The Wyoming Kid

Her father owned Larson’s Feed, and she helped out after school. The last time he was in town, he’d casually mentioned that he’d be back on Tuesday and hoped to see her. He wanted to ask her out on a date but didn’t have any way of getting into Red Springs without borrowing Lonny’s truck and he was reluctant to ask. Lonny had already done plenty for him, and it didn’t seem right to take advantage of his generosity.

“Lonny had to pick up his niece after school,” Tom added.

“Oh.”

Michelle didn’t appear to be much of a conversationalist, which could be a problem because he wasn’t, either.

“I was hoping, you know…” She let the rest fade. Then, all at once, she blurted out, “There’s a dance the last day of school. It’s a pretty big deal. The whole town throws a festival and the high school has this big dance and I was wondering if you’d go with me.”

She said it all so fast, she couldn’t possibly have taken a breath. After she finished speaking, it took Tom a few seconds to realize what she’d asked him. He felt an immediate surge of regret.

The silence seemed endless as he struggled with what to tell her. In the end, he told the simple truth. “I can’t.”

“Why not?”

Tom didn’t want to get into that. “I just…can’t.” He hated to disappoint her, but there was nothing more he could say.

“I shouldn’t have asked…I wouldn’t have, but—Oh, never mind. I’m sorry….” With that, she hung up as if she couldn’t get off the line fast enough.

Tom felt wretched. He didn’t have the clothes necessary for any dance; in fact, he’d never attended a dance in his life, even in high school. Those kinds of social events were for other kids. He was sorry to refuse Michelle, sorrier than she’d ever know, but there wasn’t any alternative.

As he returned to his room, Tom lay back on the hard mattress and tucked his hands behind his head, staring up at the ceiling. It would’ve been nice, that school dance with Michelle. All they’d done so far was talk a few times. The thought of holding her in his arms imbued him with a sense of joy—a joy that was unfamiliar to him.

Tom gave himself a mental shake. He might as well forget about the dance right then and there, because it wasn’t going to happen. His joy quickly disappeared.

JUST BACK FROM SCHOOL, Joy was still furious over her confrontation with Lonny Ellison. The man had his nerve. In an effort to forget that unfortunate episode, Joy tried to grade the spelling-test papers, but she soon discovered she couldn’t concentrate. The only thing she seemed able to do with all this pent-up anger was pace her living room until she’d practically worn a pattern in the carpet.

When the phone rang, Joy nearly jumped out of her skin. Her heart still hadn’t stopped hammering when she picked up the portable telephone on the kitchen counter.

“Joy, it’s Letty. Lonny dropped Cricket off and he’s beside himself. What happened?”

“Your brother,” Joy answered from between gritted teeth, “is the most egotistical, unpleasant, arrogant man I’ve ever met.” Then she proceeded to describe the entire scene, which was burned in her memory.

“You mean to say you didn’t really come after him with a pitchfork?” Letty asked.

“Is that what he said?” Joy asked. She wouldn’t put it past Lonny to fabricate such a ridiculous story.

“No, no, I was just teasing,” Letty assured her. “But I will say his version of events is only vaguely similar to yours.”

“He’s exaggerating, of course.”

“I apologize,” Letty said, sounding genuinely contrite. “I wish I knew what’s gotten into my brother. My guess is that he’s attracted to you and isn’t sure how to deal with it. What happened with you two, anyway?”

“I don’t know, and furthermore, I don’t care.” That wasn’t completely true. She did care and, despite her annoyance with his current attitude, wished the situation between them was different.

Letty hesitated briefly before she continued. “I have no idea how else to explain my brother’s behavior. All I can tell you is that this just isn’t like Lonny.”

“In other words, it’s me he dislikes.” Her heart sank with this.

“No,” Letty said. “Just the opposite. I think this is his nutty way of getting back together with you. Like I said, he’s attracted to you. There’s no question in my mind about that.”

Her ego would like to believe it, but she’d seen the look in Lonny’s eyes and it wasn’t admiration or attraction.

“Lonny can be a little stubborn but—”

“A little?” Joy broke in. “A little?”

“I apologize on his behalf,” Letty said. “I’m just hoping you’ll be able to look past his perverse behavior and recognize the reason for it. Be gentle with him, okay? I’m fairly certain my brother is smitten.”

“He’s what?”

“Smitten,” Letty repeated. “It’s an old-fashioned word, one my mother would’ve used. It means—well, you know what it means. The sad part is, Lonny isn’t smart enough to figure this out.”

“Then I hope he never does, because any spark of interest I might’ve felt toward him is dead. No one’s ever made me so mad!” Joy felt her anger gain momentum and crowd out her other feelings for Lonny.

“You’re sure you’re not interested in my brother?”

“Positive. I don’t want to see him again as long as I live. Every time I do, my blood pressure rises until I feel like my head’s going to explode. I’ve never met a more irritating man in my life.”

Letty’s regretful sigh drifted through the phone line. “I was afraid of that.”

They spoke for a few more minutes and then Joy replaced the receiver. She felt better after talking to Letty—only she wasn’t sure why. Maybe venting her aggression with someone who understood both her and Lonny had helped. It would be nice, flattering really, if all this craziness was indeed related to Lonny’s overpowering attraction, as Letty seemed to think, but Joy wasn’t foolish enough to believe it.

Joy hadn’t been on a date in so long that she was actually considering one of those on-line dating services. School would be out in a couple of weeks; this summer, when she had some free time, Joy planned to develop a social life. She didn’t have a strategy yet, beyond the vague possibilities offered by the Internet, nor did she have much romantic experience. Her only serious romance had been with Josh Howell in her last year of college. Their relationship was relegated to casual friends status after she’d accepted this teaching job in Wyoming. They kept in touch and occasionally e-mailed each other. Since she’d moved away, he’d been involved in an increasingly serious relationship. She hadn’t heard from him in more than two months, and Joy surmised that his current girlfriend was soon to become his wife.

Josh lived in Seattle, where he worked for an investment firm. He went on—in detail—about the woman he was seeing every time he e-mailed her. Lori Something-or-Other was apparently blond, beautiful and a power to be reckoned with in the investment industry. Or maybe it was insurance…In any case, Joy sometimes wondered why he kept in touch with her at all when he was so enamored of someone else.

Joy microwaved a frozen entrée for dinner, ate while watching the national news, corrected her spelling test papers and then logged on to the Internet. She immediately noticed Josh’s e-mail. How ironic that she’d get this message when she’d just been thinking about him.

From: Josh Howell

Sent: May 16

To: Joy Fuller

Subject: I’m going to be in your area!

Hi, Joy,

We haven’t exchanged e-mails in a while, and I was wondering what you’ve been up to lately. The company’s sending me on a business trip to Salt Lake City, which I’m combining with a few vacation days. When I looked at the map, I noticed that Red Springs isn’t too far away. I’d love to stop by and catch up with you. After the conference, I’ll rent a car, and I should be in your area the first or second of June. Would that work for you?

Looking forward to hearing from you! I’ve missed your e-mails.

Love,

Josh

P.S. Did I mention that Lori and I broke up?