BROKEN by Kimberley Reeves Read Free Book Online Page B

anything he could do about the past, but he was going to make damn sure she didn’t ride out alone again.
    Mitch followed Jessie’s lead as she removed the saddle and blanket from Serina then replaced the bridle with a halter and tethered her horse just outside the stall.   After storing everything back in the tack room , they brushed down the horses, grained them, laid down fresh straw, and finally headed up to the house.   They showered together, which was definitely the highlight of his day, then trudged down to the kitchen to start dinner for the ranch hands.
    “What are you doing?”   Jessie asked, when he plucked a handful of potatoes from the bin and carried them to the sink.
    “You said we were having steak and baked potatoes for dinner.   I thought I’d get these washed up and in the oven while you put the meat on the grill.”   When she just stood there gaping at him, he wondered if Adam had been the one to do the grilling.   “Did you want to switch jobs?   I’d be happy to do the steaks instead.”
    “No, I…”   Jessie shook her head.   “It’s just that you’ve never even offered to help before.”
    Mitch closed the distance between them and gathered her in his arms.   “It was wrong of me, Jess.   You work too hard as it is .  I t was incredibly inconsiderate of me to let you make the meals by yourself.”
    Jessie smiled up at him.   “Who are you,” she teased, “and what have you done with Adam?”
    Pain shot through his heart.   He’s dead , Mitch thought, as the grief over his brother’s loss renewed itself.     But he couldn't tell her Adam was gone, or how much it tortured him to think of it.
    “What would you say if I told you he was gone, that he was never coming back?”
    Jessie stood on her toes and planted a kiss on his lips.   “I’d say I like the new and improved Adam Kincaid much better.”
    Guilt was steeped on top of the other emotions battering his heart.   “Why did you put up with it, Jess?   You should have booted me out long ago for the way I treated you.”
    She wound her arms around his neck.   “You’re a good man, Kincaid , you always have been.   Maybe you weren’t the most considerate man when it came to things like making dinner, but I didn’t mind because I like d taking care of you.   Besides, you made up for it in other ways.”
    Mitch frowned.   “How ?  B y taking you to bed?”

Chapter 4
    “Well, there is that,” she grinned, recalling the heated love-making session in the shower not thirty minutes before.  
    Judging by the somber look on his face, Kincaid wasn’t amused .  Instinctively, Jessie knew it was important it was for him to know that he brought more to the relationship than just great sex.  
    “Kincaid, do you honestly believe that’s all you’re good for?   So what if you have an aversion to cooking and housework?   You’ve always been more than willing to help around the ranch and you’ve never been anything but kind and caring towards me.   You’re good to me, and you fill a void that no one else could.”
    “Kind and caring,” he said derisively.   “How caring was it to abandon you for months at a time, or to pop up unannounced expecting you to welcome me with open arms?”  
    Mitch’s scowl deepened.  It was Adam he was angry with, Adam who had hurt her time and time again, yet he took on the guilt and shame as if it was his own.
    “You deserved more, Jess.”
    “I knew what I was getting into when I agreed to this relationship, Kincaid.   Yes, it’s lonely sometimes , but I have the ranch work to keep me busy.   The hardest part was not knowing if you were okay, or if…if each good-bye was the last.”
    Mitch hugged her to him fiercely.   “I’m so sorry, Jess.   If I was half as smart as I’ve always prided myself in being, I never would have left you.   But you won’t have to wait and worry ever again.”
    Jessie squeezed her eyes shut .  W ith all her heart , she