Dakota knows there's more to it, but she also knows she won't get anywhere with me if she keeps pushing. "So, I was thinking, you should help Jo get the project started. I didn't tell her because she seemed very overwhelmed, but she's probably bitten off a bit more than she knows how to chew."
"That's not how the saying goes."
"I'm aware, but think about the words. I mean it. She can't chew because she doesn't know how to chew what needs to be chewed."
I shake my head at her. "Let's not say 'chew' for a while."
Dakota laughs and comes down the two steps to where I'm standing. She playfully bats my arm. "Agreed. So will you help her?"
"Why me? You think I have nothing else better to do?"
"No. I think you're smart and strong and really good at helping people."
Her compliment makes me uncomfortable, and I'm not sure what to say next. I'm rescued from having to respond when Wes emerges from the trees that separate my cabin from the homestead, his eyes zeroing in on me and Dakota. "There you are. I've been calling you."
My eyebrows lift as I palm my chest. "Who, me?" Obviously I know he's talking to Dakota, but I can't pass up a chance to give my oldest brother a hard time.
Wes shoots me a derisive look and wraps his arms around his wife. Dakota smiles and tells him her phone is in the truck, along with Colt.
Wes panics. "Colt is in the truck?"
"The truck is on. The windows are halfway down. I am right here. The truck is ten feet away. Everything is fine."
I wonder how many times a day Dakota calms Wes down when it comes to their son. I've seen her do it plenty of times. Wes won't tell any of us, but something happened in Iraq, and I'd bet all the money in my bank account it has to do with a kid. I've never seen him act so hyper.
He allows himself to be calmed down, but he still breaks away to go put his own two eyes on Colt. "Hey Wes," I call after him. "Your wife thinks I'm smart and strong. Sorry about your luck, pal." The only way I know to accept a compliment is to joke about it.
Wes flips me off without looking my way.
"Are you going to help her?" Dakota asks when I turn my attention back to her.
I'll be there no matter what, because I'd like to avoid legal action, but I don't tell Dakota that. What I end up saying is a form of the truth. "I don't think Jo wants me there."
Dakota makes a face. "Why do you think that?"
Because she said it. Out loud, I tell her, "It's just a vibe I've been getting from her for a while. We've always been friendly, but I think I did something to upset her. A bunch of us went to Phoenix about a year and a half ago, and she's been cold-shouldering me ever since."
Dakota squints, and she tents a hand over them to shield them from the late afternoon sun. "Cold shoulder since a trip to Phoenix?"
I shrug. "It's the only thing I can think of."
Dakota nods slowly. "Right. I'd keep going with that. Maybe there's something more to it."
Her voice has a weird lilt, kind of like excitement she's trying to tamp down. I start to ask her, but she interrupts me.
"Oh, sorry, can't talk. Colt needs to eat."
I point at the truck, where Wes sits in the open back seat. "He's not even awake."
Dakota stares at me. "Would you like me to tell you how my body lets me know it's time for Colt to eat?"
I huff a laugh. "Not really."
Dakota goes back to her truck, turning once to remind me that the sooner I can start at the Circle B, the better.
"It needs a new name," I shout after her.
"She knows," Dakota shouts back.
