“Pete Hale is going to win it,” Kyle said, whipping around to face him.
“Looks that way.”
“I can’t wait for you to teach me how to ride, too.”
“Kyle,” Lauren interrupted. “You shouldn’t assume Sheriff Connelly wants you for a student.”
People watched him walk by, but it was like old home week for him. Usually he spent his time at a rodeo behind the chutes and not in uniform. Half the town seemed to call his name or wave or simply smile. It was a campaign year, which meant every handshake might count for a vote, although in truth he took pride in knowing the names and faces of many Via Del Caballo citizens.
“Besides, it looks like he probably won’t have time for you.”
“Actually, I might have time to help him out.”
“Really?” Kyle cried so loudly a few people glanced in his direction. “Awesome!”
“Your mom’s right, though. The best thing for you is to learn how to ride. And not just regular riding but how to jump.”
“What?” Kyle said.
His mom looked just as perplexed, but she’d stopped at the end of an aisle and he could see a man staring at her, a man a few years younger than he was, which only solidified his earlier assumption that Lauren Danners was at least ten years his junior. Far too young for him, and made to look even younger with her tiny little nose and big hazel eyes. He’d wondered where her husband was.
“You don’t mean over obstacles, do you?”
He bit back a smile. “Actually, I do.”
Whatever she was about to say was interrupted by a man calling out, “Good job, little dude.”
“Did you see me, Uncle Jax?” Kyle asked with pride on his face. “I did it. I didn’t chicken out.”
“I saw.”
They had to bump and nudge their way down the aisle. Someone called out his name again, and Bren waved at them blindly.
“Jax, this is Bren Connelly,” his sister said, sitting next to her brother, the resemblance startling. They both had dark hair and hazel eyes, but Lauren’s were more green than gold. Looking at them sitting there next to each other, he realized Jax was quite a few years older than his sister.
“Wait a second,” Jax said. “Brennan Connelly. The bull rider?”
“One and the same.”
They shook hands. “Heard a lot about you.”
“Guesswhatguesswhatguesswhat?” Kyle bounced in his seat.
“What?” asked Jax.
“Sheriff Connelly is going to teach me how to ride steers.”
Jax’s brows lifted in surprise. “You teach steer riding?”
“Kyle, stop.” Lauren shook her head, shooting both men a look of apology, her long dark hair falling loose around her shoulder. “He has a bad habit of assuming things.”
“But he said he would.”
“Actually, what I said was that first you need to learn how to ride.”
“You said jump,” Kyle said.
“Which means riding.”
The rodeo announcer’s voice drowned out the sound of the crowd and they all turned and watched the last rider burst from the chute. The boy threw his arm up in the air and rode for one jump, two and then three. Bren wondered if the kid would cover for eight, but the steer changed directions and the poor boy didn’t stand a chance. In a heartbeat it was all over.
“Pete won!” Kyle said with youthful enthusiasm tinged by hero worship. “That’s so cool.”
“Actually, he hasn’t officially won yet. There’s more steer riding tomorrow.”
People began to stand up. The rodeo announcer thanked everyone for attending. Jax Stone didn’t move.
“You said he needed to learn how to jump. As in horses, yes?”
Bren nodded. “He should take some lessons from your neighbor Natalie Reynolds. She’s been working with a few of my kids.”
“I don’t understand,” Lauren said.
He turned to her, although that meant facing her again and being reminded of how young she was. “It teaches them how to center themselves on an animal’s back,” he explained. “Like a pendulum or a teeter-totter. The rider stays straight up and down while the horse—and later a steer or bull—rocks beneath them. Once a rider learns how to stay centered, the rest is easy.”
Jax was nodding. “Makes sense.”
“I don’t have to wear those riding tights, do I?”
“Kyle, really.” Lauren pursed her lips and shook her head. “I haven’t agreed for you to take lessons with Sheriff Connelly. I’m not even sure what he charges.”
“I’ve told you a hundred times, don’t worry about money,” her brother said.
“And I’ve told you I didn’t move out here to accept your charity. It’s bad enough I’m living in your housekeeper’s quarters.”
“I built that for you.”
“Yeah, for when I visited. Not permanently.”
“So what if you live there now?”
“I refuse to live with my brother.”
Lauren glanced in Bren’s direction, clearly embarrassed by their outburst. “Sorry,” she said. “You don’t need to hear our dirty laundry.”
Kyle stood up. “It’s not dirty laundry. It’s true. Ever since Dad died, Uncle Jax has wanted us to live with him, but you wouldn’t let us.”
“Kyle!”
“I have eyes and ears, Mom. I see how hard you’re struggling to finish school and take care of me and everything. But it doesn’t have to be like that. I want to live with Uncle Jax. You’re the one that’s making this hard.”
He turned and ran off. Lauren tried to grab his hand. She missed.
“I’ll go after him,” Jax said, standing, but he had an admonishing look on his face, too. “You should listen to your son, Lauren.”
They both watched them leave, and Bren could tell Lauren wished she could slip through the slats in the grandstand.
“Sorry,” she muttered.
“Don’t apologize. I understand.”
She met his gaze and her eyes asked the question Do you? and he found himself wondering why a pretty little thing like her had so much sadness in her eyes. He looked away from her, troubled by how easily her sorrow tugged at his heart. The grandstands were nearly empty now, just the two of them sitting there. They both watched as Jax caught up with his nephew, stopping him with a hand on his shoulder. He still wore his rodeo number and it flapped in a sudden breeze as he came to a stop. He didn’t know what Jax said to his nephew, but the boy’s shoulders slumped. He reached for his uncle’s hand and together they walked out of the grandstands together.
“A year ago I would never have thought my brother would warm up to my son like that.”
He glanced back at her, the same breeze kicking her brown hair across her face, Bren admitting once again