Feisty Kate
Chapter 1
"No, I won't do it! It's ridiculous!" Little Joe's green eyes burned and he angrily slapped his saddle over the rail of the stall.
"Why? Are you afraid?"
The teen spun on his heels and faced her. He stared at her and said each word very slowly, "You're...a...girl. It's ridiculous!" He turned back toward the stall.
Kate found herself fighting back tears. "I would expect this from Hoss, but not from you." With that, the tears came in full, and she sat down on the floor and cried into her sleeve.
"Aw, Kate!" Little Joe walked over to her and sat beside her. He rubbed her back with his hand. "Why ya need to know how to fight, anyway?"
He waited for her sobbing to subside. "My Aunt Dodie is coming from Kansas. She's bringing some man with her. They're gonna make me marry him, Joe, I just know it!"
Joe touched her chin and turned her face towards his. Very gently, he spoke, "Well. what's so wrong with that?"
Angrily, she snatched her face away from his and the sobs began anew. "I don't even know him, Joe!"
Little Joe could feel the growing knot in his stomach. He hated to see a friend, especially female, so upset. But no matter how hard he tried, he just didn't understand why this was such a big deal, and why she would need to know how to fight. He sighed heavily. "Kate," he began, "I still don't understand your thinkin', but if learnin' to fight will make you feel better, I'll do it. I'll show you how."
The girl turned and looked searchingly at her friend. "You mean it, Joe?"
He nodded.
"Oh, Joe! Thank you!" Relief washed over her, and she fell into his arms. He held her a moment.
"We'll start tomorrow afternoon. I'll meet you at Kissing Rock."
She dried her eyes on her sleeves and smiled at him. "I'll be there." She surprised him with a peck on the cheek, mounted her horse, and rode away.
Joe put some oats in Cochise's stall and headed for the ranch house. Hoss was on the porch, watching Kate ride away. "What was that all about?"
"Hmmm? Oh, nothin'," Joe said, realizing he couldn't tell his family about it. "she was just kinda upset, wanted to talk to somebody."
Hoss tried to supress a grin. He glanced at the girl's fading figure, then at the barn, then at his brother. "Yeah, talk. Sure."
Joe sighed and rolled his eyes, then went into the house as Hoss guffawed.
"All right." Joe looked at her and sighed.
"What's the matter, Joe?"
"Couldn't you have worn pants or somethin'? I don't see how I'm gonna do this if you're in a dress."
"Sorry Joe, I didn't think of it. I'll wear pants next time."
"All right, tell you what..." Joe had been up almost all night, agonizing about how to teach the girl to fight without getting her hurt. "Come over here."
Obediently, she moved to stand directly in front of him.
"Now make a fist." The girl put both of her hands into tight little fists, her thumbs tucked inside her other fingers. "No, no, you can't do it that way, you'll break your thumbs." He pried her fingers open and placed her thumbs on the outside, then showed her how to turn her thumb so it didn't stick out. "There, that's good."
She smiled. Little Joe couldn't help but notice how pretty she was. He gulped and tried to shake that feeling away. "Now, I'm gonna stand here, and I want you to hit me in the stomach, as hard as you can."
"Well, which hand do I use?"
"Use the one you write with."
Joe set himself, and she punched. He took the punch well, but was a little surprised at the strength behind it. "Now, see, that didn't hurt me one bit. When you're gonna fight somebody, you kinda tense yourself up, so that when you get hit, it doesn't hurt so much. Especially your stomach. If you ever get hit in the stomach when you're not ready, oh, boy, does that hurt!"
"Okay, now you hit me. I'm ready."
Joe glanced down at Kate's slender waist and gulped. "N-no, not just yet. Let's keep working on your punches."
"Well, good afternoon, Joseph. Nice of you to grace us with your presence this afternoon." The sarcasm in his father's tone was unmistakeable. Joe just smiled, since there didn't seem to be any good way to respond.
"I wonder where my youngest has spending all his time lately," Ben mused.
"I don't reckon it would be with that Kate McGill, now would it," Hoss said, his eyes sparkling with laughter.
"I've just been helping her out with something, that's all. There's nothing else to it."
"Helping her with what?" Adam asked, 'Kissing lessons?!"
As his family laughed, Joe could feel his neck and face turning bright red. "And you people wonder why I don't talk to you." He headed to the kitchen to get away from them all.
