The Cowboy and the Calendar Girl by Nancy Martin Read Free Book Online Page A

much.”
    Hank felt panic rising up around his ears. Suddenly he wanted to strangle his sister. “But, Becky...”
    “The boys and I can handle things around here. You go up into the hills and see what turns up.”
    “Sounds wonderful!” Carly cried, looking as starry-eyed as any city-bred greenhorn on her first day at the dude ranch. “I’ll go see about a picnic, if you’ll find me a suitable horse, Hank.”
    “Perfect plan,” Becky said, looking pleased with herself.
    Hank watched Carly turn and jog toward the house, and his dismay faded. Her beautifully curved backside looked great in jeans.
    Maybe spending the day with her wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
    Becky leaned down from the saddle to murmur in her brother’s ear. “It’ll be fun. I promise. Besides, she’ll just be in the way around here today.”
    “Don’t try to make it sound like you’re looking out for her safety,” Hank growled. “You’re just getting me deeper and deeper into trouble—and you’re enjoying it!”
    “I think you’re going to like this kind of trouble,” Becky predicted. “C’mon. I’ll find you some gear and a couple of horses.”
    “A couple of ancient ones, please,” Hank said, following his sister.
    Half an hour later, Hank found himself holding the reins of two animals that had been humanely retired to the Fowler ranch after long lives cutting cattle elsewhere. Becky had a soft heart for old horses—no doubt one of the reasons why her finances were always such a mess.
    “This one’s Laverne,” Becky said, patting the speckled neck of a sad-looking Appaloosa. “And this one’s Buttercup. Which one do you want?”
    “They both look like they’re on their last legs.”
    “Oh, you’ll be surprised how much life they’ve got left. Just don’t gallop them for hours.”
    Hank eyed the two prospects and decided Buttercup was at least capable of supporting his weight. Laverne looked as if a trip to the glue factory might be a mercy, but Becky wouldn’t hear of such a thing and assured him Laverne was capable of carrying Carly.
    He struggled to saddle the two horses, and Carly came bouncing back from the house with a picnic lunch wrapped up in a canvas satchel. She had added a sweater and a down-filled vest to her ensemble and looked like a city slicker ready for a trail ride. Hank dutifully added her picnic to their overstuffed saddlebags.
    “Why do we need all this stuff?” he whispered to Becky when she added more gear to Buttercup’s load.
    “You never know what might happen,” Becky murmured back.
    “You don’t suppose Laverne’s going to kick the bucket on this trip?” Hank asked, nervously watching as Carly petted the Appaloosa’s spotted nose.
    “I was thinking more along the lines of you getting lost,” Becky retorted. She jerked her head to indicate Carly. “Help her into the saddle, hero.”
    “This is so exciting!” Carly cried as Hank boosted her up onto Laverne. She didn’t notice as Laverne let out a gusty sigh of resignation. Fortunately Carly also didn’t seem to grasp the elderly condition of either one of the horses Becky had selected for them.
    Hank took his courage in hand and hauled himself into Buttercup’s slippery saddle.
    Despite all the years he’d spent in the great outdoors, Hank had never mastered the art of riding and tended to spend most of his horseback time hyperventilating. He was athletic enough in other sports, but the skills required for sitting on a moving horse continued to elude him. Long ago he’d decided it was probably a mental block brought on by some psychological reasoning that only a few decades of psychotherapy could fix.
    But instead of seeing a shrink, he just stayed away from horses.
    This time that wasn’t possible.
    Becky gave Carly a few quick instructions about riding Laverne and made Carly practice some turns around the corral. Satisfied after several minutes, Becky nodded and opened the gate. “You’re a natural,” she