On Monday, Joey welcomed Siobhan Knight to her new home. She was a small woman who bore little similarity to her son in appearance, except for a matching pair of pale blue eyes.
Able to walk with the aid of a cane, she seemed surprisingly hale for a woman who had recently suffered a stroke. As far as Joey could tell, Siobhan, or Shiv, as she’d asked to be called, showed no signs of speech aphasia. And judging by the way she took in her new surroundings and complimented Ryder on the good investment he’d made, she was as sharp as a tack.
She was tuckered out from the nearly four-hour drive, though. Joey could tell that right away.
“Ma, would you like to relax a little while, before we sit down to dinner?” Ryder had said after they’d stopped for lunch.
“Just a short nap.” Shiv looked relieved to be given a reprieve from all the newness of her situation and started for her bedroom.
“Let’s see if the room is cool enough for you.” Joey followed closely behind Shiv, trying not to hover. On Sunday, Ryder had installed screens on all the windows and had bought fans. It was getting warmer, and the house had no central air.
Ryder leaned against the hallway wall, watching Joey closely. She hadn’t deluded herself into believing that Saturday’s friendly barbecue solidified her job here. Her sense of Ryder was that he was a pragmatist, and if he didn’t think Joey was right for the job, he’d sack her without a moment’s hesitation.
That was fine. Because despite her ugly history, she was good at her job. So, let him watch and see for himself.
Shiv’s room was in desperate need of window treatments. With the late afternoon sun streaming in, it would be difficult for her to sleep, never mind the privacy factor.
Joey turned to Ryder. “Do you have a dark sheet or a blanket we can use in here as a temporary curtain?”
He pushed off the wall, all six-foot-something of him, and went in search of a makeshift window covering they could use. At least there was a soft breeze.
Joey pulled down Shiv’s covers. “Would you like me shut the window or leave it open?”
“Open is fine, dear.”
Ryder returned with a hammer and nails, and a throw blanket with a picture of a man riding a bucking horse on it that looked a decade old. He reached up and tacked the blanket over the window, throwing the room into shade but not quite darkness. It would have to do for now.
“You two go on and let me get some rest.” Shiv shooed them out of her room.
Ryder shut the door. “Sleep well, Ma.”
He followed Joey into the kitchen, where she wanted to get a start on dinner. A healthy vegetable stir-fry with chicken.
“She looks good, right?”
“Uh-huh.” Joey filled her arms with veggies from the refrigerator. “So far, from what I’ve seen, she’s doing terrific.”
He gave a crisp nod, seemingly reassured.
“But don’t forget to get her that panic button we talked about. Did you look at the websites I sent you?”
“Yep, and I ordered it Friday. It should come in the mail sometime this week.” He stood over her while she sliced bell peppers. She tried not to be affected, but his nearness made her jumpy. “You have a nice time with your kid yesterday?”
“I did.” She and Roni had gone to Glory Junction, a cute ski resort town thirty minutes up the road. “What did you do?”
“Hung out. Took a crack at cleaning up the garage. Did some paperwork.”
“For your trucking company?” She didn’t know a lot about the business or what kind of records it entailed.
“Yeah. I’ve got a bookkeeper, but still…with fourteen drivers I have a lot of cargo to account for.”
Her mouth fell open. “Fourteen drivers? They all work for you?”
“Yeah,” was all he said, leaving her to believe that, unlike her brother, he wasn’t one to brag or try to impress. “What’re you making?” He motioned at her pile of cut veggies.
“A stir-fry. It’ll be good for your mom.”
“I’m gonna see if I can find blinds at the hardware store in Clio. It shouldn’t take more than an hour.” He shut the fridge for her as she carried more ingredients to the counter. “But I’d like to eat dinner with my ma.”
“I’ll wait.” She found a big bowl to store the vegetables and began slicing the chicken breast.
“Do you mind if I measure your windows? They’re the same size as the one in my mother’s bedroom, and I don’t want to disturb her.”
“Go for it.” She remembered too late that she’d hand washed two of her bras and hung them from her dresser to dry. Oh well. If the man got his jollies from wet lingerie, there was no helping him.
By the time she finished preparing the chicken, he was done measuring. She heard him drive away and went outside to call Roni.
Brynn answered. “Hi, Joey. How’s your first day?”
“Good. Thanks for asking.” Why did Brynn have to be so freaking nice? Joey would love to have hated her, but she made it impossible.
“I bet you’re looking for Roni,” Brynn said. “She and Henry just got home. Let me find her for you.”
“Thanks.” Joey leaned against the exterior wall of the house, enjoying the late afternoon sun.
“Hi, Mommy. Guess what?”
“What?” Joey smiled.
“I’m selling wrapping paper to raise money for school. Do you want to buy some?”
“Of course I do.”
“Can you come buy it now?”
“Not tonight, sweet pea. I have to work. But soon. Save me a few rolls, okay?”
“It’s not like that, Mommy. I have to order it, so don’t worry, I won’t run out. I have to go now to have a snack. Love you.”
“Love you, too, baby girl. Talk to you soon.” She clutched the phone to her heart, then went inside, afraid to be away from Shiv for too long.
She might seem strong, but Joey needed to watch for coordination and balance issues, common aftereffects of a stroke. Joey listened outside her door, and when she didn’t hear any movement, quietly cracked the door open for a peek. Shiv was sound asleep.
Joey managed to occupy herself until Ryder got home. He came in, hugging three big bags from the hardware store, including blinds.
“My ma still in bed?”
“Yes, but I’m going to wake her soon. Otherwise, she’ll have trouble sleeping tonight.”
“I’ll start on your room first,” he said.
He spent the next thirty minutes making enough noise to wake the dead. Still, Shiv didn’t rise. It concerned Joey, so she knocked on her door and went inside.
“Shiv,” she whispered. When Ryder’s mom didn’t stir, Joey shook her. “It’s dinnertime. Would you like to wash up first?”
“Oh, okay,” she said in a groggy voice.
“Let me help you.” Joey flicked on the light, then found Shiv’s slippers in her suitcase and brought them over to the bed. “Come up slow.” She didn’t want her to get dizzy, another common aftereffect of a stroke.
She helped Shiv to the bathroom, where she could wash her hands and face and comb her hair.
“Come sit in the kitchen while I start the stir-fry. Ryder’s going to install blinds on your window.”
Shiv seemed less steady than before, but Joey attributed it to her still being half asleep. In the kitchen, she pulled out a chair from the table for her and fired up a fry pan she’d found in the cupboard.
In the background, she heard Ryder’s drill and assumed he’d moved to Shiv’s room. The man didn’t let grass grow under his feet. She supposed he wanted to get everything done before he got on the road.
Joey tried to make conversation, but Shiv didn’t seem interested in talking. Joey worried that Ryder’s mother had taken an instant dislike to her, then told herself not to be ridiculous. It was more likely that Shiv took after her son, who answered most questions with monosyllabic answers.
Ryder came in and gave Shiv a peck on the cheek. “How you feeling?”
“Stop fussing. I’m fine.”
Perhaps that was it. They were babying her too much.
“Dinner is almost done,” Joey said. “I thought for Shiv’s first night, we should eat in the dining room.”
“Sounds good, right, Ma?”
She gave an imperceptible nod. Joey turned down the flame on the stir-fry and set the dining room table. Instead of using the plain white dishes they’d used for Saturday’s barbeque, she chose the dainty blue and white china. They reminded Joey of her late grandmother’s curio cabinet.
Everyone took their places at the table and Joey served the meal. Ryder didn’t waste any time tucking into his food, stopping every once in a while to douse it with more salt. He cleaned his plate and served himself seconds.
Shiv leaned closer to Joey. “It’s very good, dear.”
But Joey noted that Shiv had barely touched her meal and had spent much of dinner pushing the food around on her plate. “Tomorrow, we’ll go over the kind of things you like to eat.”
“I’m not picky.”
It was Shiv’s first day out of rehab, Joey told herself. She just needed time to adjust. New house. New town. And a stranger invading her space. It was a lot of change for anyone to take in all at once.
“You’re not hungry, Ma?”
So, Joey hadn’t been the only one who’d noticed.
“We had such a big lunch,” Shiv said.
Ryder appeared to accept that, putting Joey a little more at ease. Shiv was a tiny woman. She probably didn’t eat much.
“If you two don’t mind, I think I’ll go rest now.” Shiv started to get up, and Ryder quickly came to her side of the table to help her.
Joey followed them to Shiv’s bedroom. “I’ll take it from here,” she told Ryder, and as soon as he left the room, she assisted Shiv with her nightgown.
“I can handle it, dear.”
“Let me just help you to the bathroom.”
Using her cane and Joey’s arm, Shiv made it down the hallway. The day had clearly taken its toll on her. While she’d been stronger earlier, Joey could see she was flagging. Which was not unexpected.
Joey waited for Shiv to wash up and helped her back to her room.
“I’m just next door and a light sleeper,” Joey told her. “If there is anything you need, just bang on the wall. Later this week, I’ll hook you up with a button you can push.”
“You’re very sweet, Joey. Next time I’ll help with the dishes.”
“Don’t you worry about that. That’s my job.” Joey darkened the new blinds Ryder had installed. “They look great, don’t they?”
“My son’s a good boy.” For the first time that day, Shiv smiled. But it didn’t quite reach her pretty blue eyes.
“He’s a very good son,” Joey agreed. But he was far from a boy.
She made sure Shiv was comfortably in bed before she left the room, then made her way to the kitchen to clean up. To her surprise, Ryder was at the sink, loading the dishwasher.
“I’ll take it from here.” She attempted to edge him away, but he wouldn’t budge. It was futile trying to jostle a man who could sit on a 1,500-pound bucking horse for eight seconds, so she grabbed a dish towel. “Fine, I’ll dry the pan.” It was too large for the dishwasher.
“How do you think she’s doing?” He bobbed his head toward his mother’s bedroom.
“Honestly, Ryder, I don’t know her well enough to say. I think today was a lot for her. The drive, the house, me. Was she pretty active before the stroke?”
“So much so that a lot of times I forgot she was sixty-six. She drove—God help us.” He stared up at the ceiling for a beat. “She went out with her friends to restaurants, took exercise classes, was an avid gardener.”
“How was she at lunch? Did she eat?”
“To tell you the truth, I didn’t pay that much attention. I guess I should’ve.”
“I’ll track it. But my guess is that she’s just a bit overwhelmed.”
“Maybe that’s it.” He turned off the water and took the towel from her to dry his hands. “Thanks for dinner. I think I’ll turn in for the night.”
It was only seven. And despite herself, she’d looked forward to spending the evening with him. Why? She didn’t know. The smart thing to do was put as much distance between Ryder Knight and herself as she could. But when had she ever been smart?
* * * *
Ryder crossed the yard to his camper and at the last second took a detour to his truck. It was too early to hibernate, and spending time with Joey was too much temptation. It had taken a fair amount of grit to watch her all afternoon in a pair of jeans without making a move. The woman didn’t have to try to look hot, she freaking embodied it.
Too bad, because she was a hundred percent off-limits.
He got behind the wheel and dashed off a quick text before taking off. A short time later, he walked into the Ponderosa and pulled up a stool at the bar.
“That was fast,” he said.
Lucky waved over the bartender and ordered them each a beer. “I was already here, having dinner, when you texted. Tawny and Katie went home, so you’ll have to give me a lift.”
“No problem.” Ryder had nothing but time. “Good to see you.”
“You, too. I keep meaning to get over to your new place, but there’s always another fire to put out. How’s your mother?”
“Getting by. What’s going on with the dude ranch? I thought you guys were killing it.”
“We are. But you wouldn’t believe how high maintenance the hospitality industry is. We’re coming up on our busiest season, and everybody’s got something to bitch and moan about.” The bartender brought their beers. Lucky took a swig and reflected. “It’s mostly a great life, but there are times when I miss the simplicity of following the circuit.”
Ryder laughed because there was nothing simple about it. Rodeo wasn’t like other professional sports where you signed a contract and got paid whether you won or lost. In rodeo, if you didn’t make it to the eight-second bell, there was no money. End of story. At least on his and Lucky’s level, they’d had sponsors to get them through hard times. But the thing about sponsors was, they liked winners.
“How’s the trucking business going?”
Ryder took a drink. “Can’t complain. I’ve added hay to my cargo list. The money isn’t as good as livestock, but it’s steady. And it doesn’t hurt to diversify.”
Lucky nodded. “Smart.” He swiveled to face Ryder and slapped him on the back. “I’m glad you’re here. It’s a good place…good people who look out for one another. Speaking of, I heard Ethan Daniels’s ex-wife is taking care of your mom.”
Nugget might be a good place, but word traveled fast around here. Too fast for a slow-paced town. Another reason not to play where he lived.
“Yep,” was all he said.
“I heard she’s good…knows her shit.”
“So far, so good. What’s the deal with Daniels?” Ryder found himself mildly curious.
“He’s a top-dog pediatric orthopedic surgeon who’s working on some kind of advanced stem cell study to fix severely broken bones and birth defects. Good guy. Totally down-to-earth. His family used to run their cattle here on the Circle D in the summertime. When his old man died a few years ago, he decided to relocate from Reno. Spent a fortune building the house and the barn.”
“What happened with him and the first missus?”
“Ah, hell, I have no idea. They seem amicable, though. He’s getting hitched to Brynn Barnes next month. She’s a big-shot advertising executive. Does commercials for the Super Bowl.”
“No shit.” It was the first Ryder had heard of it.
“Yeah. She’s done some work for Griffin Parks.” When Ryder stared at him blankly, Lucky said, “The guy who owns Sierra Heights, that big planned community off the highway. You probably know him from the Gas and Go. He owns that too.”
Ryder had been to the Gas and Go many times but wasn’t sure if he’d ever rubbed elbows with the owner.
“We’re thinking about hiring her to help us brand the Cowboy Camp.”
Ryder’s mouth hitched up in a mocking smile. Lucky insisted on calling his operation a “cowboy camp.” Everyone knew it was a freaking dude ranch.
“What does something like that cost?” His trucking company had grown by word of mouth, but it wouldn’t hurt to do some real advertising in ranching and ag magazines. Ryder had actually been thinking about it for some time.
Lucky made the mucho dinero sign with his fingers. “I had a pro do our website, but our message could use a little help.”
Ryder didn’t even have a website. Honestly, he’d been lax about that kind of stuff. Half the time he wrote his contact information on a scrap of paper because he’d run out of business cards and hadn’t bothered to get new ones. Not real professional. It was something he planned to work on during his time off the road. That and getting an office built.
The goal was to eventually dedicate more of his time to dispatching instead of driving. Maybe get a few horses and breed bucking bronc stock while expanding the trucking business.
Paying Daniels’s soon-to-be bride to do the marketing part of it would certainly lighten his load. But he felt an odd sense of loyalty to Joey. He didn’t know whether there was a rivalry between the two women. If there was, for the sake of Joey, he didn’t plan to get in the middle of it. He owed her that much for being willing to work for his mother on a trial basis.
And for the kiss.
The door swished open, and a group of women came in. From the looks of their getups—designer jeans, right-out-of-the-box boots, and straw cowboy hats with stampede strings—they were tourists up from the city.
Lucky waved to them and murmured, “Shit,” under his breath.
“You know ’em?”
“‘Girlfriends Getaway’ at the Cowboy Camp. It’s a cross-promotion with the Lumber Baron. Samantha Breyer’s idea.”
“Who’s Samantha Breyer?”
“She’s the wife of one of the owners of the Lumber Baron and an event planner. We do a lot of stuff together. And this week, we’re doing a package for the ladies. Four nights at the Lumber Baron that includes horseback riding, a roping lesson, a barrel-racing exhibition, and an evening of line dancing at the Cowboy Camp,” Lucky whispered. “Kill me now.”
Ryder chuckled. In the backbar mirror, he watched the women, who’d been seated at a nearby table, throw appreciative glances their way. “Ah, come on, I remember a time when you used to love you some buckle bunnies.”
“I’m married now.” Lucky took a quick glance over his shoulder and cocked his brows. “But you’re not. Bet they’d love to meet a two-time world-champion saddle bronc rider.”
“Oh no, you don’t.” Ryder drained the rest of his beer and contemplated the wisdom of ordering a second. “You want another one?”
“You’re driving, so why the hell not?”
Ryder signaled to the bartender for two more beers.
“Why don’t you go over to their table and introduce yourself?” Lucky grinned in that goading way that made Ryder want to sock him.
“I’m good.” He reached down the bar for a bowl of beer nuts and tossed a few in his mouth. “Didn’t know you were dabbling in the matchmaking arts these days.”
Lucky laughed, then turned sober. “Seriously, you seeing anyone?”
Ryder had never been good at heart-to-hearts. But he felt one coming on and wanted to cut it off at the pass. “I’m seeing lots of women, Rodriguez.”
“You ever hear the saying, never bullshit a bullshitter?” He paused, letting the silence settle over them like a cold blanket. Then, in a low voice, he said, “It’s been five years, Ryder.”
Five of the longest years of Ryder’s life. “You going to tell me it’s time to move on?” He’d always thought that “time to move on” was one of the most callous sentences in the English language. Right next to “get over it.”
“No, not move on,” Lucky said. “But you’ve gotta live your life. Find happiness.”
He was living his life the best he could. As for happiness? It was difficult to remember what that even felt like.
“We drinking, or are you preaching?” Ryder hadn’t come to the Ponderosa to escape Joey only to have to think about Leslie. All he’d wanted was to spend time with an old friend, listen to country music on the jukebox, and drink in relative peace.
Lucky threw his hands up in the air. “Hey, you want to blow your shot at a night with a beautiful woman, that’s up to you.”
If Ryder was looking for a beautiful woman, he would’ve stayed home.