Her Lone Star Cowboy. Debra Clopton

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СКАЧАТЬ going across the ditch for help. What had the cowboy been saying? Sam’s next sentence confirmed her suspicions.

       “Yup, came in right after he’d dropped your truck and trailer off at the clinic. The boy was still wet.”

      Boy. Jess Holden was a man, not a boy—the fact distracted her for a moment. Over six feet tall, arms like iron and strength to carry her easily up the hill, heart-stoppingly blue eyes, square jaw, dark hair curling with the rain. There had been nothing about the handsome cowboy that reminded her of a boy. Jess’s smile flashed across her mind’s eye—okay, so he did have some boyish charm.

       She was grateful to him for what he’d done, but coming in here and talking about it was not good. “What exactly did he say?”

       Adela smiled gently and worry creased her eyes. “He said you were falling into the ditch full of raging water when he first saw you. That you got swept off your feet and towed underwater before he could get to you. Just a few more seconds and he might not have seen you fall in or go under. He was thankful, and so are we, that he’d managed to be there when he was. God’s taking care of you again, my dear.”

       Good deed though it was, Gabi was having a hard time getting past the fact that Jess had been in the diner talking about rescuing her. Was he bragging? He hadn’t really seemed the type.

       What mattered to her was that he’d been telling details she’d rather have kept silent so as not to worry her Gram. There was no call for that. None at all. And it bothered Gabi more than he could possibly know. She’d put her Gram through enough worry over the years and was determined to protect her from any more. That meant not making her worry over Gabi’s frustrations with the cowboy.

       “Yes, Gram, you’re right,” she managed to say, trying to hide her displeasure at Jess, while also being truly grateful for God’s protective hand being on her life. “God has had His hands full looking out for me.”

       It was so true. Gabi’s life had spiraled out of control before she’d given her life to the Lord. The drinking and partying lifestyle she and her fiancé had been living had been an empty one. Even more empty than she’d realized. And then she’d almost had a head-on collision with an oncoming car. She was still so thankful to the nurse who’d shared her personal testimony with Gabi and awakened her to the dead-end path she was taking with her life.

       “I’d have been all right, with or without Jess’s help. Honestly, it wasn’t as desperate as he’s obviously made it sound.”

       Sam looked less than convinced. “Jess said you were in the water b’cause you were on yor way fer help across the pasture. Gabi girl, you might have made it out of the water, but nothing about any of that’s smart. Par-ticularly, traipsing in the middle of the worst electrical storm we’ve had this year.”

       Gabi took a slow, deep breath. “I was fine. I just did what I needed to do.”

       “I can take care of myself, too,” Norma Sue drawled, jumping on the frown wagon with Sam. “But sometimes that means staying inside where it’s safe.”

       The conversation was going downhill. How had it changed from worrying about some kind of crazy, romantic setup from the posse, to them jumping on her about not being careful? “Sooo, how are the plans for the second homecoming rodeo going?” she asked, deciding it was time to change the subject. She’d come home to Mule Hollow to be closer to Gram and to start a new life here. Adjusting to this many people trying to give input into her life would take some getting used to.

       To her relief, Sam headed off to check on the new cook he was training in the kitchen and the ladies launched into a discussion about the second of three rodeos the town was having over the summer. The rodeos were to draw crowds to the small town but also to honor people who’d once lived here. There was a hope that some of them might move back like Gabi had chosen to do.

       She listened and prayed for patience and the ability to make good choices. It was embarrassing to her to review and see what a mess she’d made of her life. It was hard knowing she hadn’t made good choices, but she was determined she was going to do better. Learning to trust herself was going to be hard on so many levels.

       Learning to take advice was going to be even harder.

       But she could do it.

       She would do it.

       God had given her a second chance and she wasn’t about to waste it. She was determined to start making a difference in the world around her. She just had to take a deep breath and stop messing up.

      * * *

       Jess swiped his brow with the back of his hand. There were definitely no storm clouds on the horizon today, like there had been two days earlier when he’d pulled Gabi Newberry from the flood waters.

       “They look good,” he said, gazing from the new bunch of cattle he’d just bought and unloaded, to his older brother. They’d been working cattle in the heat all day and Luke looked as hot and sweaty as he was.

       “Real good,” Luke agreed, a satisfied gleam in his eyes. “With these added to the herd we’re going to look pretty good come next year with calves. The ranch is doing great, Jess. If we get some nice, slow rain soon, we’ll be perfect.”

       “Yeah, would be great.” Jess patted his neck with his bandana.

       “Now you and Colt just need to find someone to love and be loved by and get married.” Though Luke was grinning, Jess knew how serious he was.

       “Never thought I’d see the day, but you surprised us both and bite the bullet,” Jess said and then smiled.

       Luke looked at him, totally contented. “Montana makes me happy—I’m more alive than I ever was before meeting her. I want that for you. I never knew how it felt to have someone love me like she does. I know I sound sappy but it’s true, Jess.”

       “Sap,” Jess grunted and they both laughed, understanding where they’d once been and how far they’d come. He was glad for Luke. The three brothers’ childhoods had been less than perfect and Luke was Jess’s hero.

       Only four years older than Jess when their mother had run off and left them to fend for themselves with their alcoholic father, Luke had taken on a man’s responsibility at the age of fourteen. Jess owed him.

       “You held us together all of our lives. Strong doesn’t hold a candle to you, bro, so you can be as sappy as you want to be.”

       “Seriously, Jess, it’s good to have Montana in my life. But I want this ranch and these cattle to mean as much to you and Colt as it does to me.”

       “We’re in it with you, Luke. But you’ve always worried about us. Been responsible for us. We’re better men because of it. You know that.” No one really understood exactly how Luke had been there for them. No one understood how bad it had been.

       “You know I’d do anything for you,” Jess continued. “But when it comes to marriage, I have to go with my own plans. Luke—it’s time for you to think about yourself now. Me and Colt, we’re doing all right.”

       Luke had had visions of Jess and Colt with lots of kids. The ranch was to be the backdrop for a picture-perfect life he and his brothers hadn’t known as kids. Problem was, Jess had gone along with his vision for years because he didn’t want to tell Luke he had no desire for family, СКАЧАТЬ