whenever their parents were yelling and screaming at each other back when they were younger. He’d only been ten when the worst fights were going on. When his poor mother was at her wit’s end and just barely coping with the struggles of being married to his alcoholic dad. He’d been old enough to know he needed to get his brothers out of the house. They’d end up out in the neighbor’s big barn, down the dirt road where they lived. Or they’d go fishing in the pond around the corner.

  He’d been fourteen when his parents had finally split. And his mom left him to be in charge of his dad—and his brothers. She’d left him there. Nothing had ever been, or would be, harder than that day. He still had a hard time thinking about it. His brothers did, too, especially Jess.

  “So, how’s it going out at Lacy’s?” he asked a few miles down the road, after the silence had stretched about as long and tight as it could go.

  “Great.”

  He turned onto the first dirt road of many connecting ones, then he gave her a long stare. “That’s it? That’s the extent of our conversation?” She looked at him and her lips lifted into a half grin that did funny things to his insides.

  “I guess ignoring you isn’t going to work, is it?”

  “Or be very nice.”

  She laughed. “No, I guess it wouldn’t be that, either.”

  “It does tend to take a lot of effort to be rude,” he said. She turned slightly in her seat, so that she was facing him. He kept his eyes on the road.

  “This is very true. It can be exhausting when the man can’t take a hint.”

  It was his turn to chuckle. “I’m stubborn that way.”

  “I’ve figured that out. But so am I. I’m just giving in because I need all my energy to compete with Murdock. Poor horse is giving me two hundred percent, so I have to try to give him at least a measly little one hundred. I have enough things stealing energy from my concentration without being rude to you, too.”

  “You’re honest, I’ll give you that.”

  “I’m very honest. Riding the fence hasn’t ever been one of my strong points. At least not usually.”

  “I have you figured to ride it when you don’t have options.” He wasn’t sure where this conversation had come from, but he knew they were hitting close to home on something. Her sudden thoughtfulness made him certain of it. She looked straight ahead, chewing her lip. Something was going on inside that head of hers, and for some reason he was eaten up with wanting to know what it was. He shouldn’t want to, but there was no way of denying the truth. He wanted to know what made Montana Brown tick.

  “You have a lot on your mind?” It was as much a statement as a question. He’d let her take it whichever way she wanted to.

  She blinked and her troubled eyes cleared. “Yes. Doesn’t everyone?”

  “Yes, frankly. But sometimes, it helps to talk about it. Do you need an objective point of view?”

  “Are you always so nosy, Mr. Holden? If so, this may be why you can’t hold a date.”

  “Hey, I hold a date as long as I want.”

  “Yes, you keep reminding me of that unflattering fact about yourself.”

  “I’m not always this nosy,” he growled, choosing to ignore her comments. There was obviously no changing her view on his personal life. They’d reached a fork in the road, with a third dirt road feeding off of one of the forks. It was the third road that he took. From here on, the road would get more rutted. Stanley really needed to get the county to come out and grade the thing. If the river was to suddenly rise, he’d be cut off. That wasn’t good.

  “Why me? Why do you want to poke around in my business?”

  Man, the woman had a way of putting things. “I want to know why you’re always this angry. I want to help. Believe it or not, I know what it’s like to walk around eaten up with anger.”

  “I’m not always like this. And you don’t know how much I wish I wasn’t. But there are just some things in this world a person can’t change. Some folks are just going to disappoint us.”

  “Now, that I know something about.” He wished he didn’t. “Sometimes you just have to learn not to expect too much out of people. Sad but true.”

  Anger crossed her expression, her eyes flashed as she crossed her arms and shook her head. “That’s just a sorry excuse. I want people to expect a lo
t out of me. I want people to know that I’m who I say I am. Others should, too.”

  He could feel her pain. What had caused it? Stanley’s house came into view up ahead, and Luke wished he lived about ten more miles down the road. He gave the only advice he believed in. “Then be that person, but don’t expect it from others. You only control your standards.”

  “Is that what you do? How you live your life?”

  He pulled to a stop in Stanley’s yard. “To a point. I mean, I know that here in Mule Hollow, there are plenty of folks who’d come through for me in a heartbeat. But still, let’s just say, when you’re raised to expect the worst from those who’re supposed to care for you—there is always a part of you that expects the worst from everyone.”

  Looking straight at each other, neither one of them moved. The ebb and flow of a pulsing tension connected them. He felt the connection and knew she did, too.

  She finally gave a nod.

  “I guess that’s one reason I wanted to bring Stanley his soup.”

  The tension eased. “And I guess that’s one reason I wanted to come along. Like you said, it’s the right thing to do.”

  Some of the trouble in her eyes wasted away, replaced with a little sparkle. “You are just full of surprises.”

  He wanted to press for more, but the teasing banter was a good thing. He liked it. “It’s about time I got a little love.”

  She laughed and opened her door. “Oh, don’t get a big head now. I wouldn’t go that far. Not by a long shot.”

  Chapter Eight

  Poor Stanley! When he opened the door, his plump face was pale, his cheeks extra pink and his nose was a bright, rosy red. “I hate to say it, but you look terrible, Stanley.”

  That got Montana a smile despite his ill looks. “I feel tur-rable, too,” he said. “What are y’all doin’ here?”

  She held up the bag of soup. “Didn’t you hear? Sam has hired us out as his new delivery crew. You’re our first client. Between you and me, this character they have drivin’ me is a bit shady. I think I was hired on to keep him from scaring old ladies.”

  Stanley coughed, long and hard, but grinned and nodded as he put a tissue up to his red nose. “He sure looks like a character, all right,” he managed.

  “Cut it out, you two or I’m about to get insulted. I drove all the way out here to rescue you with soup, Stanley. And to keep you from getting lost in the boonies and causing half of the county to come out and search for you, Montana. The phrase is ‘thank you very much.’”

  His drawl was cute, Montana thought as she rolled her eyes and looked at Stanley in the doorway. He was leaning against the door, looking weak. “He’s a big baby, if you didn’t already know that. Just what I don’t like about a man. Always whining.” She was enjoying this, and Luke was being so nice playing along, helping to lift Stanley’s spirits.

  Stanley battled another fit of coughing. “Need ta watch out fer the likes of him. I’d invite y’all in, but you might catch whatever I’ve got that’s kicking my rump.” He frowned, held on to the door frame and wheezed, “And that wouldn’t be good.” He held his hand out for the soup.

  Montana held tightly on to the bag. “Nope, not leaving,” she said breezily, and scooted past him into the house. “I’m going to sit you down somewhere comfortable before you fall down. Then I’m going to warm this up for you.”

  Luke followed her in, despite the look of dismay on Stanley’s lovable face. Set on getting her way on this, she saw the edge of the counter through a doorway and headed that way.

  “But you might get sick,” Stanley protested, padding along behind her in his stocking feet.

  “And we might not.” She stopped in her tracks at the kitchen door—oh, what a mess! The poor man probably hadn’t washed a dish since he started feeling bad. It was apparent. He’d probably barely felt like figuring out what to eat. Turning around, she pointed at Luke.

  “Could you take him into the den and help him get comfortable? I’ll have this heated up in a jiffy. Then I’m going to clean this kitchen while you keep him company as he eats. A little conversation might make you feel better, Stanley.”

  “Aw, y’all don’t have ta go ta all that trouble.”

  “Are you kidding?” Montana grimaced. “I had to play checkers with App this morning. It was horrible. You’ve got to get better so you can go back in there and defend me. He tore me up.”

  “No way,” Stanley grunted.

  “Oh, it’s true,” Luke joined in. “I witnessed it. Montana can ride a horse like greased lightning, but at checkers, believe me, she stinks.”

  “That’s turr-able.” Cough. “Jest turr-able.”

  “Not as terrible as it’s going to be when you play him again and whup him in my defense. Soup and a clean kitchen in trade for a little good ol’-fashioned payback. How’s that sound?”

  “I kin do that,” Stanley agreed, already walking into the den. She could see his recliner and quilt waiting for him. “Sounds like I get the easy end of this deal.” He paused to cough, his shoulders shaking before he trudged forward and made it to the chair.

  Setting the package of soup on the counter, Montana went in search of a clean bowl. This had certainly not been the morning she’d envisioned when she’d headed into town for feed for Murdock. As she waited for the soup to heat in the microwave, she began scrubbing dishes to go in the dishwasher. It was a really good feeling, to know she was doing something good. If she did get sick, it was going to be well worth it.

  She thought of Luke’s teasing and the smile he’d given her just now. Getting sick could definitely have its positives if he brought her some soup. One thing she was realizing about Luke was that he was a giving person. He had work to do, but he’d taken time out and come along with her. It was sweet.

  He was sweet. She paused scrubbing the dish in her hands—Luke had his good side, it was a fact. She sighed…whupped, on that count.

  There was simply no way to deny it.

  Even if she wanted to!

  By the expression on her face, Montana gauged Norma Sue’s mood to be jolly. More like ecstatic. Her smile was practically stretched from ear to ear as she strode into the arena the day after Montana and Luke had gone to see Stanley. Word was out just like she knew it would be.

  People were talking. The matchmakers, that is, and Montana had set herself up for it like a crazy fool. Trailing behind the grinning cattlewoman was Esther Mae. She was beaming brighter than her red hair, and her eyes were twinkling so brightly, with the sheer pleasure of the hunt, that Montana knew she was in trouble. Behind both of them trailed Adela, looking for all the world like a woman who knew a secret.

  She might have messed up. Really. She’d gotten so caught up in trying not to let Luke bother her, she’d taken up the challenge and let Luke drive her out to Stanley’s place. Now she was going to have to pay the consequences.

  Even if there was no truth to what they thought was a blossoming romance, the seed was planted. “Romance, ha!” she muttered to Murdock as she leaned down to pat his neck. “Me and that man would drive each other crazy.” But you didn’t yesterday. You enjoyed helping Stanley with him.

  “What are y’all ladies doing out here?” she asked, ignoring the voice in her head as she loped Murdock over to the fence.

  Esther Mae fanned herself with her hand. “We’ve come to make sure the concession stand is in order for the crowds in two weeks.”

  “We wouldn’t want everyone to get here and not be able to buy a soda and some popcorn.” Norma Sue stuck her hand through the fence and scratched Murdock’s chin.

  “How are you today, dear?” Adela asked, her smile warming Montana, despite knowing she was about to get the third degree.

  “I’m great. We’re coming along better every day. Murdock’s not quite so upset with me lately.”

  “Well, that’s wonderful,” Esther Mae gushed. She wore a pair of bright pink pants and a white shirt with a huge, sparkly pink rose on it. She looked as cheerful a
nd happy as any woman Montana had ever met. “That was such a nice thing you did yesterday, taking soup out to poor Stanley. And Luke was such a gentleman to drive you. That Stanley, he lives too far out in the sticks for a young woman like you to travel there all by herself. I’m glad the fellas were smart enough to send along Luke.”

  “I thought Adela suggested Luke drive me?” Montana watched Adela’s blue eyes widen in surprise.

  “Me?” Adela placed a delicate hand to her cheek. “Well, um, those men must have thought you might listen to my advice. I’ll have to say something to Sam about that.”

  “It’s fine.” Montana chuckled. “He said you’d called—”

  “I did call. And he did tell me what you were doing. I did say that it would be nice if Luke drove you, but that was after Sam said he was going to get Luke to take you.”

  “I didn’t mind,” Montana said. “And Stanley’s place was way out in the boondocks. Oh, my word—if I’d have taken a wrong turn, there’s no telling where I’d be right now.”

  “Ain’t that the truth,” Norma Sue grunted.

  “What about that Luke?” Esther Mae beamed, stepping closer, her eyes wide with enthusiasm. “Y’all had a good time didn’t y’all? He’s such a cutie-patootie!”

  Montana almost choked. “Does he know you call him that?”

  “Why don’t you call him up and tell him? I don’t mind. You could call him a few names yourself while you’re on the phone…sugar pie, honeybunches, sweetheart.”

  “That’s okay, we’ll let it slide this time.”

  “You could go out with the poor ol’ cowboy—”

  “Norma Sue, I am not interested. Honestly, how many women has he been out with this year?” Did they not get that the man took nothing serious about a relationship? A relationship—when she did decide to have one—would be a very serious commitment. A man had to take it seriously, too, and be loyal—obviously something her dad knew nothing about.