Page 24 of Cowboy

Ava nodded. “Mostly. This weekend he’s out of town. Belinda and I have been doing things during the week instead.”

“Sounds like you like your sister-in-law, that’s good.” He knew a lot of women who hated their brother’s spouses and did their best to make things miserable for them. He’d never understood why, only that it happened. He hoped Lisa would like Ava.

“We didn’t know each other well for a long time but now that I’m getting to know her, I really like her. She’s been welcoming and friendly since I moved to Dickenson. A lot of women would resent a sister, or other family member, suddenly moving to town and needing so much of her husband’s attention. Belinda has been great and treats me like her own sister.” Ava shook her head as if even she had a hard time believing how much she liked her sister-in-law. Not having any in-laws of his own, at least not yet, Cowboy couldn’t relate.

“Anyway,” she said with a shake of her head, “I’d love to go with you. Let me know the details and I’ll get everything worked out.”

“I’ll get them no later than Saturday and let you know. Now tell me about your week. What have you been up to?”

They talked until their meals came, then continued to chat through dinner, even sitting a while once they were done. Cowboy liked talking to her. She didn’t hesitate to tell him her opinions or even admit that she didn’t know anything about whatever subject the conversation had turned to. So many people refused to admit they didn’t know what they were talking about that her honesty was refreshing.

By the time he’d paid the tab, and they headed out to the parking lot, Cowboy found himself smiling and wanting more time with her.

“You still want to go for a ride?” he asked as he handed over her helmet.

She held it, watching him for a moment. “If you don’t mind, I’d love a bit of a ride.”

“What time you want to be home?” He checked his watch.

“I’d like to be home by nine-thirty. That lets me get to bed and get enough sleep for work tomorrow.” She slid the helmet onto her head as if she’d done it a hundred times instead of only a few.

That left them with a little over an hour. He could work with that. He put his own helmet on, turned on the radio between his helmet and hers, then got on the bike. After Ava got on behind him, he started the engine and steered them out onto the road. He hadn’t had much chance to take her for a ride and while they could ride around town for an hour, he had something else in mind.

16

Ava had enjoyed dinner and the conversation they’d had before, during and after. Cowboy was easy to be around, and he didn’t condemn her for admitting she didn’t know anything about whatever subject had come up. So different from Hank, who’d belittled her if she didn’t know something, even if it was some obscure fact she could never have anticipated would come up.

Now, as she sat with her arms around him, Cowboy seemed to be headed out of town. She didn’t know where they were headed, and she didn’t really care. What mattered to her was that she was here with him, and doing something she was learning to love, something he obviously enjoyed.

She hadn’t expected him to pull up onto the interstate, and the speed made her nervous at first, but she soon found herself relaxing against him.

“Where are we going?” she asked after a few minutes.

“It’s a surprise. I have something I want to show you. If it were daytime there are other things I’d show you. But it will be dark soon, so that limits things.”

She only had more questions, but decided to hold her tongue and see where he was taking her. She’d already admitted she didn’t know the area well, so there was no point in trying to figure out what he wanted her to see. Instead, she adjusted her arms around his middle and reveled in the warmth of his back against her front, despite the chill of the wind at this speed.

She’d zoned out and was just enjoying having him close when he steered the motorcycle off the interstate and onto a ramp. Looking around, she noticed lights and buildings that she didn’t think she’d ever seen before. He pulled off onto a wide spot in the road near the top of the ramp, killed the engine and took off his helmet. She took that as a sign he was ready to get off. It was a weird place, but she took the hint and carefully stepped off the motorcycle.

She looked around while she waited for him to get off, noticing that she could see lights from miles around.

“I wanted to take you somewhere beautiful, somewhere memorable.” Cowboy lifted one shoulder in a half-shrug. “But I didn’t want to have to share you with a couple hundred people and it’s not the most convenient time of day. This is the tallest place I could drive to in a reasonable amount of time, to show you the lights. It might not seem like there are a lot of people around Dickenson, but when you see it this way, it feels different.”

He stepped up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. Ava leaned back into his chest, reveling in his warmth and the safe way he made her feel.

“What do you think?”

“It’s beautiful.” She didn’t know what else to say. She’d had no idea how many people were scattered away from the center of town. It made for a stunning light display that nearly took her breath away. She didn’t know how long she stood there, taking in the view, but it was long enough, she didn’t feel bad turning away from it to spin in Cowboy’s arms. She looked up at him for a moment, then spoke.

“Take me home. I’ve got something I want to show you myself.” Hoping he wouldn’t misunderstand, she stretched up and kissed him, coaxing his lips open, she tried to pour all she was feeling into that simple, but oh-so-complex touch.

They made it to the door of her apartment. Once inside, Ava turned on him and pushed him back against the door, looking him up and down while giving what she hoped was an almost feral grin.

“Stay,” she told him, then stripped out of her jacket and tossed it aside, then turned her attention to him.

She started at his waist, sliding her hands up under the vest he wore, pushing it off his shoulders then tossing it on top of her jacket where it had landed on the seat of a nearby chair, then turning her attention to his shirt.

“Is this what you wanted to show me?”

---