Jesse: Merry Christmas, Cowboy by Kent Lynnette

Author:Kent, Lynnette [Kent, Lynnette]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Harlequin American Romance
Published: 2010-11-01T06:00:00+00:00

JANIE DIDN’T BREATHE UNTIL she reached Sundae’s stall again. Once she was sure she wasn’t being followed, she leaned limply against the wall and worked to recover from the roller coaster ride of meeting up with Jesse.

She should have called out when she’d heard him coming down the aisle toward the stall, so she could forgive his burst of temper at being surprised. But the spouse comment had fired her temper.

Of course, he’d also proved her point. They would never get past what had happened between his father and her mother. Any relationship between them was doomed before either of them was even born, a fact they both needed to remember.

But Jesse had come after her, had actually touched her—grabbed her arm—to keep her from leaving. She’d felt the pressure of each of his fingers separately, and a circle of warmth where his palm had rested. That was the point at which her good sense blew away with the wind and her breathing got all shaky. Instead of saving herself, she’d agreed to stay.

That didn’t mean she had to sit around sighing, like the lovesick schoolgirl she used to be. No, she’d decided to move on in her life, to investigate new opportunities and wider horizons. That’s why, with her genetics final out of the way, she’d entered a charity rodeo this weekend, up in Montana. She doubted she’d win, because she and her horse, Chica, hadn’t practiced much since Thanks giving.

But the feed store was only open until noon on Saturdays in December, so Ruth Pearsoll had approved her Saturday off. Mark and Nicki would be watching her mother and Elly had promised to give Sundae his twice-a-day walks. Janie looked forward to getting away from Cody, and the Codys, especially Jesse. The rodeo raised funds to provide Christmas for underprivileged kids, yet another good reason to make the effort.

Settling on her knees beside Sundae, she squirted alcohol into her hands and began rubbing his right hind leg with gentle downward strokes. She usually found rubbing legs as soothing as the horse did. Tonight, however, she couldn’t release the tension in her chest and shoulders and neck. Jesse’s presence complicated her thoughts and stirred up emotions she tried to keep under control.

When she finished with Sundae’s legs, she spent time stroking the gelding’s neck and shoulders while murmuring some of the Lakota songs she had learned from her grandmother. She prayed for balance to be restored in Sundae’s world…and in Jesse’s. She thought he probably needed that even more than his favorite horse did.

Outside the stall once again, she pulled on her jacket and picked up her supply satchel to walk through the nearly silent stallion barn. The size and scope of the Cody facilities amazed everyone who visited. In addition to the ten-stall stallion barn and a thirty-stall building designed to house mares in the Cody quarter horse breeding program—Anne Cody’s pet project—Jesse worked on the beef cattle operation in the equally huge cow barn, where J. W. Cody also pursued the development of prize-winning rodeo bulls.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.