The Cowboy's Family Christmas

He and Leanne were over. He had to look to his own future.

And as he drove, he second-guessed his plan to work in Cedar Ridge for the Rodeo Group.

He glanced back at the ranch as it grew smaller in his rearview mirror.

Why should he put himself through this on purpose?

He would talk to Owen Herne. Tell him he wasn’t taking on the job. He had no reason at all to stay in town.

Tomorrow he’d leave and Cedar Ridge would only be a memory.

Chapter Two

“I know I put you on the spot, but I don’t have much choice.” Reuben rolled his coffee cup back and forth between his hands, looking everywhere but at his cousin Cord and his Uncle Boyce sitting across from him at the Brand and Grill. “I can’t do this job.”

The muted hum of conversation and the occasional order called out by Adana, one of the waitresses, filled the silence that followed his pronouncement.

Cord Walsh lifted one hand, his green-grey eyes narrowed. “You said you were willing,” he said. “We could have gotten someone else, but you said you could do this. We don’t have much time to get this done.”

“I know that, but I also know what I can and can’t do.”

“Did your other job get moved up?” Boyce asked, swiping his plate with the last bite of toast. “That why you changed your mind?”

“No. It still doesn’t start for a couple of weeks but...” He hesitated, wondering what to say without sounding like some heartsick loser. “I don’t think coming back was a good idea.” He pushed his coffee cup away from him and sat back, as well. He didn’t want to say any more than that in front of his uncle, George’s brother.

Boyce was busy taking one last swig of his coffee. But Cord held his gaze for an extra beat as if delving into Reuben’s thoughts.

If anyone knew Reuben’s history, it was his cousin. Cord knew most of Reuben’s secrets. Most, not all. The only other cousin who understood where Reuben was coming from was Noah. He also had to deal with a father who was never satisfied.

“Okay, then,” Cord said with an air of resignation, glancing at his father. “I’m guessing we can’t change your mind with our Walsh charm or appeal to your Walsh heritage.”

Reuben chuckled. “Probably not. I’m immune to those tactics.” Then he reached into the pocket of his denim jacket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. He pushed it across the table to Cord. “Here are the names of a couple of other guys you could get. They haven’t made any firm commitments and they won’t be available for a month or so. But they’re good too.” After his disastrous visit to his father’s ranch, Reuben had made a few calls from the motel to some other engineers he knew. He got a couple of vague commitments from some old classmates. It was the best he could do under the circumstances.

“So tell us about this job you’re starting,” Boyce said, looking up as Cord pocketed the note. Clearly his uncle wasn’t going to try to convince Reuben to stay. “I haven’t heard anything about it from George.”

Reuben wasn’t surprised. He knew George didn’t talk often about him. “It’s a good position with a prestigious international engineering firm. I’d be my own boss, which is what I’ve been looking for since I graduated,” Reuben said, thankful for his uncle’s switch in topic. He didn’t want to expound on the real reasons he was leaving. Leanne and Austin, the visible reminder of her betrayal of Reuben. “I’ll be making good money and I’ll be traveling around the world doing some big jobs. What’s not to like?”

“And there’s no one in your life right now who would object to all the moving around?” Boyce asked.

Reuben shook his head. “Nope. Haven’t met anyone who created any sparks.”

“I get where you’re coming from,” Cord said. “I think Ella and I had sparks the first time we met.”

“Didn’t help that Adana had just quit as your nanny and you were ticked off,” Boyce said with a laugh.

“There was more than that going on.” Cord grinned and then his phone dinged. He glanced at it, then back at Reuben. “I gotta deal with this. Are you leaving today?”

Reuben nodded. The sooner the better.

“Then I’ll say goodbye.”

“I’m heading out too,” Boyce said, “Though I wouldn’t mind sticking around and talking more, I sense you want to get a move on.” He gave Reuben a rueful smile, which, more than anything either of them had said, made Reuben second-guess his decision.

But then he thought of Leanne’s anger and his father’s lack of affection, and he knew he wasn’t ready to put himself in that vulnerable position.

“Much as I’d like to connect with some of the other cousins, I feel I should get going.”

Cord got up the same time Reuben did and pulled him close in a quick, man hug then stepped back, holding his gaze. “You stay safe and don’t be a stranger.”

“I won’t,” he said.

Then Boyce dropped some bills on the table to pay for breakfast, got up and gave him a tighter hug than Cord had. “I’ve been praying for you,” he said as he pulled back. “You and your father.”

Reuben felt a twinge of guilt at the sentiment. After Dirk’s funeral and Leanne’s betrayal, he had kept his distance from God. Only in the past few months had he realized how much he missed his faith and started attending church again.

“Thanks. I probably need it,” he said, keeping his tone light.

“You’ll be back for my wedding, won’t you?” Cord asked as they made their way out of the restaurant.

“I hope so. I’ll have to see what my new work schedule is. I’ll be needing to impress some big investors.”

“This job sounds serious,” Boyce said as he slowly made his way down the few steps out of the café. “And important.”

“I’ve got a lot riding on it and the pay is amazing.” This job was his chance to prove to himself that he had value. Worth.

“Well, you know, it’s a cliché but money isn’t everything,” Boyce said.

“No, but it’s a fairly universal measuring stick. One that your brother, George, understands.”

Cord gave him a curious look but Reuben wasn’t delving deeper into the past. He had a promising future ahead of him and in spite of feeling bad that he had let his cousin and his uncle down, he had to move on. Staying in Cedar Ridge wasn’t an option.

“Well, you take care. Stay in touch and don’t be such a stranger.”

Reuben nodded as he buttoned his denim jacket closed. The wind still held a chill. It was cooler than yesterday and as he walked down the street to his truck, he shivered as he thought of California, where he would be headquartered.

It would be warm there. No snow and no winter. Just sun and warmth and work.

Boyce and Cord said goodbye and left.

Reuben watched them leave and felt a twinge of melancholy when they both laughed at something Cord had said. How often had he longed for a relationship like his cousin and uncle shared?

He shook off the feelings, walked to his truck, drove down Main Street, then headed to the highway out of town.

But as he drove away from Cedar Ridge, he tried not to think that he might not be back for a very, very long time.

His father’s ranch was on his way out of town, and as he came nearer he was tempted to keep going. Drive on into his future and leave the past behind. But he knew guilt and second thoughts would follow him all the way back to Calgary, so he slowed as he came to the wooden and stone archway leading to the ranch. Hanging from the cross bar was the ranch’s brand, stamped on a metal disc. The Bar W. And with it hung the weight of the Walsh legacy and their prominence in the community of Cedar Ridge.

This was driven home when he drove up to the imposing bulk of the ranch house once again. It was built to impress and easily fulfilled that promise. The house spread out and upward, two stories high. The main part of the house, directly in front of him, held the main living area. Kitchen, great room, family room, formal dining room, kitchen nook. Two wings stretched out from the main house. One wing held the master bedroom, a media room, an office and a guest bedroom. The other was where Reuben and Dirk had slept and also had an extra bedroom.

Reuben’s mother had often said that the family rattled around in the large space. She was right, but the space also gave Reuben places to retreat to after his mother left. Away from George’s steady criticism.

Reuben parked on the cement pad in front of the large, four-bay garage, guessing that Leanne and George’s vehicles were inside.

He stayed in the truck a moment, taking a breath, readying himself to face them again. At least this time he was prepared.

He got out of the truck and strode to the house. But when he rang the doorbell no one answered. He put his head inside and called out, but again, only silence.

Puzzled he walked past the house and the gardens Dirk’s mother had started, surprised to see them all cleaned up and obviously cared for. His mother had never cared for them and they had been taken over by weeds and neglect.

Leanne must have revived the garden. He remembered how she had often wished she could fix it up when she and Dirk were dating.

He stopped again, listening for voices. Maybe they were all gone. He went a little farther and as he came over the rise separating the ranch house from the corrals, he heard the distinctive lowing of cattle and the bawl of baby calves.

He walked around the grove of trees between the garden behind the house and the cow corrals lying in a hollow tucked against the hill the house stood on.

The sound of shouting and the bellowing of cows grew louder as he got closer. Some cows stood in the pasture along the rugged fence, bawling for their calves, which had been separated from them in another large pen.

The rest of the cows were on the other side, milling about, creating a cloud of dust as they waited to be processed.

That’s when he saw her. Leanne was mounted on a large palomino, wearing a down vest, her hair tied back. Her hat was shoved on her head and she waved a coil of rope as she pushed the horse into a crush of bawling animals, cutting some away.

What was she doing? That was dangerous work. She could be hurt. There were far too many cows in the pen. Why was she working with them?

An unfamiliar man stood by a gate connected to another smaller pen. Clearly his job was to open the gate when enough cows were cut out of the herd. A younger man sat astride a horse, a ball cap clamped over his dark hair.

“Devin, get over there,” he heard his father yelling. Big surprise. Dad’s default emotion was anger. “Stop being so ridiculously lazy and help out,” he bellowed again from his position on the raised walkway by the fenced-in alley adjacent the pen.

He sounded so angry. If George wasn’t careful, he would have a heart attack someday. Reuben hurried his pace to see if he could help out. Leanne shouldn’t be doing what she was.

She was on one edge of the milling cattle, keeping them moving; Devin was working his way through the herd.

But when George yelled again, the young man pulled his horse to a stop, leaning on his saddle horn as if making a decision.

“Get in there,” his father shouted, looking ready to climb over the fence and help out himself. “Get those cows moving.”

The young man named Devin kept his horse where it was, then finally he made a move.

Only it wasn’t into the cattle to help Leanne cut some out. It was in the other direction. Away from the cows.

Toward the gate leading out of the pen.

As he came closer, Reuben easily saw the angry set of the young man’s jaw, the determined way he urged his horse toward the large metal gate separating the cows from one of the pastures. He dismounted and unlatched the gate, ignoring Leanne’s cries and George’s fury. His movements were rushed and jerky, the chain clanking against the gate. It was as if he couldn’t contain himself any longer.

He had Reuben’s complete sympathy. Reuben knew what it was like to be on the receiving end of George’s demands. Never feeling like the job you were doing was good enough. Always getting pushed to do more. He wondered how long this young man had worked for his father.

“Devin. Where are you going?” Leanne called out, the concern in her voice evident from here.

“Get back here, Devin,” George yelled. “Get back here or you’re fired.”

“You can’t fire me,” Devin shouted back, his voice filled with rage as he shoved open the gate, “because I quit.”

Then Devin led his horse through the open gate.

But he hadn’t looked behind him. Reuben could easily see what the young man, in his fury, had missed.

A group of cows and calves had followed Devin and his horse and were right behind him as he turned to close the gate.

Too late he noticed the animals and struggled to shut the gate on them. But by then the cows were already pushing past him to freedom. Devin jumped back, pulling his horse back, the cows now streaming out of the gate.

From what Reuben remembered, if the cows got away, they would run toward the open fields behind the ranch and from there up into the foothill pastures, which were spread out over hundreds and hundreds of acres. If they got too far out, it would take days to round them up again. Maybe even longer once the cows had gotten their taste of freedom.

“Devin, close that gate,” George yelled, leaning over the fence, his face purple. “Close the gate, you useless twerp.”

But Devin had given up and was leading his horse away from the herd flowing through the gate.

Reuben grabbed hold of a fence post and clambered over in his hurry to catch the gate and stop the rest of the cows from getting out. But it was hard to halt the press of all those large bodies and too dangerous.

“What did you do?” he called out to Devin, who was ignoring the herd racing past him as he walked along the fence.

“I quit.” Devin muttered as Reuben tried to get by him. “George is a maniac boss.”

“Is that your own horse?” Reuben asked as the cows, increasing in number, now thundered past them.

“No. Belongs to the ranch.”

That’s all he needed to know. Reuben yanked the reins out of Devin’s hand, did a quick assessment of the young man’s height. They were about the same. The stirrups should be okay.

Then he vaulted into the saddle, turned the horse around, nudged him in the flanks and galloped off to head off the cows before they got too far away.

It was a race and Reuben had to be careful not to get too close to the cows and get them running even faster. He heard Leanne’s shout and tossed a quick glance over his shoulder to see her following on horseback behind him, making a wide loop around the herd like he had.

All he could hear now was the thundering of the cows’ hooves, the steady rhythm of the horse’s, its hard breathing and Leanne shouting something indecipherable.

* * *

She needed to catch up to Reuben. Leanne gripped the reins of her horse, urging it on, fighting to stay in the saddle of the racing horse.

She shoved down a beat of panic as she galloped alongside the now running herd going faster than she thought possible.

She didn’t have time to plan. All she could concentrate on was getting the herd turned around before they got too far ahead. Could they do it with two horses? She’d never handled a charging herd before.

Please, Lord, help me keep my seat. Help me not fall off.

Her prayer was automatic. She didn’t want to disgrace herself in front of either Reuben, who seemed to be one with the horse he rode, or George, who had seemed on the verge of having a heart attack when the cows had surged through the open gate.

She was so angry with Devin, but right now she couldn’t spare him much thought.

Slowly the gap between their horses lessened and, to her surprise and relief, Reuben managed to get his horse in front of the lead cows. He waved his hat at the herd as he pulled his horse’s speed in.

Please don’t split, she silently pleaded as she came behind Reuben, trying to gauge the correct distance between her and Reuben and the cows. Too close and she would spook the herd. Too far back and some of the cows might go right between them and they’d have two bunches to worry about.

Thankfully they stayed together, calves bawling, cows bellowing and dust rising up from the milling hooves.

Reuben made it to the front of the herd and slowly, slowly their forward momentum decreased. Reuben waved his hat again, yelling to get the cows turned. But the animals behind didn’t know what was happening and kept running through, ramming into the cows in the front. This spooked them again and Leanne hurried to join Reuben at the front to hold the herd back.

But finally the animals seemed to sense they weren’t going to carry on and the herd slowed its pace, Reuben and Leanne keeping up.

“Don’t get too close,” Reuben called out. “Stay far enough away that they can see you but not get scared again.”

Leanne nodded, pulling her horse back.

Reuben waved his arm at the cows again and they stopped. “Get beside me but stay about ten feet away,” he shouted to Leanne. “Turn your horse toward the cows and keep it facing them.”

Leanne simply did what she was told. Reuben had herded far more cows than she had and knew what he was doing.

So she turned her horse around, her heart pounding in her chest with a mixture of fear and anticipation as she faced down the herd in front of her. The cows had their heads up as if looking for a way out. What would happen now depended on the decision of the lead cows.

“Get along, you creatures,” Reuben yelled, waving his hat at them again. Leanne had left her rope behind and her hat had tumbled off somewhere in the pasture so she waved her hands, praying it would help.

Then, together, they managed to get the front cows turned back toward the corrals and, thankfully, the others reluctantly followed suit.

The herd pushed and bawled as they made their way back, expressing their disappointment and confusion.

“You keep pressure on the herd, I’ll make sure they stay bunched,” Reuben called out.

Again all Leanne could do was nod.

A few calves made a break from the herd, heading for the upper pastures but Reuben quickly got them back, his horse easily stopping and turning them around.

Thankfully his horse was a seasoned cutting horse and Reuben knew what he was doing.

The cattle had their heads down now, plodding along the way cows should be moving. Leanne sneezed on the dust raised by the herd walking over the fields that were once green. She shivered as the worst of the drama was over.

Reuben was still working the one side of the herd as the animals headed back to the corrals. She knew they would face another challenge when they came to the gate, but hopefully the bale of hay she’d put inside the pen to lure them in the first place would draw them back again. The pasture they were riding on now was brown and chewed down so there was nothing to entice them here, though a few cows slowed to check it out.

As they got closer to the yard, she saw the gate was still open. George was on the other side of the fence, holding it with a rope to make sure it didn’t swing shut. He also knew what to do.

Then, finally, the first cows went through the gate.

“Push them harder,” Reuben called out, whistling at the cows. “We need to get them moving fast enough so the front ones get pushed farther into the corrals and don’t decide to turn around when they reach the end.”

Leanne clucked to her horse, urging the cows on, and then, finally, they were all back in the corrals and the large metal gate clanged shut behind them.

Her hands were shaking as she unclenched the reins and pulled in a long, steadying breath. They had come so close to a complete disaster.

If Reuben hadn’t been there right when Devin quit...

She shut that thought off. She didn’t know why Reuben had returned, but he had, and right now she was relieved to have the cows safely back in the pen. It had taken her and Devin and Chad two days to round them up the first time. She knew if the cows had gotten out to the far pasture, it would have taken them a lot longer to convince them to come back.

“Good job, Leanne,” George said as she sat, her breath shaky, her pulse still pounding.

She acknowledged his rare compliment with a duck of her head, then grabbed her horse’s reins and turned back toward the herd.

“What are you doing?” Reuben called out.

“Getting these cows processed.” Time was wasting. George would be furious as it was, no sense making him angrier.

“No. You need to get your bearings. Your horse needs to rest a moment. Shift its mindset.”

Leanne fought down frustration that she hadn’t thought of that. Though her horse was breathing heavily, she knew the run hadn’t worn it out. But it had put it in a racing frame of mind, as Reuben had said. She needed to settle it down.

So she nodded her acknowledgment of what he said, pulled in another breath and exerted a gentle but steady pressure on the reins to hold her horse in. He seemed to understand what she wanted and stopped its prancing and shifting, settling down and lowering its head.

Reuben brought his horse alongside hers, talking to it in a low voice, settling it down, as well.

Up until now Leanne’s focus had been on the cows, on staying atop her horse, on keeping things under control.

But now that the crisis had been averted, she was far too aware of Reuben beside her, petting his horse, rewarding it, looking as if he hadn’t just faced down fifty cow and calf pairs racing for the back of the beyond.

“So what’s next?” he asked, shoving his cowboy hat back up his head with the knuckle of his forefinger, giving her a quizzical look.

She fought down a whirl of confusion, letting her old anger with him surface. How could he act so casual? As if they hadn’t shared so much? Been through so much?

“What are you doing here?” she blurted out.

He looked taken aback, but then his features hardened, reflecting her own churning emotions.

“I came to say goodbye.”

“You’re leaving?” She shouldn’t be surprised. It was what he did best. “What about the arena?”

“I told Cord he needed to find someone else to do the assessment.” His horse did a turn away, restless now, but Reuben got it turned to face the cows. In the process he ended up even closer to Leanne and her horse.

“Why are you here?” George called out, joining them.

“So nice to be made welcome,” Reuben muttered, his jaw clenched. He turned to his father. “Like I was saying to Leanne, I just stopped in to say goodbye and came into the middle of this mess.”

“Sure. Yeah.” George turned away from him and back to Leanne. “Chad is still here. Guess we should get going.” He walked away from them, heading back to the head gate.

Leanne nodded, trying hard not to look at her watch. She had told Shauntelle to drop Austin off at suppertime. If it were only her and Chad and George, sorting these cows would take longer.

“You can’t do this alone.”

Reuben’s tone rubbed her completely wrong. So full of authority. But his words were, unfortunately, correct.

“Done it before,” she snapped. “Can do it again.”

“Not without Devin.”

She didn’t need to be reminded of that particular betrayal. Though she didn’t blame the kid, it was still lousy timing on Devin’s part that he quit right now. This was only the first batch of cows they needed to work through. In the coming week they needed to get the rest of the cows down off the upper pastures, process and wean them. On top of that, she had committed to taking minutes at a meeting of the Rodeo Group. She had too much to do and not enough help to do it now that Devin was gone.

But she wasn’t going to admit that to Reuben.

She turned to him, fighting a confusing mix of anger and loss as she held his dark brown eyes. Eyes she had once found herself lost in.