Catch Me a Cowboy (33 page)

“Do you?” he asked, and when she turned she found him examining a container of salmon eggs. He set the jar down and looked at her. “Because I don’t think you do,
Shirlene.” He waved his hand around. “This is Billy. And so is the thick country twang, and the genuine smile, and the big monster truck. Billy really is a good ol’ boy from east Texas. A good ol’ boy who loves his family and is willing to do whatever it takes to keep them safe.”

“Even ruin a town?”

He released his breath. “Even that. I think Billy would do anything to break The Cates Curse.”

“The Cates Curse?” She lifted an eyebrow. “Are you drunk? Or is this some story you made up to get Billy out of jail?”

“Neither, but by the time I finish telling you this story, you might think I’m crazy—or at least, my family is.” When she didn’t say anything, he continued.

“The Cates Curse has been passed down for generations—a family legend that was given credit by the string of bad luck that seems to haunt the Cates. Thinking to outrun the curse, my daddy left Lubbock when he was nineteen and moved to Dogwood where he met my mother. The move seemed to work until my oldest brother Buck got hit by a train when he was coming home from the prom one night. We all tried to pass it off as a bad accident until Brant’s family was killed in a tornado.

“Billy had been traveling with Brant at the time, trying to get C-Corp on its feet. He went with Brant to identify the bodies of Brant’s wife and his son. Billy went a little crazy after that—became obsessed with history and The Cates Curse. Still, I don’t know if Billy would’ve ever come to Bramble if I hadn’t been diagnosed with cancer.”

Beau’s words painted a picture more detailed than the one across the room, and Shirlene couldn’t help but be pulled in.

“Are you dying?” she asked in a soft whisper.

Beau grinned. “I sure hope not—at least, not yet.”

“But how is ruining Bramble going to fix the curse?”

“We both know that it won’t,” he said. “But I think it gave Brant a purpose to live again, and Billy was willing to go along with anything that might save his brother—until he started to become attached to Bramble. And not just the town, but the people.”

“Has it made a difference?” she asked. “Are you going to keep Dalton Oil open?” Even in the dim light, she could read the answer on his face. “That’s what I thought.” She tried to move past him, but he took her arm.

“Just give him a chance, Shirlene,” Beau pleaded. “If anyone can fix it, Billy can. He’s a genius at figuring things out.”

“If he is such a genius, Beau, he never would’ve lied.”

Sherman’s loud squeals had Shirlene pulling away from Beau and heading for the door. By the time she got down the steps, she understood what had the pig so excited. Jesse stood in the yard, his Superman shirt ripped and his chest pumping in and out as if he’d run for miles.

“Jesse!” She raced across the yard and tried to pull him into her arms. But he wasn’t having it.

“Don’t touch me!” he yelled as he jerked away. “I hate you! You pretended like you liked us, but it was all a lie.”

“That’s not true, Jesse,” she tried to soothe him. “I like you—in fact, I love you. You, and Brody, and Mia, and Adeline are everything to me.”

Tears trickled down the boy’s cheeks, causing Shirlene’s heart to rise to her throat. “Then why didn’t you fight for us? Why did you let them take us without a fight?”

She swallowed back her own tears. “It’s not that simple, Jesse. You can’t fight the law.”

He stared back at her, his voice shaking. “Billy did. They stopped him, but at least he tried. He fought until he couldn’t fight no more.” He glanced up to see Beau coming down the steps. “Billy!” He raced over, but came to a skidding stop when he saw who it was. “Where’s Billy? Is he inside?” He tried to rush past Beau, but Beau held him back.

“Sorry, buddy, but Billy isn’t in there. He’s in the city jail.”

Jesse’s legs finally gave out, and he slumped down on the dirt at Beau’s feet, his sobs harsh and heartbreaking.

Unsure of what to do, Shirlene stared down at him. Jesse was hysterical, and suddenly she felt pretty hysterical herself. Hysterical because the boy was right. She hadn’t fought to keep them. She’d just stood there and let a strange woman take her kids. Just stood there waiting for someone to come to her rescue. Except it wasn’t up to some knight in shining armor. Or her brother. Or even the town. It was up to her. She was the only one who could earn the children’s respect. And this time it would take more than handing over an expensive ring. This time it would take courage and action.

Shirlene glanced down at the pig who sat at her feet. “What do you say, Piglet? You want to go kidnap a group of orphans?”

B
ILLY FELT LIKE
he had the one time he’d tried to ride a Brahma bull and failed—sore, achy, and pissed that he’d been unable to achieve what he’d set out to do.

Shirlene hated him. And the kids were gone.

He lifted the Naked Barbie off the bed next to him. Brody had entrusted the doll into Billy’s care so it wouldn’t get wet in the sprinklers and, in the excitement of the day, had forgotten to reclaim it. Billy had worked so hard to get the kid to quit playing with the doll. Now, damned if he wasn’t torn up about the little boy having to do without it.

Even firing Mr. Peabody hadn’t made him feel any better.

What had the uppity man been thinking when he’d reported the kids to Children’s Services? Of course, it wasn’t his fault as much as Billy’s for having him look up the VIN number of the Impala in the first place and for waiting until tonight to call Judge Myers. He just hadn’t wanted to upset the apple cart. To disrupt the dream he’d been living in with Shirlene and the kids. A dream he’d started to believe in.

Until reality woke him.

Billy stared down at Barbie’s skinny body and ran a finger over the hard curves that were nothing like Shirlene’s sweet, soft ones.

“I knew a feller once who had one of them blowup dolls.”

The Barbie clattered to the floor as Billy came to his feet and stared at Moses Tate, who had somehow gotten into the room without Billy knowing it. The old man stood on the other side of the bars, his eyes squinting down at the doll.

“Used to let her ride next to him in his pickup like she was his girlfriend or somethin’. ’Course that came to a terrible end one day when Earl got out for gas and that darned thing floated right out after him. Dolly might’ve survived if Tinker Jones’ coon hound hadn’t gotten after her.” He shook his head. “Ripped her up like a garbage bag, leaving poor Earl with nothin’ but a tiny pair of pokey-dotted panties.”

Billy cleared his throat. “That’s quite a story.”

“No better than the one you told us today,” Moses said. “You had me fooled, boy. I’d figured out Beau, but I never figured on you.”

“I’m sorry, sir.”

Moses shrugged. “I figure family sticks up for family, and what we did to your family was a cryin’ shame.”

“I still had no right to deceive you.” Billy sat down on the bed and ran a hand over his face.

“Nope, you didn’t. But it ain’t nothin’ I can’t forgive.” He shot him a sly look. “’Course, sorry might work for me—with one foot in the grave, I can’t afford to hold a grudge—but a simple sorry ain’t gonna work for that gal’s broken heart.”

Billy didn’t need to ask who he was talking about. “I
know, and I intend to get those kids back to her as soon as I get out of here.”

“I wasn’t talking about the kids, son—anyone with half a brain knows you love those kids as much as she does.” He pointed a finger that was as bent and gnarled as a hickory stick. “What you have to prove is your love for her.”

Billy stared at the old guy. “Love her? Shirlene Dalton?”

“Well, I ain’t talkin’ about that nekked doll on the floor.”

“But…” Billy got up from the bed and started to pace. “I don’t… I mean I like her—no, I more than like her. She’s sassy, and funny, and the kindest woman I’ve ever met.” He kept pacing, now talking to himself more than to Moses. “And when she smiles, it’s like the sun just popped up over the horizon—like your day has just started, and you didn’t know it until you looked into those beautiful green eyes. And when she kisses you, it’s like you’re a big piece of chocolate cake and she’s a chocoholic. It makes you feel about ten feet tall. Like you could do anything you set your mind to—anything at all.”

He stopped pacing and stared at the picture of the Texas state flag as the truth finally sank in. “I love her.” He looked back at Moses. “I love Shirlene Dalton.”

Moses grinned, displaying his purplish gums. “I know, son. But it ain’t gonna make no difference if we can’t get you out of there.” He held up a ring of keys that weighed so much it caused the old guy to take a couple shuffling steps back. “Damn, Sam and his key fetish. It’s likely to take us all night just to find the right one. ’Course I figure that will give me plenty of time to tell you the story I came to tell you.”

But before Moses could start on another story, a loud
clank drew their attention to the window. Billy walked over and opened it to find Kenny Gene standing there holding a tow rope that had already been attached to the bars.

“I’m breakin’ you out, Bubba,” he said loud enough to wake up the entire town. “I know it will ruin my chances of becomin’ a dep-u-tee. But since I broke my binoculars, I ain’t got the right equipment, anyway.”

“Well, I sure appreciate that but—” Billy started, but Kenny was already on his way to the truck that was parked on the grass just outside. The engine revved, and the truck shot across the lawn, spitting chunks of turf behind it. Billy might’ve taken cover from flying plaster if he hadn’t noticed that the tow rope wasn’t attached to Kenny’s bumper.

“Darn fool,” Moses muttered as he worked his way through the key ring. Billy watched his shaky hands for a few seconds before he turned back to the window to see if Kenny had finally noticed he wasn’t dragging the bars behind him. A face popped up in the window. A face that had Billy jumping back in fear.

“Hey, handsome,” Rachel Dean said. At least, Billy thought it was Rachel Dean. It was hard to tell with her hair twisted up in curlers and the layer of green goop on her face. “I couldn’t sleep a wink thinkin’ about your poor ol’ granddaddy, so I got up and made you some of my cinnamon buns. I ain’t never been much of a cook, but…” she winked and Billy couldn’t help but think of the little insurance lizard on those television commercials, “I figured a man like you would know good buns when he saw them.” She tried to fit the plate through the bars, and when that didn’t work, she tried handing them to him. But between the size of the buns and her man hands, it was a lost cause.

“I’ll just bring them in,” she said, right before her head disappeared.

“Good Lord, Rachel,” Harley Sutter’s voice drifted over to Billy. “You like to scare me to death. What are you doin’ traipsin’ around in the dark?” The man’s head appeared, his handlebar mustache almost reaching from one side of the small window to the other. “Well, hey, Bubba, how you doin’, son?”

“Just fine, sir,” Billy answered, although he was more than a little confused by all these midnight visitors.

“How’s that room treatin’ you?”

“Snug as a bug in a rug.” Billy glanced around the jail cell that looked more like the guest room at his Aunt Clara’s—from the brass bed and crocheted toilet paper cover to the rag rug and patchwork quilt. The hallway door flew open, and Rachel Dean came flopping in wearing a chenille robe that had seen better days and a pair of red galoshes.

“Well, hey there, Moses, I didn’t know you was visitin’.” She held out the plate of cinnamon buns, but the old man shook his head.

“If they’re as hard as your cookies, my gums can’t take ’em.”

“I sure wouldn’t mind one,” Harley said before he disappeared from the window. He wasn’t gone for more than a few seconds when the top of a head appeared.

A head Billy recognized immediately. Or maybe it wasn’t the head he recognized as much as the teased, towering hair.

“Hey, Bubba,” Twyla said. “I figured you might be lonely, so I came by to keep you company.”

“He don’t need company,” Kenny came running back up. “He needs to be broke out. So get out of the way, woman.”

“Don’t you tell me what to do, Kenny Gene,” Twyla snapped. “We ain’t married yet.” Her hand with the huge diamond ring popped up in the window. “Ain’t it purdy?”

“I’d ask what’s going on here,” a deep voice interrupted. “But since you always seem to be in the middle of a town ruckus, big brother, I figure it’s par for the course.” Beau’s face appeared. Billy had to admit it was a welcome sight.

“You bustin’ out, Billy?” he asked with a smirk on his face.

“At this rate, the answer would be no.”

Beau laughed. “Well, I’ll see what I can do about that.”

Fifteen minutes later, Beau was on the other side of the bars along with half the town. But Billy was no closer to breaking out. Moses couldn’t seem to find the right key. Of course, with everyone gnawing on Rachel’s cinnamon buns and trying to help, it couldn’t be easy.

Billy sat on the bed, holding a cold washcloth to his eye. He should be irritated with their ineptitude, but instead he couldn’t help smiling. It seemed the people of Bramble weren’t the type of folks to hold a grudge. Even with a man who might be responsible for the town’s demise. It was endearing, and at the same time, filled him with more guilt than a sinner in Sunday school.