Jesse by C H Admirand Read Free Book Online

handle.
    Breathing deeply, Jesse surveyed the land around him and smiled. They’d continued the Garahan tradition of cultivating their pastureland with a mixture of native grasses: little bluestems, Bermuda grass, crabgrass, millet, and love grass in the warm season, and cereal rye, rye, and wheat in the cool season for extended spring grazing.
    They’d never really been certain about Grandpa’s insistence that the love grass would encourage fertility and the millet would discourage prussic acid. But their herd produced healthy offspring every spring, and they’d been careful not to plant any sorghum or Sudan grass, both known to contain prussic acid—the deadly, fast-acting plant toxin—so there hadn’t been a reason to doubt his word.
    â€œAnd most folks think a cowboy’s life is easy.” Still smiling, Jesse made his way through the longhorns grazing peacefully on the rise. Satisfied that everything was normal, he moved to the next section he’d been assigned that morning. Danielle and Lacy weren’t far from his thoughts. Distracted, he fought to regain his balance by drawing in a breath and looking around him. A deep calm washed over him, because as far as he could see lay Garahan land. Pride filled him. They were holding on to the Circle G and contributing to the heritage of the great state of Texas by continuing to raise longhorns. They’d thought about crossbreeding, but in the end hadn’t because so many of their herd’s qualities were appealing; longhorns are intelligent, gentle, and long lived. The cows are productive and protective, while the bulls are strong and sturdy with lean, flavorful beef. Though he’d learned early on that they weren’t pets, he had named a few when he was younger.
    Even though the calving season was over, they were still vigilant, as far as keeping an eye out for the calves that would somehow manage to get caught in places they couldn’t get out of. They were easy to find, because the calf’s mother would either be doing her best to extricate her young or bawling like crazy to let one of them know there was a problem.
    A man of the land and committed to their way of life, Jesse wondered what it would be like to have a woman by his side, just as determined. Would she be like Emily—not all that savvy when it came to raising stock but an absolute whiz with accounting and pinching pennies? Maybe she would be more like Ronnie, a great cook but also at home in the saddle.
    His thoughts drifted back to the pretty little blonde and her pink, pixie daughter. Something about Danielle as an adult reminded him of her when she was younger. The sound of rapidly approaching horses drew him back to the present. He turned toward the sound. “What’s up?”
    â€œDidn’t you hear us calling you?” Dylan demanded.
    He shrugged.
    â€œWe’re finished out here, heading back to the ranch.” Tyler asked, “You coming?”
    â€œYeah. Herd looks good.”
    â€œIt was a productive spring,” Tyler agreed. “Now all we have to do is keep our eyes peeled and our ears on.”
    â€œWe’ll be ready for trouble,” Dylan said. “Not that we expect any, but it pays to be ready for anything.”
    â€œHave we alienated anyone in town lately?”
    Dylan grinned. “Weren’t you the last one in town, Bro?”
    Jesse shrugged. “I paid down some of the feed bill and what we owed at Dawson’s.”
    Tyler was watching him like a hawk about to snag a fat mouse on the fly. “You didn’t stop off at the bank to pick a fight with Mike Baker, did you?”
    â€œHell no,” Jesse grumbled. “I haven’t talked to him since before his sister tried to get her hooks into your hide a little while back.”
    Tyler clenched his jaw.
    Dylan snickered. “She was persistent. You have to give her that much.”
    â€œJust don’t let Emily hear you