Riding the River (11 page)

“Yep,” Matt smiled turning his hat around in
his hands. “It’s a pretty place.”

“Take her out to see it sometime.”

Matt blinked his eyes in surprise. “You’re
kidding. Why would I do that?”

Dale blew out a breath. “Youth is definitely
wasted on the young. You and she need to talk to each other.”

“We’re still getting to know one another.
That takes time.”

“Don’t take too long. Try to talk to her some
night on the horse drive. You’ll be out under the stars – pretty
romantic and all.”

Matt actually blushed and then laughed.
“Yeah, well… I’ll see what I can do.” He met his eyes. “Thanks,
Dale.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Dale shooed him away. “Everyone
comes to me with their troubles.”

“Father Confessor?” Then Matt thought of
something. “Has Sarah talked with you about anything?”

“… Sorry,” he said, “confessions are
confidential. You’re going to have to find out on your own.”

Matt got up from the table and put on his
hat. “All right. Thanks, Dale. See ya.” He walked out of the
kitchen. Dale sat there watching him leave and then shook his
head.

“That boy’s smitten… but he doesn’t know it
yet.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

After dinner, Sarah and Tess sat out on the
porch, laughing about their cowboy golf game. It had been a hoot…
One of the ladies had almost hit a deer with a golf ball. The
course was so rough that once Sarah dug a hole trying to hit her
ball. All in all, it had been a fun and funny afternoon.

Sarah had just made it back in time to help
Dale with dinner. Afterwards, in the kitchen, Mr. Walker had
questioned Dale about having a guest assist.

“Look, Dale. The guests are here for fun, not
work.”

“People have different ideas about what fun
is, apparently.”

“So you think it’s wise to let her help
you?”

“Yeah, in fact, what if she stays a bit
longer and becomes my assistant?”

Mr. Walker looked aghast. “What in the world
are you talking about? You want me to hire her?”

“Why not? If she decides to stay in the area,
I could use the help…”

“Well…” Mr. Walker huffed his disapproval.
“Why don’t we just cross this bridge when and if we come to
it?”

“Okay by me.”

“Anyway, I need to get an accurate count for
the horse drive tomorrow and make sure folks have the gear they
need.”

He walked out of the kitchen still shaking
his head about Dale’s request. Then Mr. Walker met with the ranch
guests in the community room to go over what they’d need for the
horse drive starting tomorrow. There were ten guests going,
including Sarah and Tess, Dale the cook, Cooper the trail boss and
four of the cowboys, Frank, Aaron, Richie and Matt.

“Just so you’re clear… You’ll be driving the
herd of horses up north from here to a good pasture that’s east of
the Snake Mountains. The elevation is high, around 7,000 feet, so
you need to dress warmly.” He stopped to pick up a stack of
papers.

“Aaron, pass the gear list around, please.
Everyone take a good look at what you’ll need. It may be a bit
chilly at night, but you’ll be in some of the most beautiful
country on God’s earth. It’s breathtaking, to be sure…”

“Do you have bedrolls for us, Mr. Walker?”
asked Tess.

“Yes. Also, we can also provide tents, if
you’d prefer not sleeping out in the open.”

Tess looked at Sarah. “Want to share a
tent?”

“Oh, yeah…” laughed Sarah.

“What about bugs?” asked another guest.

“There are some, so get whatever you need
from the general store out back. We should be able to fix you up
with anything.” He looked around the room. “Questions?”

Sarah had one. “So we ride two days up and
one day back. Is that right?”

“Yup. Correct… If you want to take your time
on the way back, you can make that decision as you go. Depends on
how anxious you are to get off a horse…” He smiled at them and
everyone smiled back.

“Okay, then. You leave after breakfast
tomorrow morning. Have a good trip… In an hour, we’re going to have
a little music and dancing, so get your packing done and come on
outside. Let’s have some fun!”

Tess turned to Sarah as they got up to go to
their rooms. “I like him.”

“Who? Mr. Walker?”

“… Yes. He’s got a real twinkle in his eye…”
Sarah laughed at her.

“Come on. Let’s get packed.”

She could hear music out back of the ranch
house as she was packing.

Sarah thought there were three guitars
playing with at least two singers, sometimes three. The Western
songs they played were so pleasant, soulful – She recognized a few
oldies like ‘
Cool Water’
and ‘
Oh, Shenandoah’
, but a
few more modern tunes like ‘
Desperado’
and ‘
Peaceful Easy
Feeling’
. Sarah smiled. There must be some Eagles fans out
there.

The place was lively by the time Sarah
finished packing and walked back behind the house. People, young
and old, teen and toddler, were dancing. Lots of smiles and
laughter… She looked for Tess and found her dancing with Richie.
Hmmm… Thought he played guitar the first night they were here.
Apparently, he wanted a night off. Sarah looked over to see who had
taken Richie’s place and saw Matt watching her.

He stood up while the other cowboys sat.
What a handsome guy
… The guitar swung gracefully from a
strap around his neck and he rarely looked at the strings as he
played so well. Sarah could easily pick out his playing from the
others – He was good… His black hair occasionally falling in his
eyes... Sarah wasn’t the only one appreciating Matt. He had a
couple of teenage girls to one side trying to get him to talk.

Wow… If he isn’t a musical Gregory Peck… She
thought.

She looks incredible… Where’d she get that
skirt? He thought.

“Sarah…” Tess dashed over to appraise her
clothes. “What a great outfit… Neat skirt—I love the fringe, vest
and frilly blouse… Cool!”

Richie joined them. “Really, Sarah. You look
terrific… I’m sure you won’t lack for a dance partner, if you want
one.”

Sarah chuckled at them both. “Thanks, guys. I
think I’ll listen for a bit. It sounds wonderful.” Richie
grinned.

“And our friend, Matt, is playing and singing
tonight too…”

“… He sings?” Sarah’s lips parted. She
watched as the girls by him whispered something to him.
What?
He looked at them and smiled.

When the song they were playing was finished,
Matt pushed his wavy hair back and made an announcement.

“I’ve had a request for a golden oldie. It
was way before these girls’ time, but here it is. See if you
recognize it.” The girls giggled that he mentioned them.

And then the group started playing their
guitars. She couldn’t believe the degree of musicianship – Guitars
softly strumming and harmonizing until he started to sing.
Nice
voice…

‘
You didn’t need to be so nice

I would have liked you anyway.

If you had just looked once or twice

And gone upon your quiet way…

They said the time was right for me to
follow you

I knew I’d find you in a day or two

And it’s true…

You came upon a quiet day

You simply seemed to take your place.

I knew that it would be that way

The minute that I saw your face...

And when we’ve had a few more days

I wonder if I’ll get to say

You didn’t have to be so nice

I would have liked you anyway’…

Sarah tried not to stare but it was hard. She
was standing towards the back of a group of people who were slow
dancing. Two men had asked her to dance, but she shook her head –
She was listening to him… And he noticed every time she turned
someone down.

Those lyrics
… Sure it was from an old
group called the Lovin’ Spoonful, but he watched her as he sang. It
hit her --
He was singing to her
… Sarah sighed and
understood the groupie mentality now. With his looks and voice,
Matt could have been a rock star. The girls around him sighed and
giggled… Sarah couldn’t tear her eyes away from his…

When he finished singing, he received huge
applause, especially from the giggling girls. Sarah was frozen to
the spot… ‘
You didn’t need to be so nice, I would have liked you
anyway’…
Those lyrics echoed in her head. Was that how he felt?
It was only her third day in Nevada and she was falling for a
cowboy. Sarah blinked rapidly and gulped in some fresh air.
Was
she completely nuts?

She quickly looked around for Tess and saw
her walking off hand-in-hand with Richie. Who knows where they were
going… She felt the urgency to beat a hasty retreat. Matt was
taking off his guitar and stepping away from the other musicians.
He was looking around the crowd –
for me? Oh, my… What am I
doing?
And she ran…

Dale saw her go and he blew out an
exasperated breath. He knew it was all going to be so much harder
than he’d imagined. Then he watched Matt scan the crowd of people
for her. When he didn’t see her, he ran a hand through his hair and
looked away, towards the hills. Matt probably thought she was as
skittish as a new colt and he was running out of time… Dale watched
Matt pick up his hat and leave the dance area. Nope, nothing was
happening tonight obviously.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

“So where the heck did you go last night?”
Tess asked Sarah at breakfast the next morning.

“You want to know where
I
went? Where
did
you
go? I saw you walking off with Richie.”

Tess sighed. “I did… I really did…”

“So?” Sarah raised an eyebrow at her. She
popped a bite of muffin in her mouth.

“So…” Tess raised an eyebrow back at her. “We
went to his cabin and we…”

“… I think I get the picture.”

“Oh, my… I hope so. The picture is sooo
good…” Tess bit into her toast.

Sarah laughed at her. “At least your night
sounds better than mine.”

“What happened?”

“… Nothing…”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I did it to myself.”

“… Take it from the top… We left when Matt
started singing. Wasn’t he good?”

Sarah sighed. “… Too good… I started getting
goofy thoughts about him.”

“Goofy?”

“… Mushy…”

“Oh – mushy. That’s good, right?”

“No, Tess. I’ve only been in Nevada for three
days now and I’m not going to fall for a local cowboy.”

Tess rolled her eyes. “Of course not. Just
have a few nights pleasure. After the weekend, we’ll be gone and
everyone will have had a nice time.”

“Is that what you’re doing with Richie?
Having a few nights pleasure?”

“God, I hope so. The guy has an incredible
bedside manner.” She winked at Sarah. “…If you catch my drift.”

Sarah couldn’t help herself and laughed at
her.

“I just can’t do that, Tess.”

“What?”

“… Hop in the sack with some guy for fun.
It’s…”

“…It’s what?”

“Too personal, too intimate.”

Tess smirked. “I sure hope so…” She took
another bite of her toast.

“Don’t you want more than that?”

“Sure, someday. But I didn’t think I’d look
for a forever guy on a week’s vacation at a remote ranch in Nevada.
I just want to have fun…”

“Does Richie feel that way?”

“Oh, yes… Definitely.” She thought a minute
and looked at Sarah. “He spoke a little bit about Matt.” Sarah ate
some of her eggs and mumbled something. “Want to hear what he
said?”

“… Okay…” Sarah swallowed and looked over at
Tess.

“Matt was married once before and has a
little boy in Reno.”

“He has a child?”

“Yes…”

“Did he say what happened to the
marriage?”

“Just that it didn’t work out…”

Sarah sat back in her chair and pushed a few
strands of hair out of her face. “I bet that’s what he was doing in
Reno when I saw him at the hotel.”

“Yeah. Maybe he’d just been visiting his
boy…”

“…Ah…”

“Does that change the way you think about
him, Sarah?”

“Yes…”

“How so?”

She got a big grin on her face. “It makes me
like him more. I bet he wants something more out of life too – like
me. He may not be just a cowboy looking for a good time.”

“Nope. Richie said Matt was way too serious
about lots of things.”

Sarah thought about that for a few minutes.
Then she pushed back from the table. “Okay, breakfast is over. Let
the horse drive begin. Let’s go…”

Tess laughed as they headed back to their
rooms to pick up duffel bags and bedrolls.

“So where the heck did you go last night,
Richie? I looked around after our set and you’d taken off.” Matt
was finishing up his bacon and eggs.

“Yeah, you were wowing the girls when Tess
and I decided to go for a stroll.” He raised his eyebrows at
Matt.

“Did that stroll end up at your cabin?”

Richie gave him a look of mock surprise.
“Golly, gee… What do you know about that? It did, indeed.”

Matt laughed at him. “Well… I’m glad someone
had a good night.”

“What happened? Nothing? I saw you making
eyes at Sarah…”

“… I apparently scared her off. When I
finished my song, I couldn’t find her anywhere. She must have left…
Unimpressed with me, probably.”

“She didn’t stick around to talk to you?”

“Nope…”

Richie shrugged. “Too bad. She looked really
cute last night.”

Matt sighed. “Damn… Didn’t she? Dale told me,
in a roundabout way, to try to get to know her. How can I when she
takes off on me?”

“Think she’s playing hard to get?”