Ray shrugged, his left hand on the wheel. “It’s different. . . not something I ever saw myself doin’, that’s for sure.”
Hearing the vulnerability in her father’s voice, Shay nodded and swallowed hard. “I know it’s difficult, Father. I don’t think any of us ever see ourselves in this kind of situation.”
His mouth worked and he looked toward the open door. “I decided it was time to move on. I hate stayin’ in that bed all the time. I miss being outdoors, the sun on my face. I miss it all.”
Her heart broke for him. “You were outside all the time,” Shay said. She saw something other than anger in her father’s eyes. And she saw him trying to be nice to her. The change was as shocking as seeing him sitting in the wheelchair.
Reese said nothing, looking casual and relaxed next to her, but underneath, Shay sensed he was ready to move into combat if her father’s demeanor changed. He’d warned her in the cab that if Crawford thought he could savage her again, it wasn’t going to happen. Reese had promised to give her the opportunity to defend herself, but if she couldn’t, he would. He had no idea how much strength that gave her. Shay knew this was her battle, her war. Not Reese’s.
“I’ve been getting Troy, the physical therapist, to help me to start using this useless right hand of mine,” he said, jabbing down at it sitting in his lap. “I asked him if there was a chance I could get this right arm to work again.”
“And?”
“He said in time, I could strengthen it and get back maybe seventy percent of it.” Ray shrugged. “That’s good.”
Shay blinked, not believing her ears. For a year, she’d tried to persuade her father to get the advanced therapy he needed to strengthen the right side of his paralyzed body. “That’s great news. You’ll feel a lot happier if you could get out of this room when you wanted.”
Ray nodded and muttered, “I want a favor from you, Shay.”
Shay’s stomach tightened. He’d never asked anything of her. Just ordered her around. “Okay,” she said, her tone tentative. Reese tensed subtly at her side.
“I want to be out there for the arena-raising. I want to see it happen. It’s my ranch. I want to see what’s going on out there since you took over.”
Shay could see her father wrestling with every word, to remain respectful of her. It was not his ranch. He knew that legally she owned it now. But he never faced her with that fact, still calling the Bar C his property. She wasn’t going to battle him on that point right now, though. Swallowing, she stared at him, her mind blanking out for a second over his unexpected request. “Well . . . sure . . .” She glanced apprehensively at Reese. He had his game face on, his gaze never leaving Crawford. She opened her hands. “We’re going to be really, really busy, Father. I won’t have time to take care of you—”
“Dammit! I’ll take care of myself!” He scowled and added grumpily, “I’ve already asked Troy to be with me for the day. He’ll drive me in their special van out to the ranch. He’ll take care of me. I won’t be underfoot.”
“Oh,” she whispered, her fingers against her throat. “That would be helpful.”
“I know you’re gonna be busy. But I’d like to see the plans, be a part of it.”
Her mind kept blanking out. Her emotions were up and down. This was the first time her father had asked to come back to the ranch. Shay knew how important a moment this was for him. For her. But the timing was bad.
“It’s going to be crazy busy, Father. I can’t promise you anything at this point because we’ve got so many vendors arriving with trucks and supplies. And seventy-five volunteers are coming at the same time. I’m going to be out in the field most of the day. Reese and the other vets are the frontline bosses coordinating all this.”
“I understand,” he growled. “Troy will take care of me. I won’t be a burden to you.”
Biting her lower lip, she cast another glance at Reese. There was a thawing in his eyes. “Okay,” she managed in a strained tone, “you’re more than welcome.” Instantly, she saw the relief in her father’s face. And it shocked her again to realize just how important this was to him.
“Good,” he said gruffly. “I’ll stay outta the way. I won’t make things harder on you. I understand what a barn-raisin’ is. I’ve attended enough of ’em myself when I was younger. You were too young to remember them.”
Shay managed a softer look at her father. “No . . . I don’t remember any, but that’s okay.” Her hands were cold and damp. Part of her was in anxiety mode because now, her father would be there. Would he start trying to tell her what to do? Would he start tearing her apart in front of other people? So much could go wrong. But one look in Ray Crawford’s face and Shay knew how important this was to him.
“I’ll talk with Troy,” Shay said. “We’ll work out details, time of arrival and things like that.”
“Good,” Ray said, giving a sharp nod of his head, his eyes on Reese Lockhart. “I just want to see it . . .”