Peace River (Rockland Ranch Series) (24 page)

             
She shook her head sadly.  “I’m trying not to question your wisdom, Slade.  You’ve proven time and again to have wonderful judgment, and you’re obviously very good at what you do."  She lowered her eyes.  “I’m trying to understand the bulls.  Really I am.  But I’m afraid I’ll never get it.  We’re just going to have to agree to disagree on this.”  She looked up into his face.  “I’ll respect your decisions.  I owe you at least that because of how you haven’t questioned my actions.”

             
Rubbing her hand with his thumb, he asked, “Can I explain my decisions?”  She nodded.  “At first it was the adrenaline.  I was a hotshot kid with a chip on my shoulder.  Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately, I had a knack for it, and ended up competing at higher and higher levels.  For the last two years I’ve competed at the National Finals and done well.  Rossen and I set a goal to go to the National Finals again this year as ropers, and at the time it just seemed to make sense to go all-around, too.  It’s not that much bigger deal to go for all-around when I’m already at the rodeo.  At least it hasn’t been in the past.”

He leaned carefully back in his chair again.
  “If it helps, I’d already decided to only ride enough to make it to the NFR this year and then let the bulls and the all-around go.  Actually, I may quit rodeoing full time after this season anyway.  It’s been a fun ride, but we’re both getting a little burned out.  I think Rossen would’ve quit at the end of last year if it weren’t for me.”  He ran his fingers through his hair with his good hand.  “It’s kind of intoxicating to strive to be one of the best in the world at what you do.  That sounds egotistical I know, but it’s been a rush.”

             
When she saw it from his perspective it made a little more sense.  Not enough in her mind, but a little. 

             
He continued, “I need to be honest with you, Isabel.  There’s a chance I can heal fast enough to still reach our goal.”  He met her eyes.  “If I can, I’m going to try.  I owe that to Rossen.”

             
She nodded.  “I can respect that.” 

             
His look was penetrating.  “Even if it means I have to ride another bull?”  In her heart she was horrified.  She tried not to let him see that.

             
She couldn’t look him in the eye as she said, “Do what you have to do.”  She turned away and went into his room.  The thought of another bull made her sick.  The only way she could deal with this was to try to put it out of her mind and pretend it was far away in the future. 

             
His room was a masterpiece.  It was obviously the master suite with an oversized rock fireplace and flat screen TV on one wall.  One whole other wall was windows that looked out over the river valley with French doors out to a private deck. 

             
A massive four-poster bed was covered in brown and tan brocade bedding with wild horses running across the pillow shams.  Leather fringed pillows with saddle conchas were piled around them.  The drapes matched the throw pillows and even the walls were a leathered faux finish with nail heads.

             
He’d said he’d put his stuff away, but she knew he was still too sore to do much so she unpacked his clothing and sorted it in piles on the dresser top, hoping he wouldn’t have to bend to open drawers.  She took his shaving kit into his bathroom and left it on the top of the stone counter. 

             
He had a huge Jacuzzi tub that would probably really help his injuries if he could safely get in and out.  The shower next to it would prove easier for the time being.  There were no towels out, so she pulled some from below the counter and left bath towels near the shower and hung a hand towel above the sink. 

             
Going back out to get her own bag, she carried it into the great room and asked, “Where do you want me?” 

             
At her question he flashed a teasing grin.  “Here in this chair beside me.”

             
“I meant to sleep.”  She instantly knew she’d made a mistake, as he gave an even bigger smile.  She put her hands on her hips.  “Slade Marsh.  Which bedroom, other than yours, should I put my stuff in?”

             
“Oh, all right.”  He pretended to pout.  “Take the one across the hall.”

             
Her room was similar to his with its tans and browns, but instead of wild horses it had an old-fashioned patchwork quilt with burgundy and gold and old farm antiques.  The fireplace was much smaller and her bathroom had only a large shower with a built-in seat. 

             
Returning to the car, she brought in several bags of groceries and took them into the kitchen on the far side of the great room.  Slade watched her opening and shutting cupboards and drawers as she tried to find where to put things.  There were a few staples but mostly the cupboards were empty.  The huge fridge was also empty and had been turned off and propped open.  She turned it on, wiped it out and wiped off the stone countertop.  His home was incredible, but had obviously been lived in very little.  Turning on the radio under the counter, she dug for garbage bags for the trash compactor and opened the window over the sink to let in the breeze. 

             
She went back into the great room with Slade, and sang along with the radio as she started to pull dust covers off the rest of the furniture.  She took each one out the French doors to the deck to shake out the dust and then folded them into a pile.  “Where do these live?”  She indicated the covers. 

             
“Just put them in one of the cupboards there in the laundry room.”  He pointed toward two doors next to the kitchen.  She opened one and found an almost empty pantry and tried the next door.  It was a laundry room with a stacked washer and dryer and large utility sink between cupboards and counters.  Stowing the dust covers she walked back out.

             
“You know that guy who was hassling me about my net worth?  He has a house about five times nicer than mine.”

             
He shrugged his one shoulder.  “I bought Microsoft stock at the right time.  It’s just a house.”  Sadly, he added, “The ground I inherited from my dad.  I’d rather have him than the ranch, but I didn’t get a choice.” 

             
Wishing she knew what to do to lessen the sadness, she came back in and sat beside him again and gently took his hand.  She could tell he had a headache from the slight grimace between his eyes and how he kept changing positions to try to get comfortable and she asked, “How long has it been since you’ve had something for pain?” 

She stood and stepped behind his chair and started to massage his head.  She loved doing this for him and his hair between her fingers was incredible. 

              “I quit taking anything.”

             
“You’re taking nothing at all?  Not even Ibuprofen?”

             
His eyes were closed.  “Nothing.”

             
“Nothing isn’t working very well, is it?”

             
“No, but your hands are.”  He paused, seeming to enjoy her touch, then continued, “Do you want to know something funny?  One day Rossen and I were joking about how we needed someone to cook for us, organize us, run errands for us, and was a masseuse too.  We thought it was a fantasy too good to be true.”  He pulled her hand down to his lips and kissed her palm.  “Two days later we met you.”

             
Smiling, she answered, “And now look what kind of shape you’re in.”  She gently turned his head to work on the other side.

             
“Only because I didn’t listen to you.”  He closed his eyes and continued, “Rossen thought we needed a large Swedish woman with sweet rolls on her head.”

             
She leaned around to look at his face.  “Sweet rolls on her head?”  She laughed.

             
“Like Princess Leia.  Didn’t you see that Pink Panther movie with Helga, the masseuse, that Clouseau stuck the vacuum on, just before he sucked up the parrot?” 

             
She laughed again.  “I must have missed that one.”

             
“You should see it.  It’s very funny.”  After a moment he qualified that.  “You’re not like Helga at all, by the way.”  He shifted still trying to get comfortable. 

             
“What else still hurts?” 

             
“The tape on my collar bone is driving me nuts and keeps catching on the seam of my shirt.  And I feel like I’m in a straightjacket in this brace.” 

             
“Take your shirt off.”  He opened his eyes to look up at her.  “Come on, the doctor is going to take the tape off tomorrow anyway.  We’ll loosen it where it’s pulling and you can go shirtless.  Or at least leave it unbuttoned.  Hank and Ruby won’t mind.”

             
“I take it you won’t mind either.”

             
She laughed softly and shook her head.  “No.  I definitely won’t mind.”

             
He smiled tiredly as she helped him off with his shirt and carefully peeled back the tape where it was pulling. 

             
“Better?”

             
“Much.  Thanks.”

             
Squeezing the top of his shoulder, she said, “Okay, my beautifully-sculpted friend, what can I do around here to keep busy?  Help me find something to do so I don’t get into mischief.” 

             
He smiled.  “Mischief, huh?”  He considered for a moment.  “Are we talking scrap-booking here, or finding a cure for cancer?”

             
“No scrapbooking, but nothing that requires laboratory chemicals either.  Something in between.  Something close, so I can help you if you need me, but will keep me from driving you crazy.”

             
“Do you like to read?  You could cook, play chess, swim.  You could . . . ” 

             
“Swim?  You’re kidding me!  You have a pool here?  This high in the mountains?  I would have thought it would be way too cold here for a pool.” 

             
He struggled out of his chair and held out his hand.  “Come with me.”  He led off through an archway at the back of the great room and around a corner.

             
Through double glass doors she could see a large pool cover.  It was indoors! 

             
“It really is too cold here for an outdoor pool.  You’d only be able to use it a few months of the year.”

             
The pool house was timber framed the same as the house and barn with huge logs spanning the ceiling above.  On the stone deck there was an elliptical trainer and a universal gym with a TV and DVD player on the wall.  Several lounge chairs lined up on the edge of the pool and there was a basketball hoop on the other side. 

             
He walked inside a small room to the side, flipped some switches and the pool cover began to retract.  “The main computer can be accessed remotely so they can be up to temperature when I arrive.”  At the word “they” she looked around and saw a hot tub outside the pool house on the deck. 

             
“There’s a shower and dressing room through there.”  He indicated a door. 

             
“This will be great!  When your doctor recommended pool therapy, I assumed we’d have to drive into town to the high school or something.” 

             
“It will be nice to be able to do it here.  Honestly, Cooper and his friends use it more than I do, but I enjoy it sometimes.  It’s great in here in January when there’s about two feet of snow outside.”

             
“I can imagine!  Two feet!  That’s a lot of snow!  How do you feed the cattle?”

             
“We keep the snow pushed off near the barns, and use an old Snow Cat to load hay.”

             
She looked out a window.  “How many barns?”  She’d only seen one out there. 

             
“There are three more around in the hills.  Rocklands push all their cows up here in the winter.  This valley is more sheltered and we feed together.” 

             
“Do you have to maintain that whole road in that much snow?”  That seemed like a daunting task.

             
“Actually, there’s an elk wintering station further up the road, so in winter the fish and game people split it with us.”

             
They headed out of the pool house and back to his chair.

             
As she fixed a late lunch, she asked him again, “I’ll love using the pool, but isn’t there something you need done?  I’d like to do something useful too.” 

             
She brought him a hot beef sandwich and he smiled and said, “I’d say you’re pretty useful.”

             
After lunch as he rested, she explored the rest of the house.  There was a home theater and game room in the basement, as well as another bedroom suite, a large storage area and what looked like some type of wine cellar or vault with beautiful backlit glass.