Do Him Right by Cerise DeLand Page B

do with the rest of my life. If I can find the
courage.
    * * * * *
    Shana bought a ticket at the gate that afternoon just like
any other fair-goer. To have called anyone, Chet or Sam or Reata, and let them know
she was coming was not what she wanted to experience here.
    She needed the full feel of what she’d created. She’d told
herself these last few weeks as she worked on the opening from her aunt’s ranch
house south of here, that if she could be proud of what she’d done for the
rodeo, she would feel stronger about revealing the truth to Chet.
    But the truth had come to her a few days ago. No matter the
cost, she had to reveal everything to him and go on with her life. If he hated
her, she would, as she had planned from the start of this project, leave him
with the potential for a great future. If he accepted her apology for not
telling him who she was and why she had wanted to work on the rodeo
development, all the better. She told herself not to hope that his reaction
might be more—she had left him too quickly without any explanation—but she
would walk away from here with memories of passion and romance thrilling enough
to last a lifetime.
    So she got out of her car, ran her palms down her white
shirt and jeans, then began to stroll the rodeo grounds.
    And oh god, was the feeling delicious.
    From the new coat of whitewash on the barns and the new
signs at the gates to the spiffily dressed ticket-takers and the look of the
newly sanded main ring, the Hayward Rodeo looked first class.
    Strolling around, grinning like an imbecile, she bought
caramel popcorn and ate every kernel. She wolfed down beef barbeque with so
many jalapenos, she was certain her hair curled. She went out to the stalls and
strolled along the bullpens and the bronco pens. Oh, Chet, you must be proud
of this.
    She walked along the newly paved, trailer-access lot and
watched penning teams saddling up their horses for the competition. She laughed
at the greased pig races, and tried the jerky from five different vendors
before she held up her hand and said, “Thanks, no more!”
    She walked toward the office and the parking lot where Chet’s
and Sam’s trucks sat. She didn’t want to see Chet until she was ready. So she
sat across from the office trailer in the shade of a live oak on a picnic
bench, her sunglasses on, to plan her words.
    That’s when the office door opened and Sam came out, arm in
arm with none other than Kylee Farrell. They grinned at each other like fools
as they strode to his truck. Then, as he opened the door for her, she reached
up on tiptoes and planted a huge smacker on his mouth. In flashpoint, Sam had
her pinned against the cab and the path his mouth took down the neckline of the
lady’s western shirt was nigh unto scintillating. So much for staying away
from temptation, Sam Trunbridge. They broke away suddenly, laughed and
looked around.
    Spying Shana, Sam waved at her. “I’m coming back in about an
hour. Glad you’re here. I need to talk to you.”
    She nodded. “I see the one you decided to talk to was Kylee.”
    “I have. We did. Thanks to you.”
    She smiled, shrugged and waved him off. “I’ll be here. Get
going!” She suspected where they were headed would keep them occupied for more
than an hour too.
    Then from the other direction, Shana saw Reata approach her.
    “Hey, sweetie.” Reata gave her a hug and sat next to her. “I’ve
been watching you roam around the grounds for quite a while. What do you think?”
    “I’m tickled!”
    “You should be.” Reata took a long look at Shana, her
dark-brown eyes probing. “Aren’t you going to see Chet?”
    Shana gathered up every ounce of courage she had found in
the past months. “It’s why I’m here. Do you know where I can find him?”
    Reata smiled. “Thank god. That man is no good without you.”
    “Might not be good with me either. Not after what I did to
him. Not after what I need to tell him.”
    “Well, whatever it is, you need to have