Long Hard Ride (Rough Riders #1)(62)

Eating junk food. Checking out all the vendors to see what new trinkets they’re selling today, won’t we, Cal? You go.”


“You’re sure?”


“Go.”


Mary sprinted up the stairs two at a time.


The minute her mother was gone stoic Callie started to cry.


Channing pulled the little girl on her lap and let her bawl. Several of the other wives and girlfriends came over to offer help, but Callie wanted nothing to do with any of them.


Not once during the hour that passed did Callie beg for cheap toys.


Or sugar-laden snacks. Nor did she demand to know where her mother was. Or if her father was all right. Or why they couldn’t leave. She just curled into Channing and clung to her like a scared monkey.


“Channing!”


She spun around to see Colby limping down the bleacher stairs.


“Colby? What are you doing here?”


“Mary Morgan sent me.”


Channing couldn’t read in his eyes whether it was good or bad news.


“She wants you to bring Callie to her.”


“Okay.” She looked down in Callie’s frightened eyes and tried to gently pry her arms from around her neck. “Hey, Calamity Jane. Gather up your stuff. Let’s go see your mom.”


But Callie wouldn’t let go. Finally, Channing just carried her out.


Colby led them through a cordoned-off area to a small, airless room underneath the main grandstand. Inside, Mary hovered next to Mike, who was awake but on a stretcher with his knee heavily bandaged and his wrist in a sling.


Callie squirmed out of Channing’s arms and launched herself at Mary, sobbing, “Momma you didn’t come back and didn’t come back and I thought my daddy was dead!”


Channing felt like she’d been kicked in the solar plexus. That poor little girl. Acting so brave when she’d been torn up inside. How many other rodeo kids went through this on a regular basis? How many wives and girlfriends and mothers and fathers? How did they deal with it, day in, day out? Year after year?


“Oh, baby. It’s okay. See? He’s not dead. Just banged up.”


Groggily, Mike Morgan said, “Hiya, punkin. Didja see me wreck? I think we oughta buy that steer and grind him into hamburger, huh?”


Mary stepped around the end of the stretcher. “Channing. Thank you so much for watching Callie.”



“No problem. Is everything okay?”


“We’ll know more tomorrow. As it sits now, Mike has a torn ACL


that’s gonna require surgery. We’re heading off to Omaha in a little bit for X-rays and tests. And probably a trip to the operating room.”


It sounded so serious. So permanent. Everyone knew—but nobody said out loud, that this could be a career-ending injury for Mike Morgan.


“Is there anything I can do?”


Mary bit her lip. “I haven’t really thought it through until now, but it’s occurred to me we can’t take the horse and the horse trailer along with us to Omaha.”


Colby moved in behind Channing. “Don’t worry about it, Mary. Take care of your family. We’ll get your horse and trailer back to your ranch somehow.”


Relief crossed her face and she hugged Colby. “Oh thank you. You guys are our family, too. I’ll get the truck unhitched and get the trailer keys. I’ll be right back.” She leaned over to whisper to Mike before she and Callie hustled out.


Channing whirled around right into Colby, hovering behind her. She frowned. “Why are you still here? Aren’t you going to help Mary?”


“Nah. I’d just get in the way. Besides, Mary has hitched up that trailer more times than any guy on the circuit.”


She rocked to her tiptoes and got right in his face. “Yeah, but unlike most guys, she is pregnant. And I don’t think hefting that hitch in her condition is the best idea, do you?”


“Shit.” He vanished.


Outside the contestants’ gate she heard the announcement for the start of the barrel racing and saw Gemma and Cash arguing.


“—and I’m tellin’ you, it ain’t your fault.”


“How so? That was my bum steer, Cash. And I’ll be goddamned if I’ll sit here and do nothin’ when I could be helping them.”


“Hey, guys,” Channing interrupted. “What’s the problem?”


Cash’s handsome face was distorted into a full scowl. “The problem is that Wonder Woman here feels guilty and thinks she needs to take the Morgan’s horse and trailer back to South Dakota. By herself.”


A heated pause sparked the air like fireworks.


“If you’re just worried about her going alone, I could go with her,”


Channing offered.


Gemma awarded Cash a smug smile. “See? Problem solved.”


“Except for one tiny detail. You don’t have your big horse haulin’


truck here, Gem. Your foreman needs the big diesel to pull the trailer for the stock. There’s no way you can pull that monster rig of Morgan’s with your small block Ford.”