The Cowboy Way. Christine Wenger

cool, Jake.”

      She had never said that in her dream.

      “Kevin?” She shot up in bed. “Kevin?”

      “Out here, Mom!”

      “Where?” She tore out of the bedroom, her heart pounding wildly in her chest. She ran into his bedroom, but he wasn’t there. She checked the bathroom. “Kevin?” Barely breathing, she raced to the door and tore it open.

      “Hi, Mom!”

      Her son was astride a big black horse—Killer Bee. He was belted into some kind of special saddle with a high back and sides. Jake Dixon was standing next to him with reins in his hand. They both were petting the horse and smiling like they hadn’t a care in the world.

      When she caught something extra in Jake’s grin, she realized that she was barefoot on the front porch of the Trail Boss Cabin in her red satin nightgown with spaghetti straps, a buy-one-get-one-free special from WalMart.

      She crossed her arms in front of her, sure that Jake could see how cold she actually was.

      “Kevin,” she began in her scolding-mom tone.

      “Aw…don’t be mad at me. I got up early and saw Jake at the corral. We had breakfast in the bunkhouse with all the cowboys. It was so cool, Mom. Joe Watley was there. And Gilbert. And Ty Watson, T.J., and Trace and…”

      She held her hand up to stop him from naming every cowboy in the bunkhouse. “You should have asked me, Kevin. Also, I don’t think you should be taking up so much of Mr. Dixon’s time.”

      She studied Jake. He was clean-shaven. She looked for signs of a hangover, but his eyes were bright and clear. He tipped his hat back with a thumb, a gesture she had seen more than once. It was as if he were saying “Look me over. I don’t care.”

      So she looked.

      “Kev’s not bothering me. I enjoy his company.”

      “That may be true, but Kevin shouldn’t have left the cabin without letting me know.”

      “He said he didn’t want to wake you, and that you were snoring up a storm.” Jake chuckled.

      “I certainly do not snore!” Beth protested.

      “Mom, you were sucking the walls in.”

      She couldn’t help but laugh. Running a hand through her hair, she realized that it was tangled. In spite of the cold, she felt a warm flush as Jake Dixon’s blatant gaze swept over her again.

      “Mr. Dixon, may I impose on you to watch Kevin a while longer while I get dressed?”

      “Of course. I’m just going to let Kevin walk Killer around the paddock. Take your time.”

      “Be careful, Kevin. Nothing fancy, okay? And listen to Mr. Dixon.”

      “I will. I will.” His voice had that “quit nagging me” tone to it, but she couldn’t help herself. She always worried.

      As she was about to go back into the cabin, Emily Dixon turned the corner and waved to her. “Beth, you’re just the person I’m looking for.”

      “Good morning, Emily.” She slumped over in another attempt to make her nightgown appear longer. “Please come inside. I need to get dressed.”

      “Good morning, boys.” She gave Kevin and Jake a wave. Turning back to Beth, she said, “Stay put. I’ll make it quick. I need another volunteer for the overnight campout, a woman to assist the girls in the program. Now, I know you are on vacation, and you need a break from— Well, I wouldn’t ask if I wasn’t desperate. Can you help us out?”

      “Certainly,” she said without hesitation. If she was assisting Wheelchair Rodeo, she could keep an eye on Kevin.

      “But, Mrs. Dixon, my mom doesn’t know how to ride,” Kevin said. “She won’t be able to go on the trail ride and campout.”

      “I can take care of teaching your mother how to ride,” Jake said.

      His blue eyes sparkled in the morning sun like twin sapphires. She didn’t particularly want to be in Jake Dixon’s company all that much. In just the short time she’d known him, she was already feeling a pull toward him. And now she was having erotic dreams about him. Why?

      He was stirring up feelings that she hadn’t known she had, as well as fears about Brad and his drinking that she’d tried to bury, along with her husband.

      She saw an amused look on Emily Dixon’s face. It was as if she knew that Beth was trying to fight an attraction to Jake.

      “Thank you, son.” Emily kissed Jake on the cheek as she walked by him, then she was off down the path that led to the ranch house. “Breakfast is still being served in the mess hall, Beth,” she said over her shoulder as she disappeared around the corner.

      Beth was suddenly too nervous to eat. “I’ll be ready in a half hour,” she said to Jake. “I guess I should pick out a horse.”

      “I’ll pick one out for you if you’d like,” Jake said.

      She nodded and turned to go into the cabin, then turned back. “Jake? Mr. Dixon?”

      “Yes, ma’am?” He waited patiently for her to continue.

      She didn’t know if she could ask the question she wanted to without sounding like a fool. But what the heck? “Do you have a black horse with four white socks?”

      He studied her as if trying to figure out the reason for her request. To his credit, he didn’t laugh. “I believe I do.”

      Well, she was in this far, she might as well let him think she was completely out of her mind. “Do you have a horse with four white socks named Thunder, by any chance?” she asked.

      “Thunder?” He raised an eyebrow.

      His eyes met hers. The moment hung between them and then he smiled. A look of gentle understanding crossed his tanned face.

      “Yeah. Yes. I do have a horse named Thunder. And he has four white socks.”

      She knew he wasn’t telling the truth, but the white lie moved him up a couple of notches in her estimation.

      “Could I have that horse?” she asked.

      “Sure.”

      Smiling, she hurried into the cabin and shut the door. Leaning against it, she clamped a hand over her mouth to control the giddiness that bubbled up from somewhere. She felt happy, euphoric, as if she were flying. She released her hand and her laughter overflowed.

      Maybe her strange mood was due to her relief that Kevin was okay. Maybe it was because she was going to ride a horse after all these years. Maybe it was because she got a good night’s sleep. But it was not, definitely not, because she had dreamed about Jake all night, then awoken to see him so attentive toward her son.

      Kevin would have memories that he’d cherish forever, and she’d always be grateful to Jake Dixon for that.

      She was glad that she was going to help out with Wheelchair Rodeo. Since they’d both received a “scholarship” to WR, it gave her the opportunity to contribute something to the program. WR was something special.

      She rushed to her room, plucked a pair of jeans and a T-shirt out of her suitcase and hurried to the shower.

      Twenty minutes later, refreshed and dressed, she stepped out onto the porch of her cabin. She walked toward the barn and saw Jake sitting on the corral fence, waiting for her.

      Jake felt Beth’s gaze on the back of his neck, watching his every move with Kevin. A prickle of irritation shot through him. What did she think he was going to do? Toss the boy, wheelchair and all, into his pickup and hit the honky-tonks?

      Finally, with her reluctant permission, he handed Kevin and Killer over to bronc