Free A Cowboy For Christmas by Kristen James Page B

that meant she wanted
to spend time around him.
    She needed him.
    Where did that come from?
She didn’t need anyone.
     
    * * * *
    Look at that. Her hair
flying and dancing with the horse’s gait, Missy rode Speckle with
an ease that usually came with years of riding. The smile, too,
went with a deep love of horses and joy of riding.
    Maybe she hadn’t grown up
in the lifestyle, but it suited her. And he’d never seen anyone
look as good as she did on a horse. Relaxed, in rhythm, and
graceful.
    She’d been all over the
property lately, and he hoped it was to look for him. He stepped
away from the corner of the stables and raised a hand. She turned
Speckle and trotted up, a cautious smile on her face.
    “ Brent.” She wore that
burgundy sweater that made him want to touch her. While its color
put a rose tone to her skin, it clung to her in all the right
places.
    “ Howdy, stranger.” Brent
almost grinned when he thought of what his friends would say about
him using reverse psychology.
    Missy didn’t want him to
push her or ask about her past, so he wouldn’t. His quiet, steady
way would win her over. Not that his emotion about her felt quiet
in any way. Working with her day after day made them louder and
louder, harder to control.
    “ Taking her in?” he asked,
shoving his hands into his coat pockets to keep them
warm.
    “ Yeah. What are you up to?”
She swung down and led Speckle into the stable yard.
    “ Just hanging around,” he
said, keeping it vague, and managed to keep the grin off his face
as he walked in with her. She didn’t need to know how glad he was
to see her again.
    She looked amazing as she
fed and brushed the horse. So natural and caring. When she led
Speckle back into her stall, the rain suddenly came down hard
enough to make a thundering sound through the stable
roof.
    “ I was thinking about my
brother,” she said as she moved on to pet a different horse. He
busied himself by bringing hay over.
    “ I’ve done some of that
lately.” He kept his tone light, but those weren’t words with a
light meaning.
    “ Do you miss him?” she
asked, then answered herself. “Of course you do. I’m sorry if it’s
hard having me here, instead of him.”
    He stopped to look at her.
“Listen, the circumstances aren’t great, but I’m glad you’re
here.”
    “ You are?” She turned this
time, and her eyes had that same lost look he’d seen the first time
they spoke. “I wish I'd gotten my priorities straight and come for
a visit sooner. He invited me. I guess you don’t know that since he
didn’t even tell you about me.” She turned back to her
work.
    “ Missy, he didn’t tell me
about the rest of his life. That’s how men are. He didn’t know much
about me before we became friends. Even when Amanda left, he didn’t
ask me to explain.”
    “ Amanda?”
    Shoot, he’d just blown the
mood, and now he had to explain. “She’s the reason I have that
house. She was a part of this when it started, but she took off
after two months. I guess that’s why I thought you’d see life on a
ranch and head back to the city.”
    “ One woman, all women, huh?
I’ve made the same mistake about men.” She flicked a look over at
him, and he decided to take that as apology for her turning him out
the other day. He’d heard enough to know her old boss had taken
advantage of her.
    “ So are you heading
anywhere for Thanksgiving?”
    She looked surprised at the
change in subject, but didn't call him on it.
    “ I don’t do much for any
holiday. Maybe watch football.”
    Was he supposed to laugh at
that? He’d never heard of a woman who didn’t celebrate the
holidays. “I wasn’t sure if you have family in the
area.”
    “ I don’t have family
anywhere, not anymore.” She moved on to a new horse and began to
brush, as if this wasn’t a heavy conversation. But it wasn’t the
weather and it did matter.
    “ I guess I forgot to tell
you.” He started talking while he thought it through. “If