Page 84 of The Cowboy's Bullfighter
Coop shrugged, wincing as something deep inside him pulled. Dammit. Teenagers had been catching pregnant since the beginning of time, and no amount of trying or threatening or teaching seemed to change that fact.
“Son, we could ask that every second for the next hundred years and not have the answer.” And that was the God’s honest truth.
They talked about the road for a minute, then about the bulls, and by the time they’d said their goodbyes, he was drenched in a cold sweat, the ache inside him changing to a tearing agony.
“Do you need an ice pack, Uncle Coop? You’re wincing real hard.”
“I’m all right, honey, don’t worry about it.” He was just ready for Brooks to come home. He wasn’t all the way sure he was gonna let Brooks sleep in the bed. He might send Brooks up to Ricky’s old bedroom, which probably still smelled of boy stink.
Coop had to wonder if Ricky’s rooms would smell less like boy stink, now that there was a little girl living here.
Lord help him.
Lucy sighed, chewing her bottom lip like she was fixin’ to gnaw it off. “Well, I’m sorry that they kicked you. There’s an ice pack for real. Maybe it’ll help.”
“Yeah, go ahead, honey. Grab it for me. I’m not a big horse person, which is pretty obvious.” He didn’t think that he had to put it out there. He didn’t mind horses, in fact, he even liked one or two of them. But really?
He thought maybe he’d invest in chickens. Maybe that’s what he would do this spring. He could make himself a big chicken coop. He could do a two-story one with windows. If it was two-story, then coyotes would have a harder time getting to the chickens.
Of course, he had coyotes.
Maybe he needed some llamas.
Llamas were good at keeping out coyotes.
“Hmm. We need to start drawing up some plans for a two-story chicken coop and a llama paddock. I wonder,” he muttered, “how many llamas it would take to get rid of the coyotes?” He grabbed his phone and started googling, trying hard to focus on the words on the screen, the letters swimming.
Lucy giggled softly as she came over. “Should I get us a piece of paper and a pen, Uncle Coop? I’ll take notes.”
“I’d love that, honey. That would rock.”
She was trying, so hard, and he was too. He adored her little 4-H, capable, helpful self. She was his girl, though she loved the horses like Brooks…
“Here, Uncle. Let me put the ice on—” She put the pack on his belly and he convulsed, a gout of blood shooting out of his mouth and across the table.
“UNCLE!” Lucy’s eyes were huge, her face and shirt speckled with red.
“Call next door,” he managed, even as he felt himself sinking to the floor. “Don’t bother Benji. Call Kase.”
Now girl.
Do it now before it was too goddamn late.
Chapter Twenty-Three
When Brooks landed in LA, he turned his phone back on, checking his messages.
Shit, he had a dozen or more from Ricky, three from Kase, and one from Lucy.
What the fuck?
He hit the voicemail button as he moved toward his connecting gate, putting in his earphones so no one else heard his business.
“Uncle Brooks! Something is wrong with Uncle Coop. We had to call the ambulance. I’ll call you back.”
“Uncle Brooks, they took him off to the hospital, but they say the helicopter has to come take him to Albuquerque.”
“Uncle Coop, Mr. Ryder is keeping the littles and Bella, and I’m going with Mr. Kase to the hospital.”
