Free A Cowboy For Christmas by Kristen James Page A

and rested on his shoulder.
    “ Can we be friends again?”
she asked. Feeling her in his arms stirred protective feelings. She
felt like a fragile fawn, too wobbly to stand on its new legs. Her
lavender and spice scent stirred other things, but he ignored
them.
    “ Friends, Missy.” And anything else you want from
me . He hoped she sensed that thought
because speaking it wouldn’t be right.
    He couldn’t fight for a
woman who asked him for his friendship. She clearly needed that,
someone to depend on. He could be a good friend, it had always been
the more that
caused problems.
     
    * * * *
    After she looked out her
window the next morning and saw Brent working with horses, Missy
stayed indoors for the day. Somehow she had to keep busy and not
think about their kisses.
    The cabin had no TV, so she
tried to finish the cleaning. She’d added some touches of her own
here and there, though she’d been hesitant to replace Ben’s things
with her own.
    Coming here turned her life
around. She’d spent three years thinking about the firm, her
accounts, building her reputation. She’d fought and won
battles.
    Now she questioned what
she’d been fighting for. Whatever she sought before, wasn’t
there.
    She stood by the window
that faced down the road, toward Brent’s house. She couldn’t see
it.
    After glancing around the
empty cabin, she went outside for a walk. It was eleven, and she
saw Dale and Ivan working on the fence Brent was adding to section
off the pasture.
    She needed to talk to them,
without Brent around. What better way to befriend two men than with
food? She headed inside to fix something. Twenty minutes later, she
brought them hot drinks and sandwiches and hung around to hear
their rodeo stories.
    Halfway through Dale’s
recounting of the time he broke four ribs, she heard Brent’s giant
truck hauling down the gravel road. She knew she wouldn’t get out
of there in time without being rude, and that would undo her
efforts with the men.
    He pulled the truck up by
his house and headed their way. Why should she avoid him? She’d
never felt so safe with anyone else.
    She watched him walk,
watched his long jean-clad legs. He was dependable about those
jeans. Every day she got to drool over him in them.
    Teasing aside, he was
patient. He gave great massages. Cooked her a wonderful dinner. And
every time, he walked her home without making a move. Until that
kiss.
    She met his gaze, wondering
if he could tell what she was thinking about.
    “ So this is what I miss
when I head into town for a day?”
    “ You should take off more
often.” Ivan grinned over his sandwich.
    Brent gave her a
look.
    “ I wasn’t sure what to do
with myself. You weren’t here handing out chores.” She tried for
the light tone that their teasing had carried before, but when her
gaze met his, she could tell he wouldn’t see her as an annoying
city girl ever again.
    Dale and Ivan both seemed
to miss his lack of response and jumped knee-deep into conversation
about getting the fence finished before the rain came
back.
    “ Thanks for lunch, Missy,”
Dale said as the two men headed back to work.
    “ Seems they like
you.”
    “ I try.” She picked up the
tray and mugs.
    “ Listen, you don’t need me
telling you what to do. If you want to join them, go ahead. Or go
for a ride. Feed the horses.”
    “ Are you tired of bossing
me around?” She gave him a grin, but he saw through it.
    “ You don’t need bossing
around.” He tipped his hat and turned to leave.
    Just like that? She watched
him go, sinking inside. Why wasn’t she happy that he listened to
her? First time she’d ever gotten a man to do what she wanted, and
it didn’t want to make her dance around. Darn him!
    She took the dishes back to
the house before she headed down to the stables. If she’d learned
anything, it was how to muck out a stall, so she took on the dirty
job with a vengeance.
    Did he think she wanted
space? Yeah, she’d asked to be friends, and