Christmas On The Silver Horn Ranch

“You’re making me sound spoiled, when all I want is a little human company. By the way, what are you doing in the house at this hour?”

“Greta promised to make cookies for the fence crew. They’re working out on Antelope Range, replacing barbed wire on some of the cross fencing. And since it’s starting to snow, I thought I’d drive out and give the boys an early treat of hot coffee and cookies. Want to come along?”

“To Antelope Range? If I remember right, that’s several miles out there,” Bowie said.

Rafe chuckled. “Well, if you need to stay where you’ll be warm and cozy, then go ahead.”

“Rafe!” Lilly protested. “Bowie hasn’t been out of the hospital even two days yet. He needs to recuperate before you start dragging him all over creation.”

Just hearing Rafe accuse him of being soft was enough to make Bowie set little Austin on the floor and turn toward his brother. “I haven’t lost anything out on Antelope Range, but I’ll go with you. Otherwise, I’ll never hear the end of it.”

“Bowie, as a nurse I’m advising you not to leave the house,” Lilly insisted.

Rafe cast his wife a subtle look. One that Bowie didn’t understand, but Lilly seemed to catch instantly.

“Don’t worry, honey,” Rafe said. “I won’t let him out of the truck. He’s only going along for the ride.”

Lilly gave her husband a dismissive wave before she turned her attention back to the tree decorations. “I don’t like the idea at all. But I can’t fight two men at once. And maybe a bit of fresh air will do him good,” she reluctantly added.

“Tessa, would you go upstairs and get one of Bowie’s old coats and a hat?” Rafe asked the maid. “We’ll meet you in the kitchen.”

“I’ll be right down with them, Rafe,” she replied.

Tessa left to fetch the garments, and Rafe and Bowie started out of the room. As they made their way down a hallway, Rafe slowed his stride to match Bowie’s hindered pace.

“Look, Rafe, I know you’re trying to give me a break, and I appreciate it,” Bowie said. “But there’s no need for you to waste time on me. When cabin fever starts driving me crazy, I’ll go outside and walk around.”

“Shut up. This isn’t a pity invitation. And if I know you, cabin fever is already driving you crazy. On the way out to Antelope Range, you’re going to help me check over a herd of heifers. I want to see if you still have the eye.”

“What sort of eye?” Bowie asked as they neared the kitchen.

Rafe chuckled. “A rancher’s eye. What else?”

Yeah, what else? Bowie thought glumly. But he’d never been a rancher. Not like his brothers. Oh, he knew the workings of a cow and he could ride a horse, but he’d never had the natural instinct that Rafe or Finn had, or his two oldest brothers, Clancy and Evan. Yet that hadn’t stopped the members of his family from trying to draw him into the business. On one hand, the idea that they wanted him living and working close to them was endearing. But there was another part of Bowie that none of his brothers or dad or grandfather understood—he needed to be free of constraints. Even those that involved his family. He wanted to do his own thing. Be his own man. Not follow in his family’s footsteps.

“Like I said, you’re wasting your time,” Bowie replied.

“I’ll be the judge of that.”

In the kitchen Greta, a plump woman in her early sixties, packed the bagged cookies and a large thermos of coffee into a cardboard box and handed it all to Rafe.

“That should keep everything from rolling around on the floorboard of the truck,” the cook told him. She cast a skeptical glance at Bowie. “You taking this whippersnapper with you?”

“I thought I could put up with him for a little while,” Rafe told Greta.

“Well, don’t shake up little Bowie too much. He’s in a weakened condition.”

Little Bowie. He was six feet tall and weighed a solid one hundred and ninety pounds. He could hardly be described as little. But Greta had been cooking for the family since before Bowie was born. To her, he would always be the last son born to Orin and Claudia.

Bowie let out a good-natured groan. “For pity’s sake, I’m not a helpless invalid!”

Rafe grinned at his brother. “Don’t worry about him, Greta. I hear he’s going to have a pretty nurse to keep him healthy.”

Greta rolled her eyes. “Yeah, and remember what happened to you the last time a pretty nurse came to the house?”

Laughing, Rafe said, “Sure I remember. She got Grandfather back on his feet and acting like a young man again.”

“Ha! She also turned you into a husband and a daddy!”

“What can I say?” Rafe said happily. “I know a good thing when I see it.”

Tessa chose that moment to enter the kitchen carrying a green plaid ranch coat and a brown felt cowboy hat.

After propping his crutch against a cabinet, Bowie balanced his weight on his good foot and allowed the young woman to help him pull on the coat.

“It’s hell to be helpless,” Bowie muttered as he jammed the hat onto his head.

“It’s a lot better than being under that burning tree,” Tessa said pointedly.

Because Tessa was normally as quiet as a church mouse, both Rafe and Greta burst out laughing.

“Guess she told you,” Rafe teased.

“Amen, Tessa,” Greta told the maid. “The scamp needs to be reminded how lucky he is.”

Bowie started toward the door. “Let’s get out of here. I’ve had all the women I can take for one morning.”

Thankfully, Rafe had parked his truck not far from the back door of the kitchen, and Bowie crossed the distance without too much effort.

Once the two men were buckled inside the warm cab and headed in a westerly direction through the ranch yard, Rafe said, “You know, Tessa is pretty fond of you. I hope you’ll watch what you say to her. She’s got a pretty soft heart.”

Bowie shot a look of disbelief at his brother. “Excuse me, but aren’t you the same guy who went for years never worrying about breaking a girl’s heart?”

Rafe frowned. “I’ve mended my ways since then.”

“Well, Tessa is like a little sister to me. What is she now? Twenty, maybe?”

“She just turned twenty-one.”

And she was wasting her young life here on this ranch, Bowie thought. She needed to be in the city with other young people, doing fun and exciting things. But he kept his opinion to himself. Rafe wouldn’t understand. He believed there was no place on earth like the Silver Horn. He didn’t understand Bowie’s need to experience a broader life.

He looked out the passenger window and released a long breath. “Don’t worry. I’ll be kind to Tessa.”

The truck rolled by the big main horse barn and Bowie instantly thought of Finn. Their brother lived in Northern California now with his wife, Mariah, and son, Harry. In a few months, their second child was due to arrive.

“I miss Finn,” Bowie said. “When I look at the horse barn, I still expect him to be there, taking care of the horses. The ranch isn’t the same without him around.”

“No. But Dad and Colley are doing a good job keeping everything going smoothly with the horses. And let’s face it, Finn is finally doing what he’s always wanted to do, working with mustangs. I’m happy for him.” He glanced over at Bowie. “Now that I think of it, while you’re off work recuperating, you ought to go up and spend some time with him and Mariah. They’d be happy to have you.”