airports they fly through, the rest stops they break at, the motels and restaurants they use.”
“It is another way to get the word out, isn’t it?”
“Yep, and the folks a rodeo hand runs into are the ones most likely to be interested in seeing a rodeo.”
“Jeff listed an expense last year for advertising fliers, but it looks as if less than half the fliers got used. I wonder where they might be...”
She put down her coffee cup and picked up her pen to make notes on the pad she carried. He considered that a sure sign she was feeling better about the situation. Her weariness remained, and the worry hadn’t disappeared, but a spark of determination had joined them.
“And it shouldn’t cost any money for you to keep on dragging us rodeo hands into the computer age.”
“You’re right.” She’d looked up at his dry tone, and he thought she might get defensive about his mild teasing. But he saw a bit of humor enter her eyes before she bent to make another note, muttering phrases as she wrote. “Keep updating entries system, get the books on, streamline payroll... May not have immediate effects, but it can’t hurt.”
With that, she straightened and smiled. He smiled back, and hers grew. A real smile, all the way to her eyes.
He didn’t want to consider too closely what parts of his body reacted to her nearness while they smiled into each other’s eyes. Or why, exactly, he was about to open his mouth and volunteer for another duty he’d rank a poor second to getting gored by a Brahman.
“I could take a stab at learning that computer stuff, too. Help you and Roberta out.”
Silence.
“Close your mouth, Kalli.” He handed her a doughnut. “Close it around this.”
She smiled again, and then she did just what he’d asked with no argument. A first.
* * *
KALLI WASTED NO time in taking Walker up on his offer—all his offers.
She started him on the computer that afternoon, much to Roberta’s delight.
The secretary teased unmercifully. It didn’t seem to fluster Walker’s concentration, but Kalli figured her pupil’s frustration level had reached high enough without someone chortling at him that just because the little blinker was called a cursor didn’t mean he had to swear at it all the time.
She distracted Roberta by putting her in charge of finding the rodeo fliers that Jeff’s inventory indicated should be around, somewhere.
For another hour, Kalli sat next to Walker, instructing him in the basics of the keyboard, symbols and commands. He seemed to wear a perpetual frown, but he listened.
She only wished her concentration was half as good.
A voice in the back of her head commented that her concentration was fine— It was just concentrating on Walker instead of the computer.
The blinking cursor, lighted screen and detailed keyboard had to fight to hold her interest. Especially when he turned to her, listening intently, and his deep, deep blue eyes pinned on her face. Or when she stumbled on a phrase, had to struggle to regain her train of thought, and the fan of creases at the corners of his eyes gave away his effort not to grin.
She stood, moving behind him as if that improved her vantage point on the keyboard and screen. It did little good. She found herself noticing the way his thick dark hair lapped over the back of his collar. She wondered if the back of his neck was still as sensitive as it used to be. She used to be able to draw a shudder just by running a nail lightly up the center....
“Kalli? Kalli!” His voice snapped her out of her reverie. “What the hell does invalid key mean? I’m hittin’ the one you said.”
“Oh. Yes, but you also have to hold down the Alt key for that function.”
“Alt?”
“
A-L-T.
Here.”
She leaned over his shoulder to press the key, and dived into the combined wave of scent and heat that surrounded him. The uncompromisingly crisp aroma of soap and shampoo, the lingering musk of leather and animal, the baking warmth of summer
“It is another way to get the word out, isn’t it?”
“Yep, and the folks a rodeo hand runs into are the ones most likely to be interested in seeing a rodeo.”
“Jeff listed an expense last year for advertising fliers, but it looks as if less than half the fliers got used. I wonder where they might be...”
She put down her coffee cup and picked up her pen to make notes on the pad she carried. He considered that a sure sign she was feeling better about the situation. Her weariness remained, and the worry hadn’t disappeared, but a spark of determination had joined them.
“And it shouldn’t cost any money for you to keep on dragging us rodeo hands into the computer age.”
“You’re right.” She’d looked up at his dry tone, and he thought she might get defensive about his mild teasing. But he saw a bit of humor enter her eyes before she bent to make another note, muttering phrases as she wrote. “Keep updating entries system, get the books on, streamline payroll... May not have immediate effects, but it can’t hurt.”
With that, she straightened and smiled. He smiled back, and hers grew. A real smile, all the way to her eyes.
He didn’t want to consider too closely what parts of his body reacted to her nearness while they smiled into each other’s eyes. Or why, exactly, he was about to open his mouth and volunteer for another duty he’d rank a poor second to getting gored by a Brahman.
“I could take a stab at learning that computer stuff, too. Help you and Roberta out.”
Silence.
“Close your mouth, Kalli.” He handed her a doughnut. “Close it around this.”
She smiled again, and then she did just what he’d asked with no argument. A first.
* * *
KALLI WASTED NO time in taking Walker up on his offer—all his offers.
She started him on the computer that afternoon, much to Roberta’s delight.
The secretary teased unmercifully. It didn’t seem to fluster Walker’s concentration, but Kalli figured her pupil’s frustration level had reached high enough without someone chortling at him that just because the little blinker was called a cursor didn’t mean he had to swear at it all the time.
She distracted Roberta by putting her in charge of finding the rodeo fliers that Jeff’s inventory indicated should be around, somewhere.
For another hour, Kalli sat next to Walker, instructing him in the basics of the keyboard, symbols and commands. He seemed to wear a perpetual frown, but he listened.
She only wished her concentration was half as good.
A voice in the back of her head commented that her concentration was fine— It was just concentrating on Walker instead of the computer.
The blinking cursor, lighted screen and detailed keyboard had to fight to hold her interest. Especially when he turned to her, listening intently, and his deep, deep blue eyes pinned on her face. Or when she stumbled on a phrase, had to struggle to regain her train of thought, and the fan of creases at the corners of his eyes gave away his effort not to grin.
She stood, moving behind him as if that improved her vantage point on the keyboard and screen. It did little good. She found herself noticing the way his thick dark hair lapped over the back of his collar. She wondered if the back of his neck was still as sensitive as it used to be. She used to be able to draw a shudder just by running a nail lightly up the center....
“Kalli? Kalli!” His voice snapped her out of her reverie. “What the hell does invalid key mean? I’m hittin’ the one you said.”
“Oh. Yes, but you also have to hold down the Alt key for that function.”
“Alt?”
“
A-L-T.
Here.”
She leaned over his shoulder to press the key, and dived into the combined wave of scent and heat that surrounded him. The uncompromisingly crisp aroma of soap and shampoo, the lingering musk of leather and animal, the baking warmth of summer
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