Never Marry a Cowboy Read Online Free PDF Page B

Dallas.
    With a sigh, she cautiously approached the cheval glass. At twenty-six, Ashton thought she should know how to dress for an afternoon outing with a gentleman. She’d certainly read an abundance of books, living through the written word a life that she had thought her poor health would forever keep her from experiencing. She’d been a sickly child, tutored at home, and sheltered from people who might bring disease into the house.
    In the end, influenza had taken her parents when they’d feared it would take her. The only comfort she’d found in knowing her own death was near had resided in the knowledge that she would be with them again.
    She shook away the melancholy thoughts. She wasgoing on an outing. She’d napped, bathed, and put on a white summer dress and a straw hat with daisies lining the brim. Critically she gazed at her reflection. White made her look like a ghost. She wished she had something a bit more flamboyant.
    The unexpected knock on the door nearly had her leaping into the mirror. Taking a shallow breath, hoping to prevent a coughing seizure, she tucked one errant strand of hair beneath her hat and strolled across the room. She opened the door and smiled at David. With his dark hair and eyes, he hardly seemed related to her. Until she’d met Christian Montgomery, she hadn’t realized men more handsome than her brother existed.
    â€œHe’s here,” David said.
    Like a silly schoolgirl, she pressed her hand over her fluttering heart and tried to sound as though this moment wasn’t the most exciting of her life. “Where all do you suppose he’ll take us?”
    David crooked his elbow, and she slipped her arm through his, drawing her shawl closely with the other hand, resenting the chill that never seemed to leave her.
    â€œI doubt he’ll take us far. I’ve already explained to him that you tire easily, and he’s not to keep us out long.”
    Her heart stopped its fluttering, and the moment took on the gravity of reality. She could do none of the things she wanted: shout with joy, skip through flowered fields, and stay out until midnight.
    But she held her silence because she would gain nothing by hurting David and condemning his goodintentions. As her older brother, he would sway her with common sense.
    Arriving in the foyer, she saw Kit, and what little breath she had nearly left her. This morning he had been dressed is a brown jacket, plain shirt, and trousers similar to those her brother often wore.
    Now he wore dove gray trousers, a black jacket, a pristine white shirt, and a cravat. Tilting his head slightly, he smiled at her the way she’d often imagined a beau smiled at the woman he intended to woo into his bed.
    â€œMiss Robertson.” He offered her a solitary white rose.
    She stepped away from David and accepted the flower, bringing it to her nose, and inhaling the delicate fragrance. He had whittled away the thorns. A bouquet could not have pleased her more. She peered up at him. “How lovely. Thank you.”
    He crooked his arm. “Shall we see what other secrets today’s moments hold?”
    The heat suffused her face. “You tease me, sir.”
    His smile deepened. “It is the rake in me. I cannot always control the impulse to be a bit devilish.”
    She slipped her arm through his. Such sturdiness. Confidence emanated from him. She knew he was accustomed to having his way, especially with the ladies.
    They strolled outside, and the day suddenly seemed warmer. Perhaps she would be able to dispense with her shawl after all. She despised feeling like an ancient woman.
    â€œThe carriage will only hold two,” David said, hisfootsteps echoing behind her. “Am I to take the extra horse?”
    She glanced at the waiting carriage. Two dappled gray horses were hitched to the front of the buggy. A large black beast was tethered behind it.
    Kit stopped walking and glanced over his shoulder.