Cowgirl Crazy (#2, Cowboy Way) (33 page)

“
Well, I’ve loved you half of my
life. I evidently like hoeing,” she said with a smile against his
lips. “We’ll get there together, after we figure out where you’re
going to live now.”

“
Where we’re going to live,” he
corrected, nipping her lower lip.

Two weeks later, with the on and off help of
Lucky, Coop, Tucker and a few more of their rodeo buddies, the
remnants of what was Clarence James’ house had been razed. The boys
had also driven to Dallas to drag Twyla and Ryan’s trailers back to
Houston, and stopped by her apartment to grab Twyla’s stuff too.
The trailers were their temporary home until he could figure out
how he was going to build a replacement for them. They had joined
them at the end, and cut a door between, so Mary would have her own
space. It wasn’t comfortable, but it was home because Twyla and
Mary were here with him.

The ground was now cleared all the way to the
back of the twenty acre tract, except for the ramshackle barn that
was Boney Pony and Tango’s home for now. Ryan’s next hurdle turned
his blood to ice water in his veins. Breaking that damned pony that
Twyla promised Mary she could keep. That pony was a mean bastard.
Definitely meaner than any of the broncs he’d ridden on the
circuit. He’d almost rather buy her a horse, but he knew he
couldn’t right now. And Tango was too hot for an inexperienced
rider.

And Boney Pony was too hot for him.

With a groan, Ryan headed back to the barn
where he saw Twyla and Mary feeding the pony carrots, stroking his
forelock, spoiling the damned pony rotten. It was no wonder the
animal was mean, the two girls coddled him terribly. And it wasn’t
any wonder that the now fat black pony hated Ryan, because he
didn’t.

This would be his third try to get on Boney’s
back. And this time he was going to do it. Either Ryan would be
broken today, or that pony would. He was tired of messing around.
When a professional saddle bronc rider couldn’t break a damned
pony, it was a sad day. Today was a happy day. Every day had been
happy since he finally found his balls and admitted his love to
Twyla. Whatever happened at her parent’s house this weekend, Ryan
had already told her he was not letting her go. He would keep
trying to make peace with her family until it happened.

And as soon as he managed that, Ryan was
asking her daddy for her hand.

Yeah, it was old-fashioned, but it was what
Ryan felt was respectful. He owed Mr. Taylor a lot, and that’s how
he was going to do things. If that man decided he wouldn’t forgive
Ryan, he and Twyla would live out here in sin for the rest of their
lives.

And damned if he didn’t love sinning with that
woman.

His eyes landed on her delicious rear end in
the faded jean shorts with the ragged fringe at the hem. Paired
with her cowboy boots, she was just lickable. He wanted to push her
into that old barn, find a haystack and make love to her until
neither of them could walk.

But he had things to do first. Riding that
pony.

Ryan walked into the barn and hefted Twyla’s
saddle onto his shoulder, then walked back out to the catch pen.
Twyla and Mary looked away from the pony to smile at him, Ryan
could swear the pony bared his teeth, but not to smile. He wanted
to sink those teeth into Ryan’s shoulder if he turned his back on
him. His penny-colored eyes issued a challenge that Ryan was about
to accept. He dropped the saddle and halter on the ground by the
fence, so he could climb inside the pen. “Hand me the saddle,” he
said and Twyla picked it up and hefted it over the
fence.

She handed him the halter and rope reins.
“Ryan, honey, we can wait until next week to do this. I know your
ankle is still sore.”

“
My ankle is fine. Me and this
pony are coming to an understanding today.”

“
Don’t hurt Boney, Ry,” Mary said
firmly crossing her arms over her chest.

Don’t hurt Boney? Boney had kicked his ass
three times now, and Mary hadn’t worried about him. The last time
resulted in an almost-sprained ankle, and who had she run to when
he was thrown? The damned pony.

“
You wanna ride this pony or not,
kid?”

“
I want to ride him, but I don’t
want you to hurt him,” she said sticking out her stubborn chin. The
resemblance between Twyla and his little sister in both appearance
and attitude was remarkable. Fate was a funny thing, saddling him
with two difficult women to give him hell on a daily basis was just
the ultimate twist. And his heart twisted in his chest. He wouldn’t
have it any other way. He knew Mary would grow up to be just like
Twyla. Strong and determined. That is exactly how he wanted her to
be.

Ryan hefted the saddle onto his shoulder
again, then leaned over the top fence rail for a quick kiss from
Twyla. “Wish me luck.”

“
I’m your lucky charm, so get your
ass in the saddle. But don’t get hurt!”

“
Yes, ma’am,” he said with a laugh
and a tip of his hat.

Ryan edged his way over to the pony, and kept
his eye on his hind legs, as he threw the saddle over his back. The
pony shifted and stomped, snorted a few times, but didn’t throw the
saddle off and run around the ring this time. Progress. He didn’t
tie the saddle down yet, he just left it there for the pony to get
used to it while he put on the halter, and clipped on the
reins.

“
Remember he likes to hold in
air,” Twyla said with a laugh, and Ryan frowned.

“
Oh, I remember.” The first
attempt had ended with him under the pony’s belly and the two girls
sitting on the ground outside of the fence laughing their butts off
at him. Ryan secured the saddle, waited a minute, then slapped the
horse’s belly. Boney neighed, swished his long tail to slap Ryan in
the back, but his belly deflated.

Ryan tested the saddle to ensure it was tight,
then picked up the reins and led Boney to the center of the arena,
so he didn’t try to brush him off against the fence rail like the
last time. He didn’t want to give the pony the opportunity to
finish the job of breaking his ankle.

No, he was wise to all of this animal’s tricks
now. Like stopping short and throwing him over his head, as in
attempt number two, which ended up with him flat on his back in the
dust with the horse staring down at him in victory. Ryan was the
one who would be victorious today, and Mary was going to have a
pony to ride.

Ryan held the saddle, and put his foot in the
stirrup, but he stopped to take a deep breath and compose himself.
He knew as soon as his ass hit the saddle he better be ready to
ride. Adrenaline surged through him, the same feeling he had when
he rode wild broncs in the arena came over him, and Ryan hefted
himself up. He threw his leg over Boney’s back, and like he
expected, before he could get his foot in the right stirrup, the
pony bucked, danced around from side to side, then squatted.
Knowing his next move, Ryan’s legs tightened on his sides as he
jumped. All four feet left the ground, then Ryan gritted his teeth
against the jarring impact when they landed back on the
ground.

I’m riding you, bitch, he thought, as his fist
tightened on the reins. Give me your best shot. My ass is glued in
this saddle today. Ryan’s fist tightened on the reins as the pony
headed for the rail at a sprint. Ut uh, not today he thought,
turning him by bending his neck to the left. The pony ran along the
rail, and Ryan held on for dear life. Surprisingly, he only kicked
once on the second circuit, then on the third he snorted, and
slowed his pace a little. Ryan patted the pony’s neck. “Good boy,”
he said, and the horse snorted again and slowed to a
walk.

“
You did it, Ry!” Mary squealed
over at the fence, and pride shot through him.

He smiled over at her, and just that fast
taking his eye off the ball cost him. The pony’s neck bent to the
left, and his teeth clamped on Ryan’s calf.

“
Fuck
!” Ryan squealed, his
voice a couple of octaves higher than normal, as he jerked the
reins. Boney bucked, then took a hard right, before Ryan could get
his balance again. He felt himself flying, and tucked to keep from
breaking something. He rolled three times, before he stopped in a
heap at the center of the ring.

Embarrassment heated his face, as Ryan got to
his feet and brushed off his ass, then his chaps. He saw his hat on
the ground near the rail with the crown smashed flat to the brim.
Anger surged through him as he walked over there and snatched it up
to dust it off. He put his fist inside and punched it back
out.

“
Damned pony,” he grumbled, as he
spun back to go in for round two of the day. He stopped short when
he saw Mary stroking the pony’s neck. Hugging him, and him nuzzling
the side of her face. Women, he thought as he started toward them.
Mary stepped back and bent to take the reins in her hand. Ryan
stopped again, but held his body tense ready to intervene if
necessary. That pony was damned mean, and totally unpredictable.
Mary grabbed the horn and gingerly watched Boney, as she put her
left foot in the stirrup. The pony stood perfectly still for her,
which was an amazing thing in itself.

“
It’s okay, Boney. I want us to
have fun together,” she cooed, as she slowly lifted herself up,
then eased her leg over his back. The pony swished his tail, but it
was fly swatting swish, not an angry swish. He shifted his weight
on his feet, but it wasn’t in preparing to kick out.

Mary eased her butt down into the well of the
saddle, then inserted her right foot into the stirrup and smiled.
Thank God she had the boots on that Twyla had found for her at the
thrift store. At least if she fell off her feet wouldn’t get
stomped on and her toes broken. Just her skull he thought, and his
body lurched forward. But Mary clucked to the pony and his ears
perked up. Ryan saw her nudge him with her knee, and the pony
moved.

Mary giggled. “Good boy, that’s it. Let’s
ride, boy. Teach me to ride.”

Twyla had been working with her, and teaching
her, but as far as he knew this was the first time Mary had been up
in her life. Fear was a vise that squeezed his heart in his chest
as he watched her move the pony along the rail.

“
You’re doing good, Mary,” Twyla
said calmly as she passed her at the rail. “That’s it baby, keep
your center of balance in the saddle.”

And didn’t that just beat all? A
twelve-year-old girl had just shown up a seasoned professional
rodeoer. Sometimes life didn’t make a damned bit of sense. But if
the end result was what you wanted it to be, what the hell did it
matter? The smile on Mary’s face made losing his dignity very
worthwhile.

CHAPTER
TWENTY-TWO

Ryan was as nervous as he’d ever been in his
life, but Twyla’s fingers laced through his was a lifeline as he
walked through the front door of the Taylor home. This was the most
important day of his life, and he definitely needed to bring his A
game, and as much backup as he could gather, if he was going to get
Mr. Taylor to listen to him.

His life depended on that. Twyla would never
be his for real, forever, unless he managed it. Yeah, she would
stay with him. She loved him, against all odds, but it would never
be the same until he put his ring on her finger. He knew she wanted
that. He did too. Badly. That ring would tell the world that she
was his. That he was hers. And with her family’s blessing, they
could live the life they wanted to live. The way they wanted to
live it. Together.

The part that made him most nervous about this
family meeting that Twyla had called, was the fact that Zack was
going to be there. He hadn’t seen his best friend since they were
in jail together. Ryan knew that Zack would blame him for that too.
It was just the way he was. Hardheaded, opinionated and usually put
upon. But he could be one of the most caring men you’ve ever met in
your life too. He was the one who had dragged Ryan to his house
after school the day he told him he was running away from home,
because his new stepfather was an asshole.

That day he’d become a part of the Taylor
family. They had taken him in without question, after his mother
gave her permission for him to live with them. And thank God she
had, or he would never have become who he was today. He probably
would be in prison for killing Clarence. This family had saved him.
And because of his choice not to tell them about what Twyla was up
to he had hurt them, let them down.

This situation was all his damned fault, and
he felt damned bad about it. But he wasn’t going to let their anger
or warning to stay away keep him from what he needed to
do.

When have you ever listened to
anyone who told you what to do?

Those mysterious words replayed in his mind,
and a chill skirted down his spine to settle at the base. Whoever
kept repeating that to him, was definitely doing him a favor. Those
words had played over and over in his mind since he’d heard them in
the farmhouse. They gave him determination, because they were right
on the mark. Everything Ryan wanted in life he’d gone after, until
Twyla. Her he’d backed off from, because of the debt he owed her
family.

Her brother made sure he was reminded of that
debt, but usually in subtle ways.

Now that Ryan thought about it, Zack had to
know how he felt about Twyla. Those subtle warnings were to keep
him away from her too. The warnings he’d given other men who showed
an interest in Twyla weren’t so subtle. Ryan was thankful for those
though, because it kept Twyla from getting attached to someone
else. It kept her there for him. Even though what Zack had done to
her wasn’t fair, Ryan didn’t fault him for it.