Read Online Forever Cowboy (Montana Brides Book 5) by Leeanna Morgan - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Leeanna Morgan
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How did she tell Alex that she didn’t know how to trust him? Or how to trust herself. She’d paid back most of the money her father had stolen from his business partner’s family. But the loss of their retirement savings had come at a price that even she couldn’t have imagined.
Emily took a deep breath and tried to focus on the decision she had to make. If she didn’t accept Sam and Alex’s help she wouldn’t be moving into her dream building. If she said yes, she’d have to swallow her pride and believe it would work out for the best.
“You’ll need to turn right in about two hundred yards,” Alex said.
Emily slowed down and checked her rear view mirror. “Tell me about your ranch.”
“It’s not on Main Street and doesn’t have more than a dozen books filling its shelves.”
“Very funny,” she muttered.
“Not funny enough, it seems.”
Alex scowled across the cab and Emily ignored him. “I thought you would have worked on your dad’s ranch, not bought your own.”
“Dad’s doing okay without me. When he’s not running his rodeo weekends he’s raising some of the best bucking bulls in the country. Jacob found the Circle C Ranch when he was looking for land for one of his clients. As soon as I saw it I knew it was for me. Take the first gravel driveway past the red letterbox on the side of the road.”
“You mean the red barrel painted like a bull?”
“Gracie’s idea of a joke. The first time she came out here she missed the turnoff and ended up miles from anywhere.”
Emily didn’t say much as they bumped their way along the dirt driveway. Acres of green grass, split by wire fences, swayed in the afternoon light. Alex’s ranch spread out around them, cocooned against the base of the Bridger Mountains.
The home they were driving toward didn’t look like the type of house a World Bull Riding Champion would buy. It looked too normal. Too much like a family home built for a man who wanted to put down roots and make a future.
“What do you think?”
Emily could hear the smile in Alex’s voice. He knew he’d surprised her. “It’s lovely.”
The two story home sat tall and proud in the middle of one of the prettiest views Emily had ever seen. Wildflowers grew everywhere. She could almost smell the sweet scent that would fill Alex’s home each evening.
“Keep following the driveway. I want to show you the barn.”
“Are you trying to be funny?” Emily nudged the truck forward, forgetting about Alex’s odd request when she saw what was in front of them. The old timber barn had mellowed to a soft golden brown. Siding, warped and twisted with age, had been tacked tightly against a frame that would have withstood more winter storms than Emily could imagine.
“It was built in 1843. The original homestead was destroyed in the fires that swept through Montana in 1910. For some reason the barn survived.”
Emily stopped the truck and opened her door. The middle of the barn rose three stories from the ground. Connected on each side were long, rectangular rooms that anchored the building to the land. She gazed at a large window at the top of the barn, wondering if it belonged to a room or simply let in light. The view of the Gallatin Valley from that height would be amazing.
Alex closed his door and stood beside her. “The left side used to be the tack room. When I remodeled the barn, it became my garage. The corrals are long gone, but we tried to keep some of the original character. Welcome to my home.”
Emily looked over her shoulder. “Who lives in the house behind us?”
“My foreman and ranch hands. It sweetened the deal for Mac and the guys he employed.”
Emily watched Alex limp toward two huge doors in the center of the building. Halfway across the yard he turned and smiled. “Are you going to stand there all day with your mouth open or come inside?”
Emily snapped her jaw shut and stomped toward him. “Since when does living in a drafty
Emily took a deep breath and tried to focus on the decision she had to make. If she didn’t accept Sam and Alex’s help she wouldn’t be moving into her dream building. If she said yes, she’d have to swallow her pride and believe it would work out for the best.
“You’ll need to turn right in about two hundred yards,” Alex said.
Emily slowed down and checked her rear view mirror. “Tell me about your ranch.”
“It’s not on Main Street and doesn’t have more than a dozen books filling its shelves.”
“Very funny,” she muttered.
“Not funny enough, it seems.”
Alex scowled across the cab and Emily ignored him. “I thought you would have worked on your dad’s ranch, not bought your own.”
“Dad’s doing okay without me. When he’s not running his rodeo weekends he’s raising some of the best bucking bulls in the country. Jacob found the Circle C Ranch when he was looking for land for one of his clients. As soon as I saw it I knew it was for me. Take the first gravel driveway past the red letterbox on the side of the road.”
“You mean the red barrel painted like a bull?”
“Gracie’s idea of a joke. The first time she came out here she missed the turnoff and ended up miles from anywhere.”
Emily didn’t say much as they bumped their way along the dirt driveway. Acres of green grass, split by wire fences, swayed in the afternoon light. Alex’s ranch spread out around them, cocooned against the base of the Bridger Mountains.
The home they were driving toward didn’t look like the type of house a World Bull Riding Champion would buy. It looked too normal. Too much like a family home built for a man who wanted to put down roots and make a future.
“What do you think?”
Emily could hear the smile in Alex’s voice. He knew he’d surprised her. “It’s lovely.”
The two story home sat tall and proud in the middle of one of the prettiest views Emily had ever seen. Wildflowers grew everywhere. She could almost smell the sweet scent that would fill Alex’s home each evening.
“Keep following the driveway. I want to show you the barn.”
“Are you trying to be funny?” Emily nudged the truck forward, forgetting about Alex’s odd request when she saw what was in front of them. The old timber barn had mellowed to a soft golden brown. Siding, warped and twisted with age, had been tacked tightly against a frame that would have withstood more winter storms than Emily could imagine.
“It was built in 1843. The original homestead was destroyed in the fires that swept through Montana in 1910. For some reason the barn survived.”
Emily stopped the truck and opened her door. The middle of the barn rose three stories from the ground. Connected on each side were long, rectangular rooms that anchored the building to the land. She gazed at a large window at the top of the barn, wondering if it belonged to a room or simply let in light. The view of the Gallatin Valley from that height would be amazing.
Alex closed his door and stood beside her. “The left side used to be the tack room. When I remodeled the barn, it became my garage. The corrals are long gone, but we tried to keep some of the original character. Welcome to my home.”
Emily looked over her shoulder. “Who lives in the house behind us?”
“My foreman and ranch hands. It sweetened the deal for Mac and the guys he employed.”
Emily watched Alex limp toward two huge doors in the center of the building. Halfway across the yard he turned and smiled. “Are you going to stand there all day with your mouth open or come inside?”
Emily snapped her jaw shut and stomped toward him. “Since when does living in a drafty
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