The Wrangler's Last Chance. Jessica Keller

      Shannon tilted her head. “I find that hard to believe.” She rolled her hand. “I mean, someone at some point has baked you cookies. That’s pretty standard. Your family or—” her eyes narrowed as she assessed him “—I’d guess a girlfriend.”

      No, but his last girlfriend had called him trash. Did that count for bonus points?

      He shook his head. He had already been too vulnerable and he needed to reel the situation back to somewhere comfortable for him. Carter motioned for them to follow him into the bunkhouse. With great care, he set the plate of cupcakes on his table.

      The older gentleman braced his hands on the other side of the table. “That was some fine work you did on Wing Crosby, if I do say so myself. You’ve got some great instincts.”

      “Wing Crosby?” Carter looked between them for an explanation.

      “My goose.” Shannon frowned. “Well, I guess if I’m talking to animal people I can call him a gander.” Then she added, “I like old movies.”

      “I’m going to bring him back to my clinic to monitor him overnight, but he looks great. Your quick thinking definitely saved our little friend.” The other man held out his hand. “I’m Dr. Spira.”

      Carter shook the man’s hand and gave him his name.

      Dr. Spira held on to his hand. “Shannon said you were a natural with Wing. Seems to me as if you’ve had some advanced training, given the instructions you gave her afterward.”

      There was no reason for Carter to withhold the truth. His degrees had been clearly labeled on his résumé when he applied to Red Dog Ranch.

      “I have my DVM,” Carter confirmed.

      “Ah.” The doctor nodded. “So you’re Dr. Kelly, then. Well, meeting you is my pleasure.”

      “I’m not practicing right now,” he explained as if that mattered. To him it did. “Just Carter.”

      “DVM.” Shannon’s brow scrunched. “I feel as if I’m at some elite convention where everyone talks in codes and I’m automatically supposed to know what you’re saying. The force be with you, and all that. And that’s cool, but can someone please translate for me here?”

      Dr. Spira turned toward her, his smile warm and fatherly. “Doctor of veterinary medicine.”

      “Wait.” She whirled toward Carter. “You’re a vet?”

      He shrugged. “I could be. But not right now. Today I’m a head wrangler.”

      Dr. Spira grabbed Carter’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “It’ll be nice to talk to someone with fresh training. I’m the only one local and don’t get too many meetups anymore. Do you mind if I come and consult with you from time to time when I’m at the ranch? My office is in town, but I’m here often enough.”

      Thankfulness surged through Carter’s chest again. Learn from someone who had years and years in the field with no catch involved? He wanted to hug the man, but he refrained. However, he was certain his excitement was plain in his voice when he said, “Not at all. I’d love that, actually.” It was more than Carter had ever dreamed of when he accepted the position at Red Dog Ranch.

      Dr. Spira excused himself but Shannon stayed in his bunkhouse. She crossed her arms and studied Carter.

      Carter raised an eyebrow. “Still trying to take back those cupcakes?”

      She pursed her lips. “I’m trying to figure you out.”

      His laugh held an undercurrent of nerves he hoped she didn’t pick up on. “I’m afraid there isn’t much to figure out.” He lifted his hands at his sides in an exaggerated manner. “Just a simple man trying to make an honest living.”

      Her eyes narrowed and for some reason that made her even more adorable. “Does my brother know you’re a vet?”

      “Your brother?”

      Shannon huffed. “Rhett.”

      “Rhett Jarrett is your brother?” The information landed in his mind like a punch. Would he always be attracted to the wrong women? At least these days he knew not to act on attraction. Or because a woman had done something nice for him, like bake him cupcakes. Just because he was starved for kindness, he couldn’t read more into such gestures than what they were—neighborly behavior that most of the world probably wrote off as simple, everyday occurrences.

      She tapped her chin. “That would explain why my last name is also Jarrett.”

      “But I saw you head into one of the staff houses.”

      “It’s a long story.” She sighed. “But the quick version is my brother owns the ranch, so he and his wife live in the big house and don’t exactly need me wandering around there while they’re living their newlywed life.”

      “He knows.” Carter brought the conversation away from the dangerous territory of getting to know someone more than was absolutely necessary. “I didn’t hide anything from him. If that’s what you’re asking.”

      “Oh, settle down.” She held up her hands. “I wasn’t accusing you of anything. If you have an asset that could be useful to the ranch I only wanted to make sure Rhett knew.” Shannon glanced around his bunkhouse. “Well, I’m sure you want to relax after moving in, so I’ll leave you to it. But I’ll see you around, okay?”

      Carter walked her to the door to see her out. He leaned around her to open the front door and caught the scents of vanilla or caramel or something equally sweet. Probably from baking. But she had showered and changed since their earlier run-in and she was even more beautiful than she had been then. Her large brown eyes held his for a moment and he sucked in a sharp breath.

      He pulled back, leaving as much distance as possible as he opened the door for her. He stood in the doorway as she walked two doors down to her home, the whole time telling himself to go back inside, to look away. But she had been the first person to hug him in years and he just wanted to make sure she got home safely. That was it.

      Because Shannon Jarrett was off-limits.

      She was his boss’s sister.

      Another life he would destroy if he allowed himself to get involved.

      Which he wouldn’t. He never did. Not since Audrey.

      He would keep his head down. Do his job. Learn what he could from Dr. Spira, then hightail it out of Texas. Run to a place where no one knew him and start over from scratch like he always did.

      But first he would have a cupcake.

       Chapter Two

      Shannon ran a currycomb in a circular motion over the bay gelding named Memphis. Memphis was a large but gentle and patient horse, which made the big lug perfect for the Mighty Girls Horse Lessons Rhett had placed Shannon in charge of for the spring session. Girls from the area who were in the foster care system were offered the opportunity to learn how to ride and take care of horses for free at Red Dog Ranch. The winter session had been canceled, but they hadn’t wanted to do that again. Her father had been gone a year and it was high time for all the programs to be up and running as usual again.

      While the Jarrett family homestead was a working cattle ranch, the main mission of Red Dog Ranch was to serve to better the lives of foster children. The ranch ran a free summer camp program, hosted holiday parties, had internships available to teenagers who wanted experience for their résumés and had programmed classes and lessons throughout the year, like the riding lessons, among other things. Rhett and his wife, Macy, had recently gone through the process of being approved to be foster parents, as well. Everyone who lived on the property was busy and many were overextended at the moment.

      Mighty Girls