Still
It was that rarest of rare things in Texas, a winter snowfall, and just in time for Christmas. Bart Maverick looked out on the ground in front of him and shook his head slightly. He hadn't seen anything like that since he was twelve or fourteen years old.
The kids weren't up and playing in it yet, but the horses were. The fillies were rolling around in it, kicking up their heels and flinging snow everywhere. The mares with foal were gentler, pawing the white stuff up in the air and watching it float to the ground. The ponies almost appeared afraid of it. They huddled together in their little group and snorted at the cold flakes that kept falling in their eyes.
This was their second Christmas at the Ranch, and the books were finally beginning to show a profit. Bart remained the general manager of Maude's Saloon, although he only went into town to do what was needed to be done once a week. Bret was still playing poker when the mood struck him, which didn't happen too often these days. Bart was sure that by this time next year the B Bar M would be self-sustaining.
He lit a cigar and sat down in one of the rockers on the porch. It was cold and he pulled his coat tight around him, content to blow smoke and watch the horses cavort with each other. It took a minute or two before he realized he was no longer alone, and looked up just before his oldest daughter sat down next to him. "I thought you were gonna quit smokin' those things, daddy," Maudie chastised him.
"I will someday," her father answered. He took a good long look at her, realizing that she was on the verge of turning into a woman. And at only twelve years old. She had her mother's long blonde hair, but her father's brown eyes. Or rather, as Pappy put it, Isabelle Grayson's brown eyes. And she was tall and thin, just like Bart. What was he going to do with her? It wouldn't be long before the boys started comin' around, and he hated the thought of her growing up so fast. It was just yesterday that Maudie and her twin sister, Isabelle, were tiny babies that he could hold in his arms. And now this magnificent creature had taken her place. Where did the time go?
She looked out into the paddocks and watched the horses play in the once in a lifetime snowfall. As soon as she woke and saw the white ground from her window, she knew her father would be out here, enjoying every moment of the free-for-all frolicking; never taking his eyes off his beloved animals. She alone seemed to be the one that realized just how much they meant to him; just as they meant that much to her. It had come as a surprise to her; she'd started out interested in the horses and the ranch as a way to spend time with him, but it quickly grew into something more. Whatever it was that drew his attention, the same thing attracted his daughter.
They sat side by side for almost an hour, not making a sound, until at last they heard noise in the house and knew from the screeches and squeals that everyone was waking up, and that they all saw the white blanket nature had laid down. Father and daughter both knew they only had ten or fifteen minutes of their peaceful solitude left before it would be shattered by the remaining Maverick siblings. They exchanged glances; Bart threw the remainder of his cigar away, and he reached for her hand and held it in his. The sound of the front door crashing open was followed by the whooping and hollering of Isabelle, Beauregard, Breton and Lily, and as the four ran across the porch, someone reached out a hand and grabbed Maude, taking her with them and keeping her firmly entrenched in childhood for a little bit longer.
Now another blonde appeared at the door, this one with aqua –blue eyes, and she took her daughter's place at Bart's side. She slipped her hand into his and it fit perfectly, the way it had always fit, and she was reminded just how long she had loved this man.
"How long have you been out here?" she asked him.
"Couple hours," was his quick reply.
"Aren't you cold?"
"I'm frozen, blue-eyes."
"Then why are you still out here?"
"Because I can't bring the horses and the snow inside the house," he replied truthfully, and she heard the sadness in his voice. "Is this your first snow?"
"No," Doralice explained. "Once, when I was three, I saw it, but I didn't know what it was. The kids will never forget this."
"No, they won't. Neither will the horses."
Doralice threw back her head and laughed, just the way her mother had laughed for so many years. Bart loved the sound of that laugh. The twins didn't have it, and he feared the demise of the sound. And then, the least likely subject threw back her head and laughed one day, and sweet, quiet little Lily was Maude's bawdy hysteria reborn.
"I love it when you laugh. I've never told you, have I? It's one of the most delicious things about you."
"Anything else you haven't told me?"
"Ah, let me see." Bart was absolutely still for two or three minutes while he thought. "Nope, not a thing. I've told you everything I can think of."
"Tell me, how did you manage to arrange the snow for Christmas?" She was completely serious.
"Oh, I requested this months ago. I didn't know if we were gonna get it or not. But it was the one thing I wanted to see out here. I thought it'd be the perfect gift."
She watched the horses rolling around in the snow, and the children doing something similar. "I think you're right. And I'm glad you asked for it." She leaned over in her chair and kissed him. "Now I have to go make breakfast." She started to get up, and he pulled her back down into the chair.
"Stay here. Stay just another minute. We may never have this perfect moment again. And you need to know how much I love you."
"Still?"
"Always."
"Merry Christmas, gamblin' man."
"Merry Christmas, blue-eyes."
The End