Page 8 of More Than a Little Spark (Cowboys of Stargazer Springs Ranch #9)

Carson

Carson

W alking up to Kent’s door, I know what to expect. Fred will look glum because he has to go home, and then for the rest of the evening, he’ll tell me all about what they did.

I spend most Sundays at the ranch and check in with him throughout the day. This weekend was different. He had his first sleepover at Mason’s, and I’ve only gotten quick answers when I’ve texted Fred.

Kent opens the door. “They’re over in the game room. I was just about to go get them. Parker was showing them a new game.”

“I’ll meet you up there. Where’s Fred’s bag?”

Poppy walks up to the door, backpack in hand. “Here it is. He did great. Respectful. Followed instructions. Really well behaved. Thanks for letting him spend the night. Mason was so excited. I thought they were never going to fall asleep.” She laughs.

“But they were still up with the sun.” Kent jingles his keys. “Be back in a few, sweetheart.” He gives Poppy a kiss.

“Thanks for letting Fred stay.” I hop back in the truck. As I drive to the main house, a text pops up on my phone from the ranch foreman.

Clint: Rain expected overnight. They aren’t predicting severe weather, but there is a chance of flooding. Just a heads up.

He sent the message to all the ranch hands. We need rain. But too much can be a problem in some areas. Hopefully, we don’t have any issues with flooding. That would be inconvenient.

Kent parks next to me at the main house. After sliding out of the truck, he glances at his phone and says, “Let’s wrangle these boys and get home before it starts to pour.”

“Easier said than done.” I’m the first one through the door. “Fred, let’s pack it up. Rain is coming, and I want to make it home without getting pummeled.”

Parker stands and rubs his hands together. “Thanks for hanging out, guys.”

Mason grins. “That is a fun game. Can we play again tomorrow night?”

“Not tomorrow, but soon.” Parker pats his shoulder. “Looks like your dad is here too.”

Mason springs up out of his chair. “Dad! This game is so cool.”

“I won one round.” Fred beams. “And this was my first time playing it.”

I love that he’s getting the opportunity to do fun stuff, enjoy time with a good friend, and have a ranch full of adults that shower him with kindness. It’s the opposite of what Fred’s life was like before living with me.

“That’s awesome.” I give Fred a high-five. “Did you thank Parker for letting you play?”

“Yeah. I did. And I told him to tell Ms. Bluebonnet thanks too. She brought us snacks.” He adjusts his ball cap and turns to face Mason. “I’ll see you in the morning. I had fun.”

Mason shakes Fred’s hand. “Me too. Let’s see if they’ll let us sleepover every weekend.”

Kent chuckles. “That is a conversation for another day.”

“Agreed.” I flick the bill of Fred’s cap. “But I’m glad y’all had fun and that Mason lives so close.”

We all walk to our trucks, then drive in separate directions.

“What did y’all do today?” I make my way to the row of houses where many of the ranch hands live.

The housing here is part of the reason I took the job.

It’s the first time for both Fred and me to live in a three-bedroom, single-family home.

After spending the majority of my life moving from apartment to apartment, living here feels like a luxury.

“Lots of fun stuff. We went fishing at the creek, and Mason taught me how to skip rocks. Have you ever skipped rocks?”

“I haven’t.”

“I’ll teach you. Bailey is really good at it, and she’s just a girl. So you can do it.”

“Just a girl?” I lift an eyebrow, hoping he realizes how his words sound.

He crinkles his nose. “She’s better at it than I am. But if I practice…” He bobs his head with determination.

“Were you kind to Bailey?” I pull into our drive and shift into park.

Bailey’s been a topic of conversation more than once over the last year. Fred came to the ranch with a strong belief in girl cooties. And having Bailey tag along has challenged his preteen beliefs.

“Yeah, Uncle Car. I was. She’s not so bad. I used to kind of ignore her, but Mason told me that it hurt her feelings. I don’t want to be mean, you know?”

“I know. Come on inside. Do you have any homework that needs to be finished?” I try to get him to tackle homework early in the weekend, but with the sleepover, things didn’t work out that way.

“A little. But I’ll do it after I shower.” He slams the door of the truck. “Where’d you go?”

“I visited someone at the hospital.”

His brow knits. “Who got hurt? Is everyone on the ranch okay?”

Concern is etched on his face, reminding me of how much the folks on the ranch feel like family to this kid. For the first time in his life, he has stability, and threats to any part of it rattle him.

I drape an arm around his shoulders. “Everyone here on the ranch is all good as far as I know. But a friend of Ms. Rose, Dallas’s wife, was in a car accident. I took some dinner up to the hospital for her. She’s going to be okay though.”

“I bet Ms. Rose was worried. I’d be upset if something happened to Mason or even to Bailey.” He tosses his backpack on the couch. “’Cause she’s my friend too.”

Raindrops splatter on the ground outside, and both of us stop to listen.

Fred grins. “We made it! I don’t hear thunder, so I’m gonna shower.”

“You do that.” I yank the dirty clothes out of his backpack and deposit them in the hamper.

He’s already had dinner, but since he is growing like a weed, I expect he’ll want a snack while he works on schoolwork. So while Fred showers, I prep him a plate. And while doing so, I occasionally glance at my phone, checking to see if Daphne has texted.

When it comes to relationships, I’m far from an expert.

But even though it makes absolutely no sense, I’m thinking Daphne is kind of interested.

Maybe. And that thought makes me smile. I have no clue what to do about it.

We lead completely different lives, and it’s not like we’ll just run into each other in town. Sadly.

But she made a huge point of informing me that she was single, and that made me wonder if she was giving me a hint.

The next time I see her, if she’s still showing interest, I’ll gather up my courage and ask her for a date.

Am I crazy for even thinking she’s interested?

Likely, but it should be pretty easy to figure out. I think.

“The two holes jump-started the draining process.” Kent shakes his head at the muddy mess around the stock tank. “We gotta get those fish out.”

On the ranch, we keep fish in the stock tanks to cut down on mosquitoes and some of the nasty growth. Fish help keep the tanks clean.

I grab buckets out of the bed of my truck. “That’s why I brought these. What are the chances I can get them all in one scoop?”

He laughs. “Slim to none. Too bad the boys are at school. We could’ve had them catching fish by hand. It looks like we’ll be having all the fun.”

Dragging the bucket through the water left in the bottom of the tank, I gather more than half the fish. Now comes the fun part. “I’ll go in, and you can handle the bucket.”

“Deal.”

Thank goodness for waterproof boots. I climb into the tank, careful not to step on any of the remaining fish. Then I stand still, poised to scoop up the next one that swims within reach.

With a small bucket, I scoop the first few without too much trouble, and I quickly drop them in the bucket that Kent’s holding. But the last two are making this way more difficult than necessary. Don’t they know I’m trying to save them?

While I’m chasing the last two, Kent is using a five-gallon bucket to scoop out the remaining water. It helps shrink the area where the fish can flee, and it empties the tank.

I lunge toward the two fish with my bucket and land on my belly in the water. It’s cold. And face first in cow-saliva water is not where I want to be.

Kent is trying to hold back a laugh and loses the battle when I shake my head, sending water spraying in every direction.

“Laugh. It’s funny.” I scoop out a bit more water, then nab the remaining fish. “Now that our residents have all been evacuated, we can start repairs.”

Fish are cheap and easily replaceable, but I couldn’t just leave them to dry out while we did the repair. Keeping the fish alive was worth a little extra work.

Kent sets the bucket of fish in the shade, and we start the repair. While I wipe down the sides where we’ll be working, Kent gets the brush attached to the drill. Then I run the brush along the interior, cleaning everything up before we add the water weld putty.

By the time the holes are patched, Kent and I are both covered in mud.

I drop the tailgate on my truck. “Let’s sit while we wait for it to set up.”

Kent sits on the opposite end of the tailgate. “I was talking to Poppy last night. The guys had so much fun with their sleepover. We’d be open to having Fred over again on a regular basis.”

“Awesome. I know Fred would love that. And they’re welcome to stay at our place too. They could stay at your house one weekend a month and at my place another weekend. If that works for y’all.”

He nods and rubs his jaw. “We could. Or you could use those sleepover nights for going out, dates, and things of that sort.”

I chuckle. “Dates? What are those?”

“After you went up to the hospital three times, I figured maybe you and that lady were—you know—planning to go out possibly.”

I shrug. “Not sure. She’s way outta my league. Absolutely stunning. She’s Rose’s best friend.”

“Dallas mentioned that you rescued her.”

“I felt horrible for Daphne. Some guy pulled a surprise pit maneuver on her. I’m honestly shocked her injuries weren’t worse. And I’ll keep your offer in mind.” My phone rings, and Rose’s number shows up at the top of the screen, so I swipe to answer. “Hello.”

“Carson, I’m so sorry to bother you, and if you can’t help me, I totally understand.”

“What’s up?”

“The storm that came through last night knocked out a few trees and washed out part of the road. The only way to my house right now is the back way in, which is gravel, and my car will not make it with the condition of that road. But Daphne called that they’re releasing her.”

“I can pick her up. Does she need me to take her home?”

“She can’t get up the stairs. I was going to bring her to my place.”

“I can do that. There are a few things that I need to?—”

Kent shakes his head. “Just go.”

“Actually, after a super-fast shower, I’ll be on my way.” I’m a little too excited that I get to spend more time with Daphne.

“Great. Thank you so much. You have her number, right?”

“I do. And I’ll let her know the plan.” After saying goodbye, I end the call. “Thanks for covering for me. I’m not sure there’s anything romantic happening, but Daphne is really sweet.”

“I didn’t know there was anything romantic between me and Poppy until I realized that every other thought was about her. Mason talked about her all the time, so that played a part.”

I choose to skip over the part about thoughts because I think about Daphne a lot.

But the second part is easy to address. “If I do ask Daphne out on a date, I won’t be talking to Fred about it.

He’s enjoying stability for the first time in his life.

He doesn’t need to meet the women I decide to date. ”

“At first. But eventually…” Kent lifts an eyebrow.

I slide off the tailgate. “I seriously doubt it will ever be that serious. As I said before, she’s way out of my league.”