To Love A Cowboy

Chapter 4

"We're gonna muck out the stalls first," Dalls informs us with a smile as we leave the house.

Once everyone plus Wynter are out of the house, I shut the door behind us with a soft sight. I want to help becuase our grandparents are allowing us to live them with while mama is deployed out of country, but I don't know if I will be able to handle being this close with Beau. Oh, well, I guess I need to suck it up and deal with the situation.

"Do you guys know how to muck the stalls out?" Dallas curiously asks as we head toward the barn.

"Yeah, we have don this before," Kolton answers for us with a smirk at Dallas.

Interesting, if I am reading Kolton's body language correctly, and I am usually never wrong - he is interested in Dallas. If he is, it seems I am not the only one interested in someone living here. Grabbing a pitchfork from the mounted rack on the wall near the entrance, I walk over to the first stall where Dallas is taking a horse from. Once he has the horse away from the stall, I walk inside with Wynter joining me, I start mucking it out.

Beau and Dallas lead all the horses out into the fenced in pasture whil Kolton and I muck out the stalls. Once all the horses are out, they help us, and we have this task completed in an hour. I take my pitchfork and Kolton's to hang back on the wall rack as do Dallas and Beau.

"What's next?" Kolton asks as he rests his right arm over my left shoulder with a smirk at my scowl.

"Now we need to brush the horses, then this afternoon we are going to work some of the horses for a show that's in three months. We also need to ride the rest for their daily exersise," Beau answers, and I find his voice soothing.

"Okay," Kolton replies with a nod as he moves away from with a smirk and a wink, as if he knows what I'm thinking, which I'm sure he probably does.

The four of us take the grooming brushes before heading out of the barn to the corral to start brushing the horses. I know Kolton and I won't be training any of the horses who are participating in the show, but I'm good with that, and just riding the other horses. I notice Dallas and Kolton chatting while they each brush out a horse, and I find myself sneaking glances at Beau from the corner of my right eye while Wynter sits by my feet on the left.

"Are you okay, Kalen?" Beau suddenly asks making me jump since I was focused on the horse I am brushing.

Looking over at him with a raised left eyebrow, I answer as I continue my task; "I'm fine, why do you ask?"

"You keep looking over at me, so I thought you had a question, comment, or something was wrong," he answers with a light chuckle that is almost musical.

"Sorry," I mumble with crimson cheeks.

"It's okay, I like you looking at me," he cheekly replies, and I look at him in shock as I choke on my spit, and I find him grinning at me. "So, do you find me sexy?"

Pouting at him, he chuckles harder; "Don't worry if you do since I find you sexy, too."

His tone sounds teasing, but I'm not sure, so I manage to stumble out with my entire body burning; "Thanks, I guess."

"You're welcome," he replies with us falling back into silence as Dallas and Kolton continue to talk, and I listen to them.

Finishing this task we place away the brushes before exiting the barn, and I look over at the house to find mama exiting it with nanma and Cassidy, all are walking toward the barn. They smile at us as we approach each other.

"There's still a couple of hours before lunch, so why don't the four of you take Gypsy, Clypso, Cooper, and Tru out to check the fence."

"Of course, Ms. Emily," Dallas and Beau answer as Kolton and I say; "Yes nanma."

Kolton and I follow Dallas and Beau back into the corral to get the horses to be saddled with blankets and bridles with bits. Dallas leads out a beautiful blond colored American Quarter Horse as Beau leads out an equally beautiful black and white Appaloosa.

"Beau has Tru and I have Cooper," Dallas tells us with a grin while he gently pets Coooper's nose fondly. "Who wants to ride which horse?"

"Um, would one be better with Wynter walking beside it?" I shyly ask since I hate having these kind of questions, or feel like I am asking for special treatment.

"Tru would be the best for that, but Cooper would be alright with it, too," Beau answers gently, and I nod in reply as I walk slowly toward him with Wynter beside me.

Beau places the purple blanket over Tru's back before placing the medium brown colored saddle with sturrops over that, secures it before placing the bridal with bit on her head. He turns his captivating chocolate brown eyes on me, and I swear these are twinkling; "Up you go."

Grabbing the horn of the saddle, I place my left foot in the stirrup and hoist myself up onto the saddle as I swing my right leg over, and place it in that stirrup. Settling onto the saddle, I glance over to find Kolton helping Dallas gear up Cooper before he climbs onto the saddle.

Kolton looks over at me with a wide toothy grin and a wink as he takes the reigns in his hands loosly; "Ready to ride, baby brother?"

Scowling at him for the 'baby brother' part, I nod though before looking over at Dallas and Beau when they snicker at us. Rolling my eyes at all three of them, I turn Tru toward the right as I call out to Wynter, who instantly follows.

"Kalen, don't be like that, I was just teasing!" Kolton calls after me, and I flip him off without a verbal response.

I might be being too sensitive about this, but I don't give a damn. Brothers are so annoying at times.