The Rancher's First Love Read Online Free Page A

make.”
    â€œOr any decision,” he muttered, heading for his truck.
    â€œYou’re leaving?” she called out, sounding like she honestly didn’t want him to go.
    He shook his head. “No, I’m getting you a lead rope for your new pet.”
    When he returned with the rope she was standing, the underfed and overly pregnant dog standing next to her. He shook his head and handed her the rope.
    â€œWhat?” She made a loop and put the rope around the dog’s neck.
    â€œI’m just thinking that you’re asking for trouble.”
    â€œShe’s beautiful.” Sam brushed a hand down the dog’s head. “Maybe part bloodhound?”
    Beautiful. He had to agree. Standing there in shorts, a T-shirt and with her hair pulled back, Sam was beautiful. He let himself get tangled up in everything he’d felt years ago. But those memories would get him nowhere. He pushed his hat back and refocused his attention on the dog.
    â€œFrom the looks of that face and those ears, I’d say yes,” he agreed, reaching to let the dog sniff his hand.
    â€œWho would dump a pretty girl like her?”
    â€œSomeone tired of puppies would be my guess.”
    â€œThen they should have gotten her fixed.”
    â€œI agree. I’m just giving you my opinion on why she’s been left on the side of the road.”
    â€œYes, because she’s going to have puppies.” Her expression changed from angry to something close to sad, then she walked away, the dog next to her. He watched them go, wondering what that look meant and fearing deep down that he didn’t know the whole story.
    â€œMaybe she just got lost?”
    Back at her truck, Sam opened the door and coaxed the dog inside. “That’s a possibility.”
    â€œWe can ask around. Someone might be missing her.”
    â€œYes, I’ll do that. I’ll put a poster up at Duke’s and at the grocery store.”
    Inside the truck the dog had settled on the seat, happy to be inside. Sam fidgeted, her bottom lip caught between her teeth.
    Ten years. They had become different people. They no longer knew each other. If he was honest, he’d admit they’d probably never known each other. They’d been kids. They’d both liked horses, rodeos and sitting down by the creek on a summer day.
    It hadn’t been a relationship, his mom had informed him. It had been a summer romance.
    The warm night air reminded him that it was summer once again. With that thought in mind, he had to head home, because now was the wrong time for him to get distracted.
    â€œThanks for...” she started at the same time he said, “I should go.”
    â€œGoodbye, Rem. I’m glad we talked.”
    â€œYeah, me, too.”
    She walked away from him and he watched her go. After she’d driven away, he sat on the tailgate of his truck for a while, thinking about that summer, about being seventeen and really believing he knew everything about life.
    He hadn’t had a clue. He still didn’t have a clue. But he knew that Samantha Martin was in his past. That’s where she belonged. And that’s where a wise man would leave her.
    He was smart, but he’d never been too wise.

Chapter Three
    S amantha woke up early the next morning. She loved waking up on the ranch, to the quiet broken only by country sounds. Dogs, a cow in the distance, a tractor working in a nearby field. Carrying her cup of coffee, she walked out to the barn.
    After she’d gotten home last night, she’d put the pregnant dog in a stall with a bowl of leftover stew and a bucket of water. As she headed across the yard she could hear the animal whining.
    â€œWhat’s going on, pretty girl?” She leaned across the top of the stall and peeked in. “Oh, I see.”
    The dog yelped and turned to clean her new puppies. There were four already, still damp and squirmy. The mamma dog hovered over them, nervous about