Carrillo's Cowboy by Tee Smith (classic novels to read .txt) 📗

about you come up to the house after that? I’ll get the kids afternoon tea, slip on some house clothes, and we can share a drink?”

“Sure thing.” He nodded. On the outside, he remained cool, calm, and collected, but inside, he was secretly fist punching the air. He could think of nothing he’d rather do with his afternoon. Well, maybe, more than just having a beer with a beautiful woman, but he’d take what he could get.

Chapter Five

“You promised you’d clean your room this afternoon, mister.”

“Yeah, but . . . ” Austin whined.

“Yeah, but nothing. Have your drink, then get cracking. There will be no video games until you do.”

“How clean does it have to be? Can I just put my clothes in the wash?”

“No! You need to get all the rubbish out from under your bed. You’ll have rats in there if you don’t clean it up.”

“At least they can be my friends.”

“Eww, you’re so gross,” his twin sister squealed.

“Why doesn’t Gracie have to do hers? She’s your favourite, isn’t she?”

“She’s not my favourite. Look, I’m not having this argument with you. Grace has to do hers as well. If you want your quads back, then get to it.”

“Can I have it this afternoon if I get my room cleaned up?”

Callie raised her eyes to the heavens and wondered if she had ever given her dad such a hard time. “Just get it done, and we’ll see.” She secretly hoped he would. She had taken their quad bikes off them, thinking that would be their most significant incentive, and was fast tiring of having to drive them to and from the bus stop. It wasn’t that she minded so much, but she always found herself busy and would need to stop mid-task to do it.

With the kids finally cleaning their rooms, she climbed out of her filthy work clothes, replacing them with a summer dress. It was a little skimpy, showing off more of her legs than she’d like, but she was behind on her laundry. Not only did she need a permanent farmhand, but a housekeeper wouldn’t be bad either. She was sure Cody wouldn’t complain about her attire. She had noticed the way he checked her out, not in a leery way, more in an appreciative one. It was nice to be appreciated by a man. It had been a long time since she had felt wanted.

Brushing her thoughts aside, she headed to the veranda, grabbing a can of beer for him and a bottle of bubbly with a glass for herself. Jim did his best to keep the store stocked, but she still ordered a few extra cases of wine for herself when she ordered for the rodeo. Adam would say she had a drinking problem, but she had spent many nights alone. In the last years of her marriage, Adam had worked late most nights, and she had found herself whiling away the hours with a book and a beverage. It had almost become her trusty companion. Having someone to share a drink with after a dusty day out in the yard would be a nice change.

“Howdy there, ma’am,” Cody called, reaching the front of the house the same time she did. Dressed in clean blue jeans and a crisp white button-up shirt, he smelled delicious, and her mind returned to the memory of seeing him just out of the shower the day before.

“Evening.” She smiled in return and watched as he appraised her too. “I brought you a beer.”

“Nice,” he said, taking it from her hand and cracking it open. “Thank you.”

They settled into the swinging seat that hung from the veranda rafters and looked out over the farm in silence. Callie remembered a time when grass and garden beds adorned the front of the house. Over the years, the lack of rain and pure neglect had left the area barren, like most gardens in the Bend. She didn’t mind; she had never been much of a green thumb anyway. It would just be another chore for her.

“Where . . .”

“What are . . .”

They both spoke at the same time before excusing themselves and offering the other to talk first.

“I was going . . .”

“It’s just . . .”

They both began again, this time dissolving into fits of laughter. It felt good. Callie would josh around with the kids, particularly Grace, Austin was the more serious of the two, but laughing with another adult held something special.

When her laughter subsided to giggles, she tried again. “Where do you call home?”

Cody’s laughter stopped, and a serious look took over his face. “Home is fluid,” he replied.

“Fluid?” she asked, confused by his answer.

“Yeah, y’know, it changes. Never the same.”

“Where are your parents?”

Cody took a long swig of his beer and stared off into the distance. “My parents didn’t believe in putting down roots. They lived on the land. Moved from place to place. I’ve never really lived in one place long enough to call it home.”

Callie blew out a low whistle. I can’t even imagine what that would be like. I’ve only ever lived in two places . . . well, three if you count the first place I lived in with my husband.”

Cody gave her a hard stare. A mixture of emotions passed behind his blue eyes. She longed to know what he was thinking but didn’t know him well enough to ask.

“What happened with your husband?” he asked finally.

“Well, he’s my ex-husband now.” She offered a sad smile. “I don’t know. Drifted apart,, I guess. Married too young. Having the kids was hard on him. He wanted his career and the lifestyle that went with it; that didn’t really include having a family. I suppose he fell out of love with me.”

“Do you believe that?”

“What?”

“That people fall in and out of love?”

“I do. I used to believe that marriage was forever. When Adam and I married, I never dreamed I’d be where I am now. I always told myself I would work