Buch lesen: «From City Girl to Rancher's Wife»

Contents

Cover

Introduction

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Extract

Copyright

Chapter One

After six hours in a middle-of-nowhere airport, two turbulent flights and a bottom-of-the-barrel rental car, Josie Callahan almost wasn’t shocked when she ended up in the ditch on a dark, out-of-the-way Montana road. In what seemed to be a monsoon.

She swallowed what felt dangerously close to hysterical laughter, because at this point, after how awful her day had been, what was the point of getting mad?

Just to check, she dug her phone out of her bag, then almost immediately dropped it back in. No service, of course. It had been hit or miss all day.

Since she had no idea where she was, how far she was from the ranch—this car had no GPS—and her phone wouldn’t work, she plopped her head back on the headrest and squeezed her eyes shut. She was hungry, but all she had was a squashed granola bar in her purse and half a bottle of water. No chocolate, unfortunately.

She opened her eyes and gave the rain that was coursing down the windshield a baleful glare.

Where she came from, none of this would be an issue.

Light bounced somewhere down the road. Josie squinted out the rain-streaked window. Lightning? It couldn’t possibly be a car out here on this godforsaken road. Could it?

It was getting steadily closer, and she could see the lights were in fact headlights, on what seemed to be a huge truck.

The truck slowed, then stopped on the opposite side of the road, so she wasn’t blinded by the lights. Josie scrambled for her pepper spray, her heart pounding. Her hysteria from a few moments ago had turned to a quasi panic. She saw the truck door open, and a tall man stepped out.

She gripped the can tightly. Okay. She was on the road—she hoped—to the Silver River Ranch. Her aunt knew she was on the way. It was possible he was looking for her.

He tapped on her window. She lowered it a few inches and lifted her can of pepper spray so he could see it. The rain splashed in, cold on her skin, but he wore a cowboy hat. The rain ran off the brim. He had sharp blue eyes that caught her attention.

“Are you Josie Callahan?” His voice was deep and a little hoarse, and she blinked.

“I am,” she said, holding the can steady. “Who are you?”

“Luke Ryder. Your aunt sent me to check on you.” He stooped a little more and lifted a brow. “You don’t need the pepper spray, ma’am.”

Oh, hell. She lowered the can. No, she didn’t need it. Luke Ryder was a well-known retired country star and her aunt’s employer. She dropped it in her lap, thankful she hadn’t accidentally discharged the can. On herself. The way this day had gone, it wouldn’t have surprised her. “Right. Well. Thanks.”

“Why don’t you get in the truck and I’ll grab your bags. You’re not that far from the ranch, and Rosa is anxious to see you.” There may or may not have been a note of censure in his voice, and she bristled just a bit. Rosa had told her to wait, to come in the daylight, but Josie had had it after everything had gone wrong and had just wanted to get there. Guilt swamped her. It seemed as if she was always causing people anxiety. “I couldn’t call her. My phone—”

“No service out here for regular cell phones. That’s why she sent me.” He opened the door as she hit the button to roll the window up. She twisted to grab her coat from the backseat and got her purse and laptop bag. He extended his free hand and, after a second’s hesitation, she took it and he pulled her out of the car. She was a little surprised at how tall he was—even though she was in heels he topped her by a head.

Despite the chill in the air, his palm was warm and rough as it slid over hers. The little shiver that ran down her spine had to be from the shock of the cold rain in late August, not his touch.

“Go ahead and get in the truck,” he said. “I’ll get the rest of your stuff.”

“Thank you,” she said, and marched across the sodden, uneven road, her boots with their three-inch heels sinking into the dirt. She was afraid she was going to lose one. They, like her, were made for city sidewalks. In retrospect, probably not the best footwear for Montana.

She climbed into the big red dually pickup and sank into the buttery leather seats. This wasn’t what she’d expected. She’d thought it’d be threadbare, dirty, more of a working truck for a cowboy. Which she knew from her aunt was what Luke considered himself now. It smelled like—

Luke.

As he opened the back door of the truck and put her bags in, she got another whiff of the fresh air and rain mixed with the scent of laundry soap and something a little spicy. She stopped herself from taking a deep inhale.

She’d been involved with a celebrity once. It had cost her more than she’d ever expected to pay. She wasn’t going to fall into that trap again, not for love or money.

“I took everything out of the trunk,” he said, turning slightly toward her so she got the whole effect of those eyes. Oh, my. “Is there anything else you need?”

“No, that’s everything. Thank you.” Her tone was a little prim, even to her own ears.

He arched a brow. “Those are two, full, heavy suitcases. How did you get them on the plane?”

She gave him a tight smile. “Paid extra. Of course.” She’d packed a few of her favorite pans and utensils. She wasn’t going to explain that to him.

“What about the car?” she asked as he climbed in the truck. “Can we just leave it there?”

“We’ll have to for tonight. In the morning I’ll come back and pull it out. I’d like to be able to see if there’s any damage.”

She swallowed a sigh. Damage to the rental car. She’d bought the insurance policy that they offered and she hoped it would cover it in this situation. She’d worry about it in the morning. “All right. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He put the truck in gear and made a series of short turns that eventually had the big truck facing the other way on the road. Josie just sat there, her hands in her lap. It was quiet in the truck, except for the rhythmic thumping of the windshield wipers. If she wasn’t careful, it could lull her to sleep. Her day was finally catching up to her. She’d gotten up at four that morning to catch her flight. She glanced at the clock on the dash. It was almost nine now.

Los Angeles seemed like a lifetime away. That was probably for the best. She wondered if Aunt Rosa’s no-gossip policy extended to her, too. Had she told Luke about Josie’s recent troubles?

She sneaked a little look at his profile, which was illuminated by the dash lights. His chin was strong and his hair was cut short under that hat. His shirt was soaked, and did a nice job of outlining strong arms. Aunt Rosa didn’t say much about her famous employer, but she had said he was a hard worker. Those arms seemed to be proof of that.

Not that she was looking, of course.

She tore her eyes away and fixed them on the bit of road she could see in the swath of light from the truck’s headlights. The rain ran in rivulets down the sides of the road, and a washout from that was probably what had pulled her off the road and into the ditch.

“Thank you,” she said finally, “for your help. I am sorry for making you come out in this weather.”

“You’re welcome. Did she tell you to wait until morning?”

Now she heard the note of censure in his tone. But all Josie had wanted was to get away from the airports and into a real bed. “She did, yes.”

He glanced at her. “You didn’t think that maybe she knew what she was talking about?”

Josie threaded her fingers together so tight it hurt. “Of course I did. I just thought—” She trailed off. She’d thought it couldn’t be that bad. That remote meant a little ways out from town, that roads were paved, that there’d be people around. Somewhere. That she’d just be out in the country, not in the middle of nowhere in a monsoon. She combed her hair back from her face. Her neat knot had given up hours ago. “I was stupid. I’m completely aware of that.”

“Stupid can get you killed out here,” he said mildly, as if he was pointing out the obvious. “Soon enough this won’t be rain. It’ll be snow. It could take days to find someone who’s wandered off.”

A little shiver ran over her skin. She’d be gone before the snow set in, thank God. “Point taken. I’ll be careful.” Not that she’d be driving anywhere. She’d been driving for almost an hour past the last little town when she’d gone in the ditch. There’d be no quick trips out for anything, clearly.

Not like her neighborhood in LA, where she could walk everywhere if she wanted. She massaged her temples with her fingertips.

“Rough day?”

She laughed, because otherwise she’d start crying. And maybe never stop. “You could say that.” Her past few months had been a series of rough days. She was due for something better. Sometime. Any time. It was why she was up here in Montana instead of back at home in California trying to salvage her career.

Which, of course, was beyond fixing, as was her life as she’d known it. Stupid didn’t just kill a person. It could cost them everything.

Luke made a turn onto a tiny road that she didn’t even see in the rain and the dark, which meant she’d have missed it if she’d been on her own. They bumped along a rutted road for a quarter mile or so before passing through an open gate under an arch. They wound a little farther, and over a rise the house came into view.

Josie couldn’t contain her gasp. Even in the dark, she could see the house was a huge log home. Not a cabin—her aunt had referred to it as a cabin! A cabin was smallish. This place was closer to a mansion. Lights were on in many of the windows, and the front porch was illuminated as well, showing a row of Adirondack chairs. Luke pulled the truck off onto a short gravel drive that opened to a parking area. He stopped next to a low stone wall with soft lights set into it.

“We’ll have to make a run for it,” he said. “I can’t get any closer than this.” He cast a doubtful eye in the direction of her feet. “Don’t break an ankle, please.”

She snapped out of her awe and grabbed her laptop bag and purse. “Oh, I won’t. I can run in these. I’m a city girl, born and raised.” This was not a plus out here in the wilds of Montana, but she’d make it work for the next couple of months.

“That’s what I was afraid of,” he said, low enough she almost didn’t catch it, and got out, opened the back door and grabbed a suitcase. She got the other one, and it bumped along behind her as she half walked, half ran to the porch behind Luke, whose long stride made it impossible for her to keep up without trotting.

The heavy front door swung open. Aunt Rosa was framed in the light from the house, anxiety and relief etched on her face. “Josie! Oh, thank God you’re okay.”

Josie walked into her aunt’s embrace, even though it was awkward with all the bags she was juggling and she was soaking wet. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

Aunt Rosa gave her a fierce hug. “Just like your daddy. Stubborn.” Her tone was affectionate, not scolding, but Josie still felt bad. “Let me go grab you a towel. Wait right here.” She hurried off, and Josie and Luke came all the way in, the suitcases trundling awkwardly over the threshold. Luke came to a stop right behind her, and she felt the heat of his body. It was an odd sort of awareness, one that made her uncomfortable.

“I’ll put this in your room,” Luke said quietly, and she turned partway around and nodded, making brief eye contact with him.

“All right. Thank you. For all your help.”

He tipped his head at her. “You’re welcome.” He strode off, and Josie pulled her gaze away when it snagged on his broad shoulders and looked around the room instead.

The place was clearly even bigger than it looked, with huge vaulted ceilings and a fire crackling in a massive fireplace with floor-to-ceiling stone on the hearth and up the chimney, all the way to the ceiling. There were two full-size leather sofas and a couple deep chairs covered in what looked like chenille. Magazines were stacked on the end tables. A rug in deep colors anchored the space, in an intricate woven pattern. The walls had been left natural, so the logs seemed to fade away, and she guessed the focus was on an incredible view of the ranch and mountains out the floor-to-ceiling windows that covered the back wall. It was a room that could have been intimidating, but somehow felt homey and lived in, and Josie wanted in that moment to curl up on one of the couches in front of the fire and go to sleep.

Aunt Rosa hurried back down the hall with a towel, which Josie took gratefully.

“Thank you,” she said, then gestured at the room. “This is—amazing.”

“Yes. Actually, this part is the original house his father built. Luke and his brothers added on to it. Tomorrow you’ll be able to see the view. I don’t know if Luke told you, but this kind of rain isn’t typical for this time of year.”

She managed a smile. “So I just got lucky?”

Aunt Rosa smiled and patted her arm. “Something like that. Now, let’s get these bags to your room so you can get into something dry, then I’ll feed you.”

Josie pulled the handle on her suitcase and looped the other two bags over her shoulders, waving off Aunt Rosa’s extended hand. “I’ve got them. But thank you.”

She followed her aunt’s trim figure down the hall past that wonderful fireplace and was surprised to meet an older woman coming out of a room right at the beginning of the hall. She moved slower than her age would indicate, with a walker, and a bag of what appeared to be knitting supplies. Her smile was friendly as she saw them. “Well, hello. You must be Josie. I’m Alice Ryder, Luke’s mother.”

Josie extended her hand. “I am. Nice to meet you, Alice. Thanks for sharing your home with me.”

Alice chuckled. “This is Luke’s home. I’ve got my own a little farther down the lane. I’m a temporary guest.”

“Alice had her hips replaced,” Aunt Rosa explained.

“The boys insisted I stay here so they can keep an eye on me,” Alice said cheerfully, and then her smile faded. “I’m glad you got here safe. This place is hard to find in the daylight, much less the rain and dark.”

“Yes. I learned that the hard way,” Josie admitted. Luke had been clear on her folly, and he’d been right to call her on it. Sheer stubbornness mixed with exhaustion had colored her judgment, and look where that had gotten her. “It’s a mistake I won’t make again.”

Alice smiled at her. “I’m sure you won’t. Now you get settled in and relax.”

“This is a gorgeous house,” Josie said as they continued on.

Rosa nodded “It is lovely. I love it here. But it’s time for me to go spend some time with Kelly.”

Rosa’s first grandchild was due next week. “I know she’ll be thrilled to have you around.”

Rosa laughed. “Considering how long she waited to have children, she’s not surprised that I want to be there.” She paused to open a door a few steps down. “This is your room.”

Josie followed her in. The bedside lamps were already on, which gave the room a lovely glow. She set her bags down on the floor, next to the one Luke had already dropped off. She thought she could catch a whiff of his scent lingering in the air. Crazy.

“You’ve got a view of the mountains,” Rosa said. “In the morning you’ll be able to see it.”

“It’s a lovely room. So—serene,” Josie said. And it was. The walls here weren’t log. They were painted a very pale lilac gray, a color that felt a little like twilight. The carpet was cream and very thick underfoot. The queen-size bed had a light blue quilt and a white coverlet folded over the end. There were a few framed photos on the wall, shots of what she assumed was the ranch. A small sitting area rounded out the space, with a television.

And a cattle skull over what turned out to be the bathroom.

“Yes,” Rosa said, following her gaze with a good-natured sigh, “the senses of humor around here tend toward warped. I can take it down if you’d rather not look at it every day.”

“Ah, no, it’s fine,” Josie said, eyeing it warily. She was in the West after all. “It lends character.”

Rosa gave her another hug. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

“Me, too.” Josie’s stomach growled, and they both laughed. “So there’s dinner?”

“Oh, yes,” Rosa said and smiled. “Change if you’d like, then follow your nose to the kitchen.” She left, pulling the door shut behind her.

It took Josie only a few minutes to use the bathroom and put on yoga pants and a long-sleeved T-shirt. She pulled her hair up in a ponytail and stared at her reflection with a wince. Pale, with dark circles under her eyes, she looked as exhausted as she felt. While she’d jumped at the chance to get out of LA, she wasn’t sure after her adventures today that she was cut out for this kind of place.

She took a deep breath. She could do it. It was six weeks in the middle of nowhere, cooking for four people. She’d spent the past few years cooking for critics and crowds, her life consumed by her career. How hard could it be?

Chapter Two

Josie slept like a rock, and woke up confused when her smartphone alarm went off. She never slept through the night, in fact had prescription sleep medication that she tried not to take but often had to after several restless nights.

Blinking the sleep from her eyes, it took her a few seconds to remember where she was. The Silver River Ranch. She got up and hurried through her morning routine. Rosa had said she was usually in the kitchen by five, and it was nearly that now.

She hurried through the dark house and nearly screamed when a shadow detached itself from the darkness near the fireplace and hurtled itself at her, panting.

She darted behind a chair and whacked her shin on something hard. She bit back a curse and rubbed her aching leg as the shadow—a dark-colored dog—nosed her, tail going a mile a minute.

“You scared me,” she said accusingly, and the dog sat, tail still going, apparently unfazed by her tone.

She sighed and gave the dog’s head a quick pat, her heart still racing. She wasn’t a fan of dogs. Or animals in general, though she’d taken riding lessons as a teen. She’d never had a pet in any of her thirty-two years. Her parents had been too busy, and she’d followed right in their footsteps in terms of throwing herself wholeheartedly into her work. No time for houseplants, much less a pet.

She moved around the dog, who trotted behind her into the kitchen. It already smelled heavenly, and most important, like coffee. Aunt Rosa looked up with a smile. “Good morning. Did you sleep okay? Ah, I see you met Hank.”

“Good morning. I did, thanks.” She decided not to mention her little run-in in the living room with the furniture. Getting spooked by an animal seemed like a poor start to her job here. “You let the ranch dogs in the house?” Apparently giving up on Josie, Hank trotted over to Rosa, who rubbed his ears.

“Not the working ones. When they get old or can’t work for some reason they’ll usually get adopted by a family member. Hank is Luke’s dog.” To the dog, she said, “Go lie down, Hank.” He gave Josie another long look, then meandered out of the kitchen.

Rosa nodded toward the stack of white mugs on the counter next to the huge coffeepot. “Help yourself.”

“Thanks.” She moved around the island and poured a cup, adding a little milk and sugar. She closed her eyes as she took a sip. “Wow. This is really excellent coffee, Aunt Rosa.”

“Luke wants only the best,” Rosa said cheerfully, and Josie’s stomach soured just a little. Only the best was a familiar refrain. From her parents, from Russ.

She forced her lips into a smile. “Well, he got it here, for sure.” She set the mug down with a solid clink on the granite counter, eager to get started. “So...where do I start?”

The next hour passed in a comfortable blur of cooking and preparation. Josie enjoyed the chance to cook with her aunt, and the time passed quickly. She eyed the mountain of food on the platters and Rosa, catching her expression, laughed.

“Yep, only three men and then you and I and Alice. But remember, this isn’t just a nice meal out. This has to fuel them for hours and they can’t just run in and grab a snack. They’ll put a hurting on it.”

Almost on cue, Josie heard the low rumble of men’s voices and they entered the kitchen. Her gaze landed on Luke first. He just had on worn jeans and a flannel shirt over a T-shirt and the same hat as the night before, but her pulse gave a little skip. He gave her a polite nod. Before she could respond, two big guys stepped between them, and she looked up at them, startled. Her first thought was she’d never seen such good-looking siblings. All of them were tall and lean, with similar blue eyes, but their hair color wasn’t all the same. Luke’s was darker brown and these two were lighter. Still, they shared the same wide smile, similar to the one Alice had given her last night.

“Good morning,” the taller of the two said with a charming grin. “I’m Cade, and this is Jake. You must be Josie.”

“I am,” she said, shaking first Cade’s outstretched hand, then Jake’s. No little zings or fizzles of awareness. Which was good, of course, but why had it happened with Luke? Maybe she’d just been tired. “Nice to meet you guys.”

Behind them, Luke already had a plate, which he was heaping with food. Cade winked at her and said, “Looking forward to getting to know you better. Rosa’s said a lot about you.”

Ignoring the flirtatious first part of his comment, a little shiver of worry ran down her spine. Rosa didn’t gossip, but what had she said? Josie hadn’t talked a lot about her relationship with Russ, or the financial woes that had dogged them, but with his outsize personality and popular cooking show, he often made the gossip pages.

Rosa was beside her then, her hand light on Josie’s arm. “I talked up your cooking skills,” she said cheerfully. “As you’ve worked hard for them.”

Josie relaxed slightly. “Ah. Well, I’m not sure you guys want the kind of food I’ve been cooking for the past year or so. More for show than sustenance.” There may have been the slightest tinge of bitterness in her tone, so she smiled at both men to soften it. “So I’m looking forward to cooking real meals again.”

They exchanged a bit more good-natured chatter as Cade and Jake loaded up their plates and then left for the dining room, where she could hear the clink of silverware and the low rumble of voices.

“I didn’t say anything about your personal life,” Rosa said quietly as she carried a platter to the sink. “I just said you were between jobs at the moment and could fill in for me temporarily. I don’t know all that happened with you, honey, but I know it must have been bad to put those shadows in your eyes and to bring you all the way up here.”

The concern in her aunt’s voice made Josie want to cry. She blinked away the moisture. “I won’t lie. It’s been rough. But it’ll all work out.” She took a deep breath. “What can you tell me about those two?”

There was a slight pause, then apparently her aunt accepted the change in subject. “Cade is a flirt,” she said. “Harmless, but a flirt nonetheless. But he won’t push you or take it too far. He just loves women of all ages. Luke is the opposite. He won’t flirt at all. Jake is in the middle. They’re all good boys. Any one of them would be a wonderful catch.”

Josie bit back a sigh. While that was good to know, she wasn’t looking for any kind of relationship—long-term or temporary. Of all she’d been through personally, the worst had been realizing that engaged hadn’t meant the same thing to Russ as it did to her. Thank God she’d figured it all out well before the wedding.

She kept her tone noncommittal. “I think it’s wonderful that you think so highly of them, but that’s not why I’m here.” Then she added, “I’m famished. I haven’t eaten a breakfast like this in ages.” Sad but true. Yogurt and a piece of fruit usually made up her first meal of the day. Eaten in her car on the way to the restaurant. And that was because Russ had made so many comments about her tasting the food. Be careful. Too many bites will make you fat. She’d laughed it off at the time, but in retrospect, it made her slightly ill.

Rosa handed her a plate. “Of course, that’s not why you’re here. But you never know what might develop. If you close yourself off to possibilities, you might miss something special.”

Josie didn’t fully agree. She wasn’t concerned about missing something special. She intended to keep her heart under wraps for the foreseeable future.

* * *

Luke hadn’t bargained on the new cook.

Sure, Rosa had asked if her niece could take over while she spent some of her vacation time with her daughter, who was expecting a baby soon. Trusting the older woman completely, he’d said sure. He’d listened to Rosa explain with pride that Josie was a trained chef, and had owned her own restaurant in Los Angeles that people flocked to.

He hadn’t thought about her being a woman.

It had been so long since he’d looked—really looked—at a woman, that when she’d glared at him from her car with her blue eyes narrowed, the pepper spray can in her hand, he’d been shocked to feel the unwelcome rush of attraction. And she was a self-confessed city girl to boot, which was a huge no-no in his book. He’d married a city girl.

He was no longer married.

So to feel something for someone who wore three-inch spike heels to stomp across a muddy, wet road in the wilds of Montana wasn’t a good sign.

But damn, they’d looked good on her, even in the mud and rain.

“Don’t you think so, Luke?” Cade’s question broke into his thoughts.

Luke looked up from the sausage and gravy he’d been demolishing on his plate. “What was that?”

Cade stabbed the egg on his plate. “Josie. She’s a looker.”

Since she’d just been occupying his thoughts he shook his head, the denial as much for him as his brothers. “I wouldn’t know.”

Cade looked at Jake incredulously. “He’s blind.”

“Or stupid,” Jake suggested, but there was a glint of humor in his eyes.

“Or both.” Cade looked at him hard. “Luke. It’s okay to, you know, think a woman is hot.”

He shrugged. “She’s not my type.”

“Maybe she’s mine,” Cade said thoughtfully, and took a bite of toast.

Luke leveled a glare at him. “Don’t even. She’s our employee, not a plaything for you.”

A slow smile spread across Cade’s face and he pointed what was left of the toast in Luke’s direction. “You did notice.” He turned to Jake, who nodded as he chewed. “He sure as hell did. Well, well. That’s a first, isn’t it?”

He’d have to be dead not to notice Josie, but he wasn’t going to say that to either of his brothers. Ever. Before he could say anything, Jake held up his coffee.

“Leave him alone, Cade. He wants to ignore her, that’s his business and his loss. He’s hiding, remember?”

Luke bit back a groan. He’d stepped away from performing, from that life to avoid all sorts of entanglements. His brothers might accuse him of hiding, but he’d wanted to just focus on the ranch, to get it into the black and after years of his father running it on the edge of total ruin. To prove he was more than the kid who couldn’t wait to bust out of here with big dreams.

He kept his voice steady. “I’m not hiding. I’m retired. Big difference. We’ve got a lot to do today. I’ve got to get that car out of the ditch, so I can’t go all the way up to the ridge.”

The talk changed direction then, and Luke was more than happy to let it go. His brothers meant well, and they’d tease him, but they didn’t know just how destructive his marriage had been—and with the benefit of hindsight, how unprepared he’d been, not only for the spotlight but all it entailed.