The Rough and Ready Rancher Read Online Free Page A

dappled shade of an oak tree. He and his men stared in awe.
    Tipping his hat, Jed broke the silence. “Thanks, ma’am.”
    â€œWhiskers, you…and Ryan need…to wash off…with the tomato juice.” She coughed several times, then leanedback against the trunk of the tree. “It should take care of the smell on your skin, but you’ll probably have to burn your clothes.”
    Admiring her in any way was the last thing Flint wanted, but when he washed Ryan with the juice, he had to give her credit. She’d braved the pungent odor when the rest of them wouldn’t.
    After helping Ryan into the clothes Whiskers had retrieved from the clothesline, Flint walked over to hand her a sandwich and can of soda. “Here. You’ve earned this.”
    She took the soft drink, but refused the food. “Thanks, but I don’t have much of an appetite right now.”
    Flint squatted down beside her, plucked a blade of grass and began to twirl it between his fingers. After what she’d just done for Ryan and his men, she deserved some sort of appreciation. But the words wanted to stick in his throat.
    Damn. Eating crow wasn’t something he had to do often and it didn’t come easy. “I…appreciate what you’ve done.” He cleared his throat. “And earlier—in the hall—I guess I might have been a little harsh. But I’m sure you can understand, since my ex-wife died and I gained custody of him, I’m very protective of my son.”
    Jenna gave Flint a suspicious look. He did seem to be trying to establish a truce, although it wasn’t exactly a gracious one. “Don’t worry about it,” she said. “I’ve always been that way with my brother, Cooper, even though he’s older.”
    Flint looked thoughtful. “Cooper Adams is your brother?”
    Not surprised he recognized the name, she nodded.
    â€œHe’s one of the best bull riders I’ve ever seen. I watched him score a ninety-four at the rodeo in Mesquite and a ninety in Amarillo. Didn’t he make the National Finals a few years back?”
    Jenna nodded. “Year before last he took second place in bull riding and fourth in the all-around competition.”
    Ryan’s eyes grew round and he plopped down between them. “Wow! He must be real brave.”
    Remembering another bull rider and the two thousand pounds of enraged beef that had ended his life, a shudder ran the length of her spine. She stared off into the distance. Forever etched in her memory, the image would haunt her until the day she died.
    â€œBulls can be very dangerous,” she finally managed.
    â€œDaddy won’t let me go down to the bull pens.” Ryan glared at his father. “I’m not allowed to go around any of the animals without a grown-up.”
    â€œMaybe he’s afraid you’ll get hurt,” Jenna offered, grateful for the distraction.
    â€œNot my daddy. He’s not afraid of nothin’.” When he gazed up at Flint, Ryan’s expression instantly changed to admiration.
    Jenna smiled at the pride in the little boy’s voice. She remembered thinking much the same about her own father. She reached out to ruffle Ryan’s hair. “I’m sure he isn’t.”
    Flint watched with a trace of envy. How would it feel to have her run her hands through his hair?
    Try as he might, Flint couldn’t erase the memory of how she’d felt when she backed into him in the hall. He glanced down at his callused hands. Her curves had filled them to perfection, and they itched to hold her again.
    â€œI wanna be a bull rider when I grow up,” Ryan said, jumping to his feet, his face animated.
    Snapped back to reality, Flint smiled and caught his son in midhop to swing Ryan up onto his knee. “Last week you wanted to be a Jedi knight. The week before that you were going to play a guitar and change your name to Garth.”
    â€œI can