Heart of a Rancher

“She’s got a good four or five inches of height on you. Probably want to consider that when you’re finding her clothes.”

Georgiana’s grin showcased the copper freckles on her cheeks and the hazel in her eyes. “So if she wears my pants, we’re talking high waters.” She lifted a shoulder. “Not a problem. I hear capris are in this year.” She waved a hand toward her own outfit.

Dana already liked the woman. “You heard right. They definitely are.”

“We’ll have dinner ready when y’all get back so John can eat before he heads to work,” Georgiana said to the rugged cowboys walking toward an old blue truck, their boots kicking up a bit of dust as they moved.

“Sounds great.” John climbed into the passenger side of the old pickup, looked at Dana and knuckled his Stetson. “Oh, by the way, welcome to the ranch.”

She stood beside Georgiana and watched them drive away, mesmerized with the lifestyle so different than her own. And equally mesmerized by the breathtaking cowboy with the sexy smile, and eyes that looked like honey in the sunshine.

“Come on, we’ll go get you some clothes.” Georgiana took a couple of steps, opened the door and led the way inside. If Dana didn’t know she was blind, she wouldn’t have been able to tell.

They entered the log cabin, and Dana viewed the beauty of plank wood ceilings, hardwood floors, exposed beams and a huge stone fireplace. Even the furnishings were rustic but homey. “Your room is upstairs, on the left. I’ll show you.” Georgiana started up the stairs. “Abi, you can come help me pick out some of my clothes for Miss Dana to wear if you’re done with your milk.”

“Cool!” Abi abandoned her spot at the kitchen table and ran toward the stairs.

“I didn’t hear you put your glass in the sink.” Georgiana’s motherly tone was endearing.

“Oh, yeah, right.” Abi turned, ran back to the table and moved her empty glass to the sink. Then she darted back across the living area to pass them going up the stairs. “I’ll go pick out something nice.”

Georgiana laughed. “Abi loves to help.” She slid her hand along the wall until it met the first door facing and then pointed to the open door. “That’s your room. There is an adjoining bathroom, and you should have all the linens and things you need, but if anything is missing, just let me know. We really are glad you’re here.”

Dana peeked in. A multicolored quilt covered the bed and another hung over a quilt rack near the window. Antique furniture filled the room with crocheted doilies accenting each piece. “The quilts and the doilies are lovely.”

“Mrs. Cutter made those before she passed on. When I was little and came over to ride horses with Landon, she was often on the front porch crocheting. I’m sure John will probably tell you, but they lost their mother eight years ago. She’d gotten depressed after her husband died in a farming accident and unfortunately turned to prescription meds. John was the one who found her. Landon was overseas serving in Afghanistan, and John became the man of the house here, taking care of the farm and their little brother, Casey.”

Dana had known that John’s parents were dead, but she hadn’t realized the amount of responsibility he’d inherited. He’d mentioned Casey and the fact that he was at the University of Alabama, but he hadn’t said anything about raising the boy after his mother died. “How old was Casey when she died?”

“I believe he was ten, maybe eleven.” Georgiana leaned against the door frame. “John saw him through all those teenage years and all the trouble that typically comes with them. And Casey turned out well, even if they had a few bumps along the way.”

“Mom, are y’all coming?” Abi’s voice echoed down the hall.

“And speaking of kids...” Georgiana shook her head, turned and continued down the hall.

Touched by the hospitality from this family, Dana felt an even stronger desire to make certain John’s dude ranch became a success after learning everything he’d gone through over the past few years.

As though she knew what Dana was thinking, Georgiana said, “John is really hoping this dude ranch idea will work, and he believes you’re the one who can make it happen.”

“It’s a good idea.” Dana believed it was, even if it wasn’t one that any wise investors would fund. And why wouldn’t they? Sure, Alabama wasn’t a typical location for a dude ranch, but if she could market it well, there shouldn’t be a problem. Then again, in the back of her mind she wondered if she had missed something. Was there more to getting an honest-to-goodness dude ranch up and running than she’d realized?

They entered Georgiana and Landon’s room, where Abi had gathered a few tops and pants and tossed them on the bed.

“Do you like any of those?” Abi asked. “Or do you want me to pick some other ones? I tried to put the ones together that I thought matched. Mommy lets me match her clothes, so I’m pretty good at matching.”

“Abi, just how many did you get out?” Georgiana asked, but Dana could tell she wasn’t perturbed with her daughter’s enthusiasm. On the contrary, her smile said she found Abi’s assistance adorable. And so did Dana.

“Just a few. I didn’t know what Miss Dana’s favorite color is, so I tried to get something in every color.”

Georgiana laughed. “I see.”

“How about that blue shirt with the flowers on it, and those jeans there?” Dana pointed to the outfit.

“Okay.” Abi gathered the two items and handed them over. “I’ll put the other stuff back, Mommy.”

“Thanks, sweetie. And you can come down to the kitchen when you get done, and we’ll finish getting dinner ready.”

“Okay.”

Georgiana moved back into the hall with Dana by her side. “If you’d like to come down after you’re dressed, and if you’d feel like helping with dinner, I can always use a hand in the kitchen.”

Dana rarely saw the kitchen at her apartment. She either ate out or grabbed a toasted bagel and coffee on the go. John had probably told Landon and Georgiana about her background if they weren’t aware already, so this woman knew that Dana was a fish out of water on the farm. But Georgiana graciously and kindly allowed her to ease into their world. Dana’s gratitude was instant. “I’d like that very much.”

Georgiana turned to go down the stairs, but Dana remembered something she’d said earlier that she hadn’t understood. “Georgiana?”

“Yes?”

“You said we’d eat dinner before John goes to work.”

She nodded. “He works the third shift at the steel plant, three nights on, four nights off. Tonight is night two of his three on. He’s also taking business classes during the week, getting his degree at the college in Stockville. Of course you knew that, since you met him in one of the college’s online business forums, right?”

“Right.”

“But yes, he works, goes to school, helps us run the fish camp and also does his share around the farm.” Georgiana’s mouth flattened, and she took a step back toward Dana. “As I said earlier, Landon was really touched by everything John did while Landon was overseas, and everything John still does to help things run smoothly around here.” She bit her lower lip. “Can I be honest with you?”

Dana heard the worry in her tone. “Yes, please.”

“Landon wasn’t certain how to feel about your coming down here, leaving Chicago and your business and all to head to Alabama and help John start a dude ranch. See, John was so disheartened when the bank turned down his business plan, and then he met you, and he got his hopes up again.”

“I believe his business will be successful,” Dana assured her. “That’s why I’m here, to make certain he has everything he needs to get it running. And it’s an investment for Brooks International—our first investment of this type.” The first of many, if Dana planned to follow through with her father’s last wish. As long as she could show her brother that the business could turn a profit, she should be able to assist many aspiring entrepreneurs all over the country.

“I know. And now that you’re here, and I’ve heard how happy John sounds and can practically feel his excitement over the dude ranch, well, Landon and I believe that you may be the answer to our prayer for John.”

Dana wasn’t sure what to say. “Your prayer?”

“Yes,” Georgiana said. “Our prayer that this time, his dreams can come true.”

Chapter Three

John ate every bite of his dinner but hardly tasted the steak and potatoes. His attention had been held captive by Dana Brooks’s excitement over his business plan. He’d sensed her interest on the college forum and even heard it in her voice when they’d talked on the phone, but he hadn’t been able to see her passion for the project. However, with every mention of the dude ranch tonight, her eyes lit up, her smile stretched wide and her enthusiasm became palpable. Over his idea.

Now that they’d finished eating and Landon and Georgiana had gone upstairs to get Abi ready for bed, he knew he should head to the cabin and get a couple hours’ sleep before he had to go to work at the steel plant. But he didn’t want to leave.

More than that, he didn’t want to leave Dana.

“You want to go out on the porch for a while? It’s a clear night, should be able to see the stars.” His voice sounded awkward, like a kid nervously asking a girl out on a date, but she didn’t seem to notice.

“Sure. It isn’t often we get a good view of the stars in the city. All the lights drown them out, make them harder to see.”