Free [Kentucky Brothers 01] - The Journey by Wanda E Brunstetter Page A

grown up around.
     
    She watched as he dismounted and led his horse to the barn. A short time later, he reappeared and strode over to where she stood by the clothesline.
     
    His eyebrows furrowed, and that same look of disgust she’d seen before settled over his face. “Would you mind tellin’ me why you left your
dumm
katz at my place when I asked you not to?”
     
    “I didn’t, and Callie’s not stupid. She jumped out of the buggy when I was driving away, and I figured she’d follow me home.”
     
    “Well, she didn’t. She made herself at home on my porch, and then when I tried to catch her this morning, so I could bring her back here, this is what I got for my trouble.” Titus held up his bandaged finger and frowned.
     
    Suzanne felt concern. “Did Callie bite you?”
     
    “Jah, and then she ran into the woods.”
     
    “I can’t believe it. Callie never bites.”
     
    “Well, she bit me.”
     
    “I’m sorry. Does it hurt much?”
     
    “It sure does, and it won’t be easy tryin’ to work with a sore hand today.”
     
    Suzanne was tempted to offer her help in the woodshop but knew Nelson would never agree to that, no matter how much work needed to be done.
     
    “You’d better keep an eye on that bite,” she said. “Cats have a lot of bacteria in their mouths, and the wound might get infected.”
     
    “I know all about that. It happened to me once when I was a boy.” He held up his finger and waved it around. “I put some antiseptic on it, so I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
     
    Suzanne was about to suggest that Titus go to the clinic and get a tetanus shot, but he started walking away.
     
    “Wait! I wanted to say something else,” she called.
     
    He halted and turned to face her. “What?”
     
    When she took a step toward him, her foot slipped on a rock, and she swayed unsteadily.
     
    He reached out to catch her. “You okay?”
     
    Suzanne’s face heated with embarrassment. “I-I’m fine. Just lost my balance when my toe hit a rock.”
     
    “So what’d you want to say to me?”
     
    “I was just going to say that if Callie shows up at your place again, maybe you should consider keeping her.”
     
    His eyebrows shot up. “Are you kidding?”
     
    She shook her head. “She probably bit you because she was scared. If you’d give her a chance, you’d see that she’d not only keep the mice down, but would make a good pet.”
     
    He held up his hand again. “Would a good pet do this?”
     
    Before Suzanne could respond, he turned and stomped off toward the shop.
     
    Suzanne clenched her teeth. It seemed like she couldn’t say anything right to Titus, and if she wasn’t saying something to irritate him, she was doing something stupid to embarrass herself. Maybe the best thing would be to stay as far away from him as possible. But with the work frolic coming up on Saturday, that might be kind of hard to do. Unless she could think of some excuse not to go.
     

C HAPTER 10
     

Los Angeles, California
     
    D on’t you just love it here?” Darlene asked Phoebe, as they flopped onto the beach towel she’d placed on the sand.
     
    “It’s okay, I guess.” Truth was, California wasn’t anything like Phoebe had expected, although she’d never admit that to Darlene. Jobs were hard to find, prices were high, and too many people crowded around. But she did like the beach access, and she sure couldn’t have had that available to her at home. She also liked the warm sunshine and all the cute guys she’d seen on the beach.
     
    Phoebe had been lucky to find a job at a local ice-cream parlor, but it was boring work, and her wrist hurt when she had to scoop out the hard ice cream to make a cone. Darlene was working as a waitress at a restaurant, which she said paid better tips than her wages. They’d pooled their money to pay rent on a small, one-bedroom apartment, but the place was run-down and not in the best part of town.
     
    While Darlene stretched out on the towel