The Cowboy Code (14 page)

“If you're going to say no, Maggie, now's the time.”

“I'm not.”

He kissed one nipple, then the other, teasing them with his tongue. She couldn't stop saying his name.

And when he entered her, she bit her lip to stop from screaming. He felt so, so good.

She caught her breath, matched him stroke for stroke, until they moved in a rhythm of their own.

They fell over the cliff together, free-falling in time and space until they landed back in a small whirlpool somewhere in the middle of Wyoming.

No matter what, this was a place she'd never forget.

And she'd never forget Joe Watley.

Besides, what was the sense in playing “what if”? Her life was fine dining and high-rises; his was wide-open spaces and cowboy coffee. She was designer clothes and car services; he was flannel and horses. She had Danny; he had Cowboy Quest.

They didn't stand a chance.

J
oe knew he had to remove the silly grin from his face before he walked back into camp.

The kids weren't stupid and neither was his staff.

He'd tried to stay away from her, he really had. But when he'd seen her, bathed in the moonlight, watching him…he'd wanted her.

It felt so right holding her in his arms, making love with her. He was happy with Maggie. Happier than he'd been in a long, lonely time.

He even thought that he loved her.

But happiness took a dive when a picture of Ellen Rogers flashed into his mind. He'd loved Ellen, too,
and she'd left for the lure of the big city. And Maggie lived in the most vibrant city in the world, with a glamorous job to boot. She was a
star,
for Pete's sake.

He'd sworn he wouldn't risk his heart on a woman like this ever again.

Too late.

That wiped the silly grin off his face.

“Joe, we have a problem.” Ronnie came running up to him. He nodded in Maggie's direction. If he noticed anything, he didn't let on.

Ronnie shook his head. “Danny's missing. So is Brandon.”

Joe's stomach turned. This couldn't be good.

“Oh, no!” said Maggie, running to the camp with Ronnie and Joe.

“What happened?” Joe asked.

“Seems like they went to the latrine and they never came back,” Ronnie said.

“Are all the horses here, Ronnie?”

“Yes. Wherever the boys are, they're on foot.”

“What can I do, Joe?” Maggie asked, fear in her voice. “I can't believe he'd run away again.” She took a deep breath to steady herself. “If I lose Danny…”

He took her by the arms. Her hair was still wet, and he didn't want her to catch a cold.

“Don't think that way,” he said. “Get a coat on, and follow me. Hurry.”

The cowboys had gathered by the campfire, carrying flashlights and ropes. He assigned three of them to stay with the remaining boys.

“Maggie, Ronnie and I will head for the ravine. The rest of you fan out in teams of two from here. If you find them, give a yell and use this.” He handed out flare guns.

He took Maggie's hand and led her north, toward the ravine, through a dense forest of lodgepole pines and other evergreens and conifers. The thick carpet of needles kept them somewhat out of the mud.

“Are you okay, Maggie?” That was a stupid question.

“I'm doing okay, but I'm worried to death.”

“Of course you are, but we'll find them.” Joe took a deep breath. There were all kinds of animals in these woods: bears, mountain lions… He touched his gun. He'd hate for the boys to come across any of those.

“Help!”

The sound was faint, but he'd heard it. “Stop. Listen.”

“Help!”

“It's coming from over there.” Ronnie pointed.

“Danny?” yelled Maggie. “Yes!”

“Keep yelling,” Joe ordered.

By flashlight, they found Danny crouched, looking down a fifty-foot ravine. Brandon was standing at the bottom.

“Brandon, are you okay?” Joe shouted.

“I'm fine. I just can't get out of here. The bank is slippery and wet and I can't grab onto anything.”

“I forgot my rope, Joe,” Danny said. “You said that a cowboy should never be without his rope. I don't have it.”

The boy was scared for his friend. Joe handed him his rope. “We'll get him out of there.”

“Don't be mad at Brandon, Joe. It's my fault. I'm the one who went off the path. I thought I heard a calf, but it was a deer and—”

“We'll talk about it later,” Joe said, putting his hand on Danny's shoulder to calm him. “What do you think we should do, Dan?”

“I think I should go down there and help Brandon. It's my fault that this happened.”

He looked at Maggie, and she was ready to shake her head no, but changed her mind when she saw his expression.

“Okay, Dan. We're going to take our ropes and go hand over hand and walk backward down the bank. We aren't going to rappel down or do anything fancy. We're just going to take it slow. Okay?”

“Got it,” Danny said.

Joe walked over to Maggie. “Remember, I'm a paramedic and so is Cookie. And I can get a chopper here in minutes. Don't worry.” Cookie handed him a gear bag full of supplies he might need.

“Boss, there's a harness in there, and pulleys and
hitches,” Cookie said, walking over to Joe. “And I brought a litter. Just in case.”

Ronnie fired his flare gun. More help would be coming. If Brandon needed to be taken to a hospital for whatever reason, he'd phone Jake Dixon to chopper in, but he hoped that wouldn't be necessary.

As he and Danny tied ropes around their waists, the cowboys wrapped the other ends around a tree trunk several times.

“Remember, we're not going to rappel down, Dan. We are going to take this nice and slow. Backward. Hand over hand. Watch me first.”

Joe anchored the gear bag around himself and demonstrated how he wanted Danny to walk backward down the rope line.

“Be careful, Danny.”

“I will, Aunt Maggie.”

“I know you will, but I had to say it anyway. It's my job.”

Danny laughed nervously, and so did the others who were standing nearby. It cleared some of the tension.

“Ready?” Joe asked. He'd climb down first so if the boy got into trouble, he'd be there to help him.

Slowly, they climbed down the side of the ravine until they were next to Brandon.

“Nothing broken, Brandon?”

“Nope.”

“By any chance, are those steel-toed boots?”
Joe asked, still checking the boy for broken bones, grateful that Jake Dixon had advised him to take EMT training if he was going to work with kids.

Brandon smiled. “Yeah.”

“Smart.”

Joe couldn't find anything wrong with him. “We're going to slip both of you guys into a harness. Then we'll secure a couple of pulleys and hitches, but mostly the guys upstairs will pull us up. Okay?”

“Okay. Thanks, Joe,” Brandon said.

“I'm sorry, Brandon. I thought it was a calf,” Danny said.

“For what? You didn't do anything. The mud just washed away, and I slid down. I'm glad you didn't leave me.”

“I couldn't do that.”

Joe cupped his hands over his mouth and yelled. “Pull him up. Nice and slow!”

Joe let out a long breath of relief. “Brandon, just grip the rope and walk up. The others on top will pull you up. Dan, you'll go next.”

When they got to the top, Joe was astonished to see that those who were pulling the ropes were none other than the Cowboy Quest kids, with Maggie at the front of the line. His staff was cheering them on.

Warmth washed over him when he saw Brandon in the middle of his peers, receiving pats on the
back. Brandon was shaking hands with everyone, graciously thanking them for their help.

After Brandon told them about Danny's part in the rescue, Danny was hoisted on their shoulders and there were more cheers.

“Atta boy, Dan!” yelled Quint.

When they finally let Danny down, Maggie hugged him tightly to her. “Don't ever go off like that on your own again. Do you hear me?”

He nodded and hugged her back, smiling.

Brandon walked over to Joe with his hand extended. “I'd like to thank you, Joe. And I'm sorry again for screwing up.”

Joe took Brandon's hand and shook it, then pulled the boy toward him in a hug.

He knew that he'd have to have a conversation with the two boys about straying from camp, lost calf or not, but now was not the time.

He glanced at Maggie. Huddled in her coat, she seemed cold, and he wanted to take her in his arms and make her warm.

Later in her tent, he intended to make her that offer.

 

The next evening, Maggie watched as the boys brought wood for the campfire and stacked it in the fire ring. She checked her clipboard and was pleased to note that everyone had signed up to do
something. Even the cowboys were going to sing, do magic tricks, tell stories.

They all needed some fun. Two more days of roping and branding calves, aching bones and night watch left everyone mentally and physically drained.

She'd taught Danny how to do the Texas Skip, and listened to Brandon's singing and guitar playing and made some suggestions. She was so impressed with his obvious talent that she'd asked him to perform two songs in the show. She could tell by his shy smile that he was flattered by her praise.

Maggie was anxious to return to the Silver River Ranch. She couldn't wait to sleep in a real bed and use a real bathroom, but she'd definitely miss the whirlpool that she'd shared with Joe.

Smiling, she thought of how they'd quietly made love again in her tent last night. His hard, taut body moved over hers, his kisses were warm and tender, sometimes hard and demanding, and he was attentive to her every need. They moved together like longtime lovers, yet when they made love it was new, fresh and romantic, and she'd never felt more alive.

From what she'd observed firsthand, Joe's Cowboy Quest program was an overwhelming success. He was an honorable man, an advocate for children, a skillful lover, a profitable rancher and stock contractor.

And she loved him.

But Joe had never expressed feelings for her. Maybe she was just a fling for him. Since their lives were so different, why should she expect anything more?

She couldn't think about this now or she'd go crazy. She had a show to put on.

The boys and the cowboys were grouped around the campfire. There were no more cliques that she could tell. Cowboys and kids were all mixed together, and she was sure that Joe noticed this, too. He didn't miss a thing.

She announced Brandon and his first song. His voice drifted around her, clear and true. It was a song about losing love then finding it again, set to an urban beat. Even though she'd heard it several times before, this time it spoke to her, reminding her of her situation with Joe.

Tears pooled in her eyes when Brandon got a standing ovation from everyone, led by Danny. Brandon looked like a deer in the headlights, frozen and stunned. It took him a while to recover to sing his other selection.

Not such a tough guy anymore,
she thought. Brandon just needed positive reinforcement and some real friends, people who liked him for himself.

Danny performed the Texas Skip with only a couple of good-natured blunders that had everyone
laughing at his reaction. He, too, got a great cheer and several of the boys made him promise to teach them.

Joe did some knot-tying, passing out rope for everyone to try. “Now we'll do the rolling hitch. It's used to fasten a rope to a post.” He did the bowline knot, half hitches and the water knot. The cowboys assisted everyone and it was a lot of fun.

Buckets of popcorn, gallons of water and hundreds of s'mores later, Joe finally called for lights-out. “Tomorrow we'll head back to the ranch. It'll be two days on the trail, weather permitting, and it looks like we're in for some sunshine. I'd like to thank everyone for a job well done. You've all worked hard on this cattle drive.” He took his hat off and held it over his heart. “Therefore, I am proud to call you all cowboys. And Maggie, I am proud to call you a cowgirl.”

They all tossed their hats. “Yee-haw!”

She laughed. What a great night.

David, one of the quieter boys, stepped forward. She knew what was planned because she'd been part of it.

“Joe, we have a petition here signed by all the members of Cowboy Quest. It says that we'd like to change our vote, and vote that Brandon doesn't get sent home.”

Joe took the paper that she handed him. He glanced at Maggie, and she nodded slightly. He stud
ied the petition. “I see that you all agree. Brandon, I'd like to hear what you think.”

The boy stood. “I deserve to be sent home for all the trouble I caused. But I really want to stay. Cowboy Quest turned out to be pretty cool after all.”

Joe grinned. “Then the majority rules. Brandon will not be sent home.”

As she was leaving for her tent, Danny passed her. She gave her nephew an impromptu hug. “I'm very proud of you, Danny.” Then she did the same for Brandon, who was walking with Danny. “Fabulous singing and playing tonight. I'm so proud of you.”

“Thanks, Maggie,” Brandon said. “And…uh…thanks for helping me.”

The two boys headed for their tents.

Joe came over to her. “This was a wonderful night, and you did an excellent job. But everyone did something tonight except you, Maggie.”

She shrugged. “Maybe my talent was putting the show together. It was fun, and I had a great time working with the kids and the cowboys.”

“I could tell.”

He took her hand, and she felt the familiar thrill run through her.

“Maybe a talent show would be just what we need at the end of every Cowboy Quest.” He pushed his hat back with his thumb. “I think I'm going to make
the talent show part of the program for sure. Care to stick around and run it twice a year?”

She laughed. “You never know. Someday I might take you up on your offer.” He had to be joking. He knew she was headed back to New York just as soon as the program was over. That was where she made a living, what she knew, where she was raising Danny.

Yes, she'd be raising Danny. Even though there were the two incidents that Joe would have to report to Judge Cunningham, ultimately they'd had positive outcomes. Danny would most likely stay with her—and she was more than grateful.

She had Joe Watley to thank—for his program, for helping Danny and the other boys. For just being him.

Maggie knew she'd miss Joe desperately when she had to leave.

But there was no reason to tell him that she loved him. Nothing could be done about it. She didn't expect him to make such an admission either. He knew that she didn't belong here.