Rodeo Romance (Contemporary Western Romance Short) Read online

  Cindy snorted. “Your definition of fun is totally different than my definition of fun, to the point I don’t know how in the hell we became friends.” Cindy smirked.

  “Even though we hope you have a good time, it’s hard work,” Tim broke in with the warning.

  “I don’t have a problem with that,” Trisha assured him and then glanced at Cindy. “Do you?”

  “Hell yeah, I do. I hate hard work, but for you, I’ll suffer. You owe me big time, Trish.” Cindy gave her an ‘and I’ll be collecting’ look. “So, boss, you need me and Trish to round up some doggies or something?” Cindy had changed into her fake-cowgirl twang.

  Trisha witnessed something that totally floored her in the interaction. A man, who actually seemed to be annoyed by Cindy Jenkins, and was not falling all over himself to impress her. Finally, he looked down at his clipboard, a wide smile spreading across his lips.

  “Ah, yeah.” His smile deepened. “You both will be working with my brother, Jake.”

  “And what will we be doing with your brother?” Cindy inquired before taking another bite of food.

  “Jake’s our horseman. He takes care of all the horses on the ranch.” Tim smirked. “You know, things like feeding them, brushing them down, as well as cleaning their stalls.”

  Cindy’s eyes narrowed at him. “You mean shoveling horseshi—”

  “That’s fine,” Trisha cut her off quickly then glanced around. “Is he here?”

  Tim looked down at his watch. “He must be running late.” He looked back up. “If he doesn’t make it before you leave, then you can meet him here at breakfast, six sharp.” He nodded at Trisha, but glared at Cindy before walking away.

  Before Cindy could open her mouth, Trisha grabbed her arm, pulling her away. “Come on, Cin. I need to eat.”

  Collecting a plate, Trisha dished out some mashed potatoes, green beans and a chicken leg. With her stomach growling from the delicious aroma, she headed toward an empty table and sat.

  “I’m not happy about shoveling horseshit, Trisha.”

  “I know.” Trisha sighed. “I’ll do the shoveling or whatever we have to do with it.”

  “And I’ll tell you another thing.” Cindy peered over her own shoulder. “I’m not too happy with the high and mighty cowboy either. Who does he think he is anyway?”

  “Ah, the boss,” Trisha reminded her with a roll of her eyes. “And I think he’s pretty nice.”

  “Well, I don’t.” Cindy took an aggressive bite out of her chicken. “I think he’s an ass.”

  “He’s pretty cute,” Trisha teased with a huge grin.

  Cindy glanced up at her with a glare, before shrugging with a small grin of her own. “So he’s a cute ass, but an ass all the same.”

  “Hello, ladies.” A deep, gravelly voice broke into their conversation.

  Trisha had been laughing and stuffing her face, so she hadn’t noticed the huge cowboy who had walked up to their table. He was in full cowboy gear down to the chaps encasing strong muscled legs.

  “Well, hello.” Cindy wasted no time as she turned on the charm. Trisha tried to respond, but had half a chicken leg in her mouth. All she could manage was a grunt. “Would you like to join us?”

  “I’m Jake McCabe.” He stuck his hand out to Cindy. “My brother tells me you two ladies are my new ranch hands.”

  “We sure are.” Cindy beamed, taking his hand in hers, giving him her prettiest smile. “I’m looking forward to it. I’ve always wanted to see what it was like working on a ranch. I’m Cindy.”

  If Trisha didn’t know Cindy as well as she did, she would have choked on the damn chicken, which seemed to be growing in her mouth. Actually it wasn’t all chicken, but a big piece of gristle, which she realized as the man, who looked like he stepped off the pages of a romance novel, stared at her.

  “You must be Trisha.” His cowboy hat shaded his eyes, but his smile showed straight white teeth. The best Trisha could do was nod, taking the large hand he held out in a firm shake. “Enjoy your dinner and I’ll see you in the morning, unless I see you in the recreation hall later.”

  “Bye now,” Cindy cooed, watching him walk away. “Holy shit, look at that ass in those chaps.”

  Trisha grabbed a napkin spitting out the piece of gristle. “Dammit,” she cursed, slamming the napkin down. “Why do I do the most idiotic things?”

  “What?” Cindy finally pried her eyes off Jake McCabe’s ass long enough to look at Trisha. “I didn’t see you do anything.”

  “That’s just it.” Trisha snorted. “Right before he walked up, I took a big bite of chicken, which had a bigger piece of gristle. I couldn’t say anything for fear of it shooting out of my mouth and injuring the man. He probably thinks I’m a damn mute.”

  Cindy stared at Trisha before she burst out laughing.

  “Glad you find my humiliation hilarious,” Trisha grumbled. “Just once, I would love to see you do something stupid in front of a man, especially a man like that. It would make my day.”

  “Oh, I’ve had my moments.” Cindy was still chuckling.

  “Yeah, well, I haven’t seen it so I don’t believe you.” Trisha narrowed her eyes at her. “All I ever see is them bowing down like slaves ready to do your bidding.”

  “Ah, bullshit.” Cindy snorted then looked thoughtful. “But what an awesome mental image.”

  Trisha pushed her plate away, her appetite vanishing with her embarrassment.

  “He did smile at you,” Cindy added as she stood.

  “Yeah, he probably felt sorry for the mute girl.” Grabbing her plate, Trisha followed her, dumping her uneaten portion in the trash, before placing her plate in a large plastic container with the rest of the dirty dishes.

  “Come on. Let’s go walk around a bit.” Cindy put her arm around Trisha. “And you know if the mute thing works with a man like that, I’d use it.”

  “You would.” Trisha replied with a smirk. Both women laughed, easing Trisha’s discomfort.

  CHAPTER 3

  After exploring some of the ranch, they found an old wooden fence overlooking a small pond. Trisha climbed up with ease and sat down.

  “I hope I don’t get a splinter in my butt.” Cindy moaned and groaned her way into a perched position beside Trisha.

  “You really are a city girl,” Trisha teased with a nudge before looking up at the sky. “It’s beautiful.”

  “Yeah, it is.” Cindy also looked up, but then frowned over at her. “What do you mean ‘city girl?’ Like you’re Annie Oakley or some shit.”

  An eerie howl in the distance filled the silence. They both looked at each other.

  “Let’s pretend we didn’t hear that.” Cindy cautiously looked over her shoulder.

  Trisha also peered around. “It was probably just a neighbor’s dog.”

  They sat in silence enjoying the cool breeze blowing gently. The stars looked so close, as if she could actually reach out and touch one. She loved it. No noise, no commotion and no Doug. At the thought of Doug, Trisha glanced at Cindy who had her head tilted back gazing at the sky.

  “Thank you, Cindy.” Trisha tried to keep any emotion out of her voice and continued before Cindy could say anything. “You warned me about him, but I didn’t listen.”

  Cindy sighed, taking her eyes off the sky to look out over the lake. “He wasn’t good enough for you. Once a man tries to change you, telling you what to wear, where to go and who to hang with, it’s time to move along. You deserve someone who is going to treat you like a princess, make your toes curl with kisses that set you on fire.” Cindy finally looked her way. “Trisha, don’t live your life based on your relationship with the asshole. We’ve all been there. All women have been there. Find the one we think is the one only to find out he’s the wrong one. In your case, it got a little extreme, but that’s because he’s a lunatic. The important thing to remember is you walked. You left, when most women would have been too afraid to do that.”

  “I may pay for it in the long run, bu
t no man…” Trisha stopped because she never told Cindy the breaking point for her.

  “No man what?” Cindy’s eyes narrowed. “Did that son of a bitch hit you?”

  Embarrassed, Trisha looked away. “Only once.” Her voice sounded bitter even to her own ears. “He threatened by raising his hand, but he only actually hit me once.”

  “I swear he’ll pay for that,” Cindy all but growled, her temper matching her red hair. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Because I knew you’d go after him.” Trisha grinned sadly then frowned. “He’s a powerful man, Cindy. I have enough to worry about wondering what he’s going to do to me once I get back because I know the restraining order has been served by now.”

  “He’s just a piece-of-shit bully who owns a few businesses.” Cindy snorted. “I know people who would make him piss himself.”

  Trisha didn’t doubt that, but she didn’t want to pull anyone else into her mess. It was her mess and she was going to take care of it as soon as she got home, at least, that was her plan. “Anyway, thank you for everything.”

  “You’re my girl,” Cindy replied, her tone more serious than ever. “Don’t thank me. It’s what friends do.”

  Before Trisha could respond, another howl filled the air, this time sounding closer.

  “Hey, you two.” A voice came from behind them mixing with the howl.

  Both Cindy and Trisha jumped off the fence screaming frantically. Trisha turned to see Jeb screaming right along with them.

  “Oh, my God!” Cindy grabbed her chest. “You gave me a heart attack.”

  Jeb was also holding his chest which worried Trisha. “Jeb, are you okay?”

  “Lord Almighty.” He leaned against the fence, but nodded.

  Trisha couldn’t help it. Why it struck her so funny, she didn’t know, but she couldn’t hold the laughter back. Clutching her stomach, she bent over, laughing uncontrollably. Maybe she was finally losing it.

  “What happened?” a male shout echoed in the night as Jake ran down the slope toward them with Tim limping quickly behind him.

  “We heard screaming.” Tim stopped by Jeb, who was still holding his chest, leaning against the fence. “Jeb? Are you okay?”

  “Hell no, I ain’t okay,” Jeb wheezed out. “They scared the spit out of me.”

  When Trisha saw Jake and Tim, she managed to get her laughter under control, but Jeb’s statement sent her back over the edge with laughter.

  “Why did you scream?” Jeb looked first at Cindy then Trisha.

  “I’m sorry, Jeb.” Trisha tried to wipe the grin from her face. “We kept hearing something howl and then heard it again as soon as you spoke behind us.”

  “Yeah, and you scared more than spit out of me,” Cindy griped then screamed when the howling started again.

  “Is that what you heard?” Tim grinned, glancing at Jake.

  “Yeah.” Cindy was practically climbing up Trisha. “What the hell is that?”

  “Sounds like a coyote,” Jake replied, cocking his head as if to listen closer. “But could be a wolf looking for his pack.”

  “Coyotes? Wolves?” Cindy headed toward the fence and began climbing. “I can almost smell that ocean breeze, Trish. I sure wouldn’t be heartbroken if you changed your mind. Please change your mind.”

  Trisha shook her head as she watched all three men rush to help Cindy over the fence. Within five seconds, Trisha was up and over before they even had Cindy on the ground, which she was sure Cindy was prolonging on purpose.

  “You should have waited. I would have helped you.” Jake frowned down at her.

  Without his hat on, Trisha noticed he was even more handsome. His hair was black as midnight with enough waves to make a woman want to run her hands through it. Ah, okay, where in the hell did that thought come from? “I’m fine, but thanks,” she replied, not knowing what to say especially after her thoughts of wanting to run her hands through his hair.

  “You could have hurt yourself.” He was looking at her oddly.

  “I’m fine. Really.” Uncomfortable by his intense gaze, it was as if he could see things she didn’t want him to see.

  He nodded as he finally released her from his stare. “Come on, Jeb.” Jake clapped him on the back. “You look like you could use a beer.”

  “You buyin?” Jeb walked beside Jake who towered over the old man.

  “Yep.” Jake’s deep laugh rumbled through the darkness.

  “Then I could use two,” Jeb grumbled as they made their way up the hill.

  “Ouch!” Trisha rubbed the back of her head where Cindy smacked her. “What the hell are you doing?”

  “Mosquito,” Cindy said to Tim, who was eyeing them oddly.

  One eyebrow rose, but he nodded. “You two coming up to the recreation center?”

  “Sure,” Cindy replied.

  “Was it a big one?” Trisha felt the back of her head.

  “What?” Cindy took her eyes off Tim, looking back at Trisha.

  “The mosquito.” Trisha hated bugs with a passion. “Was it big?”

  Cindy rolled her eyes. “There wasn’t a mosquito.”

  “Then why the hell did you hit me?”

  Cindy looked to make sure Jake, Jeb and Tim were out of hearing range. “What were we just talking about? Huh?” Cindy sighed when Trisha just continued to glare at her. “Wanting someone to curl your toes with kisses that set you on fire.”

  “Yeah, okay.” Trisha sounded as confused as she looked. “And that’s why you hit me?”

  “Ah, hello.” Cindy knocked on Trisha’s forehead with her knuckle.

  “I swear if you hit me in the head one more time, I’m going to kick your ass.” Trisha backed away. “What in the hell is wrong with you?”

  “Why didn’t you let him help you over the fence?” Cindy pointed at the fence before putting her hand on her hip.

  “Ah, because they were all helping you,” Trisha shot back. “Anyway, I can climb a damn fence without a man’s help, Cindy.”

  “But men like to help women, Trisha. It makes them feel, I don’t know, like men. A real man wants to take care of a lady.”

  “So what you’re saying is the next time, even though I can climb the damn fence, don’t.” Trisha sighed.

  “Exactly.” Cindy snapped her fingers. “Be helpless.”

  Trisha shook her head. “I don’t think I can do that.”

  “Sure you can.” Cindy nodded her head as Trisha shook hers. “I’ll help you.”

  Trisha just stared then spun, walking away. “God, help me.”

  “I heard that,” Cindy called out after her.

  “I’m not here for a man,” Trisha mumbled, her mood turning sour.

  “Heard that too and you’re wrong.” Cindy huffed behind her. “I bet my new Gucci purse you’ll be riding a cowboy and saving a horse before this trip is over.”

  Trisha slapped her hands over her ears as Cindy laughed at her own humor.

  CHAPTER 4

  Heading toward the recreational building and about to enter, Trisha suddenly developed cold feet. “I think I’ll go on back to the cabin.” She stopped right at the door. “Six comes really early.”

  “Don’t think so.” Cindy grabbed her arm, shoving her inside. “Hey, they have a pool table.”

  “How could I miss it?” Trisha pushed the hair out of her eyes. “You practically threw me on top of it.”

  “Oh, I did not. You need to relax and loosen up, Trishy.” Cindy smirked at the dirty look Trisha threw her way. “Want a beer?”

  “I’ll take a water.”

  “Beer.”

  “Cindy,” Trisha warned.

  “Okay. Okay.” Cindy sighed. “Water it is.”

  Feeling like an idiot just standing there, Trisha spotted Jeb so headed his way. “Hey, Jeb.” She sat down at the table next to him. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine now.” Jeb held up his beer with a big grin.

  Laughing, Trisha looked around. Jake was sitting wit
h his brother talking. A few men were playing cards, while others just stood around drinking beer. “How long have you been here, Jeb?”

  Jeb thought for a minute. “I’ve been here going on thirty years or so. Me and the boys’ father, John McCabe, were good friends. He was one hell of a man.”

  “I’m sure he was,” she replied, looking around. “This place is wonderful.”

  “It hasn’t always been this way.” Jeb shook his head rubbing his chin. “John wouldn’t be happy with the way things are going. He never would have let people like you and your friend, who we call greenhorns, work the place. No offense.”

  “None taken.” Trisha grinned, liking the old man even more. “Then why do they let greenhorns like me in?”

  “Why does anyone do anything these days?” Jeb spat in disgust. “Money.”

  Trisha nodded as if she knew what he meant, but she really didn’t and hoped he continued. She didn’t want to pry.

  “Ranching isn’t like it used to be. It’s a hard life and not in as much demand as it once was. As you know, people will pay a good price to live the life of a cowboy, but they usually run home after their time is up here, thankful they ain’t one of us.”

  Trisha looked over at Jake and Tim. “What happened to his leg?” She hoped she wasn’t overstepping the small friendship she seemed to be forming with the old cowboy.

  It took a minute for him to answer as he sat deep in thought. “Tim was practicing for a rodeo we have here once a year to raise money.” Jeb shook his head. “The bull he was riding decided that throwing him off wasn’t enough. Meanest damn bull I ever saw. He stomped on Tim’s leg like he was tap dancing. Broke his leg in five different places. Doctors swore he’d never walk again, but they don’t know Tim McCabe. He’s stubborn as they come and so is his brother.”

  “Maybe there’s a safer way to raise money instead of jumping on bulls, especially if you don’t know what you’re doing.” Trisha’s eyes met Jake’s creating a tingling heat. Confused by the sudden feeling, she looked away.

  “Those two have been in the rodeo scene since they were in diapers.” He looked at her with wide eyes. “But I guess you don’t follow the rodeo circuit.”