She keeps an ear out for the sound of quickened hoof beats, turning over her shoulder to supervise his approach. She smiles, despite his awkward posture.

Though it fades soon enough, once she sees the determined, hard set of his countenance.

"What I meant by what? You're an impossibly indecisive one t'day, hankerin' between the romance of the notion an' wantin' t'get it over with. Forward or back, Gene? Y'can't have both."

Kate's always been a patient teacher, but she has her moments of bluntness with especially difficult students.