"Cowboys do." He hooked a small finger in the cup's handle, unaware of the danger of spilling the hot liquid.

Winn had both hands around the cup in antic.i.p.ation of the child's action.

"It'll keep you awake, and you only grow while you sleep."

Greg let go and looked up at his friend.

"Really?"

"Sure," Winn answered. He used his left arm to pull the boy against him.

"When you get as big as you want to get, then you can start drinking coffee."

Cynthie watched the exchange with a mixture of pleasure and jealousy.

She wasn't often witness to their conversations and she was glad to see them

so at ease with one another. It was a clear contrast to her ownconversations with Winn. She left the room with the certainty that shewouldn't be missed and went to the porch to wait for the visitor.

Chapter Five.

Q^sy^s^Q Who's here? " Winn whispered in Greg's ear.

The boy on his lap shrugged and whispered back, "Let's go see."

They stepped out onto the porch as the hoofbeats ceased and, with a creak of

leather, the rider dismounted. Gravel crunched as the visitor came forward.

Winn could feel Cynthie standing near him on the porch.

She had not gone to meet the visitor.

"Afternoon, ma'am." The voice was familiar. It was the neighbor who had given them the ride out from town the day Winn had been brought to the ranch.

"Afternoon, Mr. Ott," he heard Cynthie say. Yes. Reuben Ott. He remembered now.

"Good to see you, Mr. Sutton. You're loo king better."Winn smiled warmly, hoping his friendliness would irritate Cynthie. Heremembered quite clearly her obvious dislike for Mr. Ott.

"I'm feeling better, too, thanks to Mrs. Franklin's care." He took a careful step forward and stretched his hand toward the voice, forgetting about the bandage.

Ott came quickly up the porch steps. His firm handshake made Winn's hand sting, but it was easily ignored.

"How can I help you, Mr. Ott?" Cynthie's voice was cold and formal.

Ott took a step backward, putting himself, Winn was sure, dangerously close to the steps.

"I brought that payment, ma'am." Winn heard the whisper of paper going from

hand to hand in front of him.He was tempted to invite Ott in for coffee. There was a whole pot insidethat had hardly been touched. He decided against it. He was opening himselfup to considerable discomfort if he annoyed his hostess.

"I'll get the receipt." Cynthie went inside and closed the door. Mr. Ott wasn't even to be invited inside to wait.

Greg slipped his hand out of Winn's and sent the swing to squeaking.

"You live near here, Mr. Ott?" Winn asked."Yeah, I'm about Mrs. Franklin's closest neighbor except maybe for KyleDempsey. You know him?"

Winn shook his head.

"He was here one day but I didn't meet him."

Greg piped up, "I don't like him."

Winn was startled but Ott only laughed.

"He doesn't know how to buy a boy's affection." Suddenly the swing was silent.

Winn laughed.

"What did you get?"

"Cherry ball," Greg said, taking the candy from his mouth to show it to Winn before he remembered that he couldn't see it.

"I don't think Mrs. Franklin likes me to do it, but I try to bring the boysomething when I come. Don't want him thin king his neighbors don't careabout him."

Winn wondered what there was between Ott and Cynthie. He reminded himselfthat he didn't want to know any more about her affairs than he had to.Ott didn't let the silence last."Don't suppose you know how long you'll be staying here."Winn shook his head. He hadn't thought he would be here this long."It's a good thing you had a cousin here so close when you had the accident."

Winn was momentarily startled. Cousin must have been Cynthie's story."I've thought of that myself," he said. Ott was obviously curious about hisblindness and Winn wondered how far he'd go with his questions. Hisconversation, however, took a different turn.

"Might consider staying. It's a nice place to settle, the area, I mean. To hear some of those fellas in town talk, Wichita's going to be a regular citysome day. They're trying to get a railroad and everything. There's alwayssomething going on in Wichita."

"So I hear."

"Yeah," Ott continued.

"I'm glad to light here. I tended other folks' cattle for a lot of years.

It's good to be working for myself for a change."

When Winn didn't respond, Ott continued, "I'm not saying it's been easy. I

saved all my life and it still took me two years to sc.r.a.pe money together tofinally get the place free and clear. Life never is easy, though. Well, you know that as well as anybody, I'd imagine. There are alwaysproblems, even if you've got money. Like Mrs. Franklin here.

Awful thing, losing her husband like that last summer. "Winn could only nod in agreement. A cousin would already know the answers toall the questions he wanted to ask. He decided it was just as well.

Learning about other people's problems tended to make a person part of them, and he had problems enough of his own.

Ott, however, didn't need much encouragement to keep talking.

"Seems to me it would set easier with a young widow if she at least knew who killed her husband." Winn hoped he didn't look surprised.

"Awful thing," Ott repeated.

Cynthie returned to the porch, preventing him from hearing any more intriguing information.

"I believe this is all you need, Mr. Ott."

Winn heard the rustle of papers as the man examined them and then tucked them

away in a pocket. "Yes, ma'am," he said."It's been a pleasure doing business with you. Don't be a stranger, Sutton."

He clapped Winn on the shoulder and ruffled Greg's hair before leaving the porch.

'"Bye," called Greg around the shrinking candy.

When the sound of hoofbeats turned from a walk into an easy canter Cynthie

let out a slow sigh of relief.

"If Mama's your cousin, am I your cousin, too?" Greg slipped a sticky handinto Winn's.Winn heard Cynthie's tiny gasp and grinned. "That's what I've been led to understand."

"Goody!" yelled the boy. He jumped down the

steps and headed toward thebarn, eager to spread the news to Louie and Peter.

"Lies can get you into trouble," he said softly.

"What was I supposed to tell people?" she snapped. Her mind was still on Ott and the things that she had heard about him. She could not be around that man without feeling angry.

"Am I hard on your reputation?" He might have meant to tease but he wasn'tsmiling.

Cynthie watched him for a moment before deciding not to answer. Ott alwaysupset her. Winn was angry with her about the proposed trip to town. It wasn't a good time to talk. She turned to go inside but he seemed toantic.i.p.ate her move and stepped toward the door. She tried to brush past himbut he caught her shoulders.

"Why am I here?" he demanded.

His voice was low, his body only inches from hers. He was too close for her to think straight. She wanted to demand that he let her go, but his handswere so gentle she should have been able to slip away easily. She didn't try.

"You needed help," she said finally. She could barely hear her own voiceabove the pounding in her ears.

"But why here? Why you? And don't tell me I'm your cousin." In frustration, he wanted to shake her. He didn't know why he had waited thislong to ask or why it was suddenly so important to know. The narrow shoulders under his hands didn't fit his picture of a cold hearted prisonguard. The fresh smell of her hair brought a sudden memory of her soft bodyin his arms and he could almost feel the clap of thunder. He let his hands drop to his sides. "Sit down, Mr. Sutton," she said softly. Her sympathetic tone took him by surprise.

"Sit down?"

She led him to the porch swing, her hands feeling warm against skin that had turned suddenly cold. She leaned against the rail in front of him.