Cowboy's Pride (Welcome to Covendale Book 1) by Morgan Blaze Read Free Book Online Page B

for God’s sake. “Why can’t he fill his truck? Seriously, if money’s the problem, I’ll pay for it.”
    “Sydney, don’t.”
    There was a warning in Cam’s voice. She chose to ignore it. “I’m trying to help, you jackass!” she said. “You helped me last night. I’m returning the favor.”
    “I don’t need—”
    “All right,” Kenny said loudly, and pointed at Cam. “You get out of here,” he said. Then he turned to Sydney. “And you, miss. I can’t look at your truck today. Got a lot of work came in ahead of you.”
    “ What? ” She gestured wildly around the empty lot. “Where?”
    “Can’t do it. You’ll have to leave.”
    “I don’t believe this,” she said. “Is this a joke? Do you have hidden cameras around here somewhere? If you think I’m going to—”
    A hand on her arm startled her so badly, she almost screamed. “Easy, Tiger,” Cam’s deep voice murmured in her ear. “He’s not worth it.”
    She shivered all over and drew a couple of slow breaths before she could look at him. Once again, his expression was unreadable—but she thought she saw amusement deep in his eyes. “He doesn’t have to treat you like a…leper or something,” she said. “And I need my truck fixed.”
    Cam let out a sigh and glanced at his pickup. “Follow me,” he said. “I know someone who can fix it.”
    She managed a small smile. “Why are you being so nice to me?”
    “Damned if I know.”
    Anger flashed through her, but it vanished when she caught his crooked smirk. “All right,” she said. “I’ll follow you.”
    Kenny watched without comment as they headed for their separate trucks. She really wanted to say something more—a lot more—but Cam was right. He wasn’t worth it. She started the engine and drove around behind the farm truck, expecting him to head further into town.
    But he pulled out and turned down Old Hickory, toward the Leaning T. That could only mean he planned to fix it himself. He was going out of his way to help her, again, even though she’d given him no reason to. It made her want to cry.
    Instead, she decided she was going to help him out with something, somehow—whether he liked it or not.
    * * * *
    Cam parked by the house and killed the engine. He’d half hoped Sydney wouldn’t stay behind him, that she’d change her mind once she realized where he was headed and look for some other sucker to rescue her. He did not have time for this—the ranch didn’t run itself, damn it.
    But he couldn’t help offering after she tried to stick up for him. No one had done that in years. And she shouldn’t have, because now that bastard Kenny wouldn’t give her the time of day.
    He had a sinking feeling that Boyd Lowell was behind the mechanic’s sudden change of heart. Kenny leased the garage from him. Hell, maybe the man was planning to cut him off from every business he influenced, which was almost all of them, so he’d be forced to leave town.
    That wasn’t going to happen. Not as long as he was still breathing.
    A door shut behind him, and he climbed out reluctantly. It was hard for him to look at Sydney for more than a few minutes. She’d been pretty and sweet in high school, and now she was downright gorgeous. And smart, and brave, and hot-tempered—a quality he happened to love.
    Tommy-Boy definitely didn’t deserve her.
    She smiled, and he had to look away before it burned him. “So where’s the guy you know who can fix my truck?” she said.
    “You’re looking at him.” He coughed into a hand. “It’s going to take a few hours, so…I don’t know what you’ll do. There isn’t much entertainment around here.”
    “I’ll help you.”
    He snorted. “The sun’s up,” he said. “I don’t need you to hold a flashlight.”
    The brief hurt in her eyes made him regret saying that. But she shrugged and walked toward his truck, and gestured at the feed bags. “You probably need to unload those somewhere, right?” she said. “I can do