they’re girl boots,” he reasoned.
“Because Madison’s a girl, dumbhead,” Griff told his brother.
Boone let out a long sigh. He looked overwhelmed, completely out of his depth, this man who, in the course of his job, feared no one.
Kendra took pity on him. “Join us?” she said, moving over to show that there was plenty of room at the table, with just herself and Madison taking up space. “Hutch took something to the truck, but he’ll be back in a couple of minutes.”
Boone considered the invitation carefully. “You guys hungry?” he asked.
Both boys nodded quickly.
“What’ll it be?” Boone said, indicating the row of concession wagons lined up along the side of the fairgrounds, offering everything from hamburgers and hot dogs to chow mein, Indian fry bread and tacos.
They both wanted hot dogs, as it turned out, and orange soda to drink.
Madison, Kendra noticed, squeezed in beside her and left the bench on the other side of the table to the boys. Like them, she was shy but intrigued.
“Is that your dad?” she asked, nodding toward Boone, who was waiting in a nearby line by then.
“Yeah,” Griff said, elbowing Fletch, who sat too close to him for his liking.
Fletch ignored his brother’s gesture and shook his head. “No, he isn’t,” he argued stubbornly. “Uncle Bob is our dad.”
Uh-oh, Kendra thought.
And then Hutch was back, all easy charm. He sat down on Kendra’s bench, lifted Madison onto his lap, and proceeded to win both boys over in two seconds flat.
By the time Boone returned with lunch for himself and the kids, Griff and Fletch were grinning at Hutch and lapping up every word he said.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
FOR ALL KENDRA’S fears that the day would drag by, the next couple of hours unfolded easily, naturally. She and Hutch and Madison went on most of the rides at the carnival. On the merry-go-round, Hutch made Madison laugh so hard she nearly fell off the pink swan she’d chosen, just by waving his hat around and pretending the blue-and-green tiger he sat upon was sure to buck him off any minute. Kendra, standing protectively beside her daughter while the mechanism turned and the Kaliope played, watched him, her heart full but on the verge of breaking.
Don’t, she wanted to say to him. Don’t make Madison love you. She’s lost so much already.
But it was too late for that, of course. The man had won the child over completely, helping her choose just the right cowgirl hat, and bandannas for the canine contingent. He’d even presented Madison with a giant pink-and-white teddy bear—it had been consigned to the truck for the duration, like Kendra’s new boots—having acquired it by getting a perfect score at the target-shooting booth.
Madison hadn’t wanted to give up that bear, even long enough to have it safely stowed away until it was time to go home. She’d have preferred to lug the thing around all day, showing it to everyone, recounting the glorious legend of how Hutch had won it for her. He’d been the one who’d finally managed to persuade the little girl to give up the huge toy, however temporarily—
Kendra had gotten nowhere with her sensible advice.
She was pleased because Madison was pleased, of course, but Rupert, her daughter’s beloved purple kangaroo, once her constant companion, formed a lonely figure in her mind’s eye. Ever since Daisy had landed in their lives like a space capsule falling out of orbit, Rupert had been forgotten, left behind in Madison’s room, albeit in a place of honor. Even though she was having a good time and she knew that Madison’s reduced dependence on the tattered stuffed animal was a good sign, Kendra felt a pang when she thought of poor Rupert. She could identify with him.
After the merry-go-round rides—Madison had gone from the swan to an elephant to a giraffe to a regular carousel horse—the appointed hour arrived, and the crowd streamed from the midway into the outdoor arena, where the rodeo was about to start. The bleachers filled quickly, and everybody stood up when the giant flag was raised and last year’s Miss Parable County Rodeo sang “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
Since the bull-riding would be the final event of the one-day rodeo, Hutch took his place in the bleachers next to Kendra, taking Madison easily onto his lap when they sat down.
A colorful opening ceremony followed the national anthem, and Madison watched, wide-eyed, as pretty local girls rode in formation, each one dressed in a fancy cowgirl outfit and carrying a huge banner. They