The Cowboy's Bride Bet by Rayner Holly

Author:Rayner, Holly
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-03-30T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 11

Ashleigh

Days had passed since Connor suggested the contract marriage. I was grateful that he hadn’t brought it up since that night, but despite how ridiculous it was, my mind kept circling back around to the idea. If I was Ashleigh Brinks, I could have Connor drive me to another city, and I could take a bus or a plane anywhere in the country. I could even go to Mexico or something and disappear.

As I entered the barn, I heard a chorus of tiny mewing noises coming from one of the empty horse stalls. Peeking around the corner, I saw a few boxes, a stack of five-gallon buckets, and a few bags of feed.

“Hello?” I tiptoed into the stall just in time to see a tiny gray fuzzball disappear behind one of the boxes.

I stepped over an old piece of farm equipment, and my breath caught in my chest. A tiny wobbly kitten that couldn’t have been more than a few weeks old looked up at me, tilting his head one way and then the other. I reached for him, and he turned to dart between two stacks of boxes, but I caught him just in time.

“Hey, little guy.” I held the dirty, cold furball against my chest, and he mewed loudly in protest. “Where are your brothers and sisters, huh?”

His claws clung to my sweater as he screamed and hollered, his tiny heart racing under the palm of my hand.

“Oh, boy…”

I turned to see Connor leaning against the edge of the doorway with his arms crossed.

“Looks like you made a friend,” he said. “I haven’t seen the mama since the day before yesterday. I didn’t want to tell you, but I’m pretty sure a coyote must have got to her.”

“Do you think the other babies might be hiding around here somewhere?” I frowned, scanning the dark stall.

“If any of them survived, I imagine we’d be hearin’ ’em cry.” He tipped his hat back with the knuckle of one finger. “We can check around just to make sure, but I wouldn’t hold out too much hope.”

“What do I do with you?” I scratched the kitten behind his ear, and he finally stopped squeaking. My heart melted, and the thought of giving him up to a shelter brought a wave of sadness over me.

“May I?” Connor held out his hands, and I handed the kitten over.

Of course, Connor will know what to do with him. I swallowed the lump in my throat. I’m in no position to be adopting an animal of my own. I don’t even know how long I’m going to be here.

Connor turned him over and ran his fingers over his soft fur, examining him from head to toe, even pulling his top lip up to see the inside of his mouth.

“Well, I don’t see any fleas.” Connor sighed. “That doesn’t mean he don’t have worms, though. He’s starting to get teeth, but I doubt he’s ready to eat the dry food that we have.”

“What do we do?” I swallowed hard.

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