In the barn, Ennis was cleaning out the stables. He could hear Bobby and Jack talking outside.

Bobby said, "Daddy, you don't get it. I'm just not interested in selling farm equipment. It's not something I ever want to do."

Jack said, "Your lucky your mama runs a business and you got a good job to go into. I had to leave school early to help my daddy out. "

"I'd rather stay up here. I don't think I'll fit into that school. If I don't learn to read and write good, there's other things I can do."

"I think you need to go back to school, but what I think don't matter. I got no more say than you do. Your mama's got custody of you, and it's what she says that counts."

"You could talk to her."

"Look Bobby, I think you should give it a try. If you still want to stay up here come the summer, then I'll talk to her. But that don't mean you get to that school and fool round like you done at the last school, Now go on, get ready. We got a meet your mama in Gillette."

In the bedroom, Ennis stood in front of the mirror getting ready. He combed back his hair, threaded a bolo tie round his neck, grimaced at his reflection, and said to Jack, " You sure Lureen don't mind me comin."

Pulling on his shirt, Jack smiled and said, "It was Lureen's idea."

"That guy that she's with, he knows about us?"

"Yeah, he knows."

"What's he like? Bobby ain't none too fond of him. I don't know if this is such a good idea."

Jack said, "You ain't lettin me down now. I don't give a fuck what he thinks. I was speaking to Lureen on the phone last night . She said she give him a sales job and now he's trying tell her what to do. Only reason she bought him up here was to stop him pokin his nose in. It's hard on Lureen because her family and his go back a long time."

"I ain't worn one of these things for a while. Kind a feels like its chokin me."

Jack laughed and said, "Don't worry about nothin. It'll be alright. Come here…." He pulled Ennis round till he was facing him, and adjusted his tie.

In the yard, Jack's mama said to Bobby "Don't you forget about us. Let us know how you're getting on, even if it's two words scratched on a postcard."

The old man patted Bobby on the back and said, "By the time you come back you'll be driving more. We got more jobs to do." Bobby's driving consisted of driving a truck round and empty field, and backing down the driveway.

As they drove off, in the rear view mirror, Ennis could see the old man and Jack's mama standing side by side waving.

Ennis's pick up reached Gillette and pulled up in the parking lot of the Silver Spurs Bar and Grill. A neon cowboy twirling a lariat was tacked to the side of the building.

Ennis leant against the side of the truck and smoked a cigarette. In the in the early evening dusk, country music flooded out into the car park.

"Come on, let's go." Jack said, and both Bobby and Ennis reluctantly followed him.

The bar was crowded,noisy and brightly lit. Elk heads adorned the walls.

Lureen who had a been sitting down, stood up and waved to them. A man sitting with her nervously shuffled to his feet and eyed them cautiously. Lureen said, "This here is Russ. You already met Jack and this here is… uh.. his friend, Ennis."

"Ennis Del Mar," Ennis said

Ennis sat down next to Jack facing Russ. Bobby sat at the end of the table between Jack and Lureen.

Ennis sat in his chair poker straight. The noise and bright lights made him feel slightly disorientated. The band played a song that was more up tempo, Lureen absent mindedly drummed her blood red nails on the table, tapping out a rhythm.

Lureen said the Bobby, "You ready to start school on Monday. That school in San Antonio has got so much more than your last school had. And we already got you a tutor."

"Well, I guess it will be ok. I can always come home in the weekend."

Russ chipped in and said, "Not every weekend. We got some new models arriving and we're busy. Got a lot of trade shows lined up."

"It's a busy time of the year for us, honey. Granddad had his stroke and your too much of a hand full for momma. But we'll come up and visit you, and some weekends we can plan some time off and you can come and stay."

Bobby looked down, and Lureen noticing his glum expression, said in a bright voice "Your birthday is coming up. This year we plan to get you a car."

Bobby replied. "But I don't want to be stuck in San Antonio."

Jack spoke cajolingly, "Come on Buddy, the summer ain't that long away. You remember what we talked about."

"Things are different nowadays" said Russ. I never finished school and got a job, but now you need a high school diploma to get anything at all. He can't have much time for his education staying up on the ranch." He added in a muted whisper, "Time he started thinking about his education what with him being a little slow."

Realizing that Russ was talking to him, Ennis said, " Well, I don't know about him being slow. Showed him how to preg test a heffer. He picked that up quick enough."

Ennis down the table and saw by Bobby's sullen expression he must have heard what Russ had said. The conversation lapsed into silence.

Lureen frowned at Russ and said. "That waitress is taking way too long. I'm going to order at the bar. Come on Bobby help me get some drinks."

When Bobby and Lureen had left, Jack turned to Russ and said in an angry tone, "I done a lot of talkin to his teachers about it over the years. He's got dyslexia. Dyslexia don't mean he's slow."

"I didn't mean nothing, Russ said hastily

How are the sales goin," Jack said his anger subsiding.

"They're picking up. L.D. thinks we're doing ok. He still likes to hear how things are running. Doing better than we did a year ago. Picked up a lot of new customers recently. You miss the sales game?"

"Me, no I'm happy doin what I'm doin You're welcome to it. It ain't something that interests me."

"L.D said he respects what I'm doing. He said the reason business has improved is that got someone more manly demonstrating the tractors."

Ennis felt adrenaline pumping through him and instinctively he rose from his chair. He could feel Jack's hand hard on his thigh forcing him back down. Surprised by Ennis's reaction Russ lurched back and toppled off his chair. As he picked himself up off the floor. Jack said in a firm, easy voice, "Like I said, your welcome to it. Boy, you better learn to stand up to L.D. He don't respect anyone he thinks he can walk all over."

Ennis took a deep breath and loosened his tie, he looked around to see if anyone was watching. The lights had dimmed, and music slowed. Russ stood by the table as if uncertain whether it was safe to sit back down again.

Lureen and Bobby returned. Lureen looked at them quizzically sensing something had happened. Russ said, "Come on Baby, let's dance."

Bobby sat down and said, "What happened."

Ennis tightened his lips, frowned and glared at the direction of Russ.

Bobby said, "I told you he was an asshole."

Lureen returned to the table on her own and said, "Russ has gone back to the hotel."

Lureen turned to Jack and said, "Did Russ say something."

Jack said, "He just made a dumb-ass remark is all. Honey, I just think you can do a whole lot better than that."

"Least he knows how to dance with a woman" Lureen said in an icy voice. Then she sighed and said, "But I guess you're right, he's always going behind my back and tellin Daddy how the business is getting on. I want to run it by myself."

Their meals arrived and they ate dinner in silence. With Russ gone, the atmosphere relaxed." Lureen said,"That little place your folks has got is doing real well, so I don't want to hear no more talk about how you're not sure you're going to meet the payments. You want to think about expanding it."

Jack and Lureen talked about Bobby's new school until Lureen turned to Bobby and said , "It's time for us to get going. We got a plane to catch in the morning."

Bobby said to Ennis, "I guess I'll see you in the summer. You still goin to be there."

Ennis said, "We'll still be there, don't worry 'bout that. By the time you come I'm hopin that horse of yours will be in foal. You just worry about your schoolin and stayin out of trouble."

Jack and Bobby walked out together and Lureen said to Ennis,"I own a string of horses back home, but he's sure taken a liking to that one. All that ranch work seems to have kept him from getting into trouble."

Ennis said, "He ain't been no trouble . Good with horses, got the patience for them."

Lureen raised a disbelieving eyebrow and replied, "Next time you and Jack are down in Texas, you come and stay at my house."

Sitting at the table by himself, Ennis felt ill at ease. He went to the lobby where the arcade games were, and threw some coins into one of the machines, setting his mind to ratcheting up his score, trying to ignore the chatter round him.

He heard Jack's voice behind him say, "Let's get the hell out of here"

Driving down the open road in the dark night, Jack said, "Lureen thinks your alright."

"Don't know if she'd still think that if she knew how close I was punching her boyfriend," Ennis said.

"I reckon she might well have thanked you for it."

Ennis smiled and said, "Bobby was right. He is a loud mouth. She goin to finish with him?"

"I wouldn't count on it. She put up with me for years. In some ways she's tough, like in business, but in other ways she ain't. I hope it ain't put you off goin anywhere with me again."

"Hell no. May be we could go up to Sheridan, like you was talkin about before, go and visit your Uncle."

"I was thinking. I got a friend - his little brother and I used to go to school together. He was kind of my first boyfriend, but no one knew nothin bout it."

"You ain't never mentioned him before."

"It ain't nothin like that. He's writer moved back. He moved back here a little while ago from New York. I ran into him at the store, and he invited me round. I told him about you back when I come back from Brokeback in nineteen-sixty-three. I thought maybe we could go and see him together.

Not expecting this, but curious and unable to refuse, Ennis found himself saying "Sure, why not."