Her Small-Town Cowboy

Chapter Two

Monday morning, Lily got to work an hour earlier than was strictly necessary. She had the teacher’s lesson plans for the remainder of the year tucked in her briefcase, but she didn’t really need them. Eager to do a bang-up job in her first solo assignment, she’d memorized the material to be sure she understood everything.

Anything worth doing is worth doing to the hilt.

Her grandfather’s voice echoed in her mind, and she paused a moment to smile at the memory. The advice had come with a generous check and a proud smile, as he told her to use the money for her exciting new life. Aside from him, her family and friends couldn’t comprehend why teaching was so important to her, but she was determined to do something that would make a difference in the world. She couldn’t imagine anything better than giving children a solid foundation to build the rest of their lives on.

Still smiling, she stowed her gear inside the modest wooden desk and took a moment to survey the bright, cheery kindergarten room. Small chairs were neatly clustered around four round tables, and she counted twenty seats. Which meant she had twenty students coming in soon for—she checked her color-coded schedule—show-and-tell.

Apparently, their veteran teacher had devised a simple and enjoyable way to make Lily’s first day a little easier. Five kids were slated for the presentation, which would allow her to observe them without making anyone uncomfortable. Lily made a mental note to send the thoughtful woman a thank-you email later on.

The room was located in the front of the old brick building, and she watched as yellow buses started filing in to park diagonally in the lot. Students streamed out, laughing and yelling, while the teachers assigned to bus duty gathered them into groups to head inside. Fortunately, the principal had let Lily slide on that one. She wasn’t proud to admit it, but she had a hunch that if her first day had begun with her facing a screaming horde of unfamiliar children, she might have bolted and never come back.

As it was, she wasn’t sure where to stand while she waited for her class to arrive. Standing by her desk seemed stiff and formal, but the middle of the reading circle felt goofy to her. In the end, she settled for leaning against the open door wearing what she hoped came across as a welcoming smile. Her students started coming in, and she felt her confidence wavering as they brushed past her and went through what was clearly a well-ingrained morning routine.

Once they’d put everything away and settled in their seats, she checked the hallway to make sure there weren’t any stragglers. Satisfied, she closed the door and turned to face the room full of fresh, curious faces.

“Good morning, everyone.” Her voice sounded faint and strained, and she took a bracing breath before trying again. “I’m Miss St. George, and I’ll be filling in for Mrs. Howard while she’s out with her baby. I’ll do my best to learn your names quickly, but there are a lot of you, so I hope you’ll be patient with me.”

A cute blonde girl with bright blue eyes and freckles quickly raised her hand. “Miss St. George?”

“Yes?”

“I’m Abby, and my daddy’s here for show-and-tell.” She pointed toward the window in the door. “Can I let him in?”

“Sure. Go ahead.”

Abby sprang up to meet him, and Lily turned to say hello. Any thought of speaking left her mind when she saw that there, framed in the doorway, stood Mike Kinley. The formal gray suit had given way to jeans, a cowboy hat and a faded denim shirt with Gallimore Stables and a stylized horse head embroidered on the chest pocket. Being a woman, she had to admit this outfit suited him much better.

“Morning,” he greeted her in the mellow drawl she thought she’d never hear again. Eyes twinkling in fun, he added a slight grin. “Thanks for having me in today.”

Obviously, he didn’t want his daughter to know he’d already met her new teacher. More than happy to pretend they’d never seen each other before, Lily played along. “Thanks for coming to spend some time with us.” Turning, she noticed the kids gawking and couldn’t help smiling. “From your reaction, I assume you all know Mr. Kinley.”

Mike winced, and she couldn’t figure out why until Abby clued her in. “I didn’t tell you who he is yet. How do you know his name?”

“I’m on the visitors’ list for today,” he answered smoothly, giving Lily a nudging look. “That’s how she knew.”

Was he really? she wondered. She’d been so excited for her first day, she hadn’t thought to do more than briefly check in at the office. She hated to start out by lying to her students, but since she didn’t have any other brilliant ideas, she decided she had no option other than to allow his explanation to stand.

Thankfully, the overhead speakers crackled and a boy’s trembling voice prompted them all to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. The familiar phrases calmed Lily’s nerves a bit, and in her head she kept repeating, “I can do this. I can do this.”

She was keenly aware of Mike standing beside her, and while the children resettled in their seats, she couldn’t help sneaking a peek or two at their guest. When he looked down at her, he gave her a subtle wink and the crooked grin that had charmed her during their carriage ride. When he wasn’t growling about something, anyway.

She caught herself smiling back, then remembered where they were and quickly doused her response. But he’d noticed. The smirk he was wearing told her that much. He was probably one of those superobservant people who noticed everything that happened around him, she lamented with a sigh. Leave it to her to run across one of the last attentive males on the planet.

Anxious to move on, she clapped her hands to get the kids’ attention. “All right, everyone, let’s get in a circle on the story rug.” Once they were more or less quiet, she motioned to Mike. “You’re on.”

A flash that struck her as mild panic passed over his sunburned features, but he quickly recovered and sat down. Not in the adult-sized teacher’s chair she’d left open for him, she noticed with curiosity, but on the floor, cross-legged like the kids. Something about his desire to join them on their level made her smile. Maybe he wasn’t as standoffish as she’d assumed.

He introduced himself as a horse trainer, then opened his palms and spread them apart. “What would you guys like to know?”

Small hands shot into the air, and he answered questions ranging from how much does a horse eat to how often he cleaned their stalls. He took each one with a serious expression, and his respect for the children impressed her. Then one little boy stopped their guest cold.

“Do you still miss your dad?”

Mike’s patient smile froze in place, and he seemed to pull back into himself. Clearly, the class knew their guest much better than she did, and in an effort to save him, Lily jumped in. “Does anyone have something they want to ask about the farm?”

“No, that’s okay,” Mike said quietly. Giving the boy an understanding look, he asked, “Did your father pass away?”

“Last year.” Tears welled in his already large brown eyes, making them look even bigger. “I started baseball this year, and he’ll never get to see me play.”

Lily’s heart lurched in sympathy, but she kept quiet. Mike had connected with this child in a way she could never manage, so she thought it best to let him handle the sensitive moment.

“What’s your name, son?” he asked gently.

“Peter.”

“Well, Peter, I know it’s tough to lose your father, but you have to do your best to make him proud, even though he’s not here to see it.”

“How?”

“Do what you think he’d want you to, even if you’d rather be doing something else. Take good care of your mom ’cause she’s missing him, too. Do you have brothers and sisters?”

“Two little sisters.” Peter made a face. “They’re such a pain.”

Mike chuckled. “I hear you, but you’re the oldest, so you’ve gotta watch out for them. When things get hard, families have to stick together.”

“That’s what Mom says.”

“She’s right. Even when you think she’s not,” he added with a wink. The boy laughed and nodded, then sank back into his spot with a satisfied look.

Mike fielded several more questions, and when the kids seemed to be getting restless, Lily decided it was time to let him go.

Standing, she moved in behind him. “I’m sure we all want to thank Mr. Kinley for coming in today.” After a rousing chorus of appreciation, she held up her hands for quiet. “You have some seat work to do before our next visitor gets here. Please pick up where you left off on Friday.”

They complied with only minimal grumbling, and she motioned Mike toward the door. He looked relieved to leave the inquisitive circle behind him.

“Man,” he began in a hushed voice, “some of those kids are smarter than me.”

“I feel awful that Peter brought up your father that way.”

“It’s not your fault.” Gazing over at his daughter, he went on. “Dad died three years ago in a car accident, and it was big news around here. Abby doesn’t really remember him, but she’s heard us talk about him. I’m sure she’s told her friends all the stories by now.”

The misery clouding his eyes told Lily he was putting up a brave front to hide the sorrow he still felt over losing his dad. She adored her own father, and she couldn’t begin to imagine how painful it would be to have him jerked out of her life that way. “I’m very sorry for your family’s loss.”

“Thanks.”

The brusque response told her it was time to let the matter drop, so she moved on. “How are Penny and Ginger doing?”

“Just fine. And you? How was the rest of your sister’s reception?”

Lily thought it was sweet of him to ask how that endless afternoon had affected her, even though she hadn’t been the bride. Judging by the way his eyes were fixed on her, his concern was genuine, and she smiled. “It won’t go in my favorite-memories list, but I made it through in one piece. I have to admit, I was kind of stunned to see you here this morning.”

“I can relate to that,” he admitted with a chuckle. “When Abby said her new teacher would be here, I had no clue it’d be you. You said you were from Louisville, so I figured that’s where your school was.”

“And I had no idea Gallimore Stables was here in Oaks Crossing.”

“Yeah,” he responded with a sigh. “That’s a real problem for us. We’re working on it, though.”

“Really?” Leaning back against her desk, she eyed him with a new sense of respect. Apparently, the gruff carriage driver had more going for him than his rugged good looks. “How?”

“Dad trained Thoroughbreds for racing, and he was one of the best.” Mike paused, and the pride gleaming in his eyes told her just how much he still admired his father. “Obviously, with him gone, that business went away, so we’ve had to come up with something else so we can afford to keep the place. My sister thought of the wedding carriages, and we put a sign on the back to get folks out to the farm and see what all is there.”

Lily was fascinated. She’d lived her entire life in cities, and to her one farm was pretty much like another. “What else is there?”

“Last fall, we started up the Oaks Crossing Rescue Center, for injured and abandoned animals. We take in everything from gerbils to draft horses. Yesterday, someone dropped off a beaver with a broken leg, of all things. We figure if people come in and see all the animals for themselves, we can help more wild critters get back into the woods and the pets will have a better chance of finding a home. If you’re interested, you can come by sometime. I’d be happy to show you around the farm or the center, whichever you want.”

That he was part of such a generous endeavor impressed her enough that she decided her earlier impression of him as being standoffish was due more to her own bad mood the other day than his actual personality. “I’d enjoy seeing both, I’m sure. So many people talk about doing something important, but they never find a way to make it happen.”

“Yeah, well, I like animals better than most people I meet, so it works for me.”

She clicked her tongue in disapproval. “You don’t mean that.”

“Actually, I do.” His flinty gaze softened a bit, and he almost smiled. “Most of the time, anyway.”

She was getting the distinct impression that he was as intrigued by her as she was by him. Whether it was their vastly different backgrounds or their polar-opposite personalities, she couldn’t say. But she couldn’t deny that the more she learned about him, the more she wanted to know.

And then, out of the blue she heard herself say, “You know, I’ve always wanted to take riding lessons.”

Those icy blue eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Why?”

“Horses are beautiful and strong, and much more intelligent than most people realize.”

Giving her a quick once-over, he finished his assessment with a single nod. “True enough.”

“I think it would be fun to learn more about them.” And herself, she added silently. After spending the first twenty-five years of her life being treated as if she’d crumple in the face of any adversity whatsoever, she was eager to test her wings and see how far she could fly. “So what do you think?”

“About teaching you to ride?” She nodded, quelling her impatience while he thought over her proposal. She couldn’t understand why he’d turn down a paying customer when his family’s business was in such dire straits. Then again, everyone came to decisions in their own way, and she had a feeling that rushing him would end in a curt no-thanks.

“Here’s an idea,” he offered in a tentative manner. “I’ve got some free time this afternoon after four. Why don’t we try it once and see how it goes?”

She’d had enough of his boot-dragging, and she let a bit of that anger show in her face. “I’m willing to pay the same rate you charge everyone else. Do you have a problem with teaching me?”

“Not a bit,” he replied smoothly. “But you might have a problem learning from me.”

“What on earth is that supposed to mean?”

Shrugging, he stepped away and turned the doorknob. “I guess we’ll find out.”

“Fine,” she spat, recognizing a challenge when she heard one. “I’ll see you at four.”

“I’ll be in the barn nearest the house. Wear shoes with no heels.”

With that, he pulled open the door and strode into the hallway. Her temper was simmering, and she took a few moments to calm down before rejoining her students. As she roamed around the tables offering help and praise as needed, she couldn’t get one thing out of her mind.

Like so many of the men she’d known before him, Mike Kinley had severely misjudged her. She was looking forward to showing him just how wrong he was.

* * *

Mike was checking the girth on an English saddle when a yellow convertible drove up and parked near the barns. Lily stepped out of the car, which he couldn’t help noticing was nearly as cute as she was. Dressed in jeans and a pink T-shirt, she looked nothing like the well-dressed woman he’d seen up to this point. As a matter of fact, he liked this look much better.

Growling at himself for thinking of her that way, he shook off the impression and took his time strolling over to meet her. The slow pace gave him a chance to remind himself that it was his own fault she was here, and he had no choice but to make the best of it.

Before he got there, Abby came flying down the back porch steps and made a beeline for their visitor.

More excited than usual, she stopped and stared up at her teacher with obvious heroine worship shining in her eyes. “Hi, Miss St. George. Are you ready for your lesson?”

“I think so.” She turned to Mike, eyes twinkling in amusement. “I guess we’ll find out.”

Being a fairly intelligent guy, he recognized that she was punting his own words back at him. Her version was much brighter than his had been, and he got the feeling she was daring him to match her. He managed not to smile, but it wasn’t easy in the face of all that perkiness.

Eyeing her sneakers, he frowned. “That’s the only pair of flat shoes you own?”

“Obviously,” she retorted, tilting her head in a chiding gesture that brought to mind his sassy younger sister.

“Well, you’re gonna need some riding boots to grab on to the stirrups. Come on in and I’ll see what I’ve got.”

Eager to get her lesson over with, he wasn’t crazy about having to go through the extra hoop. It wasn’t that he didn’t want her in the stable, he told himself as Abby took Lily’s hand and tugged her forward. He just wasn’t keen about sharing his turf with someone who made him so...jittery.

Inside the sliding door, she fell out of step with him, and he glanced down the rubber aisleway, thinking something must be out of place. The dividing walls between the stalls were made of age-darkened oak, with wrought iron rising from chest height up to the ceiling. Lights and fans dotted the interior, keeping the horses cool on even the hottest days.

It all looked fine to him, and he asked, “Something wrong?”

Eyes wide, she slowly shook her head. “This is incredible. How many spaces are there?”

“Twenty in this barn,” he answered proudly, lifting Abby up to sit on a sturdy shelf normally reserved for spare equipment parts. It was currently empty, one more reminder of how close to the bone Dad’s beloved Gallimore was operating these days. “The stable for boarders has another fifteen.”

“You take care of thirty-five horses here?”

“Well, me and my brothers, Drew and Josh, along with a couple of Dad’s old grooms who wanted to stay on after he died.”

Peeking into a vacant stall, she looked down the line with obvious disappointment. “They’re all outside? I was hoping to meet some of them.”

“I saw Gideon waiting in the front paddock for you,” Abby piped up helpfully. “First, you need some boots.”

“All right, then. Let’s find me a pair and get started.”

To Mike’s ear, the excited pitch of Lily’s voice nearly matched his daughter’s, and he found himself grinning. In his experience, adults didn’t get jazzed about new things the way kids did. Maybe it was being around children all day, he thought, or maybe that was Lily’s natural way of viewing the world. Whichever it was, even a reserved guy like him was having a tough time resisting all that enthusiasm.

Stopping outside the tack room, he motioned his prospective student ahead of him. Most folks moved tentatively through the barn during their first visit, but not Lily. She confidently strode past him and into the large storage area. Along one wall were three rows of saddles, some English for dressage and jumping, some Western complete with lassos coiled neatly around their horns. On the other wall, dozens of bridles hung from their padded holders, reins left dangling to avoid straining the leather.

Standing in the middle of it all, Lily spun slowly until she came back to Mike. The look on her face was impossible for him to read, and he waited for her to say something.

“What a great office you have,” she commented with a smile. “You must love working here every day.”

“Except when it rains. Then it’s kinda the pits.”

“I guess so,” she replied with a laugh. In the corner, something moaned quietly, and she took a hesitant step back. “Did I wake someone up?”

“That’s just Sarge,” Abby explained. Right on cue, a scruffy blend of several breeds of terrier emerged from the shadows and yawned. “He likes to sleep in here.”

Blinking at Lily, the small dog trotted over and sat in front of her, tail wagging politely. Laughing again, she hunkered down and held out her hand for him to sniff. When he was satisfied, he offered a paw that she shook as if he was a small person. “Hello, Sarge. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

With a quick yip, he went back toward his spot, glancing over his shoulder in an unspoken request for her to follow him. Which, to Mike’s amazement, she did. When she saw the filthy old horse blanket he had there, she turned to Mike with a curious expression. “Is that really where he sleeps?”

“I know it looks bad, but he likes it that way.”

“Why?”

“It’s kind of a long story.”

“That’s okay,” she said, sitting down on the scuffed plank floor to pet the dog. “I like stories.”

Mike had planned on getting through her lesson as quickly and painlessly as possible. Since he didn’t want to seem rude, he put aside his impatience and carefully balanced himself on a three-legged stool. “Well, his owner was an older lady who lived in the area. She had a horse named Captain that she’d owned since he was a foal, and he was getting on in years himself. When his stablemate died, she was afraid he’d be lonely, so she got him a dog.”

“Sarge.” Lily smiled down at the mutt, who seemed to be listening intently to his story. “What a nice thing for her to do.”

“Last year, she got really sick and had to move into a nursing home. She asked me to take the two of them and make sure they stayed together. One of Captain’s blankets dropped off the side of the stall one day, and Sarge took to sleeping on it while he kept his friend company. Now Captain’s gone, and this little guy refuses to sleep anywhere else.”

“That is so touching,” she murmured in a voice filled with sympathy. Smiling down at the dog, she cooed, “If we all had such faithful friends who’d stick by us no matter what, our lives would be so much better.”

Even though she wasn’t speaking to him, Mike caught the wistfulness in her tone. At some point, someone had disappointed this bright, engaging woman. While it had absolutely nothing to do with him, just the thought of it made him angry.

“What’s this?” she asked, fingering a label sewn to the corner of the blanket. Giving Mike a knowing grin, she said, “It says ‘do not wash.’”

“My sister Erin’s a neat freak, and she’s in charge of keeping the blankets and saddle pads clean. That one—” he pointed “—still smells like his old buddy, and Sarge likes it that way. I figure one dirty blanket more or less doesn’t make much difference.”

“Not to you maybe,” Lily told him with an admiring smile, “but to him it means a lot. It’s so considerate of you to recognize that. That must be why his owner chose you to take care of her animals. She trusted you to do what was best for them.”

Mike wasn’t accustomed to being praised for simply following his instincts, and he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “Most folks’d probably think it’s nuts.”

“I think it’s sweet,” she corrected him in a gentle but firm voice that he imagined worked wonders on her students.

Hoping to joke his way out of an awkward situation, he forced a chuckle. “I’d appreciate you not spreading that around.”

“Deal.”

Standing, she brushed her hands off on her jeans and looked over the beat-up collection of riding boots that had found their way onto the shelves. Some had been outgrown, others donated. One pair had even been tossed at Mike’s head when a young diva-in-training threw a world-class tantrum and stormed out of her one and only lesson. When he shared that detail with Lily, she laughed again. This woman did that more than anyone he knew, and he had to admit the light, carefree sound was beginning to grow on him.

“Well, you don’t have to worry about that kind of nonsense with me,” she assured him. “If I end up being a hopelessly terrible rider, I’ll assume it’s my fault, not yours.”

She reached toward the upper shelf where the smallest sizes were, but she couldn’t quite stretch far enough.

“Here, let me.” To his surprise, she pointed out a pair of well-worn brown boots that had once belonged to his mother. “You sure? They’re kinda plain.”

“They look like they’ve had a lot of experience. Maybe they’ll help me catch on quicker.”

Interesting theory, he mused as he brought them down for her. Sitting on a chair outside the storage room, she shed her sneakers and pulled on the boots. They seemed to work, and she held out her feet to admire them. Then, to his surprise, she looked up at the shelf where Abby was perched. “What do you think of these?”