Read Online Second Chance Ranch by Audra Harders - Free Book Online Page B

despite her prior dousing of sparks. “The owner of the property brought him in to oversee the haying.” She forced a smile. “Glad Zac’s here to do it. Didn’t know how I’d keep track of all the physical asset responsibility of the property.”
    “Zac, is it now?” Patrick eyed her. “Mighty chummy for a cowboy new to the place.”
    Jennifer turned from his all-knowing stare. Patrick’s penchant for curiosity had caught her off guard many times. “New to the Trails’ End, but not to Hawk Ridge. I’ve known him forever. No big deal.”
    “Maybe he can give you some business plan pointers. If he’s up here to look after the harvest, he probably knows ways to make it profitable.”
    The familiar stomp of boots across the pine grain laminate floor made Jen perk up. Hadn’t Zac said he needed to go to town? She turned just as he stopped beside her, looking all solid and handsome, and smelling undeniably wonderful. The hairs on the back of her neck rose. Last time they’d talked, he’d peeled out of her parking lot, dirt and gravel spewing from all four tires.
    She glance up quickly and tensed at his easy smile. She didn’t buy it. “Zac—”
    “This lodge is great.” He cut her off. “No wonder Jess is worried about the harvest coming in to make a loan payment. I’ve never seen the whole looking so good.” Zac stuck out his hand. “Zac Davidson. Hired hand.”
    Patrick accepted the offer with a firm shake. “Patrick Marsh, camp counselor. Jennifer mentioned Splint and Max were about to get some direction in their duties.”
    Zac gave a low chuckle that warmed Jen right in the pit of her belly, reminding her of years gone by. Before thoughts of love had entered the picture. Before complicated became her byword. Before she had to share her secret.
    She swallowed to clear her throat. “The guys know what they’re doing.”
    “’Course they do,” Zac agreed easily. “They just need another pair of hands to get it done. They’ve already completed most of the cutting but we’ve got a lot of acres to cover and I doubt Jen here has the time to bale and stack hay.”
    “Sums it up pretty much even though this camping session is a little smaller than the others. We’ve always got to keep an eye out for the kids and their safety.” Patrick nodded toward the playground. “Speaking of which, I’ve got a soccer game to organize before there’s mutiny. Tonight’s movie night, Zac. Why don’t you stop by?”
    “Chances are I’ll be cutting until late. Thanks for the invite, though.”
    Patrick waved as he trotted off toward the game.
    “Can I have a word with you? In private?”
    The bile in her stomach rose to her throat. “I really should be helping Patrick.”
    “This will only take a minute.”
    She nodded, wrapping her arms across her midsection. Turning the corner, she led him to a darkened alcove Patrick used as his office. Unless they wanted to go to the clinic or back to the ranch house, this was as private as they were going to get. Probably a good idea to keep a potentially volatile conversation within sight of witnesses.
    “I can’t begin to understand this entire situation so I’m not going to pretend. It’s going to take me a long time to figure things out - time this little girl probably doesn’t have.” He began to pace within the confines of the minuscule space, clasping his hands and rubbing his thumb into his palm. “I’ve played every scenario possible through my mind and I always end up at the same place - if I wasn’t a blood relative, it would be pretty difficult for me to be a match. And why would you drag me into this if I wasn’t a viable possibility?”
    He stopped in front of her. Even by the dim light filtering around the cork partition from the rec area, Jen noticed the dark circles under his eyes. She wanted to sweep all this heartache and grief away. But it was a bit late for wishful thinking.
    “Is this girl-”
    “Carli. Her name is Carli.”
    “Is