The Wrangler's Last Chance Read online

  Not new home.

  Temporary.

  Temporary home.

  He couldn’t afford to think of places as his or grow attached to anything. It wasn’t his style. Getting attached meant getting involved, meant hurting when he left or was told to move along. It meant missing and longing for a place and people who probably wouldn’t think about him after he was gone.

  No, thank you.

  Going down that road once had been enough for him. He would work here a year or two, tops. Pay down some of his school debt while he enjoyed the free room and board and then move on to get experience elsewhere. Carter would gather as many different learning experiences as he could. If he stayed on course, he could one day achieve his dream of saving enough to begin his own practice. Then when people and animals were solely dependent on him, he would be prepared. He wouldn’t let any of them down or fail them.

  It was a solid plan. The perfect plan.

  One that had worked for him countless times before.

  One that had kept him safe.

  Still, he thanked God for at least the twentieth time that day for providing him this job at Red Dog Ranch. Nowhere else he had applied to had offered room and board along with a decent salary. Some offered a place to stay but charged a small rent. Not to mention the fact that the other prospective employers had all asked probing questions about why he would want to work grunt jobs for them when he had a DVM degree.

  You’re a doctor, son. Why would you waste that here at my farm?

  Of course I could use a veterinarian on staff, but I don’t have the money for one and this is a lowly position at a pig farm, so I have to ask myself what you’re trying to pull here.

  But his new boss hadn’t seemed all that concerned or impressed with Carter’s credentials. All Rhett Jarrett had wanted to know was what experience he had with horses, what leadership roles he’d been in before and who his references were. So many years spent working any job he could find at the ranches that dotted both the West and Midwest had paid off. Rhett had been impressed with his horsemanship and the quality of the ranches Carter had worked at.

  Carter flipped a switch and can lights nestled across the ceiling buzzed to life.

  He had thought about touring the ranch after he finished unpacking, but with it still being only early spring, evening had draped the area quicker than he had anticipated. He would save his exploring for tomorrow.

  Sighing, Carter tugged the folder full of his loan paperwork from his backpack and tossed it onto the kitchen table. When it landed, the folder slid a bit. A small dog-eared notecard peeked out the edge. He picked it up and ran his thumb over the Bible verse he had written there. But Thou, O Lord, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head. He had carried this for twelve years. Ever since Audrey.

  Most of the time, Carter put a lot of effort into not thinking about Audrey, but a reminder as he started at a new place wasn’t a bad thing.

  A warning to be careful—not to let his guard down with anyone—no matter how much his extrovertly wired brain begged him to connect with others. Connecting only ever got him burned.

  Audrey was his cautionary tale.

  A lesson he never needed to learn again.

  So why had he told the woman today—Shannon—to keep him updated on the gander?

  Carter scrubbed his hand over his face and shot out a long stream of air.

  He was a veterinarian who had performed a procedure on an animal and he wanted to see if he had done the right thing, learn if there was something else he could have done in the situation. Grow as a professional and be better prepared for the future he one day hoped to have. That was all.

  The fact that Shannon was beautiful wouldn’t—couldn’t—factor in. Though with her short, wavy blond hair, curvy frame and wide eyes, she was impossible not to acknowledge. Even dripping water from a pond overrun with algae, she had caused him to be flustered for a moment there.

  He tucked the verse card back into the file.

  He ruined people’s lives when he got involved.

  He was a liability and always would be.

  Someone knocked on the door and Carter rushed to answer it. Even though he wasn’t set to officially start working until Monday, maybe his new boss wanted him to take care of something today.

  He opened the door to find Shannon smiling beside a bald, hunched-over man with age spots peppering his face and hands. She held a teal-colored plateful of what might have been cupcakes. They were certainly baked in cupcake wrappers, but whatever frosting there had once been had melted and pooled onto the plate in a shiny puddle.

  Shannon grimaced. “These were supposed to be a thank-you.” She glanced down at the plate. “I’m not the best cook. Not like Cassidy—she’s our head chef, and these would make her faint.” Shannon pressed the plate toward him. “They’re just from a box and I think—okay, I know I didn’t wait long enough before frosting them but...” She lifted one shoulder in a half shrug.

  Frosting sloshed onto Carter’s thumb when he took the plate. He looked down at the offering and his chest felt tight. He swallowed hard. “You made me cupcakes?”

  “Well, sort of.” Her laugh was quiet, a little nervous. “I wanted to do something nice for you but you totally have my permission to throw them away when I’m not looking. I probably should have just picked you up something from the bakery in town tomorrow.” She reached to take the plate back. “In fact, let’s do that. Let’s pretend you never saw these and I can just toss them myself.”

  He protectively moved the plate to his side, away from her so she couldn’t reach them. “No, it’s not... I, ah—” Carter cleared his throat. Get it together, man. Baked goods weren’t supposed to make a person emotional. He swallowed once, twice. “It’s just no one’s ever made something for me before. Thank you. I want to keep them.”

  Shannon tilted her head. “I find that hard to believe.” She rolled her hand. “I mean, someone at some point has baked you cookies. That’s pretty standard. Your family or—” her eyes narrowed as she assessed him “—I’d guess a girlfriend.”

  No, but his last girlfriend had called him trash. Did that count for bonus points?

  He shook his head. He had already been too vulnerable and he needed to reel the situation back to somewhere comfortable for him. Carter motioned for them to follow him into the bunkhouse. With great care, he set the plate of cupcakes on his table.

  The older gentleman braced his hands on the other side of the table. “That was some fine work you did on Wing Crosby, if I do say so myself. You’ve got some great instincts.”

  “Wing Crosby?” Carter looked between them for an explanation.

  “My goose.” Shannon frowned. “Well, I guess if I’m talking to animal people I can call him a gander.” Then she added, “I like old movies.”

  “I’m going to bring him back to my clinic to monitor him overnight, but he looks great. Your quick thinking definitely saved our little friend.” The other man held out his hand. “I’m Dr. Spira.”

  Carter shook the man’s hand and gave him his name.

  Dr. Spira held on to his hand. “Shannon said you were a natural with Wing. Seems to me as if you’ve had some advanced training, given the instructions you gave her afterward.”

  There was no reason for Carter to withhold the truth. His degrees had been clearly labeled on his résumé when he applied to Red Dog Ranch.

  “I have my DVM,” Carter confirmed.

  “Ah.” The doctor nodded. “So you’re Dr. Kelly, then. Well, meeting you is my pleasure.”

  “I’m not practicing right now,” he explained as if that mattered. To him it did. “Just Carter.”

  “DVM.” Shannon’s brow scrunched. “I feel as if I’m at some elite convention where everyone talks in codes and I’m automatically supposed to know what you’re saying. The force be with
you, and all that. And that’s cool, but can someone please translate for me here?”

  Dr. Spira turned toward her, his smile warm and fatherly. “Doctor of veterinary medicine.”

  “Wait.” She whirled toward Carter. “You’re a vet?”

  He shrugged. “I could be. But not right now. Today I’m a head wrangler.”

  Dr. Spira grabbed Carter’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “It’ll be nice to talk to someone with fresh training. I’m the only one local and don’t get too many meetups anymore. Do you mind if I come and consult with you from time to time when I’m at the ranch? My office is in town, but I’m here often enough.”

  Thankfulness surged through Carter’s chest again. Learn from someone who had years and years in the field with no catch involved? He wanted to hug the man, but he refrained. However, he was certain his excitement was plain in his voice when he said, “Not at all. I’d love that, actually.” It was more than Carter had ever dreamed of when he accepted the position at Red Dog Ranch.

  Dr. Spira excused himself but Shannon stayed in his bunkhouse. She crossed her arms and studied Carter.

  Carter raised an eyebrow. “Still trying to take back those cupcakes?”

  She pursed her lips. “I’m trying to figure you out.”

  His laugh held an undercurrent of nerves he hoped she didn’t pick up on. “I’m afraid there isn’t much to figure out.” He lifted his hands at his sides in an exaggerated manner. “Just a simple man trying to make an honest living.”

  Her eyes narrowed and for some reason that made her even more adorable. “Does my brother know you’re a vet?”

  “Your brother?”

  Shannon huffed. “Rhett.”

  “Rhett Jarrett is your brother?” The information landed in his mind like a punch. Would he always be attracted to the wrong women? At least these days he knew not to act on attraction. Or because a woman had done something nice for him, like bake him cupcakes. Just because he was starved for kindness, he couldn’t read more into such gestures than what they were—neighborly behavior that most of the world probably wrote off as simple, everyday occurrences.

  She tapped her chin. “That would explain why my last name is also Jarrett.”

  “But I saw you head into one of the staff houses.”

  “It’s a long story.” She sighed. “But the quick version is my brother owns the ranch, so he and his wife live in the big house and don’t exactly need me wandering around there while they’re living their newlywed life.”

  “He knows.” Carter brought the conversation away from the dangerous territory of getting to know someone more than was absolutely necessary. “I didn’t hide anything from him. If that’s what you’re asking.”

  “Oh, settle down.” She held up her hands. “I wasn’t accusing you of anything. If you have an asset that could be useful to the ranch I only wanted to make sure Rhett knew.” Shannon glanced around his bunkhouse. “Well, I’m sure you want to relax after moving in, so I’ll leave you to it. But I’ll see you around, okay?”

  Carter walked her to the door to see her out. He leaned around her to open the front door and caught the scents of vanilla or caramel or something equally sweet. Probably from baking. But she had showered and changed since their earlier run-in and she was even more beautiful than she had been then. Her large brown eyes held his for a moment and he sucked in a sharp breath.

  He pulled back, leaving as much distance as possible as he opened the door for her. He stood in the doorway as she walked two doors down to her home, the whole time telling himself to go back inside, to look away. But she had been the first person to hug him in years and he just wanted to make sure she got home safely. That was it.

  Because Shannon Jarrett was off-limits.

  She was his boss’s sister.

  Another life he would destroy if he allowed himself to get involved.

  Which he wouldn’t. He never did. Not since Audrey.

  He would keep his head down. Do his job. Learn what he could from Dr. Spira, then hightail it out of Texas. Run to a place where no one knew him and start over from scratch like he always did.

  But first he would have a cupcake.

  Chapter Two

  Shannon ran a currycomb in a circular motion over the bay gelding named Memphis. Memphis was a large but gentle and patient horse, which made the big lug perfect for the Mighty Girls Horse Lessons Rhett had placed Shannon in charge of for the spring session. Girls from the area who were in the foster care system were offered the opportunity to learn how to ride and take care of horses for free at Red Dog Ranch. The winter session had been canceled, but they hadn’t wanted to do that again. Her father had been gone a year and it was high time for all the programs to be up and running as usual again.

  While the Jarrett family homestead was a working cattle ranch, the main mission of Red Dog Ranch was to serve to better the lives of foster children. The ranch ran a free summer camp program, hosted holiday parties, had internships available to teenagers who wanted experience for their résumés and had programmed classes and lessons throughout the year, like the riding lessons, among other things. Rhett and his wife, Macy, had recently gone through the process of being approved to be foster parents, as well. Everyone who lived on the property was busy and many were overextended at the moment.

  Mighty Girls Horse Lessons was usually run by one of the staff members, but there had been so many changes at the ranch in the course of the last year that the staff was still in flux and Rhett had been at a loss, which was how the lessons had ended up on Shannon’s plate. Not that she minded. It was nice to be in charge of something, even if it was temporary.

  Even if she had been his last pick.

  She was surprised he wasn’t here to hover over her. Like he usually did.

  Since the breakup with Cord, Rhett and Wade had both engaged in far too much hovering. As if Shannon might fall apart if they weren’t around to take care of her. At first she hadn’t minded—it had almost been sweet—but now it was nothing short of annoying. She knew they had watched over her these last nine months because they loved her and wanted only the best for her. And whenever she got frustrated, she reminded herself how blessed she was to have a family that cared so much, but it was high time they let her be.

  Allowed her to sink or swim on her own.

  Between Cord’s controlling ways and now her brothers’ overprotection, she was so sick of men calling the shots in her life. She wished someone would come alongside her and cheer her on or join what she was doing instead of telling her what to do.

  Was it so bad to want her brothers to see her as something other than their baby sister? Once, just once, she would love it if they had admiration in their eyes, pride instead of pity.

  Because either her dad or brothers had always stepped up to run things, Shannon had never actually been in charge of anything at the ranch before. In high school she had been happy to serve as a summer camp counselor at the ranch, and as she had gotten older, she had started floating around the ranch, pitching in wherever necessary but never having a defined role. A fact that had never bothered her before, not as long as she was busy and felt useful. But now she questioned why she hadn’t asked her father for more responsibility and opportunities to lead when there had been chances. The way her life had panned out, she knew a little about a lot of aspects at the ranch, but she was a master of nothing. She wished it was different, but wishes never helped anything.

  Shannon gripped the brush a little harder. She would change all that now. She would square her shoulders and swallow her doubts and learn how to lead.

  Rhett had told her the new head wrangler would be aiding her with the lessons, and for that Shannon was grateful. While she didn’t want one of her brothers nosing around, she didn’t mind the newcomer. He didn’t know her past, her failures. For all he knew she was capable and smart. A strong woman.
/>   Far from the truth.

  Finished with the currycomb, Shannon traded it out for a large stiff brush that she used in a sweeping motion to clear the dirt and hair the currycomb had loosened. She sighed. If only it was as easy to brush away her mistakes and worries. In a show of affection, Memphis leaned into her. There was a reason he was one of Shannon’s favorites among all their trail horses.

  In nearby stalls Carter and Easton, a teenage boy who’d started volunteering at Red Dog Ranch a few months ago, were both busy getting other horses ready for riders. There were only six girls in the class this session, so they had two horses apiece to prepare.

  “How long are these lessons?” Easton’s words from one stall over made her jump.

  “Forty-five minutes. We’ll do fifteen minutes of review to make sure they remember everything from the last session since it’s been a few months, and five minutes of instruction for the emergency dismount. Then they’ll have twenty minutes to practice and work with their horses before cleanup,” Shannon answered.

  Carter came up to Memphis’s stall door and leaned his forearms across the top of it. “Emergency dismount? That’s tough stuff for new riders.” He tilted his head. “How old did you say these girls were?” Last night Shannon had considered him attractive, but today he was even more appealing in his cowboy hat.

  She fumbled with the brush in her hand. Memphis snorted.

  Appealing was dangerous. She would do well to remember that.

  She sucked in a sharp breath. The scents of straw and dust and dirt reminded her of what was important. The kids the ranch served. The ranch itself. Making her brothers proud again and carrying on her father’s legacy.

  “These girls are intermediate-level riders,” she said. “They’ve already passed our other courses.” She rested a hand on Memphis’s side. “And hopefully, they’ll never need to perform an emergency dismount, but I’d rather have them know how to do it than get into a dangerous situation on a horse someday and not know how to handle themselves.”