Everything Happens for a Reason

"I love you, Laurie," was all I could say.

After breakfast we showered, together of course, and that ensued with another round of very tender, sensual love making. As we were getting dressed, Laurie smiled and said, "I can't decide which I like better, watching you take off your clothes or watching you putting them back on."

I just laughed and, hugging her briefly, replied, "I love you, silly girl."

"I love you, too, my beautiful man." Laurie sighed.

By the time we had eaten breakfast, showered and dressed, the time was nearing 10:30 and we knew that everyone on the ranch would be well into their workday. Besides, I was excited at getting the chance to work with Mo that day. As we headed out to the stables, I could already hear Mo whinnying, and Laurie smiled and said, "I think your son is calling you."

"I think you're right," I replied, grinning and the moment we walked into the stables, I went directly to the stall where Mo had been placed with Jessi. When he saw me, he lowered his head and snorted through his nose then whinnied in a low tone, indicating that he was happy. "Hi boy," I softly said as I stroked his chin with one hand while gently rubbing his neck with the other. I had always had a way with horses, even as a child. They had always seemed to understand me and I them. While Mo was the most magnificent and intelligent horse I'd ever met, he was still a horse and our understanding of one another did not wane in the least. I think Mo and I felt a sort of kinship because of the traumatic events that life had dealt the both of us. He knew I would not hurt him, and I knew that he would never hurt me. We were the same; Mo and I, and in that moment, I began to realize the truly awe inspiring wonder of one of God's most beautiful creations as it stood nobly but gently before me. "How would you like some oats instead of that old stale hay, buddy?" I softly asked. Mo snorted and shook his head, and as I began to laugh slightly, I said, "I know how you feel pal, I'll be right back," and then went to go fill a feedbag for him.

As I was exiting the stall and was closing the gate, Laurie smiled at me and said, "That's the most amazing thing I've ever seen."

"What're you talking about?" I asked.

"The way that horse responds to you is almost childlike in its mannerisms." she replied.

"We're animals just like he is an animal. He was born, and grew up, in the wild and this is all very new to him. If we're ever going to tame him, Mo needs to be sure that he can trust us. So what I think what we should do is to start off very slow with him," I said.

Laurie looked at me as if she wanted to say something but was afraid to, and then after a moment's thought; shyly asked, "Do you think that....when you go back in the stall to feed him.....maybe I could go with you?"

I knew that Laurie's heart was pure. Hell! I'd known that when we were children. Therefore, I knew that Mo would be able to feel the untainted love that radiated from her heart just as I did. So, I smiled and said, "If you'll show me where the feed is, I think that would be a great idea" Squealing in delight, she took me through the tackle room, grabbing a bucket on the way, and into the feed storage bin. She removed the lid from a rather large barrel and withdrew a heaping scoop full of oats from the barrel and dumped it into the bucket.

After she placed the lid back on the barrel, Laurie handed me the bucket and, smiling brightly, said, "Introduce me to your new friend, Tommy."

We went back to where Mo was stalled with Jessi, and right before I opened the gate, I turned to Laurie and said, "Now, I want you to slowly follow closely behind me and don't say or do anything, okay?" She nodded her head, and slowly opening the gate, we went into the stall. As we approached Mo, I could feel the apprehension he was feeling at having someone else besides me in the stall with him. With a subtle wave of my hand, I instructed Laurie to move behind me while I began to feed Mo a small handful of oats. I could feel the excitement flowing through his veins, but when I motioned for Laurie to come from behind me; the moment she appeared, Mo immediately calmed down and began to eat. Then I took my hand away from his mouth, and grabbing Laurie's hand, dumped the remaining oats into it and slowly placed it at Mo's mouth. The majestic creature simply acknowledged its acceptance of Laurie with a gentle swish of his tail while looking me in the eye. In that silent and fleeting second, Mo spoke volumes to me, effectively signifying that we were symbiotically and eternally bound together.

As Laurie fed more oats to Mo, she began to gently stroke his neck, eliciting a gentle whinny from him. "I think he likes me," said Laurie, smiling brightly.

"I think you're right," I replied, stoking his neck as well. To drive the point home and with a gentle push of his muzzle, Mo suddenly moved my hand from his neck, indicating that he wanted Laurie to love on him at the moment and not me. Of course Laurie and I began to laugh making Mo emit a very high pitched but very soft whinny.

"He's laughing at you," Laurie giggled, sweetly.

"You sure are, aren't you boy?" I asked Mo, while scratching his back.

For the rest of the morning, Laurie and I walked Mo around the inside of the corral arena with a halter on his head simply letting him get slowly accustomed to being around people he could trust, and then showing that trust by obeying simple commands.

Around noon, we saw a brand new Ford pickup truck pulling a horse trailer and making its way around the driveway and up to the corral. As soon as it came to a stop and the engine shut off, the driver's side door opened and out stepped a man in his mid to late fifties. He walked up to where Laurie and I were working with Mo and said, "Well, I'll be damned. It is true."

"Who're you and what do you want?" Laurie asked, briskly.

"My name is Hollis Welch and I'm here to take possession of this animal," the man replied.

"I'll be damned if you're taking this animal anywhere," I replied, laughing.

"This animal killed my brother three years ago and I'm gonna kill the son-of-a-bitch myself," said the man, drawing a nine millimeter pistol from behind his back.

Before he had a chance to chamber a round into the weapon, John appeared out of nowhere putting the muzzle of a shot-gun at the man's throat saying, "You just pulled a weapon on two unarmed people and on Indian land at that. By law I could kill you and nothing would happen to me. Instead, I'm only going to ask you one time, and one time only to drop your weapon and leave, or......... stay here and die. The choice is yours."

The man dropped his pistol, and while getting back into his truck, said, "I'll be back. You can count on that."

"You come back here and I'll certainly kill you. You can count on that as well. Now, get out of here before I change my mind," John quietly warned. The man then turned and got back into his truck, and after starting it up, put it in gear and drove away. After he was out of sight, John turned to Laurie and me and said, "You two know that this is not the end of this, don't you?"

Becoming angry at the thought of someone wanting to hurt this poor animal, I spoke up and said, "Yeah, well, I promise you that for anyone to get to him; they're going to have to get through me, and whoever tries had better give their soul to God; because their ass belongs to me." When John began to laugh, I smiled and said, "What's so funny?"

"You are truly the chosen one, Ve'notaxeo'o," said John, laughing and shaking his head as he walked back into the stables.

"Aw man, don't start that shit again," I chuckled.

Suddenly, Mo gently nuzzled his head against me and let loose a low pitched whinny, making Laurie smile and say, "It looks like someone else agrees with John too, baby." Then she was suddenly beside me with both her arms around my waist, and kissing me softly on the cheek, she said, "I love you so much, Tommy."

"I love you too," I replied, while holding her against me and returning the kiss. "What did John mean, about this being Indian land?" I asked, after we'd kissed.

Laurie smiled and replied, "My father bought this land from the Cheyenne Nation when we first moved here. As long as we share the grazing rights for live-stock with the Cheyenne, this land is still considered Indian land and is protected by federal law."

Around four that afternoon, Laurie and I were having a snack before we went out for dinner later when; the phone rang. Laurie answered it and to our surprise as well as our delight; the call was from Mike and Julia informing us that they would not be back for another two days. The moment she hung up the phone, Laurie looked at me wantonly and said, "As opposed to going out later on this evening, what would you say if we stayed in and cuddled in front of the fireplace, just the two of us?" Before I could reply, the phone began to ring again only this time Laurie said, "Shit," as she ran to answer it. As soon as she picked up the phone I could tell by the look on her face as well as her tone of voice that she was talking to either Deirdre, Emma, or both. As the conversation continued, I discovered that it was Emma that Laurie was talking to and after about twenty minutes; she hung up the phone and came back into the living room smiling.

"What's up?" I asked.

Laurie sat in my lap and, after softly kissing me on the lips, replied, "It looks like we're going to have to take a rain check on cuddling in front of the fire until tomorrow night."

"And why is that?" I asked, grinning.

"It seems that Miss Emma and Miss Deirdre are throwing a party tonight and Emma's parents are having it at their house and we've been cordially invited," said Laurie excitedly.

"But, I thought you were mad at those two," I said, pointedly.

Laurie laughed and replied, "We've been pissing one another off for too many years now. Besides, we never hold grudges against each other...well...not for too long anyway!"

While putting my arms around her, I laughed and said, "You never cease to amaze me."

"What makes you say that, baby?" she asked, with a knowing grin.

I gently removed her from my lap and, standing up and smiling, said, "Didn't I hear you say that we've been invited to a party this evening?"

"Yes but, you still didn't answer my question," Laurie replied, tersely.

"I love you so, why don't we take a shower while we're talking about it?" I said, making my way toward the stairs while talking over my shoulder.

Laurie smiled and asked, "We?"

"Yeah," I replied, grinning devilishly, disrobing on my way up the stairs.

Chapter Ten

We arrived at the Tyler family home just as the sun began to disappear behind the mountains. As we pulled down the long driveway, I counted at least twelve very expensive looking cars already parked around the house. No sooner had we turned off the ignition, when Emma came running from around the back of the house to greet us. The moment we had the car doors open, Emma squealed, threw her arms around Laurie and then said, "Hi, you two, I'm so glad you could make it."

"Girl, are you kidding? We wouldn't have missed this for the world," Laurie said, as she and Emma broke the hug.

Then Emma looked at me sheepishly and asked, "Are you still mad at me, Tommy?"

I walked over to her and put my arms around her, and while winking at Laurie, I smiled and replied, "Seeing that you'll be my sister-in-law someday, I don't see how I could ever be mad at you."

Emma put her arms around me and, returning the hug, said, "Laurie was right about you ya know?"

"What do you mean?" I asked, grinning.

"You really are a sweet guy, Tommy," said Emma, kissing me on the cheek. Then she broke the hug, and taking both Laurie and I by our hands, said, "C'mon you guys. I can't wait for my parents to meet Tommy."

"Me either," laughed Laurie, conspiratorially.

Emma took us into her family's home and the moment I walked through the front door; I found myself in a large room full of people that I didn't know with the exception of Deirdre, who waved at us and was talking to a man and woman, obviously a couple who were about the same age as Laurie's parents. Guiding us through the small throng of people at the party, and with her grip still firm on both of our hands; Emma smiled and said, "Come with me, you two."

She led us to the couple that I saw Deirdre talking to, and upon our arrival; Emma said, "Mom, Dad, I'd like to introduce you to Tommy Mason," and then looking at me she added, "Tommy, these are my parents, Mr. and Mrs. Jake Tyler."

"So, you're the guy that I've been hearing so much about," laughed Jake Tyler.

"Daddy!" scolded Emma, she and Laurie blushing brightly.

Then Jake extended his hand and said, "It's nice to meet you, Tommy,"
"Likewise Mr. Tyler," I replied, smiling.

He smiled and replied, "You can dispense with calling me Mister. I'm Jake and..." then pointing to the woman standing beside him, he added, "...this beautiful lady is my wife, Olivia."

As I looked at Olivia, I saw where Emma got her beauty from. However, just like Laurie and Julia, the resemblance between the two of them was also more like sisters as opposed to mother and daughter. Jake stood about six feet, two inches tall. He had dark hair and eyes, and if I had to guess; I would've said that he was probably somewhere around fifty years old. He was still in good shape and handsome in his own right.

"You two girls were right about one thing though, honey," Olivia said, to Laurie.

"What's that, Ms. Libby?" Laurie asked, smiling.

Olivia walked up to me and gently patted my cheek with the palm of her hand, and grinning conspiratorially at Laurie, replied, "He sure is a handsome thing. Good job, Laurie honey." This elicited a cacophony of laughter from Laurie, Emma and Olivia making me suddenly feel hot around the collar as well as at the tips of my ears. To make matters worse, and I know that she truly meant it nicely, Olivia smiled sweetly at me, and to the girls, added, "Aw look, he's blushing. How precious is that? You've got a keeper here, Laurie honey."

"Alright now, that's enough of that crap, You heifers leave the man alone," announced Jake, then talking to Laurie but motioning to me, he smiled and added, "Your Dad told me to protect him from you girls if the three of you ever brought him around here." Patting me on the shoulder, Jake looked at me smiling and, with a nod of his head, said, "C'mon, Tom! Let's get away from these silly-ass girls and get you something to drink."

"That sounds good to me," I replied, winking at Laurie who was grinning at me and making me laugh as I walked away.

Jake had called in a professional catering service which, from what I could see, had done an extremely good job. Jake took me to the bar, and after we'd ordered our drinks; he smiled and said, "Do you mind if I ask you a question? It's rather personal but; I assure you that anything you tell me will go nowhere," then he leaned in slightly closer to me and added, "I'm an attorney and I'm bound by my profession to never discuss with anyone, anything I'm told in confidence."

After listening to what he said, I looked him in the eye and replied, "If that's the case, then, no, I don't mind at all. What would you like to ask me?"

Our drinks arrived just then, and as we picked them up; Jake stood, and with a gentle smile, said, "We'll go into my office because nobody needs to hear what we talk about, okay?"

As I rose from the table, I smiled and replied, "You lead the way, Jake. I'm right behind you." Twenty five seconds later I was in Jake's office sitting in a chair in front of his large oak desk. As he closed the door and came back to take his seat, I smiled and said, "What would you like to know, Jake?"

"Is it true what I hear about you?" he asked.

"What is that?" I replied, uneasily.

Sensing my uneasiness, Jake laughed and said, "Relax Tommy, I'm not going to ask you to divulge government secrets or anything. I heard about how you took down Harvey Crutcher and his boys and I just wanted to know where you learned to fight like that?"

"I learned while I was in the Navy!" I replied, proudly.

"That's right; I almost forgot that you were in the SEAL teams. How was that? I'll bet that was a wild experience, huh?" said Jake, smiling.

"Actually, it was a series of wild experiences," I replied, laughing.

"I can't even begin to imagine," said Jake, and then he smiled and asked, "You can tell me this is none of my business but, I've known Laurie since she was a little girl and I was curious as to what's going on between you two."

I leaned forward and, smiling devilishly, asked, "Can you keep a secret?"

"Are you kidding? Hell son, my lips are sealed," replied Jake, smiling conspiratorially.

I continued smiling and said, "I'm going to marry her.....if she'll have me, that is."

"Well, we've been in here for long enough. I'll bet the women folk are probably beginning to wonder where we went," laughed Jake, as he rose from behind his desk and escorted us out of his office and back to the party.

No sooner had we left Jake's office, when I heard the familiar laugh of my beautiful Laurie coming from somewhere to my right. I turned and saw her standing across the room talking to Emma and Deirdre. There was no way she could've seen me but, the moment I looked at her; she turned and looked right into my eyes as if to let me know that she felt my presence the same way I felt hers. It was plain now that one of us needed not to see the other in order to know that they were there. It was just another one of God's affirmations, letting me know that I had found my soul mate and leaving no doubt in my heart that, without her, I would surely die.

"I see that Jake finally let you go," said a female voice behind me. I turned around to find Olivia standing behind me, smiling brightly.

"Hello ma'am," I respectfully replied.

Olivia laughed and said, "Ma'am? Oh, come on now, Tommy dear. You can call me Libby like everyone else around here does. Okay sweetie?"

"Okay, Libby, thank you," I replied, beginning to relax.

Then she took my arm with her hand, and showing me to a set of chairs nearby, Libby smiled and said, "Come sit with me Tommy, dear. I want to know all about you."

"Well, there's not really that much to know." I said, laughing.

Laughing along with me, Libby said, "The reason I wanted to talk to you is because Laurie, Deirdre and my daughter have all told me different things about you. It's not that I don't believe them, I guess I just don't know what to think and I wanted to talk to you, if that would be alright."

It was then that I began to understand these kind and gentle people that lived in this amazingly beautiful part of the country. They were all more or less like one big family, each looking out for the other. It gave me a warm feeling in my chest. As Libby and I found some empty chairs and began to sit down, I smiled warmly and said, "What is it that you would like to know, Libby?"

She grinned and said, "Ever since Laurie brought you around her friends, they can't stop talking about you..." then she giggled and added, "All I hear these days is, Tommy did this or Tommy did that. The things they said were pretty amazing too, and I wanted to ask you if everything I've heard about you is true?"

I no longer felt uncomfortable talking about the things I knew she was about to ask so, I smiled and said, "Well now, why don't you tell me what you heard and I'll tell you if it's true or not."

Libby smiled and, reaching over and patting my hand, began, "I was talking to Sheriff Lance Howard's wife, Melba, a couple of weeks ago and she told me what Lance told her about the fight you had with Harvey Crutcher."