Beau sighed and shook his head as Bryce climbed in the truck and slammed the door. “It’s not so bad. In fact, it’s kind of like being on vacation. You wouldn’t be half bad at this gig. You’re way more outgoing than I am.”
That was true, but Beau had no interest in leaving Rancho Cañada Verde. It was his home. And his work—as a real cowboy—was important to him. “I think I’ll stay in Big Verde, where the cowboys cuss and spit and stink like proper ranch hands.”
“Just pull up to the offices,” Bryce said. “I’ve got to pick up the schedule for tomorrow.”
“Schedule?”
“Yeah. It’s a busy week. We’ve got a corporate group coming in, a family reunion, and of course, we’re getting ready for Brittany’s wedding.”
“I didn’t realize that you were going to have to deal with all of that when you took this job.”
“Me either. It’s kind of fun, though. And I can’t very well chase cows through a wedding reception,” Bryce said. “The herd has to share space with humans and their human-type shenanigans. The guests like to see us riding around and working. It’s weird. But fun.”
Beau pulled up to the building that housed the dude ranch’s office. He waited while Bryce went inside to grab the schedule. A couple of guys wearing the same getup as Bryce walked by and waved, and then Beau saw a familiar blue head exit the restaurant connected to the lodge. What the heck was Carmen doing here?
Beau was just about to roll down his window and holler at her when Bryce came out and the two collided. He dropped the clipboard he was carrying, and Carmen dropped her keys. Then they both leaned over and bumped heads.
Even from this distance, Beau could see that Bryce was blushing. And that was strange, because Beau had always been the blusher. Probably because he usually had something to be embarrassed about.
Bryce handed Carmen her keys and watched her walk to her car.
Like he really watched her walk to her car.
Good lord, his brother was barking up the wrong tree. Carmen would never fall for a cowboy. And even though she’d been hanging out in Big Verde while Jessica was on her honeymoon, Carmen would soon be off on some adventure doing God only knows what. That’s just how she was.
Bryce fumbled his way back to the truck and climbed in.
“What’s Carmen doing here?”
“She’s catering Brittany’s rehearsal dinner and wedding,” he said, flipping through the pages on his clipboard. “She’s using the old restaurant’s kitchen.”
“That’s good.”
“Can you keep a secret?”
“You know I can.”
“She’s going to buy it. Which would be fucking fantastic for the ranch. She says she’s going to call it the Rockin’ Bleu.”
“You’re right about that being great for the ranch. But is that the only reason you’re excited?”
Bryce blushed again and pointed through the windshield. “Drive on over to the lodge. I’ll show you where your room is, but first, let’s head to mine so we can print up some paperwork to take to the cattle market on Friday.”
Beau parked in front of the lodge, grabbed his shit, and followed Bryce inside. The suite looked a bit homier since the last time he was here, but it was still quite small. He could understand why Bryce might want an apartment in Austin.
Bryce dropped the clipboard on the bed, and Beau picked it up. He reached in his pocket and pulled out the little flexible ruler Alice had given him, placed it below the first line on the top page on the clipboard, and began reading. Initially, the words moved around a little, but the ones above the ruler mostly stayed put. Sight words stood out—no decoding necessary—and then, a few of the others were easily read. Soon, he was moving the ruler down the page at a pretty good pace.
“Are you really reading that quickly?” Bryce asked.
Beau smiled. “Yeah. Alice is a good teacher. She says dyslexia is just a different way of processing information, and that it can be common among creative people. Did you know that? Anyway, she believes in me.”
“I believe in you, too, Beau. I always have.”
“Thanks. I don’t know what I would have done without you all these years.”
“Well, we made some mistakes.”
“Fixing them now, though.”
“And don’t worry. I’m going to keep you plenty busy for the next two days. School with Miss Martin will be back in session before you know it.”
Alice stood in front of the full-length mirror and gasped in horror. Over her shoulder, Claire was likewise staring, clearly trying to suppress a giggle.
“Oh, Alice,” Brittany said. “You look beautiful!”
Alice did not look beautiful in the hideous yellow dress. “You say your cousin is already up and walking around after her surgery? Are you sure you don’t want her to be in the wedding?”
“God, no,” Brittany said. “She looks awful. She’s lost weight—we’d probably have to get this dress altered. And she has dreadful bags beneath her eyes. Can you imagine how that would look in the pictures? And she’s whining and complaining constantly. Can’t stand up straight. You’d think she fell off a twenty-story building.”
“Well, she did have abdominal surgery,” Alice said.
Brittany nodded. “Oh, I know. Bless her sweet little heart.”
After the appropriate pause (typically about three seconds for a bless her heart), Brittany added, “I’m so glad you’re a size six.”
“Me too,” Alice said, forcing a smile.
“Let me go grab the earrings,” Brittany said. “I left them in the car.”
“Are they yellow, too?” Alice asked.
“Yes,” Brittany said with a bright smile, heading for the door. “Sunflowers! To match the theme. They’ll look so great right up against your pretty face! Be back in a sec.”
As soon as Brittany was out the door, Claire broke into hysterical laughter. “Oh my God,” she said. “Right up against your face! Yellow is really your color, Alice. It brings out—”
“The sallowness of my skin?”
“I’m just kidding. You actually look lovely.”
Alice flopped onto the bed. “How did I end up in this position?”
“By being too
