Page 32 of Harrison Hyde and the Runaway Bride

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Maria said. “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“It’s okay.” He got out of his rocker, taking his phone with him to stand beside Maria. “Dad, sis, this is Maria. She’s part of the family who… uh, took me in.”

“Oh,that’sMaria.” That was Lily, and her voice carried both a lilt and a question.

“Maria, this is my sister Lily and my father, Hyram Hyde.”

Maria smiled fully. “Well, hello, folks. It’s so nice to meet you. My goodness, Lily, you are stunning. And Hyram, it’s a pleasure. You’ve raised an amazing son. I want you to know, we’re taking good care of him.”

“I can see that,” Hyram said with a nod, probably at the cake she held.

She laughed. “So is the H a thing?” she asked.

“The H?” Harrison asked.

“Harrison Hyde, Hyram Hyde.”

“Oh, yes,” Hyram said. “My wife and I decided we’d name our daughter after her, and our son after me, but I didn’t want to saddle my boy withHyram, so I just went with another H name.”

“And Lily, that was your mother’s name?” she asked his sister.

“Yeah. Lilly Marie. I’m Lily Ellen. But I don’t think I’ll ever live up to it.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that.” Maria looked up at Harrison. “I’ll go, let you have your family time.” She set the cake on a stand, and leaning into frame once more, said, “It was so nice to meet you both.”

“You, too,” they called. Maria backed out and closed the door.

And then Lily said, “That girl is at least halfway in love with you, big brother. You realize that, right?”

“More than halfway,” his father said.

And that pretty much ruined any hope Harrison had of sleeping that night.

The next day, after breakfast, Maria said, “We’re gonna distract you for a couple of hours. You’re gonna want to wear shorts. You bring any shorts?”

“I did, as a matter of fact.” Harrison headed up to the guest room and rummaged around in his duffel for a pair of shorts. He hadn’t unpacked. Didn’t expect to be around that long.

When he went downstairs, Maria met him at the bottom, then headed for the front door. Blue Boy lifted his head from the braided carpet in front of the fireplace, sighed heavily, and lowered it again. Outside, there were motors rumbling.

Four ATVs were lined up in front of the porch. Two of the ATVs had people on them. He couldn’t see their faces behind their visored helmets but he presumed they were cousins.

“Have you ever ridden one?” Maria asked, leaning close so he could hear her.

“Nope.”

“C’mere.” She took his hand and pulled him to a small, red four-wheeled vehicle. “This makes it go,” she said, demonstrating the throttle. “And this makes it stop. Ever drive a stick?”

“Learned on one.”

“Good, this here’s your shift. No clutch necessary. Only four speeds, see the diagram?”

“Yes.”

She took the helmet that was dangling by its strap from the handlebar and handed it to him. “It’s easy.”

It was. Harrison followed Maria with the two masked bandits bringing up the rear, and he knew she was taking it easy on purpose.

The Texas Brand was something to see, though. Vertically challenged woods, with paths created by cattle, rolling pastureland, with the desert nipping at its edges in some places, and a wide, blue sky. There were large, slow-moving cows, lazing in the shady woods, or grazing in the grassy places. They ranged from mostly white with red blotches and freckles, to mostly red with white patches. But their most distinct feature was their long, nearly horizontal horns. It was hypnotic watching them move, because the horns gave them a slow-motion quality.

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