chapter TWO

Hope stepped into the Honky Tonk Angels Bar and Grille, and her hands went to her face. "Oh, my gosh," she looked around, amazed at how much her mother, aunt, and cousins had accomplished while she took care of the shop.

Now, her mother needed a break, and Hope needed to put effort into the decorations. "I have three bags of balloons tied to the car. Fran blew them all up for me for free. Wasn"t that nice?"

"She"s a kind person," Audrey commented. "And let me help with the balloons."

They walked outside and headed for Hope"s car. "Did you call the Blackstone Group as the letter directed?" Audrey asked.

"Yes, I spoke with someone named Ivy Blackstone. She was very friendly and kind and said they were all excited to meet Andy and me. Apparently, his essay impressed them."

"Well, he"s an impressive little guy. And boy, won"t he be excited when he gets the news?" She stopped beside Hope"s car. "Nice." Audrey pointed to the bags of balloons affixed to the door handles, floating and bouncing.

"Hey, I made it here without losing any." Hope grinned. "Take the car. I"ll walk over to meet Andy at school, and we can all drive over together when it"s time. I thought maybe we could make an afternoon of it. Just us three."

"Are you sure you don"t want to do this with just you and him?"

"I am. This is a time for him to be with all his family, and we"re it, so I need you to be with us."

"Then I will be delighted to join."

"I can"t wait to see his face, Mom."

"Me, too. Grab the balloons and get to it. I"ll see you soon."

Hope couldn"t stop thinking about it. She"d always wanted to see the western states in and around Yellowstone. Pictures of the night sky in those places always caught her attention, inspiring a longing to see it for herself.

She couldn"t believe she was about to be granted that wish and through no deed of her own. Her son was making this possible.

It just goes to show that not all heroes are tall, huh, Hope?

She smiled at the echo of her mother"s voice in her mind. "Indeed."

The hours flew by, and before she knew it, the time had come for her to meet Andy at school.

When she arrived at the school, the pickup line was sparse. She saw Andy standing in line and waved. He spotted her and started down the sidewalk toward her.

"Did the car break down again?" he asked when they met.

"No, I just thought it was a nice day for a walk. Let"s go over to the park for a minute. There"s something I want you to see."

"Okay."

Once they reached the playground, she pointed to a bench. "Let"s sit there."

"Okay," Andy shrugged off his backpack and placed it on the end of the bench.

"What do you want me to see?" He looked around as he asked.

Hope took a seat and pulled the envelope from her shoulder bag. "This."

Andy accepted the envelope, opened it, and pulled out the letter. Hope watched him read, smiling at the way his lips barely moved. His eyes widened, and he jerked his head up to look at her. "They picked me?"

"They did."

"Are you sure? I won. I really won?"

"Yes, honey," she replied as she took the letter and pointed to the text. "It says so right here. You"re the official winner for the state of Texas."

"I won," he breathed, taking the letter carefully from her hand and holding it as if it were a priceless relic. "I really won."

He looked up at her. "We get to see it, Mama. The sky and the Milky Way. Just like you always wished."

"And you"re making that dream come true for me. You"re my real-life hero."

His smile grew to a grin. "And I get to go to cowboy camp and learn about the environment, animals, and plants and how we can keep them safe. And I get to learn to be a cowboy, Mom. Do you think they"ll help me with my roping? Mr. Riley and Cody say I"m really getting the hang of it.

"And oh, we have to tell Mrs. Annie. She was really nice, you know. She read my essay and said it was good. And we have to tell Gigi and Aunt Stella and Uncle Billy and—"

Hope laughed, delighted at the happiness and excitement on his face. "And we"ll tell all of them, I promise."

"And you called them like the letter said to do?"

"I did."

"And you said we"d be there?"

"I did."

"So it"s real, we really can go?"

"Absolutely."

He threw his arms around her, and she hugged him tightly. "I don"t have to go by myself, right?" The hug muffled his voice.

"Of course not."

"Are you going with me?"

"I am. It says right there I"m invited to attend and watch."

"You"re the best mom ever!"

Hope smiled through happy tears and hugged him again. "That"s because you"re the best boy ever. Now, let's go tell GiGi."

It didn"t take him two seconds to pull on his backpack. Hope wondered what was going through his mind as they walked. Whatever his thoughts, he wore a smile all the way to their shop, Magic Threads.

"Gigi, I won a contest and get to go to Wyoming!" he yelled excitedly as soon as they entered. "Look!"

Audrey turned from her task of tidying a shelf with a bright smile and accepted the letter he offered. Hope loved how she pretended to read, occasionally saying, "Oh my goodness," or "Well, my gracious."

When she finished, she carefully folded the letter and returned it to Andy. Then she knelt and hugged him tight.

"I"m so proud of you, Andy," she said when she released him and added, "And I hope this will be a wonderful adventure for you."

She then looked at Hope. "And you, too. Proud, I mean."

"Thank you," Hope replied. "Are you sure you"ll be okay without us? In all, we"ll be gone for over two weeks."

"I think I can manage."

"I know, I just like thinking I"m essential."

"You are. Since the day you were born."

"And you too, buckaroo," she smiled at Andy. "I didn"t know you were sincere about wanting to learn to be a cowboy, but obviously you are, and look at you. You found a way to do it."

"All I did was write a paper, GiGi."

"A darn fine one," Audrey injected. "But you won this all on your own, and that"s something special because it will always be yours. Just yours. Your victory and your win, and I hope it"s the first of many.

"But, for now, how about I lock up for the day, and we go have ice cream and head over to the western wear shop? I hear Curtis Miller has some new boots and hats that just came in, and I reckon a prize-winning boy deserves a new pair of boots and hat if he"s going to learn to cowboy."

"You"re the best, GiGi." Andy hugged her.

She smiled and looked up at Hope as Hope agreed with him. "Indeed she is. The best ever."

The afternoon passed in a blur of smiles and excited chatter. They hurried home to change before going to the Honky Tonk.

Hope was stunned when they arrived at the Honky Tonk Angels an hour later. It looked like the whole county had shown up. It took her a while to find a parking place, and Andy asked what was happening the entire time.

Neither she nor Audrey would tell him, but when they walked in, she heard Cody yell, "He"s here." The entire place went silent.

"Look at the decorations, Mom," Andy whispered. "Is it a birthday party?"

"Even better," she responded as Billy Sweet hurried over to her and addressed Andy. "Young man, would you come with me?"

Andy didn"t hesitate to respond. "Yes, sir."

"Good man," Billy smiled. "This way."

Hope turned at a touch on her shoulder to find her Aunt Stella behind her. "Come on. I have seats for you up front with us."

By the time Hope and Audrey were seated with the Sweet family, Billy and Andy stood on the dark stage. He tapped on the microphone in his hand. A spotlight flared to life, lighting him and Andy. After a loud squeal from the microphone, Billy spoke.

"Well, I reckon that got y"all's attention, so here we go. We"re here tonight to honor a hometown hero. Mr. Andy Evans, my great nephew."

Hope saw the surprise on Andy"s face and the way he turned his head to watch Billy.

"This fine fellow," Billy continued, "hasn"t been to war or the moon, hasn"t gotten married or a license to drive, but what he has done is win the right to represent the great state of Texas in the first annual Blackstone Ranch environmental cowboy youth summit."

He put his hand on Andy"s shoulder. "Andy"s essay on the importance of preserving our natural lands and resources won first place in a field of over seventeen thousand entrants from Texas.

"One student was chosen from each state, and the age ranged from eight to eighteen. Andy is the youngest of the national winners, demonstrating that Cotton Creek is a place where heroes are born. And our new hometown hero, will be representing our town and our great state. Andy, my hat"s off to you. I"m real proud."

There was a huge cheer and applause that lasted a long time and was accompanied by hoots, cheers, and boot stomps on the floor. Andy smiled shyly, blushed, and his gaze went straight to his mother. She smiled and cheered right along with everyone else.

Billy grinned and waved both hands. Once the crowd settled, he continued.

"Andy and his mother, Hope, will head for Wyoming in a few weeks. Let"s all show him how proud we are and wish him well in what comes next."

He then cut a look to one side. "Okay, boys, hit it."

Hope hadn"t noticed until then that the balloons she bought that were hovering in the air, masked something, a wide net that stretched from one side of the room to the other. In it were thousands more balloons.

She wondered how they managed to put this together without her realizing it, and it touched her that the people in her hometown would be so kind to a little boy.

All at once, lights flashed, balloons fell from the sky, and music played. "To Andy!" Billy yelled.

"To Andy!" the entire bar joined in.

Hope wondered if she was suddenly turning into one of those women who cried at the drop of a hat because tears spilled from her eyes. Her sweet son stood on that stage, overwhelmed with the love and support these people showed him.

Andy was the town hero.

When the noise finally settled, Billy announced that the Blackstone family had generously paid for the night"s food, drink, and entertainment.

That earned more cheers, and the attention shifted to people filing toward the long buffet that"d been erected. Billy accompanied Andy to their table. Hope felt her son"s excitement and how overwhelmed he was with everything when he climbed onto her lap and held on.

"This is all for you, baby," she whispered. "Everyone is so proud of you. You"re a town hero now."

"I just want to be your hero."

"You always are." She hugged him.

Then people started coming over to shake his hand or pat him on the back, congratulating him on his win and wishing him well on the next phase.

Almost the whole county showed up to the celebration. When she finally got a chance to go to the buffet, Charli and Grady Judd approached her. Charli was a retired Delta operator who now worked as a deputy for the Cotton Creek police. Grady recently retired from years as a Navy Seal.

"He"s a heck of a kid, Hope," Grady said.

"Yes, he is," Charli agreed. "You must be very proud." Her hand went to her belly, and Hope"s mouth fell open.

"You"re pregnant?"

Charli grinned. "Four months."

"Congratulations! I"m so happy for you both. I guess that explains why Grady decided to retire?"

"Yes indeed," Grady responded. "You know, I served with a couple of the Blackstone guys. Judson, the oldest, was one hell of a SEAL. Jud retired, married, and now has a child.

"Brady Blackstone filled in on a mission when we were a man down, and that"s one stand-up guy as well."

"It sounds like you think a lot of them."

"I do, and I predict you will as well. But we"re holding you up. Get some food in that boy, and we"ll catch up later."

After that, things were a whirl as one person after another stopped by to congratulate Andy.

Riley Morgan"s wife, Annie, told Hope that one of the Blackstone sons, Calvin, was married to author Sadie Three Rivers" daughter and that Sadie and her husband made Wyoming home for part of the year.

Hope loved Sadie Three River"s books and wondered if she"d get a chance to meet her. She made a mental note to pack a couple of Sadie"s books in her luggage, just in case. It would be such a thrill to get her autograph. Hope and Audrey were huge fans.

After a few hours, she felt like she"d talked to more people in one evening than she had in a year. She sat down and sipped a cup of coffee, feeling the need for a pick-me-up.

Billy sat down beside her. "Are you nervous about this, Hope?"

"Yes, no. I don"t know. I"m thrilled for Andy, but it"s a long way from home, so… I don"t know. I think I"m a bit like Andy. I"m still in shock."

"It"s gonna be fine, honey," Billy patted her shoulder. "The Blackstone family are known to be men of honor. And I predict the trip will be as good for you as it is for Andy. You know, it"s high time you spread your wings a bit and see what is on the other side of the Texas state line."

His words hit home, and Hope suddenly realized that, like Andy, she was about to embark on the biggest journey of her life. She just hoped this adventure ended up being something cherished memories were made from, at least for Andy.

She had no clue how she"d fill her hours, but right now, that didn"t matter because this was all about Andy.

She couldn"t imagine it being something that would change her life, but who knows, it just may already have changed his.