Capturing the Cowboy's Heart by Lindsey Brookes Page B

stall.  “This here’s Loco .  Like his name, h e’s plumb crazy, so stay away from him.”  He pivoted on the straw littered floor and pointed to the horse in the stall across the way.  “That’s Sunny .  He’s a Chestnut.  A fine specimen of horseflesh if I do say so myself. ”
    “Let me guess ,” she said with a smile.  “ He belongs to you.”
    “ Sure does .”  He led her down to another stall where the last of the horses stood watching them, it’s head craned out as if begging for their attention.
    “That’s Dakota .  He belonged to Karen.”
    “Cade’s wife?”
    “Yeah.”
    “What really happened?” 
    He shoved his hands into the front pocket of his jeans and turned to her.  “Do you want the real version or the one reporters wanted the world to believe?”
    “The truth.”
    “Car wreck.  It was raining real hard that day.  Karen had gone to town to do some shopping.  Cade usually went with her, but he was down with the flu that day.  On her way home, she lost control of the car and took out a tree.  She died instantly.”
    A rush of hot tears burned her eyes.  How awful that must have been for Cade, to lose the woman he loved so tragically.  No wonder he was a bitter man.  He’d not only lost his career and a wife he treasured , but now he was on the verge of losing his ranch, too.
    Lacy placed a hand on Burk’s arm.  “Thank you for telling me.”
    “I figure it might help you to understand why he does some of the things he does.”  He stepped into Dakota ’s stall.  “Now back to work.  See how the buckets are half empty?”
    She peered over the top of the stall , watching him .  “Yes.”
    “They need emptied and filled with fresh water.  You can emp ty them in to that sink over there and then use the hose outside to fill them back up again.  Be sure not to fi ll them so full they spill over when you carry the buckets back into the stalls.  If you get t he clean straw all wet we’ll have to change it.”
    That sounded like an easy enough task.  “I think I can handle that.”
    He pointed to a net hanging above the stall.  “These are hay nets.  They need to be re plenished as well. ”  He handed her a bucket.  “Give me a shout if you have any questions.”
    “Thanks, Burk.”
    “Don’t mention it.”  He walked away, disappearing into a room at the far end of the barn.
    Lacy turned her attention back to Dakota , running her hand down the animal’s nose.  “I bet you really miss her, don’t you?” 
    The horse whinnied softly.
    “I know Cade does.  But I doubt he’d ever come right out and say it.  He the kind of man who’s determined to keep things all bottled up inside, for all the good it’s doing him.”
    Lacy sighed softly.  Who was she to talk?  She was just as guilty of keeping her emotions guarded.  She set the water bucket down by her feet and looked up at the hay nets with a frown.  Why hadn’t she thought to ask Burk where she was supposed to get the hay from and how much to put in the nets.
    “Need some help?” Cade’s husky voice rang out behind her.
    She turned, no longer angry.  Her heart went out to him for all he’d been through.  “ Yes. ”
    “I want to show you something when we’re done here.”  He walked over to Ace ’s stall and rubbed the gelding’s nose.   Then he pointed to the net she’d been staring at when he walked in.  “No clue about hay nets, huh?”
    “Not a one,” she replied, her eyes watering as she held back a sneeze.
    “Don’t worry,” he said with a surprisingly warm smile.  “You’ll catch on.”  He pulled a pocketknife out of his front jeans pocket and cut the strings on one of the hay bales stacked against the wall.  “ Ta ke a sheaf of hay , about this much , and place it inside like this.”
    Muscles flexed beneath the faded blue denim of his work shirt with every move he made , making it nearly impossible for her to concentrate on what he was instructing