Back in the Saddle (Jessica Brodie Diaries #1)(15)

The woman behind me cleared her throat in an obvious, and not-so-subtle, way of telling me to move along.

“Well, thanks again Ronnie. I’m sure I’ll see you around.”

“Yes ma’am. See you again real soon. Have a good ‘un.” He flashed a toothy grin. He was really cute for a young dude, in the puppy-dog sort of way.

So Apollo was Mr. Davies and known around town. Well, anyone that gorgeous was bound to stick out. Plus, he was chivalrous and generous. Paying for my groceries was classy. Dare I hope he liked me?

Memories of last night tumbled through my head. The ending note being the memory of what I looked like.

No, dare not hope. But his face was definitely going into the spank bank for sure.

With a new-found sense of freedom arising from a new place where nobody knew me, I didn’t want to go straight home. I wanted to explore. Check out the town and surrounding area. Have a glance at people, look at the countryside.

After about an hour I had the startling realization that checking out your surroundings was only a good idea if you paid attention. I wanted to get to Austin, to the city and more people. Instead, I found myself in flat nothingness filled with dirt, natural grass, barns and fences. I knew it was a farming area because it smelt like cow ass. Call me Sherlock.

I pulled to the side of the road, mostly in a ditch, to get out a map.

I rooted around in my car for ages before I came to the conclusion that I suck, and must have taken the map out when unpacking the car. Great. I didn’t even know where the nearest gas station was, and didn’t have much longer before my car was out of gas.

I put my head on the steering wheel and moaned. It didn’t help.

“Okay.” I looked up at the sun and determined that I was facing east. If I was in L.A., I would be pointed in the opposite direction as the ocean. I would then turn around and head to the beach for a glorious sunset over the waves.

And now I was home sick.

“Okay.” I said again, my voice sounding strangely loud surrounded by so much nothingness. No car noises, no people, not even airplanes overhead to drown out my words. “I am pretty sure that I was heading east, roughly east, to get here. West to get back. Yes, I am a genius. The roughly part is tricky, though. Wait…I think those directions had a sorta map…”

I dove toward my glove compartment before I noticed the shadow. Something darkened the already murky places inside my car. Which meant it was something at my window! Looming. Looking in!

I screamed and jumped at the same time, hitting my head on the ceiling and my elbow on the “Oh Shit!” handle on the door. I hastily reached for the lock before I realized that it wasn’t a face looking in, it was a monster. A brown, fuzzy monster that smelt like ass.

Through my incredible skill of detail orientation, I determined that it was a cow. Outside my door. In the middle of the road. And it wasn’t looking in at all—I was looking at the things belly, to be replaced by its butt, and then another massive bovine. In fact, there were a bunch of cows all around my car.

Why were there cows outside my car?

I’m on the road, right?

Yes, on the road.

I craned my head to look behind me, wondering how big the herd was, but my dumb seatbelt held me fast. My eyes found the rear-view mirror in time to spy some spindly legs that could only be horse. In Texas a day and already I’m dealing with cow ass and horses. Talk about culture shock.

The long legs clomped closer, giving me sudden apprehension. I was not particularly eager to meet John Wayne in the middle of nowhere, with no one in screaming range, while blocked in by massive animals.

"But how the hell am I going to escape?" I thought dismally, watching cow butts slowly move down the road.

Belatedly I realized that my window was open this whole time. And why wouldn’t it be? I was in the middle of nowhere, in the heat, with no air conditioning. Of course it was open. But now the horse and rider knew I was afraid of sneaky cows. Which, in Texas, might get me hanged as an outsider. A liberal outsider. Nail in the coffin!

Being that the horse stopped by the side of the car, I stuck my head out the window, foot ready to hit the gas and run these cows down if need be. The glare of the sun sparkling off the metal of my car made visibility difficult. I could make out cowboy boots, jeans, the shadow of a cowboy hat, the outline of the horse, and all the many cows still walking by. If I wasn’t mistaken, this man was a cowboy.

Thank you, Watson, I’ll take my tea now.

“Hi again,” said a familiar smooth, deep baritone.

My heart skipped, then began hammering in my chest. I could feel a thousand butterflies fill my stomach. Also a cold chill that was surprisingly pleasant.

“H-h-hi. Hi,” I stammered lamely, peering farther out the window and blocking the sun with my hand. The way the sun cascaded around his shoulders made him appear holy. It gave the situation an ethereal feeling, increasing my shivers.

“You are a ways from town. Didn’t you say you lived with Gladis?”

He remembered!

“I do, yeah. I went for a drive and kinda… lost my way.”

“I see. Do you have a map?”

“Yes. Well, maybe. I’m just not sure if it is in the car or in the cottage.”

“In the cottage?” Was that humor in his voice? “I wasn’t aware Gladis had a cottage.”

“Oh, well, pool house. We call it a cottage.”