Harlequin Superromance January 2014 - Bundle 2 of 2: A Ranch for His Family\Cowgirl in High Heels\A Man to Believe In by Hope Navarre

Author:Hope Navarre
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2014-03-31T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER ELEVEN

ELLIE DROVE THROUGH the gate and parked, but kept the engine running as she cracked the window down a few inches.

“Are you Ellison Hunter?” the man asked in a congenial voice.

“I am.” Wavy dark hair showed from under the edge of his hat and there was a smile in the man’s hazel eyes. He was really good-looking.

“George Monroe.”

“I had a feeling,” she said, turning off the ignition. “My uncle said you might be early, but I don’t think he thought it would be this early.”

“It’s not, but I was in the area and decided to stop by. Introduce myself.” He straightened, placing his hands on his hips as he surveyed his surroundings with a practiced eye. “I can’t wait to get to work.”

Ellie wasn’t certain what that meant, but after talking to Ryan, she had an idea that it didn’t bode well for Walt.

“If you have a minute to spare,” Ellie said after getting out of the Rover, “would you like something to drink and we can discuss your plans?”

“Sounds excellent,” he said.

George stayed for thirty minutes. Ellie had started to usher him out to the back patio with the iced tea, then remembered the mayhem the calves had caused. She stopped in the middle of the living room, smiled at George and said, “Why don’t we sit inside?”

He shrugged and followed her to the kitchen.

“What I like to do,” he said, “is to take part in the daily ranch activities. Get a feel for who does what and how.” He paused as if expecting her to be impressed by his hands-on approach. Ellie gave an encouraging smile and he went on. “Having grown up on a ranch, and worked on a ranch, I know the qualities that make a competent ranch hand and ranch manager.”

“Good to know,” she said politely. How many of those qualities would Walt have? Two? Three?

“I also do a complete financial evaluation, going over the records for the past several years, make recommendations based on those. I have a background in agriculture, range management and beef husbandry. I’ll evaluate the breeding program, the forage, the wildlife management practices.”

There didn’t seem to be much George couldn’t do. He flew his own plane, brewed his own beer and sometimes he sang with a trio at the cowboy poetry gatherings that had become popular in the West over the past few decades.

After he finished telling her how he operated and that he’d be in contact soon with a definite arrival date, Ellie walked him to the porch and then watched as he drove away.

Charming guy. Seemed to know his stuff. Highly recommended.

Ellie ticked through the reasons she should welcome George Monroe to the ranch. But there was something about him that kept Ellie from fully embracing his presence there. Maybe Ryan had prejudiced her toward him, but she was going to hold off on her judgment of Mr. Monroe. See what he did, how he operated. She was also going to tell Milo that he’d stopped by and firmed up his arrival date.

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