Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 60481 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 302(@200wpm)___ 242(@250wpm)___ 202(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 60481 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 302(@200wpm)___ 242(@250wpm)___ 202(@300wpm)
“Right.” Shampooed. I poured a dollop of shampoo on his wet head and started to lather it up.
If Sexy Sam was any indication of Cooper Valley’s residents, I’d say they were all outdoorsy and highly physical.
Physical. Strong.
And tan. With six packs.
Ugh. I wasn’t interested.
He was too cocky. Definitely a flirt. Young. He reminded me of Ted, so that was a hard pass.
I grabbed the plastic cup I kept on the side of the tub. “Tip back,” I said and rinsed the suds from his hair.
“Mommy, can Sam come play with me again? We had fun.”
My heart leapt in an unfamiliar way. Sam.
“He was really nice to help you get down, but we don’t want him to get hurt either, right?”
Sam seemed way too confident to get hurt, but JT had to understand the things he did could impact others, too.
Fortunately, Sam had kept a level head earlier, which was great because I lost my mind seeing JT up on that rafter. Sure, my son healed quickly, but that didn’t change his getting hurt. I didn’t want my baby hurt for anything. Besides, the last thing we needed was a witness to an accident that healed too quickly, especially one as bad as falling from a height onto concrete.
I couldn’t move again. Leaving everything and starting over three times had done me in. I just didn’t have it in me.
After they’d gotten down, Sam had given JT a high five and me a wink before he got back in his truck and drove off, only after saying, “Later.”
It wasn’t until hours later that I realized he never gave me the part number for his tractor. Or his number.
Which, as he’d said, had been his plan all along. I had no doubt he’d be back–later–offering again to show me around town.
The answer would still be no.
No matter how hot and droolworthy he might have been, he was a terrible option for me–a single mom with a new job in a new town. No doubt, I was a terrible option for him, too. I was older by at least five years, maybe ten! I had a baby when he was still only a teenager. What young twenty-something wanted my kind of baggage?
But him showing up and having interest had been a good wake up for me. Wake up in my vagina, more like it. I had needs that I’d neglected for a long time while I focused on raising a tiny human. Well, half-human.
Meeting Sam was a reminder that I needed to get back out there and date.
Or just get laid.
Yeah, either one. I needed to get my hands on one of those ripped cowboys Cooper Valley seemed to have in spades.
4
SAM
* * *
I found Wes in the barn by one of the horse stalls, holding up his daughter, Remy, to peek inside. The ranch had a new foal, and she was getting a lot of visitors.
“Sam, her name is Spirit!” Remy said as I approached. Her eyes were wide, and if she smiled any bigger, her face would split wide open. She didn’t focus on me long, her strawberry blonde hair swirling as she turned back.
“Hey, Remy girl,” I replied, then peeked in and couldn’t help but smile too. Mom and her new foal were doing well. Spirit was standing on spindly little legs at her mother’s side, safe and protected. “That’s a perfect name.”
It made me think of another mother who was fiercely protective. Clio. My mate. I liked that she went all Mama Bear over JT. Except she was human, and JT was definitely not.
Which reminded me of why I was here.
“Got the new shaft ordered?” Wes asked. He knew I’d gone into town to the mechanic shop for the part that broke, keeping us from baling hay. It wasn’t a crisis, but rain was due later in the week, and we couldn’t bale wet hay.
“Ernie was out. Gotta go back.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “Was wondering if you’re okay with me going to the rodeo in Missoula next month.”
Wes was the ranch foreman. While Rob Wolf and his brothers owned the land, Wes was my boss. I’d worked on Wolf Ranch off and on since before I graduated high school. College hadn’t been an option since it had been too expensive. Instead, I’d worked the rodeo circuit–four years touring around riding on the back of crazy broncs, and I occasionally took a bull for an eight second ride if I needed some quick cash. In fact, Boyd Wolf had been somewhat of a mentor on the circuit but had since retired. I was successful enough to send back prize money for my mother and sisters. I’d even stumbled into what I wanted to do long term.
With some of the earnings, I’d bought a prized bull to start a cattle genetics business, breeding top tier bulls for ranches and rodeos around the country. Yeah, technically it was selling bull semen, but it could turn into big money, and that was what I needed right now, having found my mate. Making more sales and adding more bulls to my stock had been a someday thing because someday had been far in the distance, and I’d been enjoying my life. Out with friends, moon runs, and all the sex that went with it.