Needing time to heal after a rodeo injury, Kate Rainbolt heads to her family ranch to accept the foreman job her brothers offered her months ago. But the position’s already been filled by her ex-boyfriend, Jess McNally, and the only open job reports to him. With Jess as her temporary boss—and turning into something more—might he finally convince Kate to put down roots?
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Kate Rainbolt’s gaze followed the man who entered Eagle Donuts. He moved past the tables of early morning customers with smooth, long-limbed confidence. A tall man, he wore a black barn coat, faded jeans and scuffed boots, not unlike dozens of other Oklahoma cowboys.
She was ready to dismiss him when something set off an
internal warning, urging her to take a second glance. Kate tensed and stepped
away from the counter, feigning interest in a display of coffee mugs. When the
cowboy lifted his head and tipped back the brim of his hat to assess the inside
of the shop, she saw his face, and her heart slammed against her chest.
Jess McNally.
She’d been back in Rebel for an hour, and naturally,
she’d run into her former beau.
Her only beau.
Usually, Kate kept her emotions hidden behind a mask of
greasepaint and an outrageous, red felt cowboy hat. But she wasn’t a rodeo
clown any longer, and it would take work to hide the emotions rocking her to
the core. The last time she’d seen Jess was ten years ago, when she’d rejected
his marriage proposal. It was unfortunate that time had only improved his good
looks. Dark hair peeked out from beneath a black Stetson, and a scruffy five
o’clock shadow emphasized the angles of his face.
Jess’s slate-gray eyes connected with hers, and she
froze, chin down, her gaze going everywhere but back to the cowboy in front of
her. She willed her pulse to slow before she dared to meet his gaze again.
Ten years. He should not have this effect on her after
all that time.
“Kate?”
“Hey, Jess.” She shoved her left hand in her coat pocket,
ignoring the twinge in her casted arm and the pain that shot through her middle
as she jostled her tender rib cage.
“You’re back in Rebel?” he asked.
She lifted her face. “For now, I am. What about you?”
“Yeah. I’ve been back for a few weeks.”
“So you’re visiting?” She prayed that his next words
would be that he was leaving town soon. Regret wasn’t on her schedule today,
and she lacked the mental stamina for a what-if game about whether or not she’d
walked away from the best thing that had ever happened to her.
“Visiting? No.” He said the words slowly, paused and
looked at her.
A shiver galloped down Kate’s arms.
“I guess Reece didn’t mention…” Jess ran a hand over his
face.
“Reece?” Her second eldest big brother hadn’t said
anything special when she’d called to let him know she was on her way from
Tucson, only that it was about time. His mantra du jour.
“I’m the foreman at Rebel Ranch,” Jess said. “New
position.”
Kate blinked and focused her attention on the tips of her
hand-tooled Western boots while trying not to reveal how surprised she was.
Because she was absolutely surprised. She’d been offered the position of ranch
foreman at Christmas. Her brothers Reece and Mitch ran the popular guest ranch
and had mentioned it to Kate at their brother Tucker’s wedding.
“Reece is expanding the cattle side. I’ll be supervising
production and care of livestock and horses.”
“Yes. I know about the expansion,” she said. Though she
worked to keep her voice neutral, anxiety had her gnawing on her lip.
There was another lengthy pause between them. Jess
hesitated as if measuring his words. “Is my taking this job a problem?”
There was no way she’d answer a loaded question like
that. She was going to be living at the ranch temporarily. Even short-term,
that would be way too close to Jess McNally, the man who had somehow managed to
steal her job right out from under her. Yes, there would definitely be
problems. Several of them.
About the Author
Tina Radcliffe has been dreaming and scribbling for years.
Originally from Western NY, she left home for a tour of duty with the Army
Security Agency stationed in Augsburg, Germany, and ended up in Tulsa,
Oklahoma. Her past careers include:
Certified Oncology R.N. and library cataloger.
She recently moved from Denver, Colorado, to the Phoenix, Arizona area,
where she writes heartwarming and fun inspirational romance.
Connect with the Author
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