Chapter 15

Chris leaned back in the chair outside the medical trailer, shifting to get the ice pack on his hip positioned better. Nathan came down the single step of the trailer with two more ice packs and tossed them to Chris. He caught them, putting one on his knee and the other on his shoulder.

"You're getting too old for this," Nathan said.

Chris got the ice packs settled against the burning pain of old injuries. "Hell, Nathan, I was too old for this a decade ago."

"You thinking you're going to decide to settle down on your ranch full time any time soon?" Nathan asked, opening the cooler between them and handing Chris a bottle.

Chris didn't answer right away. The pain of losing his wife and son had dulled over the years. But he wasn't sure it would ever dull enough for him to stop running from it.

He twisted the top off his bottle. "Not any time soon," he finally said.

"Chris. Nathan."

They both looked up at Mary's voice. She made her way toward them, through the shadows that had fallen across the trailers and pickups that were still outside the Reno arena.

"Hi Mary," Nathan greeted her. He motioned toward an empty chair, but she shook her head.

"What's wrong?" Chris asked. Mary's eyes were troubled, though she looked like she was trying to keep from showing it.

Her brow furrowed then. "I don't know that anything's wrong," she hedged. "And it's really none of my business. I don't know that I should even say anything."

"Well you got my attention," Chris said, setting aside his beer.

Mary folded her hands loosely in front of her and sighed. "Did Kaylee tell you where she was going tonight?"

Chris nodded, leaning back in his chair again. She was just checking up on the younger woman. "JD and Casey were taking her out. Going to try to get her mind of Ezra." Just saying Ezra's name caused a churning in his gut. Josiah called, said he had found Ezra exactly where they expected him to be. What Josiah hadn't said was what condition Ezra was in. Chris figured it wasn't good.

Mary pursed her lips.

"Just say it, Mary," Chris said. "No sense in beating around the bush if something's got you worried." He couldn't imagine how much trouble JD and Casey could possibly find. They'd play some slot machines, maybe have a drink or two, and think they had found the wild side of Reno.

"Gage Fulton was with them," Mary said.

Chris could see Nathan tensing up in his own chair. "What's he doing with them?"

The younger bullrider was cocky, with a reputation that made Chris scowl.

Mary gave Chris a look.

Chris muttered a curse.

"He's been asking about Kaylee. I don't think she's given him a second look, and for someone like Gage…" Mary trailed off.

"The challenge is half the fun," Chris said, shooting a look over to Nathan. Nathan's mouth was set in a grim line.

"I know Ezra has a reputation," Mary started. "But I would trust him with my life. I never worried about Kaylee with him."

Chris started to stand, tossing his ice packs down on the ground next to his chair.

"Where are you going?" Nathan asked.

"I'm gonna find Gage Fulton and have a talk with him."

Nathan stood then, arms crossed. "And how are you going to find him? There's a lot of ground to cover."

Chris sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"If JD and Casey are with them, nothing's going to happen," Nathan said reasonably.

Mary nodded slowly. "You're right, Nathan. Gage won't be able to try anything tonight."

Chris hesitated, but finally nodded. Kaylee would be fine tonight, since JD and Casey were with her. But he was going to find Gage Fulton first thing tomorrow morning before things had a chance to go any farther.

#

"So are you still staying in Ezra's trailer?" Casey asked, turning in her seat to look back at Kaylee.

Kaylee shook her head. She glanced over at JD in the driver's seat and Gage in the back seat with her. The truck JD and Buck drove wasn't as old as Vin's, but nowhere new as Ezra's. At the thought of Ezra, her throat clogged with a knot.

"So where are you staying?" Casey asked.

Kaylee cleared her throat. "Buck and JD said I can stay with them while I figure it out." She gave JD a small smile of thanks in the rearview mirror.

Casey froze. She looked over at JD, then back at Kaylee. "Where…where in their camper are you staying?" she asked, her voice tight.

Kaylee hesitated. "Buck said I could have the bedroom," she said slowly. "But I don't want to put him out."

Casey nodded, her jaw clenched. "So you'll be sleeping next to JD. Every night." She glared at JD. "That sounds cozy."

Kaylee winced. "No, that's not…Casey it's not…"

JD shook his head quickly, his ears turning red. "It's not like that at all, Casey."

Casey turned forward again, staring out the windshield.

"So where should we go?" JD asked brightly. He reached over to take Casey's hand and she jerked away from him. "You said you wanted to go to a casino?"

Kaylee looked over at Gage who looked slightly amused by the exchange.

"You know what?" Kaylee said, her own voice matching JD's for false cheer. "Why don't you two try out the casinos. I could use a burger." She smiled at Gage, more for Casey's benefit than Gage's. "You want to go get something to eat?" She glanced at Casey again, then back at Gage. "Just the two of us?"

Casey finally looked back at Kaylee.

Gage nodded, a grin spreading across his face. "Sounds good to me."

At that, Casey gave Kaylee a look of gratitude. Kaylee reached over the seat to give Casey's arm a quick squeeze of apology. She should have thought what it would sound like to her friend when she heard Kaylee was moving in with her boyfriend.

"You can let us out here," Kaylee said, wanting to get away before she said anything else that would disrupt things.

JD pulled over and Kaylee got out quickly. She winced when she forgot to get down cautiously and landed hard, sending pain through her still-healing knee. Gage noticed and wrapped an arm around her solicitously.

"You ok?" he asked.

Kaylee nodded, pulling away from him. He kept his arm around her just a second too long for comfort before letting her go. "Just a little banged up, still," she said.

Casey called out her window. "You guys good?"

Kaylee nodded. No way was she going to say anything that would interfere with Casey and JD getting time together tonight.

JD looked uneasy as he looked between her and Gage. Kaylee gave him a wave. "We'll find a ride back later. You guys have fun."

JD didn't pull away right away, but when Casey raised her eyebrows at him, he put the truck in gear and pulled away.

Kaylee turned back to Gage.

Gage smiled then, and any lingering discomfort evaporated into the night air. "I saw when your horse went down. I can't believe you didn't get hurt worse."

Kaylee's mind went back to Ezra, right there with her in the arena, helping her up, holding her hand at the hospital. She shook her head slightly to dislodge the thoughts. She didn't want to think about him. For one night, she didn't want to have the pain that came with him pushing her away. She let the cowboy next to her move closer, loop an arm over her shoulders and start leading her toward a restaurant.

"If you can take a spill like that, maybe you should try bullriding," Gage said, flashing the million watt smile that was making him famous, along with his winning rides.

Kaylee laughed then. "I think getting knocked off in the arena once was enough for me."

She shoved thoughts of Ezra aside and just enjoyed being with someone who wasn't pushing her away. Someone who could distract her from the mess her life was becoming.

#

JD parked the truck and looked over at Casey. She gave him a broad grin. "Who knew we'd hit a jackpot?"

He couldn't help returning her smile. They got out of the truck and JD fell in step with her as she started walking back toward the pick up camper she shared with her grandma Nettie.

"You sure we shouldn't have stayed with Kaylee and Gage?" he asked.

Casey stopped walking and turned to him. "Why? Is there some reason you want to keep Kaylee nearby, JD?" her brown eyes snapped. "And, by the way, it would have been nice if you would have told me she's moving in with you."

"She's not moving in with me," JD argued. "She just needs a place to stay and Buck said she could."

Casey narrowed her eyes at him.

"C'mon, Casey. She's your friend. I don't think of her like that."

Casey finally started walking again. "Well, I'll feel a lot better about it if things work out with Gage."

That uneasy feeling made its way back into JD's gut. "Yeah, about Gage," he said. "Do you really know him?"

Casey shook her head. "What's to know? He's cute, he's making a ton of money winning, and he's not Ezra."

JD felt that same defensiveness he had felt earlier. "There's nothing wrong with Ezra," he said hotly.

Casey shook her head like she couldn't believe JD, but at least she didn't start listing Ezra's faults. JD knew there were plenty in the past, and probably more than a few in the present, but he liked Ezra. He had thought Ezra made Kaylee happy and Kaylee had seemed to make Ezra happy. And, more importantly, Ezra didn't give him an edgy feeling the way Gage Fulton did.

The door to the pickup camper swung open and Nettie was silhouetted in the light coming from inside.

"That you, JD?" she asked bluntly.

"Yes, ma'am," he answered, quickly taking a step away from Casey. Casey rolled her eyes at him.

"You two find all the trouble Reno had to offer?" she asked.

Casey smiled and held up her bucket of coins. "We found a couple hundred dollars of it at least."

Nettie smiled at her granddaughter, then looked over the dark area. "Where's Kaylee? I thought she was going with you."

"She did," Casey answered. "But she's not back yet."

Nettie's eyes narrowed. "She meet up with Ezra?"

JD figured Nettie didn't miss much that went on around the rodeo.

"Ugh, no," Casey scoffed.

JD bit his tongue to stop from rushing to Ezra's defense. The last thing he needed was to rile Casey's overprotective grandmother. She liked Nathan, she adored Josiah, and she loved Vin, but she regarded the rest of them with some level of suspicion most the time.

"She's with Gage. You know, Gage Fulton?"
Nettie pursed her lips like she had just tasted a lemon. "That cocky little show-dog who thinks he's God's gift to women?"

Casey blinked at the tone. "The, uh, the bullrider?"

Nettie snorted and JD felt relief he wasn't alone in his opinon of Gage.

"So you two just left her alone with that pushy womanizer?" Nettie asked sharply.

"We…no!" Casey looked to JD for back up. "They're not alone. They were going to get something to eat. In a restaurant. With people."

Nettie shook her head. "Get inside, girl. It's late." She fixed a gimlet eye on JD. "You best be heading back to your camper, young man."

"Yes, ma'am," JD nodded quickly. "Good night, ma'am. Night, Casey."

Casey rewarded him with a broad smile. "Night, JD."

JD hurried back over to where Buck had parked their camper. He crossed his fingers that Kaylee had made it back. What had Nettie meant by womanizer? Sure, Buck had that reputation, too, but he didn't set JD's teeth on edge the way Gage did. He hoped he hadn't made a huge mistake letting Kaylee go off with Gage on her own.

#

Kaylee got out of the cab with Gage. The rodeo grounds were dark, no sound except the occasional lowing of the stock. Gage stayed by her side as they made their way to Buck and JD's camper.

They passed Ezra's camper on the way, along the edge of the grounds. It was dark, abandoned since Ezra seemed to have taken up residence in the hotel suite. She wondered if he was going to move his camper before she and Vin pulled out for the next town tomorrow. Maybe she'd see him then.

"This is you?" Gage asked, stopping in front of Buck's camper.

Kaylee dragged her thoughts away from hoping she would see Ezra tomorrow and back to Gage. "Yeah."

Gage's mouth moved in a lazy grin. "I've been wanting to take you out for weeks, you know."

She was glad she had been with Ezra for those weeks. In spite of the pain now, she wouldn't want to lose those memories.

Gage took a step closer, startling Kaylee. She instinctively backed up a step, but Gage put his hands on her upper arms.

"You sure you don't want to come back to my camper?" he asked, his breath fanning across her face.

Kaylee's eyes widened in surprise. "I don't even know you," she exclaimed.

Gage's hands tightened slightly on her arms. "That didn't stop you from moving in with Ezra." Another step, but this time he followed her backwards, until she felt her back hit the side of Buck's camper.

"I didn't…we didn't…" What was he saying? Kaylee didn't know how to respond.

And then he was pressing his lips against hers. Kaylee was too shocked to do anything. Just as she gathered her wits to try to push him away, the door swung open and Buck stood there, glaring down at them.

Or more accurately, glaring down at Gage.

Gage easily let go of Kaylee, smiling at Buck like he didn't have a care in the world.

Kaylee rubbed her hands against her upper arms, feeling the tender places Gage's fingers had dug in.

"What's goin' on out here?" Buck asked, deadly calm, not taking his eyes off Gage.

Kaylee couldn't think of an answer, she wasn't quite sure what was going on.

"Just saying good night," Gage answered easily.

Buck stepped down onto the ground. He still towered over the shorter bullrider. "I think you said it all," he said quietly, his brown eyes dark and threatening.

Gage finally looked a little uncomfortable. He took a step back, away from Kaylee this time. He nodded toward her. "I'll see you in Long Branch," he said, naming the next town on the circuit.

"Yeah," Kaylee said. She couldn't manage much more. She waited for Gage to walk away.

Kaylee glanced at Buck, then skirted past him and inside, hoping he wouldn't say anything. She was a jumble of embarrassment at Buck seeing her and Gage, agitation at what had just happened with Gage, and some sort of confusing mix of shame and anger that Gage had pushed her around.

"What was that?" Buck asked, following her inside.

Kaylee shook her head, avoiding looking at Buck. JD was sprawled out on the couch, snoring softly. Buck waved a dismissive hand toward him. "He'll sleep through anything. You want to tell me what was going on out there?"

"Nothing." It had been nothing, hadn't it? Just Gage trying to give her a kiss at the end of a date. That was normal. Why was she making more of it than that?

"It didn't look like nothing." Buck said.

"It was just Gage saying goodnight." She started to doubt the fear she had felt when Gage had first shoved her up against the camper. She must have been reading too much into the action.

Buck shook his head vehemently. "Not like that," he said firmly. "That's not how you treat a lady."

Kaylee glanced at him then. Buck sounded sure of himself. He met her eyes, then his brows lowered and he tilted his head.

"You know that, right?" he asked. "How a lady's supposed to be treated? Respected?"

For a split second, Kaylee thought she was going to spill out the truth. That she didn't have any idea about dating, or men, or even what she was doing with her life. But then Buck may ask questions about her past, or feel obligated to let her stay with him and JD past the next town.

Kaylee rubbed her forehead. "I'm tired," she said. She was so tired of trying to figure things out. "I just want to go to bed."

Buck studied her for a moment, then let out a sigh and nodded. He picked up her bags and headed toward the bedroom. Kaylee started to shake her head, then remembered the look on Casey's face when she heard Kaylee was living with JD. She closed her mouth against the argument she wanted to make and silently followed Buck.

He set her bags on the bed. "We can talk in the mornin'," he said.

Kaylee had no intention of talking about Gage, or Ezra, or anything else in the morning. She hoped Vin would be ready to leave early. Preferably before Buck woke up. Instead of saying that, though, she just thanked him and closed the door behind him.

She dropped her head against the door, stopping herself from pounding her head against the door a couple more times for good measure. She just needed to get to the next town. Get to the next rodeo, get some money, and stop thinking about Ezra.

She could do that, right?

#

Ezra had hoped the large area that had been covered with trailers, trucks, and campers would have been emptied out by the time he went to get his trailer.

Fewer than half the vehicles were gone. Ezra spotted Buck and JD's eyesore, Vin's practically antique truck, and Chris' motorcycle. The medical trailer was still there, but he had expected that. Nathan would wait until everyone was safely on the road before he left.

Ezra parked near his camper. Vin was loading his horses into the large trailer he pulled. Ezra had a moment of thinking his sanity would be preserved, then he saw Kaylee come around the far side of the trailer and say something to Vin.

Everything in him told him to go to Kaylee. Ezra wasn't used to his instincts being so terribly wrong.

Ezra quickly got out of his truck and made his way to the trailer. He would get things secured, make sure Kaylee had her belongings, and let Vin know he would pull the trailer to Long Branch for Kaylee while he found a hotel for himself.

As soon as he opened the door to the trailer, he could tell Kaylee was gone. The small mess she usually had at the foot of the couch was gone. The windows were all closed, and he knew she liked to sleep with a fresh breeze coming in.

He hadn't quite made it to the point where he told himself it was for the best that Kaylee was moved out when a knock sounded and the door opened.

Relief mixed with a sharp stab of pain when he saw it wasn't Kaylee.

Chris stepped inside. "Welcome back," he said.

"I'm not back," Ezra corrected him. "Just…" What was he doing here? Checking on Kaylee?

Chris didn't argue with the obvious error of Ezra saying he wasn't back, as he stood right there in his camper.

"We need to talk," Chris said.

Ezra stiffened. He had just seen Kaylee, surely nothing was wrong. He had removed himself from her life, so there was no way she could be in any sort of trouble.

"Kaylee went out with Gage Fulton," Chris said.

"And you let her?" Ezra asked, incredulously.

"Didn't know until it was too late," Chris answered. Ezra could see the muscles in his jaw tense.

His own stomach recoiled at Chris' words. "Too late?" he choked out.

Chris' expression eased some when he saw the look on Ezra's face. "Too late to stop her from going with him," he clarified. "But Buck got between them when Gage brought her home."

"He was…?" Ezra silently cursed. He couldn't even get the words out.

"Buck said he was getting a little rough with her, but backed off when Buck caught them."

Ezra let his head fall forward and drew a breath. Chris gave him space until Ezra lifted his head. "She's alright?" he asked.

Chris nodded.

Ezra swallowed hard. He gave a short nod of his own, knowing it was woefully inadequate thanks for Chris telling him and for Buck getting between Kaylee and Gage.

Chris seemed to be waiting for him to say something.

"I'll see to it she knows she is still welcome to utilize my trailer," he said.

Chris' disappointment was clear and cut deeper than Ezra wanted to admit.

"If that's what you think is best, Ezra," Chris said, making it clear it wasn't what he himself thought best.

"Thank you for the update," Ezra said, efficiently shutting down any more conversation. Seeing the trailer was ready to hitch up and move, he walked out, leaving Chris to see himself out.

The sunshine made Ezra blink. His vision adjusted in time for him to see a cocky, young bullrider heading toward where Kaylee was taking the portable fencing apart with Vin.

Gage greeted Kaylee and Ezra could see her pause before she looked up at him. She gave him a small smile.

Gage must have taken that as an invitation because he moved closer and said something.

Kaylee didn't respond immediately, but then she looked over Gage's shoulder and noticed Ezra. Pain flashed across her face and she hesitated. Ezra got the distinct impression she was waiting for him to acknowledge her, or come over.

Ezra used every ounce of willpower to keep his feet planted and not go over and haul the cocky cowboy away from Kaylee. Kaylee had seen Gage for what he was, according to Chris' report. She would send him away and be safe from either Gage Fulton or Ezra Standish hurting her.

A look of pure stubbornness overtook Kaylee's face when Ezra didn't move and she deliberately turned away from Ezra to flash Gage a more welcoming smile, nodding at whatever Gage was asking her.

Ezra could see Vin silently watching the exchange between Kaylee and Gage, a look of concern on his own face. Gage reached out to brush Kaylee's loose hair back over her shoulder and winked at her.

Ezra and Vin both started moving forward at the same time. Gage noticed Vin and stepped back from Kaylee. Ezra could see he was promising to see her in a few days when they got to the next stop.

With a mocking salute for Vin, and a smirk for Ezra, Gage turned and walked away.

Ezra clenched his hands into fists. Vin was at Kaylee's side, so Ezra forced his boots backwards. He turned and went to his truck. He was pulling out of there before he did something stupid, like make sure Gage had enough fear in him to stay far from Kaylee. Or go to Kaylee and tell her how much he needed her.

#