The Cougar and the Cowboy

CHAPTER 36

SUNDAY MORNING DAWNED bright and sunny; it was going to be a good day for a concert and picnic in the park. Jace looked at his alarm clock and in his head, he listed all the reasons he did not want to get up and go to church. His leg and hip were causing him pain with every move he made. The extra activities of the past few days and the lack of rest were doing a number on the damaged nerves. He rolled over onto his back and stared at the ceiling. There were so many thoughts going through his sleepy brain this morning.

‘I have to retrieve Emily’s check from the bank but if she’s gone, I can’t return it…guess I’ll just destroy it. I feel bad for Collier. I wasn’t aware he had been that interested in Emily. I would love to have been a fly on the wall when Maggie was talking to Lorna…whew. The weekend was phenomenal…better than I could have hoped for in my wildest dreams. Receipts from the first night were better than a month’s receipts formerly and there were even more people last night. Thank you, Lord and thank you, Cal and Lucy. I guess if I want to say goodbye to them and Luke, I’d better get my butt out of bed and take a shower.’

Jace arrived at church a few minutes late and slid in the pew next to Dani’s father. It was the only seat left but he wished it had been next to Dani instead. The sermon was about acceptance…acceptance of our fears, our hurts and our circumstances, whatever they might be. Jace realized he had never accepted his injuries although they were the consequences of a lifestyle and occupation that he chose, knowing full well what the dangers were. The longer he listened, the more things he knew he had not totally accepted: his mother leaving, his dad remarrying, his loneliness and the fact he would, in all likelihood, never have the family he craved. It was time to accept all of those things and his responsibility for his life…and God’s forgiveness and acceptance of him…just as he was.

***

The parking spaces were becoming scarce by the time their group arrived at the park. Chairs, blankets and food baskets were everywhere, it seemed…on the grass and in the pavilion. If the event was judged by the number of children running around, it was already a success.

***

Luke was enjoying all the food Dani and Dean packed plus what Cal and Lucy brought, while he waited patiently for the band to begin playing. A small group of children ran in front of them. When one tripped, Jace stood him back on his feet and brushed the grass off his knees.

Luke told him, “You know what I think, Jace? I think you ought to marry Dani and have lots of kids of your own, like my mom and dad do. You’d make a great dad.”

Jace and Dani glanced at each other and then everyone burst out laughing.

“Thank you for your insight on that, Luke but I suppose we should have at least one date before I ask her to marry me, don’tcha think?”

“Yeah, that’d be good, I guess. So when are you going to ask her for a date?”

Jace looked at Dani again and said, “Do you think you’d like to have dinner tomorrow night?”

She smiled and observed, “Sure. No pressure or anything.”

Blakely was striding toward Jace and seemed bent on saying something before the concert started.

He held out his hand and Jace took it. “I want to congratulate you. You pulled it off when I didn’t think you had a prayer of saving The Branding Iron. I don’t know how and I don’t care but I want you to know I’m a businessman. I didn’t want your bar just to tear it down but I saw an opportunity and I was going to take it. Since it seems it’s now on the road to being successful, I’ll leave you alone. But don’t let it slip…I’ll still be in the wings, watching.”

Jace smiled, “Maybe it was a prayer that saved it, Blakeley, or perhaps,” as he looked in the direction of his friends, “many prayers.”

***

Maggie showered and got dressed. She had to show Jace and Collier the magazine and the picture of Camille or Emily or whoever she was. She was a fraud, for sure. After she read the article, she recognized two of the men on her ‘cougar’ list were Jace and Collier. They weren’t named, of course, but she knew it was them and the dating experiences matched up. Although the one she perceived to be Jace described a pretty steamy encounter and that didn’t seem quite right to her. She wrote their names in permanent marker on the specific parts of each column so they could find them easily. Otherwise, she knew neither one of them would read far enough to agree with her.

By the time she arrived at the park, she had cooled down a bit but went in search of Jace, anyway. When she found him and the group, she made the decision to confront him with the magazine article at another time. This wasn’t the place. She said hello and moved on to join some other friends of hers.

***

Camille lay on her bed in a hotel room in Paris. Since it was Sunday, she couldn’t meet with the attorneys until tomorrow. She knew she couldn’t stay inside all day. After showering and dressing in some casual clothes, she went for a walk. Wandering aimlessly, with no destination in mind, she came to a church and decided to step inside. She slid into a pew in the very back and closed her eyes to enjoy the strains of an organ. While she didn’t understand the words, the music afforded her a sense of peace and calm that she didn’t recall feeling in her entire life. Would her life be better if she wasn’t consumed with success and also dislike for her mother? Probably. She felt comfortable and at peace when she was with Collier. He had a stabilizing effect on her and she felt that she loved him but it was too late for that now.

***

As people prepared to leave the park after the concert, there were hugs all around as the Frasier family was catching an early flight back to Texas in the morning. Jace thanked them again for their friendship and their generosity. Then he excused himself and spoke to the band members. He offered guided trail rides during the week to any of them who would like to ride for a few hours. He suggested they might need to relieve some boredom once they rested up from their weekend.

He walked with Dani and Dean to their vehicle. Opening the door for her, he asked, “So were you serious when you said you’d have dinner with me or were you placating Luke?”

She looked him directly in the eyes and said, “I will have dinner with you, Jace.”

CHAPTER 37

WHEN JACE ARRIVED at the bar on Monday morning, he was greeted by Ken, Harry and the rest of the regulars, all sitting at the same table as usual, drinking coffee and acting as if nothing changed.

“We’re here early, Jace-man, because if we got it figured right, the new lunch crowd is gonna squeeze us out. And we’re good with that.”

Jace poured a cup of coffee and sat down with them.