Free Once Upon a Cowboy by Day Leclaire Page A

and dumped in her muddy clothes and a cupful of detergent. Her mouth curved downward.
    Here she stood, squeaky clean from head to toe and poor Holt rode the range with mud filled boots, a dusty hat and a six-inch coating of muck. By now the muck would have dried beneath the warm spring sun into something akin to plaster. If he hadn't been cemented in place atop his horse, he'd at least be itchy and miserable. And ticked.
    And it was all her fault.
    With a sigh, she started the washer and turned to leave. Feeling guilty wouldn't help. Nothing she could do would help, except, perhaps, to stay away from ropes, mud holes, and Holt. And considering that cowboying on the A-OK frequently involved all three, her future looked decidedly dicey.
    Time to get moving. Time to return to work. Time to give Holt more of her special brand of help. She hesitated, her gaze falling once again on the stack of clean clothes lining the folding table. Inspiration struck. Maybe, just maybe, she'd found a way to make amends.
    Snatching up jeans, shirt, and a towel and washcloth, she headed for her horse. Shoving her collection into the saddlebags, she mounted. "Come on, Petunia. Let's find Holt. He sure is going to be pleased when he sees what I've brought him."
    They'd be working down by the river, he'd said. To her surprise, she found him in the first pasture she crossed. She pulled up short and watched, her brow wrinkled in confusion. What in the world was going on? Frank and Holt, whistling and hiyahing for all they were worth, pursued a bunch of longhorn cows.
    She took another look. Those weren't just cows they were attempting to corral. The herd contained a huge infuriated bull, as well. Cami winced as a wickedly curved horn slashed a path inches from Holt's thigh. This was no place for an amateur, she realized, deciding to sit tight. She didn't dare risk distracting Holt. And without doubt, she seemed to have an uncanny knack for distracting, not to mention riling the man.
    An instant later, a huge longhorn thundered by, heading straight for Holt's back. On the other hand... Acting on sheer instinct, she clipped her heels against Petunia's rump and gave chase. She reached for her rope and hesitated, an image of this morning's disaster flashing before her eyes. The longhorn continued on its path of certain disaster and Cami realized she needed to act fast. If she didn't stop the beast, Holt would be on the hurting end of those horns.
    Without further consideration, she shoved her hand into her pocket and yanked out a yo-yo. Petunia increased her stride, until they were just behind the cow. Cami hollered a warning to Holt. He whirled around, but she knew it was too late for him to escape those huge horns. She let fly with the yo-yo.
    The bright red yo-yo spun to within a hair of the longhorn's nose and jerked back, looping around and around one horn. Cami slipped the string off her finger and pulled Petunia up short. The cow bellowed a protest and skidded to an abrupt halt, inches shy of Holt. The yo-yo dipped and bobbed, dangling from one horn like a giant earring. Completely distracted, the longhorn stood, front legs spread wide, and shook its head, attempting to rid itself of this new annoyance.
    A split second later, Holt cut between her and the irate cow, swiftly guiding her clear of harm's way.
    "She was going to gore you. It was the only thing I could think of to stop her," Cami explained breathlessly. "I didn't dare use my rope. Not after this morning. Like as not, I'd have lassoed you or Loco instead of the longhorn. And I didn't want to hurt the poor thing, just get her attention off you."
    "Fast thinking, Tex," he soothed. "I don't doubt for a minute that you saved my hide. Stay right here. Don't move from this spot. Understand?"
    "Sure thing." Her confused gaze moved to the chaotic scene around them. "I don't understand. What's going on?"
    "We need to finish corralling that bull and get him to his own pasture. Do not," he paused,