Courting a Cowboy by Patricia McLinn

Author:Patricia McLinn
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Craig Place Books
Published: 2015-03-24T00:00:00+00:00

Nate rode in just after breakfast, having found himself duties that kept him out on the range through the night. Sleeping under the stars on his own was a welcome change from the jawboning in the bunkhouse.

Cooked himself a meal out in the open that was well below Doughy’s efforts, but kept his ribs from sticking out his backbone. Worked his muscles and his horse hard. Thought about cattle, horses, land and weather, and refused to entertain a single thought about females – at least not of the human variety.

He’d timed his arrival to be late enough for the boys to have scattered to their tasks but not so late as to find nothing on Doughy’s stove.

Except the boys hadn’t scattered. They were clotted up around the porch of the bunkhouse, jawing like nobody’s business.

“Nate! It’s Nate!”

“Where’ve you been?”

“You shoulda been here.”

“Something awful –”

Nate glanced at the house, which gave no outward sign of a tragedy. In fact, Moosehead was plodding peacefully toward the chicken pen with a bucket of scraps.

“–Gotta do something–”

“She don’t realize –”

“You gotta make her see –”

Still mounted, he raised one hand, and they quieted. “What’s happened?”

And that started them off again.

“Sophie said –”

“– said it right then in the middle of breakfast –”

“– she just don’t realize –”

“– said it like nothing would change –”

He raised the hand again. It took longer this time. But he’d spotted the calm at the middle of this storm.

“String. What’s this about? No – nobody else says a word.”

“It’s simple. Sophie and I had a talk, and decided we’re not gettin’ married after all.”

For an instant, it felt like one of those geysers he’d seen farther west had magically gotten under Nate and was tossing him up into the sky, weightless and giddy and disoriented.

Sophie wasn’t going to marry String.

And just that fast, the geyser collapsed, and he came hard back to earth.

Sophie wasn’t going to marry String.

“But ...” He couldn’t say it. Not the first thing that had come to his mind. And not the second thing – Why? – either.

“Nate, you gotta talk to her,” Gunner said.

“Nothing to say,” String countered calmly.

Nate concentrated attention on his friend. “You mind if I have a word with her?”

String hitched his shoulders in a lazy shrug. “Do as you like.” And Nate saw that the older man wasn’t just calm, he was relieved.

But as he looked at the other hands, he saw something else entirely. He saw in their faces the words none of them would say. The words he was hearing in his own head.

She’ll leave now .

What was she thinking? Didn’t she realize – ? Maybe she did. Maybe that’s what she wanted, what she intended. To be gone from here and never return.

He had to know.

And he knew exactly where to find her.

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