Count This Cowboy In (22 page)

"
You got it."  He rode off, hoping little Sam would be okay.

Once Trevor got Sam as comfortable as he could make her, with his shirt rolled up as a pillow for her, he did a quick physical exam, then went to retrieve their horses.  He tied them to a nearby tree and got a bottle of water from his saddlebag.

He came back to Sam and again gently rubbed her arms.  He took out his handkerchief and used the bottle of water to get it wet.  He laid it on her forehead and went back to rubbing her arms.  He
'd been talking to her the whole time, gently telling her she was okay and that he was with her and he'd keep her safe. 

It wasn
't long before she woke up.  She was a bit groggy at first, but she said, "Thank you."

"
For what, Honey?"

"
For keeping me safe."

"
I'll always do that, Sweetie.  How do you feel?"

"
Okay.  What happened?"

"
You fainted, but you'll be fine.  Do you remember where you are?"

She looked around
and tried to sit up.  He helped her, holding her in front of him as he sat on the ground.  He had her back against his chest and had his arms around her.  She leaned her head back against his chest and said, "Grant's okay, isn't he?  I mean, really okay?"

Trevor chuckled. 
"That's my Sam.  You passed out and the first thing you're worried about when you wake up is Grant.  I love you, Honey.  You have the biggest heart of anyone I've ever met.  Yes, Grant is fine.  He may have a nightmare or two, but he'll be fine."

"
Oh, good."

"
I'm proud of you, you know."

"
Really?"

"
Of course I am."  He turned her partially so he could see her face.  "Did you really think I wouldn't be proud?  Grant's a good friend and an equally good foreman.  I hate to think what could have happened."

"
I know.  But you were frowning at me and said we'd talk about it later."

"
We will."

"
I thought you were going to spank me."

"
I am."

"
But you just said you're proud of me."

"
I am."

"
But you're still going to spank me?"

"
I am."

"
You're proud of me, so you're going to spank me?"

"
I'm going to spank you for not listening to me and staying at home.  You need to learn to listen to me, Sam.  Everything turned out fine today and I'm really, really glad.  But it was very dangerous out here and you could have gotten hurt.  Do you know how I would have felt then?"

"
It wouldn't have been your fault.  You told me to stay home."

"
Exactly.  But you still would have been hurt.  I would have failed in protecting you."

After a long pause she said,
"I guess I never looked at it that way."

"
I know."

"
But I felt I could take care of myself."

"
I know.  And now I've seen firsthand that you can take care of yourself better than I realized and I'll be thinking about that, but the fact still remains that you could have been hurt.  And if you had been hurt I still would have failed to protect you.  That's why it's so important that you listen to me."

After another long pause she said,
"Okay.  I get it."

"
So I'm disappointed that once again you didn't listen to me, but did what you wanted and that's what I'm going to spank you for.  But as a separate issue, once you were out here, I'm proud of you.  It took a lot of courage and talent to do what you did.  You didn't panic when you saw that cat go for Grant.  And I don't know who taught you to shoot like that, but I'm sure glad they did." 

"
That was my dad."

"
I wish I could have met him.  I owe him a lot of thank-yous."  He leaned down and kissed the top of her head and just held her several more minutes, while he felt her calming down. 

When she felt like she
'd calmed down he asked, "How are you feeling?"

"
I'm okay now.  I could have gotten up before, but I kinda like sitting here with your arms around me."

"
You little brat."  He picked up her wrist and watched his watch, checking her pulse.  "Just as I thought," he said with a grim look on his face.

"
What?  I really do feel okay now."

"
I know.  Just as I thought; you really are a little brat.  You're fine, you little faker."  He was grinning when she turned to look at him.

"
Sorry, but it's your fault."

"
My fault?"

"
Yes, your fault.  If I didn't feel so good and so safe in your arms I would have been ready to get up sooner."

With a big smile on his face he said,
"Well, since you feel safe in my arms I'll let this one slide."  He stood up, taking her with him and turned her to face him.  "I always want you to feel safe in my arms, Sam.  I love you."  Without even worrying about where Grant was or if he was watching, Trevor cradled her face in his hands and leaned down to kiss her.  He meant it to be a simple little kiss, but it quickly grew.  They were both a bit emotional over the events of the day and before either of them knew it, the kiss had gotten a bit out of hand.

Calling on all the strength he had, he reluctantly pulled away.  Holding her shoulders, he said,
"Wow.  I think maybe it's a good thing we're out here and Grant's close by, probably watching us."

"
Why?"

"
Because if we were at home, after a kiss like that I'm not sure I'd have been the gentleman I intend to be with you."  He kissed her again quickly and said, "I love you, Sam."

"
I love you, too, Trevor.  And I'm not sure I would have wanted you to be a gentleman."

He pulled her against him for one more quick kiss
and reached back and gave her bottom a good swat.

"
Hey, that hurt.  What was that for?"

"
For teasing me, you naughty little minx." 

He took her hand and led her over to their horses.  Soon they joined Grant, who was smiling as they rode up. 
"Show's over and I'd just as soon you not share any of it with the other men," Trevor told his foreman.

"
Not to worry, boss.  After what happened, I'm glad you two had a few minutes together.  I was busy watching the cattle, though.  I didn't see a thing."  They all three chuckled at his less than innocent smile.  He turned to Sam and asked, "Seriously, are you okay, Sam?"

"
Yeah, I'm fine now." 

The three of them talked while they waited for the other two men so they could fix the fence.  They all kept an eye out for more trouble, but luckily, no one saw any signs of any other wild critters that could cause a problem.  Once the truck and supplies arrived the three of them made quick work of the repairs, while Trevor sent the other two hands to bury the dead mountain lion.  They were soon all headed back to the barn. 

Once they got back Trevor went to his office in the barn and called The Winding Creek.  He came back a few minutes later.  "Once I assured him we have nothing but heifers in that pasture, no bulls that could breed with his heifers, he's fine with waiting until morning and he and three hands will be over to help us separate them.  I was glad to hear that.  The four of us will go with the four of them and get that taken care of and I can send the rest of the guys down to work on clearing that new pasture and getting the fence up."

Trevor had moved the mare Sam usually rode, named Lady, up to the stall next to the one he kept his stallion, Thunder, in.  He felt better with her close by as they brushed their horses out after they
'd been riding.  They could talk while they brushed that way, too.

Today as they were brushing them out Sam asked,
"You're clearing off more pasture.  Do you need more pasture space, or is this new pasture just in a better spot?"

"
A little more would be nice to go along with the new breeding program.  I'd like a space to keep them separate until I see how they're looking."

Sam nodded. 
"Good idea.  Easier to keep everything controlled if they're separate.  I don't suppose there's any more land around here for sale?"

"
Actually, there is and I've been thinking about it."

"
But?"

"
But it would be a big investment.  The next ranch over to the east of us is for sale.  I've asked him about buying some of the land that adjoins this ranch, but he won't split it up.  It's all or nothing and I'm not sure I want to borrow enough to buy the whole thing.  That'd be a big undertaking, too.  His ranch is almost as big as this one, so I'd have to hire more men and it would be a lot more work.  I'm not sure I'm ready for that."

"
I understand.  You're right, it would be a big undertaking."

"
Yep.  It sure would be nice to have the extra space for the breeding program, but I'm just not sure I want that much more ––"

When he paused, Sam offered,
"More land to plant and harvest, more buildings to maintain, more cattle to feed and get to market, more men to be boss cowboy to?"

He looked over at her, smiling. 
"Yes, more of all that stuff.  There's a nice house on that ranch, but I don't really need it.  I'm good here.  If I buy the ranch I'll be buying it for the land and I'll give the house to Carol.  She got the house in Connecticut and she insists she's good with that.  She never cared all that much for the ranch, but I never felt totally comfortable with that.  The ranch is worth more than the house she got.  So if I buy it I figure I'll give it to her and she can use it as a vacation home."

"
That's a good idea.  Have you said anything to her about it?"

"
No.  I'm not at all sure I'm going to buy it."

"
I won't say anything to her either then."

"
Thanks."

Once their horses were taken care of
, Trevor led Sam into the main house.  He went to the living room and sat Sam down on the couch.  He paced in front of her a bit, not saying a word, which worried her.  "Trevor?"

He heard the question in her voice
and turned to look at her.  He sighed and asked, "Sam, we talked about this a little bit out there, but you know you're getting spanked; right?"

"
Yes."

"
What will you be getting spanked for?"

"
For not listening to you when you said to stay here."

"
Have we talked about you not doing what I tell you to do for your safety?"

"
Yes.  I'm sorry."

"
Are you?"  He looked at her and studied her intently for several seconds.  "Sam, as happy as I am that you were there for Grant, I'm very concerned.  You didn't listen to me again and although it turned out good, you could have gotten hurt badly tonight.  We've talked about your failure to consider your safety before.  You've gotten spanked for it in the past.  So please explain to me why I shouldn't go upstairs and get my frat paddle to try to make my point this time."

Sam looked up, pure shock on her face.  She already had tears behind her eyes she
'd been fighting and she quickly lost that battle.  They started streaming down her cheeks, but she bravely swiped them away and squared her shoulders.  She looked up at Trevor and said, "Please don't do that.  That thought terrifies me and I've already been terrified once tonight."

Trevor felt like a heel.  His fear for what could have happened was overriding his clear thinking.  As much as he wanted to, though, he couldn
't just give in and go to her and take her in his arms like he wanted to.  She had to learn to listen to him.  He didn't have to terrify her to do it, but he had to get through to her somehow. 

Before he could say anything Sam again wiped her eyes and said,
"Trevor, I need to tell you something. I know you don't think I get that you're trying to protect me, and to be honest, I may not have before, but I do now.  There were two reasons I went out there tonight.  One I will admit was because I love everything about ranching and I plain wanted to be out there.  But the second one, the one that kept jumping into my head and I couldn't ignore, is because I was worried about you."

"
About me?"

"
Yes.  I've seen stampeding cattle and I knew that if they stampeded you'd need all the help you could get.  I know it's quite possible to get hurt, but Dad's told me a bunch of times what to and not to do if you encounter stampeding cattle and I've been through it before.  I know you have, too and know what to do and you're quite capable.  You're a good rancher.  But I wasn't as worried about me getting hurt as I was about you getting hurt because of not having enough hands to handle the cattle.  If you don't have enough men to handle it, it becomes more dangerous for each of you and I knew that.  So since I'd been through it before I thought I could help and lessen the chances of any of you getting hurt."