The Rancher Meets His Match

by Kate Pearce

  “There must be some builders like that. Maybe out in Marin County, or the East Bay?”

  “I’ll definitely look into it for you. Anything in particular you want me to say, or don’t want me to say?”

  “I’m particularly interested in builders who have dealt with ranch owners. I’d rather you kept the name of our law firm out of it as much if possible, and focus on this being a personal inquiry rather than on behalf of a client.”

  “Got it. Unlike Blaine, I can do discreet.” She hesitated. “By the way, I heard him mouthing off in the break room about you coming from a really ‘poor and rural’ environment.”

  Julia swallowed hard as she thought of the almost century of work her family had put into maintaining their land, and how much it meant to them.

  “Hopefully, no one will listen to him,” Julia said.

  “If he says anything to my face, I’ll be sure to set him straight. In fact, it would be my pleasure.”

  “Please don’t worry about him. He’s really not worth you losing your job over,” Julia reminded her.

  “Sometimes I doubt that because the satisfaction I’d get from dragging his ass would be such a high,” Miley rallied. “Will we be seeing you back at the office any time soon?”

  “In another week or so. The electrician and the plumber are coming today to discuss the remodel. If things go to plan my father will at least have a user-friendlier environment, and will be able to cope by himself. That’s all he tells me he wants.”

  “He sounds like a tough old bird.”

  “He is.” Julia smiled. “All ranchers are.”

  She ended the call and went back in to check on her father, who was happily finishing his lunch and watching TV.

  “Mike Betts the plumber will be here in about ten minutes,” Julia told him. “He just sent me a text.”

  “Good, you can deal with him, can’t you, Julia? Or do I need to call Kaiden?” He rubbed his forehead. “I’m exhausted right now and my brain gets fuzzy. I definitely need all the help I can get.”

  Julia sat opposite him. It was so weird to hear her father admitting he needed help. “Kaiden’s probably busy right now—what with his father coming back from the hospital sometime today.”

  “Well, we know what that’s like.” Her father sighed. “No fun at all. Have you heard from Miguel yet?”

  “No.” Julia picked up the various fishing magazines and tidied them into a neat stack.

  “Did you tell him what’s going on?”

  “You know Miguel, Dad. If he doesn’t want to be found, he’ll just stay quiet until we stop bothering him.”

  “But this is different. I really need to talk to him about the ranch.”

  “I know.” Julia patted his hand. Her dad’s fixation on Miguel riding in to save the day was beginning to worry her. “I can’t do anything unless he contacts me. I don’t even know if he’s in the US right now.” She paused. “Have you ever considered that he doesn’t want to come back and run the ranch?”

  A familiar stubborn look passed over her father’s face. “It is his duty to come home. He will be the fifth generation of Garcias to manage this land.”

  “If things go on the way they are, there won’t be a working ranch for him to come back to, Dad.” She gentled her voice. “Have you thought about what you want to do if Miguel doesn’t come back? What you want to happen to the land?”

  He went silent for so long that she was afraid he wasn’t going to answer her. When he finally lifted his head, his mouth was set in a firm line that reminded her of herself.

  “As long as I’m alive and functioning, the Garcia Ranch will be here. I’ll continue to run it, and pray that Miguel will see sense and come home. After that?” He met her anxious gaze and winked. “I’ll be dead and no longer have to worry about anything.”

  “You do have a will?”

  “Goodness, you are full of doom and gloom today, Daughter. Yes, I do. It’s lodged with Henry in town.”

  “That’s good to know.” She smiled at him. “I just don’t want there to be any misunderstandings.”

  “Seeing as I’m not planning on dying right now, I think we’ll have time to sort everything out. With you here helping, I can do so much more.”

  Julia met his gaze. “Dad, I’ve already told you. I can’t stay here full-time, you know that.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I have a job in San Francisco.”

  He waved her livelihood away as if it was not important. “But family comes first, yes? When Miguel comes home, you can go back to doing whatever you want.”

  Julia slowly stood up. “It doesn’t work like that, Dad. And I can’t wait until Miguel sees the light and comes home. It could be years.”

  He shook his head. “Maybe you are more like your mother than I realized, Julia. She, too, prioritized her career over her family.”

  “Dad . . .” Julia choked back all the things she’d like to have said before settling on “That’s not fair.”

  He shrugged, averted his gaze to the TV, and turned up the volume.

  She picked up his empty mug and walked out to the kitchen. After rinsing the cup, she stared out of the kitchen window, her gaze fixed on the mountain range where she could still see patches of snow. A familiar truck pulled into the parking spaces in front of the house, and she frowned.

  After drying her hands and grabbing her fleece against the cold breeze, she walked outside to see Kaiden getting out of his truck. He had a thick sheepskin-lined jacket on, his usual black Stetson, jeans, and boots, but somehow the sight of him made her go still. He’d touched her intimately the night before and, even though she knew he’d been shaken, and off his game, she still wanted more.

  He looked up as if suddenly aware of her presence and offered her a sunny smile.

  “Afternoon, beautiful.”

  “What exactly are you doing here?” Julia asked.

  His eyebrows flew up. “Are we back to that again? I thought we’d made some progress.”

  Her cheeks heated and she crossed her arms over her chest. “Your father is coming back today. I thought you’d be busy with him.”

  “He’s not due home until five.” He opened the tailgate and took out his toolbox. “I decided I’d rather get out and do something than sit around biting my nails and driving everyone else mad.”

  “Did Daisy make you leave?”

  His natural grin flashed out and some of the tension left her body.

  “Busted. She told the whole lot of us to find something to do, or she was going to kill us. I decided I’d come out here to meet with Mike and Bernie and talk through the plans.”

  He strolled over to her, his keen gaze roving her body. “Everything okay? You look a bit tense.”

  She debated what to tell him, worrying her lip until he reached out, and flicked her nose.

  “Spit it out, honey. You know you want to.”

  She scowled at him. “Dad came right out and said I should stay here and look after him until Miguel comes back for good.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “That’s a tall order seeing as you’re paying for the remodel with your salary.”

  “Exactly. Except I couldn’t bring myself to actually say that to him because I didn’t want to hurt his feelings.” She paused. “The thing is, he does need someone to help him keep the place clean and to cook his meals.”

  “Have you looked into finding someone around here who would be willing to do that?” Kaiden asked.

  “Not yet. I can pay someone, but it would have to be the right person,” Julia said cautiously.

  “Does your Dad know Beth Baker?” Kaiden asked.

  “Wes’s mom?”

  “Wes’s stepmom, actually.” He shrugged. “It’s complicated. She’s a really great person. She used to work as a physical therapist, so she’d be ideal to help your father. She probably knows him from church. Wes said she’s looking for a job between school hours, so that might work out well for both of them.”
<
br />   Julia couldn’t recall seeing Beth since she’d returned to Morgan Valley, but she would remedy that as soon as possible.

  “Thank you.” She smiled up at Kaiden. “I’ll definitely contact her.”

  He angled his head lower. “Don’t I get a kiss for being so helpful?”

  “I thought we weren’t doing that anymore,” Julia said tartly.

  “Whatever gave you that idea?” he murmured as he kissed his way up her throat.

  “You did.”

  He grazed his teeth against her jaw, making her shiver. “I don’t remember saying that.”

  Julia sighed, gave up the fight, and kissed him back. “You are so annoying.”

  “True.” He carefully set her away from him. “Mike’s just about to arrive, so unless you want to give him a show, let’s save this for later, okay?”

  “How do you know—?” She turned as a huge truck turned in through the gate. “Oh.”

  “I can’t believe you didn’t hear him coming,” Kaiden said. “But, I guess you were so excited to be kissing me that everything else faded into the background.”

  She kicked him in the shin. He might be right, but she certainly wasn’t going to admit it.

  Mike was a big, redheaded guy with a long beard. He listened intently to all of them talking at once and somehow managed to understand everything they wanted in one go. Julia had no doubts he would be able to complete the job, and, as Juan knew his father, she was fairly certain he’d get it done as soon as possible.

  While they were walking Mike through the house, Bernie, the electrician, arrived and joined the tour. He was also a good guy whom Kaiden said he’d worked with on several projects for the Morgantown Historical Society. When they reached the kitchen, Mike put his hand on one of the cabinets.

  “I assume you’re going to change these out too?”

  “Yeah,” Kaiden spoke up. “That part is on me.”

  Juan clapped his hands. “That’s wonderful news. I can’t wait to see what you do, Kaiden.”

  Julia met Kaiden’s gaze over her father’s head. “Are you sure you have time?”

  He shrugged. “I’ll make time. This project is important.”

  Thank you, she mouthed, and he winked at her.

  Mike turned to Juan. “I can make a start this afternoon if you like, Mr. Garcia? You won’t be able to use your bathroom tonight, but I promise I won’t start on the other one until the master is fully functioning.”

  * * *

  Kaiden was still smiling as he drove home. He’d stayed and had coffee with the Garcias, made sure Mike and Bernie were happy with the plans, and kissed Julia good-bye for at least five minutes before he’d finally let her go. While he’d talked to Bernie, he’d started thinking about how he wanted the kitchen to look, and what kind of wood he would use for the best finish.

  It wasn’t as huge a space as the kitchen at home, but he wanted to make it right for Julia and her dad. Hand building cabinets and countertops was his favorite part of the job, and what he’d trained for. The rest of the everyday stuff was useful and definitely paid the bills, but it wasn’t the same.

  He parked up near the barn because everyone was home, and there were trucks everywhere. He spotted a rental and guessed his mom had driven herself from the airport. Going in through the mudroom, he took off his boots, jacket, and hat, and put everything away before padding into the kitchen in his socks.

  “Kaiden!”

  He blinked as his auntie Rae and his mother zeroed in on him from either side of the room. They were both on the short side, but their coloring was different as were their personalities. Rae sparkled more whereas Leanne was a quiet presence. If he hadn’t known them, Kaiden would never have guessed the lively Rae was actually Jeff ’s sister. They were as different as chalk and cheese.

  “Wow!” He wrapped an arm around each of them and hugged them tight. “Double trouble. I didn’t know you were coming as well, Rae.”

  “Leanne met me at the airport, and we drove over here together.”

  Kaiden was glad about that because his aunt’s bad driving was notorious in Morgan Valley.

  “Dad’s going to hate this,” Kaiden said in reverential tones.

  “We know.” Leanne and Rae fist-bumped each other. “But we figure that if we double-team him for a while he might finally get the message and do what Dr. Tio’s been telling him for months.”

  “Good luck with that,” Danny chimed in from where he was sitting at the table. “By the way. I just had a text from Adam. They’ve landed at the Morgan Ranch airstrip so they should be with us in half an hour or so.”

  Kaiden went over to get himself some coffee while Rae and Leanne disappeared down the hallway toward his father’s bedroom, arguing amicably about heated blankets and commodes.

  “Did Ben and Silver come back too?” Kaiden asked Danny.

  “They wanted to, but I guess Dad didn’t want the fuss. Ben says they’ll be back in a week and to keep him in the loop until then.”

  “Is Evan here?”

  “Yeah, he’s just taking a shower. He was out last night with a calving.”

  “Evan was?” Kaiden looked at Danny.

  “Yeah, I know. He actually offered.” Danny smiled. “For some reason he decided to stick to home and be helpful while Adam and Dad were away. To be honest, I’ve been glad of the help.”

  “I should be able to step up my game this week,” Kaiden said. “Just let me know what you need doing, and I’ll be there.”

  “It’s okay, Bro. I’m more than happy to keep making Evan feel guilty enough to pull his weight for a change.” Danny grinned at him. “It’s kind of fun.”

  “Fun doing what?”

  Evan spoke from the doorway. His spiky brown hair was still wet from the shower. He’d changed into PJ pants with a banana pattern and a bright yellow T-shirt, and his feet were bare.

  “Nothing you need to know about.” Kaiden winked at him. “How did the calving go?”

  * * *

  When Adam carried Jeff into the house, Kaiden stood back and let the women take over. The glimpse he got of Jeff ’s face wasn’t reassuring. His father looked ghastly, and he was too tired to even shout at anyone, which was a first. Kaiden waited for a good hour before he ventured into his dad’s bedroom. Only a lamp beside the bed shone light onto his father’s gaunt features. Kaiden stayed by the door, one hand digging into the wooden frame like it was a lifeline.

  “Well, don’t just stand there gawping, Son. Either come in, or get out.”

  His father’s voice was thin as a reed but somehow reassuring. Kaiden came in and sat on the chair beside the bed.

  “I’m glad you’re home, Dad.”

  “Me too, although I’m not sure what all the fuss was about.”

  Kaiden met his father’s gray gaze, which was so like his own. “You damn well do know.”

  “Maybe I do.” He sighed. “And even if I didn’t, your mother and Rae will make sure I get it if I ever want them to leave.”

  Kaiden fought a smile. “You’re lucky to have them, you know.”

  “Hmmph.” His dad relapsed into silence.

  “I just wanted to see how you were doing. I’d better go and let you sleep.” Kaiden reluctantly rose to his feet.

  “Good thinking. It’s not as if I’ve been waiting for you to show up so I could do that very thing.”

  “Night, Dad.” Kaiden bent to kiss his father’s forehead.

  “Now, don’t be getting all sentimental around me, Kaiden Miller. I’ll have enough of that from the triple threat.”

  Kaiden paused at the door. “The triple threat?”

  “Leanne, Rae, and Daisy.”

  Kaiden was still grinning when he went down the hallway and into the kitchen to catch up on all the news from Adam. His dad might look like a dog’s dinner, but he certainly hadn’t lost his crankiness. Kaiden wasn’t the greatest believer in God, but he maintained a healthy respect for the Lord, and sent up a quick prayer of thanks to
the heavens.

  He suspected there was a long road of recovery ahead, which would not suit his dad’s personality at all. From what Adam had already told them, he was going to have to change everything, and that was hard for anyone. After checking the kitchen, which was empty apart from two members of the triple threat who were deep in conversation, Kaiden decided he might as well turn in early. It had been an eventful day.

  He sighed as he walked down the hallway to his bedroom and almost wished Ben was back home so they could talk it through. But Ben had Silver to talk to now, Adam had Lizzie, Daisy had Jackson, and Danny and Evan were as close as twins. Which left him—the wisecracking ass with no friends who wanted everyone to like him—all on his lonesome. Even as he considered starting his own pity party, his cell buzzed and he took it out of his pocket.

  How did it go with your dad?

  He sat down on the side of the bed and replied to Julia.

  He’s home. He looks exhausted, but he’s cranky as ever.

  He waited impatiently as the little bubbles danced and bounced in the corner of the screen.

  That’s good, right?

  I suppose so.

  Kaiden leaned back against the wall and made himself comfortable as he typed.

  How did the work at the house go?

  Lots of banging and mess, but Mike says it’s all looking good so far

  Awesome.

  Kaiden’s thumbs paused over the keys. He wanted to tell her how the sight of his father’s face had scared him; how he’d got the sense that nothing would ever be the same again. But he didn’t have that right. She’d be expecting him to keep everything light.

  I’ll be over soon to measure up the kitchen.

  Cool.

  There was a longer pause. He’d almost given up hope she was still there when another text appeared.