Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 100367 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 502(@200wpm)___ 401(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100367 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 502(@200wpm)___ 401(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
“Tell him I said hi.”
The drive out to the Hendrix Ranch takes about fifteen minutes. After I park in the garage, I walk out back to feed the goats before heading over to the small guest cabin to double-check that it’s ready to go for the new intern.
Pushing into the cabin, the air is fresh, and everything looks clean, which is great because I hired someone to come out and freshen it up since it’s been sitting empty for so long.
The cabin is a one bedroom, one bathroom unit with a living room and kitchen. Some might call it a mother-in-law accommodation. It’s been empty since my ranch foreman, Scott, got married and moved to town last year. But it looks like the cleaners made it shine. It smells clean, like lemons. They even hung the curtains that I bought on the windows, and there are fresh sheets and blankets on the bed. There’s no TV in the living room, so I make a mental note to get one in here.
I’ve just closed the door behind me when I hear tires on the gravel driveway out front, and when I walk around the house, I see a white SUV come to a stop, the driver’s door opens, and a woman steps out. She takes a deep breath and pushes her hands in her hair, giving it a shake, then turns my way, and when her glacier-blue eyes meet mine, I feel my heart stutter.
Well, hello there.
CHAPTER TWO
DARBY
“You know I don’t love the idea of you living out at that ranch,” Holden says as he pulls me in for a big, squishy hug. I lean into him and soak up his strength. Even though he’s only two years older than me, my big brother is more of a father to me than anything, and I couldn’t love him more. He’s also incredibly protective, despite the fact that I’m in my mid-thirties.
Old habits die hard.
“Yes, you’ve said that many times in the week I’ve been home.” I wrinkle my nose at him and pat his cheek, just because I know he hates that. I may love him to death, but harassing him is still part of my job. “I’ll be fine at the Hendrix Ranch. You, Brooks, hell even Remington Wild knows Tucker. You’ve all told me he’s a good guy.”
“He is a good guy, but he’s also a guy.” Holden kisses my forehead. “So, if he gets handsy—”
“I’ve got this,” I assure him and pat his chest before Millie comes out of their house with a smile on her face and a coffee just for me.
As a café owner, coffee is my sister-in-law’s specialty.
“For the road,” she says, passing it to me.
“You two do realize that I’ll only be about forty-five minutes away. I’m not going across the country. I’ll literally see you later tonight for dinner at Dani’s house.”
My sister is hosting family dinner tonight, and I’ll see the entire gigantic clan there. They’re acting like I’m about to embark on a six-day adventure to Florida or something.
“You’re such a pain in my ass,” Holden says, but his eyes are full of humor as he ruffles my hair. “Good luck, kiddo. You’ll kill it.”
“I will not be killing anything. That’s the point.” I wink at them and then climb into my car. After waving goodbye, I pull away from the big new farmhouse my brother built for his wife on our old family property and drive off. I’m so glad that Holden had a new driveway built that crosses through what used to be the Wild family’s property to get to the highway and I don’t have to drive past where we grew up. It’s hard enough to stay out here with them without having the worst days of my childhood staring me in the face.
I’m excited for this internship. This is the last step I have to take before I’m officially a licensed veterinarian. One year of practical work under a licensed doctor. Trent Fisher has been nothing but kind so far, and although I was accepted by several nearby ranches to work full time, Dr. Fisher recommended the Hendrix Ranch.
I pass through my hometown of Bitterroot Valley without stopping. Everyone else I know from here reveres this town. My family and friends are nothing but proud to call this home, while I finally had to leave.
There’s nothing but bad memories for me in this little spot on the map. But I tried to live out of state for several years, and I missed my siblings. I knew I needed to come back to be close to the people I love. So, when Dr. Fisher recommended the Hendrix Ranch, and I discovered that it’s not in Bitterroot Valley but rather a half hour down the road outside Silver Springs, that was the icing on the cake for me.