Hunter's Moon (Hunter Family Saga; Half-Moon Ranch 1) Read Online Free Page B

the sweet one," he said shyly,
and grinned from ear to ear.
    Crystal winked at the other men, then moved on.
    Joe saw that she was coming toward the bar, and
the heat he'd been feeling for her grew. The
bartender had told him she wasn't an ordinary
working saloon girl, but he figured there was no
harm in trying.
    "Hey, sugar, I'm looking for some company
tonight." He took her arm as she tried to move past
him.
    Though she wanted to jerk her arm free of the
cowboy's hold, Crystal managed to keep smiling as
she turned to face him.

    "I'd say you have lots of company here at the Six
Gun," she told him easily.
    "Yeah, but not the kind of company I'm looking
for," Joe said as he drew her closer.
    "You weren't looking for a good time?"
    "That's exactly what I want." He pulled her tight
against him. "And you're the one I want to give it to
me.
    Brent was standing farther down the bar, trying
to lose himself in his liquor. The last thing he
wanted was trouble. When he saw the man grab the
woman, though, he turned, more than ready to go
to her aid.
    The bartender caught Brent's eye and gave him a
quick look that stopped him from taking any further
action. Brent could see that the bartender's hand was
already resting on the shotgun he kept behind the
bar just in case of trouble. Brent relaxed a little, but
still stayed alert in case he was needed to help with
the drunk.
    "I'll be happy to sing a song just for you," Crystal
told the cowboy, playing along. She didn't want to
cause a scene, even though she was physically
repulsed by the man. It was obvious he hadn't
bathed in a very long time, and his rank, heated
breath made her flesh crawl.
    "I'm gonna make you sing, all right." Joe grinned
lustfully, thinking of how he wanted to spend the
rest of the night. He tried to kiss her.
    Somehow Crystal managed to avoid his slobber ing lips and slip free of him. Relief swept through
her as she backed up a few steps and gave him her
brightest smile. "I'm sorry, cowboy, but there's only
one man for me tonight."

    Joe looked irritated.
    "And that's Andy," Crystal finished quickly before
he could say or do anything else.
    For a moment everyone in the saloon had gone
quiet. They feared a fight was about to break out,
but at her words the tension was broken. They
started to laugh and cheer again.
    Even Brent, who had been expecting trouble,
found himself chuckling over the artful way she'd
handled the drunk. He was impressed by her quick
thinking.
    Crystal blew a kiss to the older man, who
immediately hurried to her side.
    "That's right, Miss Opal, ain't nobody gonna
treat you as good as me!" Andy understood what she
was doing and wanted to play along to help her.
"Give my lady a drink, Bill!"
    Bill did just that, pouring her a tumbler of her
preferred beverage-sarsaparilla. He handed her the
glass. After Crystal accompanied Andy back to his
table, Bill looked at the drunken cowboy, who
remained standing by the bar. It was obvious he was
still angry.
    "Ain't no use in you getting all upset, Joe. I told
you Miss Opal was a lady."
    "And she's Andy's lady, at that," he muttered sourly as he drained the last of his drink. Thorougly
disgusted and humiliated, he left the saloon.

    Crystal was glad when she saw the drunk leave.
She didn't want any trouble. She wanted the
customers to relax and have fun at the Six Gun.
    "You are my hero tonight, Andy," Crystal told
him.
    "Anytime, darling."
    She gave him another quick kiss on the cheek
before returning to the bar-and the handsome
stranger.
    "Good evening, big guy," she said, smiling up at
him.
    "Evening, ma'am," Brent replied.
    "I'm Opal. What's your name?"
    "Brent Hunter." He gazed down at her, dazzled
by her beauty. He realized she was even lovelier up
close-if that were possible. There was an innocence
about her, along with the innate sensuality he'd
sensed from the first. Although he'd heard the
bartender say she was a lady, he hadn't honestly