Rancher's High-Stakes Rescue

“Hi. Josh, is it?” she said cheerfully, her dark brown eyes sparkling with enthusiasm.

“Yes, ma’am. What can I do for you?”

“Well, you can call me Dawn instead of ma’am for starters. We are going to be working together, after all.”

Josh grinned and poked his hands in his front pockets. And, yes, they were a little raw from his distracted and extended scrubbing. “Dawn, then.”

She toyed with her braid—auburn, that’s the name of the color he’d heard Piper use for that shade of brownish-red hair—and she gave him a coy smile. “I’m really looking forward to trying all the adventures. Especially the rafting. That looks like so much fun!”

“It’s a blast,” he returned, nodding and giving her a schooled smile.

The guesthouse screened door screeched again, and when he glanced toward the small porch, his blood surged and heated. His smile grew as Kate walked toward them. She had a graceful stride, but even her poise didn’t mask the sexy sway of her hips. When she met his gaze, her cheek dimpled with a quick grin before her attention shifted to her friend. “Dean just called you. I answered it and told him I’d get you, but he said he was just checking that we arrived okay.”

Dawn pressed a hand to her full bosom. “What a sweetie. Did he want me to call back?”

Kate shrugged. “When you get a minute. The connection wasn’t good, so...”

“Yeah. Cell reception out here stinks. The landline in the guesthouse might be the better option for phone calls.” Josh got his first up-close look at Kate’s mossy green eyes, and something deep inside him kicked.

She tucked her blond hair behind her ear and moistened her lips with a quick swipe of her tongue. Josh’s mouth watered, and he clenched his hand inside his pocket.

Damn but he wanted to kiss those pink lips!

Instead, he motioned toward her, saying, “You’ll want to keep some lip balm close by. The air here is pretty dry, and it can be brutal to lips.”

She seemed a little startled by his non sequitur, and a wrinkle of confusion creased the bridge of her nose briefly before she nodded. “Okay. I will. Thanks.”

Her gaze went to his mouth before darting away.

“And sunscreen, especially when we’re on the adventure outing. It might only be May, but skin as fair as yours—” he caught himself and included Dawn with his gaze “—and yours, will burn easily, even this time of year.” He touched the brim of his black felt Tony Lama hat, adding, “A good wide-brimmed hat helps, too.” He winked at them. “And you thought we just wore these doozies because they look good.”

Both of the women laughed, and Dawn swatted his arm, clearly flirting. “That they do, cowboy!”

He stepped back from Dawn’s hand and doffed his hat as he eased away. “Until later, ladies. Duty calls.”

As he shuffled into the mudroom of the main house, he shook his head and chuckled. “Ironic.”

“What’s ironic?” his sister, Piper, said from a stool at the kitchen counter.

After shucking off his work boots, he strolled into the kitchen and snitched one of the potato chips on Piper’s plate. She batted at his hand.

“Hey, mooch, get your own!”

“Why? Yours are right here.” Man, he loved to tease her. Having her back at the ranch after seven years felt good. The McCall family was complete again. Having her part of this new business venture with Zane felt ordained.

“What’s ironic?” she repeated, sliding her plate out of his reach.

“Oh, the two women who came this afternoon from the PR firm. I was just talking to them outside and...well, one of them is not so subtle about her interest in me...”

Piper snorted. “Vain much, Josh?”

“Hey, I know flirting when I see it.” He walked around her and took another potato chip. “But the other lady, the one I actually think is pretty hot, seems...I dunno...kinda skittish.”

Piper pivoted on the stool to face him, folding her arms over her chest. “Back up, Doofus. You find her hot?”

“Damn right. She’s gorgeous.”

Piper arched a dark eyebrow at him. “This is a travel adventures business we’re trying to launch, bucko, not a dating service. The customers are off-limits.”

He paused with a potato chip halfway to his mouth. “Says who?”

“Says...everyone. Mixing business and pleasure is bad form.”

He gave her a withering scowl as he crunched the chip. “I disagree. If both parties are willing, why can’t I have a little fun on the side...if you know what I mean.” He gave her a wink.

Piper chuckled and shook her head. “Josh, even Zeke knows what you mean,” she said, referring to the family’s part–Maine coon cat, who was circling Josh’s legs, meowing for attention. “You’re about as subtle as a bat to the head.”

Josh stooped to lift the long-haired cat into his arms. Zeke immediately draped himself over Josh’s shoulder and commenced purring loudly. “You’re on my side, right, buddy? You think I should be able to romance the customers if they’re open to it, right?”

Piper grinned. “He’s been neutered. He doesn’t know what you’re talking about.”

Josh winced in sympathy for the feline, then gave his sister a wry snort. “His being neutered is not the reason he doesn’t know what I’m saying.”

“Case remains, you cannot mess around with the customers.” She stood and gave Zeke a scratch on the head, which the fur ball leaned into with relish. “It’s bound to end badly, and we cannot afford to screw anything up with the business.”

Josh shoved the cat into her arms, then took the last potato chip off her plate. “Maybe we’ll put it to a vote of all the partners.”

“Maybe we will,” she returned. “But in the meantime, we have a welcome dinner to put on and more guests arriving in another hour.” She looked him up and down. “And you smell like crap.”

“Because I was helping deliver a calf an hour ago.”

Piper perked up. “Really?” She set Zeke on the ground and dusted fur from her shirt. “Why didn’t anyone tell me? I would have helped! I love births!”

“Plenty more to come, sister dear.” He took his leave. “I’ll be in the shower if anyone comes looking for me.”

“Are you looking for anyone in particular?” Dawn asked Kate that night as they strolled into the small cluster of people gathered on the ranch yard around a festively decorated buffet table and smoking grill.

“Uh, no. Why?” Kate tucked a loose wisp of her hair behind her ear and felt a telltale prickle in her neck as she flushed with embarrassment. She hadn’t realized she’d been so obvious, craning her neck as she scanned the faces in the crowd for one in particular.

Dawn bumped Kate’s hip with hers and cackled. “You are the worst liar!”

Kate bumped her back. “Shut it.”

“You know you don’t need to look for him. I guarantee Josh’ll find you before this shindig gets started good.” Dawn straightened the neon multicolored scarf she had draped around her neck to accent her bright green blouse. “You need only sit back and wait.”

Kate questioned her friend with a furrowed-brow glance.

“Oh, come on, Katie! You did see the little heat waves rising off him when he looked at you this afternoon?”

Kate pulled a face and dismissed her friend with a buzz of her lips.

Dawn stopped walking and faced Kate fully, taking her by the arm. “No, seriously. His tongue was dragging the ground. Eyes popping out of his head. You didn’t catch all that?”

Kate laughed and brushed past Dawn. “You make him sound like one of those cartoon characters when they see the femme fatale.”

“Uh...bingo!” Dawn took a few quick steps to catch up with her. “He was seriously interested, sister, and you’d be crazy not to act on it.” Dawn tipped her head and narrowed her eyes. “Unless you have some problem with hunky dark-haired cowboys with eyes straight out of heaven. Or is his more clean-cut brother the one you’re considering?”

“Would you stop?” Kate said with a chuckle. “I’m not considering either. I’m here on business, not pleasure.”

“So?” Dawn persisted. “You could have both.”

“I was just telling my sister the same thing,” said a deep voice behind them.

Kate whirled around with a gasp. “Josh. Hi.”

The subject of their discussion gave her a devastatingly handsome grin and tipped his hat.

Dawn didn’t try to hide her smug grin as she muttered in a quiet singsong, “Told you...”

Josh had changed into clean jeans and a light blue polo-style shirt that set off his straight-outta-heaven eyes and hugged his muscled torso. His raven hair was still damp from his shower and combed back behind his ears, where it then curled slightly at his nape. And he smelled divine. Something woodsy and fresh, without the cloying and pretentious scents of the colognes the men in her Dallas office wore.

“Did you ladies get settled in okay?” He slid his fingers in the front pockets of his jeans and divided a look between them.

“Yeah. Just fine,” Kate said and clutched the thin straps of her purse so that she didn’t fidget. Good grief. She felt like some junior high girl with a crush on the school’s quarterback. “I love the way you’ve decorated the guest rooms.” Doh! Could you sound more banal?

“Thanks, but I had nothing to do with that. My mom and sister were the bosses of that part of the renovation.” His smile dimpled his cheek, and she felt her stomach swoop and her knees soften.

“Well, they have good taste. They split the difference between masculine and feminine decor perfectly.” She sensed more than saw Dawn easing backward, leaving her alone with Josh. She snuck a hand out and grabbed her friend’s arm before she could duck completely away.

“We have time before dinner is served if you’d like to go see the new calf now.” He waved his thumb toward the stables.

Kate couldn’t help but smile. She may have some bad memories of her parents’ farm, but she missed the animals. “I’d love that.”

Dawn lifted a foot to him, waggling her high-heeled sandal at him. “I’m not sure I’m in the right footwear. You two go ahead, and I’ll see the baby tomorrow.”

Kate tightened her grip on her coworker’s arm, sending her a look that said, Stop playing matchmaker!

“Are you sure? We have boots you can borrow down by the stable,” Josh said.

“Yes, Dawn,” Kate said through her teeth, “you can borrow boots. Come with us.”

Dawn pried Kate’s fingers from her forearm and gave her a disgruntled look. “No thank you, Kate. You two go on. I’ll just go get a drink and wait for you up here.” With a wiggle of her fingers to wave goodbye, her traitorous friend backed away, wearing a victorious grin.

“All right then. Guess it’s just us.” Josh put a warm palm on her back to direct her toward the stable.

Her pulse jumped at his touch, and a tremor of acute awareness shimmied through her. She walked beside him, silently cursing Dawn and mentally fumbling for conversation that didn’t sound as lame and juvenile as she felt. She was awestruck and tongue-tied like some smitten kitten, and she hated the sense of vulnerability and hesitation that held her. Why did he make her so nervous? While he didn’t look a thing like Jason, her most recent mistake, her attraction to Josh was similar. Maybe that was why she was battling this odd mix of lust and wariness. Internal warning lights were flashing and sirens blaring. Don’t go down that path again! Danger ahead!

“...are you from? Besides the Dallas firm, I mean,” Josh was saying.

“Oh, um, I grew up in Missouri. On a farm. And then I went to school in Georgia and got my job in Dallas a couple years ago. How about you?” She kicked herself as soon as the question left her mouth. Idiot!

He chuckled. “Born and raised right here at the Double M.”

“Of course. Stupid question.”

“Naw, there are no stupid questions,” he said with another of his lopsided, dimple-producing grins. She almost stumbled when she saw that dimple reappear.

“Maybe not. But mine comes close. Just...habit. You know, throw the same question or compliment back at someone to keep a conversation going. I...didn’t think. I...”

Shut up. Shut up! You’re babbling now.

She was going to kill Dawn. She wanted no part of a vacation tryst or her friend’s misguided matchmaking, no matter how heartbreakingly handsome Josh was. Heartbreaking being the key word. She’d had her fill of short-term, lack-of-commitment, heart-wounding relationships.

“Well, truth be told, I actually spent the first three weeks of my life at the hospital in Denver. Zane, Piper and I were all less than four pounds when we were born.”

She nodded. “You wouldn’t know it by looking at you now,” she said, then grimaced. “Not that you’re fat... I, ugh!”

He laughed and patted his flat belly. “Well, thank you. I’ve been eating my meat and vegetables for years to get this size.”

She waved a hand, feeling her flush creep back up her neck and into her cheeks. “I’m rambling like a moron. Ignore me.”

As they reached the entrance to the stable, he reached over and brushed a wisp of her hair back from her cheek. The scrape of his knuckle on her face sent delicious shivers through her and backed up her breath in her lungs. When her gaze darted up to his, she met the smile that shone from his eyes as brightly as from his lips. The piercing look he gave her made her feel desirable and feminine all the way to her core. “You’re kinda hard to ignore. And I wouldn’t want to try.”

Oh, lordy. Her toes curled inside her slip-on shoes, and she wiped her palms on the skirt of her buttery-yellow sundress.

After a few seconds, staring back at him with her heart pounding in her ears, she managed to stutter, “Y-you said you had...boots I could borrow?”

“Absolutely.” He stepped away and fetched a pair of rubber work boots. “You can probably just wear these over your other shoes if you want.”

She nodded and slipped her feet into the man-size boots. She clumped along behind him as she followed him inside the stable. The oversize boots made her feel awkward and silly, yet a tingle still lingered on her cheek where he’d touched her.

“Back here.” He led her to a stall at the back, away from the bulk of the bustle and activity, and opened the gate. “Come on in. It’s okay.” He stood aside and motioned her into the stall, where a brown-and-white cow stood over a small brown calf.

Warmth filled her chest, along with nostalgia. She’d seen numerous newborn animals through the years on her parents’ farm, but the preciousness of new life never got old. “Oh, my goodness! She’s precious!”

“He. It’s a bull calf.”

“Oh, he, then. He’s adorable!” She cast a side glance to Josh, who was beaming with pride as if the baby were his.

“You can pat him if you want.”

She gave the mama cow a dubious look. “Really? It won’t upset mom?”

Josh grasped the straps of the mother’s halter and tugged, urging the bovine to step away. Then, stooping, he lifted the calf and brought it closer to Kate.

She lifted a hand to the curling fur on the cow’s head and melted inside. “Aren’t you the cutest thing?”

“Yeah, I am,” Josh said with an impish grin, “and the calf’s kinda cute, too.”

Kate snorted a chuckle. Then, when he laughed at her indelicate snort, she joined him in full-bellied gales. Even as she shared the moment of levity with him, she studied his handsome face, the spark of life in his startlingly blue eyes, and her heart flipped. She didn’t need a crystal ball to know the combination of his charm, good looks and ability to put her at ease were a lethal combination versus her ability to resist him. Today was only her first day in Colorado, and she was already in deep trouble.

Chapter 2

When Josh and Kate returned to the welcome dinner, Dawn was seated at a long table with several people, including Josh’s twin.

Zane smiled as they approached. “There you two are. We were about to send a search party. People here are hungry and ready to eat.”

“I’m down with that.” Josh motioned to an empty chair. “Kate, shall we?”

“Come meet everyone, Kate,” Dawn called.

After she took her place, Josh helped her scoot her chair in, then sat across from her.

Josh motioned to the man to Zane’s right as he started around the table with introductions. “This is my father, Michael. And my sister, Piper. And her fiancé, Brady Summers, who’s another partner in McCall Adventures.”

She smiled, giving a wave of greeting to them all, and shook Brady’s hand when he offered his. Then Josh started down the other side of the table. “My mother, Melissa.” He skipped Dawn, moved on to a little boy with rumpled brown hair and barbecue sauce on his chin. “And...that little squirt is my nephew, Beelzebub.”

The boy frowned at him. “Connor!”

The adults laughed, and Josh held up a finger as if he’d just remembered. “Oh, that’s right. Connor.”

“Nice to meet you, Connor.” Kate winked at the little boy, who gave a shy wave back.

“And...” Josh scanned the other tables and people milling about. “Over by the grill, flipping burgers, is our jack-of-all-trades and foreman, Roy Summers.”

“He’s my grampa,” Connor added.

“So it really is all in the family,” she said, making a mental inventory of relationships and faces.

Josh removed his hat and hung it on the back of his chair. “It is.”

“I was just telling Zane about your ideas for the brochure,” Dawn said, lifting a glass of a fruity drink, “how we want to be sure to capture pictures of all aspects of the ranch and the adventures while we’re here.”

“Oh, right.” Kate nodded her agreement. “I brought a camera with me, professional-grade, to capture some shots. We’ll need permission to use images of any people in the photos, though.”

“We brought a waiver with us,” Dawn explained.

“Of course. Sounds great.” Zane passed a large plate of ribs, burgers and sliced beef down the table to Kate. “Dig in. This is all Double M beef. One hundred percent fresh, and the best Angus beef you’ll ever eat.”

Kate took the tray, but hesitated. Her stomach growled, affirming she was hungry. The last thing she’d eaten was the tiny packet of pretzels on the plane. But she thought of the sweet bull calf she’d just visited and balked. “I’m going to stick to the side dishes tonight, I think.”

Josh sent her a concerned look and lifted a pitcher of tea, filling her glass when she nodded that she’d like some, then his own. “Are you a vegetarian? We didn’t think to ask—”

“No,” she said, passing the tray of meats to him. “Just...thinking about my new little friend and...” She flashed a sheepish grin. “I grew up on a farm. I know where meat comes from. I just can’t go from fawning over the little baby to...eating his dad.”

Josh grunted and helped himself to a few ribs and a burger. “Trust me, this is not that little guy’s father. Papa is one of our best breeding bulls, and his life is safe as long as he keeps fathering prime offspring.” He set down the platter. “But I get your point, and I promise the rest of the dinner Helen made is pretty spectacular, too. Try this.” He handed her a pan of potato casserole. “She calls it potato supreme. I just call it delicious.”

“Helen?” Kate took the pan, savoring the scents of cheese and onion that wafted from the dish.

“Our cook. She used to be full-time, when we had more hands. Now she just does lunch for the family and hands along with special events like tonight.” Josh handed her another bowl, full of a mix of green vegetables.

“Can I have my pie now?” Connor said, drawing Kate’s attention.

“Finish your meat first, buddy,” said the guy introduced as Piper’s fiancé. She dug through her memory for the name. B... B...

“Aw, Brady!” Connor whined, flopping back in his chair and folding his arms across his chest with a pout.

Brady! That was it!

When she studied the boy and Brady closer, she saw the resemblance between them. While Dawn continued chatting up the plans for the travel brochure with Zane and Piper, Kate leaned toward Josh, whispering, “Connor is your nephew, you said? But he called your foreman his grampa. So that means Brady is...?”

Josh gave her a crooked grin and whispered back. “It’s complicated.”

She arched an eyebrow, intrigued.

“Well, not that complicated, but...” He rubbed a hand over his lips. “I’ll fill you in later.”

She leaned back in her seat, regarding Josh with a puzzled gaze. When she glanced toward the boy’s chair, she found it empty.

“Tell me about the calf, Kate,” Dawn said, drawing her attention. “We should definitely include pictures of the new baby in the brochure. What a precious way to bring home the point that this is a working family ranch.”

“Oh, he’s definitely precious,” Kate agreed. She was musing over the point that the Double M was a family ranch, a point brought home as she glanced around the table at the three generations gathered for dinner. Well, two generations...the third generation was still missing.

Something under the table bumped her knee, and she raised the edge of the plastic table cover to peek underneath.

Connor sat huddled at her feet and met her gaze. His eyes widened, and he placed a finger over his pursed lips in a shushing signal. She gave him a conspiratorial wink and returned her attention to the adult conversation.

“We can do a print run of one hundred thousand copies to start with,” Dawn was saying, “and print more as—”

“A hundred thousand?” Piper repeated, clearly aghast. “Why so many? Won’t that cost a fortune?”

“Well, we want a wide distribution of the materials,” Kate said. “You’d be surprised how few one hundred thousand really is, and with printed materials, the more you do, the less they cost per piece.”

“Where’s Connor?” Piper cut in, her face reflecting her alarm that the boy wasn’t at the table. “He was just here.” She looked around, clearly dismayed.

Brady covered her hand with his and gave her a calming smile, hitching his head toward their feet. “I don’t know,” he said in a stage voice, “but since he left, I guess that means I get to eat his pie.”

Under the table, Connor gasped, bumped Kate’s knees again, and cried out, “No! Here I am! I want my pie!”

Piper’s face reflected her relief, and a combination of amusement and irritation. “Connor, what are you doing under the table?”

While Brady and Piper leaned closer to talk in low voices to the boy, Zane waved a hand for Kate to continue. “Sorry. Life around here can be chaotic at times. You were saying?”

She shook her head. “Why don’t we save the business talk for later and just enjoy this pretty evening, the great dinner and good company?”

“I’ll drink to that,” Josh said, raising his glass of iced tea.

The rest of the meal passed with pleasant conversation about the history of the four-generations-old ranch, Piper and Brady’s upcoming nuptials, and Connor’s excitement over his friend’s dog having puppies. When they’d all finished eating, Zane, Piper and Josh excused themselves to mingle with the other guests who’d arrived just before dinner. Kate dawdled over the last of her slice of cherry pie and watched Josh greet one of two couples she’d met briefly when they arrived.

Dawn slid down to the chair next to Kate’s and leaned close. “He’s certainly charming and personable.”

Kate frowned at Dawn. “Who?”

Dawn’s returned look said, Like you don’t know.

Kate rolled her eyes. “The whole family is quite nice. It will be a pleasure to work with them.”

A peal of laughter drew her attention in time to see Josh lift Connor and drape the boy upside down over his shoulder. Connor laughed as Josh spun around, then planted the dizzy boy back on the ground.

“Yeah, see how funny it is when he throws up on you, Doofus!” Piper called to her brother.

After a few more minutes of racing around the yard with the boy, Josh jogged up, panting, with Connor on his heels. “Tag, man,” he gasped, slapping Brady on the shoulder. “You’re up. I’m dying here.”