Page 6 of The Maverick’s Legacy

“You’re distracted,” Oscar concluded.

“No, I’m not,” Jesse muttered as he turned his horse around so they could get back on the right track.

Right before they reached the barn, they came to another stop.

Jesse had just swung his leg over the horse when Oscar said, “You should ask Carly Hawkins out.”

Jesse was so startled that his foot caught in the stirrup and he almost fell onto his butt. He thankfully caught himself before hitting the ground. Meanwhile, his son gracefully hopped off his own horse, patting the mare on the side of her face before leading her into the barn.

Collecting himself, Jesse followed suit. “What are you talking about?”

“Pleeeeease, Dad. You were practically drooling.”

“I was not!” Jesse grumbled, leading his mare to the cross-tie area so he could take off the tack.

They worked in silence for several minutes as they each took care of their horses.

They carried the saddles into the tack room, the sharp scent of leather and saddle soap filling the air. Dust motes drifted lazily through the shafts of afternoon sunlight cutting across the space. The day’s ride had left both of them sweaty and tired, but the familiar routine of cleaning the tack relaxed Jesse.

Oscar broke the silence first. “It’s okay, you know.”

He glanced at his son. “What’s okay?”

“If you want to ask Carly out.” Oscar said it so casually, like he was commenting on the weather. “She’s single, you know. She was dating Fletch Alistair, but they broke up. Probably ’cause he’s not a very good bull rider.”

Jesse’s hand stilled mid-motion, the rag half-draped over his saddle horn. He tried to play it off, focusing on a stubborn bit of dirt on the stirrup leather. “That so?”

Oscar shrugged. “Yeah. I saw it on Australian YouTube. It was all over the news over there.”

“Why are you watching Australian YouTu—You know what? Never mind.” Jesse’s pulse kicked up a notch at the confirmation—Carly was single—but he tamped it down just as fast. He wasn’t some lovesick teenager. “I’m not interested in dating Carly, or anyone else, so it doesn’t matter,” he said, a little too quickly.

Oscar didn’t seem convinced. His brow furrowed as he went to the utility sink, the faucet squealing in protest as he turned it on. He soaked a cloth and wrung it out, then came back to his saddle. “You don’t think she’s hot? I mean—for an old person?”

Jesse huffed, a laugh escaping before he could stop it. “Old person, huh? She’s what, thirty?”

“Exactly,” Oscar said, as if that proved his point. “Basically ancient.”

“Careful,” Jesse warned lightly, running a hand along the saddle’s flank. “By your standards, I’m prehistoric.”

Oscar grinned. “You said it, not me.”

Jesse shook his head, hiding a smile. He focused on the saddle again, but Carly’s name lingered in his mind longer than he wanted to admit. No, he told himself firmly. He didn’t have time for that kind of complication.

But as the silence stretched between them again, the thud of cloth on leather rhythmic and steady, the thought stayed anyway. “Yes, she’s very pretty.” Pretty didn’t even describe how beautiful the woman was, but hadn’t Jesse just told himself that he wasn’t going to think about her anymore?

Oscar. Focus on Oscar.

“Enough about my love life,” Jesse said.

“What love life?” Oscar muttered. “You need to get a life so you don’t worry so much about mine.”

He ignored that. “And on that note, what’s going on with you? Is school getting any better?”

His son’s face soured for a second before it brightened again. “Coach Finn is great.”

Jesse would always be grateful that Finn Monahan had bonded with Oscar over football and had encouraged the teen to be part of the football team in his own way. The kid was like a sponge—absorbing anything sports related that he could. Football was something he could talk about to anyone who’d listen. Finn was a former NFL quarterback and respected Oscar’s knowledge. But would the students his age give him a chance to talk?

As they left the barn and started heading toward the house, they could hear the children of Grayson’s girlfriend, JenniLynn Garrett, yelling from inside.