The Forest Ranger's Promise by Leigh Bale Read Free Book Online Page A

to remember that.
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    â€œYou shouldn’t be in here.” Anne eyed the strange girl as she stepped into the shadows of the lambing shed.
    The black-and-white dog followed Shelley inside, and Anne pointed at the door while speaking in a stern tone. “Get out, Bob. You know you’re not supposed to be in the lambing sheds.”
    Used to responding promptly to orders, Bob obeyed without even a whine.
    Anne frowned when the girl didn’t turn and follow the dog out. “Who are you?”
    â€œI’m Shelley. Your mom told me to come and help you feed the baby lambs.”
    Anne stared at the girl’s long, bare legs, white sandals and blue-painted toenails. Maybe Mom would let her buy some blue nail polish the next time they went shopping in Evanston. All she had was pink and red. “You can’t feed lambs dressed like that.”
    â€œWhy not?” Shelley stepped backward into a pile of manure. Crinkling her nose with repugnance, she wiped her sandal off on a clean bed of straw before moving to stand over by the wall.
    Anne shook her head in disgust, figuring she didn’t need to point out the obvious. “Where’d you come from?”
    â€œMy dad and I brought your mom a plate of chocolate chip cookies.”
    That sounded nice. Cookies were okay with Anne. “Do you have sheep?”
    Shelley shook her head. “No, but I have a cat named Wilson.”
    Strange name for a cat. “Who’s your dad?”
    â€œScott Ennison.”
    Anne scowled. She should have known. “You shouldn’t be back here.”
    â€œWhy not?”
    â€œâ€™Cause we’re enemies.”
    Shelley’s eyes widened. “We are?”
    â€œYes. You’re Forest Service and I’m a rancher. Don’t you know anything?”
    â€œI’m not Forest Service. I’m just a kid.”
    â€œIt doesn’t matter,” Anne scoffed. “Your dad’s the ranger.”
    â€œSo? Can’t we still be friends?”
    Anne glared at her. “Of course not.”
    â€œWhy not?”
    Anne searched her mind for a valid reason that didn’t sound childish. She tried to remember why her dad hated forest rangers so much, but he’d never really told her his reasons. Just that they forced him to graze his sheep where he didn’t want to graze them. Anne had hated it when Dad drank from his bottle because he got even angrier at the ranger. One time she had even climbed up the cupboard and hidden Dad’s bottle so he wouldn’t drink anymore. When he found it missing, he’d blamed Mom and slapped her across the face. Mom must have known it had been Anne who had taken the bottle, but she never said a word. Mom’s face and lips had been swollen for a week, making Anne feel guilty. Even now, she missed Daddy more than she could say. If he’d just come back home, she’d promise never to hide his bottle again.
    When she realized that Shelley was still waiting for an answer, Anne shoved away the painful memories and faced her nemesis. “Your dad bosses my mom around.”
    â€œYou’re a liar. My dad’s nice. He helps ranchers.”
    Anne pursed her lips when she saw the ugly glare on the other girl’s face. She didn’t want to fight with this stranger. Mom would find out and then she’d be in big trouble. “We’ll see.”
    Shelley shrugged, then bent over to pet the fluffy wool of a two-month-old lamb. The little animal hurried by to get at the stalls where Anne was setting up the feeder. Eight pens divided the shed. Anne set out bottles with rubber nipples on a feeding rack, then opened the gateand brought in seven little lambs one at a time. The babies nuzzled up to suckle. One zipped past Shelley, its tail wagging like a whirling dervish as it latched on to a bottle with ferocity. Shelley gave a startled yelp.
    â€œYou don’t need to be afraid of them. They’re just hungry,” Anne