The Rancher Next Door Read Online Free Page A

capable, though, that it took him off guard. His wife had definitely been the opposite.
    “We’ve gotten a lot done, though it still looks like a wreck.” She grinned. “I’m used to it, though. It always takes making a bigger mess before you get it clean.”
    No doubt about that. His life could be a prime example. But he wasn’t interested in sorting through the rubble. He’d done that for years without seeing results—positive ones, anyway. He sat through church these days for Ava’s sake, and Ava’s sake alone. She needed the foundation, but his had long since crumbled.
    Brady cleared his throat. “Ava and I need to get home for supper. It’s going to be the last decent one we have for a while.” Oops. He hadn’t meant to let that slip. He must be more tired than he thought.
    Ava’s eyes narrowed with suspicion—probably because she knew he couldn’t boil a pot of water to save anyone’s life. “No luck finding me a sitter?”
    “Not yet.” He ran a hand over his jaw, the stubble whisking across his palm. “I’m going to have to—”
    “What about Caley?” The sparkle in Ava’s eyes burst into a roaring flame of hope as she brought both hands up to her chin in a pleading position. “I mean, Miss Caley.”
    “Me?” Caley pulled slightly away from Ava to look at her more directly, overly dramatized shock radiating from her eyes. “Babysit? You? ”
    Ava’s face fell. “Is it that bad of an idea?”
    Yes. Brady opened his mouth to speak the truth, to tell Ava that there was no way Caley needed to come over to their house—his domain—and take care of them. Feed them. Clean up after them.
    Invade his territory with her cinnamon scent and uncanny ability to stir feelings long dormant.
    “I’m kidding!” Caley laughed and hip-bumped Ava, who bounced off her side, giggling. “I think it’s a perfect idea!” Then she sobered. “As long as your dad thinks so, of course.” As if on cue, both of them linked arms and turned doe eyes on him.
    Perfect idea? More like the worst. He needed a kind older woman who was in agreement with his firm rules for Ava—not a hip young woman who acted more like Ava’s older sister than an adult. Ava didn’t need fun right now. She needed structure. Security.
    Safety.
    So did he. One look at the playful pout turning down Caley’s full lips, and safe was the last thing Brady felt. Something about Caley seemed way too dangerous. Not in an ax-murderer-next-door kind of way, but in a she’s-gonna-weasel-into-your-heart kind of way. He hadn’t thought much about romance since Jessica’s death—who had the time between the frequent guilt trips and running a ranch?—but Caley’s teasing eyes and trim figure coaxed to life embers he’d thought long dead. Being around her any more than necessary seemed incredibly risky.
    And he didn’t take risks.
    “It’s not just babysitting, Ava. It’s cooking and housekeeping, too.”
    Caley shrugged. “I’m still in.”
    He started shaking his head, mind racing through the implications of letting Caley that close, until Ava piped up once again. “Dad, who else is there to hire at the last minute? Miss Caley just said today that she needed to find a job soon. This works for everyone!”
    It did, didn’t it? How did one argue against such youthful logic? Brady began to wish he’d just stayed outside with Scooter instead of being ganged up on by two insistent females. But maybe the idea was a decent one. He’d be outside most of the time, anyway, and Ava and Caley already had an evident bond. He’d just been thinking that it’d be good for Ava to have a womanly influence. Just because Caley wasn’t blue-haired and bifocaled didn’t mean she couldn’t be a positive role model. She was here to take care of her sick grandma, after all. And she was obviously capable.
    “I do need the work, and with it being temporary, it seems ideal.” Caley’s curved eyebrows rose with prompting. “I have nanny experience