Dusty Britches (5 page)

Without thinking, Dusty placed her hand in Ryder
’
s
,
and he pulled her to her feet.
I
n the next instant
,
her wits
had returned,
and she
abruptly
yanked her hand from his. The cowboy responded with a puzzled frown
.

Finally able to
draw a breath
, Dusty
said
,
“
Thank you, Mr. Maddox. I should pay more attention to where I
’
m goin
’
.
”

Her chest hurt from lacking breath. Though her body still ached as well, it was her pride that was most damaged. How humiliating
—to be s
o distracted she hadn
’
t heard the danger
!
Further humilia
ting still was Ryder Maddox having
been the one to save her
.
H
ow completely mortifying he
’
d saved her by coming
at
a dead run, grabbing her body
,
and lifting her out of the way as they
sailed through the air together—
landing in
a
heap in the dirt! At least she hadn
’
t dropped the handful of forks
. She glanced down, amazed to see she
still held
them
tightly in her fist.

“
You
’
re welcome, I guess…Miss Hunter,
”
he to
ld her awkwardly. T
he
puzzled frown on his face deepened
.

Dusty didn
’
t like the way he studied her
with obvious disapproval
. She could almost hear his thoughts.
What have you become?
she felt him thinking. She thought back at him,
T
he end result of what you began!

With a scowl, she turned from him and headed toward the wagon where her father and several hands w
ere dealing with the team
and a hysterical
Miss Raynetta McCarthy.

“
Oh, good gravy, Hank!
”
Miss Raynetta exclaimed breathlessly. She dramatically pressed her hand to her
bosom
as
Hank Hunter helped her down from the wagon.
“
I thought I was goin
’
! I just thought I was plum a
-
goin
’
up to gossip with the geese there for a moment!
”

“
Now settle down there, Miss Raynetta,
”
Hank chuckled. He nodded at Feller in a gesture he should tend the team.

Miss Raynetta shook her head, fanning her face with one tiny hand.
“
Truly, Hank!
”
she assured him emphatically.
“
I seen it all!
”
She opened her hands and stretched her palms toward the sky.
“
My whole life a
-
flashin
’
before my eyes like lightnin
’
in the heavens!
”
Dusty watched as her daddy looked to Ruff and smiled knowingly and completely amused.
“
There I was,
”
Miss Raynetta continued in an awed whisper,
“
there I was when I was eight, a
-
stealin
’
molasses from my mama
’
s cupboard.
”
She looked to Hank and shook her head.
“Truth be told, Hank…e
verythin
’ I ever done wrong…j
ust a
-
flashin
’
in front of me like judgment day!
”

“
Well, if stealin
’
molasses was the worst thing you ever done, Miss Raynetta
,”
Hank began, taking her arm and leading her toward the
roasting pit. Dusty followed,
all too aware of Ryder Maddox
walking behind
her in ponderous silence.

“
Oh! But it weren
’
t the worst of it!
”
Miss Raynetta exclaimed, intent on proving her villainy.
“
I dare not tell y
a
the rest, Hank! You
’
ll send me down to the devil yourself!
”

Dusty
’
s father chuckled
,
and even for her angry, dark mood
,
Dusty couldn
’
t help the smile
spreading
across her face as she watched the eccentric woman.

Miss Raynetta was the county character. Everybody thought so. She was thirty-five years old and had never married. She always wore the brightest colored dresses anyone had ever seen. Purple and red were her favorite colors
to wear
, and that alone gave birth to many a raised eyebrow. Dusty
couldn’t
understand why Miss Raynetta had never married. Oh, it was true she was someone who
you had to learn to understand,
but she was adorable all the same. She was tiny, not quite five feet, with dark brown hair and big brown eyes. She unknowingly boasted the complexion of an angel—soft, smooth skin that was never marred by the tiniest freckle or blemish. Her smile and laughter were a pure remedy for anything
causing
anyone else to frown. All she had to do was enter a room
,
and the air of eccentricity, wit, and curiosity that was her aura immediately set even the grouchiest of souls to grinning. Sometimes, over the past five years, Dusty had wondered if perhaps Miss Raynetta McCarthy had been a victim
of heartbreak—abandoned in the wake
of a
heartless man
as she herself was.

“
You all right?
”
Ryder asked from behind her, diverting Dusty
’
s attention from Miss Raynetta
’
s confessions of sin.

“
I
’
m fine,
”
she stated, not looking back to him.
“
My pride seems to be the only bruise that
’
ll linger.
”

“
That and the dirt mark on the back a your…skirt,
”
he mumbled.

Dusty stopped cold in her tracks
,
whirling around to glare at him. He stood grinning mischievously
,
and Dusty fought the instinct to be moved to emotion by the familiar expression.

“
It might be best if you were to go before me then, Mr. Maddox,
”
she spat at him.

His grin broadened
,
and he nodded to her. As he strode past her, he lowered his voice and said,
“
All righty then. But it ain
’
t like I haven
’
t dusted off the seat of your britches before.
”

Dusty
’
s mouth gaped open in astonishment at his remark.
He was unbelievable—his comment c
ompletely improper!
“
You haven
’
t changed a bit!
”
she scolded.

He paused and looked back at her. His expression changed. His eyes narrowed, a frown puckering his
handsome
brow
. H
e
somewhat glared at her and said, “
You h
ave.”
He turned from her. Catching up to Hank and Raynetta, he offered his arm to the tiny female eccentric.

“
Well! Bless my soul!
”
Dusty heard Raynetta exclaim.
“
I
’
d know you anywhere! Mr. Ryder Maddox. Hank Hunter, where
’
d y
a
dig this boy up from?
”

Dusty was hateful in spirit and didn
’
t want
to chance
be
ing
cheered up by her father
,
Miss Raynetta McCarthy
, or Ryder Maddox, for that matter
. So she turned and began walking in the opposite direction.

“
You wanna help me with this team, Dusty?
”
Feller asked as she passed him. She didn
’
t want to help, but she knew Feller was trying to distract her. She nodded, dropped the forks into her apron pocket
,
and silently matched his stride as he led the team back to the barn.

“
Ain
’
t like you to nearly be run over by a team of horses, Dusty,
”
Feller noted when they
’
d reached the barn. He began checking the harnesses,
the lines, and the horses themselves—searching for anything amiss that might have caused the team to bolt
.
“
Well, it ain
’
t like you…anymore,
”
he added when she remained silent.

Dusty had no desire to hear one of Feller
’
s sneaky sermons on the evils of how she
’d changed. Therefore,
she offered,
“
Miss Raynetta gets in more fixes than anyone I
’
ve ever known.
”

Feller chuckled.
“
Yep. She
’
s somethin
’ else. But
it
’
s her love for livin
’
that gets her through…makes her somebody that people like to be around.
”

“
You know everythin
’
, Feller,
”
Dusty ventured as she watched him. She stroked the velvety nose of one of the horses and then the other. Feller
did
know everything. Dusty believed that to be a fact. He knew everything that was important anyway. She looked to him, wondering why such a good-looking cowboy as Feller Lance
had
never settled down. Feller was tall, slim, with dark hair and light
-
colored eyes. She
’
d seen many a girl in town pine away after him.
“
Why didn
’
t Miss Raynetta ever get married?
”

He was silent for a long time. Then he said,
“
I…uh…I
’
m not certain.
”

Dusty frowned. He was lying to her. She could sense it. He knew why.

“
You do too know. Why don
’
t y
a
want to tell me?
”
she asked.
“
Is it as lewd a story as all that?
”
Her curiosity was truly
stirred
.

“
Ain
’
t lewd at all. Just…just a little too close to home,
”
the weathered cowboy mumbled.

“
Tell it to me, Feller,
”
Dusty begged.
“
I wanna know.
”

It seemed odd to Dusty in that moment that Feller should know so much about life. The way he talked and the knowledge he owned made him seem so much older than his mere thirty years. As a child she had
once
asked Fell
er why he’d never married—why he’d never had
a family. He always just told her he hadn
’
t found anyone that could love him. It had forever saddened Dusty. She had loved him once
—f
ollowed hi
m around like a lovesick kitten, in fact.
But then she
’
d fallen in love with Ryder Maddox and left Feller for young Becca to fawn over for years and years. Sometimes Dusty fancied that, even now, Becca
’
s eyes twinkled when she listened to Feller telling stories around the fire at night.