Page 4 of Merry Christmas, Cowboy (Home to Texas #2)

T he knock came at nine o’clock the next morning.

Garrett had just finished cleaning up the dishes from the night before.

Cody was lounging on the sofa, watching cartoons that involved superhero dogs.

It was his favorite. He’d told the boy, once they settled into a house of their own, maybe they’d get a dog and Cody hadn’t let him forget it.

Rookie error on his part, he should’ve never gotten Cody’s hopes up.

Kids were impatient; they wanted what they wanted— now .

Garrett went to the door and opened it to find Miss Russell on his doorstep.

With her blonde hair raked back into a long braid and deep brown eyes, she was the prettiest teacher he’d ever seen.

Certainly, none of his schoolteachers ever looked like that.

He stared for a second, admiring her in jeans and a big puffy coat.

She smiled. “Hi, hope we’re not too early.”

Garrett had agreed to let the volunteers do some work this morning, while the weather held. Nicole had texted that being Saturday and all, many of the helpers would have extra time in their day. Apparently, the first order of business was putting up lights.

“No, not too early,” he said, peering over her shoulders. There were volunteers outside unloading at least a dozen boxes from their cars. “What’s all that?”

“Those are the lights,” she said, as if he should’ve known.

“Are you lighting up the entire western hemisphere?”

“Nope,” she said, grinning. It was cute the way her mouth curved up and her eyes sparkled. “For the house and the trees and the corral fence and… I’m sure I’ll think of something else.”

Ryan “Coop” Cooper came to the door. “Mornin’,” he said, putting out his hand.

Garrett shook hands with him. He’d met Coop just a few days ago, and they’d had a good conversation about wood flooring, the latest model jigsaw, and kids.

He seemed like an okay guy for a Houston Texan fan.

He had a daughter who also went to Honeysuckle Elementary School.

“Mornin’ to you too. So, you’re part of the lighting team? ” Garrett asked.

“I’m here for whatever Nicole needs me to do.”

A woman walked up to greet him. “Hi, I’m Taylor, Coop’s wife. Thanks for letting us use the property this season. It’s nice of you.”

“Garrett,” he said. “Nice to meet you, Taylor.”

Coop wrapped an arm around her waist and he figured those two were deeply in love judging by the looks they were flashing each other. “Yep, we all appreciate it.”

“Nicole didn’t give me much choice,” Garrett said, only half joking.

“I really didn’t,” she added, nodding. At least she wasn’t denying it. “He’s been a good sport about this. And it’s for a very good cause.”

“Well, we’d better get to those lights now,” Coop said. “We only have about two thousand to hang.”

“He’s not exaggerating either,” Nicole said. “We’ll try not to disturb you.”

Cody ran up then, still dressed in his red fire truck pajamas. He grabbed hold of Garrett’s hand, noticing all the people on the doorstep. “Uncle Garrett?”

“Look, Cody. Miss Russell is here to put up lights. This is Taylor and Coop. They’re helping too.”

“Hi, Cody. Nice to meet you,” Taylor said.

“Hi,” he said shyly then turned his gaze outside again and his eyes grew wide. “Can I help?” he asked Miss Russell.

“Well, uh, sure. If your uncle says it’s okay, you can feed me the lights,” she replied.

“Feed you?” He giggled.

Nicole chuckled too. “It means you can give me the lights as I need them.”

“And no going up on ladders, or getting in anyone’s way,” Garrett said. “Is that a deal?”

“Deal. Oh, boy,” he said and took off running toward his bedroom to get dressed.

“He’s adorable,” Taylor said. “You must be so proud of him.”

“I am,” Garrett said, his chest puffing out a bit. “He’s a good kid.”

Nicole nodded and he was grateful for the confirmation.

“Well, I’d better let you get back to whatever you were doing.”

Garrett looked into her eyes. She had a sweet way about her, even though he felt like he’d been bulldozed into this event. “Just some light work today. I like to give Cody my attention whenever I can.”

“Okay, well then, I’ll see you later.”

He nodded and closed the door. Cody whizzed by him, anxious to get outside. The kid even remembered to put on his jacket. “Remember to listen to Miss Russell,” he said, as the boy ran out the door.

Garrett spent his time sanding the bathroom floor. It had about twenty years of varnish on it. After a little more elbow grease, the floors would be ready to stain with the same vibrant shade of light walnut that would eventually flow throughout the rest of the house.

He finished up a short while later and walked over to the window to peer outside. The volunteers were busy winding lights around the nearby trees, and some were taking meticulous time wrapping lights and garland around the corral fence.

Nicole was up on a ladder in front of the house trying her hardest to get the lights strung on the eaves.

It wasn’t going well. She wasn’t tall enough to fully reach, yet he could tell by her body language how determined she was.

She wasn’t going to give up, but she could fall and he didn’t need the liability or the…

guilt. If she injured herself, he’d feel like it was his fault.

He strode outside and found Cody by a table all set up with refreshments. The boy was sipping hot cocoa, a half-eaten powdered doughnut in his other hand. This committee thought of everything.

Garrett put a hand on the backend of Nicole’s ladder. “How’s it going?” he asked.

She jolted and nearly tripped off the ladder, but held on for dear life. “Don’t scare me like that.”

“Sorry. You okay?”

She put a hand to her heart. “I will be, once my heart stops pounding.”

He didn’t dare smile. She was giving him her teacher stare, one that said she did not approve. But, boy, she sure looked wobbly up there on the last rung of the ladder.

“You look like you could use some help.”

Again, she stretched her body over the end of the ladder with the string of lights in her hand. “I’m getting it,” she said, her voice straining.

She wasn’t getting it at all. She stood on her tiptoes and still had a way to go before reaching the hooks that were probably still up from past years.

“I could probably reach those, no problem.” Him being six foot one and all.

“Don’t you have work to do?” She looked down at him. “I don’t want to disturb you.”

Was she kidding? Her presence disturbed him…

in a good way. And being able to admit that was a real revelation.

He didn’t know anything personal about her and, besides, he had no room in his life for entanglements.

He’d been dating a woman for a time and that could’ve turned into something worthwhile, but as soon as he took Cody in, she’d bailed.

She didn’t want any part of that package deal.

And that was what he and little Code were now, a package deal.

Garrett liked women, but he and Cody both had enough upheaval in their lives without complicating it any further.

So for now, he wasn’t going down that road.

Cody and flipping the house was plenty for him to handle at the moment.

“I’m taking a break,” he told Nicole.

“Stringing lights is hardly a break. And besides, I promised we wouldn’t disrupt your life.”

“It’s not a disruption, if I’m offering. Which I am.” He wanted her down from that ladder before she broke her neck.

“Well, okay.” Her shoulders slumped as if she was giving up something precious. “Just as long as you’re volunteering.”

She started down the ladder, missed a rung and fell backward. He caught her fall and the next thing he knew they were both wrapped up in colored lights, just inches apart. Just like yesterday.

“This is getting to be a habit,” he said lightly. He breathed in her sugary scent, reminding him of freshly baked cookies.

“I’m a little… clumsy sometimes.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

She pulled away from him just as Cody strode over, his face covered with powdered sugar and sporting a hot chocolate moustache. “They have hot chocolate and doughnuts, Uncle Garrett.”

“I can see that. How many of those things have you eaten?”

“Just one.”

“Well, as long as it’s just one, I guess it’s okay.”

The boy grinned, showing chocolate smears on his teeth too.

Garrett only shook his head.

“What’re you doing?”

“It seems that Miss Russell is going to help me string these lights.” He shot Nicole a glance.

“You’re helping too?”

“I am. If that’s all right with you?”

“Oh, boy!”

“We’ll all get these lights up, but first go inside, wash your face and brush your teeth. Is that a deal?”

“I already brushed my teeth this morning.”

“I know, Cody. But that was before you got chocolate mouth.”

Nicole stifled a giggle.

“Go on, it’ll only take a few minutes and we really could use your help when you get back.”

Cody smiled. “Okay.”

After Cody walked into the house, Nicole handed him a few feet of lights. “You’re good with him.”

He reached across the ladder and hooked the lights. “It’s a work in progress. Half the time, I don’t know if I’m too hard on him or too easy on him.”

“Seems to me Cody is doing pretty well under the circumstances. I’d say you’re right where you need to be.”

He stopped to gaze down at her. “Thanks. But I know he misses his mom a lot. It’s been a rough year. I think coming here to Last Stand has given him the change of pace he needed. We couldn’t stay in Denver and face all the memories.”

“Do you plan on staying here for long?” she asked, as he climbed down to move the ladder.