The Cowboy Next Door--Includes a bonus novella Page 17

  I know these are hard times, Penny, but all the good you’re doing now will come back to you one day.

  Just look at us, Aunt Lucy, Penny thought miserably. What a mess I’ve made of things.

  Penny looked up as Sam parked the truck alongside the back porch, and Finn stepped out.

  Sam circled the front of the vehicle and took her hand.

  “You’re cold. You should have said something. I would have kicked up the heat.”

  “I’m fine, Sam.”

  He waited until Finn walked inside. “You’re not fine. I know you’re hurting. And probably blaming yourself for your brother’s lack of self-control. But you need to stop, Money.”

  “I wish I could.” She started wringing her hands. “Oh, Sam. How I wish I could.”

  He dragged her close. Against her temple he said fiercely, “I hate seeing you hurt like this. I’d give anything to put your mind at ease.”

  “I have no right to burden you with this. It isn’t your problem, Sam.”

  “As long as it affects you, it’s my problem too, Money. That’s just the way it is, so stop fighting it.”

  “But I…”

  “Shh. Just let me hold you.” He dragged her close and wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her hair.

  For long minutes they stood, swaying in the wind and cold, until he scooped her up and carried her up the steps of the porch and into the warmth of the mudroom. Instead of setting her down, he continued carrying her through the kitchen, the parlor, and up the stairs to her bedroom.

  At the door he set her on her feet. “Get some sleep. First thing in the morning I’ll call Horton and learn how this whole thing ended.”

  He drew her close and kissed her, before holding open her bedroom door. When she closed it, he made his way down the hall to his own room.

  After tossing aside his clothes, he crawled into bed, wishing he could sleep down the hall with Penny. But he wanted her to get some sleep.

  For the longest time he lay there, wondering how it had come to this.

  Until Penny, he’d been perfectly content to while away his hours in town, drinking with his buddies, showing off with a game of pool.

  Now, all he could think of was Penny. Her comfort. Her fears over her brother.

  Hearing footsteps on the stairs, he pulled on his jeans and shirt and padded down the hall. Seeing all the doors closed, he made his way down the stairs, expecting to see his father.

  Instead, he was startled to see Penny, still fully dressed, arms crossed over her chest, pacing back and forth in the parlor.

  “What are you doing?”

  She whirled. “Sam. I didn’t want to wake anybody.”

  “I wasn’t asleep. Penny…” He crossed to her and caught her hand to still her movements. “You can’t keep this up.”

  “I can’t sleep, Sam. I have to know what’s happening with Curtis.”

  He took in a long breath before starting toward the kitchen. “Come on. We’ll head back to town.”

  She shot him a look of gratitude. “You mean it?”

  “Money, I thought by now you’d understand. I’d walk through fire for you.”

  He picked up the keys to the truck and paused in the mudroom to put on boots and grab a parka.

  Taking her hand, he led her outside. Once in the truck he turned to her. “Besides, I probably wouldn’t get much sleep anyway. I’ve discovered I don’t like sleeping alone. I’d rather be sleeping with my favorite chef.”

  His attempt at a joke fell on deaf ears.

  Penny was staring out the side window, her hands clenched in her lap, a look of such sorrow etched on her profile that Sam had to fight a rush of desire to take her in his arms and offer her whatever comfort he could.

  Instead he had to be content with the unbroken silence between them as the truck ate up the miles back to Haller Creek.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Sam was surprised to see the parking lot of the Hitching Post still crowded with trucks. He found a parking space a block away, and caught Penny’s hand as the two of them stepped inside the bar. At once they were assaulted by a wave of noise.

  He glanced around. Usually, by this time of night, a lot of the couples would have been gone. Tonight, the crowd remained. He wondered if that was a good omen or a bad one.

  Though there were couples on the dance floor, and many more standing around the bar, the majority of customers had gravitated to the rear of the room. There was an air of expectancy as they watched the pool game that had become a high-stakes contest between a professional and a brash amateur.

  Knowing Penny wouldn’t be placated by anything less than the truth, Sam led her toward the crowd.

  When they’d pushed their way toward the front of the circle, Sam turned to a cowboy beside him. “Who’s winning?”

  “The kid.” The old man shook his head. “Every time I figured he’d lost it all, the kid came back stronger. But Dex is one tough con. He just asked for a chance to win back all he’s lost in one final game, and the kid agreed.”

  Sam tensed. “What’s the purse?”

  The old man shrugged. “I don’t know if it’s true or not, but folks are saying ten thousand.”

  Penny’s eyes went wide. “Ten…?”

  Sam put an arm around her shoulders and leaned close to whisper, “Just remember. No matter what happens, you need to keep your cool. You do or say anything to disrupt the flow, you could cause Curtis to lose his concentration.”

  She nodded, her eyes following every move her younger brother was making.

  Curtis took a long swig of beer and looked supremely confident as he chalked his cue stick and made the break. The crowd let out a cheer as two balls rolled across the felt and dropped, one after the other, into a pocket. He eyed the remaining balls, then bent over the table and took careful aim at a ball slightly apart from the others.

  “An easy shot,” Sam whispered to Penny, to ease the tension he could feel in her. She was vibrating like the strings of a violin, holding herself so tightly, he wondered that her bones didn’t snap.

  Curtis smiled as he took his shot and waited for the ball to drop. When it did, a ripple of approval moved through the crowd.

  Sam glanced around. The dancers had stopped to join the rest of the people. The crowd around the bar had thinned, as well, crossing the room to join the throng of onlookers.

  With his grill now shut down for the night, even Horton Duke stood in the crowd.

  Curtis took a moment to take a sip of beer before he chalked his cue stick.

  Sam noted the slight trembling of Curtis’s hand. Maybe the others hadn’t noticed it, but it was something Sam had always watched for in his opponents. An unsteady hand meant an unsteady shot. A single miss could mean the difference between a win or a loss.

  Curtis leaned over the table and took his shot.

  The ball wobbled and touched a ball nearby, causing it to veer to one side, missing the pocket.

  The murmur grew loud as the spectators realized what had just happened. Instead of running the table, and winning everything, the young amateur had probably lost his best chance.

  Unless Dex should miss a shot, as well.

  The pool hustler showed no emotion as he stepped forward and claimed the next shot. He made it with ease, and continued dropping ball after ball, until only the nine ball was left.

  The old man next to Sam whispered, “If he makes this shot, it’s all over. He’ll win the ten thousand. I was hoping the kid might do it, but since I’ve never seen Dex miss, I have to put my money on him.”

  Penny’s hand was gripping Sam’s so tightly, her nails were digging into his flesh. She was completely unaware of anything except the outcome of the game.

  Dex made a smooth motion with his cue, and the ball started down the green felt.

  To those watching, time seemed to stand still. The ball banked off the side of the table and started toward a pocket as if in slow motion. Just as it reached the designated
pocket, it paused on the lip.

  The crowd went deathly silent, all eyes fixed on the spot.

  In the blink of an eye, as though pulled by an invisible thread, the ball tipped closer to the very edge.

  There were whispers and murmurs from the crowd.

  “It’s going in.”

  “A hundred says it won’t.”

  “He’s going to win it.”

  “The kid’s still got a chance.”

  After hovering for what seemed an eternity, the ball dropped into the pocket.

  The spectators let out a roar that could be heard a block away.

  Around the table, money exchanged hands as the cowboys collected their side bets.

  Dex turned to Curtis. “You’re good, kid. So good, I thought for a minute there, you’d beat me. Someday you may get the chance again. But for now, you owe me ten thousand.”

  As reality began to sink in, Curtis stumbled before catching hold of the edge of the pool table.

  He dug his hand into his pocket and held out a pile of crumpled bills.

  Dex frowned. “There can’t be more than a few hundred there.”

  “Six…” Curtis cleared his throat and tried again. “I’ve got six hundred here.”

  “I said ten thousand big ones, kid. You knew we weren’t playing for nickels.”

  “I don’t have that much on me. But I’m happy to sign something saying I owe you the rest.”

  “An IOU is nothing more than a useless piece of paper if you skip town. It doesn’t pay the bills. I played you in good faith. You were the one who agreed to the prize.”

  “I can get your money. Just not right away…”

  Dex’s hands fisted in Curtis’s shirt front, dragging him close. “Now you listen, kid…”

  “Hold on a minute.” Curtis’s hands came up, breaking his hold. “I’ll go to my boss and see what he’ll advance me. Then I’ll write you a check if you’ll agree to hold it until I can cover it.”

  With each excuse, Dex’s face darkened. “Do I look like a freakin’ banker, kid? I’ll take my money now.” He looked around. “All those good buddies of yours, who were cheering you on when they thought you were winning, can just pitch in now and save your hide. Otherwise, we’re going to go outside and have a little meeting. Just you and me. And they won’t like what they find when I’m through with you…”

  Before Sam realized what she was doing, Penny raced to her brother’s side and stepped in front of him, putting herself between him and his opponent. “If you’ll just be patient, Curtis will have the money.”

  Dex’s eyes narrowed. “Who’s this? And don’t try to pass her off as your banker, kid.”

  Someone in the crowd laughed.

  “I’m his sister. His only kin in these parts.”

  “Lady, unless you’re holding on to ten thousand dollars, I don’t care if you’re an angel come down from heaven to help this lost soul. A bet is a bet.”

  Though Penny’s face flamed, her spine stiffened and her chin jutted defiantly. She put a proprietary hand on Curtis’s arm. “I want you to know that my brother is an honorable man. If you’ll give him the time, as he’s asked, he’ll have your money.”

  “Oh, he’ll have it. That’s a promise.” Dex ignored her and spoke directly to Curtis. “Tomorrow before noon. I’ll be outside the gates of the Lazy K, waiting. If you don’t have my money, be prepared to pay some other way.”

  “Some other…?” Before Penny could say more, Dex stormed out of the Hitching Post, slamming the door with such force it sent the windows rattling.

  Curtis shook off Penny’s touch and turned on her with a look so filled with anger, she blanched. “What in hell are you doing here?”

  Before she could say a word he backed away. “You have no right stalking me, Penny.”

  “I’m not stalking…”

  “You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into, Penny. Now get out of here. Just leave me alone.”

  “I want to help…”

  “Help? You’ve just made things worse.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It means you don’t want to be anywhere close to me. You certainly don’t want to be known as Curtis Cash’s sister right now. The more distance you can put between us, the better for you.”

  Sam stepped up, narrowing his gaze on Curtis. “Your sister has a right to worry. You’ve just turned an opponent into a dangerous enemy, Curtis. When you chose to play in the big league, you had to know you’d be expected to honor your debts. You can’t just walk away from a player like Dex Cantrel.”

  “I knew what I was doing.” Curtis’s eyes were bleak, his hands fisted at his sides. “I didn’t have any choice.”

  “Everybody has choices.” Sam’s tone was deadly calm.

  “Curtis, please…”

  Before Penny could say more, Sam wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Seeing the fury in Curtis’s eyes, he steered her away before this erupted into an ugly family feud where both of them would say things they would later regret.

  Before Sam and Penny had taken a few steps, Curtis’s friends and fellow wranglers surrounded him, all of them eager to give advice.

  “That guy’s bad news, Curtis.”

  “You almost had him, buddy. But now that you’ve lost, you’d better make yourself scarce.”

  Despite his show of bravado, Curtis’s voice betrayed the nerves he could no longer hide. “I’ve still got an ace in the hole. I’ll talk to Everett tomorrow and ask him for an advance. Then, if I have to, I’ll promise to work for half wages for a year.”

  “Everett doesn’t hold with drinking and gambling.”

  “Slade’s right. Your best bet is to get out of town tonight. Before you have to face Dex tomorrow.”

  Hearing them, Penny paused at the door. “Listen to them, Sam. None of them are offering a bit of help.”

  “How can they? Most of them are barely getting by. They live from paycheck to paycheck. Come on.” He urged her out the door and down the street.

  Once in the truck, he drove through the darkened town, watching Penny twist her hands together. He knew if she could, she would jump out of the truck and run back to the Hitching Post, even though her brother had made it clear he wanted nothing to do with her.

  There was no changing her nature. She was the big sister. The mother substitute. The nurturer. And right now, though she was bitterly disappointed in her little brother, she couldn’t help turning the problem over and over in her mind, trying desperately to find a happy ending for Curtis.

  Sam had seen a lot of winners and losers. But there was something different about her brother. Before that final game, he’d already won more money than he could hope to earn in a month of backbreaking, bone-jarring wrangling at the Lazy K. That should have been enough to satisfy his ego. But something had compelled Curtis to keep playing.

  Maybe, as Penny feared, her brother had become addicted to the game, or to the lure of easy money. Or, Sam thought, maybe he’d run up a string of debts and had seen this high-stakes game as a way to get even. Whatever the reason, Curtis had stayed too long at the dance.

  Dex was a longtime hustler. He’d made his reputation on winning and on being paid. The challenge he’d issued to Curtis was no idle threat. If Curtis didn’t come up with the money tomorrow, he’d find himself up against a man who knew how to use his fists to get what he wanted.

  Damned fool kid was in for the fight of his life.

  Hearing Sam swear under his breath, Penny turned to him. “What are you thinking, Sam?”

  “I’m not sure what to think.” He looked over, and seeing the glint of unshed tears, he reached out and held Penny’s cold hand in his, determined to give her whatever comfort he could offer.

  “I’ll wait until morning and drive over the Lazy K and have a talk with Curtis.”

  “What about tonight…?”

  Sam shook his head, cutting off her protest. “Tomorrow. When he’s sober. If he’s learned his lesson and a
grees to give up pool hustling for good, I’ll take him to the bank and withdraw enough to pay off his debt to Dex.”

  “You can’t do that, Sam. This isn’t your fight.”

  “It isn’t yours, either. But since it involves your brother, I’m making it my business now.”

  “But…” Penny tried to think of an alternative. Coming up with nothing, she turned. “Oh, Sam. You’d do that for him?”

  He squeezed her hand. “No. I’d do it for you.”

  She managed a shaky smile. “Thank you. But what if he doesn’t agree to your terms?”

  His tone roughened. “Your little brother will be limping around with a mile-wide patch torn off his miserable hide.”

  He was rewarded with a muffled laugh that managed to lighten his mood considerably.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Though it was barely dawn, Sam stepped in from the barn to find Penny in the kitchen, tending to her morning chores.

  She turned to him with a smile.

  “I see you’re feeling better than you did last night.”

  She nodded. “I just know Curtis is going to be so grateful for your help, Sam.”

  “He’d better be.” He stepped closer, still feeling the heat of the kisses they’d shared last night, when he’d walked her to her room.

  He’d intended merely to offer comfort, but when she’d flung her arms around his neck and clung to him, he’d been unable to leave her alone. He’d spent the night offering comfort in the only way he knew how.

  Now he bent to her, hoping to take up where they’d left off. But when he heard Mac descending the stairs, Sam managed a quick kiss on her cheek before stepping away.

  “Hey, you two.” Mac was subdued as he poured himself a mug of coffee. “You were out late.”

  “Yeah.” Seeing the high color on Penny’s cheeks, Sam decided to deflect attention from her. “And up early this morning. I’ve already finished the barn chores.”

  “Thanks, son. Otis, Roscoe, and I will be heading into town after breakfast, once we see Mary Pat off.”

  “She’s leaving?”

  Mac nodded. “Want to come along with us to town?”

  Sam shook his head and helped himself to a glass of orange juice. “I’ve got an errand to run…”