Single-Dad Cowboy by Vicki Lewis Thompson
Chapter Fourteen
Nell put herself in charge of keeping the girls outside the corral and away from the gate while Zeke did his snake-charmer routine. Her urban childhood hadn’t prepared her for encountering snakes in the wild, but she lived in Montana, now. She needed to learn about them and so did Piper and Tatum.
Her determination to maintain scientific detachment faltered as Zeke approached the snake armed only with a rake. A distinctly triangular head lifted to gaze at him, tongue darting out.
Piper sucked in a breath. “Ooo, your daddy’s brave, Claire.”
“Yep. I’ve seen him do this once before. The other snake was smaller.”
“Good grief, that is a big dude.” Valerie came up behind them.
“I thought you were holding the horses.” Nell kept her attention on Zeke as he scooted the rake slowly toward the rattler.
“I was feeling like the Cowardly Lion while you guys were over here being all Dorothy and the Tin Man.”
Tatum giggled. “You’re funny, Miss Jenson.”
“Funny and very brave.” Nell glanced back over her shoulder.
“Thank you. How do I look in my helmet?”
“Stunning.” She returned to watching Zeke.
“When we had a snake by our house,” Riley said, “my mom used this pole with a loop on the end to pick it up and put it in a bucket with a lid.”
“We have one of those.” Claire kept her gaze on her father. “But a rake works, too. My dad grabs whatever’s handy.”
“That snake sure is watching him,” Piper said.
“They’re watching each other, sizing each other up.” Claire sounded like the announcer at a sporting event. “My dad says snakes are necessary and we should respect them.”
“I agree,” Nell said. “Live and let live.” And she hoped to hell Zeke knew what he was doing. Looked like it. She held her breath as the snake wound itself around the teeth and handle of the rake.
Lifting the rake, Zeke came quickly through the gate, biceps bulging. “She’s a heavy one, too.” He lengthened his stride as he moved past the barn and out into an open area.
Tatum stood on tiptoe. “Where’s he taking it?”
“See that jumble of rocks?” Claire pointed to an area about fifty yards away. “He’ll put it down out there. That’s where he took the other one. They like rocks.”
Piper turned to Claire. “Is that snake a girl? Is that why he said she?”
“Probably. Girl snakes are bigger than boy snakes.”
“You’re not scared of them?”
“I was a little bit with the first one. Then Dad showed me some documentaries that talked about how important snakes are. And I saw a few other kinds around here. When this one showed up, I wasn’t scared at all.”
Riley gave her a nudge. “Come on. You jumped back and grabbed my arm. You were a little scared.”
“Not as much as you.”
“It was a big snake. I mean she was a big snake.”
“I’m glad she came to visit,” Nell said. “It was a—”
“I know what you’re gonna say, Miss O’Connor!” Claire beamed at her.
“What am I going to say?”
“It was a teachable moment.”
She laughed. “Well, it was.”
“She says that all the time, Miss Jenson.” Claire glanced at Valerie. “Like at least once a day.”
“I see.” Val nodded. “Then you must have learned a lot this past year.”
“We actually did.” Piper adjusted her glasses. “Third grade was my favorite so far. Especially the greenhouse.”
“Yeah, that was awesome.” Tatum danced a little. “But the field trip was the best. Do we get a field trip in fourth grade, Miss Jenson?”
“Um… yes, yes, you do.”
“Cool!” Riley twirled around. “Where to?”
“I’m keeping that a secret.”
Nell managed not to laugh. Quite likely Val didn’t have one planned yet.
“Miss Snake is back where she belongs.” Zeke arrived, the rake balanced over his shoulder. “Time to saddle up.”
“Yay!” Tatum started off at a run.
“Walk!” Nell’s command brought Tatum to a screeching halt as she waited for the others. As the group started off again, the other three teased her for running ahead.
“Nell, I’ll see you and Val over there.” Zeke lengthened his stride to catch up to the girls. “I’ll put Tatum and Piper on first.”
“Nice job with the snake,” Nell called after him.
“Thanks.” He flashed her a grin over his shoulder.
“A greenhouse and a field trip to this ranch.” Val chuckled. “You’ll be a tough act to follow. I’d better be at the top of my game.”
“No worries. They’ll bring out the best in you. It was a blast teaching them.”
“I’ll tell you who’s already at the top of his game.” She tilted her head in the direction of Zeke as he walked with four adoring little girls, two on either side. “He’s a natural with kids.”
“I figured that out during the field trip. Don’t you just want to eat him up with a spoon?” She watched as the girls skipped along beside him, chattering away.
“I’ll neither confirm nor deny. A friend does not covet her friend’s man.”
“You can still agree with me that he’s appealing as hell—all those muscles and a nurturer, to boot.”
He stood talking to the girls for a moment. Then he used his cupped hands to give Tatum a place for her foot as she mounted Prince. He did the same for Piper.
Val moved off to the side and kept her voice down. “Since he’s a nurturer, do you suppose he wants more than one kid?”
“Maybe.” I hope so. Yikes, where had that come from? Fantasizing about having Zeke’s baby was way off-base. “Claire said she pretends the three-year-old who lives on the ranch is her little brother.”
“Georgie? The one she was talking about in the car on the way here?”
“Uh-huh.” Judging from Claire’s comments, she’d spent most of Sunday with Georgie, Garrett and Anna. Nell was willing to bet Garrett had set that up to give Zeke a break since he’d had so little sleep.
He’d likely be sleep-deprived again this weekend. “By the way, Zeke texted me this morning. The Buckskin gang’s heading to the Moose Friday night. You’re invited. We can pick you up.”
“I’d better drive myself.”
“That’s silly. We can—”
“Once I get there, I’d like to stay a while.” She grinned. “I doubt you and Zeke will last longer than one dance.”
Nell flushed. “No, we’re going to hang out with everybody.”
“Sure you are.”
“Val, we like dancing and spending time with the Buckskin gang. This is about more than getting horizontal.”
“Of course it is, but after exercising restraint all week, you’ll be a couple of powder kegs.”
An excellent description of her condition right now. “Change the subject, please.” She took a deep breath as Claire walked in their direction.
“Dad says to come on over. He’s ready to get you up on Butch and Sundance.”
She nodded. “Okay.”
Claire glanced up at her. “Did you bring any water, Miss O’Connor?”
“I have a water bottle for each of us in the car, but I wasn’t sure when—”
“Maybe you should go fetch them before you get on Butch. You look a little overheated.”
A muffled snort from Val was followed by elaborate throat-clearing. “We probably should do that, Miss O’Connor.” Her voice quivered with suppressed laughter. “Wouldn’t want you to get too hot.”
