Page 7 of For the Love of the Bull Rider

He loosened his hold on the lead rope and let Betsy continue meandering around the pasture with him walking by her side. Tim moved behind her head to place his hand on Ryan’s leg. The boy’s boots caught his attention because they were little roughouts, and they looked awfully cute on him.

“I ride Chester every once in a while. I didn’t grow up around horses, but when Uncle Josh and Aunt Katie let me come live with them, I learned how to ride. I’m not very good at it, but I can keep myself from falling off. You seem to have a good seat on the back of a horse,” Tim told the little cowboy as they continued to walk around the upper pasture.

“Gramma Jeri takes me ridin’ with her on her mare, Lucy. We ride double. We check the fences on Saturdays at our place, andthen check her fences on Sundays ‘cause they live up the hill from our place and we run cattle on their land, too. You ever check fences?”

“When I came here to visit during college, I’d take the four-wheeler we used to have and check the fences. I didn’t really have much interest in riding horses back then. I was scared, I guess. When I graduated from college and came back home, I decided I was gonna learn how to ride, and Uncle Josh worked with me. I’m not great, but I’m not scared anymore.” Tim was being honest.

They walked around the pasture for an hour, and Tim led Betsy slowly so Ryan didn’t lose his place on her back. Tim had the lead rope over his shoulder and his hand on Ryan’s leg, so he didn’t slide around. The mare seemed to know she was carrying precious cargo because she didn’t stumble one time.

Ryan and Tim talked about all kinds of things, from books and movies to sports, and it was one of the better conversations Tim had had recently. Aunt Katie and Uncle Josh weren’t big on unnecessary discussions, and he’d adapted and became a man of few words as well.

Ryan, however, seemed to enjoy talking. Tim listened and answered a few questions the boy had asked about the horses or computers or how Tim thought first grade might be. It was a joy to listen to how Ryan’s mind worked. He was a very intelligent kid.

Tim felt a vibration in his pocket, so he pulled out his cell phone, knowing it was either Aunt Katie or Uncle Josh. Nobody else had his number. “Hey.”

“Timothy, can you bring Ryan up to the house? Josh convinced Matt to stay for lunch after he’s finished with Josie. Your uncle is still determined to put shoes on that damn thing. He’s asked Hank to bring Ethan over tomorrow to try to rideher.” It wasn’t a surprise that Aunt Katie was exasperated with Uncle Josh’s fascination of the jenny.

The female mule, which was called a jenny, was about three. With the right stallion, she’d likely throw cute foals, Tim was sure. He had no idea why they wanted her shod.

“Okay. We’re gonna turn Betsy back onto the pasture, and then Ryan and I will come up to the house. We’ll hurry,” Tim told his aunt.

Ten minutes later, they’d returned Betsy to the pasture and watched her trot down to the creek for a drink. Tim hoisted Ryan up on his shoulders before he gathered the saddle pad, bridle, and lead rope.

He trotted a little and both laughed as they made their way up the hill. Once the pair reached the barn, Tim hung the horse blanket over a gate to dry out and placed the bridle and lead on a hook in the tack room.

Tim started galloping toward the house, causing Ryan to giggle. Tim reached up and pulled the boy’s hands down to clasp under Tim’s chin.

“Whoa!” Ryan announced as they approached the yard.

The boy walked up the steps, stopping to clean his boots on the mat before he opened the back door and walked onto the screened porch. He pulled off his boots and placed them on the tray Aunt Katie insisted they all use.

They walked into the kitchen where Uncle Josh and Matt were sitting at the table with sweet tea. Ryan removed his cowboy hat and placed it on the bench by the back door, next to his father’s baseball cap.

Matt’s hair was slicked back, and Tim wondered if it was sweat or water. He truly wanted to bury his nose in that beautiful mop to take in the scent from the source.

“Come on, bud. Let’s go get you washed up before Miss Katie sets the food. Did you have fun?” Matt rose from his chair.

“I’ll take him. I need to clean up myself,” Tim offered.

Ryan didn’t hesitate to take Tim’s hand and follow him down the hallway to the powder room. Tim hefted Ryan up and helped him wash his hands and face before doing the same.

Ryan took the towel Tim offered to dry off, and then he used it himself. Tim reached into the little cabinet to the side and pulled out a comb. “Hold still, dude,” he told the boy as he combed the wavy, brown hair. He placed the comb back in the drawer and offered Ryan his hand, which he took with a grand smile.

In the kitchen, Tim helped Ryan into a chair where two phone books were waiting as a booster seat. “You okay?” He didn’t want Ryan to fall, so when the boy settled in, Tim took a seat next to him.

“I’m fine, Tim. Miss Katie keeps these big books for when I come by. I like sittin’ up high.” Ryan picked up the plastic glass Aunt Katie put in front of him. He took a sip and smacked his lips, bringing a laugh from Tim, Matt, and Uncle Josh.

“Good lemonade, ma’am.” Ryan was six going on sixty as Tim listened to him. It was so damn sweet, Tim felt a lump in his throat, wishing Ryan Earl Collins was his own son.

Lunch was an entertaining affair. Tim left Uncle Josh and Matt to talk between themselves as he turned his attention to Ryan because he knew he made the boy’s father uncomfortable.

Tim didn’t want to cause the man any distress, but he was sure Matt knew he was gay, and apparently, Matt hadn’t settled on a team thus far. Tim remembered that confusion in his own life. Matt wasn’t the first person he’d met who was so deep in the closet they just couldn’t find a way out.

Chapter Four

As the group was finishing their lunch at the Katydid, after the Stallings’ mare was put into her stall to await the vet, there was a knock on the back door. Uncle Josh yelled, “Come on in!”

Everyone turned toward the door to see a tall, strawberry blond guy who couldn’t have been too much older than Tim. The guy looked a little sunburned, having more than a few freckleson his handsome face. He appeared to be assessing Tim, so he gave the guy the up and down in return.

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