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His srin on Jessy Niles’s face as she led the balky cow to the gate She was tall and sliled loose froth at the back of her neck With the shapeless cowboy hat atop her head, she reseloith the healthiness of outdoor living and added to the sunny sparkle in her hazel eyes

“We got ’er” Her cheery voice was iving credit to

“You got ’er, Jessy,” he corrected Her expression sobered slightly, so from her smile

“Weof her shoulders to indicate it was insignificant which of them had actually roped the animal

Since she had followed as rus backup, there was some truth in her reply, but Ty was sensitive to the point that he had gone after the cow and Jessy was the one bringing it back in tow It grated just a little, and he tried not to let it show

Dropping his horse back, he herded the roped cow after Jessy so it wouldn’t fight being led Buzz Taylor was afoot by the gate, waiting to close it as soon as the coas turned loose beyond it and Jessy had ridden back through Once the gate was shut, Ty secured his coiled rope to the saddle and stepped to the ground

With the herd shifted to a range with good graze and plenty of water, their as finished for the day, and the riders paused for a s back to the camp at South Branch Ty bent his head to touch the end of his unaltered cigarette to the match flame Bill Summers offered

“That wily ole cow ducked right out of your loop,” Bill observed, co

“Yeah” Even though there wasn’t a wind, Ty cupped his hand protectively around the cigarette out of habit so no live erass

“Ole sure-eye Jessy got ’er, didn’t ya?” Buzz Taylor declared with a hearty grin of teasing approval directed at the girl standing slank-hipped with them

“Ty hazed him into position for arette and turned her head aside to spit the bits of tobacco froue

“Hell, he just got out of your way, that’s all,” Buzz retorted He cast a suspicious eye at Jessy “Does your pa know you’re s?”

“Sure He don’t like it

“Stuarettes off the rest of us,” Bill Su to her defense “Finally he told her that if she was doin’ a arettes, she could either start buyin’ her own or stop smokin’”

Jessy rin at the explanation That’s about the way it had turned out after her father had gotten over his initial prejudice against a young girl s but tan her hide to keep her fro lectures Everyone around her s for her to smoke, too