face and thinking it was kind of good to have Craig around, keep him from dwelling on maddening matters beyond his control. “But I think it’d be better if you ran the chute for me.”
“What does that entail?”
“Pulling a lever.”
“I’m your man,” Craig said, closing out his screen with a stab of his index finger.
Matt got on the phone and made some calls to see if anyone he trusted, as in someone he didn’t mind seeing him at his worst, was available to help out. There were only a few people he could call—Wes, who immediately opted out, saying that he didn’t think Matt should be roping so soon, Pete, who wasn’t answering his phone and Jed, whose father had once worked for his father.
Jed happened to be free—for the night anyway, since his wife was about fifteen months pregnant from the way he was talking—and was more than happy to spend the evening roping. So he had someone to chase the calves back and a guy on the chute. He was good. Now if his knee would just cooperate.
Jed arrived a little more than an hour after Matt’s call, minutes after the horses had been saddled.
“Corrie’s okay with this?” Matt asked as Jed got out of the truck.
“She said it may well be my last hurrah, so to enjoy myself.”
Jed unloaded his horse and he and Matt, riding Freckles, his most dependable practice animal, pushed the calves into the corral on the other side of the chute. Ready stood in a holding pen where he would stay until Matt’s last few runs. If he was going to be rough, he didn’t want it to be on his rodeo horse.
“Let me show you what to do,” Jed said to Craig, dismounting and crossing over to where the kid stood regarding the apparatus with a perplexed frown. “Just throw this lever when we nod at you.”
“Just a nod,” Craig said.
“Yep.”
As Matt got into position, Craig kept his gaze zeroed in on Jed, one hand on the lever, waiting for the nod.
“Uh...Matt is nodding,” Jed finally said with a tolerant smile.
“Oh, right.” Craig flushed as he threw the lever and the chute opened. The calf raced to what he thought was freedom on the other side of the arena.
A few seconds later, Matt charged after the calf, swinging his loop. The calf rounded the far end of the arena as the loop settled over his neck and Matt released the rope.
“Good one,” Craig called.
Not really. He’d be in the stratosphere time-wise if he’d had to tie the beast. He lifted his hand to acknowledge the kid’s comment, then went to collect his rope off the calf and then Jed got into the box.
An hour later, his knee was killing him, but his time was improving. Riding put its own unique stress on the joint, and although Matt was well aware from past experience that it was going to hurt, he hadn’t expected it to hurt this much.
Not that he couldn’t take the pain.
“You about done?” Craig asked.
“Yeah,” Jed said before Matt could answer. “We’re done.”
Matt loosened his rope and pulled it off the calf that was trying to escape out the far gate, and then coiled it as Ready trotted across the arena. “Done for now,” he said.
“Not too bad,” Jed said after he’d loaded his horse.
Matt handed him a beer without asking, then twisted the top off his own. Jed reached in his pocket, pulled out his phone, checked the screen, then opened his beer.
“All clear?” Matt asked.
“Is what all clear?” Craig wanted to know.
Jed smiled at Craig, a weary dadlike smile. “Am I all clear to stay and enjoy a beer before going home,” he explained as he leaned against his trailer before turning his attention back to Matt. “So far, so good. Last time Corrie was two weeks late, so she’s determined to have this baby on time.”
“Good luck with that,” Matt said. He’d once thought that he and Trena would have a kid by now. They’d agreed to wait two years and then try, but nothing had come of it. Now Matt was glad because he’d hate to have some poor kid caught between them. He absently leaned down to test the area around his knee, doing his best to keep the pain from registering on his face.
“You okay?” Jed asked quietly.
Craig appeared very interested in the answer and Matt did not want the kid trying to take care of him—although he wouldn’t mind if he tried to