Runaway Cowboy. Judy Christenberry

she gets to sleep!” he complained loudly, stirring Jessica awake.

      “I intended to wake her, Hank, but you did that job for me.” Jim picked up the pot and began pouring everyone some coffee.

      “I’ll make this brief, but I want to be sure you understand that you’re expected to eat with the guests and keep a smile on your face. And, talk, too, Hank.”

      “I’m not good at talking.”

      “They’ll take over for you, if you just act nicely to them,” Jim said. “Right, Pete?”

      “I guess, but I have more important things to do.”

      “Tomorrow is the lariat roping lessons. Who do you have to teach that class, Pete?”

      “I need all my ropers!”

      “Then you teach the class,” Jim said calmly.

      “No! I’m not—I’ll send Mitch.”

      Jim made a note on his papers. “Hank, the man you put in charge of the afternoon ride didn’t make any inquiries about whether the guests had taken the hour-long ride on Monday. There were two ladies who hadn’t ridden before. If Jess hadn’t gone along, they never would’ve made it.”

      Hank shrugged. “I told him. He just forgot.”

      “You were there helping everyone mount and checking out things for yourself. You could’ve pulled those two ladies out of the group and made sure they had a short first-day ride. We want people happy. Not in the hospital.”

      Hank muttered under his breath, but he didn’t argue with Jim.

      Jessica decided her grandfather must have put the fear of God in those two. Or maybe they just responded better to a man. She hated to admit that about her own brothers.

      “Now, tell me the problems you had today,” Jim said, sitting down and picking up his coffee mug.

      There was dead silence.

      “No problems? No complaints?” Jim prodded.

      “I suggest we each get one night a week to eat in the kitchen. Having to keep a smile on our faces from sunrise to sunset is difficult,” Jessica said.

      “Good point. Do you each want to pick your day?”

      Hank immediately said, “I pick tomorrow!”

      “You did notice that it’s for only the evening meal, didn’t you, Hank?”

      “Not all day?” Hank complained.

      “No, not all day. Although it would be beneficial to show up at other times, too. So Hank chooses Wednesday night. Pete?”

      “Friday night.”

      “Okay, you realize your sister didn’t mean you could duck out of the evening activity, right, Pete?”

      “How am I supposed to have a social life if I’m always working here?”

      “Maybe, as we get further along, we’ll find ways to give each of you time off for a personal life, but not now.”

      “I guess I’ll take Tuesday evening,” Jessica said. Then she thought of another idea she’d had that her brothers had resisted. “What about name tags?”

      Jim frowned. “Why name tags?”

      So he was opposed to them, too? “So we could learn people’s names quicker, and also so we’d know if the guest had been here one week already or was brand new, or had special needs. We have a family of four coming in a couple of weeks and the mother is diabetic.”

      Jim nodded. “Good idea. Can you handle getting them ready?”

      “Of course.” She’d have them ready for next Monday’s influx of new guests. At least, she hoped so. Or was Jim setting her up to fail?

      Wearily, she realized she was too tired to think anymore tonight.

      “Cliff, do you have anything to say?” Jim asked.

      “Nope, you did a good job, Jim.”

      “Thanks, Cliff. Okay, let’s wrap it up for tonight. Breakfast is served from seven to nine. Find a time to say hello to the guests and spread a little cheer. Good night.”

      Knowing her brothers and grandfather disliked housekeeping, Jessica immediately began gathering up the coffee mugs. She managed three and then turned to get the other two, almost bumping into Jim. He held the other two mugs in his hands.

      “I’ll take them,” she said brusquely.

      “Just because you’re the only female of the group doesn’t mean you have to do the cleaning up, Jess.” He stepped around her and put the two cups in the dishwasher. “Remind me to address that subject in our meeting tomorrow night.”

      “No, I won’t.”

      “Why not?”

      “Because they’ll think I was complaining about them not cleaning up after themselves. I’ve tried that before and I didn’t get anywhere. They just laughed and said it was my job.”

      He leaned against the counter. “What if I bring it up because I was struck by the unfairness of it?”

      “Fine, but don’t use anything I’ve said as a complaint, because I’m not saying anything!”

      “I won’t need to. I’ll simply tell them to take turns or they’ll do without coffee.”

      “Fine. But it wasn’t my idea.”

      “Definitely not.”

      She turned to head to her bedroom.

      “Oh, Jess, can you wait just a minute?”

      “Yes?” she said, knowing her exhaustion was apparent in her voice.

      “I wanted to tell you that you did a really good job today.”

      “What are you talking about?”

      “You did a great job at lunch, without my forcing you to do so. You just got up and went out there and did your best to charm the socks off everyone at your table. You were answering questions and dispensing advice all over the place. I heard several guests at your table quoting you as they talked to others. It was a nice job.”

      “Thank you.”

      “I particularly wanted you to know that going with the two-hour rider group was great. Did you do it because you realized Steve had too many to take on his own?”

      “I thought it could be difficult. I mean, Steve tried, but when you have good riders and a couple of poor ones, it’s hard to manage.”

      “True, but you spotted the problem.”

      “I—I think I forgot to thank you for keeping me from falling.”

      “Again, my pleasure.”

      She felt her cheeks flushing, her throat drying. It was time to get out of there before she did something stupid. “Well, good night,” she said, backing up until her behind hit the door. She spun on her boots and scooted out the door to safety.

      Jim was even more of a threat when he was being nice.

      Chapter Three

      Jim joined the early eaters for breakfast the next morning. He wasn’t surprised to see both Pete and Hank eating a hasty breakfast.

      Jessica came in, and though Jim thought it would’ve been nice to have breakfast with her, she, as per his instructions, joined a table of guests. She greeted them with a smile.

      Lucky them.

      One of the guests at his table asked him a question at that moment, and, still distracted, he came up with an answer. “It takes a while to be able to relax on a horse. Most of the cowboys have been riding since they