Page 28 of Adam's Rising

Claire wrappedButtercup’s lead at the waiting corral and walked back to the barn since all the hands looked busy. All the hands exceptThomas, who was nowhere around. As the new hand, he probably landed muck-out duty.

Technically, she wasn’t supposed to walk to the barn without an escort, but all the hands knew she was ranch savvy. Still, she wouldn’t walk Buttercup back to the barn. The last thing she’d want is for her to get spooked and take off running. If Buttercup hurt anyone, she would be responsible.

Entering the backside of the barn, Claire remained quiet. If she could catch him in a conversation, maybe overhear him admit something he shouldn’t…

The music playing stopped her in her tracks.

Not that it was unusual to hear the radio. It wasn’t.

Normally, especially on Sunday, when Clara Mae and Brett weren’t around as much, the hands would listen to the radio. But not to this.

When Rusty was working in the barn, the rock station would be turned to full volume. When George was assigned muck duty, country music filled the air. Frank stumbled around as if he were half-drunk most of the time. Or maybe he was just dancing to his own soundtrack playing in his head.

She heard humming, so she held back behind the door.

“…dreams that never will come true.” More humming. “Go crazyis… ab… so… lute… ly right.”

She covered her mouth, trying not to laugh, but felt certain that she wasab… so… lute… lyrightbased on his music choice. Deciding she would play along — for now, she danced into the barn, twirling as she finished singing along with Yvonne Elliman.

“If I can’t have you… Ah… ah… ah.” She took the pitchfork from him, swinging her head forward and singing into the handle. “If I can’t have you, I don’t want nobody, baby…Oh… oh… oh. Oh!”

He laughed and clapped. “Nice!”

“That was Yvonne Elliman,” Casey Kasem said, and Adam —Thomas, she reminded herself — stopped clapping, looking toward the radio, “…holding at number two for the third week in a row with‘If I Can’t Have You’from the soundtrack‘Saturday Night Fever.’Now, before we reveal this week’s number one song, we have a long-distance dedication…”

“Ugh! Casey Kasem always makes us wait.”

Claire stepped to the radio, turning it up. “I like the dedications. They’re sweet. Imagine being stationed overseas — Germany, Korea, or somewhere — and hearing your favorite song start playing, and then finding out it was your girl who dedicated it… after you’d been gone for two years…” She smacked a hand over her heart. “Besides, I already know what song it will be… since it wasn’t number two.”

“I can imagine that…” He held her eyes for a moment, then took the pitchfork from her. “I haven’t heard the countdown for a while.”

“Really? How come?” Maybe she could learn why, which might lead him to answer where his brothers were. Although, Lala did say that Thomas’s younger brother was here. She hadn’t said the name Peter, but while Adam and Thomas looked a bit alike, Peter stood out. Unlike Adam’s and Thomas’s light brown hair, Peter’s hair was black-as-midnight, like his mother’s. So if this boy were actually Thomas, where was Adam?

The Dr. Pepper jingleI’m a Pepperstarted directly after the dedication. She hated that dorky jingle and was quietly relieved when he didn’t start singing along.

He walked to another stall. “Just been busy.”

The jingle ended and Casey Kasem came back on. “And now, for the seventh week in a row…”He dropped what he was doing and walked back to the radio,like he would miss it if he weren’t right next to it. “… the Bee Gees hold on to the top spot with‘Night Fever,’another track from ‘Saturday Night Fever.’”

“Cool!” He moved to the beat as he returned to the stall he was cleaning.

Claire moved into the aisle, doing the moves she’d seen the previous evening.

He leaned the pitchfork against the wall, watched for a second, then copied. “Cool.”

Claire laughed. “You said that already.”

“Yeah, but I was talking about the song the first time.”

She stopped, gulping. Had he meant she was cool?

He picked up the fork again. “Where’d you learn those moves?”

“Oh…” She chuckled nervously. Of course he wasn’t talking about her being cool. Then again, she was doing the dance, so maybe he was. “I watchedSaturday Night Feverlast night. Well, half of it. I had to leave.”

“Leave?”

“Yeah. It’s showing at the drive-in. But I had to leave early.”

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