Page 59 of Caught By A Cowboy

“I’ve been meaning to talk to ya.” I look across at him, I figure now is as good a time as any to broach the subject.

“You ain’t gonna try convincing me of that shit are ya, son?” he chuckles.

“Nah, but I’m hoping I can convince ya of something else.” I clutch my reins and pray to God this goes well. “You’ve worked for this ranch your whole life, and you were my dad’s best friend.”

He nods his head back at me and frowns.

“I know there's still a lotta years left in ya, and ya ain’t even close to retiring but I’d still like to show you some appreciation for your loyalty and dedication.”

“I get that in my paycheck every last Friday of the month,” he tells me proudly.

“Yeah, well, that's expected but it ain’t enough. Without you, I’d have never been able to keep this place going. You’ve forgotten more than you could ever teach me, you're as much a part of this place as I am. So, I wanna give ya some land of your own.”

He pulls his horse to a stop and stares at me.

“You wannawhat?”

“I wanna give ya some land, somewhere here on the ranch, where you can have your own cabin, and stable your horse.”

“I got a place,” he tells me, geeing up his horse to keep the pace.

“C’mon, you deserve better than the bunkhouse, and you know it. You can still manage the guys, you just don’t have to live with ‘em. I’m gonna speak to Uncle Jamie, get him to draw up some paperwork, and make it all legit. It’s the least you deserve.”

“Look kid, I appreciate what ya wanna do but there's no need. I’m happy right where I am.” I can tell from the look on his face that there's something he ain’t telling me. Something that goes beyond the pride of a hard-working man who’s starting to feel the winters.

“I’m not takin’ no for an answer. My dad always said hard work should be rewarded. And I know it was always in his plans to give you some land of your own. It’s my duty to see it through. I’da done it sooner but what with everything that happened with mo–”

“I said there's no need,” Grayson tells me firmly, kicking on his horse and yelling at the herd to keep ‘em moving. Now Iknow there's definitely something he ain’t telling me so I dig in my heels into Buck, urging him on, and catching up.

“What ain’t ya telling me?” I confront him, and when he tries to ignore me again, I cross Buck in front of his horse so he can’t get away.

“Grayson, what ain’t ya telling me?” I ask again. This time raising my voice.

“Don’t do this, Jace.” He shakes his head like he’s warning me.

“Don’t do what?”

“Just drop it, okay? For your own sake. Drop it.” He scolds me in the same way he used to when I was a boy, only I ain’t a boy anymore and I won’t back down.

“You tell me, right the fuck now, what you know!” I look him deep in the eyes so he can see how serious I am.

“You can’t give me no land, Jace. Because the land ain’t yours to give.” His words almost knock me off my saddle, and then I laugh to myself while my head shakes in confusion.

“Grayson, what the fuck are you talking about?”

The serious look on his face tells me that this ain’t no joke, and when he stands up on his stirrups, signaling across the herd for Miles and Lincoln to come over to our side, he looks back at me over his shoulder.

“C’mon, kid. We need to take a ride.” He waits for our backup to make their way around the back of the herd and get in place before steering Dixie away from the herd, and I follow after him.

“What I’m about to tell ya, ain’t gonna be easy for you to hear.” He stops when we're a few hundred yards away, keeping his eyes on the horizon, and refusing to look at me. Knowing that he just dragged us both away from such a big job has me real concerned.

“I wanted to tell ya after your dad passed but the time never felt right, then ya lost ya momma and I…I just couldn’t.” He loosens the bandana he’s got tied around his neck.

“Grayson, whatever it is, just tell me.” I’m gettin’ real suspicious.

“When your folks first got married, your daddy had big dreams. I was his best friend which meant I got to hear all about ‘em.” He smiles to himself. “He wanted to give ya momma everything. He built that big house you’re livin’ in, hoping that they’d fill it with kids.”

I keep listening, wondering at what point his story is gonna become relevant.

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