The Cowboy Code

Luckily, it was only a suitcase that she had kicked over—it had hit the wooden floor with a solid smack. As Maggie scrambled to right it, he noticed that her hands were shaking.

She was nervous, and he didn’t think that it was just the cat.

Was it him? Or the situation?

“Maggie, have you ever been on a ranch before?” he asked.

“No.”

“Have you ever ridden a horse?”

“No.”

“Are you scared to ride?” he asked. “Or just nervous?”

“A little of both.” She bit her lip—the simple gesture made his blood heat for some reason.

“Okay, I’m a lot scared and a lot nervous. I’m scared of losing Danny to the system. I’m scared of the whole cattle drive. But mostly, I’m scared that Cowboy Quest won’t be enough to help us fix what’s broken.”

Joe wanted to take Maggie’s hand and assure her that everything would be okay, that Cowboy Quest was all about improving communication skills and team building, but he didn’t dare touch her. Nor did he want to tell her that, from what he’d read, Maggie and Danny simply needed time together.

If she hadn’t already figured that out, she would.

“Please don’t worry, Maggie. Believe me, all your concerns will be addressed. If not, just come to me.”

She closed her eyes and let out a long breath. “Thank you. That makes me feel much better. And I’ll come to you for any help I may need. I really want to make the most out of your program.”

“Perfect. That’s just what I want to hear.”

Then it dawned on him.

Since she was the first adult that he had in his program, and a woman at that, he’d have to make some concessions for her, like separate facilities and her own tent for the cattle drive. But he couldn’t afford to make too many allowances for her lack of experience when he had a lot to accomplish before the cattle drive started.

Joe also knew that Maggie wasn’t likely to confide in him too much. But he was sympathetic to Maggie’s problems with Danny. He knew what was at stake for them both, and she had a darn good reason to worry.

Adding that to the fact that she needed to complete Cowboy Quest with Danny—and learn to ride, apparently—he definitely could empathize with what she was going through.

He’d do everything possible to help her.

He felt like he already knew her—at least, Maggie the performer. He knew she’d won a Tony award and had appeared in numerous musicals and even on TV.

He also knew things had been going fine with Danny up until his mother’s death two years ago. Then Danny started running with a bad bunch of kids. The probation officer who investigated the situation felt that Maggie’s rehearsal and performance schedule left Danny alone much too often, and that he needed more supervision.

On one of those nights when he’d snuck out of the apartment, Danny had been arrested.

In a phone call from his old college buddy, Judge Pat Cunningham in New York City, Joe had learned that Maggie had to give up rehearsals for a new show in order to participate in Cowboy Quest. Pat felt bad about that, but knew that it was important for Maggie to spend time with Danny, to bond and rebuild the stable home environment he so desperately needed.

Her intentions were admirable, but Joe hoped that it wasn’t too late. Why had she let things come to this?

“Look at all this counter space,” Maggie said, running her hand along the emerald-green granite. “I never have much time to cook, but I love it. I tape all the cooking shows and try different recipes whenever I can.”

Maggie suddenly froze in place, then slowly turned to him. “Whoa. Am I supposed to cook for everyone in the program?”

He stifled a smile. “Well, you said you liked to cook.”

When her eyebrows shot up in shock, he chuckled. “I was just kidding. The ranch has a cook, and he always loves the challenge of a dozen more mouths to feed—a baker’s dozen, counting you.”

“Joe, am I the only parent or guardian who’s participating?”

“Yes.”

She looked like she was about to hit the panic button. “Just me?”

“We have other counseling components for family members set up post-Cowboy Quest, but you are it as far as an adult and as a female who’s going to actually join the cattle drive.” He grinned. “Twelve teenage boys, six cowboy counselors and you.”

Maggie raised an eyebrow. “Why am I the only one?”

“Judge Cunningham asked me to make an exception for you, so I did. Now let me show you to your room.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

And it was. He could tell that Maggie appreciated the view of the mountains from the guest bedroom, the balcony off the room with several lawn chairs and a table, the big log bed and the brightly striped Hudson’s Bay blankets that he’d acquired over the years.

There were several items handed down from his grandparents—his mother’s parents—that impressed her. He’d carefully preserved them in shadow boxes that he’d made and displayed them throughout the house.

His grandmother’s baskets and several pieces of clothing with her original beadwork, medicine bags—none of it escaped Maggie’s attention.

“And these photographs…fabulous.” She seemed to be talking to herself, then she turned to him. “Who is the photographer?”

“My dad. My mother is a travel reporter, and my father was a rancher and a stock contractor. I learned the business from him. But on the day I graduated from college, he drove up the driveway with a mammoth motor home, handed me the keys to this house and said that all five thousand acres were mine—and he was going to see the world with my mom.”

“Five thousand acres?” Her eyes grew wide. “He just walked away from all of this?”

“After I tried to talk him out of it, he confessed that he liked being on the road and seeing the world with my mother, that he’d grown tired of the ranch. And of course my mother was thrilled.”

He’d thought three people loved the ranch as much as he did—Ellen and his parents.

Damn, had he been wrong!

And what was wrong with his judgment of people?

The ranch meant everything to him. It was the reason he woke up every morning and the reason he went to bed exhausted each night. He knew every blade of grass, every animal and every tree on the property. It was his life’s blood.

Someone like Maggie could never understand that, so he wouldn’t even try explaining it to her.

“I’ll let you get settled then,” Joe said, then eyed her fancy blouse, slacks and strappy shoes. “I hope you brought some work clothes. If you’d like to change into something warmer, I’ll give you a quick tour of the ranch before the sun sets.”

“I’d like that.”

“I’ll wait for you in the living room.”

He settled into his favorite overstuffed chair and prepared to wait a long while for Miss Broadway, but to his surprise she appeared just a handful of minutes later. Obviously she was used to quick costume changes.

And change she had. Her dark blue jeans fit her snugly in all the right places. A pastel plaid blouse and a sparkly belt topped off her outfit, and it looked like she had on brand-new black cowboy boots.

He gave a long whistle. “You look like you’re ready to go out on the town. You’re dressed a little too fancy for Cowboy Quest.”

“Oh.” She shook her head. “My whole wardrobe is like this. I bought out Bloomingdale’s.”

“Maybe you could go shopping.”

“There are department stores here?”

“Sure. The Mountain Springs Feed and Sundries has a whole bunch of clothes next to the fertilizer and tractor parts.” He winked.

She laughed. “Let’s go.”

“You think I’m kidding?”

“I hope you are.” She picked up Calico and rubbed his ears. The cat snuggled up against her neck, pushing and rubbing her head against Maggie. The pure pleasure on Maggie’s face tugged at his heart, yet it troubled him to see the sadness in her eyes.

“We’ll get to be good friends, Calico. Won’t we?” she asked.

Calico purred his agreement.

“I’ve always wanted a pet,” she said. “But my schedule just doesn’t…” She scratched the cat’s ears. “I can’t even take care of Danny.”

“Yes, you can,” Joe said. “Don’t be so hard on yourself. You’ve both been through a terrible loss—it takes time to adjust.”

The lost look in her eyes made him want to take her into his arms, but Joe forced himself to get back to business.

“We’ll use the golf cart and follow the Silver River,” Joe said.

“Sounds good to me.”

A few minutes later, when she settled in next to him in the golf cart, he caught the scent of some floral perfume that suited her perfectly. The light breeze tossed her blond hair around her face, and he liked it when it brushed his shoulder. Too soon, she restrained it with some kind of clip.

He reminded himself again that this was business, not pleasure and that thinking about her perfume and hair wasn’t appropriate.

To make matters worse, the ground wasn’t level here—it was a jarring ride. Maggie kept bumping into him, not that he minded, and every now and then she’d shoot him an embarrassed glance.

Joe pulled up alongside of the river and drove slower. “Do you have any questions about the program?”

She looked straight ahead and he heard her inhale. “My only priority is making sure that Danny is okay. The other thing I need to do is to help him satisfactorily complete your program or he’s headed for placement in a juvenile facility, and I don’t want that.” She took a deep breath, and bit down on her bottom lip. “And I’m supposed to come up with some kind of plan for better supervision of Danny when we get back home and a way to spend more time with him. That’ll be a challenge. If I could have found a better plan, I would have instituted it.”

That lost look crept into her eyes again. “You’ll come up with something, Maggie. Maybe I can help.”

Joe knew that he had been given a lot of power over her and her relationship with Danny, and if he were Maggie, he wouldn’t like it either.

“It’s going to be hard trusting anyone with Danny,” she continued. “You see, I’ve had custody of him for the past two years. You’ve known him for—what?—twelve seconds?”

“I understand your concern. I do. But Cowboy Quest met with one hundred percent success the first time. This is our second run.”

“Define success,” she said, suddenly cooler.

“On paper, I’d say success would be all the boys completing all the requirements. But what I’d really want would be for them to use the components of it—the practical and character lessons—for a lifetime.”

She crossed her fingers. “I really hope that happens.”

“Me, too.”

“I read in your pamphlet that you have a master’s degree in special education,” she said.

“With a minor in psychology.”

She folded her arms in front of her. “And those cowboys in the bunkhouse? What are their credentials?”

“Believe it or not, a couple of them have graduate degrees, most have bachelor degrees, but more importantly, they are good men and good role models. And they care about each and every kid.”

“That’s good to hear,” she said. “How did you get into this, Joe?”

He rubbed his chin. Where to start? “My own father wasn’t around much when I was growing up. Either he was busy hauling livestock around the country, or he was traveling with my mother, taking photos for travel books. If it weren’t for Mr. Dixon—my pal Jake’s dad—I would have been placed in a juvenile correctional facility and never let out. He helped me in more ways than one. I guess I’m paying that back.”

He was worried about his program this time around. He had shared with his staff that the twelve boys they were getting seemed more difficult than the first group, and they all had a history of running away, including Danny. They’d all have to be extra vigilant.

But he was going to think positively. He had a good team.

“And if someone fails to complete the program?”

“No one has yet.” Joe studied her. Her brows were almost touching, and her hands were clasped tightly on her lap.

“But you’ve only had one run of Cowboy Quest so far. Danny’s future hinges on an almost untested program.”

“I suppose you could put it that way.” He met her worried look. “But Cowboy Quest has been under a lot of scrutiny from the state and county. It’s being studied as a model for other, similar programs.”

Her lips were pinched now, and she was looking away from him. She was definitely anxious.

“Maggie, don’t worry. Cowboy Quest is not about the riding or the livestock. It’s about problem solving, maturing and working as a team. We use the Cowboy Code as a guide for basic rules of living. So don’t worry. The boys and I will do everything possible to get everyone through the program with flying colors.”

Her grass-green eyes pooled with unshed tears and once again he felt the urge to comfort her.

The only reason he’d send in a negative report to Judge Cunningham on Maggie and Danny was if they didn’t make some attempt to resolve their issues, but he wasn’t going to tell her that yet. He needed to wait and see just how things played out, and just how hard Danny and Maggie worked on their relationship and solving the problems between them, logistical and otherwise.

From what he could see, Danny was a thirteen-year-old who couldn’t be trusted to attend school and not run the street.

Maggie was trying to work and support the two of them, in a job with horrible hours, and in his current state, Danny needed more—if not constant—supervision. He needed a parent.

Somehow in all that there needed to be a plan for their future together, or they would spend their future apart.

“Remember, Maggie, I have a vested interest in making sure that all the participants are successful. We have a good program here—but we’re under a lot of scrutiny from the state. I don’t want to give them any excuses to shut us down.”

“So you might lose your program, and I might lose custody of Danny.” Maggie took a deep breath. “Then we’d both better make Cowboy Quest a success.”

Chapter Three

Maggie tried to stay optimistic as she leaned back against the cushioned seat of the golf cart and watched the sun set over the rugged, snow-capped mountains in the distance. A sweet, unfamiliar heat washed over her. She was sure that it was caused by her new tour guide’s hard, muscular thigh pressed lightly against hers.

She enjoyed listening to Joe talk about his ranch. She could hear the pride in his voice when he pointed out which animal won Bull of the Year from the Professional Bull Riders Association and which ones were up and coming.

But she couldn’t forget how much power Joe had over her. With one report to the judge, she might lose Danny forever. And here they were, both fish out of water, trying to fit into a program that they didn’t have a clue about.

But as Joe said, it wasn’t about the livestock or the riding. That they could probably muddle through with a little luck and a lot of help. It was the bonding between her and Danny that was going to be the hardest. There was a lot of hurt between them. But she had faith in Danny. She’d loved him since he was born, and she still did. Somewhere in that teenage mess was the Danny who loved her back.

As they neared a hillside pasture, she could see the silhouettes of bulls grazing in the distance. Beautiful horses graced the corral; more were in a lower pasture.

“Would you like to see the barn?” he asked.

“Sure.” Actually, she really didn’t. She wanted to curl up somewhere and sleep. It had been a long traveling day.

He pulled up to the corral and several horses came to inspect them. He took a bag of sugar cubes from the glove compartment and handed some to her. “Keep your hand flat. You don’t want to lose any fingers.” He jumped out of the vehicle and led her into the barn.

Lights blazed inside. As Joe walked past the stalls, he called all the horses by name, and she petted them.

“You sure look at home in a barn, Maggie.”

“As it happens, I grew up on a dairy farm in northern New York.”

His eyes grew as wide as his belt buckle. “Well, I’ll be. And here I had you pegged as a bona fide city slicker.”

“Hang on. I am a city slicker. I’ve lived in Manhattan longer than I lived on my parents’ farm. Besides, I didn’t particularly like it. My sister, Liz, was the one who loved it.”

“And Danny is Liz’s son.”

“Yes.” Even though Liz had been gone for two years, Maggie missed her every day. Danny looked a lot like her.

“And you think you’ve failed Liz because Danny is in trouble,” Joe said, pausing with a bucket of water for the next horse in line.

“Was that in the probation report, too?”

He nodded. “It said something to the effect that you felt like you failed Liz because Danny was arrested.”

Maggie felt like she was under a microscope.

He was here to run Cowboy Quest—not to analyze her. She was here to save her nephew. End of story.

They got back into the golf cart. Ominous clouds had darkened the sky, and the breeze had grown rough and cool. “What’s Danny doing now?” she asked, changing the subject.

“Ronnie is giving him a tour like I’m giving you. If the other participants have arrived, they are all touring together.”

“Danny’s probably hungry,” Maggie said, her own stomach giving a little growl. “It’s been a long day, and he didn’t eat much.”

“He’ll be fine.” Joe checked his watch. “Dinner is in an hour.”

Just as they pulled up to the ranch house, the skies opened with a crack of thunder. Rain came down in a noisy torrent. They dashed inside. Joe lit a fire in the living room and they sat to warm themselves.

“You know a lot about me, Joe. Tell me more about yourself,” she said.

“There isn’t much to tell.” He shrugged. “I was a fairly mediocre student in high school. My parents weren’t around much then so I practically moved into Jake Dixon’s house. It was Mr. Dixon who suggested that I could work my ranch, expand my stock contracting business and still do something with my master’s in education. One day, I came up with the idea for Cowboy Quest.”

He paused and diverted his eyes, clearly uncomfortable talking about himself.

“Don’t stop,” Maggie urged.

“Jake Dixon, our pal Clint Scully and I all help out on Jake’s Gold Buckle Ranch. He runs several programs for kids during the summer, so Cowboy Quest fits right in. Mr. and Mrs. Dixon handle most of the administrative duties.”

“And you handle the program part,” Maggie stated.

He nodded. “The three of us go way back to Mountain Springs Grammar School. After high school, we rodeoed together for years. The only one still chasing rodeos is Clint.”

“So what does a stock contractor actually do?”

“I furnish rodeo stock for rodeos—steers, broncs, bulls, calves. I breed them, too—buy, sell, trade.”

“Sounds like hard work, raising all those animals.”

“I’m not afraid of hard work.” He smiled. “And that’s another component of the Cowboy Code. If we can get these boys up and working, they’ll be too tired to think of getting into trouble, and at the end of the day, they can take pride in what they’ve accomplished. I hope that learning the value of hard work will stay with them when they go back home.”

“If you can get them working.”

“Oh, I will. Starting with dinner tonight.” He tipped his hat, excused himself and added, “I’ll see you in a half hour.”

As Maggie walked to the bunkhouse, she caught the scent of horses again, heavy on the breeze.

She did some breathing exercises—she always did when she was nervous. Only a handful of people knew that she suffered from stage fright, but now she was suffering from horse fright. She’d been dreading tomorrow, but the sight of the horses reminded her: riding lessons tomorrow.

She told herself that it’d be okay. She’d seen horses before, pulling carriages around Central Park. The tourists petted, posed and took pictures with them and they were as still as statutes.

But the Silver River Ranch was totally different from New York.

Here there were real horses. Horses that she’d be riding…in a saddle…by herself. And they were tall. It was a long way to the ground if she fell.

Maggie paused to check her way. She’d forgotten how dark it could be at night in the country. There weren’t any streetlights, brightly illuminated office buildings or Broadway marquees to guide the way, and she could barely see the path in front of her. She stopped to let her eyes send a message to her brain, sorting out the shadows and shapes.

Then she made out the tall figure of Joe Watley approaching, carrying a flashlight. Relief washed over her as he called out.

“I thought this would help.” She heard a click, and he handed her a flashlight of her own. “Keep it while you’re here.”

“Thanks.”

The bunkhouse was aglow in the distance, and it looked warm and welcoming. She took another deep breath, and pushed thoughts of tomorrow aside.

“What’s for dinner?” she asked as they walked.

“Cookie’s mystery stew.”

“Shall I ask about the name, or don’t I want to know?”

“He makes it different each time. One of the cowboys called it that, and the name stuck. The meat he uses is a mystery, too.”

“Ouch.”

They both laughed, and Maggie warmed to his sense of humor. Yet being with Joe—the whole situation—made her jumpy. If they walked in together, it would be like admitting that he was spending extra time with her.

Sure enough, when they entered, they were greeted with a moment of hushed silence. Then the talking and frivolity began again in earnest.

She noticed Danny right away, along with the poke in the ribs that the big kid on his right gave him. Danny winced, and so did Maggie. She clamped her lips together and took a seat at the head of the table, next to Joe—the only two seats left.

Everyone seemed to have been waiting for her to arrive before they ate, and she vowed that she’d never be tardy again. She checked her watch—five after six. She was only five minutes late.

Joe cleared his throat. “Gentlemen and Maggie, let’s take a minute to reflect silently on the bounty of the meal and the opportunity to be in Cowboy Quest.” He bowed his head.

Emulating Joe, the cowboys removed their hats and put them over their hearts. It took a moment before the boys in the program decided what to do, but eventually they bowed their heads—everyone but Danny, the smallest kid in the program, and his newfound friend, the biggest kid in the program. They smirked.

Joe spoke quietly. “Heavenly Father, thank you for this food which we are about to eat, and may everyone around this table get what they can out of Cowboy Quest, and more. God bless us all and keep us safe. Amen.”

“Amen,” echoed most everyone around the table.

A warmth, like a plush blanket, enveloped her. She remembered sitting around her parents’ big oak table as they all bowed their heads to pray. As they ate, they’d discuss current events, school, the weather—anything and everything in between.

These days she always ate on the run—stopping at the deli next to her condo, or for Chinese take-out somewhere, or for a quick slice of pizza. Max’s delivered, so she’d arrange for Danny to have most of his meals from there.

She hired a housekeeper, a math and reading tutor and got him a membership to the gym down the street. They went to counselors. She did everything she possibly could to help Danny, but she still wished she could have given more of herself.

Now, even though there were two dozen other people at the table, she was sharing a meal with Danny for a change.

Speaking of meals, Cookie’s mystery meal was stew, and it was fabulous, loaded with carrots and potatoes.

Ronnie tapped on his coffee mug with a spoon. “Let’s all go around the table and introduce ourselves.”

After all the introductions were made, Maggie noticed that Danny and she were the only ones who came from the east coast. All the rest, including staff, were from either the west or southwest.