Redeemed Cowboy, page 1
Redeemed Cowboy
Whiskey Valley: Bryant Brothers
Hope Ford
Contents
1. Mia
2. Ryan
3. Mia
4. Ryan
5. Mia
6. Mia
7. Ryan
8. Mia
9. Ryan
10. Mia
11. Ryan
12. Mia
13. Ryan
14. Mia
Epilogue
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About the Author
Redeemed Cowboy © 2022 by Hope Ford
Editor: Kasi Alexander
Images and Cover Art Illustration by Period Images
Cover Design: Hope Ford
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Chapter 1
Mia
I barely get seated at my desk and the phone starts to ring. I reach over and turn on the monitor of my computer and pick up the phone at the same time. "Double B Ranch," I say into the phone.
"Mia?" the woman on the other line asks. I clench my eyes shut when I realize who it is that's calling. Rachel. For most purposes, she's a pretty nice woman. Under most circumstances, we would probably be friends, but I know exactly why she's calling.
I don't even want to ask, but I don’t have it in me to be rude. "Hey, Rachel, what can I do for you?"
She hesitates and starts to hem and haw. "Uh, I was just calling to see if you or anyone at the ranch needed anything.”
I roll my eyes because we've done business with the feed store in Whiskey Valley for years now. At least as long as I’ve been here. We have a standing order with them, and if by chance we have a special order or anything, I call and place it, or if it’s last minute, we send in one of the hands to get it. I can't remember them ever calling to see if we needed anything. "No, I think we're good. I'll make sure that we put an order in as soon as we need something, though."
Rachel sighs into the phone. "Yeah, sure. Okay. But if you think of anything, no matter how small, just let me know, because I'm always out that way to one of the ranches. It wouldn’t be any trouble."
"Sure thing. I'll be sure to let you know," I tell her before I hang up. I rub my hand across my head, feeling a headache coming on. Poor Rachel. I’m pretty sure Ryan showed some interest in her the last time she was here. But I’m also sure he was upfront about not wanting a commitment and yada, yada, but Rachel is like half the women in Whiskey Valley: They all seem to think that they can be the one to change him.
I've been working at the Double B Ranch for almost three years now. I came here when I was eighteen to visit my father, who was working here as a ranch hand. When I came into town, the Double B Ranch needed somebody to work the office. Even though I lacked experience, I've always been good with computers, so King offered me a job, and I've been working here ever since. My father wasn't here very long after I got here, but that's just the way he is. He's never been one for settling in one spot. We moved all the time growing up. I was a little worried at first, when he said that he was leaving, because I thought that I would be out of a job, but King was sure to tell me how much I was needed here.
So I've been working the office, taking care of all the accounting and keeping up with all the herd records and everything that needs to be ordered and taken care of. The main boss is King Bryant. He's the oldest brother, and Chance, Griffin, and Ryan run the ranch too. I guess you could say I answer to all of them. But I don’t mind because they’ve all been good to me.
King recently got married to Natalie, and she and her son now live on the ranch too. Chance is quick-witted and reasonable. He’s good to have around in most situations. Griffin is probably the quietest one of the brothers. He was in the Army for a while and just got back last year. He doesn’t really talk about his time that he served. Ryan is the youngest brother, and it’s a big joke with all his brothers that he’s the playboy cowboy. Women seem to throw themselves at him wherever he goes.
I lean back in my chair and stretch my arms over my head. I can't even think about Ryan without a tremble going down my back. I don't know what it is about him, but I definitely shouldn't have my sights set on him. I’m only asking for heartache.
Since the day I've met him, girls have been coming and going. Women just like Rachel. He's never going to settle down. And even if he does, it wouldn't be with me. I let out a sigh just as Ryan comes in the office door. I don't get a Good morning or How you doing? Nothing. "I need the record for the Hereford cows that we got last week."
He heads straight for the filing cabinet, and with his back to me, I can't help but look at the way his Wrangler jeans fit him. He shifts his stance, and like in a trance, my eyes stare as he moves from one leg to the other. I can hear the frustration from him as he has trouble finding the file he's looking for.
I should give him a break, but I figure I'll just wait. Let him stew a little. He deserves it. However, it's not long that I have to wait because he turns around and looks at me with his hands up in the air. "Where's the file at?"
I pull my eyes up, not wanting to get caught looking at his butt, and point at the computer in front of me. "Everything is in here."
I open the software and search for the information that he needs. He comes and stands next to me, leaning over me and looking at the screen. He's so close all I would need to do is turn my head, and I'm pretty sure that my lips would be touching his cheek. Not that I would do that or anything.
For three years now, I’ve secretly had a crush on Ryan. You would think after hearing him tell his brother that I look like a frump that I wouldn't still have this stupid crush on him, but I guess old habits die hard. "What exactly do you need?" I ask him.
"I'm looking for a particular tag number."
I nod patiently. "Okay. Do you know the tag number?"
He pulls a piece of paper from the front pocket of his shirt and hands it to me. I type the number into the computer. When the information comes up, I hit print. Five seconds later, I hand him a piece of paper, and he grabs it from me, looking at it in awe.
He's still standing next to me, his hip pressed against my shoulder. "Wait, this is all the information? All of the shots, medicine, everything that has been done to this cow is kept here?"
I nod my head. "Yeah, anything that happens on this ranch, I just put into the computer. So everything is up to date, and we don’t have to search through files to get it."
He looks surprised and even a little impressed. "Thanks for this," he says. "Good work, Mia." I nod and try not to blush. It's crazy to think that he can say something just as simple as that, and I get all goo-goo eyed about it. He thinks you’re a frump, Mia. Get over him, I tell myself.
He gets to the door, and then I remember Rachel. "Oh, yeah. Rachel called."
He turns and looks at me with confusion on his face. "Rachel?"
I shake my head. Of course, he probably doesn't remember her. I roll my eyes. "Yeah. She is the one that works at the feed store. The one..." I let my voice trail off because I don’t really know how else to explain her without saying, You know, the woman Eli caught you with last week.
Red tinges his cheeks. He was caught by Elijah, Nat and King’s son, making out with Rachel a few weeks ago, so everyone on the ranch knows all about it. "Oh, yeah. What did she want?" he asks.
“She said that if we need anything at all out here at the ranch, no matter how small, she would be happy to bring it out here to us. So I guess just uh, let her know if you want her to come and bring you something."
He shakes his head. "I'm good. We don’t need anything. I mean, you do the ordering."
I nod in agreement. “Yep, I do the ordering.”
I bite my lip. There’s so much I want to say to him, but I don’t dare. He’s a player. He’s not interested in me, so I don’t know why I keep letting this get to me.
Chapter 2
Ryan
I can feel the disapproval from Mia. It's always been like this. I mean, I know the man that I am. I'm not interested in settling down, not after everything I saw my brother King go through. Of course, it's worked out now that he's met Natalie, but a few years ago, he was a mess. The woman he dated before was only interested in his money, and at the time, I thought it was going to destroy him. I’m much better off just having fun.
I just don't see why anyone would want to put themselves through that. But I can't help feel guilty as Mia stares back at me. There's something about her that makes me feel like I should be a better man, and I hate that feeling. All it does is frustrate me because I don't want to analyze it.
With the paper in my hand, I cross my arms over my chest and decide to change the subject. "So are we going to talk about the Cattleman's Association Ball?"
She shakes her head. "No. I know when it is. What else is there to talk about?"
I've never had to go to the Cattleman's Association Ball before. It's always been King's job, but he, Natalie, and their son, Elijah, are going to see Natalie's parents, so he won't be in town to make it. He didn't want to ask Griffin because he is helping out with something else. And Chance's really not the one you want to go to something like this. So I’m the lucky one. I drew the short stick, and with that, he didn't want me to pick my own date. He wanted me to take somebody respecta
I look at Mia, sitting behind her desk. She has on her regular uniform. I call it a uniform, but just because that's all she ever wears. We don’t have a dress code or anything. She’s wearing a button-down shirt with the buttons fastened all the way to the top of her neck. The material is thin, and it's obvious she's had it for a long time. I don't think she ever goes shopping, and I know that we pay her a decent rate. She can surely afford new clothes.
"Well, have you got your dress?" I ask her. She just hems and haws at me with her eyes on the screen in front of her. She's thinking that I'm just going to leave without discussing this. "Mia," I say, and finally she lifts her eyes and looks at me. Or should I say over my shoulder because she sure as hell isn’t looking at me. "Do you have a dress for the event?"
She shrugs her shoulders. "Don't worry. I'll have one."
She won’t look at me. Why won’t she look me in the eye? "Well, take the ranch credit card because this is a business event."
Her face closes up a little more. She’s biting her lip, as if she’s holding back. I obviously said something or did something wrong. She grits her teeth. "I can afford to buy my own clothes."
Mia has always been very independent, and I respect that about her. But she’s also stubborn. "I know you can afford your own clothes, but this is a work event. You're going because King asked you to go. Just use the card."
She shrugs her shoulders, and I know that I just need to give up. She's going to do what she damn well pleases. I want to ask her what her problem is. For the last week, she's been different. Usually, we can cut up and laugh and have a good time, but it's obvious there's something that's been bothering her lately.
I think it all started with the day that King asked her to go to this ball with me, but I don't see what the big deal is. We've gone to work events before together, and it hasn't been an issue. She's back to staring at her computer and completely blocking me out. I tell myself that I should just leave, but I can't. I take two steps toward her to get her attention, and when she looks up at me, she sits back in her chair with her arms crossed over her chest. She’s definitely ticked off at me for something.
"Was there something else you needed, Ryan?"
I shrug while I search her face. It's guarded, and I'm not used to getting that look from her. "Is everything okay with you?"
She gives me one brief, quick nod. "Yes, I'm fine.”
Fine. She says she’s fine. She’s obviously not, though. “You’re fine? Nothing going on? Nothing you want to talk about?”
She stares at her computer but shakes her head side to side.
I take a step closer. This is killing me. “Talk to me, Mia. Is someone bothering you? Did someone say something to upset you?”
She finally lifts her eyes and looks straight at me. Not over my shoulder or over my head. She looks right at me. She opens her mouth but then closes it really fast. That’s it. Someone said something to her.
“Who said it, Mia? Tell me and I’ll take care of it.”
She seems surprised that I’m ready to defend her, but surely she knows how much she means to me and to the ranch. I know each of my brothers thinks of her as family. Heck, Nat and Eli have been here the shortest, and they both already love her.
She looks back at her computer. “Nobody said anything, Ryan. Really, I can take care of myself. I’ve been doing it a long time. But I do have a lot of work to get done today."
I feel a pain in my chest just hearing those words from her. She spent the majority of her life traveling to ranches with her father. Her mom left when she was thirteen, and after that, her father homeschooled her, and she moved ranch to ranch. Her father’s a great guy, would do anything for her, but he’s not one for staying in one place. I think that’s the reason King offered her the job like he did. He knew she needed this.
“Mia…” I start.
She shakes her head, dismissing me. “Please, Ryan. I really do have a lot of work to do.”
I rock back and forth on my feet. There's definitely something going on with her. This is not the Mia that I know, but she’s obviously not going to talk to me about it.
I shake my head, surprised by her tone. "Okay. I'll get out of your hair."
She doesn't say bye or anything. She just gets straight back to work, typing out something onto her computer. I walk out of the office, completely unsettled and a burning in my gut. Something's not right.
Chapter 3
Mia
I grip my fists together. I hate this. I really hate it. It seems like everything is changing, and I don't want it to. I know I need to get over Ryan; he's a confirmed bachelor. Why in the world did I have to fall for the playboy of the brothers?
I let out a deep breath and get back to work. I need to keep my mind off of things, and that's the best way to do it. I focus on the numbers on the screen in front of me. I barely start to get lost in my work and I hear a knock on my open office door. My office is in a private room of the barn. Most of the time there are ranch hands moving in and out of the building, and I have it shut, but it's still opened from when Ryan left earlier.
"Knock, knock. Hey, Mia," Dr. Stone says, peering in my door.
I lean back in my seat. "Hey, Doc, what's up?" He's the vet for Whiskey Valley, and he usually comes out at least once a week to do a roundup and check some of the animals. We got a horse in a few days ago, and I'm sure that's what he's here for today.
"I'm here to check on the new stallion. Is there anyone around that can assist me? I heard this is a wild one."
I push back from the desk and stand up. Usually, the ranch hands are still in the barn, but it's been quiet for a while, so they're probably all out on the ranch somewhere. I could easily call somebody and have them come, but I know that I can help him do what he needs to do. "I can help," I tell him.
He looks at me skeptically. “I don't know if that's a good idea. I can wait on one of the hands to get back."
I roll my eyes. It's amazing how protective all the men at this ranch are. I guess even the town vet is going to be the same way. It's like they hate to see a woman lift a finger. "I promise it will be fine," I say as I walk past him. I walk over to the stall that we put the new stallion in and start talking to him before I even get to the gate. "Hey, buddy, you going to let us check you out today?" I say in a soft voice. As if answering me, the horse nods his head with a neigh, and Dr. Stone and I both laugh.
"Well, I guess you probably can handle it," he says.
I carefully open the stall and step inside, talking softly to the horse the whole time. I pet its nose and then go to the top of its head and down its mane. He butts his head against me, and I scratch behind his ear. "What do you need to do, Doc?" I ask Dr. Stone.
"I just need to check his horseshoes and give him some medicine. It will be quick."
I shrug my shoulders. "No big deal. I’ve got time."
Being around the horses is one of my favorite things about this job. I was raised on a ranch; I know them inside and out, and the animals are always the highlight. Especially the ones that have been hurt before. They always need more attention, at least when they first get here.
The doc carefully moves around the horse and asks me with a soft tone, "Where did this one come from?"
I keep petting the horse, running my hand down its mane. "I guess someone abandoned him at a ranch over in Jasper. Ryan picked him up the other day."
I scratch the horse’s ear and think about Ryan. That's probably why I'm halfway in love with him, because he is always saving animals, bringing them home left and right and caring for them. He definitely has a soft spot for anything that’s been hurt or abandoned.
