The Cowboy's Summer Love (3 page)

“Uncle Travis, are you really racing your car?” Cass asked, tugging at his hand. He picked her up and tossed her in the air, making her giggle. “You bet I am, kiddo. Are you gonna watch?”

“Yep. Daddy said I get to sit on his soldiers,” Cass said, making everyone laugh.

“Shoulders, sweetie-pie,” Cady said, correcting the little girl. Born to the town drunk and bad girl, Cass was a little behind in her classes, but catching up fast. Up until her mother passed away right after Thanksgiving, Cass had no schooling or training. With school getting out for the summer in a few weeks, Lindsay volunteered to help Cass with lessons during the break so she wouldn’t get further behind.

“Will you wave big when I drive by?” Travis asked, as Cass leaned her head against his cheek. He inhaled the sweet scent of little girl that was a mixture of bubble gum, strawberry shampoo and a lingering hint of babyhood. The scent reminded him of another little girl he once knew. She had grown up quite beautifully, even if she was currently staring at him like he’d sprouted horns.

“Sure. I’ll wave like this,” Cass said, wildly flailing her arms over her head as she leaned back in his arms. “How’s that?”

“Perfect,” Travis said, knowing if Cass did that while sitting on Trey’s shoulders, she’d knock his cowboy hat off and possibly maim anyone standing too close.

“We better get going, dude,” Brice said, glancing at his watch. The race would soon be starting.

Travis set Cass down and rumpled her head of uncontrollable curls before walking off with Brice. Tess watched him walk away, enjoying the view more than she wanted to admit. Even dressed in his fire-proof coveralls and shoes, Travis cut a fine figure. Too fine.

Trying to hide her interest, Tess turned to Denni and started asking her all about life in The Dalles, promising to have lunch with her one day in the coming week.

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A few months ago, Brice talked Travis into fixing up a car so they could both participate in races. Finding a wrecked car in Portland, Travis towed it home and with the help of Brice, his brothers and a few of their ranch hands, the vehicle was ready to roll in no time. Although he and Brice had been out to the raceway before, today was the first time they were going to race with their family watching.

Now, parked side by side, they looked over the vehicles one last time before putting on the rest of their gear. Climbing in the cars, they waited for the signal for the event to begin.

Travis knew he needed to get his focus centered on the race ahead, but he found his thoughts drifting to Tess.

Growing up, she was the lone girl in the group of five rowdy boys. More than once, she proved she could hold her own against them. While his brothers regarded her as an honorary sister, Travis didn’t. Somewhere along the way, she became much more to him.

When they were in high school, he was so in love with her, he had a hard time thinking straight, but she always looked at him like he was just one more obnoxious brother she had to tolerate. Part of the reason he acted out so much then was due to his frustration with Tess and not knowing how to handle his feelings for the sweet, sassy girl.

Six years in the military might have straightened him up and helped him become a responsible man with a hard edge, but those same years had softened Tess. He remembered the last time he saw her was a late summer morning. She’d been out riding and he borrowed Ben’s horse to find her. She was a skilled rider and for a while he sat at the top of a hill watching her graceful movements on her horse, Lila, before riding down to see her. Her dark hair was loose and tumbling in thick curls down her back, her cheeks were flushed from the wind and the sun, and her eyes were like molten pools of sweet milky chocolate. Travis thought she looked so beautiful.

Seeing him approach, she reined in her horse and waited. He wanted so badly to tell her how he felt about her, but was afraid she’d either laugh at him or think he was perverted, since she treated him like another brother.

Instead of speaking about what weighed so heavily on his heart, he instead memorized every detail of how she looked at that moment and kept that vision with him. From the pain and struggle of boot camp to the unspeakable horrors of his time in Iraq, Travis carried the picture of Tess in his heart and focused on it when he thought he couldn’t get through one more day, one more moment of his life.

He thought there was something she was holding back that day they said goodbye. Her eyes were moist with tears and he remembered Tess leaning from the saddle to place a hand on his leg, looking at him intently, making him promise to come home safely.

Gathering his courage, he put a hand on the back of her neck and pulled her close in a kiss that should have let her know beyond any doubt what he felt in his heart. Before she could say anything, he turned the horse and raced back to the house, telling the rest of the Morgan family goodbye before leaving.

Tugging his thoughts back to the present, Travis recalled how sweet her lips tasted. He wondered if they would still be as sweet. She was even more beautiful than he let himself remember.  Big, warm brown eyes and thick brown hair were complemented by her rosy cheeks, pert nose and heart-shaped face. Standing somewhere around five-six, she wasn’t tall or short, but she was definitely all woman. Unlike so many of the girls who looked like walking skeletons, Tess was full-figured and well-curved.

During their teen years, she was constantly on some sort of diet, trying to lose weight and often called herself fat. He’d never once thought that about her. In his eyes, she was the epitome of how a woman should look – soft and voluptuous. Now, he could see a new confidence in her, like she’d finally accepted herself.

When she accidentally backed into him, Travis felt a familiar jolt shoot through him. He couldn’t keep from pulling her into a hug, wrapping his arms around her. He’d dreamed of doing it nearly every day he was in the Army and now that the opportunity presented itself, he didn’t plan to miss out. Dressed in cowboy boots, jeans and a flowing blouse, she felt so soft and wonderful in his arms. Even her scent was soft and delicate, with a hint of something citrusy. He could smell it now, though their contact had been brief.

Seeing Brice wave to him from the corner of his eye, Travis realized it was time to get his head back into the race and off Tess Morgan.

Moving into the line of cars, the race soon started. Travis used his military training to keep focused and it wasn’t long until he found himself at the front with Brice right behind him. Racing through the course, Travis marveled once again that such a great raceway had been installed in Grass Valley. Although relatively new, Oregon Raceway Park was gaining notoriety among both car and motorcycle racers. The road course of just more than two miles offered sixteen turns and a few of them were quite a challenge.

Travis roared right through the Half Pipe and North Bowl, holding his breath as he came through the turn known as the Pucker Factor before speeding ahead.

Racing past the group gathered to watch, Travis was gaining speed when he looked back to see a car burst into flames. Realizing it was Brice, Travis whipped his car off the track, hurrying back to where Brice crashed. It looked like he lost control and bounced the car off the concrete divider lining the track near the starting line. Flipped on its side against a divider, flames licked greedily at the hood. While a couple of guys attempted to extinguish the flames, another tried without success to get Brice out of the car. The flames were getting bigger and Travis was concerned about getting Brice to safety.

Jumping out of his own car, he assessed the situation as he ran. Climbing up on the divider so he could reach into the car, he felt a rush of adrenalin pump through his veins. Working quickly to undo Brice’s harness, Travis could see him breathing even though he was unconscious.

Grabbing Brice around the chest, Travis hauled him out of the car and lowered him down to waiting hands. By the time he jumped off the concrete divider, Trey and Trent, along with Mike, Michele and Tess were gathered around the still form of Brice. Travis helped remove his helmet while Tess checked him over. Brice’s eyes fluttered open and a collective sigh of relief was exhaled.

“Brice, do you hurt anywhere? Can you move your hands and feet? Does it hurt to breathe?” Tess peppered him with questions, scared half witless.  The scene that just unfolded seemed like it happened in slow motion. She couldn’t believe she was watching Brice crash and then Travis run to his rescue.

“I’m fine, just got the wind knocked out of me,” Brice said, trying to sit up. He took Tess’s hand in his and gave it a squeeze. “Calm down, drill sergeant, I’m just fine.”

Tess let out a relieved sigh and turned to see Travis take one step away from them, then two before falling to his knees. He slumped over with his head hanging down. Rushing over to him, she put a hand on his back and was surprised to see a haunted look on his face.

“Travis? Are you okay?” Tess was more worried about Travis than her brother at this point. There was raw   pain in Travis’ glazed eyes and his breath came in short, tight gasps.

As soon as Brice was safe and he knew he was fine, Travis flashed back to another vehicle on fire, to another friend in danger. Only that time the fire spread to the fuel tank and the truck exploded before Travis could do anything about it, killing his friend and two others from his squad.

Shaking his head to clear away the memories, Travis closed his eyes and tried to regain his mental balance. He could feel warm sunshine on his face as he tipped it up and solid earth beneath his knees. He could hear the sounds of voices he recognized talking behind him. He could smell something soft and inviting. Tess. He could smell her perfume.

Opening his eyes, he found her face close to his, looking at him in concern.

“You okay?” she asked quietly, her hand still on his shoulder as she leaned over him.

“Yeah, I’m okay,” he said, struggling to get to his feet. His knees still felt weak and he would have fallen if Trey hadn’t stepped beside him, putting an arm around him.

“Trav? Need some help?” Trey asked, considering what had brought Travis to his knees. He knew his baby brother was turning into an adrenaline junkie, but wondered if he always crashed like this when the thrill was over.

“I’m good, thanks,” Travis said, gaining his equilibrium and stepping away from Trey. “Brice scared me for a minute, is all.”

“Hmm,” Trey said, still keeping a steadying hand on Travis’ shoulder.

Trying to lighten the mood, Travis gave Trey a playful slug on the arm and winked at Tess.

“No need to fuss. Brice has earned all the attention today,” he said then walked back to Brice and slapped him on the back, joining in the conversation of those who gathered around them.

Tess and Trey both stood watching and wondering what was going on with Travis. It was obviously something more than just helping Brice out of the wrecked car.

Chapter Two

Love is what makes two people sit in the middle of a bench when there is plenty of room at both ends
.

Unknown

“You’re doing what?” Trey asked his brother, trying hard not to yell. He watched as Travis loaded gear in the pickup and settled his Stetson on his head.

“Going to the rodeo in Spray,” Travis said, gritting his teeth. He felt like a kid caught sneaking out of class. He knew that feeling well, because it had happened multiple times during his high school years. “I’ll be back later tonight, so don’t worry about me missing work tomorrow.”

“I’m not worried about you missing work, Trav. You know you more than pull your own weight around here. I’m worried about you. What’s going on?” Trey asked, putting a hand on his brother’s arm. Travis shook it off without glancing Trey’s direction.

“Nothing is going on. I like to ride bulls, so I’m going to the rodeo tonight and see how I do,” Travis said, avoiding eye contact with Trey.

“It’s not just riding bulls. During the winter it was skiing and snowboarding. You’ve added race car driving and motor cycle racing along with bull riding to the menu. I know you and Brice have been talking about wind-surfing and we’ve got the white-water rafting trip planned. What’s next? Surely there’s some other thrill that you’ve bypassed. Come on, Trav. You’ve turned into an adrenaline junkie and it’s getting worse,” Trey said, worried about his youngest brother’s well-being. “I really think you need some help. Please, Travis, let us help you.”

“Just leave me alone, Trey. You have no idea. None at all,” Travis said, getting in the pickup. Before he could slam the door, Trey reached out to him and put a hand on his shoulder.

“I know we don’t understand, but we’d like to. Please think about getting some help. Something’s driving you to keep doing this kind of crazy stuff and until you face it, you aren’t going to be able to stop.”

“I’ll be fine, bro, but thanks for caring,” Travis said, starting the engine. “I’ll see you later.”

Shutting the door, Travis took off down their long driveway toward the road, wishing he could explain to Trey how badly he needed a release for the pent-up energy and emotions that boiled in him until he thought he would explode. Doing something physical, something risky, something that made his blood pump in excitement, was the only thing that made him feel better. He had to admit that he needed that release more and more often, and it was starting to concern him.