by Elle James
For the longest time, he was convinced he’d have been better off dead, and had even considered ending it. No one would have missed him. He was an only child, with no family left to mourn his death, no wife or children waiting for him to come home.
His physical therapist at Walter Reed had suggested he check into Brighter Days Rehab Ranch. He’d been resistant at first, but the therapist knew Hannah and her ability to work with wounded warriors. Because he’d wanted to get back out west where he’d grown up, Gavin had agreed to give the ranch a shot.
Within days of working with Hannah, Percy and the rescue horses, he’d begun to realize he had more to give to the world now than when he’d still possessed both legs. He had a new appreciation for everything. Hannah had helped him to understand how fortunate he was to have one good leg. One of the other guests on the ranch was missing both legs. Though Gavin had sustained catastrophic injuries, his spine had remained intact, and he wasn’t paralyzed. So what if he had to strap on a prosthetic device that allowed him to walk upright? He could be a lot worse off.
He had a lot more questions for Aurelia, but they would have to wait until she’d run the gauntlet of Hannah and the others at the ranch. Gavin hoped and prayed their flimsy story held up under Hannah’s scrutiny. She was one very smart woman, used to dealing with men who faked physical and internal pain.
“What about you, Collin?” Lori switched her interrogation from Aurelia to the new ranch hand. “I understand you did time in the military like most of us at Brighter Days. “What branch? How many years? And did you get out on your own, or was decision made for you?”
Collin laughed. “Are you always so…”
“Nosey?” Gavin offered.
“I was going to say curious,” Collin said with a smile. “I was in the Army.”
“Really?” Lori grinned. “Me, too. What was your MOS?”
“I was 18 Bravo. Eight years active duty. Got out on my own, after five rotations to the Middle East.”
Lori’s brows rose. “Special Forces. I’m impressed. Ever do any missions with the Navy SEALs?” She tipped her head toward Gavin. “Gavin, here, was a SEAL.”
Collin nodded. “I did one joint mission with a group of SEALs. But I can’t talk about it.”
“If you tell me, you’d have to kill me, right?” Lori grinned.
Gavin wished he had the ability to be as open and direct as Lori. She could talk to a rock and get a response. Instead, he sat behind the steering wheel, pretending it took all his concentration to maneuver the curves out to the ranch. He shot a glance toward his intended bride. She was staring out at the scenery ahead.
“Is it always this beautiful in Montana?” Aurelia chose that moment to turn toward Gavin, a smile filling her face and what appeared to be a sense of wonder. The Crazy Mountains of Montana had that effect on many who came to see them for the first time.
“It’s not quite this peaceful in the wintertime, especially when it’s snowing sideways, and you can’t see your hand in front of your face,” Gavin said. “But we still have to tend to the animals. They can’t take care of themselves.”
Aurelia nodded. “What kind of animals do you have at the ranch?”
“The usual. Cattle, horses, chickens and a couple of hogs,” Gavin said.
“And a couple of dogs and barn cats,” Lori added.
“Lori is our dog whisperer,” Gavin said.
“I love dogs. I had one growing up,” Aurelia’s smile turned a little sad.
“Just one?” Lori laughed. “My mother finally had to say no to the strays I brought home when we were up to six dogs in the house.”
“We were always so busy, someone else usually had to take care of the dog.” Aurelia rubbed her hands on her arms. “I always felt welcomed when I got home. Mikki was always happy to see me.” She cast a shy smile over her shoulder. “I didn’t realize how much I missed her, until now.”
“That’s what I love about dogs,” Lori said. “They don’t care if your hair is combed or you’re wearing makeup or…” her voice dropped to a whisper, “whether you have one leg or two. They love you unconditionally. Always.”
Her words seemed to suck the conversation right out of the cab. The remainder of the ride was accomplished in silence.
By the time they reached the ranch house, Gavin was ready to leap out of the truck and disappear. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the option. He’d brought this woman to Montana. The least he could do was see that she was comfortable until she decided this plan was as ludicrous as he thought it was.
Aurelia’s gaze followed the winding road through the trees until it opened into a field with a rise in the center. A sprawling ranch house topped the hill, behind which stood a barn even bigger than the house. There was also a long narrow building and a few smaller ones as well.
As the truck pulled up the drive, a woman with long, straight, sandy-blond hair stepped out onto the porch and shaded her eyes. A man with black hair and dark eyes stepped out behind her and slipped his arm around her waist. She leaned against him and looked up into his eyes with a smile.
Aurelia envied the couple. They appeared at ease with each other and very much in love. As a child, Aurelia had dreamed of that kind of love. Her parents had that kind of love. She’d read about it in the fairytales and believed it to be the only love a woman should settle for. Until the full weight of her lineage rested squarely on her shoulders. That had been the day her parents’ chauffeur-driven limousine ran off a cliff, killing her parents, her older brother and their driver instantly. The police had deemed it an unfortunate accident. The driver appeared to have lost control of the vehicle, driving too fast on a curvy wet road.
Her heart tugging at the memory, Aurelia swallowed hard on the lump rising in her throat. She missed them terribly. As the only surviving direct descendant of the royal family, everything had fallen on her shoulders. She’d had to arrange the funerals of the chauffeur and the three people she’d loved the most and hold herself together through it all, demonstrating her strength and willingness to continue to guide the country in the new millennium.
All her years growing up, Aurelia had thought her brother would one day be king. He would carry on the family tradition of leading Lastovia. Not her. Not the younger child. She was supposed to have lived outside the media circus, doing what she pleased, traveling the world, exploring and learning about different cultures. She wasn’t supposed to be the one stuck making decisions that could affect hundreds of thousands of people. But as the Princess of Lastovia, she could not pursue her dream of roaming the world. Her leaving her country for ten months until her birthday put herself and her reign in jeopardy. But she had to do something drastic in order to comply with Lastovian law.
If she didn’t inherit the kingdom, it would be fought over by a couple of her cousins who would be next in the royal lineage. Neither Rupert or Gregory were fit to rule. Both were lazy and too self-centered. They would expect all the trappings without assuming the responsibility. And though the country had established a parliament, her cousins would have far too much access to the royal coffers and bleed the country dry in less than a decade.
As much as Aurelia didn’t want the responsibility, her country was important to her, and she would not see it fall to ruin at the hands of her cousins. If that meant marrying a stranger and begetting heirs to the throne, then she would do whatever it took.
Gavin pulled the truck to a stop, climbed to the ground and made his way to her side. She waited, expecting him to open the door and help her down.
He opened the door, but he didn’t extend his hand. Instead, he opened the back door and helped Lori to the ground.
“Thanks,” Lori said, adjusting her leg beneath her before releasing his hand. “You should be helping your girl,” she said, barely loud enough for Gavin to hear.
Aurelia heard and smiled. “I don’t need help,” she said and dropped to the ground. Her heels dug into the soft dirt and kept her from moving forward. She swayed and
almost fell face-first on the ground.
A big hand shot out, gripped her arm and steadied her. Gavin moved closer, allowing her to rest her body against his.
She swayed even more, but for entirely different reasons. Her knees wobbled, and her heart fluttered at his touch. That had to be a good sign. Then why was she shaking like a frightened kitten?
Fear wasn’t what made her shiver. Awareness and desire like none she’d felt before filled every corner of her being. The man was solid. His chest was like steel and his grip strong, like a man who worked with his hands. The thought of those hands working her body made her knees wobble even more.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
She gave him a weak smile. “I shouldn’t have worn heels.”
He nodded. “You won’t have much use for them out here.”
“True. A good thing I bought—brought boots.” She straightened, pulled her heels out of the soft ground and balanced on the balls of her feet.
“Ready to meet the crew?” Gavin asked, his lips twisting in a wry grin. “They can be a bit overwhelming.”
“I’m ready,” she said, squared her shoulders and pasted a smile on her face.
First to reach them was the couple from the porch.
“Hi, you must be Aurelia.” The sandy-blond-haired woman held out her hand and offered a smile. “I’m Hannah Kendricks. Welcome to Brighter Days Rehab Ranch. So nice to meet you. Any friend of Gavin’s has to be pretty awesome. He’s been a godsend to us.”
Aurelia took the proffered hand and experienced a nice, firm handshake. “Thank you, Hannah. He is pretty special. You’re lucky to have him working here.”
The man behind Hannah reached around her and held out his hand. “Alex Davila. My friends call me Taz.”
She smiled and shook the man’s hand. “I hope to be calling you Taz, soon.” And she meant it. The couple seemed open, friendly and genuine. As a royal, Aurelia ran into many people who were nice only because they wanted something from her or the government. These two didn’t know who she was, and probably wouldn’t care if they did. How refreshing.
Alex leaned close and winked. “You can call him Taz.”
A commotion sounded from around the corner of the house. Then two men, each holding one handle of a wheelbarrow, came into view. In the wheelbarrow was another man, with no legs. The two men pushing the wheelbarrow worked in sync, having only one arm each. Behind them came an older man with a shock of gray hair, wearing worn blue jeans and a blue chambray shirt.
The two one-armed men stopped the wheelbarrow just short of where Aurelia stood and tipped it forward. The man inside, set his gloved fists on the earth and levered himself forward. When he stopped, he pulled off a glove and held out his hand. “James Young. You can call me Jimmy. And I believe I’m in love.”
Aurelia bent to take his hand, surprised at how strong his grip was. “Pleasure to meet you.”
“Please tell me you’re single and you’re into short men.” Jimmy gave her a wide grin.
“Beat it, shorty.” The man missing his right arm held out his left hand. “Brody Franklin. Your wish is my command.” He bent over her hand and kissed the backs of her knuckles.
“Mr. Franklin.” Aurelia tipped her head in acknowledgement, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
“Move over, bonehead, let a real man show her how it’s done.” The dark-haired man missing his left arm lifted her hand. “Xavier Vasquez, mi amor. Your beauty outshines the most brilliant star.”
Young and Franklin snorted and laughed at the same time.
Gavin stepped between Vasquez and Aurelia. “Back off, guys. She’s with me.”
All three, limb-challenged men stared at Gavin, eyes wide.
“Blackstock, you been holding out on us?” The older man with the shock of white hair held out his hand to Aurelia. “Don’t let these yahoos bother you. If they do, you tell me about it. I’ll put them to work mucking the pig pen. Percy Pearson. Ranch foreman.” He tipped his head toward Gavin. “How’d a pretty lady like you get mixed up with an old grouch like Blackstock?”
“Before we get into all the details, you might want to meet your new ranch hand.” Gavin stepped back and tilted his head toward Collin. “Collin Banner, meet your new bosses, Percy Pearson and Hannah Kendricks. Between the two of them, they run the show around here. Percy’s in charge of rehabilitating the animals, while Hannah is in charge of the rehabilitating the humans.”
“It’s a pretty good team,” Lori said. “You should like it here. They’re doing good things for horses and heroes.”
Aurelia’s eyebrows shot up. “I’d understood this to be a rehabilitation ranch for military veterans. I didn’t realize you were rehabilitating animals, as well.”
“Part of helping our veterans is having them care for animals that have been abused or neglected,” Hannah said. “By rehabilitating these animals, the humans learn all the things they can do, and that what they do makes a difference in an animal’s life.”
“Have you worked around animals, Banner?” Percy asked.
“Mostly horses,” Collin said. “I didn’t grow up on a farm or ranch, but my parents scratched enough money together to give me riding lessons. I know one end of a horse from another.”
“Good,” Percy clapped his hands together. “Those riding skills will come in handy around here. Some places can be difficult to get to in a truck.”
Percy turned his attention to Aurelia. “What about you, Miss George?”
“Sir?” She raised her eyebrows.
“Do you ride?” he asked.
Aurelia was pleased she had a little knowledge of animals. Horses, in particular. “I’ve been riding since I was four.” Her parents had been avid horse enthusiasts. She’d even trained in jumping and dressage.
“One thing we like to do as soon as someone comes to stay with us is get them up on a horse,” Hannah said. “Something about riding an animal bigger than you is a huge confidence booster.”
“Sure is. I’ve never felt so tall in my life,” Young said. “Even when I had legs to stand on.”
Aurelia was warmed by the camaraderie amongst the residents and guests of the ranch. For all that these men and women had endured, their outlook and willingness to pitch in was infectious. Aurelia couldn’t wait to get started proving herself worthy of this group of people. She had a feeling Gavin would be the hardest to convince.
“Now, if you’re done ogling Aurelia, I’m sure she would like to get settled.” Gavin grabbed one of Aurelia’s suitcases and held out his other hand.
To Aurelia, the gesture was more than just polite. It was, perhaps, the man staking his claim on the woman to all those standing around.
Aurelia took it as a sign that he might be coming around to accepting her as his potential bride. Hope stirred inside her. She laid her hand in his as naturally as if it belonged. The heat and electricity their connection generated made gooseflesh sprout on her arms.
“I’ll show Banner to the bunkhouse,” Percy offered. “The boys can fill him in on the cleaning duties later. We share the responsibilities, so no one gets stuck doing the dirty work all the time.”
Collin nodded. His gaze connected briefly with Aurelia, as if to see if she was all right.
She smiled, reassuringly, her gaze taking in all the people gathered around, so as not to single out Collin.
Gavin tugged on her hand as he started toward the porch.
Aurelia skipped to catch up to his long stride.
“Cookie says dinner will be served in twenty minutes,” Hannah called out. She and Taz each grabbed one of Aurelia’s two remaining cases and fell in step behind Gavin. “I can show you to your room. The bathroom is across the hall where you can freshen up from your trip.”
“Thank you. I don’t want to be a burden. Anything I can do to help, I will.” Aurelia smiled back at Hannah.
“We’re not shy around here. Any help is welcome,” Hannah said with a smile. “Cookie has an occasional
day off. Can you cook?”
“I don’t know; I’ve never tried.” Aurelia said before she remembered she wasn’t a princess to these people. Most women and many men in the US could cook. Aurelia had been surrounded by servants and chefs her entire life. The closest she’d ever come to cooking was when the chef had allowed her to make Christmas cookies one year when she was little. Mostly, she’d been in charge of decorating the cookies with sprinkles.
Taz laughed. “How do you eat, if you don’t know how to cook?”
Aurelia scrambled for an answer to his question. “I make sandwiches.” The answer was weak at best, but she wasn’t lying. On occasion, she’d wandered downstairs in the palace, hungry for a bit to eat. Rather than wake the staff, she’d grabbed bread and slices of whatever meat was available to make sandwiches. That counted, didn’t it? She hoped her lack of culinary skills wasn’t a deal-breaker with Gavin. Was he old-school and believed women should be responsible for all the cooking and housecleaning? She hoped not, or they’d starve until she learned how.
“Don’t worry.” Hannah reached out to pat her shoulder. “I’m sure there are plenty of ways you can help, if you want.”
“Oh, I want to help. I didn’t come here to be waited on,” she assured Hannah.
“Good, because we’re all pretty busy and could use an extra pair of hands in the house or the barn. You say you know horses?”
She nodded. “I’ve been around them all my life.” Thankfully, another truth.
“Good, we have a couple new rescues who could use some TLC.”
Aurelia’s brow furrowed. “TLC?”
Hannah grinned. “You really aren’t from around here, are you?”
Afraid her ignorance was blowing her cover, Aurelia gave Hannah a shaky smile. “No. I spent a lot of time in Europe. My father was a…diplomat.”
Gavin squeezed her hand. “Tender, loving care. TLC.”
“Oh, yes. I knew that.” Heat rose up her neck and filled her cheeks. “I can do that. I’m very good with horses.”
“Then that’s where you can help.”
“Just don’t get too close to the gray mare in the last stall,” Gavin warned. “Sassy has yet to calm down. Apparently, whoever had her prior to Brighter Days used a whip on her. She’s spooked by practically everything.”
