The Gunslinger (Barnett Ranch) by Pamela Ladner Read Free Book Online Page B

where are you going?”  “I’ve got things to do, people to see, and places to be.”  “Like what,” he asked.  “Not that it’s any of your business, but I’m going out to the ranch again today.  I want to work with the horses.”  “Don’t your father, pay somebody to do that.”  “Yeah, me,” she stated.
                  A few minutes later, she rode out of town on her mare.  Jax watched from hi s usual position on the porch, shaking his head at the hurry she was in then picked up his whittling stick .
                  It was a slow day as most of the drives had already come through for the summer.  Cattle drives were becoming a thing of the past as railroads had moved across the country, and could easily be used to transport cattle.  Soon, this town would no longer see cattle that did not belong to the ranchers and farmers who lived around here.  He learned most of the men who lived in Chugwater worked on one of two ranches that the town sat between.  The residents living in town were only about a handful and most made their living off of travelers and the cattle drives during the summer.  He wondered if that meant some would leave and take their businesses to Cheyenne. 
                  There were only about two hundred men and women total living in the area, ranches included.  This was the kind of town he could lay low in, because there were so few people, and the cattle drives were becoming a thing of the past.  He suddenly started seeing himself having a future, more so than he did before.  He could now see, not having to worry about strangers passing through who might recognize him.  That meant he was open to the idea of getting married and starting a family. 
                  He wondered what it was like for a father living here, building a ranch, fighting off Indians, and losing his wife.  Jax wondered what kind of man Virginia’s father might be, and then he wondered about her brothers too.  Were they anything like her?  If they were, they were tougher than most.  They were probably more honest than most too.  Virginia told you what she thought and she didn’t care if it hurt your feelings.  Not that anything she said could hurt his feelings.  He wasn’t easily offended.  People could say near about anything to him and it wouldn’t bother him.  He was unbreakable.  Then again he’d never been in love.  He imagined there was one thing that might break him, and that would be losing someone he loved more than life itself.  He remembered losing his mother.  He hadn’t been unbreakable then.
                  Mrs. Ellen walked out on the porch and sat a spell with him.  He’d been lost in his thoughts until she spoke his name.  “Jax, I don’t know wha t it is about you, that makes you so dangerous, and to tell you the truth, I don’t want to know.  I do know that you’re a good man, and you may not know it but you’ve lit a fire in Virginia, that I’ve never seen the likes of before.  She’s a good woman.   I know she’s stubborn and strong willed, but what most men fail to see under that tomboy façade is the tender heart of a woman.  You may not see it but its there.  So please be careful, with what you say and do around her.  I don’t want to see her hurt.” 
    Jax looked at Mrs. Ellen and his eyes narrowed.  Just what, was she trying to say?  It wasn’t as if he and Virginia were courting.  He’d imagined a kiss once or twice but nothing more than that.  He thought about her words.  What did she mean by saying he lit a fire in Virginia?  He looked at his boots propped on the post.  His thoughts centered on those very words.  Was Virginia interested in him?  That couldn’t be.  He was too old for her. 
                  He crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair.  His mind grasped the thought of Virginia as a woman in love with him.  What would that be like to