Proposal at the Lazy S Ranch

“How is Colt really doing? I mean, Ana hadn’t given a lot of details.” Maybe Josie just hadn’t been eager to listen. “Only that he’s improving.”

“He is improving and very quickly. We’re all happy about that.” Kathleen sat down across from her. “But your sister still wants your help. She won’t ask you to, but she needs you to stay as long as you can spare the time.”

Josie felt bad, knowing how much her older sister had taken on by herself. “I should have come sooner.”

“Under the circumstances, I can’t blame you all for not wanting to come home,” she told her. “But I’m sure glad you’re here now. Please tell me you’re staying awhile.” The older woman squeezed her hand. “I missed you, Josie.”

“Ah, Kathleen, I’ve missed you, too.” But two weeks was about all she could handle with Garrett. “I said two weeks. After that...” She hesitated. “Remember, Tori is handling my end of the business while I’m here.”

“Maybe she’ll decide to come back, too.”

Josie smiled. “As soon as I get back there, she can come home.”

“So you still think of the Lazy S as home?”

Josie shook her head. “Don’t start, Kathleen. Let’s just take this slow. I’ve been away a long time.” She finished her coffee. “Where’s Ana?”

“She went out to the barn with Vance. They have someone coming to look at some horses this morning.” Kathleen checked the clock. “Then she had to go to work at the high school.”

Josie nodded, knowing the reason she came home was because of Ana’s job as high school counselor.

She stood and tested her ankle. “Maybe I’ll walk down to have a look around, then come back to see Colt.” This was all so new to her. She was actually going to see her dad.

Josie kissed Kathleen’s cheek. Grabbing her coat, she headed out the door and slowly made her way down the same path she used to take as a kid. Not that she’d been invited into the barn much. Colt had pretty much kept his daughters out of any ranch business. Even when they got older, he didn’t want them around. It had been some of the ranch hands who taught them to rope and ride. When Colt learned of it, he made sure they learned to muck out stalls, too.

She stepped inside the large structure, where the scent of straw and animals hit her. She smiled, thinking a few days here might not be so bad. She looked down the rows of stalls where several horses were housed. She liked this. Walking down the center aisle, she passed the stall that had the name Blondie on the gate. Ana’s buckskin, Josie thought as she walked up and began to stroke the animal. Then she went to another stall with a big chestnut, Rusty.

“Well, aren’t you a good-looking fella.”

“That’s Vance’s horse.”

Josie swung around when she heard a child’s voice. She found a boy who was about eight or nine. He must be the buyer’s son. “And I bet he’s fun to ride, too,” she said.

The child didn’t make eye contact with her, but he wandered toward her. “Vance says he can chase down calves, too. That’s what he’s best at.”

“We all have to be good at something.” Who was this child? “I’m Josie, Ana’s sister. And you are?”

“Brody. Vance said my horse can be like Rusty if I train him.”

Where was her future brother-in-law? “You have your own horse, Brody?”

Josie watched the child nod, wondering why he looked so familiar. He nodded. “My dad’s buying me one. He’s brown with a black tail and mane. That means he’s a bay. His name is Sky Rocket.”

“Cool name.”

The child nodded, causing his cowboy hat to tip back. “I’m going to teach him to run really fast.”

Josie smiled. “That sounds like a lot of fun.”

She was about to say something to the boy when she heard another voice calling out from the other side of the barn. “Brody!”

Josie looked at the boy. “Seems someone is looking for you.”

The boy jerked around just as Garrett and Vance came walking down the aisle. “Brody Temple.”

Temple. This was Garrett’s child. Oh, God, she needed to leave. The last thing she wanted was to see the man again.

“Oh, no,” Brody said as he stepped closer to Josie. “My dad is mad.”

Suddenly Garrett and Vance came up to them, and she knew she couldn’t ditch the boy.

“Brody, you were told not to wander off,” his father said. “You’re too young to be around horses without someone older.”

Suddenly, the kid threw her under the bus. “It’s okay. I was with Josie.”

CHAPTER THREE

GARRETT WAS BOTH relieved and surprised to find Brody standing beside Josie. His son didn’t usually approach strangers.

He looked down at the boy. “Son, you know you can’t leave like that.”

Brody stiffened. “I was careful,” he said defensively, but that changed when Vance walked up to the group. “You sure have a lot of horses here.”

“We hope to have a lot more in the spring,” Vance said. “So we can keep selling them to other kids.” He looked at Josie. “Josie. What brings you out here?”

“I came to find Ana.” She looked at the boy and managed to smile. “And found Brody instead.”

That smile quickly died when she turned to Garrett. “Seems you spend a lot of time at the Lazy S. I thought you were busy building a lodge.”

So she was going to stay angry at him. “I am. My foreman has everything under control.” He placed his hands on Brody’s shoulders. “I was taking the morning off to spend with my son. We’re picking out his first horse.”

“I know. We were talking about Sky Rocket.” She sighed. “Look, I should get back to the house to check on Colt. It was nice to meet you, Brody.”

Vance stepped in. “Don’t go yet, Josie, I was going to show Brody the new foal.”

“Yeah, go with us,” Brody pleaded.

Garrett knew it was inevitable he’d see Josie, but today he wanted to focus on his son, not his ex-girlfriend.

He could see her indecision, but she finally relented. “I can stay a few minutes.”

Brody looked at Vance. “Where is it?”

Grinning, Vance pushed his hat back. “Down a few stalls.” They all began walking. Garrett stayed back and let Brody and Josie take the lead, but once they got to the oversize stall, the boy waited, a big grin on his face, until the adults arrived before he got too close. He saw happiness in his child that he hadn’t seen in a long time.

Garrett looked over the railing to find a dark chestnut mare. Close by was her pretty brown filly with four white socks just like her mama.

“Oh, she’s so little,” Brody said as he looked through the stall railings. “How old is she?”