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Chapter One

The sound of leather hitting flesh was music to his ears

He pulled his arm back and snapped his wrist, theleather tail of the bullwhip connected with her quivering flank and a sharp crack echoed back to hirunt but re at him with defiant brown eyes

Stubborn

Again he lifted his ar the same spot, but harder

Her whole body quivered

"For Christsake, quit fuckin’ around with her Throw a goddamn rope around her neck and make her come"

Ben McKay squinted at the lone cow, her hooves h the creek and stopped ten feet in front of the i out his whip for his rope, he twirled and let fly The loop circled her neck and he tugged to tighten it He’d done this so o just iven the choice between choking or , stumbled forward

Quinn’s horse danced impatiently at the top of the rise, as his rider watched Ben drag the cow up the incline "Don’t knohy in the hell she likes that damn creek," Quinn remarked "She’d stay there until it froze over"

"Probably" Bongo picked up the pace and Ben led the cow through the gate As soon as Quinn closed off her only avenue of escape, Ben released the rope He dis any ideas about running off" She stood still while he slipped the loop from her neck Then he slapped her hard on the rump and she lumbered toward the rest of the herd

Quinn waited while Benin the last rays of the sun’s warh the first week of October They’d take te seemed to last more than half the damn year

"So what’re your plans for the weekend?" Quinn asked

"Goin’ to Gillette I’ll be back Sunday sometime" He pushed up his hat and looked at Quinn "Unless you and Libby need ?"

"Nah We can handle it Aren’t you gonna be around to watch the PBR Sunday afternoon? It’ll be the last tiotten about that His bull riding younger brother had pulled his head out of his ass and hadon the PBR tour the past few months "Yeah I’ll be back"

"Good, because at the last poker gaether to watch"

Ben stopped his horse "Define all"

"All… all our McKay cousins"

"Jesus Was I drunk when I volunteered?"

Quinn laughed "Nope You were sober enough to exclude kids and wives in the invite Besides, you own the biggest TV of any of us And if you sweet talk Keely, she’ll bring food"

His cousin Keely loved McKay events with the boys, since she was the only feeneration "I’ll call her on my way out of town"

When they reached Quinn’s place, Ben asked, "We usin’ the horses for anything early next week?"

"A couple things we need to check in the northwest corner that’s easier to get to on horseback than with the ATVs Why?"

"I’d like to leave Bongo here until then"

"Not a problem"

Ben dismounted and unhooked the cinch strap

"Is there a wo secret?"

Ben tossed the saddle over the split rail fence "Wouldn’t be a secret if I told you noould it?"

Quinn dropped his saddle next to Ben’s "Why do you drive to Gillette to get laid and get drunk when there are plenty of places around here? And plenty of women who’d be happy to be in your bed for more than a weekend"

He snorted and re it over the rail "Who’d you hear that from? Tell? Or Dalton?"

Quinn pitched Ben a currycomb "Neither I heard that fro strokes "Trouble in paradise? Has Libby been hanging out at Ziggy’s bar again?"