One Texas Cowboy Too Many (Burnt Boot, Texas #3)(46)

“I hope to hell you are long gone from Burnt Boot by then,” Mavis said.

“That isn’t likely. See you later, Leah.” He whistled a country music tune as he rounded the front end of his truck and got inside.

“Tell Sawyer thanks for letting you borrow his truck,” Leah yelled and waved.

Anything worth having or loving is worth fightin’ for, so put on your fightin’ gloves, man. That inner voice kept on repeating it until he finally nodded.

“Yes, sir! Leah is worth fighting for.”

*

Mavis reminded Leah of a drum major as she marched into the house ahead of her, not offering to carry the little bouquet, much less roll her suitcase into the house. Stopping in the middle of the foyer, her grandmother spun around and set her mouth in a firm line. Her hands went to her hips. “I’m mad at you for calling that cowboy to come get you. You’ve got dozens of cousins, and your Daddy could have made the trip to Dallas. Why are you home, anyway?”

“Answers,” Leah said simply.

“To what?” Mavis dropped her chin, frowned, and glared through eyes that were little more than slits.

“Questions, but I’m not having this conversation tonight, Granny. I want to take a long shower, sit on the porch with a glass of sweet tea, watch the sun go down, and think.”

“Fair enough. When you get done figuring it out, I know you’ll do the right thing. I can always depend on you to have a level head on your shoulders. You are a Brennan, and you’ll see right quick when you think about it that wild cowboys aren’t for you.” Mavis patted her hair. “You hear what happened out at Wild Horse? I swear to God, Naomi blames me if she eats cabbage and farts.”

“Did you make it happen?” Leah asked. “Tell me the truth. Is this the work of Brennans, or are we taking credit to keep the feud going?”

“Hell yes, we did it. Cost me a ton of money, but it made me happier than anything we’ve ever done. They shouldn’t have blown up our school the way they did. If they want a shit war, by damn, I’ll deliver them a shit war.”

“Granny!”

Mavis shook her finger at Leah. “Don’t you take that tone with me, young lady. I’m old, but I still know how to fight. If Naomi wants to meet me in the middle of the road in front of the bar, I’ll wipe up the street with her ass and enjoy doin’ it. Crazy old broad never has forgiven me for takin’ her feller.”

Leah had started up the stairs, but she stopped midway. “Oh? I’ve never heard this before.”

“She was dating your grandpa and he broke it off with her to ask me to go to a street dance. She had to settle for Jimmy Gallagher, who wasn’t nearly as good-lookin’.”

“And the feud took on a whole new life, right?”

Mavis grinned. “Oh, yes, it did. And it ain’t never ending, long as either one of us has got breath in our lungs.”

“I believe you,” Leah said.

Mavis nodded and headed to her quarters at the back of the house.

Leah pulled her suitcase into her bedroom and fell into a rocking chair beside the window. Granny was right when she’d said that Leah had always done the right thing, but Leah wasn’t so sure what that was anymore. Did she do the right thing for her, for River Bend, or what?

She dug her phone from her purse and dialed Rhett’s number.

“Did you forget something? I can bring it to you,” he said.

“No, I need something though. Which heart do I follow, the one that makes me happy or the one that makes me responsible?” she asked.

“I heard a story once that says that we all have three hearts. There’s one that we let our family inside to see, one that we let our friends see, and one that we keep all to ourselves that no one ever gets to see except maybe a soul mate. It would be wonderful to make a decision that can make them all happy, but if you can’t, then you make the third heart happy because it’s the one that you keep all for yourself,” he said.

“Are you back at Fiddle Creek?”

“I’m here all alone. There’s a note on the table that says Sawyer and Jill went to a movie down in Gainesville,” he said.

“Do you think they’re soul mates, and they get to see each other’s third heart?”

“I really do,” he answered.

“They are some lucky people. Good night. And thanks, Rhett.”

“I’ll be fixin’ fence with a crew of high school boys all day tomorrow and working the bar alone tomorrow night. It’d sure make the day go better if you called or sent me a text. And the evening would definitely be nicer if you spent a little time nursin’ a Jack Daniel’s on the end stool.”

“I’ll see if I can make that happen.”





Chapter 15


Rhett was hot, sweaty, and looking forward to a cool bath that evening. It was the middle of August, so a person could not beg, borrow, buy, or steal a breeze. At the beginning of the day, the boys had told jokes and ribbed each other about having farmer’s tans when they started back to school, but now nothing was funny.

The phone buzzed in Rhett’s pocket near quitting time, and he hoped it was Leah, calling for the second time that day. She’d called early that morning, and they’d shared a sunrise over the phone, and she’d sent two text messages during the day.