Cowboy Kisses Read Online Free Page B

Silent will ru b off on Ken zie and she won’t talk so much!”
    “ Real funny, Brad, ” Kenzie snorted. “ If you aren’t nice , I’ll find out who Sarah’s designer is and Jeanette and I will start dressing the way she does. ”
    “ No way! ” Jeanette declared with a giggle.
    Kenzie hurried to the rear of the trailer and was about to open the door when she saw Steve Calvert. How long had he been standing back there? Had he heard everything they’d been saying?
    Without a word, Steve climbed into the trailer and backed Ali down the ramp Kenzie hastily slid into place. He silently handed her Ali’s lead line and picked up the Arabian’s sad dle and bridle as Kenzie’s friends joined them.
    Hoping she sounded normal, Kenzie quickly made introducti ons, her face still hot with em barrassment.
    Steve shook hands with the guys and tipped his cowboy hat at Jeanette. “ Nice meeting you, ” he said, then turne d away and headed toward the barn .
    Kenzie hurried after him, leading Ali. Turning back to her friends, she briefly rolled her eyes.
    “ He’s gotta be Deputy Ramrod! ” Paul said much too loudly.
    Kenzie cringed. Had Steve heard? It w as hard to tell because his hat shaded most of his face, but in profile he didn’t look up set. Reluctantly she admitted that Steve had a ve ry nice profil e. His straight nose, interrupted slightly by a bump in the middle, and long dark ey elashes made him look both rugged and oddly gentle.
    He made a d etour into the tack room, plac ing Ali’s saddle on a rack and hanging the b ridl e on a pe g. Then he stroked Ali’s neck while they walked to the stall he’d pointed out to Kenzie on her first visit to the ranch.
    “ What’s his name? ” Steve asked.
    “ Ali Ben, ” Kenzie answered. “ I call him Ali.”
    Steve opened the stall door so Kenzie coul d lead the horse in. “ How long have you had him? ”
    “ Five years, ” Kenzie said, unfastening th e lead line from Ali’s halter. She decided to a sk him a question for a change. “ Do you ha ve your own horse? ”
    “ Sure. ” Steve gestured with his thumb to a saddled Appaloosa gelding tied nearby. “ That ’s Cheyenne. ”
    “ Cheyenne? ” Kenzie repeated.
    Steve’s eyes narrowed. “ Yeah—Cheyenne. It’s not a fancy name like Ali Ben, but then he’s just a plain old mustang, not an expensive Thoroughbred. ” He stomped out of Ali’s stall, grabbed Cheyenne’s reins, and swung into the saddle, trotting out of the ba rn by the rear entrance.
    Kenzie stared after him. “ What did I do? ” she asked her horse. Ali nickered sympathetically, which made Kenzie smile. She made certain that Ali was comfortable in his new stall until she heard the Jeep horn.
    “I ’ll be back tomorrow, and we’ll explore the Lucky R together, ” she promised, giving the Arabian a kiss on the nose before she left.
    As she headed for the Jeep, Kenzie saw Steve and Cheyenne in the main corral. “ Hey, Blondie, ” Steve yelled. “ Don’t forget to wear a hat next time, or you might fry your brains! ”
    “ The name’s Kenzie ,” she shouted, climbing into the Jeep and glaring at him. “ Don’t you forget that !”
    “ Fighting already? ” Jeanette asked as Brad drove through the Lucky R gates.
    “ Deputy Ramrod’s ticked off about some thing, ” Kenzie said, “ but I'm not sure what it is. All I know is that he’s a royal pain, and I’m stuck with him for the rest of the summer! ”
    Pizza and video games didn’t do much to im prove Kenzie’s bad mood. By the time Brad ’s Jeep pulled into the Sullivans’ driveway, eve ry one had noticed that she wasn’t her usu al sunny self.
    “ Are you feeling okay? ” Paul asked, putti ng an arm around her shoulders.
    “ Yeah—y ou’re awfully quiet. Maybe Silent Sarah’s condition is affecting you alrea dy,” Brad joked.
    “ She’s fine ,” Jeanette said. She smiled at Kenzie. “ A little nervous about the job, huh? ”
    “ A lot nervous, ”