Rough Stock (Lost Creek Rodeo #3) - Heather B. Moore Page 0,24

and sat right next to her. In a quiet voice, he said, “Maybe you’re right. But I don’t think you can completely read my mind.”

She paused in her work. “I’ve dated a lot of men. I know the look.”

A lot of men? How many? Probably plenty, he assumed. But the fact didn’t deter or bother him. “So you think I want to date you?”

Silvia smirked. “Dating might be a bit more extensive than what’s going through your mind.”

Westin slapped a hand to his heart. “You are out for the kill, aren’t you? I’m a gentleman, you know.”

Her brows lifted. “I’m sure you are. But I’m at a women’s recovery home.” She rose from the chair and lifted the tray of chicken, then carried it to the counter. “And so I think you should focus on heating up the grills outside for this chicken.”

Westin picked up the second tray and followed her, then set it next to the first tray.

She moved in front of him and turned on the kitchen tap.

He stepped back, giving her a few more inches of room, but not much. When she finished washing her hands, he handed her a small towel.

Before she could step away from him, he said, “I don’t know what you being in a recovery home has to do with anything.”

Silvia’s dark eyes held his as she tapped her head. “I’m obviously messed up here. And that’s pretty significant.”

Westin grasped her hand, moving it away from her head. “You’re not messed up. Don’t say that, or even think it.”

She released a breath. “You know what I mean. And you . . . well, you’re going to be riding off into the sunset once the rodeo is over.”

He still held her hand, and she wasn’t pulling away. “More like the sunrise,” he said. “I’m leaving in the morning.”

The look of surprise mixed with disappointment on her face should have been gratifying, but it only twisted his heart. He wasn’t sure if it was a good twist or a bad twist.

“Oh.” She drew her hand away and headed toward the back kitchen door. Outside the door sat a couple of grills. “I’ll get the grills heating up if you can bring the chicken outside.”

“Silvia.”

She opened the door and stepped out.

He followed with the two trays of chicken and set them on a small table by one of the grills.

Two ranch dogs, with gray colored fur and black spots, were lounging in a spot of shade just beyond the patio. They immediately rose and trotted over. “Don’t even think it, Casper. Frankie.” Westin kept his voice firm. “Now you go back to where you came from.”

The dogs paused, their eyes downcast, but both returned to their shady spot.

Westin folded his arms as he watched Silvia spark the propane and get both grills warming up. When she turned to face him, she moved a bit of hair out of her face. “Thanks for your help, but I can take it from here.”

“I’m going back home to check on my mom,” he said. “My ex-girlfriend called me yesterday and acted like we weren’t broken up. I don’t think she’d actually be a danger to my mom, but Amy has done some off-beat things in the past, so I’m going to make sure she’s not hanging around the neighborhood.”

“How long has it been since the breakup?”

That she was asking such a question intrigued him. And almost made him smile. “A while,” he said. He didn’t want to talk about Amy right now. He took a step closer. The Texas wind had stirred Silvia’s hair again, shifting strands of her ponytail against her neck.

“I have a rodeo next weekend only a couple of hours from Lost Creek. If you’re still here, then I was thinking of stopping by. Saying hi.” He could see the questions in her eyes, and he was happy to answer any of them. At least the ones that he could. He wasn’t entirely sure he knew his own mind. He was following his gut here.

“It’s a free country, Mr. Cowboy.”

“Sure is.”

“I might not be here next weekend.”

He shrugged. “I’ll take that risk.”

“Silvia?” someone called from inside the kitchen.

“Out here,” she called back, quickly stepping away from him and turning toward the grills. She opened the first lid and had started putting on the chicken by the time Kellie Prosper stepped outside.

“There you are.” Kellie’s light blue eyes shifted to him. “Oh, hi, Westin. What brings you here?”

“Helping out with dinner preparations,” he said, rocking back on