Home > The Heart of a Cowboy (Colorado Cowboys #2)(7)

The Heart of a Cowboy (Colorado Cowboys #2)(7)
Author: Jody Hedlund

He shook his head and pulled from Dr. Howell’s grip. Nope, the only way he’d agree to guarding her was in telling her the truth. “She needs to know—”

“Fine. Fine.” Dr. Howell waved a hand impatiently. “I’ll give her some kind of explanation—but let’s not mention I’m paying you.”

Flynn hesitated again.

Dr. Howell’s attention drifted to the thrill filling his granddaughter’s face as she examined the fish she’d caught. It chose that moment to wiggle its fin and fall right out of her hands to the ground, where it flipped in the grass.

She hopped back and pressed her hands to her chest, her laughter filling the air.

Dr. Howell’s expression softened.

Ivy laughed too. Gone was the belligerence that made an appearance all too often. Instead, she was carefree—even happy—in a way she hadn’t been in months. Flynn missed that Ivy, the one he could tease and tussle, the one who surprised him with spiders and lizards, the one who loved and looked up to him. He was getting a glimpse of the old Ivy here and now. And he didn’t want her to go away again.

But the truth was, she needed more than he could give her. Maybe with Linnea’s presence and influence, Ivy would be better.

Dr. Howell watched Linnea a moment longer, then turned to Flynn. “Please, Mr. McQuaid?”

Flynn took off his hat and combed back his hair, letting the breeze cool his itchy head. “Don’t feel right about hiding anything from your granddaughter, sir. But I’ll go along with whatever you think is best.”

“Thank you, young man.” Dr. Howell’s eyes lit with relief. “You won’t regret this. I promise.”

Flynn hoped the gentleman was right but suspected he was completely wrong.

 

 

CHAPTER 3


“I’ve made a change of plans,” Grandfather said from where he stood across the campfire, his expression grave and his tone serious.

Linnea paused in picking a bone out of the tender bite of trout in her mouth, the fish suddenly losing flavor.

She’d known this moment was coming from the instant she’d fallen into the river. But over the past hour of learning how to fish with Ivy and then frying up their catch, she’d hoped Grandfather would forget everything that had happened, and that they could continue on the journey with no more mention of her near drowning.

She spit out the bone and swallowed the fish, and at the same time she placed her tin plate in the grass beside the campfire, her appetite gone. A sourness roiled around her stomach at the unfairness of being a woman, but she had to remain strong, especially since Ivy sat beside her.

The girl was impressionable and needed a good example of what it looked like to stand up for oneself, especially as a female trying to make her way in a world that was too quick to judge a woman as weak and incapable.

“Please don’t make me go back, Grandfather. I promise I won’t have any more accidents.”

Grandfather gingerly ate a bite of the fish she’d dished up for him. “You promised me no more issues yesterday when you lagged behind and got lost.”

From beside his horse where he was loading his revolver, Flynn halted, his brow lifting beneath the brim of his hat.

“Go back where?” Ivy paused in scraping her plate clean with her fingers.

Her grandfather started to reply, but Linnea beat him to it. “My grandfather would like me to return to New York City.”

“Now, Linnea, you know I don’t want that. But I could never forgive myself if something happened to you out here.”

At the tiredness that flitted over his face, she repressed another ready retort. No doubt he was thinking of her father’s deadly accident, when he’d been trapped out in the Adirondack Mountains doing research on wildflowers and had been caught in a late-spring snowstorm.

She regretted causing Grandfather undue strain. He’d been planning and looking forward to the trip for several years. And he’d been specifically chosen to be the leader out of the others vying for the position, which was a great honor since now he’d have his name attached to the manual they intended to complete by the end of their trip.

This was likely his only chance to do something like this, and she didn’t want him to worry about her the whole time. Maybe she ought to give in to his wishes to return.

“I can help keep track of Linnea.” Ivy licked the grease from her fingers.

Linnea could only smile at the girl’s offer. From what Linnea had surmised thus far, Ivy needed more supervision than she did.

“Thank you, young lady.” Grandfather smiled too. “Fortunately, I’ve made arrangements to ride along with your group. With the way Mr. McQuaid was so quick to rescue Linnea, I decided we might be safer under his supervision.”

“Really?” Ivy paused in swiping the last drop from her plate, glancing from Grandfather to Flynn, her expression filling with hope.

Flynn resumed working, checking each chamber of his revolver as though his life depended on it.

“Really.” Grandfather didn’t meet Linnea’s gaze but focused on his fish, picking at a bone.

“So you’re not sending me back?”

“Not as long as you promise to do everything Mr. McQuaid requests, since he’ll be our leader now.”

“I promise.” She’d promise to lasso the moon if it meant she could stay on the expedition. So far she’d loved every minute of exploring, cataloging, drawing, and preserving specimens. She couldn’t imagine anywhere else she’d rather be than on this trip doing the work she loved.

“Yippee!” Ivy jumped up and down. “I told Flynn we oughta be riding with someone else so we ain’t so lonesome, but he said most people don’t wanna travel with a bunch of slow cattle.”

Linnea listened only halfway to the rest of Grandfather’s conversation with Ivy and instead examined Flynn more carefully. She had a view of his profile. And though he was focused on his gun, his body radiated tension, and the muscles in his jaw flexed.

He certainly didn’t seem thrilled with the new traveling arrangements. Was he reluctant to have them ride along?

As though sensing her scrutiny, he shot a glance her way, one confirming that he wasn’t thrilled in the least.

She dropped her attention to her plate. She was too relieved Grandfather was letting her continue with the expedition to call into question his methods or call attention to Flynn’s displeasure. If Flynn didn’t want to travel with their group, he should have told Grandfather no. It wasn’t her fault he hadn’t and was saddled with them.

Even so, from now on, she had to do better so neither her grandfather nor Flynn would have any cause for concern.

 

An hour later, they were on their way. Linnea walked beside their wagon, which trailed a short distance behind the wagon Dylan was driving. Ivy fell into step next to her, conversing nonstop, clearly starved for a woman’s company.

Flynn rode alongside the cattle a short distance away from the wagons. One of the other drovers guided the herd opposite him while a third worked the swing position at the rear of the long line.

Ivy had explained that driving the cattle was fairly simple, that a few natural leaders within the herd took their places at the front and the rest of the cattle fell into line behind them. Mostly the herd walked single file rather than in a group, which made them stretch out quite a distance.

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