Читать книгу A Maverick's Heart - Roz Fox Denny - Страница 11
ОглавлениеLila stopped at the school and helped her son unload his bike and chain it up. “You have your cell phone? I put it on the charger for you.”
Rory opened a small pocket on his backpack and let her see the phone.
“Okay, have a good day. I’ll see you at Memaw’s café shortly after three.”
He closed his pack and dashed up the walkway to catch up to another boy about his height. Lila watched the two horse around then go inside with a gaggle of kids. She waved to a mom pulling into the drop-off circle.
Climbing back into her vehicle, Lila spent a moment missing the kindergarten days when Rory’d wanted a hug and kiss before he skipped into class. They’d gone from that to her giving a quick brush of a stubborn lock of his hair, to a wave, to now nothing but him scurrying away without glancing back. Those milestones signified the passing of time as nothing else could. So many things around her changed, yet she seemed stuck.
On the drive back to the B and B her mind drifted. She’d been a single mom longer than she and Kevin had shared parenting. She wasn’t sure why she thought of that now. Other than Seth Maxwell joking this morning about them having a torrid affair.
Lila felt her face heat again. Not only would she not class the sex she’d shared with her husband as torrid, in the five years since his death she hadn’t dated.
Thinking back over her marriage, she tried to be honest. She’d been totally green about sex when she’d married at age eighteen. To Kevin, a farm kid, it was a perfunctory part of life. Yes, they’d dated for four years prior to getting married, but dating in Snowy Owl Crossing consisted of sitting together at ball games. Or meeting at the gym for a school dance where, mostly, they stood around. Maybe they held hands at potlucks. That was pretty much it, because kids worked hard in their family businesses. No one had time to hang out idly.
That didn’t mean she never had fanciful dreams. Sometimes Kev had fallen asleep, leaving her hot and wanting—wanting to share passionate love with him. But it never happened.
When she arrived back at the ranch that claimed so much of her time and energy, she spared a second to wonder if she’d ever share intimacy with a man sure of himself in the bedroom. Not only sure of himself but caring of her needs, as well.
She parked and went in to clean the now-empty rooms and ready them for the folks scheduled to check in at eleven.
Collecting a stack of clean sheets, she recalled how Seth Maxwell claimed he’d never had a torrid affair. She puzzled over whether she thought that was a lie. Thirty-two, handsome as sin and a world traveler, his saintly declaration didn’t fit.
Well, he hadn’t claimed to be a saint. And there was a whole lot of space between celibacy and indulging in a torrid affair. But look how fast she’d chastised him for the mere suggestion. Mostly out of habit. Because in a small town rife with gossip she worried about other people’s opinion of her. Her best friends pointed out that she cared too much how others judged her. Maybe Seth saw that, too, and had elected to tease her.
But why would he? The sum total of their association had been brief. She stored that thought and called herself silly for presuming to even picture him settling here, let alone the two of them becoming more than passing acquaintances.
Blanking her mind, she hurried on to strip beds and start laundry.
* * *
IT WAS 4:00 P.M. when Seth walked into the Snowy Owl Café. It’d been a long round-trip to the Billings Logan International Airport. None of the three guys he’d driven there had been booked on the same flights. For his job, he spent a lot of time sitting in airports, so it hadn’t been any big deal for him to wait to be sure none of their flights got canceled, even though they said there was no reason for him to hang around.
The fact was, he had spent too much of his life booked on Podunk airlines prone to delays and cancellations. He’d forgotten how dependable American carriers were. Dependable schedules, plus nice food courts and gift shops that sold snacks, books, magazines and other stuff in short supply in many foreign airports where he’d twiddled his thumbs. But with all Billings Logan airport offered in the way of food, none of the guys had been hungry after Lila’s great breakfast. So here Seth was, well after lunch, and famished as a bear fresh out of hibernation. And there was nary a free seat to be had in the café. He’d never seen the place this full.
Aha! He spotted Zeke and Myra sitting at a table with four burly men—other ranchers, if their faded jeans, plaid shirts and cowboy boots were anything to go by. Cowboy hats hung on the backs of their chairs.
Seth smiled to himself. Cowboy boots was something he’d bought at the airport gift shop. And a hat. The three guys had kidded him, but if he planned to live in the ranch community for a while, he wanted to fit in. The black boots made from buttery leather with a few turquoise cutouts had called to him. Surprisingly they were comfortable. He wondered if Zeke would notice he wasn’t wearing his sneakers.
Actually he saw that his brother and new wife were deep in conversation with the folks at their table and four other guys seated at an adjacent one. He wouldn’t barge in.
This must be the cattlemen’s meeting Zeke had mentioned. Maybe he should just leave and go to Cody’s Bar. They served burgers and fries.
He backed toward the entrance, hearing the ding, ding of a bell and a woman yelling, “Order up!” That was when he first noticed Lila taking an order on the far side of the room. She ripped a page from her pad and wove between the tables, headed for the pass-through, where two plates sat beneath a warming light. For a moment she looked straight at Seth, did a double take, stopped and changed course in his direction.
“I only have a minute. Are you here for a meal or to ask me something about the B and B?”
“I stopped to eat, but there’s no seating.” He jerked a thumb toward the exit. “I figured I’d run down the street to Cody’s.”
“If you don’t mind sharing a small booth with Rory, he’s doing homework over in yonder corner.” She stabbed her pencil for emphasis.
“Do you think he’ll be okay sharing with me? Never mind, I’ll go ask him. You have hungry customers.”
“Right. And another order to hand in. Mom has a high school student who helps out serving at these big meetings, but she called in sick. It’s been crazy.” As if to underscore that, Doreen Mercer slapped the bell twice. Orders were waiting.
Lila puffed out a breath and sped off.
Seth made his way to the back booth. His brother looked up and raised a hand in recognition then swiveled in his seat, seeming to check for an empty chair.
Seth shook his head, pointed toward the back and Zeke nodded.
On reaching Rory’s booth, Seth said, “Hi, sport. I stopped by to eat, but the place is full up. Your mom suggested maybe I could sit with you.”
The boy stopped toying with the fork stuck in a Cobb salad. “Sure.” He sat straighter. “Hey, if you want, you can have my dinner. I haven’t licked the fork or anything.”
Smiling, Seth slid onto the bench seat across from Rory, venturing a guess that the kid disliked lettuce. From the size of the mound left in his bowl, Seth judged the whole of it remained untouched. “It looks good,” Seth said. “I may order the same thing. You know, you’ll need all of that protein if you’re going to play ball.”
“Really?” Rory dug his fork under the egg and slices of ham, but kept scowling. “I don’t like vegetables, but Mom says I gotta eat ’em.”
“You should listen to her. Veggies build strong joints, which you need to swing a bat hard enough to hit a home run.”
The kid appeared to still be mulling that over when his mother rushed up, order pad in hand. “Seth, do you need a menu?” She happened to glance down at her son’s bowl. “Rory Jenkins, you’ve hardly taken a bite. Tonight’s dessert is your favorite chocolate pudding. But if you don’t make a substantial dent in your dinner, you aren’t getting sweets. Sorry, Seth.” A short sigh escaped her. “What can I bring you?”
“I told Rory that salad looks good. I’ll have one, too. And coffee, black.”
Lila stood a moment with her pencil poised over her pad. “Uh, I’ll go turn in your order.” She gestured toward the kitchen, still not moving, as if she expected him to change his mind.
He flashed a smile. “Great. I’m starved. It’ll be a race to the finish to see if Rory beats me to that chocolate pudding.”
“You are so full of it,” Lila murmured, bending nearer to Seth so only he heard before she whisked away, stopping at a table where four ranchers hailed her.
Satisfaction rippled through Seth when the boy pulled his bowl close to his chest and said, “I’m starting now. I bet I can beat you.”
“Hmm, okay, but chew it well so you don’t choke.”
Seth watched the egg disappear, followed by the cheese. And for perhaps the first time he wondered what he’d be like as a dad. His own father had encouraged and guided him and Zeke, patiently answering scores of sometimes dumb questions. He’d taught them by example, too. Seth couldn’t recall a time he’d ever heard his father raise his voice to his boys or their mother, or to anyone at their games as some dads were prone to do. He’d want to be a husband and dad like that.
Stuck on the subject of family, he realized he was almost at the age now that his folks were when they’d had him and his brother. Now that Zeke was married, Seth wondered how long they’d wait to have a kid. Maybe not long. So he’d be an uncle.
Maybe it was time to find his life partner. But, as he’d told Zeke before coming to visit, with his nomadic life the few women he’d found interesting didn’t consider him a good long-term prospect.
He couldn’t blame them. Sooner or later he always succumbed to the lure of a possible mother lode. It was his career, after all. So was it surprising some women accused him of being more passionate about chasing new gems than he was about them? Spending a minute examining past relationships, he gave an inward wince.
What did that say about him? What would Lila Jenkins think?
He cracked the knuckles on his left hand. It was a restless habit.
Rory paused in his eating. “My teacher says not to do that...crack your knuckles. It’ll make ’em fat so they won’t bend when you get older.” The boy’s forehead wrinkled. “But you’re old and your fingers still bend.”
“Hey, I’m not that old.” Seth laughed, but flexed his fingers several times.
“That’s a cool ring,” Rory noted. “Is it a snake?”
Seth spread his right hand open on the table. “Yes, I had a silversmith in Italy make it. The snake’s eyes are chips from emeralds I found in Thailand.”
“Huh. Me ’n Kemper found a snake in his mom’s garden once. He had yellow eyes.”
Seth shrugged. “I guess I could have had his eyes made from citrine—that’s a yellow stone. But I was stoked from finding a nice cache of emeralds that I sold at the Vicenza gem fair.”
For a second the boy’s expression went totally blank, then he picked up his fork and began eating again.
Obviously emeralds didn’t impress the kid. Seth had encountered that dismissive look before in some adults who learned what he did. Usually not from women who wanted him to give them expensive jewelry. Perhaps that’s what he hoped to find in a woman—someone genuinely interested in him, not the gems he unearthed.
Seth saw Lila on her way toward him, juggling what were most probably his empty mug and two coffeepots. As she made her way between tables, she paused to refill cups, including for the table of ranchers who’d waylaid her after she’d taken his order. She had a ready smile that Seth liked. In fact, he found a lot about her to like—very attractive, hardworking, patient, a good mom.
Finally reaching their booth, she set the mug in front of him. “You didn’t specify leaded or unleaded. I brought both.”
“I’ll take regular so I have enough energy to go for a run after I get back to the ranch.”
She poured from the pot with the brown top. “Do you run every evening?”
“When I can.” He caught her studying his torso. “I’m blessed with good genes. But much of my work requires climbing mountains, which demands that I stay in good shape.”
“I know you’re a gem hunter. I saw Myra’s wedding band. She told us you found the stones, had them cut and set with diamonds. The colored stones are pretty. Blue at times. Purple at others.”
“Tanzanite. They’re only found in Tanzania and are becoming quite rare.”
“Do they just lie around on the ground?” Lila shifted the coffeepots.
Seth laughed. “Most quality gems are dug out of pockets in mountainsides. Rough-cut stones look very different from the finished product you see set in rings or necklaces.”
“Oh.” The bell announcing an order up dinged a couple of times, causing Lila to turn her head. “Your salad’s ready. Would you like a roll and butter with that?”
“No, thanks. I’m probably going to lose the race to Rory. He’s been shoveling his in while we’ve been talking.”
Lila shifted her gaze to her son’s side of the table and her eyebrows rose in surprise. “He is. Shocking. It’s always a battle to get him to eat vegetables, especially green ones. How’d you get him to listen to you?”
Rory answered. “Seth said I need to eat vegetables if I want to hit a home run. And he knows, ’cause don’t you remember me telling you Mr. Zeke said Seth got trophies for playing baseball?”
Lila bobbed her head, but before the conversation advanced further she was called away to replenish coffee at another table. She soon scurried back with Seth’s salad and was off again.
Seth had decided to let Rory win their eating contest if need be—to help his ego, and so that maybe he’d be happier to eat vegetables in the future. But then wondered if letting a kid win was like throwing a game?
Had his folks ever held back and let him or Zeke come out victorious? He didn’t want to think they had. He wanted to think he and his twin had been good enough to win on their own. But he’d definitely ask his dad the next time they spoke. He and Zeke had always had their father as a role model. Who did Rory Jenkins have? It must be hard when a boy only had one parent and she worked two jobs. And Rory seemed as if he understood that his mom was doing her best to make a living.
Rory waved his empty bowl in front of Seth who, himself, was slightly half done.
“I get chocolate pudding before you,” the boy crowed.
“So you do. And well deserved. Your mom’s swamped. Maybe you should take your bowl and show your grandmother. Isn’t she the keeper of the pudding?”
“Yeah.” So saying, he slid out of the booth and headed off with his bowl.
Seth had taken another few bites when Zeke walked up. “We’re going home,” he said. “One of the things that came up during our meeting was that a couple of the larger ranches haven’t finished branding their calves yet. Generally they hire extra help, but it seems with our long, harsh winter, not as many cowboys needing part-time work came this far north.”
“You’re telling me...why? You think I should sign on to brand calves?” Seth’s laugh rolled up from his belly.
Zeke laughed, too. “It’s not that I don’t think you could learn like I did. But late as it is for them to drive their cattle to summer grass pastures, there’s no time to train anyone. I’m telling you this because I volunteered to give them a hand the next few days. Which means a delay in roofing my barn. I didn’t figure you’d be too bent out of shape. This way you’ll get more time to fish. I hear the steelhead are running. Oh, and Lila’s mom will buy your catch.”
Seth blotted his mouth with his napkin. “I’m not sure I’m keen to fish these swift rivers alone. But Gavin brought up something that snagged my interest. He said before coming here he read up on the area, and some articles said gem hunters have found sapphires near here. Have you heard that?”
“Yep. In fact I told Myra if I mentioned it to you, you’d be sure to visit. Then you phoned to say you’d decided to come and our wedding coincided... Frankly the sapphires slipped my mind.” He glanced around the room. “You might want to ask some of the older guys for specifics.”
“Cool. I’m no stranger to going online to ferret out information. And a county courthouse will have the facts on what kind of permits are needed and such.”
“That’d be in Wolf Point. Not hard to find. It’s where Myra and I went for our wedding license. So it sounds as if you’re okay having a few days to yourself?”
“I am.” Looking past Zeke, Seth saw Rory coming back, carrying a bowl of pudding and wearing a big smile.
“In fact, this morning Lila said her horses needed to be ridden more. I may carve out time to go take a look at the hills beyond here now that I know they may yield some nice gems. Say...how long has Lila lived in Snowy Owl Crossing? Maybe she’ll know where sapphires were found. They’re probably in defunct mines.”
Zeke lowered his voice. “Ixnay on asking Lila, dude,” he murmured as Rory approached the booth. “Her husband died in a mining accident.” The last bit he imparted half under his breath since the boy noisily plopped down his bowl and spoon and reclaimed his seat.
As Seth tried to digest what Zeke had said, he crushed the napkin he held. Startled by the information about Lila’s husband, he quickly decided he’d get particulars on sapphires from another source. He wouldn’t want to cause Lila any anxiety.
Myra broke off talking to the couple at another table and signaled Zeke that it was time to go.
“Call or text me after you finish helping your neighbors,” Seth said. “In addition to what I said I may do, I may play catch with my little buddy here after he gets out of school.”
“Really?” Rory stopped licking pudding off his spoon and his eyes widened. “Really?” he repeated, exhibiting more excitement. “I wanted to ask you, but my mom said no. Oh, but I need a bat. And a mitt that fits,” the boy added glumly. “She never has time to shop, ’cause she works so much.”
“Equipment isn’t a huge deal,” Seth told him.
“Gotta take off, bro.” Zeke squeezed his twin’s shoulder. “Cost for new stuff could turn out to be a big deal. Perhaps you should’ve spoken with Rory’s mom first,” he said, a vague warning in his tone. “Pride, you know,” Zeke added.
“I will. Go on, get outta here and let me finish my supper or I won’t have time to order any of that chocolate pudding before they close the café.”
“It was good,” Zeke called back with a grin as he moved off and slipped his arm around his wife.
“Will you talk to my mom? She’s thinking about signing me up to play on Kemper’s Little League team. But she can’t seem to decide. Maybe we can’t afford it.”
Seth registered Rory’s downcast demeanor. The poor kid felt let down a lot. But there could be legitimate reasons his mom held back on signing him up to play ball. “How do you do in school?” Seth asked.
Sitting straighter Rory pulled his spoon out of the pudding and stuck it in again. “In school how?”
“In your classes. How are your grades?”
The kid hiked both skinny shoulders and dolefully eyed Seth, who continued to work on finishing his salad.
“I dunno. Mom’s not happy if I don’t get As on my report card. But Memaw says she got some Bs. Memaw says only Ds and Fs are bad. I never get those.”
“Who’s Memaw?”
“You know... Memaw.” Rory stabbed his finger toward the kitchen just as Lila whipped back to their table carrying the coffeepot.
She gestured with it after topping off Seth’s mug. “In Kentucky where my mother grew up, grandparents were called memaw and papaw. I asked her preference when Rory was born. Here people go by grandma and grandpa. But she chose memaw.”
Seth grinned. “Whatever makes her happy?”
“Right. I don’t know about your mother, but when it comes to guilt trips, mine is the biggest travel agent in the world.”
Tipping his head back, Seth laughed long and loud. “Sorry, that description could fit my mother, too.”
Lila wagged a finger at her son. “Don’t you dare tell Memaw what I said. It’s a joke, honey, okay?” Returning her attention to Seth, she grew serious. “It looks as if you’re finished. Do you want anything else or just your check? We close in half an hour.”
“If that gives me time for chocolate pudding I’ll have some. Otherwise I’m good to go. Oh, but something I wanted to discuss with you before I take off... How would you feel about me playing catch with Rory after school? I used to play a lot. I’ve taught kids in underdeveloped countries. Maybe if you agree, I could give Rory a few batting tips, too.”
Rory’s eyes widened. “I didn’t ask him, Mama. Honestly!”
“No, he didn’t ask. Zeke suggested it. And since my brother is going to help some ranchers and is delaying the roofing, I’ll have some free time.”
Lila fidgeted. “Rory comes here to do his homework after school. But...it is staying lighter longer. If we get home before dark and you’re around, I’m sure he’d love some tips. But I don’t want him bugging you,” she quickly added when her son did two fist pumps and squealed “Yeesss!” with an ear-to-ear grin.
