Riding the River (10 page)

Matt reached out to grab her horse’s reins,
as Richie jumped down to help Tess up.

“What happened?”

“Move you two,” warned Matt pointing toward a
rock. “… rattlesnake.”

Richie grabbed Tess’ arm and towed her
quickly in the other direction. Sarah only caught part of the
action, having ridden a ways up already.

“What’s happening?”

“… Snake spooked Tess’ horse.”

“My God, Tess. Are you all right?” Sarah was
all concern.

From Richie’s arms, Tess smiled, “Yeah, I’m
good.”

Sarah raised her eyebrows at them. Matt just
smiled – Richie was a fast mover, all right…

He got Tess back on her horse and they all
rode off for the ranch house. This time they made it, uneventfully,
back to the barn. Sarah and Matt dismounted first. He took her
horse and she looked up at him.

“Thank you. That was wonderful.”

“You’re welcome, Sarah. Glad I could be of
service.”

She smiled at him. “Guess I’d better go. Duty
calls…”

“… Duty?”

“I promised Dale I’d help him with lunch
today.”

Matt’s lips parted and his eyes widened.
“You’re going to cook? With Dale?”

“Sure,” she shrugged. “Something wrong with
cooking?”

He shook his head. “Apparently not. I just
thought you were a guest here – Not an employee.”

“Just helping out a bit.” She looked over at
Tess. “You coming?”

“No, I’ll catch up with you later.” She was
still dangerously close to Richie.

Sarah laughed and walked happily up to the
ranch house, her ponytail swinging. Matt grinned at her departing
back and thought she was something else… And someone he wanted to
get to know better.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Beef sizzling…

Bread rising…

Fresh apples…

“The trick, Sarah, is to have all these great
smells… Then everyone gets hungry, eats a lot and thinks you’re a
great cook.” Dale was explaining the fine points of cowboy cooking
to Sarah.

She looked around the kitchen. There was no
one else there but the two of them.
What a character
… He’d
been talking her ear off all the while he was putting in a pinch of
this and a sprinkling of that. Several saucepans in various sizes
and Dutch ovens were all heating ingredients at once. She wondered
how he could keep track of what needed more cooking and what was
done.

Sarah donned an apron while she listened to
him go on and on. Curly brown hair that was obviously never combed
gave him a crazed look. But when it came to food, this guy knew it
all.

“So what all are we serving today, Dale?”

He started rattling off dishes quickfire – “…
Black bean salad, cornbread, chicken fried steak, tortilla soup and
apple pie...” Sarah blinked.

“Wow… Impressive. What do you want me to
do?”

“I want you to do the Black bean salad. You
okay with that?”

“Sure… Just tell me what and how…” He smiled
at her.

“I like you, Sarah. You cut through the
crap…”

She started laughing at him.

“Let me wash my hands and I’ll get
started.”

While Sarah worked at Dale’s instruction, she
remembered how much she enjoyed cooking.
What was it about this
trip?
It was non-stop enjoyment for her. She hadn’t had a few
days in forever that were as memorable as these last days had
been.

She’d been working quietly for a while and
Dale was curious.

“… You’re from Baltimore, Sarah?”

“Yes, sir…”

“Tell me about life in Baltimore.” He noticed
the frown that immediately came onto her face. Uh-oh… raw nerve…
“Sorry, I really didn’t mean to pry.”

Sarah continued putting ingredients into a
bowl and said nothing for a few minutes. Then she cleared her
throat…

“… My life in Baltimore is strained and
difficult. Sometimes it can be fun and lots of times, it’s
not.”

“Is that why you came out West?” She looked
at Dale and smiled.

“My mother lived in Lovelock, outside of
Reno…”

“… Yes, I know it…”

“…Anyway, I’ve always dreamed of coming out
here and having…”

When she didn’t continue, he filled in the
blank for her.

“… some fun? An adventure, maybe?”

“Promise you’ll keep this to yourself, Dale?”
He crossed his heart with a ladle.

“I think I’m looking for a new life…”

His eyes widened. “And you thought you’d find
it here, in Nevada?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know… maybe… It seemed
like a place to start. I have to make a change.”

“Is it that critical?”

“… Yes.”

“Why?” Her hand stalled in the bowl.

“Would you like to know what happened to me
the day before I flew out here?”

“… Only if you want to tell me.” Dale stopped
what he was doing and looked in her open face. He saw tears in her
eyes.

She gulped. “I had a panic attack.”

His jaw tightened and he became angry on her
behalf. “What happened?”

“Sure you want to hear this?”

“… I do…”

“I have this boss…” and she filled him in on
the antics of Joe the Tyrant, always bullying her and getting her
upset. She mentioned the rashes too.

Sarah lowered her eyes to the bowl and began
mixing ingredients again. “I’ve never told that to anyone, not even
my father.”

“That was my next question. Where the hell is
your family?” He stirred a few saucepans and checked a dish in the
oven. “Here, put your salad in this bowl.” He handed her a big bowl
from the cupboard.

She shrugged again. “I love my family. It’s
just my father and my grandfather, but they’re wonderful
people.”

“Why don’t they know about Joe the Tyrant
then?”

“Because I haven’t told them, I guess. They
expect… much from me -- They’re in politics.” She looked up into
his sympathetic eyes. “I...I don’t want to disappoint either of
them.”

“So you’re disappointing yourself instead. Is
that it?”

“… Maybe…” She put the salad she’d made into
a refrigerator.

“How’d you manage to get away?”

“After my panic attack, actually before that,
my best friend, Abby and I searched for a vacation place. When I
had the attack, I just booked everything and beat it out of there.
They were all crying recriminations in my wake.”

He shook his head. Dale thought he’d heard it
all now.

“… No boyfriend?”

This time she rolled her eyes back in her
head. “I call Ben, the absentee boyfriend. He’s perfect for my
family, but not so great for me. I broke up with him before I left.
Guess what he said to me?”

“What?”

“He’d give me a week to come to my senses.”
Dale laughed loudly at that.

“You need a new home, a new job and a new
guy, Sarah.”

“Thanks, Dale. With you and Dan as my
therapists, I should do all right.” She laughed with him.

He took her hand and sat her down at the
kitchen table with him.

“Listen, sweetie. I don’t know if the Wild
West will be your salvation or not, but I sure hope so, for your
sake. You’re terrific, Sarah and you deserve much more out of life
than you’re apparently getting…”

He handed her a tissue from a box on the
table.

“…Um…”

“So let’s finish up lunch and decide what
we’re fixing for dinner.”

“Okay…” she sniffed.

“And I want you to help me out on the horse
drive tomorrow. Can you do that?”

“If you can stand to have me around that
much, Dale…”

“Come on, let’s finish up.”

As they finished lunch and started setting
things out on the buffet table, Dale was thinking long and hard. He
could really use an assistant in the kitchen. Would she want to
stay on after her week was over? He was going to talk to Mr. Walker
about it. She was so lovely and nice, and she needed help. It was
obvious that she didn’t want to go home.

And he thought Matt might need a little more
time too. He saw how Matt looked at her… It was just a matter of
time before the guy would get off his butt and realize what he had
in front of him. Dale thought he might push her out there too, if
he had the chance. His wheels were turning…

####

Some of the cowboys walked into the big
dining room for lunch to see a bunch of female guests excitedly
picking teams. Aaron, Frank and Tyler had come in ahead of Matt and
Richie… The women had finished up lunch and were about to head out.
Matt noticed Sarah’s cheeks were flushed with excitement about
something, but Tess was checking out Richie. He smiled over at
her.

“Listen, Matt,” whispered Richie. “Can you
play for me after dinner? I want to take Tess out to show her the
stars…”

Matt laughed. “Oh, is that what you call it
now?”

Richie nodded.

“Okay… Your guitar in your cabin?”

“Yeah, I’ll get it over to you.” Then he
looked at him. “Where’s yours? You’re better than I am and you
haven’t played much in weeks.”

Matt rubbed his forehead. “Just haven’t felt
like it, I guess.”

“Well, get in the mood. Women like
musicians…” he kidded.

The ladies all got up and left the room
noisily. Mr. Walker came in from another room and walked over to
the cowboys to say hello.

“What’s with the gals?” said Frank.

“… Off to play cowboy golf.”

Matt smiled at that. “They seem to be finding
great things to do every day.”

“That’s what we’re here for, son. Let’s keep
the guests happy…” Mr. Walker strode after the women to make sure
they were heading to the right area. He stuck his head back around
a corner. “Frank, give me a hand, would you? I want you to show the
ladies where the golf course is set up.”

Frank got up and walked with Mr. Walker
outside. The rest of the cowboys got their lunches and sat down to
eat.

“So…” began Richie while cutting his
steak.

“So?” asked Matt.

“She golfs too.”

Matt shrugged. “Probably plays a lot in
Baltimore.”

“What can’t this girl do? Hmmm?”

“… I don’t know, Richie. I don’t know her
much at all.”

Dale heard that comment and walked over to
stand by their table. Richie, Matt, Aaron and Tyler looked up at
him.

“That’s your mistake.”

“What is, Dale?”

“That you don’t know her very well.”

“Yeah, that’s what I said… So?” Matt looked
puzzled.

“And that’s all I’m saying…”

Matt and Richie were scratching their heads.
“But you haven’t said anything, Dale…” said Richie.

“That’s right… Enjoy the chicken fried
steak.” And he walked back to the kitchen.

The four cowboys looked at each other with
wide eyes.

“What the hell was that all about?” asked
Tyler. He reached for the saltshaker.

“… Absolutely no idea,” said Matt.

Richie tried again. “Maybe… he was trying to
tell us something. You, Matt… “

“What about me?”

“You made the comment that he responded
to.”

“What did I say?”

Richie looked confused. Aaron brightened. “…
Something about not knowing someone or something…”

“This is hopeless.” Tyler began to eat his
food.

Everyone agreed with him except for Matt. He
sat there, fork in hand and tried to figure out what Dale had been
saying. He put down his fork, excused himself and got up to walk
into the kitchen. Richie gave him a puzzled look when he left.

Dale was cleaning pans when Matt walked in
the kitchen. He pushed a hand through his dark hair, the other held
onto his cowboy hat. Serious eyes…

“I said I didn’t know her very well…”

“That’s correct…” Dale stopped what he was
doing and looked over at him.

“And then you said that was my mistake,
right?”

“Yes…”

“What are you trying to say, Dale?”

“I’m saying nothing. You need to figure this
out for yourself.”

Matt shuffled his feet and looked around the
kitchen. His eyes finally came back to Dale’s.

“Can you give me a clue?”

“You want one, don’t you?”

“Yes…”

“…Why?”

That was a question that sent him around the
bend.
Why did he? Didn’t he like his life as it was? Why did he
want to get mixed up with some girl? A city slicker…

“Listen, Dale… I don’t know anything right
now.” He sat down on a chair by the kitchen table. “I met this girl
from Baltimore that I can’t stop thinking about. I know nothing
much about her…” He shook his head at Dale’s unasked question. “I
asked… She wouldn’t tell me anything about her life.”

“Maybe she’s not ready.”

“Okay, I get that but…”

“… But?” Dale sat down by him.

“She’s a guest, for Pete’s sake. She’ll be
going back to Baltimore in less than a week.” He lowered his eyes.
“Why do I care?”

Dale smiled. “You care because you don’t want
her going back to Baltimore, son. Face it…”

“… That’s not fair of me. Her home is
somewhere else. She has a life somewhere else… Probably a
boyfriend.”

“What if she stayed another week?”

“… Same difference. She’d still be leaving
sooner or later.” He looked up at Dale. “My stomach is tied in
knots…” Dale smiled.

“This is a long time in coming for you, Matt.
Even if she doesn’t stay, welcome back to the world. She’s
apparently opened up that can of worms that you welded shut after
Betsy left.”

“We’re not saying her name…”

“No, don’t give Betsy that much importance.
You and she were a bad fit from the beginning. The only good thing
to come of that relationship is little Tommy. How is he, by the
way?”

Matt smiled. “He’s good and coming out to
visit next month. He’ll stay with my grandfather, as will I.”

“Still looking at buying that little ranch
next door to your grandfather’s?”