Bullheaded

From the amusement in Val’s smile, Johnny guessed there was more to the story than he was going to hear right now. “Travis guessed about Cody first. Once he pointed it out it was pretty obvious Cody wasn’t too interested in girls, so it wasn’t that much of a shock when he did come clean.”
    “So you didn’t punish him when the cops brought him home?”
    “That was a shock,” Val admitted. “I never liked the idea of him hooking up with strangers, especially when he was so young.” She sighed. “Listen to me being the protective mother. All kids mess around when they think they’re ready, no matter what you say. It’s just that once you have kids of your own, you never think they’re ready. You want to protect them.”
    Johnny felt as if someone had hit him in the solar plexus. Her hand over his gave him something to focus on for a moment.
    “How did your mother react when you told her?”
    “I never told her. She knows there’s something ‘wrong’ with me, but she made it pretty clear she didn’t want to know about it.”
    “Oh dear. What about your father?”
    “He’s a drunk. They split up a long time ago and I haven’t seen him since. My brother’s also a drunk. My sister has a kid and lives with my mother. My brother comes by there every now and again. I send them money every month. My mother doesn’t earn much cleaning houses.” Johnny hoped he’d kept the bitterness out of his voice.
    “I’m truly sorry. Life can be so tough sometimes. It’s good of you to take care of your mother.”
    Val’s words soothed Johnny even while he appreciated that she didn’t probe deeper.
    “Have you told Cody about this?”
    “No, not really.”
    “Maybe you should.” Val touched his cheek and then stood up. “Well, we’d better get back.”
    “Why were you out here anyway?” Johnny worried maybe she was stalking him for some reason, as if she could see his rising irritation with Cody.
    And maybe she could. Her clear blue eyes seemed as if they could peer into his troubled soul, but if so she wasn’t telling.
    Val smiled. “I just wanted to check up on Cody and make sure he kept my Cajun Spice safe.”
    Somehow Johnny wasn’t sure that was really it, but when she linked her arm through his, he relaxed enough to walk beside her to the house. When they reached the back door, she reached up to pat his face again and smiled at him.
    “There’s nothing wrong with you, honey. Nothing at all.”
    As he watched her go inside, he put his hand to this face, still feeling her touch.

Chapter 6:
The Mount

    RJ WAS quiet as always while Travis amused himself with stinging little asides that got under the skins of Bobby Blue and Aubrey, probably making them act out worse than ever.
    But Johnny was pissed at Cody for an entirely different reason. Cody was downright flirting with Bobby Blue! While Johnny was pretty sure Cody didn’t really want to get into the kid’s pants, he could see they would have made a cute, all-American-looking couple. Both lean and muscular, with brawny riding arms, both had wavy light-brown hair and chiseled good looks, and both of them had spectacular asses. Not that Johnny was looking at Bobby Blue’s ass himself, but he’d caught Cody eyeing it and it was part of what pissed him off.
    The one good thing about having these stupid kids around was that Val made them do the dishes. Right after supper, Johnny went directly to the bungalow, where he found himself slamming shut all the drawers and cabinet doors Cody had left open.
    He didn’t want to break anything, so he went outside onto the back deck to sit and fume by himself. And the worst part was if he confronted Cody about it, the man would just laugh and say he was imagining it all.
    He had managed to calm down some when he felt a pair of hands land lightly on his shoulders and slide to the back of his neck to massage muscles tight with anger.
    “I shouldn’t have made you ride without a warm-up,” Cody said.
    “You didn’t make me,” Johnny said shortly.
    “You were a good sport about it and I appreciate it. I just hate to see those ignorant jerks diss you.” Cody put some muscle into the massage, rubbing Johnny’s shoulders now. “You should think about riding again. You could make a lot more than just bullfighting.”
    Despite himself, Johnny groaned with pleasure. He hadn’t realized he was so tense.
    “I know you like fighting bulls, but damn, babe, you just look so fucking hot when you