One Texas Cowboy Too Many (Burnt Boot, Texas #3)(69)

Rhett’s phone rang again, and he stepped outside the curtain to answer it. “Hello, it’s been a crazy night.”

“Is Polly all right?” Leah asked.

“Sounds like a bad case of acid reflux,” he said.

“I know about the stickers,” Leah said.

“I’d like to give them a taste of their own medicine. I hate this.”

“I want to get it over with and get on with my plans. I’m packing. You want to help me move out?”

“Yes, I will. Want me to be in front of the ranch about six?”

“No, I’m hoping that you can be in front of Polly’s house at seven tomorrow evening. You might not know it, but Polly has been living with Gladys for over a year now. I’m going to talk to them tomorrow about renting Polly’s house. If she doesn’t want me to do that, I’ll stay in a hotel in Gainesville until I find a place,” she said.

“Are you sure about this, Leah?” he asked.

“Yes, I am, and right now, I just wanted to hear your voice. Call me when y’all get home and let me know how Polly is?”

“I sure will. Here comes Jill and Sawyer.”

“Go explain to them what’s happening, and I’ll talk to you later,” she said.

*

It was after ten when Rhett drove Polly and Gladys home in the backseat of Gladys’s truck. The arguing and fussing began the minute Gladys and Polly crawled into the backseat.

“I told you not to call that ambulance. If my insurance doesn’t pay for it to come all the way to Burnt Boot and haul me to the hospital, I’m going to make you pay for it,” Polly grumbled.

“Next time, I’ll kick you out in the yard and let you die, because I don’t want your stinkin’, old body on my sofa,” Gladys popped back at her.

“Lot of surprises at the festival today, right?” Rhett tried to steer the conversation away from the ambulance.

“I’m thinkin’ about puttin’ out a contract on Betsy Gallagher. I heard about the sticker trick. That was just downright evil,” Polly fumed. “Tell me that we ain’t goin’ to lose you to Wild Horse, Rhett.”

Rhett looked at them in the rearview mirror. “Hey, who says I’ll go to either one? Maybe I’m happy at Fiddle Creek. Besides, I’d never be happy on a ranch that big or takin’ orders from Mavis or from Naomi.”

Polly nudged Gladys, who nodded. Now what was that all about? Had they given him a test, and if so, did he pass the damn thing?

*

“Leah! Come down here!” Mavis’s voice echoed up the stairs, across the landing, and through her shut door.

Leah had been stretched out on her bed, replaying the horrible day, trying to figure out what she might have done different. Her feet hit the floor, and she made a dash for the door, leaving her cell phone behind on the pillow beside her.

She leaned over the railing and said, “What?”

“I’ve told you a thousand times not to answer me like that. It’s disrespectful to say one word in that tone. Come down here.”

“At this time of night?” Leah asked.

“I can’t sleep, and I want to get this settled.” Mavis wore a long, pink cotton robe and matching slippers. Her new short hair stuck up like she’d stuck her finger in an electrical socket and, in the harsh overhead lighting, every single wrinkle showed.

“Okay, Granny, but you might not like the outcome,” Leah said.

“Right now! In my office.”

Leah was halfway down the steps when her father came in the front door. He raised an eyebrow, and she nodded toward Mavis.

Mavis turned her glare to Russell. “Where have you been?”

“I’m pushing sixty, Mama. I don’t reckon I have to tell you where I’m at every minute of the day or night,” he said. “What’s going on here?”

“We’re going to draw up the lines. On one side, it will be white; on the other side, black. There will be no gray,” Mavis said.

“She’s upset over the fact that Tanner tricked me and I have to have dinner with him tomorrow,” Leah said.

“Leah will be thirty this fall, Mama. She’s proven time and time again that we can trust her judgment. She’ll take a picnic to the church in the morning, have a sandwich with him, and be home by one o’clock. It will be over. You are letting Naomi get under your skin.”

“It’s not Tanner I’m worried about or Naomi. It’s that Rhett O’Donnell.”

Leah sat down on the bottom step. “I’ll make it easy for you, Granny. Tomorrow I’ll have my picnic with Tanner. Monday is my first day of school, and after the day is finished, I’ll pack my things and move off of River Bend.”

Russell sat down beside her and draped an arm around her shoulders. “That won’t be necessary. This is your home and my ranch. You can date whoever you please.”

Mavis crossed her arms over her chest. “It’s not your ranch until I die, and I can change the will.”

“But can you run this place without me?” Russell asked.

Mavis glared at him. “You’ve got brothers who can step up and take your place.”

Leah threw up both hands, fingers splayed out, as she shook her head from side to side. “Stop it! You aren’t going anywhere, Daddy. I am moving away, not because of Rhett, but because I want to. I need my own place.”