How to Handle a Cowboy by Joanne Kennedy Read Free Book Online Page B

needed to love their parents, and it was amazing how long they’d cling to a version of reality that let them justify that love.
    â€œYou all don’t have nowhere to go either,” Isaiah said to the boys in the car. “You’re all just talk.”
    As usual, his bad attitude silenced the rest of the boys. Sierra glanced at Ridge, and he nodded. The heavy latch opened with a clang and she strode into the junkyard, followed by Ridge and Josh.
    â€œHey,” Carter said. “Who’s—oh, shit, guys. We’re busted.” He ducked back into the car, banging his head on the roof. “Damn it, Josh told. I knew he would. I’m going to kill that kid.”
    ***
    Ridge had once seen a rabbit caught by a coyote. At the moment it felt the beast’s jaws clamp on its neck, the normally silent rabbit had let out a high, thin cry that pierced his heart. That was the sound Josh made now, as the boys turned and glared at him.
    Ridge stifled the urge to put a protective hand on the boy’s shoulder. The gesture would put the boy solidly on the side of the adults—a move that would make his life hell as long as he stayed with this group of boys. Instead, he shot a glance at Sierra, to see if she’d seen how much promises meant to this little gang.
    â€œJosh didn’t tell me anything,” she said.
    He supposed that was true. Josh hadn’t told her; he’d told Ridge.
    Judging from the thunderous look the black kid shot at Josh, he wasn’t buying it.
    â€œSnitch,” he muttered.
    Sierra gave the boys a sharp nod, and they immediately spilled out of the old Chevy—all but the black kid, who paused a moment and met her eyes with a hostile glare of his own. Ridge recognized that look. He’d had the same one in his own arsenal once upon a time.
    â€œIsaiah,” Sierra said. “Out.”
    Isaiah must have decided this wasn’t a good time to test authority, because he quickly followed the others. He headed straight for Josh, who was doing his best to hide in Ridge’s shadow.
    Ridge drew himself up to his full height and looked Isaiah in the eye. That bit of body language apparently worked as well with kids as it did with horses, because Isaiah turned away and kicked at the ground, creating a little cloud of dust that settled over the toe of his running shoes. His kick uncovered an old piece of rusted metal, which he picked up and studied, those angry brows drawn down in concentration. A change of subject and he’d forget all about Josh.
    â€œVegas, huh?” Ridge grinned at the curly-haired kid and yanked the brim of his old hat down over his face. The kid tilted his head back and gave him a cocky grin.
    â€œYou bet. Vegas, baby! Got a gig with Rihanna.”
    â€œI’d stay away from that chick,” Ridge said. “She’s trouble.”
    A lively argument ensued over whether the singer’s hotness made dying at the hands of her various paramours worthwhile. Ridge could feel Josh releasing tension beside him, like a balloon slowly expelling air, as the conversation shifted from reality to fantasy.
    â€œSo, are you a real cowboy?” one of the boys asked. “With a horse and everything?”
    Ridge nodded, settling for a half-truth. He did have a horse—several horses. But he was a long way from having “everything.”
    He didn’t have a career, for example. Or a future. Or a woman.
    â€œSo can we ride it?” the boy prodded. It was the black kid, the one who had the face of an angel until he unleashed that rebellious glare.
    â€œNo,” Sierra said. “If you want extra activities, you need to show you can be responsible. You have to make good decisions. And locking the pantry door was not a good decision. Leaving the house without permission was an even worse one. Did anybody get their homework done?”
    The response was a lot of shuffling and mumbling.
    â€œThat’s what I