Chapter 19
Chapter Nineteen
Listen to the wind, it talks. Listen to the silence, it speaks
David
It was hard to believe that today was the last full day of camp.
Tomorrow morning, they’d head back to the Ranch.
The time had flown by. Despite the campers passing his prerequisites, not to mention Derek’s and Travis’, he’d admit he’d still been a bit leery as to how well they’d do.
After all, they were a giggle of Littles and that brought with it a whole other set of issues.
Like how they all never failed to find joy and express it freely.
David grinned. Yes, like that.
Today was his day to take the back seat. Though David rode, Travis was the expert horseman. David had no issue with handing over the lead role. It would not only put their campers in more experienced hands, it would give him a chance to hang back and watch his otter fly.
His cock twitched at the memory of watching her take flight without benefit of a mount. Well, at least not mounted on a horse.
“Why are you smiling like the Cheshire cat?” Tula asked as she sat down beside him.
“No cats here.” David forked up another bite of pancakes. “I was actually thinking about how beautiful you look when you ride.”
“But we haven’t ridden yet, Daddy.”
He adored the fact that all it took to have a pretty pink bloom over her face was his very slow grin and the quirk of his eyebrow.
“Daddy! There aren’t any elephants here either!”
“Never said there were, otter.” He shrugged and after swallowing the bite of pancakes, he lowered his voice. “Any thoughts of elephants is strictly on you, dirty girl.”
Her face turned far darker than pink as she fought not to spew the sip of juice she’d just taken.
Taking pity on her, he patted her back and offered her his napkin. “Sorry, babygirl.”
“Has anyone ever told you that you’re incorrigible?” she asked as she dabbed at a spot of juice that had dribbled on her shorts.
“Hmmm, give me a moment.” He snapped off a bite of bacon and chewed it. “Intelligent, incredible, irresistible, insightful, instructive—”
“Inflated, impertinent, impish—”
He grinned. “Impeccable, influential, innocent—”
She sputtered. “Innocent? In your dreams maybe. In mine you are indubitably indecent.”
He set down his plate, wrapped an arm around her, pulled her into his lap, and lowered his head to whisper, “So what you’re saying is that your dreams are full of indecent thoughts about your Daddy?
” He tsked loudly. “I’d say that makes you the incorrigible one, little girl.
” He nipped her earlobe, loving the shudder she gave when he then used the tip of his tongue to soothe the bite. “Shall we ask the others to vote?”
She tilted her head and looked up at him. “Only if you’ve recently developed an allergy.”
“An allergy? To voting?”
“No, Daddy. To peanuts.”
He’d blame the huge breakfast he’d just eaten for being far too slow in trying to grab her when she slid off his lap, leapt over the log and joined her friends whom, he was pretty sure, knew exactly what they’d just been talking about.
That was fine. He’d think of a way to remind her exactly who was in charge here.
David was still devising clever ways to repay his Little girl as they exited the woods and climbed the last rise.
“Finally!” Payne called.
“Look, the horsies are here!” Eloise bounced on her toes in excitement.
While the Littles oohed and ahhed over the sight of the string of horses waiting for them, David only had eyes for one. It was the largest horse he’d ever seen and sitting astride it, sans saddle, was one of the largest men he’d ever met.
Moses Banner.
How he’d not considered that Moses would be the one offering to help with the ride, David didn’t know.
Perhaps you didn’t want to consider it?
“Remember, he’s a softie, Daddy.”
David’s gaze slid to Tula as she slipped her hand into his and gave it a squeeze. “So you keep saying, babygirl.”
She laughed, went up on her toes, buzzed his cheek in a kiss and then dropped his hand and sprinted to where her uncle waited.
David’s heart leapt into his throat at the sight of the woman he loved racing toward a horse that had to be a foot taller and at close to ten times her weight.
His instinct was to run after her, or shout for her to stop, but he did neither as her uncle slid from Thunder’s back when she was within a few feet and then swept her up and swung her in a circle.
The sound of Tula’s laughter rang out over the mesa.
It was a sight that filled David with wonder and schooled him on how much respect he had for the man.
He looked like the warrior he’d have been a hundred or so years earlier, and yet he was a gentle giant when he hugged his niece before kissing her cheek and setting her down.
Both their hands flew as they spoke with a fluidity that David knew came from years of conversation.
When Moses looked up and locked eyes with him, David didn’t flinch or look away.
He simply raised his hands and signed, “I’ve kept her safe for she is my heart. ”
Moses looked back at Tula who stood as proudly as her uncle before he turned back and signed, “As you are hers.”
And that was enough.
All that worry disappeared with those four little words. David nodded and stepped forward to go meet the man he’d be asking for Tula’s hand in marriage. Until then, he still had a camp to run.
David helped Littles onto the horses as Moses held them steady.
Once again David was reminded of the inclusivity of the Ranch Derek had created as to the one, every single Little’s hands flew.
Not only to form the sign to thank Moses for his help, but to share some aspect of the camp they’d enjoyed over the past week.
Moses never hurried or corrected them, just smiled and signed back, sharing their joy.
“I told you so,” Tula said from where she sat astride Sky Dancer.
“You were right,” he agreed. “And I want you to know, Sky, there’s a few apples and carrots in your future.”
“Oh, does that mean you’re going to start rewarding naughtiness, Daddy?” Tula asked.
“Not in this lifetime.”
“You do remember she stole your shoe, right?”
David reached up to stroke the palomino’s neck. “No, she ‘borrowed’ it,” he corrected, reminding her of what she’d claimed earlier. “The rewards will be for finding a clever way to bring us together.”
Tula smiled and reached down to pat the mare. “That’s true. Okay, you can give her all the treats you want.”
“Why thank you, little girl. How magnanimous of you.”
“I’m just that sort of girl. You know, magnificent, marvelous, mindful—”
“Magically matchless in her majesty,” he said as his hand moved from Sky’s neck to run up his otter’s leg.
“Oh, Daddy, that is so sweet.” She beamed down at him.
“My monumentally mesmerizing messy miss.”
“I’m not that messy!”
“While that’s debatable, in the spirit of maintaining the game and not corrupting our tautogram, I simply used ‘messy miss’ instead of—”
“Dirty girl.” Realizing she’d perhaps said that a bit too loudly, she shook her head. “Uncle Moses will hear you!”
He chuckled. “Good try, but I believe my hand was busy feeling you up instead of signing.”
She smiled. “Did you forget he can read lips?”
She had him there and from her giggle, she knew it.
“So who’s the naughty one now?”
Before he could think of a proper comeback, Travis called that it was time to move out. David mounted his own horse as he watched his naughty otter trot up to ride beside her uncle, looking over her shoulder, and blowing him a kiss.
“You can run, babygirl, but you can’t hide,” he muttered. “Daddy will always find you.”