Cathy McDavid - Cowboy for Keeps

Awkward silence followed, until Marina chimed in with “How’s the book coming?”

“Great. I got some nice pictures of a mustang family at the sanctuary yesterday. Conner took me.”

“Conner Durham?” Her mother visibly perked up. She and Hank had met Conner before, during various cookouts and holiday gatherings. “Richard’s friend who was laid off?”

“Yeah. He’s working for the Powells and the Duvalls, splitting his time between the two places, from what he told me.”

“They need a systems analyst?” Hank’s brows furrowed.

“Hardly.” Dallas laughed. “He’s teaching riding classes, supervising trail rides, overseeing the rodeo livestock and managing the mustang sanctuary.”

“Such a shame he lost his job,” her mother commiserated.

“Richard felt terrible. It ended their friendship.”

“Not Richard’s fault the economy tanked,” Hank muttered. “Sometimes management has to make tough decisions.”

“It’s not Conner’s fault, either. But he’s the one out of a job and living in an apartment on Powell Ranch.”

“Apartment?” Marina looked perplexed. “What happened to his house?”

“He still owns it. From what Sage Powell told me, he’s renting it out to cover the mortgage payment, except the monthly rent isn’t enough, and he has to make up the difference.”

“That’s terrible. It’s such a beautiful house.”

Dallas remembered visiting it. Five bedrooms, three bathrooms, game room, three-car garage, a pool and a beautifully landscaped backyard. Living in the apartment must be a huge adjustment for Conner.

“He’ll move back into the house as soon as he finds a new job.”

“Positions like the one he had are few and far between,” Hank said. “And the competition is ruthless these days.”

Inspiration sprang suddenly to Dallas’s mind. “Maybe one of your clients has a job opening.”

“Possibly. Let me make some calls on Monday.”

“That’s really nice of you.”

“When are you seeing him next?”

“Tomorrow. We’re taking a trip into the mountains to view some of Prince’s old stomping grounds.”

“Honey, is that wise?”

“Don’t worry, Mom. We’re taking the wagon, which is much safer than riding horses. I’ll be fine.”

“I don’t know....”

“Trust me. Conner has seen to every precaution.”

Marina marginally relaxed. “There’s a reason I always liked him. Be sure and tell him I said hello. And call me the second you come down off the mountain. I’ll worry.”

Dallas smiled. “I love you, too.”

She was convinced the trip would be uneventful, other than her getting a lot of shots for the book.

Dinner progressed comfortably and was soon over. “Let me help you clean the kitchen, Mom. I can’t stay long. I have an early morning.”

“You sound excited.”

“I am. Great weather, fantastic scenery, fresh air. It’ll be fun.”

“Having Conner for company all day will be fun, too.” Her mother winked, another nonverbal communication that Dallas pretended to miss.

She didn’t like admitting she’d been entertaining the exact same thought.

Chapter Three

“Easy does it, girls.” Conner walked behind the pair of fully harnessed draft horses, the long reins gripped firmly in his hands. Because the team was well broke and used to being hitched to a wagon, he was able to accomplish alone what might normally require two men. “Come on,” he coaxed. “Almost there.”

Molly, the older of the pair, eased into position on the left side of the wagon tongue. Her partner, Dolly, suddenly started veering the wrong way.

“Haw, haw,” Conner hollered, using the command to go left.

Dolly obeyed and promptly changed direction, the chains on her harness rattling like the ghost of Christmas past’s.

Molly watched, head bobbing and tail swishing. When both horses were lined up, Conner called out, “Whoa,” and let up on the reins.

“Need a hand?”

He glanced over his shoulder at the sound of Gavin’s approach. “You can help me hitch them to the wagon.”

While Conner attached the neck yoke to the collars, Gavin hooked the trace chains to the doubletree.

“You seen Ethan this morning?”

“Earlier,” Conner answered. “He called to say he was heading over to the rodeo arena. Clay’s new bull is arriving.”

Like Conner, Gavin’s younger brother worked for their friend Clay. And like Gavin, Ethan had recently added to his family, when his wife, Caitlin, gave birth to a baby girl.

Conner thought about Dallas being pregnant. Just about all of his married friends seemed to be having babies lately.

Except Dallas wasn’t married to Richard, and he and Conner were no longer friends.

Checking the britchens and back straps one last time, he tied the mares to the hitching post. Eager to get started, Dolly pawed the ground with her heavy hoof.

Gavin came around the wagon to Conner’s side, stopping briefly to unlatch and lower the tailgate. “Maybe you should wait for Ethan to get back before you and Dallas leave.”

“What for?”

“He’s the expert and could go with you in case there’s a problem.”

“I know enough about wagons and driving a team to manage.”

“Just a suggestion.” Gavin shrugged. “Or I can take her.”

“I’m taking Dallas.” Conner dropped the ice chest he’d packed into the wagon bed, shoving it beneath the seat. “My job, as I recall.”

“No need to get riled.”

“I’m not.” He tossed the rain ponchos and rope behind the ice chest.

“You’re throwing things around for the heck of it?”

Okay, so maybe he was a little riled at the prospect of Ethan or Gavin replacing him.

“Ask her out,” Gavin said.

That halted Conner in his tracks. “On a date?”

“Yeah, on a date.”

“You can’t be serious.”

Together Conner and Gavin loaded several bales of hay into the rear of the wagon. The extra weight would provide needed balance on the steep hills.

“Why not? You’re both single. You like each other. If you hadn’t let her slip through your fingers when you did, you two might still be together.”

Would they? It was possible. Conner did like her. More than he should. As good of pals as he and Richard were, he’d always been a little jealous of his friend and mad at himself for letting Richard steal her.

“No.” Conner all but barked out the word and wiped his damp brow with the sleeve of his jacket. “Not happening.”

“Because she’s pregnant?” Dallas had told Gavin about her condition and, after checking with his wife and sister-in-law, he’d reluctantly agreed to let her go on the ride into the mountains.

“I don’t care that she’s pregnant.”

“Didn’t think so, because your old girlfriend had a little girl and that didn’t bother you.”

It hadn’t bothered Conner. He’d gotten along well with the child and missed her. More than he did her mother, who’d dumped him when his severance pay ran out and he could no longer afford her expensive tastes.

“Be a big step, getting involved with a woman carrying another man’s baby.” Gavin’s voice was absent of judgment.

Conner paused and rested his arm on the side of the wagon. “It’s not her pregnancy stopping me.”

“Her ex-fiancé? Kind of awkward with him still in the picture.”

“No fooling.”

Gavin scratched behind his ear. “I’d be wondering if she was comparing me to him.”

Conner’s stomach clenched. He hadn’t considered that unpleasant possibility.

“’Course, there would be a certain satisfaction in dating her. Paybacks are hell.”

Conner rarely got mad, but his temper abruptly flared. “If I was to ever go out with Dallas, and I’m not, it wouldn’t be to get back at Richard. She’s too good for that.”