Navarro sat in the dining area that adjoined the kitchen, where Martha and Jessie were completing the meal. He sipped coffee as he listened and observed, answered a question here and there, and just enjoyed the novelty of being included in this cozy moment in a real home with a good family. When Jessie came to set the table, Navarro asked if she needed any help.
Jessie smiled and shook her head. “But thanks.”
“What work do you do, son?” Gran asked.
“A little of everything and anything. Haven’t tried ranching before. This is new to me. Hard work.”
“Have you handled many problems like ours?” the older woman inquired.
“None, ma’am.”
“But he’ll do fine, Gran,” Jessie vowed. “He’s fast, smart, and good.”
“He must be, or you wouldn’t be here to speak up for him.”
“That’s true,” Jessie murmured, smiling at Navarro.
“Ma, I’m home,” Jedidiah Lane shouted from the front door.
“In here, son,” Martha replied, “with Jessie and her friend.”
Jed entered the room, embraced the girl who ran into his open arms, and said, “Sure glad you’re home safe, Jess.”
“Papa, this is Navarro Jones. He’s the man I’ve chosen to help us.”
Jed walked forward to shake hands with the tall man. “Good to meet you, Navarro. The boys told me how you pitched in and helped today. I’m much obliged. They told me how you took care of my daughter, too. Can’t tell you what that means to me. This girl is my heart and soul.”
Navarro noticed how the man looked at his daughter, eyes filled with love and beaming with pride. A surge of envy shot through him. “Like I told your mother, I don’t know much about ranching and cowpunching, but I’m willing to lend a hand where needed. Until I take on Fletcher.”
Jed glanced at Navarro. He wasn’t what he’d expected in a gunslinger. Navarro seemed too kind and polite to be a hired killer. “I need to wash this dust off before supper. Then we’ll talk. Matt’s coming, Jessie, so set him a plate. I have plenty of news for you.”
“I can’t wait to hear it, Papa. The boys wouldn’t give me a clue.”
“That’s good. No need to work it over twice. I’ll be back shortly.”
Jessie added a sixth place setting to the table. She smiled at Tom as he came down the stairs. “You look handsome tonight, Master Tom.”
“You look beautiful, Jessie,” he replied. “Don’t she, Navarro?”
The desperado shifted from one foot to the other, then nodded. Jessie was wearing a blue cotton dress, and her hair was hanging free down her back. The wavy locks nearly reached her waist. The shorter curls framed her face and softened her bold features. The skirt swayed with her movements and captured his attention. There was no doubt tonight that Jed’s “son” was a lovely woman.
“You act as if you’ve never seen me in a dress, Thomas Lane.”
“Not much. I like your hair down. Ain’t it pretty, Navarro?”
To her frustration, Jessie blushed again. “I always dress when we have company, young man. You stop putting Navarro in the fire with your questions. Besides, it’s, ‘isn’t it pretty,’ not ‘ain’t it pretty.’ Your lessons are sorely lacking. I’ll have you back to work at those books tomorrow.”
“But I have to keep the tally. I’m doing a good job.”
“Yes, you are, but studies are more important.”
Navarro intruded before he thought about it. “He’s needed out there, Jessie, with you being shorthanded. You and I have work to do. Who’ll take his place?”
“Navarro’s right, Jessie,” Tom added, grinning at the man.
“Are you two plotting against me?” she teased.
Tom and Navarro exchanged feigned innocent looks and shook their heads. Tom laughed. Navarro shrugged and grinned.
“I see, two against one. You win this time, but you’ll have to study twice as hard later. Agreed?”
“I promise.”
“You promise what?” Jed asked as he returned.
Tom explained, then told how Navarro had fixed his glasses. Jed praised the gunslinger’s ingenuity, then succumbed to Jessie’s coaxing look. “The boys said you did work hard today, son. You’re hired on until branding is over.”
“Thanks, Pa. I’ll do it good and right. You’ll see.”
Their other guest arrived. Jed introduced the two men. “Navarro Jones, Mathew Cordell. Matt was with me before the war. Then he came back when it was over. He’s been foreman for ten years, but he’s more like one of our family. I couldn’t do without him, so follow his orders as if they were mine.”
As they shook hands, Navarro studied the foreman. Matt was a few inches shorter than he was, and appeared to be in his midthirties. He was what women would call good-looking, with his brown hair and eyes and a neat mustache lining his upper lip. He realized how important this man was; he had heard his name many times from Jessie and the others.
“The boys broke you in hard before you could breathe.”
“They worked me good today,” Navarro responded.
Matt left the two men to walk to Jessie. He looked her over and smiled. “I can relax now; you’re safe.”
“I’ll bet it’s been quiet without me around to stir up things,” she teased, and noticed how Matt’s glowing eyes lingered on her. His gaze was soft and warm like melting chocolate, and she found his spellbound reaction to her flattering.
“Too quiet, Jessie, except where Fletcher’s concerned.”
“What’s been going on?”
“Let’s get seated first,” Jed suggested.
Tom took his regular seat beside his sister. Jed and Martha did the same at the ends of the table. Matt and Navarro sat next to each other opposite Jessie and Tom.
The dishes were passed around and each person filled his plate. No one talked for a time as they prepared to devour the delicious meal of meat, home-canned vegetables, hot biscuits, and coffee.
“The boys told me about Big Ed. Sorry to get that news, Jess. What happened? And how did you meet Navarro?”
Jessie went over the highlights of those incidents. When she finished, with Jed’s and Matt’s eyes wide with fear, she added the news of the cut fence.
Jed’s face flushed with anger. “We’ll get it repaired tomorrow. He did the same on the east fence. We took care of it today. ’Course they rustled some cattle while the fence was down. We saw their tracks. That isn’t the worst part, Jess.”
“What is, Papa?” she asked reluctantly.
“We found Buck dead near the cut fence. That old dog must have sniffed trouble and tried to attack them.”
Sadness and fury filled Jessie. “How cold and cruel can the man be, Papa?”
“While we were out during roundup, somebody sneaked over and killed some of the chickens. They were tied up along the corral posts. You see what we’re up against, Navarro?”
“Seen any faces or horses you recognized?” he inquired.
“Nope. They’re real careful-like. They’re good about luring us away to do their mischief. I took your sister into town. She claimed it was to work with the schoolmarm, but I think she was getting scared after that chicken episode so near to home. It riles me to see them so cocky that they’ll come so close to the house.”
“Fletcher sounds like a determined man to me,” Navarro commented.
“No more than I am, son.” Jed flowed into the rippling story of how he settled this land and how he would never sell out to anyone.
“I can see why, sir. You have something special here.”
“What kind of work have you done before?” Matt asked. Jealousy chewed on him, because he caught an alarming undercurrent between the handsome stranger and his Jessie. He prayed he hadn’t waited too long to let her know his feelings.
“Whatever job is available. No family or a place to call home, so I stay on the move. Nothing to hold me in one area very long. I like seeing new places. Came from Colorado, but spent most of my days north of there. Jessie told me you’re into crossbreeding.” He changed the subject from himself and his past.
“You said you don’t know much about ranching?” Jed hinted.
“Nope, but it sounded interesting.”
“If I can get Fletcher thwarted, I’ll get back to it. Longhorns can take heat, thirst, and hunger; but they’re leaner and tougher and stringier than purebreds. I’ve been mating mine with Durhams, Booths, and Galloways for a few years. As soon as I get more money, I aim to purchase me some Angus and Herefords to blend in. It costs a lot to buy them and have them shipped here.”
“I’ll see what we can do to stop Fletcher from interfering—.”
“First,” Jessie injected, “we have to catch up on chores. I’ll help Gran with the washing, chickens, and milking tomorrow. That north fence needs restringing. It only has our ropes keeping the stock in.”
“I’ll help with it, Jessie, if Matt will show me what to do.”
She smiled at him. “Thanks, Navarro. Then we’ll go to work on Fletcher while the boys handle the branding.”
“What if Tom shows me where Fletcher’s place is on Tuesday? I’ll keep him a safe distance away. That’ll leave all the hands to keep to their chores, and you can help your grandmother. I need to study his layout, men, and schedule before we make any moves. Is that all right with you, sir?”
“Please, Pa, I can do it. I’ll do everything Navarro says. I promise.”
Jed mused for a time. “Tom doesn’t do much riding. If you’ll take care of him, he can go. That’ll keep Jess and the boys busy here.”
As Tom began to rush Navarro with questions about their impending adventure, Jessie told him, “Later, Tom. Let Navarro breathe and eat.” Her brother obeyed, though she saw it was hard for him to do so.
As the meal continued, talk drifted into areas unfamiliar to Navarro. He was as careful as Jessie about concealing their true relationship. If Jed learned what had happened between them on the trail…Then there was Matt. The desperado noticed how the foreman subtly watched Jessie; he looked like a starving man picking up every crumb of talk that she dropped, feeding on each smile and gaze, drinking in every movement. He saw how easily Jessie smiled, laughed, and spoke with Mathew Cordell. They had known each other a long time. Matt would be here after he was forced to leave. Jealousy nipped at him like an angry dog on a stranger’s heels. He listened to every word and observed each person. The longer he sat hearing about people, places, things, and times he didn’t know about, the more restless and nervous he became and the more slowly the evening passed. He was feeling closed in, as he had in prison. He needed fresh air, movement.
Jessie glanced at Navarro every so often, but tried not to stare or to expose her warring emotions. It was hard being this close to him without touching him. If her father even suspected the truth of her behavior, he would order Navarro off his property. She had to give Jed time to get to know her love, time to accept him. And the same was true of Navarro and her family. Yet she sensed the anxiety building within the man across the table from her. She saw how straight and stiff he was in his chair. She saw how he toyed with his fork and how his gaze darted about from person to person. He was panicking.
Impulsively Jessie wriggled off her slipper and slid her bare foot across the floor. When it reached her love’s booted foot, she stroked his leg with her toes. She pretended not to notice when Navarro reacted to her bold action. She brought her foot upward until it rested on his knee. His hand drifted into his lap and his fingers closed over it. Slowly and sensuously Navarro’s thumb caressed the side. When her grandmother suggested they serve the dessert, Jessie hated to cease the action that seemed to relax both of them. She pulled her foot away and eased it into her slipper. “Gran made a special dessert for Navarro.”
The dried-apple pie was warm and tasty. Its odor filled the room. Navarro thanked the older woman, and devoured two pieces.
“More?” Jessie offered.
“Too full. Best meal I’ve had all my life, ma’am.”
“She’s trying to teach me all her secrets, but I’m not a good student.”
“You’re good at everything,” Matt replied with a grin. She looked so beautiful and feminine with her auburn locks flowing freely and her trim body clad in a dress. Her blue eyes laughed each time her lips did, and he hungered to make her kisses his dessert.
“You’re just saying that because you practically raised me, Matthew Cordell.”
“Did a fine job, too.”
Jessie loved Matt as a brother. Tonight he looked extra nice and was most charming. She wondered how different his lovemaking and kisses would be from…She rushed a response. “Thank you, kind sir. Tom, it’s bedtime. You’ve a busy day tomorrow.”
“But I want to talk to Navarro.”
“There’s plenty of time for that, young man. He’ll be here a long time.”
“I hope he gets our trouble settled fast,” Matt said, looking at Navarro.
“I’ll try. I’ll know more after Tom and me do our spying.”
Jed stood, and so did Matt. Navarro followed their lead. As Jessie and Gran cleared the table, Tom mounted the steps.
“Let’s head for the bunkhouse,” Matt suggested to Navarro. “Good night, Jessie.”
“Good night, Matt. See you tomorrow, Navarro,” Jed said. “If you need anything, just tell Matt. We couldn’t run things without him; he’s like my adopted son.”
“You sure it’s all right if I use that sorrel, Mr. Lane?” Navarro asked.
“It’s yours, son. Jessie gave him to you. It’s hardly enough for saving my girl’s life. We’ll talk money tomorrow, if that suits you.”
“Don’t worry. I know you’ll be a fair man. A drifter don’t need much.”
The two men left the house, and Jed went to his room. Jessie tried to get her grandmother to turn in while she did the dishes, but Gran wouldn’t allow it.
From the corner of her eye, Martha watched her granddaughter as she remarked, “Your Navarro is mighty mysterious and restless, Jessie. I hardly learned a thing about him. Real closed-mouthed.”
“He’s a loner, Gran; they’re like that. He spends most of his time on the trail by himself. He doesn’t get much chance to talk or sit in one place long. Don’t poke at him too hard before he gets used to us. It might scare him off.”
“You wouldn’t like that, would you?”
“Like what?” Jessie asked distractedly, her mind having drifted to the bunkhouse as she wondered how Navarro was mingling with the hands.
“Don’t you think you’ve gotten too attached to a stranger too quickly?”
“What do you mean, Gran?” she asked as she stalled for time to think.
“Since when does Jess Lane blush? Or put on a pretty dress? Or wear her hair down? Or fly away on dreamy wings?”
“Stop teasing me, Gran. I do it every time we have company.”
“Navarro isn’t company. He’s a hired gunslinger, a paid worker.”
“He’s more than…that,” she finished hesitantly. “He saved my life, Gran. He’s going to help us defeat our enemy, save our home and lives.”
“What else is he going to do here, child? Steal the boss’s daughter?”
“No.”
“You sound sad about that.”
“Maybe I am. I know it’s impossible.”
“Nothing is impossible for you, Jessica Lane, not when you want it.”
“He is, Gran. The minute his task is done, he’ll leave. I’m sure of it. Just as I’m certain there is nothing I can say or do to keep him here.”
“You hardly know him, child. Is that what you really want?”
“For the first time in my life, Gran, I feel like a real woman. He tugs on me in a new way, and I like it. He makes me think about having my own home and family. Is that so terrible even though I haven’t known him long?”
“No, but I don’t think you should share this news with anyone, Jessie, not your pa, your sister, Tom, or even with Navarro himself. It’s too soon.”
Jessie had always been able to confide in and trust her grandmother. Yet there were things about Navarro that she couldn’t reveal or discuss. Not yet anyway. “I know, Gran. Why tell them about something that will never happen? Don’t worry about me. I’m a grown woman. I’ll be fine. At least it’s gotten me to thinking like I should at my age,” she teased.
“The right man will come along for you one day, like my Thomas did for me.”
“You’re right, Gran. When he does, I’ll know it.” I do know it, Gran, and it’s Navarro, whoever and whatever he is.
Jessie was up early to gather eggs and to release the hens from their noctural protective coop so they could scatter and scratch in freedom until dusk, except of course for those sitting on eggs. She tossed hay to the horses corralled nearby, including her cherished Ben who had been named after her grandfather Thomas Benjamin, as had her brother. She milked three cows that stayed in the pasture close to the barn. Usually she did those chores in the morning and her sister did them in the evening, when Jessie did ranch tasks while Mary Louise did household ones with Gran. The redhead carried two pails of milk to Gran and one to the chuckhouse cook, along with a basket of eggs for the men’s breakfast.
She placed both items on a table. “Morning, Hank. Smells good. I’ll bet the boys’ noses are sniffing the air already.”
As Hank shoved another pan of biscuits into the oven, he responded, “Mornin’, Jessie. The boys will be crawlin’ outta their fleatraps anytime now. I’m ‘bout to clank the ring. Don’t let ’em trample you gettin’ to it.”
Jessie laughed. “I’ve learned to move fast at mealtime, Hank. I’ll be helping Gran with the wash today. Tell the boys to leave their stuff on the bunkhouse porch and we’ll do their laundry. I’m sure they’re too busy to think about clean clothes, and we need them to stick to the branding. Everybody’s chores will be twisted around for a while. If you need extra help, sing out. See you later. Want me to signal the hands as I leave?”
Biscuit Hank finished setting the tables. “Much obliged if you do. I’ll get the milk and the coffee poured, and get these eggs to movin’ in a pan.”
Jessie approached the metal triangle that was suspended from the porch beam. She lifted the rod and clanged it against the three sides rapidly. Men came from beside the chuckhouse where the bathing area was located, hair damp and shirts sprinkled from washed faces and hands. She heard boots clattering on the bunkhouse porch as others hurried after yanking on clothes. She didn’t see Navarro or Matt, and decided Matt must still be inside his private room at one end of the bunkhouse. Or perhaps he and Navarro were preparing to leave for their chore. Jessie waved and spoke to the Box L hands who passed her as she headed across the yard toward her home to enjoy her first meal of the day.
“Jessie, wait up!” a familiar voice called out and halted her.
She turned and smiled at Navarro. “I hope you fared well last night.”
The desperado took in her snug jeans and green shirt that revealed a shapely figure. Her locks were braided, and the waist-grazing plait swung as she moved. The sections of hair she had cut in San Angelo for her disguise curled and framed her face in an enchanting manner. The colors of her fiery hair and rosy-gold complexion made her pale-blue eyes glow. They were large and expressive, and they shone with warmth this morning. He enjoyed just looking at her and being around her, but he wished he could pull her into his arms and kiss her. He cleared his tight throat to speak. “No problems. Most of the boys were turned in when me and Matt got back from supper. He says we’ll ride out to mend that fence after we eat. Will you be all right here today?”
“Fine. I have plenty to do for Gran and the boys. The hands all took to you yesterday. So did Gran and Tom. He told me how kindly you treated him. Thanks, Navarro. You can’t know what that meant to him, and to me.”
“Yep, I do, Jessie, but don’t ask why. He’s a good boy. He just needs…”
“Needs what, Navarro?” she pressed when he fell silent and looked moody.
“Needs to be treated like everybody else. Not different. Not like a cripple in any way. Every time he’s not allowed to do something, or at least try it, he sees more and more he’s not whole. A boy’s spirit can be crushed only so many times, Jessie, before it’s destroyed. Pretty soon he won’t care about trying. I’m glad your father is letting him ride with me, but …”
“Why did you stop again? You can tell me anything, Navarro.”
He glanced at the ground. “Ain’t really my business.”
“If it can help Tom, please go on. It’s between us. I promise.”
Navarro’s haunted childhood provoked him to intrude. “I think your father’s doing it for the wrong reasons. If Tom suspects, it’ll be worse than letting him go.”
“Explain,” she coaxed.
“He didn’t want you and me out alone together, and he can’t spare any of his hands. He’s letting your brother go because Tom’s the one least needed with the chores.”
“I’m sorry to say I agree. You’re very perceptive about people. Thanks for being honest and for trying to help. Anything you can do about Tom will be appreciated. You know, you’re like an armadillo: beneath your hard shell, you’re soft inside,” she murmured, stroking his chest. When he looked disturbed by her touch and her words, she said, “Gran and I are washing today. Toss your clothes on the porch and we’ll get them done for you. Don’t argue,” she teased when he started to protest. “We’re doing it for all the boys while they’re so busy.”
“Navarro, grub’s about gone! Let’s eat and ride,” Matt shouted, wanting to separate Jess and the gunslinger. He’d spent a sleepless night thinking about Navarro’s pull on her.
Jessie smiled and waved to the foreman, who did the same to her. “Good morning, Matt. He’s coming,” she replied. “Sure you want to help?”
“Yep. We’ll get things done, then work on Fletcher, if he lets us.”
The hands returned to their seasonal schedule of breakfast, brand, dinner, short rest, brand, supper, and bed. Matt and Navarro rode northward. Tom kept the tally again. The other men rode range with Jed. Gran and Jessie did chores.
When it was nearing eight o’clock, Jessie built a fire under a kettle outside. While water heated, she gathered the men’s clothes and linens, then sorted them. The redhead was glad there was no wind today to give them trouble with smoke in their eyes. She chipped soap off a homemade bar into the hot water and stirred it until melted, then drew water from the well and filled the rinse tubs, the task requiring more time and work with the pump broken.
Gran joined her. They scrubbed the clothes and linens on ribbed metal boards. The rinsed items were draped over sturdy cords that were strung tightly between posts, lower to the ground than usual because of Gran’s short stature. Each time the water became too dirty or cool to do its job, Jessie fetched and heated more.
The task took the Lane women until three o’clock to complete, seven hours of sweaty toiling over the laundry tubs. Their muscles ached all over, and their hair was mussed, their arms and hands nearly raw. They were both soaked in spots from splashes. But more tasks awaited them. While Martha began the evening meal, Jessie used the soapy water to scrub the house and porch floors, then rinsed them using water from the other tubs. They would dry before dusk in the arid air. The tubs and kettle were dumped and stored. The dying fire was doused. The soap was returned to its place.
Jessie entered the kitchen and sighed wearily, but didn’t complain about the hard labor. “Gran, I’ll fill the water barrel, then get cleaned up while those clothes finish drying. I don’t want you do anything more today than supper. I’ll tend to the chickens and milking, then collect the laundry later.”
Jessie thought the lines of fatigue and age on Martha’s face looked deeper today. Though her grandmother had combed and rewound her white hair into a neat bun at the nape and put on a fresh dress, she could not conceal her exhaustion. Jessie wanted to take over preparing supper, but she knew Martha would not allow it.
Martha kneaded the dough for biscuits with sore hands. “Put some salve on those chafed hands after your bath, child. Is Navarro coming to supper again?”
“It wasn’t mentioned. I don’t know what time he and Matt will get home.”
“Might be best if he sups with the hands. We don’t want the others feeling jealous of a stranger getting favor. If he does come, bring Matt, too. If we make it look like we got business to discuss, the men won’t take any offense.”
Jessie heard the chow bell sing out while she was bathing. The bath felt so wonderful that she wanted to linger in it, but she didn’t have time. She donned a paisley print dress, then brushed her hair. As she did so, she decided to keep it trimmed shorter around her face because it made her look more feminine. When all was straightened in her room and the water closet, she told her grandmother she was going outside to complete her chores, as dusk was near.
“Best hurry. Your pa’s late. When he rides in, he’ll be ready to eat.”
“I won’t dally, Gran,” Jessie responded, merry laughter trailing her words.
As Jessie pulled the first piece of dry laundry from the cord, Matt joined her and asked, “Need a pair of extra hands? I’m sure you’re bone-tired.”
She glanced at the soft-spoken foreman and replied, “If you don’t mind, I can use the help. I’m late with everything today. Papa isn’t back yet, so supper is waiting on the stove. You and Navarro want to join us?”
“Just finished eating. You did good closing that gap with ropes.”
Jessie placed folded pants on his extended arms. “It was Navarro’s idea. How did you two get along?”
“He don’t talk much.”
Jessie laughed and teased, “Then it must have been a mighty quiet day out there.” He was wearing clean clothes and his brown hair was combed. Even his mustache had been trimmed since his return. She looked into his chocolate gaze, and found it warm and searching. “Anything wrong, Matt?”
“How much do you know about this gunslinger?”
Jessie hoped the foreman didn’t notice her startled reaction to his question. “He isn’t a gunslinger, Matt, but he’s as skilled as the best. I don’t know his life history, but he strikes me as a good man. Was there a problem with him?”
“No, but there’s something about him has me worried.”
Jessie stopped her task to meet his troubled gaze. “Like what?”
“He ain’t the kind to hang around a ranch.”
“He’s here because I hired him to do a job. Like lone eagles, even drifters have to light somewhere sometime to rest. Is it something he said or did?”
“No. I can’t grasp it yet.”
“When you do, come to me first, not Papa. I’m the one who chose him and hired him. If there’s a problem, I want to handle it. All right?”
“Sure, Jessie. Just watch him close, will you?”
“Don’t worry, Matt; I will.”
The boss’s daughter and the foreman carried several loads to the bunkhouse for the men to sort and claim. The hands thanked her. Navarro wasn’t there.
Jessie closed the gate to the chicken coop and latched it. Night would engulf the landscape soon. She scanned the horizon for her father’s approach but didn’t sight him. Concern gnawed at her. Jessie halted at the structure where supplies, meats, and home-canned goods were stored for the Lanes and their men.
As she sealed the door to leave, Navarro said, “You been working hard.”
Jessie turned to face him. “I wanted you and Matt to take supper with us when Papa returns, but he said you’ve already eaten.”
“Hired hands don’t eat with the boss much, do they?”
Jessie realized it was more of a statement than a question. “Not usually.”
“I found my wash on my bunk. Thanks, Jessie.”
“You’re welcome.” To keep him with her longer, she chatted about little things. “I was penning up the chickens and getting flour and rice for Gran. We’re letting some sit over there in a separate coop to restock those Fletcher’s men killed. We don’t normally let this many keep their eggs for hatching, just enough to replace those we eat or the ones that stop laying with age.”
“Owning and running a ranch involves a lot of work.”
Jessie surmised he wasn’t used to small talk but was seeking it to stay with her longer. That pleased her. “How did you and Matt get along today?”
Navarro glanced around while deciding what to say. Several hands were sitting on the bunkhouse porch as they talked and laughed, and one made music on a fiddle while Biscuit Hank blew on a harmonica. He knew Miguel, Carlos, and two others were inside playing cards. Although Matt stood in shadows near the barn, Navarro sensed the foreman’s watchful gaze. It was obvious that Matt didn’t trust him yet; but only because of the Texan’s feelings for Jedidiah Lane’s daughter. He had observed Jessie and Matt since his arrival. He wished he knew what their relationship was, but he dared not ask.
“Navarro?” she prodded as worry filled her.
The handsome man inhaled and met her gaze. “Sorry, Jessie. My mind drifted. I love this time of day. What did you ask me?”
The redhead didn’t think he had forgotten her question. “Nothing. Here comes Papa. I’d best get inside and help Gran get our meal on the table. I’m tired.”
“Will I see you before I leave in the morning?”
“I’ll be up early, like every day. Good night.”
“’Night, Jessie.”
While Jessie was doing the milking, her father and the foreman got Navarro and Tom on their way. She didn’t like not seeing them off, and hoped Jed and Matt hadn’t planned to exclude her. When her other morning chores were done, Jessie churned butter, ignoring her hands that still ached from yesterday. Later, as she heated the iron and pressed garments, Gran labored in the garden.
A stroll after supper brought strange revelations for Jessica Lane. After waving to her, Miguel and Carlos left the bunkhouse and walked to the corral. At twenty-seven and thirty-one, both men were good-looking and virile. Hard work had made their bodies strong and lithe. Miguel propped one foot against a post as his deft fingers toyed with a pistol. Carlos rested his buttocks against a horizonal rail; his cigarito sent smoke spirling upward as the half-Mexican drew on it, then exhaled. Their attire—pants, jackets, hand-tooled leather belts with silver buckles, ornately stitched boots, and Spanish spurs—revealed their roots.
An uneasy feeling washed over her as she saw them leave the others and halt in her path, decked in their finery. Usually the men washed after a dusty day and put on the clothes they would dress in the next day. Carlos and Miguel hadn’t done that tonight. She had an odd feeling they were waiting for her arrival.
In the fading light before a three-quarter moon rose, Jessie smiled and joined them. “Don’t you both look handsome tonight?” she remarked. “Are you expecting a wagon of fort laundresses to pass through?” she teased, referring to the women at army posts who saw to the soldiers’ pleasures.
Carlos chuckled at her naughty innuendo. Miguel smiled, revealing the whitest and straightest teeth she had ever seen. Or maybe they only looked snowy in contrast to his black hair, dark eyes, and deep tan.
“You look pretty tonight, too, amiga. I like your hair cut that way.”
“Thank you, Miguel.” She related the story of why she had cut it.
“You are lucky he arrived to rescue you, chica. He seems a good hombre.”
“He is, Carlos. You know the Lanes only pick the best men for jobs.”
“Gracias, chica. He is a strange one. Indian blood always makes Mexicans nervous. Our peoples have warred for many years with Apaches and Comanches.”
“He told you he’s part Indian?”
“He did not have to, amiga,” Miguel responded. “His looks speak of it.”
“Does that bother you two?” Jessie inquired, holding her breath.
“Jamas, so release that air, chica.”
She exhaled, and they all grinned. “What else do you know about him?”
Miguel repeated the same brief story that Navarro had told her family. Jessie didn’t believe that tale, but she didn’t challenge it. Nor did she tell the two men of her doubts. “Do you like him?”
“He has done well, chica. But he must relax for us to learn him,” Carlos said.
“It will take time, amiga,” Miguel added. “He is a man with a shadow over his past. Such men keep a distance. He has known much trouble and pain.”
“How do you know that, Miguel?”
“The scars on his back. When we washed last night, we saw them. He said an hombre was cheating at cards and he exposed him, then in a shoot-out, the cheater was killed. His brothers tracked Navarro and whipped him for hours. They left him for dead. But as you know, he did not feed the buzzards.”
“He is not a man to be lashed,” Carlos added. “It is certain he tracked those hombres and tasted revenge. A man such as Navarro Jones is always near danger. It runs in his blood as surely as restless dust fills his boots.”
“Are you two saying I can’t trust him?”
“He is part Indian, a man who lives with troubled spirits, a man who will kill to survive, a man who must be free or die. He has been hurt many times; this I see because I was like him long ago.”
“Is that a yes or no, Miguel?”
“He will honor his word, but nothing more. He will fight to the death to do his job. Stay alert, amiga. He is a man to steal a woman’s eye. He will not stay.”
Jessie felt her heartbeat increase. “You did, Miguel. You said you were like him once. You changed. You stayed. What’s the difference?”
“I had my revenge, my justice. I buried my past. Navarro has not. He is still searching for something, and I do not think he will ever find it. He is from two worlds, yet he fits in neither. He is the kind of man who destroys himself, and hurts anyone who comes too close to him. He is not bad and does not mean to harm those few he loves. It cannot be helped. He is a breed unto himself, amiga. He would not know how to survive if he changes. Do not try.”
Wednesday moved at a steady pace for Jessie with morning chores and afternoon branding. By quitting time, she was exhausted. She bathed and dressed for the evening meal. Just as they began eating, Tom and Navarro returned. Gran reminded the excited boy to hold his story until after he washed up and sat down. Jessie was annoyed when her father told Navarro to return and give his report as soon as he ate supper. Jed also told him to bring Matthew Cordell along.
“We’ll have cake and coffee while we talk,” Jessie added.
After Navarro left to get cleaned up and eat, Jessie looked at her father and said, “That wasn’t polite, Papa. We’re eating, and you know the hands have finished. Hank probably has put away everything. He should have stayed.”
“That isn’t a good idea, Jess. I don’t want a man like that getting too close to my family. Tom’s already following him around and hanging on his every word. Tom, remember he’s a wild gunslinger, not a man to pattern after.”
“But, Pa—”
“Hush, boy. I know what I’m saying. I’ve seen his kind before. If we didn’t need his skills, I wouldn’t let him be here.”
The tone in Jed’s voice and the look in his eyes warned Jessie and Tom not to argue back, but both were disappointed and angry about their father’s attitude. Tom stared at his plate, his joy and appetite gone. Jessie forced herself to eat to conceal her conflicting emotions.
Afterward, the room was quiet as no one tried to make conversation. Gran and Jessie cleared the table and washed the dishes. Jed remained in his place and sipped coffee. Tom was sent to his room to get ready for bed while the adults talked. The boy wanted to be included; he wanted to relate his stirring adventure. Jessie whispered to him that she would sneak up later to hear about it, which appeased Tom.
When the two men arrived, Jessie showed them to the table.
“Matt, would you like cake and coffee?” she asked.
Sitting to Jed’s left, he replied, “Sure, Jessie. Gran cooks the best.”
“Navarro?” she hinted.
Near the far end of the table, he answered, “Yes, Miss Jessie, I sure would like some.”
When she served them, Navarro thanked her politely, and so did Matt. Jessie realized that Navarro was making a strong effort to show manners and correct behavior around the man who had been almost rude to him earlier. She hoped and prayed her father would not drive her love away.
“Fletcher’s men were branding calves like your hands, Mr. Lane,” Navarro related. “I saw about twenty men doing chores close to where he’s settled. They were all unarmed, so they don’t expect any trouble from us. I got a good look at Fletcher; Tom pointed him out to me from our hiding place. Couldn’t hear what he said, but he didn’t seem to be planning anything.”
“How do you know that?” Matt asked.
“None of the men strapped on guns and rode in this direction. Didn’t see anybody packing up supplies, either, planning to be on the range a while. Nice spread, but not like yours, sir. Fancy house with a walled yard like a hacienda. Two big barns. Not many longhorns in his herds. But he’s got plenty of good horseflesh. Nothing with Box L brand that I saw. When the men changed shifts, I counted about five or six new faces from those doing branding. I didn’t want to do too much riding around and risk being seen by men on the move. I got the layout of his ranch set in my head, and pretty much know his schedule. I’d say, from what I’ve learned here, he has about two more weeks of branding. That don’t mean he won’t pull some men to attack before he’s done. From all Jessie’s told me, he’s to blame. But we can’t act until Fletcher does. That is, if you want this handled like I think you do.”
“How is that?” Jed asked, his stern gaze locked on Navarro.
The desperado shifted in his seat. “With as little trouble and bloodshed as possible. You want him defeated and stopped, but not killed. Whatever he’s done, you’re still a good man who hates to take the law into his own hands.”
The room was silent as Jessie’s father and the man she loved stared at each other. Finally Jed spoke. “You’re right. I’m no murderer. I don’t want him gunned down. He’s been smart. No witnesses or proof to back my charges. He’s got the sheriff and Army fooled. He claims rustlers are using these tricks to cover their thefts. Claims he’s been having mischief over at his place, too. Says somebody might be trying to drive us both out of the area. He’s a liar. Nobody’s tried to buy my spread except him. What do you have in mind?”
“Me and Jessie decided to do to him whatever he does to you. He’ll learn fast that your loss will be his loss. You willing to do it that way?”
“I don’t hold to making innocents pay for the guilty’s actions. I can’t order no dogs and chickens slaughtered. We can’t rustle any cattle, either. If we got caught, I’d be held accountable.”
“I agree, sir. Why don’t we wait for him to move, then make plans?”
The talk ended almost immediately, as all were tired and it was late. Jessie walked the men to the door, where she asked, “Did Hank give you any supper, Navarro? You got in late.”
Matt answered for the reluctant man. “He didn’t eat, Jessie. Hank was in the bunkhouse. Navarro washed up and changed.”
“Don’t worry over me, Jessie. I’ve missed plenty of meals before.”
“You won’t have to miss any here. I thought this might happen, so I held a plate for you in the warming oven. Wait here while I fetch it.”
While he obeyed, Matt stayed with him. “She’s a fine woman, Navarro.”
“Yep, I can see she is.” He thanked Jessie for the food when she returned and handed him a heaping plate. He left before his emotions ran wild over this good woman who always thought of others.
Jessie turned to find her father watching her. “Giving him food isn’t the same as letting him join us, is it, Papa? We do need him strong and healthy.”
“Sometimes you have too much heart, daughter.”
“How can a person be too kind or too polite?”
“Good night, Jess” was his response.
“I’ll go tuck in Tom.”
Jed halted his departure to his room. “He’s too old for that.”
“I know, but I still enjoy it. He was so excited about his adventure, but he didn’t get to share it with us. I don’t want him to feel left out tonight.”
“I was foolish to let him ride with that man. He could have been hurt. I would never forgive myself if anything more happened to him.”
“You can’t protect him forever, Papa. Victories can’t be won unless challenges are confronted. If you have no victories and joys, what good is living? He has to try things to make him feel as close to normal as possible. Even if he gets hurt, he’ll be happy. Let him grow, Papa. Let him take risks. Let him find his place in life. Let him know you’re proud of him.”
“Do I have to let him get hurt worse or killed to prove I love him? To let him be happy? I can’t, Jess. Tom is different, and nothing can change that.”
Jessie watched her father disappear into his room. She went upstairs to find her brother asleep. To let him know she had kept her word, she wrote a message on his chalkboard: “Navarro said you were a big help. Thanks. I love you. Jessie.”
Just as breakfast was completed in the Lane home and bunkhouse, one of the hands galloped to the barn. He leapt off his sweaty mount and raced to the warning bell. He rang it with all his might. When everyone rushed outside, he hinted between gasps for breath, “Trouble, Boss, nasty trouble.”