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As Things Change - Part XXI Next day… Matt is up and out early, headed out to the far western end of the ranch. Nora sees him off and returns to her room. Bo is still sound asleep so she curls up next to him and enjoys the sounds as the ranch begins a new day. She slowly falls back to sleep.   Marcie knocks softly on Andrew’s door, holding tightly to Michael’s hand. “Come in.” Andrew gets up from his desk and walks around to greet them, kissing Marcie on the cheek and shaking Michael’s hand. “Please, have a seat. Would you like some coffee?”   Michael sits. “No, thanks. We stopped at the coffee shop earlier.”   “Yeah. We were eager to meet you and had some time to kill… Thank you for squeezing us in after we had to cancel yesterday. I’m very anxious to get this process going.”   Andrew smiles. “I understand. Michael, why don’t you start with any questions you may have and we’ll go from there…”   Blake pulls the Jeep up in front of a small cabin in the middle of nowhere. A pond is visible behind the cabin. There are cattle scattered in the pasture beyond, but not much other signs of life. Matt turns to Blake. “This is it?”   “Yup. I told you it wasn’t fancy. I’ll probably sleep outside. It’s usually better than being in the cramped cabin with all the guys.”   Sully pulls up beside the Jeep. He opens his truck door and climbs out, frowning at Blake. “Let’s get a move on. We’ve got to get this gear unloaded ASAP.”   Blake pushes open his door. “Yes, sir,” he says sarcastically.   Sully frowns at him as he points to Matthew. “You stay out of the way.”   “I can help.”   “You will help by staying out of the way. Last thing I need is for you to end up with something broken.”   Sully stomps off to the cabin as Blake turns to Matt. “Don’t pay no attention to him. Help me unload the food and get it in the cabin.”   “Sure thing.” Matt grabs a box of food and follows Blake into the cabin. He drops the box on a table. “You need any help with this?”   Stefi shakes her head. “I got it.”   Matt heads back outside. He sees the men approaching with the horses. “Hey, there’s Spunky. I can’t wait to ride her on the open range.”   Blake turns in the direction Matt is looking. “She’s a great horse out here. We took her out last year for the roundup and she loves it. You’re going to be a real cowboy now, Matt.”   Matt grabs a box out of the Jeep. “I hope I can keep up with you guys.”   “I think you’ll be fine. You’ve gotten pretty good at riding.”   “Thanks. I know it sucks for you having to teach me all this stuff.”   Blake shrugs. “I don’t mind. I had to learn once too. You’re not bad for a city boy.”   Sully scowls at them. “A little less jawing and more unpacking, okay?”   Matt takes his box into the cabin. Blake chuckles as he follows. “Sully’s on a power trip. Don’t let him bother you.”   Matt grins. “He’s okay. He reminds me of my grandpa. He yells a lot too.”   “Yeah, but Asa is the boss. Sully is just a blowhard.”   Nora slowly wakes up and sees Bo staring at her. “Mornin’.”   He leans down and kisses her. “Hey, Red. I let you sleep in but we need to get up and moving.”   “We do?”   He slides out of bed. “Yup. We have the ranch to ourselves and we’re going to explore. You haven’t been out at all.”   Nora sits up, resting against the headboard. “Sure I have. I have explored every inch of the pool. And the hot tub, for that matter.”   “You haven’t been out on the range yet. It’s beautiful this time of year. The flowers are amazing.”   “I’ve seen the flowers – right out in the yard.”   Bo pulls on his T-shirt. “Not the same thing, Red. Come on, up and at ‘em.”   Nora sighs. “I’m not riding a horse, Bo.”   “You haven’t even been down to the stables yet.”   “Nope. And we’re going to keep it that way.”   “Fine. That doesn’t mean we can’t explore. Get dressed, will you?”   Nora pushes back the covers. “Okay, but this better be worth it.”   Bo grins as she stalks off to the bathroom. He quickly packs them a bag and takes it down to the Jeep.   Michael sits back with a smile. “I think you’ve answered all of my questions, Andrew.”   Marcie looks at him expectantly. “So, what do you think?”   He takes her hand. “I think we should go for it. When can I meet Miki?”   Andrew stands, looking at his watch. “It’s lunch time for the day care. We can head down to the cafeteria for an introduction. I’ll call her social worker later and we can set the application process in motion. She’ll arrange for a home visit but I wouldn’t anticipate any problems with that.”   Michael rises, shaking Andrew’s hand. “Thanks for your time.”   Andrew smiles. “The pleasure is all mine. I’m always happy to bring a child together with loving parents.”   Marcie takes Michael’s hand. “Let’s go meet her!”   Andrew leads them down to the cafeteria where they see Miki eating with a group of toddlers. She is giggling as Andrew approaches. He gets her attention. “Miki, how are you?”   She looks up at him with a smile. “Hi!” She sees Marcie and gets up to go to her until she sees Michael standing beside her. She stops dead in her tracks and stares at him. “You remember Marcie.” Miki nods. “This is her husband, Michael.”   Marcie looks at Michael. “I think she’s scared of you.”   He smiles. “It’s okay.” He crouches in front of Miki, getting down to her level. “Hi, Miki. My name is Michael.” She continues to shrink back. He smiles at her, speaking softly. “I’m kind of a big guy, huh?” She nods. “Well, I’m sort of just a big kid. Would you mind if I joined you for lunch and then we can play?” She continues to stare at him, unsure. “My favorite is French fries. Do you like French fries?” Miki nods with a small smile. “Perfect. I’ll get some fries and we can share, okay?” She nods, her smile growing. Michael stands. “Let’s get some fries.”   Michael walks off with Andrew. Marcie takes a seat beside Miki. She hands Marcie a grape. “Thank you.” Marcie pops it into her mouth with a smile. Michael walks up with a plate of fries. He takes a seat beside Marcie on the other side of Miki. She looks at him with a smile. “Fries!” Michael takes one and pushes the plate toward Miki. She grabs one and pops it in her mouth before handing one to Marcie. She picks up another one and hesitantly hands it to Michael. He grins as he takes it. “Thank you, Miki.”   Marcie takes his hand, leaning in to whisper, “I think she likes you.”   He smiles, giving her a quick kiss. “I think you’re right.”   Miki climbs into Marcie’s lap, cautiously watching Michael as she grabs a handful of fries. Andrew smiles at the group. “I’m going to let you guys hang out and I’ll be back in a little bit.”   Miki waves to him, turning her attention to Marcie. “Play dolls with me?”   Marcie nods. “After we finish eating.”   Miki looks at Michael with a grin. “You play too?”   Michael smiles. “Sure, I’ll play too.”   Bo and Nora are cruising through the back roads of the ranch in a Jeep, enjoying the scenery. Nora eyes him suspiciously when he turns onto a main road. “Where are we going?”   “You’ll see.”   “Bo, you know I don’t like it when we embark on trips to mystery destinations.”   He shrugs. “You seemed to like the Serenity Inn.”   “Okay, but that was an exception. And we’re nowhere near the Inn. What are you up to?”   He gives her a sly grin. “You’ll see.”   “So you’ve said.” She is about to question him further when he turns onto a small road. Nora reads the sign. “We’re going to a winery?”   “Why not? I thought it might be fun to taste the local stuff.”   “Asa has plenty of wine at the ranch. And it’s the good stuff.”   He pulls to a stop in front of the tasting house. “Let’s live a little, Red.”   They walk inside and are greeted by the owner. After enjoying lunch and a sample of their best wines, Bo buys several bottles. They get back on the highway – but Bo heads in the opposite direction of the ranch. Nora turns to him. “Um, Bo. The ranch is back the other way. Did the wine make you disoriented?”   “Funny, Red. I want to show you something. We’ve been on the ranch for a week, I thought you might enjoy seeing what else Texas has to offer. Just sit back and enjoy the view.”   “You know, we’re in Texas and I’ve always heard that Dallas has great shopping. We’re not that far from there.”   He shakes his head. “No way, Red. I learned my lesson in New York after we got married.”   She chuckles. “That was your own fault for promising me whatever I wanted after our impromptu wedding.”   “That was a mistake I won’t make again.”   Stefi is putting away the supplies when Matt wanders into the cabin. “Need any help?”   She turns to him. “No. I’ve done this before.”   Matt takes a seat. “It sure is hot out there. How do you stand it in the summer down here?”   She smiles. “You’ll get used to it.”   “I doubt it.”   “When you get back from the ride, we can go for a swim. That always helps cool everyone off.”   “Yeah, I miss the pool out here.”   Blake walks into the cabin. “You ready to go out, Matt?”   He stands. “Sure.”   Blake points to his head. “Get your hat. You’re gonna need it.”   Matt finds his gear and digs out his cowboy hat, plopping it on his head. “I’d much rather wear my baseball cap.”   Stefi laughs. “You can’t do a cattle roundup in a baseball cap.”   “Why not?”   Blake shakes his head. “Let’s go, city boy. You wanna wear a baseball cap? You’d see why it’s a bad idea when you feel the sunburn on the back of your neck tonight.”   “Gotcha.” Matt adjusts his cowboy hat as he follows Blake out the door.   Bo whistles as he drives along, ignoring Nora staring at him. He eases the Jeep off the road at a scenic overlook. Nora looks out the windows. “Why did you stop?”   “We’re here.”   She looks around again. “Where might that be?”   He opens his door, climbs out and sticks his head back inside. “Come on, Red.” He closes the door and walks to the other side, pulling open her door and holding out his hand. “Trust me! You’re going to love this.”   Nora steps out of the Jeep, surveying the landscape. It appears they are on the top of a ridge. Bo digs into the back seat, extracts a picnic basket and stashes a bottle of wine inside. He takes her hand and leads her toward a fence at the far end of the parking lot. When they get near, Nora can see the river below. The view is breathtaking. “Bo, where are we?”   He points down at the water. “That is the Paluxy River.”   “Why are we here?”   He starts walking around the fence, down a path toward the river. “You’ll see. This was one of my favorite spots when I was a kid. I wanted you to see it.”   She follows him down the path. “So are you going to tell me tales of your wasted youth?”   He gets to the bottom and turns to take her hand. “Not wasted. This is an amazing place.” He finds a spot near the water’s edge and pulls a blanket out of the basket, spreading it on the ground. She takes a seat, looking out over the water as Bo extracts the bottle of wine from the basket. “It seems like a pretty ordinary river to me, Bo.”   “I know. You haven’t seen its treasure yet.”   She laughs. “Are we going to pan for gold?”   He frowns at her. “Not treasure like that.” Bo pours them each a glass of wine and takes a seat beside her. They watch the birds and listen to the sounds of the water rushing along. When Bo downs the last of his wine, he starts taking off his shoes and rolling up his pants legs. Nora stares at him. “What are you doing? You’re not going in the water, are you?”   “No, I’m not. WE are. Get your shoes off, Red. I’m sure you don’t want to ruin them in the water.”   “I’m not going in there. It’s probably freezing, Bo.”   “It’s the middle of summer. Come on.” He gets up, holding out his hand as Nora slips off her shoes and rolls her crop pants up above her knees. “This better be good, Buchanan.”   They walk to the water’s edge and Bo wades in. Nora holds back but Bo gives a slight tug on her hand and she follows him, sucking in her breath as her feet meet the cool water. Bo points to a rock several feet out in the water. “Let’s get up there, then we should be able to see them.”   “See what? This is ridiculous, Bo. We’re wading in the river like a couple of teenagers.”   He continues walking toward the rock. “Just humor me. It’s gonna be worth it.” Bo makes it to the rock and climbs up, then helps Nora up beside him, putting his arm around her waist to steady her. He looks into the water with a smile. “Can you see them?”   Nora peers into the water. “See what?”   He points to various spots in the riverbed. “See them?”   Nora notices the pattern in the rocks. “What is that?”   Bo smiles down at her. “They’re dinosaur footprints, honey. Dinosaurs once walked in this river, just like we are right now.”   Nora looks closer. “That’s amazing, Bo. How did you know about this?”   “We used to come here on field trips when I was a kid. When the river is low like it is now, you can wade in and walk in the footprints. When I was a kid, I wanted to be a scientist when I grew up so I could study dinosaurs.”   Nora chuckles. “You would have been so cute grubbing in the dirt.” She steps off the rock. “Where do these go?”   Bo follows her. “They go around the bend in the river and up onto land on the other side. It’s pretty cool that they have these right here in Texas.”   Nora stands in one of the prints. “Look at how huge these are. Imagine the size of the creature that made this print.”   Bo walks up and stands beside her. “I know. It’s pretty amazing to think about.”   Nora nods, moving toward the next footprint. “We need to bring Matthew to see this. You shouldn’t have let him go on that roundup.”   Bo catches up with her, taking her hand. “I can show him another time. He’s fine hanging with the guys and I get to hang with my girl.”   She turns and kisses him. “You’re sweet, but it’s dinosaur prints. Much more Matthew’s thing than mine.”   “Yes, but there’s more and that part is definitely not for Matthew…”   TBC     FYI - There really are dinosaur footprints in the Paluxy River in central Texas - just in case anyone needs summer vacation ideas! LOL