Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 57471 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 287(@200wpm)___ 230(@250wpm)___ 192(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57471 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 287(@200wpm)___ 230(@250wpm)___ 192(@300wpm)
I had never lived on a ranch before; hell, I’d never met a real-life cowboy either, despite living in Texas for the past five years—four for college and one working as a nanny. Now that Toni had put the idea of hot cowboys in my head, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Cowboys were a fantasy, right? Maybe not.
Then again, I’d be too far from civilization to date, which was probably a good thing. After things ended with Travis, I was gun-shy about getting involved with anyone. Travis had begun to grow impatient with my refusal to sleep with him, and it had turned ugly. I couldn’t do anything right after turning him down, and I had no desire to put myself through that again.
The signs for McCall Ranch appeared, and I felt my heart lighten almost instantly. A long dirt drive ended with a sign that looked to be made of copper roping twisted into a lasso around the iron words, McCall Family Ranch. Serenity said the ranch raised bison, sheep, and goats, so I didn’t know what to expect. But as the beautiful pale yellow ranch house came into view, it took my breath away.
It was a beautiful two-story home with a wraparound porch. The sides were fenced in, but the structure somehow looked homey yet imposing in its grandiosity. The front windows were sheltered by royal blue shutters and flower boxes that were in desperate need of tending. Rocking chairs sat on the front porch on either side of a table, and I couldn’t help but smile. It was large, sure, but it was so damn charming I felt right at home already.
I vibrated with excitement as I stepped out of my car and spun in a circle, inhaling the fresh air mixed with the scent of hay, grass, and some flowers off in the distance. With a smile, I climbed the porch and pressed my index finger against the bell, laughing to myself when a sweet melody played for several seconds.
But there was no answer.
I rang the bell again and waited with my heart in my throat. When there was still no answer, I pulled out my phone calendar to double-check the time, the date, and the address to make sure I hadn’t mixed them up. Nope, I’m where I’m supposed to be at the right time.
The door opened, and I looked up and up at six-plus feet of hard, lean muscle encased in dark wash jeans. His stomach and chest were covered with a dusting of ebony hair, just light enough that I could see his six-pack abs and rock-hard pecs that gave way to broad shoulders and lean, corded muscles in his arms. His body was absolutely beautiful, but his face? Holy smokes, that face should’ve been carved into a mountain. A five o’clock shadow did nothing to hide the dimples or rugged jawline, and it didn’t distract from the full mouth pulled into a slightly amused grin. Sun-kissed skin pegged him as a cowboy, and those searing hazel eyes were hypnotic.
Speak, Molly. I opened my mouth to say something, but only a squeak followed by a strangled noise came out.
That’s me, folks, queen of making an excellent first impression.
Chapter 2
Colton
Dammit.
The nanny candidate would be here soon, and I was running late. It was bad enough that Serenity, had forced me to come to her offices for an interview like I was the one looking for a job, and now I was so damn late that the woman might turn tail and run, which would put me in a bind.
Again.
It wasn’t my fault, not this time anyway. I got stuck out in the west end of the property because a lamb got stuck in the fences meant to keep him in and the wolves and other wild creatures out. The little fella was squirming something fierce, so I had to be extra careful, and that took time. Finally, he was free, and I put him back in the pasture with the sheep before hauling ass back to the house to shower so I wouldn’t greet the woman smelling like all outdoors, as my mama used to say.
Then again, she’d have to get used to it at some point. I was half tempted to do just that, but I needed her to want this job, to stick around, as much as she might need the job. My five-year-old son, Hunter, was still too small to follow me around all day, and even if he wasn’t, he needed to be a kid. He’d already lost his mama, and there was no way in hell I would take away his childhood too.
I was reminded that despite my boy’s old soul, he was still just a kid when I rushed through the back door to find him whining and on the verge of tears, something he didn’t do often. “Hunter, buddy, what’s wrong?” I toed off my shoes before going to him.