Love Thy Neighbor by Patricia Bates

Author:Patricia Bates
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: love, desire, water, ranch, trust, post civil war, water rights
Publisher: Champagne Books

Sixteen

The cool, shadowy interior of the barn offered a refuge from the heat as Rylee led the young gelding inside. She put him up in a clean stall, dusted her hands off on her pants and stalked outside. A basket sat on the fence post and she snagged it easily before striding toward the chicken coop. “I’m getting slow.” Twinges of discomfort darted through her back as she bent to collect the eggs. Smooth white surfaces lay in the basket, the shells clunking together gently.

Her gaze darted up the hill, a feeling of anger and disgust tangling in her belly. Three days without a sign of her stock. Her wagon still hadn’t found its way home, either, but two new men were posted under the canopy of her tree. They didn’t fancy Rylee at all and hadn't tried to initiate conversation like Joe and Matthew had. Neither had they shown much interest in their job. More often than not, she noted they spent more time trotting off toward town than at their post. She forced herself not to care, to ignore the resentment eating at her.

“If’n Tom finds out, he’ll have ‘em pushing drag for a month,” she informed the dog, who tilted her head to the left and stared at her. “Well, come on, I’ve got a nice bone for you. Then I’m gonna butcher up a plump chicken for dinner. Mmm, chicken and dumplings, better than…” The thought trailed off at the faint but distinct nicker of a horse. Had Tom’s riders decided to follow orders and come back? She hoped so. She’d grown accustomed to having Joe and Matthew around. These riders weren’t them, she reminded herself with a derisive chuckle. She patted her hip to call the dog and raced for the house, where her carbine leaned against the railing. Fear clawed at her throat as she swept the surrounding area. Tom’s hands had ridden out earlier and she didn’t expect them back until the next day.

Every muscle screamed in protest when she spotted the single rider sitting atop the rise. She squinted. Hope blossomed in her chest as she watched the rider begin to trot toward the house. It didn’t live long. Pale and heavy, the grey lumbering toward the house was unfamiliar. Tom wouldn’t have such an ungainly, clumsy animal in his stables. Hell, even she’d shoot it before admitting it was her own. Its wide, thick face oozed into a bulky, short neck before leveling out into a broad, muscular chest. A wide hip slid into the chunky lines of the rear legs, and large, rough hooves completed the unfortunate equine. Astride the beast, the rider’s duster was pulled back to reveal a pair of colts in holsters at his hip.

His hat was tugged low over his eyes and a checkered bandana had been pulled up to cover his lower jaw. A dark, sweat-stained shirt peeked from between the lapels of his worn coat as he pulled up by the corral fence. Rylee swallowed against the growing tide of panic.

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