What a Texas Girl Dreams (Crimson Romance) Read Online Free PDF Page B

sure. Probably a little bit of both. Kathleen had that way about her.
    It rankled.
    She didn’t need soothing. She needed her horse to heal so she could get back out on the road, doing the thing she loved. For all her bravado with Trick, Monica wouldn’t leave Jinx to train another horse. Not when he needed her. Not when the accident was her fault. She shouldn’t have stayed in the arena.
    Running Jinx in the arena, chit-chatting with acquaintances from the circuit, going out for a drink now and then with the other girls, was so much easier than being here. She would suck it up, though. Cowgirl up, as Kathleen said. Deal with the family drama, do the sister-bonding thing. Helping Jinx recover was all that mattered now.
    The memory of Trick’s strongly muscled chest against her back taunted her. He was right. She was petrified of more than a fling with him. What if she got hurt? Nathaniel drank himself through most of her childhood. Would she fall down into the bottle like he did?
    She glanced up at the big house, windows gleaming in the late-spring sunshine. Her heart twinged a little. She loved this house. Loved growing up on a working ranch. It was the small-town part that got to her lately. Everyone knowing her business, knowing who she was, who her father was. That part was expected. Comparing Monica to her sister, the super horsewoman, or her sister, the party planner … wasn’t. But since Kathleen and Jackson, and then Vanessa and Mat, had settled down here, everyone in Lockhardt seemed to look at her differently. Like they were waiting for her to be the next Witte sister to fall in love and settle for the husband and baby scenario.
    At least in Austin or on the road, she had distractions. She could leave a conversation when things got too personal without worrying about hurting someone’s feelings. Being famous made it so much easier to keep her distance. Everyone expected her to be busy, focused on her next ride or distracted by her horse. She could tune out the curious glances. In Lockhardt there was no buffer. The older generations peppered her with questions until she had to answer, her friends wouldn’t know an emotional boundary fence if it was marked ‘No Trespassing’ and her family … Kathleen was right beside her in the pool. Hadn’t taken more than ten steps away from Monica since she found her in the trailer with Trick. Forget breathing room with her sister around.
    Jinx settled into the pool, with the water up to his haunches. Kathleen turned on a couple of jets, positioning one so that it would massage his bad leg while they walked a few laps.
    “It’s important that he get a full range of motion, so walk him to the end of the pool and then make him walk backward to this end.” Monica followed Kathleen’s instructions, walking laps with the horse for a long while. The jet pulsated on his back leg with each lap.
    She’d known the vet in Utah just wanted her and Jinx out of his office. She’d known it. But she’d ignored the warning bells in her head and started them back to Texas.
    “Slower. This isn’t a race.”
    Their father, Nathaniel, joined Kathleen beside the pool. He pulled a chair to the side and sat down. Dust from the cattle pastures coated his jeans and boots.
    Monica slowed. She let Kathleen’s and Nathaniel’s voices fade into the background as they talked about pasture movements and the training schedule for Jester, Kathleen’s prize racer. Monica’s thoughts turned to Trick. From the tips of his scarred, brown boots to the muscled shoulders filling his western shirt, he was delectable. Infuriating. Why did the man have to be so kissable when she knew he was completely wrong for her?
    He wanted small-town life, his little vet practice.
    She wanted bright lights. Rodeo wasn’t exactly glamorous, but along with the trust fund set up by her grandfather, she had enough cash socked away to live a comfortable life. Only she wanted that spotlight just a little while longer.