Read Online Expecting the Cowboy's Baby by Charlene Sands - Free Book Online Page B

extremely pleased with his score. Cheers went up all around the arena.
    Cassie kept her eyes focused on Jake, watching him take long, purposeful strides, retrieving his hat from the ground then jamming it back on his head. He gave the crowd one last wave before disappearing into the chutes again.
    She swallowed hard, slammed her eyes shut, then felt herself swaying. This couldn’t be happening. Not now, not with all the plans she’d made for her future.
    â€œWhoa, little lady.” A strong hand righted her.
    She opened her eyes to find her rodeo friend beside her, marked concern etched in his crinkled eyes. “You all right?”
    â€œUh, no,” she said softly. “I’m not all right. I have to go,” she whispered. “I have to get out of here.”
    Cassie pushed her way out of the aisle, ran down the steps of the stadium and raced to her car in the dust-laden parking lot. She fumbled with the lock, then opened the door and sat down in the seat, her heart racing with dread. She wiped a stray tear from her cheek and started the engine.
    The motor revved to life.
    But Cassie only sat there, in stunned silence, her mind fighting a losing battle with her heart. She didn’t want this. She couldn’t believe her bad luck. She’d promised herself she wouldn’t fall victim again. But all of her resolve had crumbled like unsteady walls in an earthquake. She’d never felt this way before, this quivering nerve-racking, all-out powerful jolt that hit her with incredible impact. She knew it meant only one thing.
    She’d fallen deeply in love with Jake Griffin.

Five
    C assie pulled off Highway 395 onto a private paved road that led to another road, this one taking her deeper into the Carson Valley and closer to Anderson Ranch. Packed up to the ceiling with boxes of her belongings, she’d driven her Bug for over eight hours, leaving her family, friends and Los Angeles behind. She’d said a sorrowful goodbye to Brian and Alicia earlier this morning, each one misty-eyed, each one trying to be happy for her. She’d made a promise to Brian that she’d call often and that she’d be fine. Not to worry.
    Her brother had only grimaced, giving her a tight squeeze.
    Once she’d gotten out of the city, she’d felt better, brighter, and a little less sad. And now, seeing the open spaces, the tall meadows groomed only by animals grazing the land with a backdrop of mountains and clear skies devoid of smog, Cassie smiled.
    She drove her Volkswagen Bug through wide whitearches that claimed Anderson Ranch with big, bold, black letters. Cassie drove farther then braked to a quick stop when she viewed the ranch house.
    Visions of the television show “Dallas” came to mind, of the ranch named Southfork, and she nearly expected to see J.R. Ewing stepping out of the double doors. The house, more a mansion of sorts, stood in the center of what Cassie believed to be the largest ranch she’d ever seen. The acreage that surrounded the house seemed to go on and on until only the tall, pine-dotted mountains called it to a halt. And the house itself was stately with broad white columns, a two-story combination of adobe and masonry that spelled wealth and elegance.
    This is where she’d work. This is where she’d put the past behind her. This is where she’d try to forget about Jake Griffin, the man who kept popping into her life to break her heart. It had been three weeks since she’d seen him—three of the longest weeks of her life. Cassie’s focus now had to be on her new job and her new living arrangements. She hoped to fit in well and maybe even make a few new friends along the way.
    She’d make a fresh start.
    Cassie parked the car and approached the door, her stomach clenching. Nerves, she told herself. Before she could knock, the door opened. “Miss Munroe?”
    A tall, tanned man with salt-and-pepper hair studied her. His face