Cowboys Mine by Stacey Espino Read Free Book Online

ring with them.
    “Don’t you dare, Colton McReed!”
    It was too late. Within seconds they both had their
arms around her to ensure she was thoroughly coated in the same filthy mess.
“Ain’t a laughing matter now, is it, little lady?”
    She scooped up an oversized handful of slop and
tossed it at Colt. Within minutes the three of them were playing in the mud,
trying to win some personal competition to stay the cleanest. They all failed
miserably.
    ****
    North fell on his ass too many times to count, his
boots continually slipping in the pig slop. He hadn’t won his hundred dollars
as hoped, but it still felt good to let loose and have some good old-fashioned
fun. Life back home was sobering. He needed this respite more than he realized.
    Eva squealed when Colt smoothed more mud on her
arms, tickling her sides when she fought back. North froze in place, suddenly
mesmerized by the sound of her laughter. He watched her squirm and smile, her long
blonde hair streaked with mud. His chest felt tight, something he noticed
getting worse the past year.
    “Save me,” Eva pleaded as she wrestled with his
brother.
    He took a breath, pushed away his uncomfortable
emotions, and rejoined Eva and Colton. She wrapped her arms around his neck
after he pushed away his brother.
    Eva looked up at him, the sun reflecting off her
bright blue eyes. He’d never realized what a cute little nose she had. As he
studied her closer, he was drawn to the swell of her lips.
    “Had enough?” he asked.
    “Maybe for one day.”
    He wanted to stay there forever, holding her close
and staring into her eyes. Instead, he pulled away and ducked between the fence
rails to get out to the pen. North was fucked up. He had no right to be looking
at Eva with anything impure in his head. Maybe his mother was right about him.
    They all looked like spectacles as they walked back
up the main street. North dipped his hat to a few staring ladies passing on the
far sidewalk. It was the only clean thing on him. They were all covered in
quickly drying mud, and he didn’t even have a red cent for his efforts. The
trailer didn’t have a proper shower, so they had to use one of the public buildings
to get washed up. After gathering up fresh clothes, they headed to the public
shower stalls.
    “Go on, Eva. We’ll stand guard,” said Colton.
    She looked in the stall skeptically, finally stepping
inside with her shampoo bottle and tossed her towel and clean clothes over the
doorframe. This was no place for a lady, especially Eva, and North had already
made that clear before they even set out on the road in the first place. The
rodeo was for hardcore cowboys and drifters. Spectators were smart enough to stay
at local hotels or in fully-equipped trailers, not relics from a bygone era
like the silver bullet.
    “No peeking,” she called out once the shower started.
It was a crude little structure like the other five lined up at the rear of the
barn. Judging by Eva’s unpleasant shrieks, there was no hot water, either.
    “I ain’t peeking. Hurry up in there so I can have my
turn.”
    As he waited outside the stall with Colt, he scanned
the area. There were countless gold diggers circling the events—bleached
blondes with pumped up cleavage. He eyed a few with interest.
    Eva was too damn good for him, and he dared not ruin
the precious bond they shared. He just needed to get laid, to lose himself in
the arms of a woman he could never lose his heart to.
     

Chapter
Five
     
    “She should have been back hours ago,” said Colton.
He sat at the kitchen table alternately watching the window and the clock.
Seagulls descended on the field where a hotdog vendor had parked during the
day. Everyone was packing up for the night.
    Eva had checked in on Bessie and Ruby every
afternoon for the past two days. She was never late coming home.
    “Like you said, she’s a big girl now,” North said
dismissively. “You sure you want to go dragging her home again?”
    “You’re