Charmed By The Daring Cowboy (Sage Valley Ranch Book 4) Read online

  Charmed by the Daring Cowboy

  Sage Valley Ranch Book 4

  Melanie D. Snitker

  Dallionz Media, LLC

  Contents

  Introduction

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Books by Melanie D. Snitker

  Are you ready to escape to the countryside? With sunlit fields, down-home cooking, horseback riding and more, the beautiful Texas Hill Country is the perfect destination for a sweet cowboy romance.

  Curl up with a memorable cast of characters—and even a few spunky animals—in a heartwarming group series that’ll keep you laughing and swooning from one clean romance to the next. The books can be read in any order, so jump in wherever you like and get ready to fall in love with Sage Valley Ranch…where country life is sweet, and romance is even sweeter.

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  https://www.facebook.com/groups/SageValleyRanch/

  Charmed by the Daring Cowboy

  Sage Valley Ranch Book 4

  © 2019 Melanie D. Snitker

  Dallionz Media, LLC

  P.O. Box 643

  Boerne, TX 78006

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  Please only purchase authorized editions.

  For permission requests, please contact the author at the email below or through her website.

  Melanie D. Snitker

  [email protected]

  www.melaniedsnitker.com

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  1

  With a shovel in one hand and a bucket full of muddy tools in the other, Dare Jackson trudged his way toward the barn. When Mason McCaffrey, the Sage Valley Ranch manager, had told him the sprinkler head was gushing water, Dare knew it would be his job to fix it. It turned into a way bigger, and messier, project than he’d ever thought possible. It was not the way he’d have chosen to spend a Wednesday afternoon.

  One look at the tools now, and people would think Dare had taken half the muddy earth with him. No way could he simply put them away; they’d have to be thoroughly cleaned first.

  When Dare first accepted a job as a ranch hand at Sage Valley Ranch, he had these grandiose ideas about learning how to rope cattle, working with horses, leading trail rides, and all those other flashy jobs. Sure, he figured he’d be mucking out stalls, too, but that was a small price to pay.

  What he hadn’t counted on was being the lowest man on the totem pole there at the ranch. In the end, all his daydreams of working with the animals disappeared as Dare quickly discovered that he was, by most people’s definitions, a glorified handyman.

  Truthfully, though, as long as Dare stayed busy under the clear Texas sky, he really didn’t mind. It was certainly a huge step up from his last place of employment. Where the foreman at the last ranch was a nightmare to work for, the older couple who owned this one, Peter and Sharon Buchanan, were fantastic. It was no wonder several of the employees had been with them for years. In fact, there were a lot of duties on a ranch that were much easier to stomach when you had bosses like the Buchanans to work for, and it showed.

  That even included digging around in the mud and muck to fix a sprinkler head. Dare looked at his boots and wondered whether he’d ever be able to wash the mud off completely. The stables were just up ahead, and around the corner on the other side, the water faucet. He’d spray his boots and the tools off there.

  Dare stomped his feet a little harder, trying to dislodge some of the mess. As he rounded the corner, a chunk of mud flew off the top of his boot. To his surprise and horror, it sailed through the air to land right on a woman’s shirt. The mud clung to the space right above her—well—it probably couldn’t have splatted in a worse spot short of her face.

  The woman let out a yelp. Her eyes widened, revealing a color that rivaled that of the sky above them. She blinked several times, long lashes accentuating the stunning blue, as her mouth opened and closed again without a sound.

  “I am so sorry, ma’am.” He set the bucket down and leaned the shovel against the building before taking a step toward her. What was he going to do? He didn’t have a handkerchief to offer her—at least not a clean one. Even if the mud had landed in a more accessible location, his hands were probably as muddy as his boots. “I don’t even know what to say. I’m sure the Buchanans will have something you could use to remove the mud from your shirt. Of course, I’ll pay to have it dry cleaned.” He had no doubt Mr. or Mrs. Buchanan—referred to as Peter or Bucky and Sharon by most people that knew them well—wouldn’t hesitate to offer help.

  The attractive woman stared at him for several moments before slowly looking down at her shirt. She used her thumb and forefinger to pick off the chunk of mud and toss it to the ground, leaving behind a dark smear on the teal-colored fabric. “I’m afraid it’s too late for that.” A warm, late-spring breeze came through and tousled her brown hair. She wiped her hand on her dark denim jeans.

  Dare admired the way the sun’s rays brought out the red highlights in her hair. Several strands caught near one corner of her bottom lip. Only then did he note the light smattering of freckles over her cheeks and nose. It was an incredibly alluring combination.

  A faint scent reached his nose, and he inhaled deeply. He recognized it, but couldn’t quite put a finger on it. It wasn’t floral, or even fruity. Whatever it was, it fit her perfectly.

  Who was she?

  He needed to stop gawking at her. It was only making an embarrassing situation worse. “That may be so, but this whole thing was my fault. I can accompany you to the main house—”

  She shook her head. “Thank you, but I’ve got an appointment to get to.” She pointed to his boots. “It looks like you have your own mess to take care of.”

  She drew her plump bottom lip between her teeth and worried it. With that, she walked away, quickly turning the corner of the stables and disappearing.

  Fantastic. He’d heard the Buchanans had a number of grandkids. With Dare’s luck, she was probably one of them. From everything he’d seen and heard so far in his month working at the ranch, his bosses were easy to get along with. He wondered, however, if slinging mud at their kin would jeopardize his job as a ranch hand before it’d begun.

  Dare didn’t realize he was still staring until Dock, the old yellow lab who lived on the ranch, barked somewhere in the distance and startled Dare back to reality. He shook his head. There was no use dwelling on a woman he likely wasn’t going to see again.

  Even still, he wondered what her name was, and wished he’d at least had the clarity of mind to introduce himself. Or, you know, not kick mud onto her shirt.

  Dare picked up the tools again and carried them the remaining distance to the water fa
ucet. He may never run into her again, but it’d be nearly impossible to forget her. She was, quite possibly, the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen—mud included.

  * * *

  Alyssa Reid barely contained a grumble as she walked away from the mud-slinging cowboy. This was about the last thing she needed. Her afternoon and evening were lined up with one thing after a another, and going home to change was not on the agenda.

  She wanted to be mad at the cowboy. Remembering the look of mortification on his face had her almost feeling sorry for him instead. It didn’t help that he had dark brown eyes that were intense enough to nearly turn a gal’s insides to jelly. He was handsome in that all-man kind of way. But it was the sound of his voice when he’d said “ma’am” that’d had her heart skipping a beat.

  His voice held respect. Kindness. As far as Alyssa was concerned, it was a sign he’d been raised well. Not to mention there was something about the deep timbre of his voice that was difficult to forget.

  Good grief, you’d think she were a teenager instead of a woman nearing thirty. She gave herself a mental shake. The cowboy was the last thing she ought to be focused on because she needed romance about as much as a broken leg right now. She reached her old pickup truck and looked down at her shirt again. It was a good thing she’d already met with Peter and Sharon Buchanan about the landscaping job they’d hired her to do. Showing up to the meeting like this certainly wouldn’t have made the kind of impression she was looking for. Oh, she’d known them most of her life, and her attire probably wouldn’t have made a difference to them. But she’d come to see them in a professional capacity, so it mattered to Alyssa.

  She loved working for Sage Valley Nursery and Garden Center. There was something about digging in the dirt, surrounded by all the plants and flowers, and the peace that often accompanied it. Alyssa got to spend her days taking a bare, boring space and turning it into something beautiful. Maybe she had to watch her budget carefully every month, and she’d certainly never get rich, but there weren’t enough people who could honestly say they enjoyed their work like she did.

  When her boss, Ben Evans, offered her this job, she jumped at the chance. They were already short-staffed, and Ben told her she’d be on her own, but she had four weeks to finish. That meant she’d be working on the ranch in conjunction with finishing a job at the hospital. It should be plenty of time, especially with more than enough near-summer daylight to work with.

  Alyssa was determined to do a great job and hopefully drive more business to the garden center. It couldn’t hurt. Something was up with Ben but he wasn’t talking, and Alyssa’s co-workers were starting to speculate. Guesses ranged from Ben having to downsize and letting some of them go to the garden center closing completely.

  She wasn’t a fan of jumping to conclusions, but neither of those possibilities sat well with her. She could not afford to become unemployed. Just thinking about the repercussions of such a predicament had her stomach tied up in knots. It would be bad enough if it were only her, but she had her five-year-old son, Noah, to provide for.

  That meant she’d get this job done for Peter and Sharon on time as promised, hope the extra exposure would bring more business to the garden center, and whatever was going on with Ben would settle and things could return to normal.

  She couldn’t wait to get started.

  As Alyssa maneuvered the truck down the driveway that led out of Sage Valley Ranch, she caught herself looking around for another glance at the cowboy she met earlier. Would she see him again when she came back to work tomorrow? Her heart tapped against her ribs in response. Maybe he was a temporary hire. She rather hoped so, because she didn’t need the distraction.

  Once she got back to the garden center, Alyssa checked in quickly with Ben before heading out for the day. She was thankful Ben allowed her such a flexible schedule, making it possible for her to take Noah along on jobs so she didn’t have to spend scary amounts of money on childcare that she couldn’t afford. Unfortunately, it also meant having to work most Saturdays to make up for some of the time.

  Noah never seemed to mind and thoroughly enjoyed the opportunities to explore new places and help. Alyssa was glad, although the guilt still pestered her like a fly buzzing near her ear. She ought to be enjoying this last summer with her son, doing fun things, before he started kindergarten in the fall. Not dragging him all over Sage Valley every day.

  On the other side of town, she turned on Cypress Street and parked in front of It’s All Good. Alyssa’s best friend, Morgan Clark, owned the health food store. They had been inseparable in high school, and they’d been there for each other through the many bumps and twists life had held for them.

  If it weren’t for Morgan’s occasional help with Noah, Alyssa didn’t know what she would’ve done.

  Alyssa pulled the heavy glass door open, and a chime announced her arrival. Immediately, the scents of cinnamon and cloves greeted her shortly followed by her friend’s welcoming smile. Morgan was bagging a customer’s purchases at the counter directly opposite the door.

  “Thanks for shopping at It’s All Good. I hope we’ll see you again soon.” Morgan turned her attention to Alyssa. “Hey, you! I wasn’t sure when you were getting back. I fed Noah a snack a few minutes ago, I hope that was okay.” Her gaze stalled on Alyssa’s shirt. “What happened to you?”

  “It’s a long story. And of course, it’s okay that you gave him a snack. Thank you so much.” Alyssa was surprised her young son hadn’t come out to greet her already. Usually she barely walked through the door before he was giving her a hug. “Speaking of which, where is he?”

  Morgan chuckled and motioned for Alyssa to follow her through several aisles to the back of the store. There they found Noah sitting on the floor as he carefully organized and stacked different products on the shelf in front of him. He looked up, a small jar of acne cream in one hand, and his sweet face broke into a grin. The gap in his teeth reminded Alyssa how fast he was growing. Lately, it seemed like her little boy was getting bigger in leaps and bounds, and she wasn’t at all ready for it.

  “Look, Mommy! I’m helping Aunt Morgan.” He carefully placed the jar on the shelf before getting to his feet and putting his arms around Alyssa’s waist. “I had peanut butter cups. They were so good. Do you think we could take some home?”

  Alyssa looked from her son to Morgan with a raised eyebrow.

  Morgan shrugged. “They were organic.”

  Alyssa chuckled as she put a hand on Noah’s shoulder. “Well, kiddo, we need to leave in fifteen minutes for your appointment.”

  Noah’s nose wrinkled, making all the freckles on his cheeks and nose even more adorable. “I don’t like going to the doctor.”

  “I know, kiddo. But I need to get you in for your check-up so we can see how much you’ve grown this last year.” She ruffled his red hair and smiled at him. “Why don’t you finish up here while I talk to Aunt Morgan?”

  He agreed and sat back down on the floor again.

  Alyssa massaged her temple where a headache was beginning to form. “Hey, Morgan. Do you have more of that salve? What I have is nearly gone.”

  “Sure. One sec.” Morgan disappeared down one of the aisles and returned with a small tin. “Here you go.”

  “You are a life saver.” She could imagine the aroma of the soothing mix of peppermint and eucalyptus. Ever since she’d discovered the effects the salve had on her sinus headaches, Alyssa didn’t like to be without it.

  “I’m glad you finally found something to help. I hate that you’re getting them so often again.” Morgan’s brows knit together in concern.

  Alyssa hated the headaches, too. She’d had a lot of them years ago, but since had a reprieve. She wasn’t sure if this new frequency was thanks to a change in allergies, or if it was mostly stress-induced. “Well, at least this stuff always helps.” Since the customers in the store were busy looking around, Alyssa leaned against the counter. “Did I tell you I start landscape work at Sage Valley Ran
ch tomorrow?”

  Morgan clapped her hands in her usual enthusiastic way. “Oh, I’m so glad that job came through. As soon as I heard they were looking for a landscaper, I knew you’d be perfect.”

  “I’m glad you overheard about it at the Farmer’s Market. Thanks again for letting me know. Seriously, I wouldn’t have gotten the job if it hadn’t been for you.”

  Morgan smiled at her. “I’m hoping it helps.”

  Morgan was the only person Alyssa had told about the state of the garden center, or at least the rumors. “Me, too.” The moment her thoughts shifted to the ranch, the muddy cowboy came to mind. Truthfully, it would be a lot easier to go into work tomorrow knowing he was a temporary hire. If he had already proven this distracting, she didn’t want to think what it would be like if she saw him every day for a month. “How well do you know the different people who work at the ranch?”

  Morgan’s eyes lit up. “I haven’t met everyone. But there is certainly more than a fair share of hunky cowboys.” There was a flash of pain that faded quickly. Gabe, Morgan’s ex-fiancé, worked at the ranch, and even though she was there on Saturdays, Alyssa knew they rarely spoke. There was a lot of pain Morgan had done her best to put aside. She seemed to shake off her momentary melancholy and smiled again. “You met someone, didn’t you?”

  Alyssa wanted to deny Morgan’s words, but when she hesitated a moment too long, Morgan nodded knowingly. Alyssa tried to keep a straight face while the heat in her cheeks betrayed her.

  “Uh, huh.” Morgan glanced around the store before lowering her voice a little. “Who is it?”