Rebecca Winters – One Summer At The Ranch: The Wyoming Cowboy / A Family for the Rugged Rancher / The Man Who Had Everything (страница 13)
“A good night’s sleep is all I need. I’ll let you go so you can join your son. It would be better not to tell him about the fire.”
“Agreed.” She couldn’t let him hang up yet. “Carson, how long were you in the hospital?”
“About five weeks. From the end of January to the beginning of March.”
“Were you all suffering from the same illness?”
“On our ward, yes.”
His cough worried her. “Are you getting better?”
“We’re certainly better than we were when we were flown in.”
“I mean, are you going to get well?”
“We don’t know.”
She frowned. “You mean the doctor can’t tell you?”
“Not really. They’re doing studies on us. The day before we left the hospital, a general came to talk to us about asking Congress for the funding to help our cause.”
“The Congress doesn’t do enough,” she muttered.
“Well, at least he came to our floor and said he’s rooting for us, so that’s better than nothing.”
“Then you could have a lifelong ailment.”
“That’s right, but we can live with it, even if no one else can. The ranch house gets pretty noisy when the three of us have a coughing fit together.”
He tried to make light of it, but she wasn’t laughing. “You’re very brave.”
“If you want to talk brave, let’s talk about your husband. Why did he join the Marines?”
“His best friend went into the military and got killed by friendly gunfire. It tore Tony apart. He decided to join up to finish what his friend had started. We were already married, but I could tell he wanted it more than anything. We were lucky to go to Japan together before he was deployed to Afghanistan. It doesn’t happen often that a marine can go there with his wife.”
“You’re right.”
“During 9/11 I saw those firefighters run into those torched buildings and I wondered how they did it. Then I met Tony and understood. It’s in his genes, I guess.”
“Those genes saved lives, Tracy. That’s why you can’t talk about him in the same breath you talk about me and the guys. We’re no heroes.”
But they were.
“You shouldn’t have gone near that fire today.”
“That’s the second time you’ve said it.”
“I’m sorry. Johnny’s been worried about you, too.”
“Tracy,” he said in a deep voice, “I appreciate your concern more than you know. I haven’t had anyone worry about me in a long time. Thanks for caring. We’ll see each other at breakfast. Good night.”
He hung up too fast for her to wish him the same. Afraid he’d be up all night coughing, she knew that if she didn’t hurry to the game room she’d brood over his condition. And his state of mind, which was none of her business and shouldn’t be her concern. But to her chagrin, she couldn’t think about anything else on her way to the ranch house.
* * *
CARSON HAD MEDICATED himself before going to bed, but he woke up late Sunday morning feeling only slightly better. It wasn’t just his physical condition due to the smoke he’d inhaled the day before, despite the oxygen. When he’d phoned Tracy last night, he hadn’t realized how vulnerable he’d been at the time. His sickness had worn him down and caused him to reveal a little of his inner turmoil, something he regretted.
She was a guest on the ranch. He was supposed to be helping to lift her burden for the week instead of talking about himself.
He grabbed his cell phone to call his ranch foreman and get an update on the progress with the fencing in the upper pasture. After they chatted for a few minutes, he dragged his body out of bed to shower and shave.
Once dressed, he walked through the ranch house to the kitchen and poured himself some coffee. He talked to the cook and kitchen help while he drank it, then entered the dining room and discovered a few guests still eating, but no sign of Tracy or Johnny. Ross would know what was going on.
Carson went to the office, but the place was empty. Since Buck wouldn’t be back until lunchtime, he headed for the foyer to talk to Susan. “How’s everything going?”
“Great!”
“Have you seen Ross?”
“Yes. Another couple of groups went fishing with him. Did you know that by this evening we’ll be all booked up?”
“That’s the kind of news I like to hear.”
Like most ranches, the cattle operation on the Teton Valley Ranch had little, if any, margin. But the value of the land kept rising faster than the liability from raising cattle. It was either sell the hay, grass and cows to someone else, or borrow on the land when the market was down. In time he hoped the dude ranch idea would bring in its own source of revenue.
“Johnny Baretta was asking about you this morning. He can’t wait for another horseback riding lesson.”
That news pleased him even more. “Do you have any idea where he and his mother might be?”
“I heard him and the Harris children talking about going swimming. You should have seen how cute they all looked in their cowboy outfits when they came in for breakfast.”
“I can imagine. Talk to you later.”
He walked outside and headed around the other side of the house to the pool area. The swimming pool had been Buck’s idea and was a real winner for children and people who simply wanted to laze about. The kids’ shouts of laughter reached his ears before he came upon the two families enjoying the water.
“Carson!”
Johnny’s shriek of excitement took him by surprise and touched him. “Hey, partner.”
The boy scrambled out of the pool and came running over to him. Above his dark, wet hair he saw Tracy’s silvery-gold head as she trod water. Their eyes met for a brief moment, causing a totally foreign adrenaline rush. “Can we go horseback riding now?”
“That’s the plan,” he said before breaking the eye contact.
Like clockwork, the other two children hurried over to him dripping water. “Will you take us riding, too?”
He chuckled. It brought on another coughing spell. “Of course. Anyone who wants a lesson, meet me at the corral in fifteen minutes!” he called out so the parents would hear him. They waved back in acknowledgment. As he turned to leave, he heard Rachel ask Johnny why Carson coughed so much.
“Because he breathed all this bad stuff in the war.”
“What kind of stuff?” Sam wanted to know.
“Smoke and other junk.”
“Ew. I hope I never have to go.”
“I wish my dad had never joined the Marines.” Johnny’s mournful comment tore Carson apart.
He hurried back inside the ranch house to grab a bite of breakfast in the kitchen. While he downed bacon and eggs, he phoned Bert and asked him to start saddling Goldie and two of the other ponies.
After they hung up, he packed some food and drinks in a basket. In a minute, he left through the back door and placed the basket in the back of the truck, then climbed in. The interior still smelled of acrid smoke.
If the kids wanted some fun after their lesson, he’d let them get in the back and he’d drive them to the pasture to see the cattle. When he’d been a boy, he’d enjoyed walking around the new calves and figured they would, too.
When he reached the barn, he saddled Annie, but held off getting more horses ready for the Harrises. They might not want to ride, only watch their children.
Another lesson for Tracy and her son ought to be enough for them to take a short ride down by the Snake River tomorrow. With enough practice, they’d be able to enjoy half-day rides around the property.
If Johnny could handle it, they’d camp out in the Bridger-Teton forest where there were breathtaking vistas of the surrounding country. Even if the journey would be bittersweet, he longed to show them his favorite places. Since joining the Marines, he hadn’t done any of this.
Once Annie’s bridle was on, he grasped the reins and walked her outside to the corral where Bert had assembled the ponies. In the distance, he saw the children running along the dirt road toward them. All three were dressed in their cowboy outfits.
Johnny reached him first. “Do you think Goldie missed me?”
“Why don’t you give her forelock a rub and find out?”
Without hesitation he approached the golden palomino. “Hi, Goldie. It’s me.” He reached out to touch her. The pony nickered and nudged him affectionately. “Hey—” He turned to Carson. “Did you see that? She really likes me!”
While Burt grinned, Carson burst into laughter. It ended in a coughing spasm, but he didn’t care. “She sure does.”