Once Bitten, Twice Shy

He blinked and caught his breath, gently pushing her away.

"I almost forgot. Katie sent me in to get some cat food."

Warmth flooded her face as she stepped away from him. What was she thinking of? He must think she was as easy as a primed pump. She made a job of searching through the cabinet for the cat food and avoided his gaze as she handed him the box.

"She came back, did she?"

He took the box from her hand. "Yeah, and she brought some company."

Involuntarily she glanced up at him. "She didn't."

The dark eyes sparkled with humor. "I'm afraid so. Why don't you have her fixed so this won't happen again?"

"I can't afford it. Anyway, she's just a stray that wandered up one day and attached herself to us."

He lifted the box and grinned. "I'm not surprised. Don't you know feeding a cat is the same as throwing out a welcome mat?"

She smiled and shrugged a shoulder. "Oh well, now she'll have plenty of reason to kill off the mice."

He shook his head. "You're kind of tough on wildlife, aren't you?" He turned toward the door. "I told Katie I'd be right back."

After he left, Carmen turned to the sink of dishes. Maybe Josh wasn't so crazy after all. Had Alex contemplated kissing her, and if so, why had he changed his mind? Maybe it was never on his mind - only hers. She blushed again at the thought. And why was it on her mind? No wonder Josh was so concerned. Josh was probably right about Alex, though. He was a walk away Joe. There was certainly nothing here to hold him, and a little country hick would be the last female he would consider seriously. No, they were both vulnerable right now. Alex was bored and she was depressed. Right now, any affection would be welcome; and Alex was obviously an affectionate person.

She sighed. There were chores to do and she'd best get at them.

A few minutes later she was kicking snow around in the chicken yard until the toe of her boot struck something solid. She buried a gloved hand in the snow and extracted the half tire that served as a watering trough. Flipping it over, she stomped on the bottom until the ice broke loose. The chickens fought for position in the tiny coop door as they watched her pour a bucket of water into the tire. They squawked and pecked at each other as she broke a trail from the tire to the coop. She jumped aside, allowing the fowl avalanche to plunge down the trail. Pushing each other aside, they buried their beaks in the water and lifted their heads, eyeing her suspiciously as the water trickled down their throats. Then they sneezed and shook the cold water from their waddles and drank again. They seemed unconcerned that their feet were buried in snow. Did they know winter would soon be replaced by spring? She glanced at the low gray clouds. It had stopped snowing, but it looked like it could start again any minute.