Three Rivers Ranch Romance™ Collection 1

The walls in Kelly Russell’s life had never seemed so close. Of course, they hadn’t been this putrid shade of yellow for a long time, either. Her parents lived with the motto of “use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without,” and kitchen wall paint was no exception.

But if Kelly could ace this morning’s job interview, she had a chance of getting her own walls again. Soon. And she’d paint them. Maybe blue, or purple, or green. Something cool. Anything but the stark white she’d had in California—or this dark yellow.

“I have to drive out to the ranch.” She straightened her jacket as she glanced toward her mom and son, who sat at the kitchen table eating breakfast. She’d sailed through her college admissions interview in this jacket. She’d been hired for her first real job in this jacket. She’d also worn this jacket in divorce court and been granted full custody of her son, Finn.

She hoped the turquoise number would work its magic today. She tugged down the hemline, wondering when her black skirt had gotten a smidge too small.

Probably while you were sitting on the beach these past five years. She knew there’d be no sitting at Three Rivers Ranch, though she hoped the accountant would at least have an office.

“It’s about twenty-five miles on that old, dirt road,” she continued, knowing her four-year-old son wasn’t listening, but hoping her mother was. “So I’ll be gone for, I don’t know, at least two hours. Maybe three.”

“We’ll be fine,” her mom said. “I’ve taken care of children before.”

“I know.” Kelly pressed her lips together and determined that she did not need another layer of lipstick. She’d slick on clear gloss just before the interview. “But it’s been a long time.”

It had been twenty-four years, to be exact, since Kelly had been four. And her mother didn’t seem as sharp as she once had.

Her dad grumped his way into the kitchen, but Kelly knew his frowny face was an act. “Hey, Finny,” he said. “Want to go throw the pigskin?”

“Just a second, Daddy.” Kelly crouched down and drew her son into a hug. “Love you, baby. Be good for Grandma and Grandpa.”

She stood, and a sliver of nervous energy ran through her as she thought about returning to the ranch she’d loved as a teenager. She could practically smell the dust, hear the horses whinnying, and picture her best friend waving from the front porch, though Chelsea lived in Dallas now.

“Three Rivers needs a new financial controller,” her mom said as she walked with Kelly to the front door. “You’re qualified, and Frank knows you. He’d have to be dead not to hire you.”

“Didn’t you say he was going to be retiring soon?” Kelly worried the inside of her bottom lip with her teeth.

“That’s what Glenda said.” Mom put both hands on Kelly’s shoulders as Kelly pictured the ladies down at the hair salon gossiping about everything from the price of beef to who’d moved in over the weekend. “You’ve got this.” Her mom nodded and released her.

A rush of appreciation lifted Kelly’s lips into a smile. “Thanks, Mom.”

As she drove away from her childhood home, she made a mental list of things she could thank her parents for. Giving her a fabulous childhood under the wide, Texas sky. Paying for fifteen years of dance classes, which had provided her with a skill she’d used to fund her college education. Teaching her how to laugh.

Allowing her and Finn to take over their basement after her divorce.

She thought of her work at the local grocer as she pointed her pathetic excuse for a car toward the ranch. She’d been back in Three Rivers for several weeks, and she’d taken the first job she could get. But ringing up milk didn’t pay well enough for her to buy her own house and raise a child. And the nearest dance studio was in Amarillo, fifty miles away. The investment of time and money to get there and back didn’t make teaching ballet a viable option.

Kelly’s fingers tightened on the steering wheel. “I’ve got this,” she repeated. The gently rolling hills calmed her, as they always had. She’d spent countless hours out here with nothing but her thoughts, the wind, and her friends. The open, blue sky further anchored her. She’d loved lying on her back in Chelsea’s backyard, creating stories from the clouds that rolled by. And the summer storms—she and Chelsea had made up their own songs, their own lyrics, their own choreography, all to the sound of thunder.

By the time she turned down the dirt driveway that led to the homestead, a sense of peace filled her. This ranch had been her second home growing up, and coming back to it now felt right. If she could get this job, it would be the first step toward getting her whole life back.

The nerves returned. She took a deep breath at the sight of the familiar house, imposing the first time you saw it. But Kelly knew better. She’d been in every room, felt the love and warmth from the family pictures hanging on the walls.

Kelly laughed at the memory at the same time her chest squeezed. Working at Three Rivers would provide a little safety at a time when Kelly had none. No pressure or anything.

She noted the American flag flying in the front yard of the ranch-style home. She’d kept in touch with Chelsea over the years and knew her younger brother, Squire, had joined the Army. His mother was obviously proud.

Kelly wondered if she’d get to see Heidi today, maybe experience one of her powder-scented hugs. A nostalgic smile played at her lips. She hoped so.

She left the house behind as she drove to the edge of the homestead, passing the barns, stables, and grain towers. Three industrial trailers edged the property before it gave way to the bull yards, and Kelly parked next to a row of dirty trucks, her little sedan a miniature vehicle among the bulky ranch equipment.

She glanced around as she walked through the packed-dirt parking lot, noticing that not much had changed. The clucking of chickens and the lowing of cattle met her ears, attributes that indicated this was indeed a working ranch. Kelly sidestepped a particularly large stone in the path. She’d have dust all the way to her knees by the time she made it inside. Everything about her spoke of a city businesswoman entering a whole new world, but she’d had to wear her heels. This was an interview.

Unfortunately, the metal steps and ramp were grated, creating a veritable gauntlet for her Jimmy Choo’s. She supposed the heels, though fashionable and absolutely the perfect statement for this outfit, weren’t exactly ranch attire.

She shifted her weight onto the balls of her feet and made it up four steps before her right heel sank through the metal. She set down her purse and tried to wrench the shoe free as she balanced on her toes. The Texas heat caused a trickle of sweat to form on her forehead. She did not want to enter the interview dusty, heelless, and now sticky.

She swung her hair over her shoulder, the movement throwing her off-balance. She gripped the railing to steady herself and prepared to make another attempt at freeing her shoe.

“You know, most ranch hands wear boots,” a man said behind her.

Kelly’s heart tripped as a strangled sound came out of her throat. She straightened, her hand smoothing down the back of her skirt, where a high slit was located. Had he seen anything?

She pressed her eyes closed. She’d never felt out of place on this ranch, and she wasn’t going to start now. “Yes, I can see why,” she agreed. “However, I didn’t get the memo.” Kelly opened her eyes and twisted to see who she’d need to avoid on the ranch. Because she was going to get this job, sweaty, mismatched, and dirty notwithstanding. She expected to see a cowboy—preferably one with a multi-purpose tool he could use to cut her free.

But this man, standing over six feet tall, didn’t wear the regular stonewashed jeans and long-sleeved shirt. No siree. Not a boot or a belt buckle was in sight. Instead his pressed khakis and black polo accentuated his athletic body. Biceps strained against the sleeves of his shirt, a clear testament that ranching did a body good. Maybe he drank a gallon of milk everyday too. The only two indicators that he belonged in Texas were the cowboy hat perched naturally on his head and the panting dog at his side.

Kelly’s reasons for wanting the position suddenly shifted to a completely new level. She gave herself a mental shake—she needed a job, not a boyfriend.

“Ma’am.” He took off his hat and ran his fingers through his thick, brown hair. She couldn’t tell from his sly smile and the amused sparkle in his eye if he was secretly laughing at her predicament or if he’d seen way more leg than she’d intended. She found herself returning his devilish smirk. Why was her stomach doing that floaty thing? She suppressed it and smoothed her hand over the back of her skirt again.

As he settled his hat back on his head, Kelly twisted and slid her feet out of the toes of her shoes. She turned around carefully so as to avoid touching the jagged metal, and placed her feet back on her shoes. Good thing she’d taken all those dance lessons. Still, her calf muscles hadn’t been used this way for a long time.

As she took in his form again, she recognized his cobalt blue eyes still sparking with mischief, his straight, long nose, and his square jaw where that smile remained.

“Squire?” She wobbled a little as she spoke.

He seemed startled at the use of his name, his smile fading. Squire studied her for a moment, thunderclouds darkening his eyes into a shade of gray that reminded Kelly of the churning ocean. “I don’t think we’ve met,” he said.

Oh, they had. He just possessed a lot more to admire now than he had in high school, including a pair of unforgettable dimples that appeared as his grin returned. “Are you going to clue me in?” he asked. “Or just stare at me until your name appears in my mind?” He folded his arms across his broad chest and quirked his eyebrows.

She blinked rapidly, embarrassed that she’d been caught gawking. “I’m Kelly Russell.” She shook her head, wishing she could shake away the words just as easily. “I mean Armstrong. Kelly Armstrong.”

“Like, Bond. James Bond?” His throaty laugh tickled her ears. “Sorry. Doesn’t ring a bell.”

He shrugged like it was no big deal that he didn’t remember her. Kelly couldn’t understand how he could’ve forgotten. She’d practically lived down the hall in his sister’s room.

“Yeah,” she said, still balancing backward in her shoes, the heel still jammed into the metal steps. “Remember, I was on the cheer squad with Chelsea? I slept over here all the time?” She peered at him, but his face remained impassive, stoic.

“Chelsea had a lot of friends,” he said. “Were you one of the gigglers?”

“No!” Kelly blew her hair out of her eyes, but it stuck to her forehead. She gave up hope of going into the interview without a bucket of sweat dripping from her face. “Remember how we used to choreograph dances and make you judge us?” Kelly emitted a nervous giggle before she could quell the sound.

“You just wanted to watch football, and we’d drag you into the back yard and make you watch us do our high kicks.” She attempted the move now, realizing too late that her skirt was too tight for such things. Her foot barely made it above her knee and that slit allowed a blast of air to go up her skirt.

Squire’s eyes closed briefly as she pressed down her clothes once more. The dog whined, somehow sensing her stupidity and warning her to stop now!

She’d lost her mind. So this is what it feels like, she thought. She’d let Squire completely undo her composure. Still, it bothered her that he didn’t remember her. She took a deep breath, trying to refocus on the impending interview.

“Okay, well, whatever. Maybe you can help me get out of this mess.” She pointed at her shoe and tried for a carefree chuckle. It sounded more like a strangled cat. At least it wasn’t a giggle.

Squire joined her on the fourth step, steadying her as she turned around and stepped back into her shoes properly. “Why don’t you just take off the shoe and then yank it out?” He released her and continued up the stairs while his dog slipped past them to lie in the shade. “In fact, I would’ve removed my shoes first, climbed the steps and then put them back on. At least shoes like that.” He gave her a flirtatious wink, and her memory stumbled. Maybe this man wasn’t Squire Ackerman. Kelly had certainly never seen him with more muscles in his body than stars in the sky. And he’d never flirted with her.

“I’d like to see you wear shoes like this,” she muttered, her gaze murderous as she glared at him.

“I would rock shoes like that, darlin’,” he said. “And Kelly? I remember your high kick being much…higher.”

Her heart cartwheeled through her chest. He did know who she was! That little snake.

Before she could formulate an answer, he entered the building and let the door crash closed behind him.

“Take the shoe off, darlin’,” she mimicked, but she did what Squire had suggested. The metal was just as hot and ragged as it looked. She balanced on the ball of her foot, trying to do as little damage as possible, this time to her skin. Her heel came free, and thankfully, it had only suffered a few minor scrapes.

“Is he always like that?” she asked his border collie, but he simply looked at her with a pleading expression, as if to say, Please don’t attempt that high kick again. She vaguely recognized the animal, but she couldn’t recall his name. She did remember that Squire had always loved his dogs. “Bet he’d help you if you got stuck.”

She removed her other shoe and scampered up the rest of the steps barefoot. As she slipped back into her heels on the safety of the rubber mat outside the door, Kelly wiped her brow, sent a prayer heavenward that she could ace this interview, and took a deep breath. Then she pushed open the door.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “This is the best box set I have ever read!! Three excellent written books that could stand on their own, but such a treat to read them all together. The characters are human, the story lines are believable, and true kindness between friends is touching. People pulling together, helping each other expecting nothing in return. Amazingly written. Give yourself a gift, have your heart touched over and over again by reading this set. I can’t wait to read more from this author. My heart is full!” ~Kathy W.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Wow, I can’t decide which book I liked better. I had read book 1 before, but was happy to read it again. Squire and Kelly, Pete and Chelsea, Brett and Kate – I enjoyed them all.” ~Lynda K.