Page 20 of Rough Stock
“Roger’s going to assign us some stalls for the horses and then we can turn them out to pasture if we want,” Jensen said, throwing a thumb over his shoulder.
“Sounds good. Thanks, Mr.Potter,” Shyanna said.
“That’s Roger to you,” he said with a chuckle. “Any friend of Jensen’s is a friend of mine. Let’s find your horses some stalls and get them settled.” As Shyanna backed Rhubarb out of her trailer, Jensen backed Cobra out, handed his lead to Roger, and backed Snowman out. While the three of them strolled toward the barn, Jensen asked Roger about things that had been happening at the university, and Roger asked Jensen about the rodeo circuit.
And Shyanna was amazed. She’d never had friends like that, and Roger and Jensen seemed to be good friends. She couldn’t hear everything they were saying, but she heard Jensen say something about high school. Had they known each other that long? High school was something she hadn’t thought about since the day she’d last walked out the doors, but from what she could tell, they were talking about things they’d done back then, and they actually seemed to have happy memories of it. All Shyanna could remember was being shunned by the other kids because of her out-of-style clothes, ratty shoes, and difficulty with her studies, not to mention the stares and whispers from the teachers because of her parents. Everybody in their town had known what kind of lushes Gary and RebaOwens were, and that made Shyanna the kid nobody wanted anything to do with. It was no wonder to her that she’d married that piece of shit as soon as he’d come onto the scene. Someone had finally shown her some attention, even if it was the wrong kind.
Could she have friends like that? That would be something new, and Shyanna wasn’t even sure how to go about it. The barrel racing girls wouldn’t give her the time of day, and there were no other women in the roping or rough stock events. And the guys weren’t going to let her into their circle, that was certain. Watching Jensen and Roger, it seemed so easy for them to talk, and she wanted to know more about that. How did someone make friends that way?
“I think these three will do nicely,” she heard Roger say, and he pointed to three empty stalls. “There aren’t any student horses down here, so you guys will have the run of this whole wing. Where are you planning to stay?”
“I figured we’d go stay with my folks,” Jensen answered, never turning toward her.
Panic hit Shyanna right in the gut. “Um, is it okay if I just leave my camper parked in the parking lot? It’s got tanks and everything, so I won’t make a mess.”
That was the moment when Jensen wheeled to look at her. “You’re coming with me, right?”
“To stay at your folks’ house?” she asked, hoping she’d misunderstood him.
“Well, yeah. I just assumed we would,” he answered, eyeing her from under those smoky lashes.
“Oh, I’m not too sure about that. I don’t think?”
“It’ll be fine,” he assured her. “They’ll love you, I promise.”
Shyanna felt like she was sinking in quicksand. “But they don’t know me, and I don’t know them, and they’ll?”
“Shyanna,” Roger interrupted, “I’ve known Jensen’s parents since we were kids. I know they’d love to have you as a house guest. If you insist on staying here, it’s perfectly all right for you to stay in your trailer, but trust me, the Straders will make you feel welcome.”
This is probably a very, very bad idea, she thought, but embarrassing Jensen wasn’t something she wanted to do. “Well, okay, I guess.”
That got a big smile from Jensen. “Great. Let’s get the horses out into the pasture, get your stuff out of your truck and put it in mine, and go. I haven’t even called my mom yet, so she’ll be surprised to see us.”
Oh, shit! We’re showing up unexpected at his parents’ house! I’m sure they’ll beverypleased about that, her brain groused.What was the worst they could do? Tell them that he could stay but she couldn’t? Tell them neither of them could stay? Yeah. And that didn’t sound like a bad thing, honestly. It could work out great. “Okay then. Let’s do it,” she replied and reached for Rhubarb’s lead. She wanted to get the mare out there, get her personal stuff gathered up, and get on their way before she completely chickened out.
White clapboard houses and graying barns lined the road as they drove. Looking at the postcard-perfect farms and subdivisions, Shyanna envied the people who lived those charmed lives. They had pretty houses and pretty cars. Pretty clothes. Pretty furniture. Pretty children. Pretty wives and handsome husbands. Parents who loved them. Good educations. No doubt about it?she was going to a place where she’d stick out like a sore thumb.
A beat-up mailbox on a slightly-leaning post sat at the end of a gravel drive, and that was where Jensen turned. He drove nonchalantly, kind of on autopilot, but he said nothing, and she guessed that he was afraid to talk for fear she’d tell him to take her somewhere else. They went around a little curve and through a stand of trees, and the drive spit them out into a clearing.
Shyanna was shocked. It was just a house. She wasn’t sure what she’d expected, but that wasn’t it. It was no McMansion. It wasn’t even a brick ranch from a subdivision. It looked like a small farmhouse that had been added onto and added onto to make a bigger house. A buzz had set up in her ears and she was feeling kind of numb when she heard Jensen say, “Well, here we are.” She tried to open the truck door, but her hands wouldn’t work. To her dismay, Jensen came around, opened the door, and took her hand. “Come on. Oh, my mama’s gonna be so surprised!”
They stepped up onto the porch and Jensen knocked on the door. “I don’t usually knock,” he whispered, “but I want to surprise her.”
The door opened a crack and an eye peered out. “May I help you, honey?” Shyanna didn’t know what to say, so she just looked back at Jensen. When she turned back to the door, it had opened wider and an attractive woman who looked to be in her early sixties stood there, staring. It took several seconds before she gasped out, “Jensen? Oh, my, Jensen! Oh, honey!”
“Hey, Mama!” he called out and before Shyanna could move, the woman had thrown open the door, blown past her, and grabbed Jensen to wrap him in a bear hug.
“Jensen, oh lord, honey, it’s so good to see you!” the woman wailed, and Shyanna could tell she was crying. “Oh, sweetheart, welcome home!”
“Thanks, Mama,” he said and managed to unwrap her arms from around him. When he did, he reached for Shyanna and took her hand. “Mama, this is ShyannaOwens, the lady I was telling you about.”He was telling his mother about me?Shyanna thought and almost fainted. “She’s a friend of mine from the rodeo circuit. Shyanna, this is my mom, DoraStrader.”
“Oh, honey, welcome!” Mrs.Strader cried out and grabbed Shyanna, hugging her tight. The younger woman didn’t quite know what to do. Hug her back? Push her away? Tolerate it and hope she stopped? She finally brought her arms up and patted Mrs.Strader’s back. “Oh, my, you probably don’t know what to make of me! I’m so sorry! But I’m so excited to see my boy. Y’all come on in! Are you staying?”
Before Shyanna could turn around and run away, Jensen answered, “If that’s okay with you.”
“Okay? It’s wonderful! I was just getting ready to start dinner, so now I can fix enough for all of us!” Mrs.Strader sangout, and Shyanna wanted to curl up and die. “But I need to fix up a room for you. And for you too, Shyanna.”
“Mama, I think we’d like to share a room,” Jensen said and Shyanna held her breath, terrified of what was about to be said.
