“Rain’s coming,” he said, as if he hadn’t piqued her curiosity.
Jules looked up at the clear sky. “It doesn’t look like rain. How can you tell?”
“You mean you can’t smell it?”
Taking a sniff of the air, she shook her head.
His chuckle came from deep in his chest and seemed to ripple through her body. “Mark my word, we’ll have rain within the next day or two.”
She thought he was crazy, but she kept her opinion to herself.
“Shawn mentioned that you used to ride.”
She suddenly wished she hadn’t told Shawn the truth and had made up a story, instead. But either way, it wouldn’t keep these men whose lives revolved around horses from thinking she should be on one. And she wasn’t ready for that.
“Used to being the operative words,” she finally replied and waited for more questions. When none came, she was surprised.
“Hey, Tanner!”
Jules turned to see two teenagers hurrying across the street toward them.
“Morning, boys,” Tanner greeted them.
The taller of the two appeared to be about sixteen and acknowledged Jules with a nod of his head, then turned to Tanner. “Are you riding this weekend?”
“I wouldn’t miss it.”
“Great! We don’t get to see you much, and we were sure hoping you would be.”
The other boy nodded. “Too much work in the summer and too much school the rest of the time.”
“Both of those are more important than rodeos,” Tanner told them, “but I know what you mean. It’s never easy to do the things you have to do, instead of what you want to, but some things can’t be ignored. School is one of them.”
Both boys nodded, their expressions solemn. “Thanks, Tanner. We’ll see you this weekend. You’ll know it’s us by the whoopin’ and hollerin’ in the stands.”
Tanner chuckled and shook his head as they walked away. Jules was impressed by the way he’d handled the boys. They obviously idolized him, and he’d given them good advice. She suspected they would heed his words much more than they would their parents’.
She hadn’t missed how much people in the small town liked him. It was becoming clear he had a good heart. “They certainly think highly of you here in Desperation.”
“They keep me going. Doesn’t matter to them how good or bad I ride, they’re always behind me, cheering me on.”
“Has it always been that way?” she asked.
“They’re good people. If somebody needs help, there’s always someone or a bunch of someones who are there and ready to lend a helping hand, no matter what it is.”
She admired the way people in a small town pulled together. She’d never been aware of the same in Wichita, but then, it was a large city and she didn’t have a lot of opportunities to socialize. Her career took up the bulk of her time. Why, she didn’t even know her neighbors in the apartment building where she lived!
“I’d better get back to the ranch,” he said, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk. “There’s work to be done before the shindig on Friday. You’ll be there, right?”
She knew he was talking about Desperation’s upcoming Fourth of July celebration. Beth and several other women in the community had talked her into helping the next day to set up for the community barbecue on Friday. “I’m looking forward to it.”
“The rodeo, too?”
His serious expression told her he wasn’t joking, and she wondered if it had anything to do with his proposition. “Well…”
“That’s what I figured,” he said with a curt nod, his mouth turning down in a frown. “Tell Beth hello for me.”
He turned around to walk back the way they’d come, leaving Jules totally baffled. With a sigh of frustration, she continued on her way. She couldn’t help it if her heart lodged in her throat every time she saw someone climb on a horse. She suspected it would be even worse to watch Tanner ride again, now that she was getting to know him.
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