A Cowgirl's Secret - By Laura Marie Altom Page 0,36
as if they were falling off. Uncle Dallas and Cash said it was good to work hard, and Kolt wasn’t really sure why, but a squeezy feeling in his stomach made him want his dad to know he always did his best.
“How about a drink of water?” His dad held out the jug and Kolt took a long gulp. “Looks like we’re about done here. Ready to move on to something else?”
“Can we brush the horses?”
“They don’t need that right now,” Luke said after taking another drink for himself, “but their stalls need cleaning. Would you help with that?”
“I guess. But brushing’s more fun.” Kolt followed his dad into the barn where they traded rakes for pitchforks and a wheelbarrow.
“True,” his dad said, “but this is just as important.”
After a long time while they were both just quiet and working, Kolt said, “On TV, dads seem more like they know what they’re doing. How come you seem like you’re not always sure?”
Luke laughed. “How could I be? We hardly know anything about each other. I don’t know your favorite color or foods or even which football team you like.”
“I like basketball better than football.”
“There you go.” Luke sat on a pile of hay bales, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. “That’s a perfect example. If I knew you better, I’d know stuff like that. Just like you’d know I love football, but only if the Sooners are playing. Want to go to a game with me this fall?”
“Sure.”
Once they’d finished and gone inside to clean up to go to Luke’s parents, Kolt stood on the front porch, waiting for Luke to get his cowboy hat. The just-mowed yard smelled nice. Looked nice, too. So did the barn. Kolt wasn’t ready to tell anyone, but standing out here by himself, looking at how pretty everything was, he kind of understood what his dad had meant about how chores made you feel good inside. Kind of like when he made high grades at school.
“Ready?” Luke asked, slapping his hat on his head.
“Uh-huh.”
Once they were in the Jeep, Kolt asked, “Do you think it would be all right if, after lunch, we get me a hat like yours?”
His dad gave him a long, kind of funny look, then nodded. “I think that’d be real nice.”
A WEEK LATER, LUKE FOUND HIMSELF on the front lawn of Weed Gulch Elementary for his son’s first day of fifth grade. For seven-fifty in the morning, the temperature was already climbing.
“This is embarrassing,” Kolt said, shooing Daisy away when she stepped in close for her annual first-day-of-school snapshot. “Stop!”
“Just one more,” she promised, pressing down his cowlick. “Luke, stand next to him. I want one of you both.”
“Mom, please…” When a group of three older boys walked by, Kolt grew even more upset.
“What’s wrong with you?” Daisy asked. “You used to love having your picture taken.”
“I know,” he said, messing up his hair, “but that was back when I was a baby. Now that I’m old, I can’t do stuff like this anymore.”
“Okay.” She took one more candid shot. “I’m done.”
“You’ve got both of our cell numbers if you need us, right?” Luke asked.
“Yes! Leave me alone.” He ran off toward the entrance.
“What’s the procedure now?” Luke asked.
Daisy said, “I generally walk him in, and make sure he gets settled. We met his teacher a few days ago when I picked up his supply list, so I don’t especially need to see her again, but it’s always good to sign up for PTA or find out if the class needs room moms.”
“How about dads?” Luke might be new to the whole elementary-school scene, but he wanted in on everything. He’d already missed so much of his son’s life. He wouldn’t be absent a second more.
“Sure. Back in San Francisco, Kolt attended private school, but most parents were involved.”
Inside, it didn’t take long for Luke’s eyes to adjust. What took longer was getting used to dozens of pint-size bodies darting like atoms through the halls.
Aside from a fresh paint job and new bulletin boards, the place didn’t look all that different from when he and Daisy and all of her brothers had attended. It even smelled the same. Like dirty sneakers and super-strength cleaning solution.
“This is a trip, isn’t it?” Daisy led the way to Kolt’s room. “Seems like just yesterday when we were here.”
“You were the hottest little third-grader I’d ever seen,” he admitted. “Those braids of yours drove me wild.”
“Stop,” she said with a