Page 51 of Christmas with the Cowboy
“He said it was only his pride.” Lex bit into a piece of toast. “But he was limping a little.”
Reed scooped the eggs onto the plates, added a couple strips of bacon each, then set the plates on the table. On his mornings to cook, he tried to do healthy things, but every now and again he just needed a bacon and eggs breakfast.
“I think he was more embarrassed than hurt.” A phrase he and Candice shared, and Lex had now adopted. In this case, he hoped it was true.
“How’d it happen?” Reed asked casually.
“Grandpa was leading him back from the round pen after riding him, and Boomer was all dancing and stuff, his head up high. Grandpa said he needed more time in the round pen, and when he turned him, Boomer jumped sideways and knocked him down.
That probably had embarrassed his dad, who was an accomplished horseman. But accidents happened and Reed wasn’t going to turn this into an “I told you so” part of the reason being that his dad had a lot more “I told you so” ammo than he had.
“Grandpa says he needs more miles on him.”
“He does, and I’m going to see if Grandpa will let me help him out there.”
“He’s pretty spooky, Dad.”
“I’ve ridden worse.”
“But you were young.”
Somehow, he managed to swallow the toast he’d been eating.
“I rode Lilly Mae after Grandpa put Boomer away, and he says I’m a natural.”
“You are. Kellers are blessed with light hands and good balance.” He parroted the wordshisgrandfather had said a couple thousand times. Lex was no exception. Even though her riding time was limited in Bozeman, Candice had made sure she had lessons, and she’d ridden often when she visited him on weekends at the Holloway Ranch.
Lex ate a few more bites, then put down her fork. “You got home late last night.”
“I was Christmas shopping.”
“Is that all?”
A guilty jolt went through him, which was ridiculous. “I stopped to see some high school friends. You got my text, right?” He knew she had because she’d sent a few dozen emojis in reply.
Lex smiled. “Grandma was wondering how late you’d be, and you were pretty late, so I guess you had fun?”
“I did.” He glanced at the clock. “About time for class. Do you need any help with anything?”
Usually, they had a sit-down in the late afternoon and Lex discussed her day, but he hadn’t been home for that yesterday.
“Nope. The lessons seem to be getting lamer. I think everyone is ready for Christmas break.”
“Everything else okay?”
Lex shifted in her chair. “I kind of hoped Mom might call last night, but she didn’t.”
“You can call her, you know.”
“I don’t want to bother her. She’s dealing with a lot.”
“You wouldn’t bother her.”
“I’ll wait for her to call. It’s just that…I’m afraid when she doesn’t call that it’s bad news.” The look she gave him clearly begged for reassurance.
Reed rubbed a hand over his chin. He’d learned not to dive into things too quickly because with kids, once something was said, it was hard to unsay it. And Lex had a memory like an elephant.
“We might get bad news,” he said, emphasizing the “we.” “And if we do, we’ll deal with it together. But…we might get good news.”
