Do you plan to have much company?”
Cooper pulled off his cowboy hat and scratched his head. “What do you mean?”
Develyn shoved her sunglasses to the top of her head. “When you get your big, beautiful home built back here, do you plan to entertain much?”
He dragged the point of his boot across the soft dirt. “I don't think so.”
“Hmmm.”
“What's that ‘hmmm’ about?”
“You need people in your life. You can't retire and crawl into a cave.”
He shoved his hat back on. “Perhaps I should enroll in a charm school.”
“Yes, and an Arthur Murray dance course. Some cooking classes at a local college.” Develyn plucked up a three-foot stick from behind a small sagebrush.
Cooper Tallon's gray eyes widened. His jaw dropped.
Develyn grabbed his hand and towed him across the clearing. “You are the only person in Wyoming who is easier to tease than me.”
He laughed and patted her hand. “Good, for a minute there, I felt on the edge of a cliff about to tumble to my death. You have no idea how terrifying such things sound.”
With both hands on the stick, she began to draw a line in the dirt that connected the corner markers of the proposed house. “You don't have to do any of those things. You are quite charming in your own, ol' -cowboy-hard-working-construction-boss gruff way.”
“Thank you, ma'am, for that wonderful compliment. It was a compliment, wasn't it?”
“Of course.”
“Are you drawing out my house?”
She stood and wiped the back of her hand across her cheek. “Yes. I need perspective. I insist that you build your house to entertain guests. You'll need a quality road back here that's accessible year-round by people who might not be used to Wyoming winters.”
“Perhaps Indiana schoolteachers?”
“I am certainly going to check on you from time to time. Someone has to make sure you're eating your vegetables.”
“What?”
“I love it, I love it, I love it. I have someone to tease. I've been the object of so many jokes for these months. Now I have someone to tease.”
He erased part of her dirt line with his boot and drew two slashes. “This is the front door, don't you reckon. Building a good road back here will be the easy part. I've been doing that kind of construction for years.”
Develyn put the line back in the dirt with her stick and pointed eight feet to the left. “The door must be there. It's important for those who drive up to the house to see the front door. Now let me tell you why you need to build a home fit for entertaining. First of all, be optimistic. The Lord might lead you to a wonderful person to share this home with.”
Develyn glanced up to see if Coop was grinning, but his gaze looked distant. “You will want a place that is large and comfortable and doesn't give her cabin fever. Right, Coop? Are you listening to me?”
He nodded.
“Now, here's a second reason for a big place. The charming Mr. Tallon, even if he chooses to remain single, will have company from time to time. This part of the state is so isolated and remote, they will need a place to stay. So plan for overnight guests with plenty of space for everyone. That means nice guest rooms and extra baths. You are planning on having indoor plumbing, right?”
Tallon nodded as if answering a lengthy survey.
She etched out one-foot-by-one-foot squares in the dirt. “It's your terra-cotta tile entry.” She shuffled her feet. “Don't you just love tap dancing on tile? OK, now here's a third reason for the big, spacious home. This home will outlive you. Someday it will belong to someone else. Part of your legacy to them is to provide a home that will be comfortable and useful for others as well. I'm talking more than resale value, although that is a factor. Does that make sense?”
“Yeah,” he murmured.
“So putting those ideas together, I vote–that is, if I had a vote–for you to build a large, spacious home. I know that is a lot of house to clean, but perhaps you could hire someone to come out from Casper once a week and do housework. What do you think?”
He drew his boot toe across the dirt.
“Coop? Did you hear anything I said?”
He took the stick from her hand. “You know, Dev, it's funny. I learned how to keep so busy 24/7 that I never had to think about myself. And I didn't have to ponder about the future. Those words pierced me to the soul.”
“Which words?”
He outlined the living room in the dirt. “Share the rest of my life with someone.”
“I didn't mean for them to disturb you.”
“No, no, I just–this sounds crazy–but I gave up thinking about someone to share my life with so many years ago that it doesn't even enter into my thinking. Kind of sad, isn't it?”
“It does sound rather lonely.”
He began etching odd-shaped circles in the south end of the room. “But when you said that, it dawned on me that maybe you are right.”
“Right that the Lord might have someone for you to share your life with?”
“No. Right about the indoor plumbing.”
“What?”
The wink preceded the smile. “Dev, I'm not the only one easy to tease.”
She slugged his arm.
“I like what you said about the size of the house.” He pointed at his artwork in the dirt. “This is the river-rock fireplace.”
She rubbed her hands and held them out as if warming them by the fire. “I take it I was getting a little too personal?”
“You know what I think, Develyn Worrell?”
“What, Mr. Cooper Tallon?”’
“I believe the Lord brought you to Wyoming this summer to challenge me to open up things that I put on the shelf thirty years ago.”
“Is that good or bad?”
“I'll let you know as soon as I figure it out.”
Develyn tugged the stick out of his hand. “In the meantime–she pointed at the blue sky–you'll want a vaulted ceiling here in the living room. I just can't decide whether hardwood floors and area rugs or wall-to-wall carpeting.”
“Flooring? I have to have flooring?”
“I will ignore that crude attempt at humor. If terra-cotta tile at the doorway catches the mud, then hardwood floors and area rugs might be best. Perhaps you want to stick with a buckskin brown and forest green décor. What do you think?”
He took the stick back and drew two huge squares in front of the outline of the fireplace. “I think we need to sit down in these big leather chairs and write everything down. I won't remember any of this.”
“Do you have pictures of this location?”
“If I can retrieve my camera out of the rocks.”
Develyn balanced on a boulder and peered down between the crevices. “How did your camera wind up way down there?”
“It may have to stay there. I can't believe I got my arm stuck for hours trying to retrieve it. I tell you what, Dev. You promise never to tell another living soul about that, and I'll give you credit for one secret of yours.”
“That's a deal, Mr. Tallon. I'll just have to think about it for awhile to decide which secret to tell you.”
“You got a lot of them?”
She studied his leather-tough face.
“Coop, it seems like my life is crammed with things I could never tell another living soul. I've had Lily to talk to. And that helps. But I know I have to be guarded in what I tell her.”
He lifted a boulder the size of a basketball and splashed it into the creek bed. “Sometimes I think how good it would be to sit back in a big, old leather chair in front of a rock fireplace next to someone who held your trust and your dreams and just blurt it all out–every pain, every failure, every joy, every fear. To know that nothin’ you said would change how they felt about you. Wouldn't that be somethin’?”
Develyn tried to pluck up a boulder but found it too heavy. “It sounds wonderful. But I wonder if people could stay friends knowing that much about each other?”
Cooper laughed. “Now, that's the question, isn't it? And I don't have a clue. Maybe it's not a good thing. But when you've spent a lifetime holdin’ things in, it sounds like a good thing.”
“How are you ever going to get those big boulders moved enough to get your camera?”
He raised one about six inches, than dropped it with a crash. “I didn't reckon this arm was still so sore. There was a day when I could have plucked that up like a grapefruit.”
“Don't hurt yourself more.”
“If my arm weren't so fat, I might be able to reach down there.”
“Cooper Tallon, I punched your arm. I can tell there isn't one ounce of fat. I bruised my knuckles bouncing off your muscles.”
“Either way, I don't aim to get stuck again in front of a purdy lady.”
“Why don't I try to retrieve it?”
“No, it's not your problem.”
“Nonsense. Let me try.” Develyn lowered herself to her knees.
Tallon grabbed her shoulder. “No, Dev, I can't let you do that.”
“What in the world are you talking about? What is this chauvinistic thing where I'm not allowed to do anything for you?”
“It's just the way things are out here.”
Still on her knees, Develyn clutched her arms across her chest. “You know what, Mr. Cowboy Man? I don't believe that.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I'm talking about allowing a woman to dig in the rocks to help a friend. Your great-grandparents came out here and claimed this land, right?”
“Yep.”
“Do you think your great-grandmother ever got on her knees to help Greatgrandpa clear a garden or dig out a stump? Do you think he put her up on an immaculate pedestal and made her stay there?”
“I reckon she'd do whatever needed to be done.”
“OK. There's the real western tradition. The woman worked alongside the man, willing to do whatever it took to get the job done. So when I'm down here grubbing through the rocks to help you, I'm being more like the pioneers than you are.”
“Well, if you're lookin’ to shame me, you succeeded.”
“Good.”
“But there is one difference between you and your greatgrand mother.”
“Besides clothing, hairstyle, and uncalloused hands?”
“Yeah. She was married to the man she dug in the dirt with.”
“Ha. You aren't going to let the lack of a marriage license keep me from doing this, are you?”
He threw up his hands. “It surely will keep us from doingsome things, but digging isn't one of them. You are the most …”
“Stubborn?”
“Persistent woman I've ever met.”
“That's only because you haven't met many women.”
“That's true. OK, I'll swallow my cowboy pride and let you get down there and grub for my camera.”
“Goodie.” Develyn sprawled herself across the hard, cold granite boulder and snaked her arm through the crevices.
“Are you havin' any luck there?”
“It's deeper than it looks, isn't it?”
“I might have to wait until my arm heals up and dig the rock down a little farther.”
Her cheek up against a rock, she glanced up at him. “I've got good news and bad news. My arm fits through the crevices fine, but it's about six inches too short to reach it.”
“Thanks for trying anyway. Let me help you up.”
“Now, now, just wait. You are talking to the most stubborn woman in Indiana and Wyoming, so I'm not giving up.”
“You figure on levitating the camera, or just growin’ a longer arm?”
“What I need is for you to hold onto me and lower me over this boulder so I can reach a little farther.”
“I don't understand.”
“If you lowered me down there a little, I could reach your camera. Grab hold of me.”
“Where?”
“Are you blushing, Mr. Tallon?”
“Pretend you didn't see that. Where do you want me to grab you?”
“My legs.”
“Your legs?”
“Oh, my, looking embarrassed looks good on you. Let's see. Is it acceptable for a cowboy to grab hold of a friend's sock-covered ankles and lower her over this rock?”
“OK. But you make sure I'm doing this right.”
“The only thing you could do wrong is turn loose.”
She felt the viselike grip circle both ankles. “Good. Now lower me down a little.” Develyn's fingertips brushed against the top of the camera. “Just a little more.”
“I can't unless I pick you straight up by your ankles.”
“Then do it.”
“Are you sure?”
“You have more hesitancy than a new student on opening day of class.”
He swung Develyn up and over. “Are you alright?”
“Lower me down, cowboy.” She felt around the rough granite rock, then clutched the cold, silver camera.
“Got it. Up, please.”
“What floor?”
“The penthouse!”
She giggled as she dangled when she heard the roar of a small engine.
“Hey,” a voice shouted. “I don't know what you two are playing, but it looks like fun.”
She cocked her head sideways at the lanky man in a new straw cowboy hat. “Hunter Burke?”
He sauntered toward them, then bent his head down to his waist as if looking upside down. “Mrs. Worrell? I didn't recognize you in that position.” He tipped his hat to Cooper Tallon. “Mr. Worrell, how are you? I didn't mean to be buttin' in on somethin'.”
Tallon lowered Develyn to the dirt.
Develyn struggled to her feet. “Most folks call him Coop.” She put her hand on Cooper's arm, than held up the silver camera. “We had to retrieve this. It had fallen down among the rocks.”
“Yes, ma'am.”
“Did you find you friend Brody?” she quizzed as they walked back up to the house site.
“Yes, he's a hunting partner of mine.” Burke studied the lines in the dirt. “Say, is this your property?”
“Yes, it is,” Cooper said.
“Is that chaparral on the east side of the ridge BLM land?”
“All the way to the highway. Why?”
“My friend…”
“Brody?” she asked.
‘Yeah, good ol’ Brody wants to scout that land so we can hunt it come fall. We hope to be out there a few days, riding four-wheelers all over. So I was thinking of chaining a can of gas to one of the trees over there, you know, for some extra fuel. But it might be a little safer if I chained it over here on your place. We will haul it off in the next few days. We won't drive over here, just keep the gas can, if it's alright.”
“That's fine,” Cooper said.
He tipped his hat and winked. “Thank you both. Now I reckon you can get back to your game.”
He sauntered back up the hillside.
“Hunter,” Develyn called out. “Wait. Say, as long as you are here, can you take a picture of me and Coop up here at the springs?”
“Surely, ma'am.”
She handed him the camera. “We'll pose over by the creek.”
Develyn grabbed Cooper's arm and tugged him toward the narrow stream.
“What's this all about?” he said through clenched teeth.
“Play along with me,” she whispered.
She snuggled close. “Now, honey, smile big for Hunter.”
“Yes, darlin',” he droned.
When the shutter clicked, Develyn retrieved the camera. “Now I need to get a picture of you, Hunter.”
“Oh, no. I never take good pictures.”
“Nonsense. We'll let Cooper take a pic of you and me.”
“No, really, I don't think…”
She shoved the camera at Cooper and grabbed Hunter's arm. “Come on, Hunt, I'll pose with you. Delaney would be livid if I visited with you and didn't bring a picture back.”
“Mrs. Worrell, really, I should be getting back. My pal…”
“Brady?”
“Yeah, Brady is waiting across…”
“Go ahead, dear. Press that big ol’ silver button.”
“I know how to operate the camera. It's mine, remember?”
She squeezed Hunter's arm. “A Father's Day present.”
Develyn and Cooper waited until the sight and sound of Hunter Burke had dissipated.
“Now are you going to tell me what that was all about?”
“Well, Mr. Worrell…”
“Doesn't that deception bother you?”
“A little. But dear Mr. Hunter Burke is deceiving as well.”
‘You mean how he allowed you to change the name of his friend?”
“There isn't any friend. That's why he can't remember his name.”
“Maybe he can't admit he doesn't have a friend. I can relate to that. I take it you wanted a picture of him, and it has nothing to do with Delaney.”
“I'm just suspicious. He keeps showing up where I am. It feels creepy.”
“You have any ideas?”
“No, but I keep thinking about your brother and his pal rustling Quint Burdett's cattle.”
He led her down to the cedars where the horses were tied. “A lot of guys survey new hunting ground before they go out.”
“I know. Still, I feel uneasy.” She studied the sleeping Uncle Henry. “There's one that's not worried about a thing.”
Cooper tightened the cinches on the saddles. “He's having Aunt Jenny dreams, no doubt. Dev, are you sure the deal with Burke isn't just that you don't like some cowboy sniffing around your Delaney?”
“That's a rather graphic way of putting it.”
“Sorry.”
“You might be right. I just don't know what he's after with Dee. I mean, he was hitting on me when he first drove up. But one look with the sunglasses off cured him of that.” She rubbed My Maria's front right leg, and when the mare lifted her hoof, Dev glanced at the frog. “Anyway, I have his picture, just in case. And a nice picture of us.”
“I'm glad to get a picture of you and me out here. I'll frame it and put it over the mantle. ‘My first visitor.’”
“Too bad Hunter didn't snap one of me dangling by my heels from your hands.”
“Yeah, I could've labeled it, ‘Too small, I had to throw this one back, but you should have seen the one that got away.’”
She started to slug his arm but rubbed her knuckles instead.
“Too small? Watch it, cowboy. There are things I don't take teasing about too well.”
“I was talkin' about your weight, of course. You are so light, I could hold you up with one hand.”
Develyn continued checking My Maria's hooves. “Are you sure you were just talking about my weight?”
“What did you think I was talking about?”
She glanced at her arm as if she wore a watch. “My, is it that late? We'd better ride back to town.”
Cooper stepped up in the saddle. “I don't know what's on your mind, but laughing like this feels good. It's what friends ought to do.”
They chatted nonstop during the hour-long ride back to the cabin. When they rode into the yard, Develyn spotted Jackson Hill's Dodge truck parked where her Cherokee had been.
Casey and Jackson perched on the porch bench.
“Where's my Jeep?” Develyn called out.
“Delaney took it. She said she wanted to go for a ride.”
“Where?”
“She didn't say. She just wanted to think some things through.”
“But she doesn't know her way around here.”
“She headed for the highway, Mrs. Worrell,” Jackson called out. “She can't get lost if she stays on the blacktop.”
They dismounted. Cooper took her reins and led My Maria to the pasture.
Develyn marched to the porch. “Did she leave me a note or anything?”
“No, but she told us about the visit to the doctor, how she walked out and all.”
“I suppose she mentioned the two of us getting in a big shouting argument in the middle of the waiting room that left the people shocked and both of us in tears.”
Jackson glanced at Casey and then back at Develyn.
“No, ma'am. She didn't tell us that part.”
“Oh,” Develyn murmured.
“Devy, I like Delaney,” Casey said. “She'll be OK. She just needs some time to think. Some people think best when they are driving.”
“Did you have a nice ride?” Jackson asked.
“Yes, I needed some fresh air.”
“To think?” Casey slipped her hand in Jackson's.
Develyn slapped her hands on her hips. “Yes, but I told her I was riding with Coop. I just wish Delaney had said, ‘Tell Mom I'm driving into Casper. I'll be home in three hours' or something like that.”
Jackson pointed to the clear Wyoming blue sky. “It's a nice day to do some thinking.”
“Are you changing the subject?” Develyn snapped.
“Just lookin' for common ground.”
Develyn plopped down on the edge of the uncovered porch and stretched her feet across the dirt yard.
“Yes, it was a nice ride. We were able to retrieve Coop's digital camera. He had dropped it down between some boulders. While we were there, a guy…Jackson!”
Hill sat straight up and dropped Casey's hand at the sound of her shout. “Yes, ma'am?”
“Do you know a guy named Hunter Burke?”
“No, I don't think so. Is he in rodeo?”
“I don't know, but he claims to know you. He stopped by here the other day and asked if you were around. Then Dee and I ran into him on the road up to the Burdett ranch. He showed up on a four-wheeler out near the springs today.”
“He says he knows me?”
“Says he wants to talk to you.”
“What did he look like?”
“Tall, lanky like you, but not wide in the shoulders. More weak rounded. Of course, he has pathetic white skin. He was… wait...I have picture of him on Coop's digital camera.”
“You took a picture of him? Why?” Casey asked.
“To show Jackson. I'll be right back.”
“Can we hold hands while you are gone?” Jackson asked.
“Yes, of course.”
“Can we smooch too?” Casey called out.
“No, you may not.”
Develyn stared down at the camera. “Now, which is the button I push to preview the pictures?”
“The one in the middle,” Cooper instructed.
“Nothing is happening. I'm a total klutz with technology.”
Cooper took the camera and pressed the silver metal button. “Don't blame yourself. The battery's dead.”
“Have you got another one?”
“No, do you?”
She stared at the ruins of the cabin. “Not anymore. I'll go down to Mrs. Tagley's and get one.”
“It takes two,” he called out.
She marched back to the porch where Jackson and Casey whispered.
“I got to go down to Mrs. Tagley's and get some batteries for the camera.”
“You want to drive my truck?” Jackson offered.
“No, I'll walk. I need some time to…”
“Think things through?” Casey asked.
Develyn stuck out her tongue. “Countess, I just hate it when you are right.”
“Countess?” Jackson questioned.
“It's a long story. Listen, Mr. Hill, I need you to identify this guy. Don't go running off.”
Casey threw her arms around Jackson's neck and clutched him tight. “Don't worry, Dev, I'll make sure he doesn't get away.”
Uncle Henry meandered beside her as Develyn strolled down the dirt driveway. He brayed when she patted his mane. “I know you are missing your Aunt Jenny, honey, but this is different. Delaney is my daughter. She doesn't know her way around Wyoming. I know she needs time to think, but she's had weeks and weeks to consider it. Yes, I know I can be intimidating. I know she always thinks she can't live up to my image of her. I don't make unreasonable demands. I just want her to have the best life possible. I want her to be all that the Lord created her to be. For Pete's sake, Uncle Henry, doesn't she know that I'm on her side?”
The burro paused, and she stopped beside him.
“You know what's scary, Uncle Henry? I just realized that my mother could give that same speech about me. This is crazy. I spend weeks fuming over my mother and then treat my daughter the same way. I have to be different. I'm not really like my mother, am I?”
Uncle Henry brayed, then spun around and trotted back to the cabin.
Develyn watched him run away. I'll take that for a yes. What got into you? I thought you wanted to go for a walk. Did you smell Aunt Jenny?
“Where did your Shetland pony go?”
Develyn turned back to see Leon Morton jog up to her.
That's why Uncle Henry ran away.
“Hello, Leon.” Develyn continued toward the road. “My burro ran off because you were mean to him.”
“No, I wasn't! I saved his life.”
“How do you figure that?”
“There was lightning all around. He could have been fried like when you drop wingless flies on a bug zapper. I saved him by shutting him in the outhouse. Have you ever heard of an outhouse gettin' hit by lightning?”
“No, I don't think I have.”
“See? I saved his life.”
“From the burro's point of view, you locked him in a smelly place where he didn't want to be. I'm sure you can understand his anxiety.”
“Sort of like being locked in a file drawer in the principal's office, I reckon.”
“Someone locked you in a file drawer?”
“No, I did it myself. How was I to know it had a self-locking door?”
“I'll bet you were scared.”
“Not as much as Mrs. Plouver.”
“Why was she scared?”
“She came into the principal's office a couple of hours later and pulled open the drawer.”
“Did you yell at her?”
“No, I just asked her for a sandwich. She screamed and fainted dead away.”
“Yes, well, having students hide in the file cabinet might do that.” Develyn turned east on the main dirt road.
“Where are you going?”
“To Mrs. Tagley's.”
“You goin' to buy yourself an orange Popsicle?”
“Perhaps.”
“Is that the only thing you buy at the store?”
“No, but I do buy a lot of Popsicles, don't I?”
“That's OK. I know the reason.”
“You do?”
“Yeah, you are great with child.”
“What? Why did you say that?”
“Grandma said that she ate lots of Popsicles right before my daddy was born. So she said you were great with child.”
“Do you know what that means, Leon?”
“You're pregnant. You know, you had…”
“That's enough, Leon. I'm not pregnant. I'm way too old.”
“You are? But you can still…”
“Leon, I do not want to talk about this with you.
“Then why do you always buy orange Popsicles?”
“I liked them when I was a little girl and haven't had them since. I love how cold they are.”
“You know what I liked when I was a kid?”
“I'm almost afraid to ask.”
“Bananas.”
“Oh, that's nice.”
“Black bananas.”
“Black? I don't think I've ever seen those.”
“Sure you have. They all turn black sooner or later. Yep, you can just stick a straw in them and suck their guts out.”
Lord, I will never complain about Dougie Baxter again.
She heard an out-of-tune blast from a brass instrument.
“I've got to go. Grandma thinks I'm hidin' under the porch waiting to scare the dog.”
“Oh, dear, poor dog.”
“He's the one who taught me that trick. Good-bye, pony lady.”
“Good-bye, Leon.”
“Hey, you'll get a free Popsicle.”
“Why's that?”
“The old lady that runs the store is dead.”
Develyn grabbed her arms and hugged herself to keep from shaking. “Mrs. Tagley is dead?”
“I went into the store for a package of Lil’ Debbies and couldn't find the old lady. I looked in the back room, and she was sprawled out there on the floor as dead as a goldfish in an ice-cube tray.”
“Oh, my word, did you call the sheriff?”
“Nah, I just took a pack of Lil’ Debbies for free. I figured she won't need the money now.”
“She's still in the back room?”
“I reckon so.”
Develyn's side cramped as she sprinted to the general store. The screen door slammed behind her as she dashed to the back room.
Mrs. Tagley was sprawled face down, next to her sofa.
Lord, no...no...no...no!
She dropped to her knees on the worn carpet. “Mrs. Tagley?” Develyn rubbed the bony shoulder. “Mrs. Tagley? Oh, please say something. You have to be OK. It's your Devy. Talk to me, Mrs. Tagley. Oh, please talk to me.”
With great care she rolled the elderly woman over on her back and pressed her wrist. “Mildred, I need you, so don't you dare die on me.”
There's no pulse. Lord, I can't find a pulse!
Develyn's eyes searched the room as if expecting paramedics to be standing by.
“Calm down, Ms. Worrell. You can do this. Get a hold of yourself.”
That's it! There it is! A pulse. Thank you, Lord!
“Mrs. Tagley, you just keep that heart pumping. I'm going to call for EMTs. They do have EMTs, don't they?”
Develyn sat on the floor with Mrs. Tagley's head in her lap for forty-five minutes until the EMTs and an ambulance arrived.
When they rolled her out through the front of the store, Develyn trailed along. “Can I ride in the ambulance with her?”
“Are you her daughter?”
“No, I'm just a friend and neighbor.”
“Only family in the ambulance.”
“Are you taking here to St. Joseph's in Casper?”
“Yes, but we'll need to contact the family. Do you have some phone numbers?”
“Mrs. Tagley has no family left.”
“Then we will need you to give a report to admissions. Can you bring IDs, Medicare cards, health insurance records?”
“I'll look around and bring what I can.”
On top of a cluttered oak desk, Develyn found Mrs. Tagley's purse. In the second drawer to the right, there was a metal box labeled “Personal Documents.” She grabbed both. On her way to the front door, she plucked the store key off a nail and turned off lights as she went. She jogged back toward the cabin.
My Cherokee...Dee has my Jeep! I'll have to take Jackson's truck, or he can give me a ride. But I need to be here when Delaney gets back. Lord, this is out of control!
With labored breath and aching legs, Develyn slowed to a walk back up the driveway.
Cooper Tallon stood beside the porch talking to Casey and Jackson. He spied her and marched over.
“What happened down there?”
“Mrs. Tagley had a heart attack. They rushed her to the hospital in Casper. I've got her documents and have to go to town.”
“I'll drive you,” he offered.
“No, I'll just…”
“I'm driving you to town, Dev. That's settled.”
She bit her lip and nodded.
“What can we do?” Casey called out.
“Wait right here for Delaney. The moment she pulls in, hop in my Cherokee and drive her to the hospital. I have to talk to her.”
She shoved Mrs. Tagley's purse and metal box into Cooper's hand. “Put these in your truck, honey. I have to run a comb through my hair and put on some lipstick. I'll grab my purse and be right back.”
He stepped in front of her. “Dev, are you doing OK?”
“I'm scared, Coop.”
“About Mrs. Tagley or Delaney?”
“About calling you ‘honey,’ and neither one of us flinched.”