Chapter 16
Once they returned, Cole automatically gathered Tim and took him down to do his business, and Lois got ready for bed.
She was lying on her side when he returned, and didn’t settle down until he came out of the bathroom.
The lights were off, and he’d left the bathroom light on, but the door was only open for a few inches.
She didn’t know if she liked that he wore a pair of sweat pants and a tee shirt, but she respected that he didn’t come to bed naked.
She didn’t expect anything to happen between them, but it would be nice to sleep beside someone again.
On a sigh, she settled down, and smiled when he climbed into the bed beside her.
“What’s with the long sigh?”
“Nothing, and I know this sounds silly, but it’s nice to sleep next to someone again. My bed at home is lonely.”
He moved in the bed and when he lifted his arm, he looked at her and invited her to snuggle up with him. She didn’t hesitate to cuddle, and they both sighed in relief when they were both situated.
“Did you enjoy yourself tonight?” he asked quietly after several minutes of silence.
“I did. I have to tell you something though.”
“Oh?”
“I did something.”
“Do I want to know what?”
She giggled and buried her head in his chest, then tilted her head to look at him.
“I gave one of the business cards to a young man, and vaguely told him that we’re converting from racehorses to rodeo stock.
I didn’t get into too much detail, because frankly, I have no clue what I would be talking about. ”
Cole chuckled and nodded. “I agree. What did he say?”
“He’s hurt, Cole.”
“Hurt how?”
“He has one arm in a sling, I didn’t see a cast on the arm, but he has one on his leg. He said that Brutis, I believe it was a bronc, tossed him around last weekend.”
“Damn, so he might be looking for work while he heals?”
“That’s what I thought, and I invited him to breakfast here tomorrow morning at seven.
I told him to bring his appetite. I don’t know his story, but I think he might be pinching pennies.
Anyway, that’s neither here nor there at this time.
He did ask me if he could bring his brother.
I agreed.” She sighed, then giggled. “I told him to bring their appetites.” She paused and waited for several seconds, before she asked quietly, “You’re not mad? ”
“No.” He didn’t hesitate in his answer. “I’ll admit that I forgot all about looking for people to hire. I was checking out the stock.” At her confused look he smiled, then bent his head to kiss the top of hers. “Horses, bulls.”
“Ah, okay, how about this, then?”
“What?”
“Every time we go to a rodeo, you do what you did tonight, and I’ll do what I did.
You check out the animals, and their owners, and I’ll check out the cowboys.
If you held a gun to my head right now and demanded why I thought Kade Montgomery would work out for us, I couldn’t give you an answer.
There’s something in his eyes that spoke to me.
Don’t quote me, but I feel like he’s living the dream of being in the rodeo, but his dream is slowly dying from lack of funds.
” She shook her head and shrugged. “I know it's weird, but that’s the only conclusion I can come up with.” She paused again, and settled back against his chest. “I only hope he won’t do something. ”
“What’s that?”
“Work for us over the winter, get money in his pocket, and take off when the rodeo starts up again in the spring.”
“Yeah, there is always that possibility. Maybe he’ll or both of them will be like I was and realize the better money is in the steady job.
I need to remind you of something, and this is a non-negotiable issue.
I have no right to tell you what you can and can’t do, but on this, I’m putting my foot down right now. ”
“What’s that?”
“There will be a background check done on these boys, and anyone else we talk with and offer a job. I’m not saying we need a background check to talk with them, but if I like them, then that will be discussed in length.
If they say no, then we don’t hire them.
” He lifted her chin so he could look directly at her.
“I know you don’t know a lot about the animals, and I’m good with that.
However, what you need to know is that about fifteen to twenty percent of people running away from the law, or their past, join the rodeo.
Like some people that run away to join the circus, these cowboys join the rodeo because they’re not in one place for long.
If they follow the circuit, maybe four- or five-days tops in one town before moving to the next.
I remember that Mr. A., Clem, and Naomi would be exhausted when they’d return home.
A lot of these guys don’t have a place to call home.
The background check will make sure they’re on the up-and-up, and not out to rob us blind. ”
“I never thought of something like that, and thank you for reminding me. In the future, I won’t blindly start talking with people.”
“No, you can, you’re a better people person than I am, I just want you to be wary that not all people are as nice and easy going as they seem. I trust your instinct also. You saw something in this man and acted on it.” He nodded then lifted a brow as he asked his next question.
“How old is this guy?”
Lois giggled. “I’d say around Lorissa’s age, maybe a few years younger.”
“Ah, so was it a maternal instinct to reach out to him?”
“I think so. Out of all the people I saw tonight, Kade Montgomery spoke to me,” she said and giggled as she shook her head. “Literally, maternally and figuratively.”
Colle hugged her and settled down next to her. “Stick with me, and we can make a great team.”
“I plan on it,” she sighed in contentment and she didn’t know if it was Cole, or the fact that she had someone beside her, but it was only seconds before she was sound asleep.
The next morning, Lois was up first, and after using the facilities, she quickly threw on a pair of sweat pants and a sweat shirt, and slipped her feet into her boots as she gathered Tim and took him out.
Before leaving the room, she’d started the first cup of coffee.
She figured the dog’s potty business was more important than getting herself a cup of coffee.
She was gone for about thirty minutes because she encountered others in the small doggie area, and though she was friendly, she didn’t really strike up any conversations.
When Tim was done, and she’d cleaned up after him, she let him run around for a few extra minutes before taking him back inside.
When she opened the door, she sighed in relief when she smelled the coffee, then paused when she smelt men’s aftershave.
The combined smells, the messed-up bed, and the sheer domesticity of the situation brought tears to her eyes. She wiped them just as the bathroom door opened and Cole stood there fully dressed, except for his feet.
“Let me get you a cup of coffee,” she said quickly.
“No, I took the one you brewed and made another one. That one is yours.”
Lois smiled as she picked up the cup and took a bracing sip. When she felt herself under control, she turned to him with a smile. “How did you sleep?”
“Great actually, how about you?”
“Wonderfully, I don’t think I moved at all.” She looked at the clock and smiled. “Who knew that I’d still be up between five and five-thirty even on a vacation.”
“Yeah, who knew,” he said as he came out of the bathroom and went over to the table.
On the way, he pulled out a pair of clean socks, and made another cup of coffee.
“Yeah, I thought you were crazy when you suggested we bring a real coffee maker, but if we do this again, I think we should. The rate we’re going, it’s going to cost us more in coffee than the actual hotel room. ”
Lois laughed as she agreed, then she gathered her clothes and went into the bathroom for her morning shower.
By the time she emerged, there was another cup of coffee waiting for her, and Cole was watching the morning news.
As she finished getting ready, she listened to it, and then sat down and put her shoes on.
“Do you think we could take Tim to breakfast with us?”
“I’m going to say yes, he’s already eaten, so he won’t be begging to eat our food. Do you give him table scraps?”
“I don’t like to.”
“Then I won’t offer him any bacon or sausages.”
She laughed and nodded. “I wouldn’t say no to bringing a couple of pieces back to the room for him. As a treat.”
“Got it. I feel that his size will disguise him, it’s not like we’re trying to hide him, but he won’t be as noticeable as a larger dog.”
“Yeah, when I took him down to do his business, there were at least a dozen or so other dogs there.”
“Wow, yeah, I don’t see why we can’t take him, and I’m going to also agree with taking him over to the rodeo later.”
“Why?”
“First, we’ll keep him in his carrier, because of his size, but if you’re set on helping me with the ranch, or when you’re over at New Double doing the garden and canning, you’re going to want him to get used to the animals and the in and out traffic.
I’m not dissing your home, but there’s not a lot of foot or vehicle traffic. ”
“You’re right, there’s not. I agree the only way to train him properly is to have him around things like that.” They looked at the dog and they both laughed and shook their heads when he sat up and Lois swore he grinned at them.
It was a comfortable silence and when both their stomachs began to growl, they looked at the clock, stood, gathered Tim, and headed to the door. As they waited at the elevator, Cole looked at her with a frown.
“What?”
“What was the kid’s name again?”
“Kade, with a ‘K’, Montgomery. He said it like that.”
“Got it. Let’s hope they’re on time, we’re about fifteen minutes early.”
They stepped into the elevator and pushed the button to the lobby.