Page 36 of Cowboy Friend Zone for Christmas

“I have as many minutes as you need. Plus coffee and our latest, made-from-scratch dessert, a triple-berry quiche drizzled in vanilla cream sauce.”

Nash groaned. “You had me at coffee. And I wouldn’t mind snagging a piece of that dessert for Noelle.” Gotta keep my girl happy. It was so nice being able to finally call her that, at least inside his head.

“Consider it done. I’ll have one of our chefs box it up before you leave my office. Where are you?”

“A hop, skip, and two jumps down the street. I can be there in five if that works for you.”

“I’ll have the coffee ready.”

Nash parked by the rear entrance of the enormous dinner theater. It was a solid wood door painted red that led to their administrative offices.

Angel’s office was a few doors down on the left. Stepping into the building never failed to make Nash’s stomach rumble. It didn’t matter if he was hungry or not. The most delicious scents were forever wafting from their commercial kitchen. He’d be permanently drooling if he worked at a place like this.

Angel stood as Nash entered his office. He was a tall Hispanic man who was rarely seen in anything less than a business suit, usually solid black with white shirtsleeves. If he was anything, he was impeccably professional. A first-time visitor would never guess he’d grown up on a poor farm staffed by immigrants and seasonal workers on the edge of town. From what Nash understood, Angel had broken the mold of poverty by attending college to become a five-star chef. He’d returned to town soon afterward, purchased an old warehouse, and turned it into a successful dinner theater that now employed half the town. Or so the locals claimed. Nash wasn’t sure how accurate the number was, though Angel certainly maintained a sizable staff.

Castellano’s had become a magnet for celebrities, which attracted a lot of tourist traffic for the town as a whole. Willa Morgan, a celebrated country western singer, had been the first. She was now his wife. Christie Hart, a world-famous trick rider was next. She was still with the show a few seasons later. And now Angel had the Carson brothers on tap, three champion bronc riders. No matter what angle Nash came at it from, the dinner theater and indoor rodeo empire Angel Castellano had built from sheer grit and perspiration was impressive. He very much liked and respected the guy.

The two men shook hands, took a few sips of coffee, then settled back in their seats to study each other.

“What’s on your mind, Nash?” Though Angel wore many hats, his relaxed demeanor suggested he had all the time in the world.

“I want to discuss the extension to the show you asked me about.” The only reason Nash hadn’t given it serious consideration before now was because Angel was asking for another full month of shows. Though Nash and his brothers’ ranch foreman was more than capable of holding down the fort at Canyon Creek Ranch, they couldn’t be gone from home forever.

Angel nodded, smiling faintly. “I was really hoping you’d say that.”

“Honestly? I’m homesick for Texas. Turns out Noelle Ward has other ideas.”

“No kidding?” Angel’s smile widened.

Nash sensed the man was again debating whether he and Noelle were in a secret relationship.

“As you may already be aware, Shelly Hofstetter is about to give birth to her third child, and the two of them are very close.”

“Hotdog!” Dropping his cool for the first time since Nash entered the room, Angel sat forward in his chair. He pumped a fist into the air like a bull rider rising from the dirt after a successful ride. “Just give me your terms, and we’ll work our way towards a yes that we can both live with.”

Nash nodded. “We need to step up the pace of the show for my brothers’ sakes. They accepted this gig to give me more time to recover from my accident, and now they’re bored silly. They’d never admit it, not in a million years.” They’d continue to squabble noisily and make everyone around them miserable, but they’d remain loyal to him and each other. They valued family as much as he did.

Angel spread his hands. “We have a full-sized indoor ring and a packed-out audience. The sky’s the limit, brother.”

“Alright, then.” Nash laid out his idea. “With respect to time, I think we should cut out the rope throwing lessons.” It was a funny routine, but everyone in town had seen it more than once by now. “We sling enough lariats around during the calf tying event. Instead of a solo tie down, let’s switch it to a team roping exercise with even more bickering and rolling in the dust.” Flint was a pro at bickering. He never ran out of material. Some of the stuff he did was improvised on the spot. He was that good.

Angel nodded, grinning. He pulled his keyboard closer and started typing. “You keep talking while I revise the itinerary.”

“I’d like to throw my brothers back on broncos.” Nash grimaced at the bittersweet reminder that he’d given Noelle his word he wouldn’t be taking part in it. “No full-blown, fire-breathing beasts bearing grudges against humanity. And no strap. Just a little bucking and snorting to get the point across — all in good fun. My brothers know how to get their regular mounts to rear back on their hind legs and do all sorts of other stunts. It’ll be the appearance of bronc riding, minus most of the danger.” The best part about it was that it would take a considerable amount of skill on his brothers’ part to pull it off. The routine was a compromise of sorts between their current, too-tame routine and the perils of actual bronc riding.

“I’m completely sold on this, Nash.” Angel leaned back in his chair, looking satisfied. “I’ll have my attorney draw up the contract to make your extension official. My only regret whatsoever is knowing I’m eventually going to have to watch your taillights flash red when you and your brothers drive back to Texas.”

Nash reached across the desk with his bionic hand to seal the deal. After a lifetime of shaking hands with his right hand, he’d done it without thinking.

Without missing a beat, Angel gently grasped it. “I’m honored to have you ride for us, Nash. Truly honored.” He released his hand. “As sad as I’ll be to see you go, I hope your stint here in Pinetop ends up opening a lot of doors for you and your brothers.”

Nash nodded his thanks as he stood, thoroughly impressed with the guy’s attitude. Some businessmen would be looking for a way to carpetbag him and his brothers into staying in town indefinitely. Some might go as far as to claim some ownership in their success. But not Angel Castellano. He was a man who’d never forget where he came from. He acted like every day was a gift and treated every person who crossed his path with respect.

He was right about other doors opening. Nash was already getting the calls and emails. However, he wasn’t sure he’d enjoy working with anyone half as much as he enjoyed working with Angel. Not for any price. In so many words, his brothers had said the same thing behind closed doors.

Angel stood and walked him across the room. “If you’ll hang tight for two more minutes, I’ll grab that dessert for your girl.” A knowing wink accompanied his words.

Nash almost laughed out loud. Apparently, he and Noelle weren’t fooling anyone. He was going to enjoy telling Angel the truth about their relationship. Soon.

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