Page 10 of Her Missing Cowboy (Silver Creek Ranch #10)

Ten

Joaquin

The day was going as bad as expected. They had lost a calf to a bear overnight.

The carcass was found on the trail, and the mother cow was crying.

People thought that animals didn’t have feelings, but they were wrong.

It hurt Joaquin to see that mother in mourning.

He loved and cared for all animals and knew they felt love and pain just like humans.

Then when they were roping, one of the horses injured his leg and had to be put down. There was no worse tragedy for a cowboy than losing a horse. They bonded with those animals more than they did people. A horse meant everything to a cowboy. Even if it wasn’t his, Joaquin still felt the pain.

Once they were able to break for lunch, he thought things would calm down. Boy howdy was he wrong. Just as he finished washing up, he was met with the bane of his existence… Merlene. The woman knew no boundaries.

“Hey there, Tanner. How are you today?”

Being a man of little words, Joaquin tipped his hat to the lady and tried to move past her.

It was not in his power, however. Merlene decided she was going to launch herself at him.

To keep her from falling, he caught her.

Big mistake. She wrapped herself around him like a boa constrictor.

Before he could dislodge her from his person, Joaquin looked up to see Cassie’s horrified face.

Great! That’s all he needed. Just when he was ready to grovel at her feet and beg her forgiveness for running out on her, this happened. If he didn’t know any better, he would think Merlene planned it. But that couldn’t be. The ladies had never met as far as he knew.

“Cassie! Please stop. I need to talk to you.”

Nothing he could have said or done would have stopped her. The hurt look on her face ripped a hole in his heart. He needed to ditch Merlene and run after Cassie. Only getting rid of the leach of a woman was harder than he imagined.

“You don’t need her, Tanner. Stay here with me and our baby.”

Joaquin’s head began to spin. Did she just say baby? The woman was more delusional than he thought. He hadn’t even as much as kissed Merlene. There was no way possible this woman was pregnant with his baby. She needed to stop spreading this shit around.

“Shut up, Merlene! Do you think I don’t know how babies are made? I would have had to fuck you to make that happen. And woman there’s no way I would let my dick anywhere near you. Get the hell off me, right now.”

He didn’t mean to embarrass Merlene in front of the rest of the cowboys that were, for some reason, lingering around the yard instead of going inside to eat.

“Tanner, you don’t mean that.”

“The hell I don’t. Move woman!”

With that statement, he picked up the petite woman and moved her out of his path. Joaquin ran inside looking for Mr. Harvey. He needed to see the man about a possible leave of absence. He needed to go find Cassie and make things right.

“Mr. Harvey, I need your help. Cassie… she saw… oh, it’s all a mess. I don’t know what to do.”

“Calm down, son. Take a deep breath and tell me what happened.”

Between Mr. Harvey, who was like a father to him, and Miss Bee, Joaquin was able to figure out a plan to get his woman.

None of which involved fathering Merlene’s imaginary baby.

First, he needed to find out just where Cassie lived.

He was sure she lived in South Dakota but was unsure exactly what city.

Over lunch, surrounded by his fellow cowboys, Joaquin searched online for any information he could find on the illusive Cassidy Jacks. What he found almost stopped his heart.

“You’ve got to be fuckin’ kidding me!” Joaquin exclaimed across the dining room.

“Alright, Tanner. I know you’re going through some things, but watch your mouth at my table,” Miss Bee, reprimanded.

“Sorry, Miss Bee. I meant no disrespect,” he replied.

“It’s alright, baby. Just don’t let it happen again.”

“Yes, ma’am. Mr. Harvey, you think it would be possible for me to take off the rest of the day? I need to get my head together. I’m afraid I might be a danger to myself and others out there today.”

“Whatever you need, Tanner.”

Joaquin was thankful for an understanding boss.

He was even more grateful that Mr. Harvey allowed Joaquin to seek advice from him.

The only thing that could make him feel better would be to down a bottle or two of Jack.

So, he headed over to the local liquor store and grabbed a couple of bottles of his old friend Jack.

The man was so distraught that he wondered off into the woods.

He needed to wrap his mind around the perceived betrayal.

When he searched for Cassie, he found her picture on the website of Eden Orchard.

The apple orchard was based out of Sioux Falls, his hometown.

When he looked at the address of the company, he just about collapsed.

It was his family’s former home. The place where he grew up. How could she do that to him?

Nature always helped Joaquin think. He found himself in the leaves of the trees, the soil and the open plains.

Fresh air helped clear his mind and center him at his core.

The only problem with that logic was introducing the alcohol.

That spirit infiltrated his peace and made him a bit of a wild card.

For the next three days, Joaquin lost himself in the woods.

He drank himself into a stupor. And when the liquor was gone, he finally started listening to his inner cowboy.

He just couldn’t figure out why Cassie never told him that she now owned the place where he grew up.

The decision was made. It was time to go home.