Taking the Bull by the Horns, a Cascade Texas novella (3 page)

“Hey, Lavender, who was that you were talking to out there?” Jerri, one of the two third-grade teachers asked. She and the other third-grade teacher, Melissa, and the second-grade teacher, Laurie, stood in the hall by Laurie’s room.

Had they been waiting for her? Lavender hated that they intimidated her. They were young and beautiful and free, everything she wasn’t.

“Just a guy I met today on the field trip.” She edged toward her room.

“From the rodeo?”

“Mm, yeah.”

“What was he doing here?”

She waved a nonchalant hand. “Aaron left his cowboy hat behind and Mr. Craig brought it over to return it.”

“Mr. Craig, hm? Well wasn’t that sweet?” Laurie asked. “And you took it out to Aaron together? That’s quite a distance.”

“Aaron was upset about the hat, and Mr. Craig had made such an impression on him, I thought Aaron would like to thank him in person.”

“Ah. So you took a forty-five-minute round trip.”

Put like that, maybe it was a little foolish.

“Was the field trip fun?” Jerri asked.

Lavender rolled her eyes, grateful for the change in subject. “Are they ever?”

“If you meet guys like that, they are,” Laurie sighed.

Lord, how much of Taylor had they seen?

“I need to get ready for tomorrow.” Lavender opened the door to her room.

“We’re going out to the Longhorn tonight,” Laurie said to her retreating back. “It’s kind of a tradition during rodeo season. Do you want to come?”

Lavender turned slowly to give Jerri and Melissa enough time to give Laurie dirty looks or jabs or whatever. Lavender had stopped accepting social invitations long ago, so people had stopped inviting her. Didn’t Laurie know that? In the time it took her to turn, she played all the reasons her grandmother would give for her not to go: it was a Thursday, she was too tired from her field trip, teachers going to a honky-tonk was trashy, her grandmother needed her.

But when she opened her mouth to make a more polite excuse, she pictured Taylor. She’d have a better chance of seeing him again there than by sitting home watching TV. Running into him in a dance hall wasn’t the same as making plans to eat dinner with him, was it? And that little touch on the small of her back had awakened longings she’d forgotten. Yes, he would leave. Yes, it would hurt if she let it.

So instead of the, “No, thanks,” she said, “What time?”

Chapter Three

Lavender hadn’t been to the Longhorn in maybe ten years, but it hadn’t changed much in that time. Still, she was shaking as she searched the crowd for Laurie and her friends, scanning for Taylor at the same time. Wow, there were a lot of cowboy hats and faded jeans. Some looked good, some not so much. The bar was hidden behind rows of them, and harried waitresses rushed around with trays full of long necks. Every instinct told her to pivot and go home to her grandmother, curl up and watch TV while she recovered from the field trip.

Then she looked down the hall into the pool room and saw Taylor. He was propped against a pool cue, studying the pool table while another cowboy leaned in for a shot. He wasn’t wearing his hat and his jaw-length brown hair gleamed in the dim light. He swigged a beer then stretched out for his own shot, all delicious lean grace.

While the balls still rolled on the table, he looked up and saw her. Surprise brightened those pretty eyes, then he winked.

The ball went into the pocket and Taylor straightened with a victorious grin.

Lavender heard her name. She turned to see Laurie, Melissa and Jerri waving from a table in the middle of the main room. She edged through the crowd toward them, heart pounding. Anxiety at stepping out of her comfort zone had her nervous, not the way Taylor Craig had looked at her.

“Hey.” She draped her purse over the back of the empty chair and sat, checking out the bottles on the table—three empties and three half empty. “Been here long?”

“About half an hour. We thought you wouldn’t come,” Jerri said.

Lavender tried not to read anything into that. “No, I wanted to. It’s nice to get out.”

The three women considered her a moment before Melissa leaned back to signal a waitress for another round.

“Your cowboy’s here,” Jerri said with a wave of her hand. “I saw him dancing earlier. He’s got moves.”

“He’s so cute,” Melissa sighed. “Too young for me, though.”

Which meant too young for her by far. Lavender stiffened defensively. “He’s not my cowboy.” At least they couldn’t see her blush in the dim light.

The band started playing a popular line dance song and the tables emptied. Her three companions popped out of their seats to join the throng on the floor. Laurie turned back to her.

“Do you know this one?”

“Um, it’s been awhile. I’ll watch, see if I remember.”

“You’re not going to remember by watching. Come on.” Laurie took her hand and pulled.

But once on the dance floor, Lavender lost her as more people crowded the floor, and she tried to follow her neighbor’s feet.

Strong hands closed on her hips, turning her with the crowd, and Taylor moved up beside her before releasing her. “Watch me,” he advised.

She did, studying his feet in the battered brown boots before she had to turn her back to him and follow someone else’s steps, all the while self-conscious of Taylor behind her seeing her stumble, or maybe watching her big butt. Great. Her grandmother had told her the jeans were too tight.

The moves had her turning again, with Taylor to her left this time. She was finally getting it, and then the moves had him turning his back to her. She stumbled when her gaze wandered to his butt and she jerked her attention away before he turned and saw.

He grinned anyway, as if he’d known. She stuttered for a minute, then fell into step with him. The synchronicity felt good, made her feel connected to him and the dancers around. She let the music wash through her as she turned her back to him. When they were facing the same direction again, she admired his grace once more. He was light on his feet, and interpreted the rhythm more deeply than just following steps, his knees bending deeper, his hips swiveling. He even added a couple of skipping steps but kept with the beat. God, she wished she could dance like that.

The song ended just when she was starting to feel the burn in her thighs, but still she regretted leaving the floor, leaving his side. The crowd thinned as another upbeat song played and Taylor turned to her, hand outstretched, eyebrows lifted hopefully.

She backed away in horror at the fast beat. “I can’t.”

Regret slackened his features, and she was sorry to disappoint him. Then she saw one of the most graceful women in town at the edge of the dance floor, surrounded by men pleading for a dance, and Lavender pointed Taylor in Samantha’s direction.

“She’s a good dancer. Go ask her.”

He looked skeptical, but apparently the music was getting to him, so he strolled over, reached through the crowd of men for Samantha and pulled her through them to swing into his arms.

Lavender burned with jealousy that she couldn’t be Samantha, and then she just watched.

Samantha was as tall as Taylor, gorgeous and built, the snug clothes she wore following the line of her perfect body, her long red hair swinging behind her. Taylor curved his hand just above her waist and took her hand in his other, feet already moving in quick steps which Samantha matched for a few measures. Taylor took her in a series of quick spins in the middle of the floor before whipping her out and then back into his arms. Samantha threw back her head and laughed, and he rolled her away again, guiding her in complicated turns before pulling her back and circling with her around the floor. Their feet moved in perfect time, perfect rhythm, and Lavender marveled at how well they read each other. The floor had cleared significantly, many dancers joining her on the edge to watch. She couldn’t tear her eyes away. He swung Samantha around and tucked her against his side so they circled facing the same direction before he whirled her back to face him just as the song ended.

Lavender was breathless, just watching them, and they parted, grinning. Taylor held out his hand to invite her for another dance, but Samantha shook her head.

“Samantha’s rules. Only one dance,” the redhead said, but Lavender thought there was regret in her friend’s eyes when she turned to another partner.

Taylor turned toward Lavender then, and she realized with a jolt that he must think she was waiting for him. It was too late now to bolt back to her seat, though, so she stood, mortified, till he reached her.

“You dance so well,” she managed.

“Thanks. Makes me thirsty.” He tucked his hand at the small of her back and guided her to the bar.

She cast a wild-eyed glance at her colleagues, who all gave her double-thumbs up. Approval was not what she was looking for. She needed rescue.

Taylor edged sideways through the crush at the bar, anchored his elbow on the edge and looked back at her. “What’ll you have?”

“I left my purse.” She motioned to her table and sent another “help me” look to Laurie, who just grinned.

“I’ve got it.” His tone was a touch impatient. “What do you want?”

When was the last time she’d even had alcohol? She had no idea what to order. She tried to remember what the other ladies were drinking but her mind was blank.

“Whatever you’re having,” she said finally.

He nodded his approval and ordered two Shiners. He paid and extricated himself from the crowd before handing her a bottle. “You don’t want a glass or anything, do you?”

She shook her head and took a sip of the cool dark beer. No tables were available, and she didn’t want to take him back to the table with the other teachers, so she leaned against a post and wondered how to escape.

“I didn’t think I’d see you here,” he said. “I thought you had someone waiting for you at home.” His attention turned to suspicion. “It’s not a cat or something, is it? And you just used it as an excuse not to have dinner with me?”

She lowered her gaze guiltily. “My grandmother. Why? Do I look like a cat lady?”

He reached over and brushed some cat hair off her fitted dark top.

“I thought I got all that,” she murmured, surprised she didn’t feel embarrassed that he saw her lack of perfection. “I didn’t plan to come, but some of my friends invited me. And after a field trip, this is really good.” She motioned with her beer and took another sip.

A corner of his mouth twitched. She really liked that twitch.

“Want to dance?” he asked.

“Oh, I’m not—you saw me out there.”

“Yeah, but this is the two-step. You’re a Texas girl, right? You know how to two-step.”

“Really, not well.”

But he didn’t take no for an answer. He took her beer and set it on a shelf on the post she’d been leaning on, then folded her hand in his and led her to the floor. Her heart hammered. This would not be good. She was going to make a fool of herself in front of everyone. She sucked in a breath as Taylor turned her into his arms, his hand settling lower and more centered on her than on Samantha.

Which meant their bodies were closer and she could smell him, warm and musky and male and
good
. Then they started moving and while she tried to picture herself as Samantha, she just couldn’t match his steps, even though this song was nowhere near the speed of the one he’d shared with the redhead.

“Why don’t you let me lead?” he bent his head to ask, a teasing note in his voice.

Embarrassment flooded her in a wave.

“Feel my hand. Let your feet follow.”

Easier said than done. She stumbled after him. He slowed and simplified his steps, but the damage was done. She was mortified, but he wouldn’t let her escape. His patience only made it worse.

She’d never been so glad for a song to end. She broke away, not meeting his eyes.

“Thanks for the beer.”

“Where you going?”

“I’m more tired than I thought. I... Thank you.” She turned and wove through tables to where Melissa sat alone. Laurie and Jerri were dancing. She unlooped her purse from the back of her chair, made her excuses and bolted from the Longhorn Saloon.

Chapter Four

Ah, yes, another exciting Friday afternoon grocery shopping at the Handy Andy with her grandmother. Gertrude Cates insisted on the weekly outing to beat the Saturday crowds. Lavender hadn’t really minded until today. She wanted to be anywhere but in public.

Jerri, Melissa and Laurie had been waiting for her when she got to school this morning and she’d cursed herself for not giving into the desire to take a personal day. But that would have been the coward’s way out and she’d used up her allotment of coward last night.

“Where’d you run off to last night?” Jerri had asked.

“You looked completely freaked out,” Melissa added. “What did he do to you?”

Nothing. She hadn’t given him time to do anything. She’d berated herself all night, consoling herself that she’d never see him again.

Lavender had turned away and unlocked her classroom door. “I hadn’t realized how tired I was.”

“You didn’t look tired. You looked upset. Like he’d upset you.”

“I just felt ridiculous,” Lavender admitted, though saying it aloud made her sick. She didn’t know these women well enough to know if they’d hold her confession against her, but clearly they weren’t going to leave her alone till she said something. “He’s so young and he bought me a beer and was flirting with me. I felt like he was making fun of me.”

“Why would he do that?” Laurie asked, her tone shrill with concern.

“It was just a feeling.”

Melissa shook her head. “He asked me to dance and didn’t buy me a beer. He asked me about you.”

Lavender reddened. God only knew what Melissa told him, and she didn’t want to ask. She didn’t want to read anything into his curiosity. She was never going to see him again, remember? And if she wondered what he saw in her, didn’t they? She’d never been so glad to hear the bell signaling the start of classes.

She lost her grandmother in the store, which was a trick since it was only tens aisles. She was pretty sure she’d left her back in the jelly aisle trying to decide if she wanted to buy a new flavor or stick with the same strawberry preserves she always bought. She’d get the preserves. Gertrude Cates was the one member of her family who acted with any kind of predictability.