The Rancher's Holiday Arrangement by Brenda Minton

Author:Brenda Minton
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2020-08-12T16:32:00+00:00

* * *

Joe stood in the shadows near the door, listening to Daisy and Kylie sing “Silent Night.” As they finished, he stepped forward. She caught his eye, and for a brief second, he thought she looked happy to see him. And in that moment, his world shifted, because he wanted her to be happy to see him.

“Sounds amazing, ladies,” he called out, pulling off his cowboy hat as he approached them. “Will you sing it for the program?”

“I don’t think so,” Daisy said quickly.

“You should.” He let it go. Pushing her wouldn’t do any good. “I’m here to help you all with whatever needs doing.”

“I think we’ve just about got it.” Kylie grinned at him. “Good timing, showing up at the very end, Mr. Lawson.”

While Kylie admonished him, he couldn’t help but look at Daisy. Even in jeans and a sweatshirt, she rocked his world. “Actually, we had a sick cow and a horse with a foal we couldn’t find.”

“Did you find the horse?” Daisy asked.

“Yes, we did. She got out, we’re not sure how, and managed to find herself up the road about a mile. They found her foal wandering along the fence.”

“Do you think someone tried to steal the mare?” Kylie wanted to know. “There have been a lot of thefts reported around here.”

“I think that’s a good guess but I’m not sure how they got the mare away from the baby. Someone took Jerry Crawford’s farm truck last week. Walked right into his barn and drove away with it.”

“Jerry might have left it somewhere and got a ride home. He just doesn’t remember,” Colt added as he entered the sanctuary. “I didn’t know about the truck, but I do know I saw him in an unmarked cop car about a week ago. Maybe Mrs. Crawford doesn’t know what he’s up to.”

Rebecca shot her husband a warning look. “Gossiping in church, Isaac? Save that for the café.”

“Ouch,” Joe chuckled at the back and forth.

Dixie ran up to them. “The men told me to tell you all that dinner’s ready. They’re serving roast, potatoes, carrots and rolls.”

“I got here just in time.” Joe winked at Dixie. She laughed and headed off with her friends.

“Just in time to serve with the other men, you mean.” Colt nodded toward the door. “See you ladies in a few. Joe and I have work to do.”

Joe knew he couldn’t get out of it, but he’d give almost anything to be able to hang back with Daisy. He really wanted to make her smile again. He wanted to watch the shadows drift from her silver-gray eyes. Unfortunately, Colt didn’t plan on letting that happen. He was at the door, clearing his throat and jerking his head toward the fellowship hall.

If Joe cared to guess, he imagined Colt and the other West brothers were doing what they could to keep him away from their little sister. They all knew the engagement wasn’t real. They had nothing to worry about. They definitely didn’t need to concern themselves with him and his relationship with Daisy.

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