Big Sky Eyes Read online

  He said nothing for a long moment, but his mouth curved up at the corners in that soft smile that made her knees weak. He finally chuckled, relaxing his head further into his hands.

  “Have you been stewing over this for the past week?” he laughed. “God, girl, please tell me you believe my skin is thicker than that!”

  “But...” she stuttered, her eyes going as wide as her cheeks were red. “Even you said you stew! If you’re not mad, why have you been ignoring me?”

  “I haven’t been ignoring you, Mackenna. I’ve been busy. We all have.”

  She opened her mouth but no sound came out. Had she really worked nothing up into something? She huffed a few times in embarrassed amazement while Brent continued to chuckle. She thrust the bowl toward him.

  “Take this thing out of my hands before I’m tempted to dump it on your head!”

  He laughed, a deep rumbling sound, and reached up to grab her wrist. He tugged her down to the ground to sit beside him then took the bowl from her.

  “Wow,” he said through bites. “I had no idea how hard you are on yourself. I’ll have to keep that in mind for future fuel.”

  “Oh, shut up,” she said.

  “Careful. Don’t say something that’ll make you feel bad later.”

  She laughed. “Well, I’m glad that you’re not mad at me, but even still I want to apologize for what I said. It’s not like me to sling insults.”

  “You said nothing insulting. You stood up for yourself and you made some good points. I respect that,” he returned. “I need to apologize for calling you stupid.”

  “Yes, you do,” she agreed. “But you calling me stupid is nothing compared to me calling you a depressing stick in the mud with no personality.”

  His spoon stopped in mid-air, halfway to his mouth and his smile faded into a straight line. He looked squarely at her.

  “When did you say that?” he asked.

  “What do you mean when did I say that?” she replied uneasily. “You were standing right behind me and Kelly when I said it.”

  He stared at the cobbler in his bowl and then harrumphed.

  “Well, I’ll be damned,” he mused. “No wonder you’ve been all tied up in knots.”

  Mackenna finally understood and cursed herself. “You mean you didn’t hear me?” she asked, horrified.

  He looked at her and with more smile in his eyes than his mouth, slowly shook his head without a word. She groaned and dropped her face into her hands.

  “Oh man!” she said, her voice garbled through her sweaty palms. “I really know how to screw things up, don’t I?”

  Brent laughed softly to himself before he asked, “Is that really what you think of me?”

  “NO!” Her head shot up as she said it. “That’s why I’ve been feeling horrible about it. I could have sworn you heard me and it’s been eating me up.”

  “Why?” he laughed. “If that’s what you feel, why would you regret it?”

  “Because it’s mean-spirited and juvenile and…and not at all what I feel. I was just mad at you.”

  “We were both mad,” he said. “It’s over. Let it be over. You read too much into things. This isn’t the kind of stuff I stew over.”

  “Wow,” she breathed and shook her head in wonder while Brent filled his mouth with cobbler.

  “What?” he asked.

  “I just feel so…”

  “So what?”

  She looked at him and said with a laugh. “Stupid.”

  He chuckled and set his bowl down. “Tell you what, let’s make a deal. No more name-calling.”

  “Deal,” she agreed heartily.

  “So, are you ready for tomorrow?”

  “Oh, yes,” she said excitedly. “That’s when the real fun starts.”

  He cringed and she shoved his shoulder playfully with hers.

  “It’s not as bad as you think,” she said. “Some of my best memories are on this mountain.”

  “Mine, too,” he agreed and then stared into the fire as a shadow fell over his features. “Some of my worst, too.”

  Mackenna’s heart lurched at the sadness she saw in his features.

  “How so?” she asked softly.

  Her voice brought him back to the moment and he smiled away the shadow.

  “It’s not a nice story,” he said in a tone both friendly and firm, letting her know that he’d say no more. So, she discarded her curiosity. It was none of her business anyway.

  “Well, I’m sorry to hear it,” she said genuinely and returned to her cobbler.

  He believed her. More than that, he was grateful that she didn’t pry. That restraint fed an already growing respect and fondness for her. She was good people and far more mature than any seventeen-year-old had a right to be. With Ty more than wrapped up in his infatuation with Leslie, Brent had expected to spend the summer on his own, socially, but more and more the idea of pal-ing up with Mackenna appealed. She was a straight-shooter with a good heart and a solid work-ethic. They had much in common that way, and while Kelly’s constant attention toward him was a major stroke to his ego, such fawning grated him by the end of the day.

  He didn’t feel like he could be himself around Kelly for fear that she would misinterpret any of his actions as encouraging her pursuit. He didn’t like having to measure his every word or look and that’s what he felt like he had to do with her. Around Mackenna he was comfortable and relaxed, except when he was infuriated. The thought amused him and he smiled to himself. He was either completely at ease or completely wrapped up in a rage with her. She was just like a sister.

  Chapter 6

  Brent picked out tiny pebbles from the frog of the horse’s hoof while the sounds of cheers and clapping echoed behind him. He peered over his shoulder and saw Ty standing on the back of a horse twirling a lasso above his head. Ranch guests shrieked with excitement as he sent it dancing around his knees. Brent rolled his eyes with a shake of his head before turning back to the task.

  “I’m working for the damn circus,” he muttered under his breath.

  “Hey Brent,” Ty called. “Why don’t you come show us some of your tricks?”

  Brent dropped the horse’s hoof and faked a smile for the crowd. “Don’t think so,” he called back. “I’ve got work to do.”

  “Ah, come on!” Kelly yelled. “You’re always working. Take a break and have a little fun.”

  “Fun wasn’t in the job description. Sorry folks. Besides, we don’t need more than one performing monkey on the ranch.”

  Ty laughed. He knew that to any real rancher his antics would look silly, but they were always a hit with the crowd, and he was dedicated to seeing that his parents’ paying customers enjoyed their stay. Mackenna stepped forward, gathering up a rope of her own.

  “Sure we do,” she said. “Everyone loves performing monkeys.” The crowd laughed and she feigned a straight face as she turned back to Brent. “Well, everyone except Brent, that is.”

  “Suit yourself,” he said with a shrug.

  She turned her back on him and began twirling her own lasso. Once she demonstrated that she could pull a perfect horizontal loop, she turned the loop vertical and passed it from one side to the other in front of her. Just as everyone was beginning to applaud, she pulled the Texas Skip and jumped through the loop as it passed in front of her. Guests gasped in awe as she bowed and Brent leaned back against the side of the horse, crossed his arms in front of his chest, and watched as she blushed at the attention.

  Ty jumped from his horse and squared up to her with narrowed eyes, as if he were challenging her to a duel. She raised an eyebrow and widened her stance, gathering the rope back into a ready position. He waited for her to get her loop spinning before he set his own in motion. At first, he matched her speed. Soon, he challenged her with a trick and she answered in kind. He pulled every textbook twirl and she did her best to compete.

  She was out-skilled, though, and just when the trick was too much for her, she whipped her lasso into a f
renzy above her head and sent it flying toward Ty. It broke through his loop and landed over his head and down around his body. When it got to his waist, she pulled, tightening it, and jerked him toward her. He stumbled forward and she raised her hands in triumph as everyone around them laughed.

  “Okay, okay!” Ty called in defeat. “I know when I’m beat. Hey, let’s everybody get some grub.”

  The crowd dispersed and Mackenna swaggered confidently toward Brent. The corner of his mouth quirked in a smile as she approached, tossing the coil of rope onto her shoulder.

  “So, you think you’re handy with a rope now?” he teased.

  “Handy enough to earn a few tips throughout the summer,” she answered.

  “We get tips on this gig?” he asked in genuine surprise.

  “Well, you don’t,” she answered. “But that’s because you just work. Fun wasn’t in your job description, remember? Only we performing monkeys get the coins.”

  “In that case, it’s best left to you then,” he said.

  “Oh, come on Brent,” she urged. “What’s the harm in tossing a rope around for five minutes? It wows the crowd and you may earn a few extra bucks at the same time.”

  “The point is it’s silly. If people think you are silly then they don’t take you seriously when they need to.”

  “What a load of crap,” she dismissed. “People are quite capable of judging the seriousness of a situation. If the circumstances don’t warrant it, why be serious all of the time?”

  “Just because I’m hardworking doesn’t mean I’m serious all the time.”

  “You’re right. It’s the fact that you’re serious all the time that means you’re serious all the time,” she said with a chuckle. “Look, Brent, you aren’t any more hardworking than I am or anyone else out here. The only difference is that we know how to have fun at the same time. And we know how to use a rope.”

  “I know how to use a rope,” he said with a frown.

  “Uh huh” she said sarcastically with a disbelieving look. He stood taller and narrowed his eyes.

  “I have been a cattleman for six years,” he said forcefully. “I damn well better know how to turn a rope.”

  “If you say so,” she quipped. “I’m going to go eat. Feel free to join us when you’re done…working.”

  She walked off and Brent’s mouth puckered into a determined pout. He untied his rope from the side of his saddle and whirled it rapidly above his head. Before she was out of range he tossed it, the loop landing perfectly around her waist as he tightened it gently and tugged her to a stop. She turned around in wide-eyed shock and held onto the rope, fighting him as he pulled her toward him.

  He smiled triumphantly beneath his shadow of beard as she finally stopped fighting and walked back to him. She stopped only when she was a breath away and planted her hands on her hips. He peered down into her eyes, glistening with surprise and amusement. They were a clear and medium blue that he’d only ever seen in one other place.

  “You’ve got big sky eyes, Mackenna,” he said.

  “What?” she asked with a confused smile.

  “Your eyes,” he repeated. “They’re the color of a clear, blue Montana sky.”

  “Thank you,” she said quietly, fighting a blush that was simmering inside of her cheeks. She blinked rapidly a few times and lowered her eyes demurely, knowing that she must have seemed girly and meek to him. He almost laughed at her shy, feminine response to a simple compliment. Instead, he took advantage of her diverted gaze and began tying the rope around his saddle horn.

  “I’ve got a question for you.”

  “Yes?” she asked hopefully.

  “How are you with knots?”

  “Knots,” she repeated dryly on deflated dreams.

  “Yep,” he quipped cheerily. “See if you can figure this one out. If you can, I’ll see you at dinner. If not, I’ll come back and help you out.”

  She gasped as he stepped around her and headed toward the barbeque. She looked at the confusing twists of the rope wrapped around the horn. The bit around her waist was too tight for her to shimmy out of. She shook her head at his gall and turned to hear him whistling as he sauntered off.

  “Brent!” she called out. “What do you think you’re doing?!”

  “Just having a little…what was it you called it? Fun!”

  Her mouth was left hanging open and her eyes narrowed in shock. After a full minute, she snapped her mouth shut and shook her head.

  “Why, you little son of a…”

  Brent gnawed on a rib bone, fighting back a fit of triumphant giggles. He’d been eating for twenty minutes already and had seen no sign of Mackenna. He knew she would never be able to figure out that knot. It had taken him three years to do it. So, she thought he wasn’t handy with a rope, eh? She would learn her lesson this night.

  As he was imagining the look of utter defeat and bewilderment on her face when he’d go to rescue her, she plopped down on the ground beside him and stuck out her hands to warm them near the fire. The look he had just been envisioning on her face was now firmly plastered across his.

  “Aah,” she moaned. “That fire feels nice.”

  “How…” was all he could manage and that on barely a whisper.

  “It was pretty tough,” she said nonchalantly. “I’ll give you that one, but all it takes is a little brain power. I mean, seriously, Brent. It’s just a rope. How difficult can it be?”

  He fought the urge to huff defiantly.

  “I’ll tell you how difficult it is,” he defended. “It took me three years to figure it out!”

  “Really?” she said incredulously, then grimaced. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to touch a nerve.”

  “You have got to be kidding me,” he sputtered again. “There is no way that you figured that out. You must have seen that one before.”

  “Nope, this was the first time. Oh, and before I forget, here’s your rope.”

  She handed it to him, perfectly coiled and tied. He tossed it angrily on the ground, as if it had betrayed him and Mackenna fought back her own laughter.

  “I can’t believe it took you three years,” she jabbed. “Man, I guess women really are smarter than men. How is it your species has ruled the world for so long?”

  He shook his head, still flabbergasted.

  “So, I’ll hear it from you now,” she said haughtily.

  “Hear what?”

  “Hear that I beat you at your own game.”

  “Not a chance,” he said, recoiling.

  “So, you’re a sore loser then, too?”

  He grunted, looking sideways at her.

  “Come on,” she urged. “Let’s hear it.”

  He sighed heavily and then turned to her in defeat. “Fine. You won. You beat me at my own game.”

  She laughed triumphantly. “Don’t feel too bad. It really was quite clever of you to leave me tied up there. It’s not your fault that I’m cleverer.”

  Before Brent could bite back with the retort on his lips, Ty stood on the other side of the fire holding several lengths of frayed rope.

  “Whose is this?” he called out. “I found it in the corral. I don’t want bits of rope left in the corrals for the horses to munch on. That’s all we need is a blockage.”

  Mackenna’s face, even her ears, reddened with chagrin. She refused to look at Brent as she answered Ty.

  “It’s mine,” she called out. “Just go ahead and toss it on the fire. It’s no good to me anymore. Sorry for leaving it out there. It won’t happen again.”

  Ty nodded then threw it on the fire. Brent’s brow furrowed as he wondered why Mackenna’s rope would be all cut up. He looked over at her. She had her face planted in between her hands, with the back of her hand facing Brent, blocking him from seeing her. He looked down at the rope near his feet. Picking it up, he inspected it more closely. He knew for certain it was not his rope. Suddenly, it all became clear. She hadn’t figured out the knot at all. She’d cut her way free!

 
He crossed his arms over his chest, and slowly shook his head. In a mock voice, high-pitched and girly, he mimicked her.

  “All it takes is a little brain power,” he said, then returned to his normal voice. “Yeah, all it takes is a pocket knife and a gullible opponent!”

  She could hold back no longer. Her shoulders shook with silent laughter and as he playfully shoved her in the shoulder she laughed loud and long, hugging her middle as she did so.

  “You should have seen the look on your face,” she said through her tears. “Aw, man. It was priceless.”

  “You play dirty,” he said, fighting back his own chuckles. “Would you have ever told me the truth?”

  “Not a chance,” she said and he laughed right along with her. Suddenly, he realized that it had been a long time since he’d laughed like that, for nothing more than his own enjoyment. Years, in fact. It almost made him stop. Almost.

  When Mackenna finally settled down, she smiled at the effects the moment had on Brent. His eyes were glistening brightly, his jaw was relaxed and he seemed completely unwound. She was glad to have brought it out of him. Perhaps he would laugh more often now.

  “You have a nice laugh,” she said casually.

  “And you’ve just bitten off more than you can chew with that stunt,” he countered.

  “Oh, it’s on now, is it?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Over the next two weeks they were ruthless in their pranks. When Brent squatted down to gather a sip of fresh mountain water during one of their rides, she shoved him face-first into the icy stream. At the end of a dusty day, she splashed her face with water from a trough and called for a bandana to towel her dry. The one he gave her was full of dirt, leaving her face caked with mud.

  The occupants of the lodge usually discarded their muddy boots into a wooden bin with a lid on the porch by the front door before turning in at night. That way, they wouldn’t track mud through Bev’s place. Brent slept outside in the second story of the stables and so one night he crept to the front porch with a palm full of fresh horse dung and shoved it into the bottom of one of Mackenna’s boots. He chuckled all the way back to his loft.