Free Small Town Girl by Ann H. Gabhart

talk.”
    “Looked like more than talking to me.” The farm boy put up his fists.
    “Carl, for heaven’s sake, stop acting like an idiot.” Kate was on her feet glaring at the boy.
    “Stay out of the way, Kate. This is between us men.” The farm boy’s face looked ready to burst into flames any second. His buddies, who had followed him around the house, were hanging back, waiting to see what was going to happen next.
    “I’m not fighting you.” Jay searched through his mind for the guy’s name. “Carl. Why don’t you take a deep breath and we can talk this out?”
    Jay thought he was sounding just like Mike. Peace loving. The stray thought popped into his mind then to ball up his fist and deck the guy before he knew what hit him. That was the way to do it when a man kept talking about fighting. Get it over with. But Kate was watching. He wasn’t going to make any points with the girl by smacking down the farm boy, and he wanted to tally up a few points with her.
    “There’s nothing to talk out. Kate’s my girl, and I’m not about to let no fly-by-night slick talker mess with her.” The farm boy took a menacing step toward Jay. He wasn’t wanting to be talked down.
    “Carl Noland, you leave him alone.” Kate grabbed for the hayseed’s arm, but her words only made the guy’s blood run that much hotter.
    “Look, buddy, I’ll just back away and you and Kate can work things out.” Jay took a peek over at Kate and knew that wasn’t going to happen. He didn’t want it to happen, but the words sounded peacemaking. Again what he thought Mike might say.
    When in Rome do as the Romans do and all that. Rosey Corner people probably didn’t engage in fisticuffs at wedding parties. At least not usually. However, this Carl fellow did seem determined to punch somebody. Well, not just somebody. Him. That wasn’t something Jay intended to let happen, but the top of the well was blocking his easy retreat.
    “What’s the matter, pretty boy? You chicken to fight?”
    Some of the farm boy’s friends started doing a little crowing behind him. Jay took a long, slow breath to keep from making fists. Instead he tried to step sideways away from the guy, but the guy moved over in front of him. Jay took another peek at Kate. She looked about as ready to explode as the poor, deluded farm boy who believed she was his girl. From the look on Kate’s face, the guy was going to have his illusions shattered, and soon.
    Jay should have pushed past him and left the whole mess behind. Let Kate straighten the farm boy out. But ever since he was a kid, Jay had a way of poking at whatever sore place he could see on whomever he was up against.
    “I don’t fight boys,” he said, and then he smiled. He knew better, but he did it anyway. He figured it was the smile that sent the farm boy over the edge.
    Jay feinted a little to the left so the blow didn’t hit him full in the face. Even so, the guy landed a pretty solid punch on his cheek. He could have kept his feet, but if he was going to get socked, he might as well play it to the full for Kate’s sympathy. There was more than one way to win a fight.

7

    K ate’s father broke up the fight. Not that it was much of a fight. The only punch was the one Carl threw to deck Jay Tanner. That surprised Kate. If anybody was going to deck anybody, she figured it would be Jay knocking Carl down. A man like him, who had bounced around a lot, had to know how to defend himself. But he claimed not to want to fight and he stuck to his words. After Carl punched him in the face, he just sat on the ground rubbing his cheek and working his jaw a little. It had to hurt, but the funny thing was he never completely stopped grinning. Like it was all some kind of joke.
    Carl was smiling too, proud of himself. A complete idiot. It was a good thing her father came out the back door when he did to stop the foolishness or another punch might have been thrown. Her punching Carl. She was that mad.
    “What’s