Sweet Talking Rancher

Book 5: Millers of Morgan Valley

by Kate Pearce

Genres: Women's Fiction; Western Romance

Synopsis

In New York Times bestselling author Kate Pearce's sweet and sexy Millers of Morgan Valley series, the close-knit folks of Morgantown, California, have long memories--and big hearts to go with them...

Everyone in rancher Danny Miller's life wants to know how he feels about his teenage flame returning to Morgan Valley. Danny wishes he knew. After the disastrous ending of their relationship, and Faith's choice to leave town all those years ago, Danny's rebuilt his life without her. But he's about to have a very practical reason for needing her in it again--despite the very impractical desire she inspires once he lays eyes on her...

Faith McDonald hadn't planned on returning home, but with her dad retiring, her help is needed at the family veterinary practice. She's hoping that by now, folks have forgotten what happened between her and Danny--even if the two of them never can. With a mystery infection decimating the Miller cattle, she and Danny soon find themselves on the same side for the first time in forever. There was a lot of trouble in their past, but the good parts never really flamed out, including their intense attraction. And their shared determination to cure the cattle might just lead them to a healing of their own--and a whole new
all-grown-up future...

Release date: July 27, 2021

Publisher: Zebra Books

Print pages: 338

Sample

Danny Miller gently released his horse’s foreleg and straightened up.

“Looking good. Thanks for doing this, Andy.”

His gelding, Applejack, snorted and tried to knock Danny’s Stetson off as Andy Ferraro gathered his tools. They were in the horse barn, which sided onto the ranch house, and it was as hot as hades.

“You’re welcome,” Andy said. “I’ve built up the shoe at the back, but I’ll change it out once he’s walking better. Anything else you need me to look at while I’m here?”

“Nah, I think we’re good.” Danny clapped his friend on the back. “Come on in and have something to drink before you go.”

“That would be appreciated.” Andy narrowed his eyes and looked up at the unending blue sky. “It’s darn hot out here. Mind you, it’s better than that endless rain we had all spring.”

“Which is probably why you prefer to live in Bridgeport these days.” Danny put Applejack away in his stall, made sure the door was bolted, and headed toward the ranch house.

“I’d come back if it was worth my while,” Andy said. “My parents still live here, and I know they’d love it if I was closer.”

Danny held open the screen door that led into the mudroom. “We could do with a farrier in the valley. You should talk to the Morgans. With all the horses they have for the dude ranch, I bet they’d love to have you around full time.”

“Yeah?” Andy paused to heel and toe off his boots and wash his hands. “Ron McDonald used to do a lot of the local horses in Morgan Valley, but as he’s retiring, maybe they will need someone new.” Andy gave Danny a sidelong glance. “You did know he was retiring, right?”

“Yup.” Danny braced himself for the inevitable follow-up question.

“I hear Faith’s coming back to run the veterinary business with Dave,” Andy said in a way-too-casual voice.

“Is that right?” Danny led Andy through to the large family kitchen, which was mercifully free of his siblings and parents.

“You worried about that, bro?”

“Why would I be?” Danny smiled. “She’s just as entitled to come home to work for her family as anyone else.”

“So, you guys won’t be changing vets or anything?”

“Why would we? The McDonalds have always been awesome.” Danny gestured at the refrigerator. “What would you like to drink, Andy? Something cold? A beer?”

“Seeing as I’m driving, I’ll take something cold, but not alcoholic if that’s okay.” Andy wandered over to the window that looked out over the fenced-in paddocks. “Grass is looking good because of all that spring rain. Wonder how long that will last?”

“Not long enough I can tell you that.” Danny opened the refrigerator, took out a jug of lemonade, and held it up. “This okay? Mom made it this morning.”

“Looks great.” Andy’s gaze went to the kitchen door. “Hey, Mr. Miller, what’s up?”

Inwardly Danny groaned as his father, Jeff, entered the kitchen and sat at the table. He still couldn’t get used to seeing his old man around the house during working hours. Since his heart attack Jeff had been unable to maintain his five-in-the-morning-until-whatever-time-the-work-was-done schedule. He also made sure that everyone in the family knew how much he hated his current existence.

“Afternoon, Andy. I don’t know why Danny called you all the way out here just to look at something he could easily have fixed himself, but it’s good to see you.”

“It’s good to see you, too, Mr. Miller,” Andy replied. “My mom said to say hi, and that she’s looking forward to seeing you back at church.”

“I’m looking forward to being allowed off my own ranch, too.” Jeff gave Danny a pointed stare. “My family act like I’m incapable or something.”

“We’re just following doctor’s orders, Dad. You’ll be good to go this weekend.” Danny gave his father and Andy glasses of lemonade and sipped his own. “Where’s Mom?”

“She’s over at the Morgans’. She said that someone can start dinner if she’s late.”

“Will do.” Danny liked to cook and with Adam staying in town with Lizzie right now, he was the backup chef. “There’s no need for her to rush home. I’ll text if I need any instructions.”

Andy sat at the table with Danny’s father. “Did you know Ron Mac is retiring, Mr. Miller?”

“Yup, and about time, too. He’s getting way too old for that job.”

“He’s the same age as you,” Danny pointed out. “And you’re not willing to retire yet.”

“His mind is on the golf course way too much these days and not on the job he’s supposed to be doing. Dave’s getting better, but he’s still got a long way to go to impress me.”

“No one impresses you, Dad.” Danny grinned.

“True enough.” Jeff sipped his lemonade.

“So, I suppose it’s good Faith’s coming home,” Andy said. “From what I hear she’s had a lot of large animal experience up in Humboldt County.”

“I’m sure she’ll do great.” Danny chugged his lemonade rather faster than he wanted to and stood up. “I’m just going to text Mom. I’ll be back in a minute to see you out, Andy.”

Andy rose, too. “I’ve got to get back myself, Dan, so I’ll follow you out.”

Danny escorted his friend back to his truck, saw him on his way, and returned to the kitchen where his father was still sitting at the table. He busied himself putting the glasses in the dishwasher and put the jug of lemonade back in the refrigerator.

“Faith McDonald’s coming home, then.”

“So they say.” Danny wiped his hands on the towel and turned to find his father’s penetrating stare focused on him.

“You worried about that?”

“Why would I be?” For the first time, Danny let some of his annoyance leak into his voice. “You’re about the tenth person who’s asked me that this week. Why would I care what she chooses to do? I haven’t seen her for seventeen years. I’m sure she’s a different person now.”

His father shrugged. “No need to get mad when you’re asked a simple question, Son. Anyone would think you’ve got something to hide.”

“Jeez, Dad.” Danny shook his head. “You know what happened, you were right there. It’s not like there was anything suspicious going on.”

“Well, she did hightail it out of here pretty darn fast,” his father commented. “And she didn’t come back, which people might say makes her look guilty of something.”

“Then people would be wrong.” Danny met his dad’s stare. “Can we just stop talking about it now?”

“Why? When the whole valley is buzzing with the news that she’s finally coming home?”

“Because . . .” Danny carefully folded the towel and put it back. “Faith has a perfect right to come here, and she doesn’t deserve all this stupid attention.”

“She hurt you, Son.”

Danny smiled. “I was seventeen. It was a long time ago. She probably doesn’t even remember me.”

“I doubt that.” His dad hauled himself to his feet. “I’m going to take my walk out to the barn. If I don’t come back within the hour, you have my full permission to come look for me. If you start fretting before that, don’t expect me to be pleased to see you.”

Danny took out his phone. “I’m going to text Mom back about dinner and then I’ll be busy getting that started, so I sure as hell won’t be worrying about you.”

“Good.”

Danny waited until his father slammed the back door behind him before he let out a long breath.

Faith was coming back.

He scrolled through his contacts until he found his mother’s name.

In a place as small as Morgan Valley it was inevitable that they would bump into each other sooner rather than later—especially when the McDonalds were the Miller family’s vets.

He tried to picture what she might look like now and couldn’t even guess. They’d parted on such bad terms that even after seventeen years he still wasn’t sure he’d be able to face her, or how she’d react to him. He reminded himself that they were both older and wiser, and that her defection had helped make him the man he was now, something he couldn’t regret.

He half smiled as he started texting his mother.

Maybe Faith really wouldn’t remember him.

Perhaps that would be a blessing,

After receiving detailed instructions from his mother about exactly how to cook dinner, Danny was just about to put his phone away when he paused.

If he had to meet Faith again, he’d prefer to do it away from curious eyes and ears. He thumbed through his contacts and started to type. He was no longer a shy teenager who sat back and let things happen to him. Maybe it was time to make sure Faith knew that as well.

Faith McDonald suppressed a sigh as she looked around the ramshackle veterinarian’s hospital. After building a separate house on the property twenty years ago for his growing family, her father had left the original homestead entirely for the use of the practice and hadn’t made any effort to improve it since. It was a far cry from the modern offices she and her partners had occupied in Humboldt.

“Yeah, it’s a bit of a shithole,” her brother Dave remarked from his position propping up the doorframe behind her. “I’ve been asking Dad to improve it ever since I qualified, but he wouldn’t listen. What’s new?”

“Sounds just like Dad.”

Faith swung around to regard her younger brother. They had the same dark hair and blue eyes as their mother and had both gone into the family business along with their cousin Jenna, who now worked and lived up at Morgan Ranch.

“It’s not entirely his fault.” Dave shrugged. “It’s not easy making money out here.”

“I know, but there are things we could do to improve that and stop people having to go to Bridgeport for specialized veterinary care. We both have the skills. Dad’s given me carte blanche to get the place up-to-date.”

“What does carte blanche mean exactly?” Dave frowned. “Sounds like some kind of cake. And where are we supposed to get the money to make these changes happen?”

“You don’t have to worry too much about that if you don’t want to,” Faith rushed to reassure him. “I managed our practice in Humboldt. We had twelve staff members including six vets and I dealt with all the financials.”

Dave shuddered. “You go ahead. I like the ‘being a veterinarian’ part and hate the bookkeeping. It nearly killed me passing my finals.” He jerked his finger toward the back off ice, which was basically a huge pile of papers. “Have you seen it in there?”

Faith came toward him. “If we are going to be partners, Bro, you’re going to have to deal with some of this stuff. I can’t make decisions that will affect both of us all by myself. We will need to talk things through.”

“Yeah, I get that.” Dave hesitated. “Can I be honest here?”

“Sure.” Faith nodded. “Go ahead.”

“I’m, like, not sure you’re really going to stick around,” Dave said in a rush. “I mean, I want you to, but seeing as you haven’t been near this place since I was in middle school, I have some doubts.”

Faith made herself meet his skeptical gaze. “I understand how you feel. All I can tell you is that I really want to stay here and build up the practice. I promised Mom and Dad that if they ever needed me to come back I would do so without question.”

“Why would I believe that when you’ve avoided it for so long?” Dave asked.

Faith blinked. Wow, her little brother wasn’t pulling his punches.

“Because I don’t make promises I don’t intend to keep?”

She tried not to think of all the promises she’d made to Danny Miller and subsequently broken. She’d promised to write, to keep in touch, to let him know when she’d be coming home . . .

She forced her attention back to her brother. “I will do my absolute best to make this work, okay?”

He still didn’t look convinced, but there was nothing she could do right now except work as hard as she could to prove him wrong.

“There are some people in Morgan Valley who don’t remember you in the most favorable light,” Dave said slowly. “I’m not saying that to be mean, I just want you to know what you might be up against if you decide to stay.”

“Still?” Faith raised her eyebrows.

Dave shrugged. “Folks have long memories out here. You left, and Danny Miller stayed, so they’re bound to be more sympathetic to him. And, he’s a nice guy.”

“Yes, he is,” Faith agreed. “Hopefully, once I start working here and they get to know me again, they’ll change their minds.”

“I guess so.” Dave didn’t sound very optimistic as he straightened up and walked out into the office. “I’m just going to check on my two patients out back. I’ll meet you out front.”

“No problem.”

Faith went into the main reception area, which was painted a pale blue and green. There were cheerful posters on the walls, and someone had attempted to set up a puppy play corner, but the whole area looked desperate for a makeover. The rest of the staff had gone home while she and Dave were taking stock of their new venture. If Faith agreed to take on the practice, her father and mother would be off on their long-anticipated golfing tour of Europe. Given the choice, she wasn’t sure they’d ever come back to stay for good. But, as they’d helped pay for her to attend veterinary college, supported her decision to stay away from Morgan Valley, and never made her feel bad about any of it, the least she could do was help her brother maintain and develop the family business.

If she got it up and running and financially secure, in a year or two Dave would be able to handle it himself if he took on another vet to replace her. It was always good to have options and a backup plan.

She glanced out the window toward the parking lot and the spectacular view behind it. Leaving Morgan Valley had been a terrible wrench, and some small part of her, the little girl who’d grown up wild and free in the fields, was delighted to be home. The rest of her—the part formed by her decision to leave—wasn’t so sure.

She let out a breath. Somewhere out there, after a hard day on the ranch, Danny Miller was probably about to have his dinner. From the snippets of information dropped by her parents and friends over the years she knew he hadn’t left home. Like her, he’d had big plans to leave Morgan Valley. Had what had happened between them stopped him from going to college? Faith sighed. Another thing to feel guilty about, like she didn’t already have enough.

“You coming, Sis?” Dave said from behind her. “Mom’s cooking her famous vegetarian lasagna for dinner, and Jenna and her family are coming over to join us.”

“Yes.” Faith cast one last glance over in the direction of Miller Ranch and then turned to her brother with a smile. “I can’t wait to finally meet Jenna.”

“She’s awesome.” Dave’s affectionate grin was more relaxed than it had been earlier. “She specialized in horses so she’s a perfect fit for their dude ranch.”

“So, she doesn’t take work away from us?” Faith waited as Dave checked all the doors and locked up.

“Not at all. Actually, we kind of work in tandem. Sometimes I’ll help out up there with the rest of the livestock, or she’ll inoculate cattle for me on the other ranches. When we get to calving and lambing season, we are both flat out covering the whole valley.” He winked at her. “Which is why I’m glad you’re back because Dad made me take all the night shifts.”

“You think I won’t make you do the same?” Faith asked sweetly.

“Didn’t you just say that we’ll be equal partners?”

Dave walked across the parking lot to his bashed-up truck, reminding Faith that she needed to get her own form of transport as soon as possible. Her all-electric car wouldn’t work on the rocky slopes and unpaved roads of Morgan Valley.

Just before they left, Dave took a last look around and then whistled for his dog, Lilo, who bounded out of the encroaching darkness and leapt nimbly into the back of the truck. The family house wasn’t that far from the original homestead, but it was uphill all the way. Faith had walked down, but was glad Dave was bringing her back in the truck. The copse of pine trees behind the new house swayed in the breeze. Faith had forgotten how cold it could get in the evenings after the sun disappeared behind the mountains and wished she’d worn her thicker coat.

Light flooded out from the stone and wood structure her father had designed as his new family home. Having grown up half in the cramped century house of the clinic and half in the expansive new one, Faith had nothing but good memories of the place until her senior year had crashed and burned so unexpectedly. When she got out of the truck, she stood still for a moment to take in the scent of pine and some kind of blue flower her mother had planted along the pathway to the house.

There was an unfamiliar truck parked alongside her electric car that she guessed belonged to Jenna and her husband, Blue Boy Morgan. She remembered BB from school as a sweet-talking daredevil and hadn’t been surprised to learn that he’d gone straight into the military. From what she’d heard about her cousin Jenna she couldn’t quite imagine how their relationship worked, but she’d learned to her cost that marrying someone just like you didn’t always work out either.

“Is that you, Faith?”

She looked up to see her mother, Amy, silhouetted against the light streaming from the open front door.

“Yes!” Faith fixed on a smile and started walking up the steps. Dave had taken his dog around the back. “I’m just coming.”

Her mother gave her a quick hug and an equally assessing gaze. “You doing okay?”

“Well, it’s still strange to be back, but it’s also great to see you all.”

“We’re delighted to see you, too. Ron’s really hoping you’ll want to settle down here.” Her mother shut the door. “Do you need to wash up and change before you meet Jenna?”

Faith glanced down at her muddy boots and grimaced. “Sorry, I should have come through the back with Dave.”

“Like we haven’t seen our fair share of mud on these floors. That’s why we went for so much tile.” Her mother smiled and motioned with her hand. “Go on up. Dinner will be ready when you are.”

Faith automatically turned right at the top of the stairs and headed for her old room. Thankfully, after she’d left, her parents had converted it into a guest bedroom, and it no longer felt like her space, which was a good thing. She’d agreed to sit down with her dad after dinner and go over his plans for the practice and the financials and she was looking forward to it. Even with Jenna working up at Morgan Ranch there was still plenty of scope to expand and improve the existing business. The thought of being given a free hand to put into practice all the lessons she’d learned over the years was exciting.

Faith paused at her bedroom door. If it hadn’t been for the whole Danny Miller thing, she probably wouldn’t even be considering her options, but would’ve jumped at the chance. She sighed. But if it hadn’t been for Danny Miller, she wouldn’t have left Morgan Valley in the first place and gained all this great experience to run a successful veterinary business.

Her cell buzzed and she glanced down to see a text from Dave, which was weird as she’d just been talking to him.

Faith frowned as she scrolled down to reveal the second text Dave had forwarded on to her.

She dropped her phone like it was on fire and then fell to her knees hoping desperately she hadn’t broken the damn thing.

Nope, there was his message, loud and clear and just as terrifying. Faith stared at it for at least a full minute before gently placing her phone on her bedside table and plugging in the charger. She’d take a quick shower, get changed, and go and meet Jenna and Blue. When she’d done all that, maybe she’d be in a better place to deal with the unexpectedly early intrusion in her new life from Danny Miller.

After sending his text to Dave, Danny checked his phone at regular intervals, but there was no reply from either of the McDonalds. His mom had a strict no phones at the table rule, so he ate his dinner, talked ranch business with his brother Evan and his father, and tried not to second-guess his decision to grab the bull by the horns and reach out to Faith.

Evan had turned up late for dinner and wasn’t in a good mood, which was unusual enough for Danny to ask him what was up when they reached the coffee stage.

“It’s those damn Brysons again. Their lower fence is down and about thirty of their cows were in our field. I corralled them in one corner and called Doug, but he said he didn’t have time to come get them.”

“He’s always been a jerk just like his father,” Jeff chimed in. “I never liked him, either.”

“I told him I didn’t have time to drive them back onto his land and that he should fix his damned fences and stop relying on us to do it for him.” Evan took a slug of coffee.

“What did you do with the cattle?” Danny asked.

“I left them where they were.” Evan finally grinned. “If he wants them, he’ll have to figure out a way to get them back because I did fix the hole in the fence.”

“I expect I’ll be hearing from him tomorrow morning, then,” their father said. “He’s never been one to keep his thoughts to himself.”

Jeff looked quite pleased at the thought of a confrontation, which didn’t surprise Danny in the least. His father loved a good fight and he was bored to tears stuck at home.

“I don’t know how Doug stays in business.” Their father was still talking. “And, there’s only his sister up there with him. I bet she won’t stick around.”

“How do you know?” Danny and his Mom asked at the same time, and then high-fived each other. “Women can run ranches. She can do whatever she wants.”

“I suppose so,” his dad grudgingly conceded.

“You need to get with the times, Dad,” Evan said. “If you said that to Sue Ellen’s face, she wouldn’t take it well.”

“She’d definitely whoop his ass,” Danny added.

“I’d pay to see that.” Evan set down his glass. “And, seeing as Sue Ellen has a bit of a thing for you, Danny boy, she’d probably do it for you if you asked.”

“Sue Ellen has good taste,” Danny’s mom agreed before turning back to her ex-husband. “Now, did you tell the boys about my plans?”

“Haven’t had time,” Jeff grumbled. “You only told me this morning.”

“I’m planning on flying back to New York next week.”

“Okay.” Danny was surprised she’d been able to stay for so long already. “You must have missed a lot of work stuff, right?”

She smiled at him. “To be honest, most of it I’ve handled online or by phone, but there’s a big charity board meeting coming up and I need to be there in person for that.” She sighed. “And I miss Ellie.”

“When do you think you’ll get back here?” Evan asked the question Danny hadn’t wanted to. “Otherwise Dad’s gonna sulk like a baby.”

Leanne reached over and took Jeff ’s hand. “That’s up to your father. If he wants me to come back, he’ll let me know.”

Danny glanced at his father’s stormy expression and got to his feet. The last thing he needed when his nerves were already on edge was to watch his father lose his temper.

“I’ll help you clear the table, Evan.”

“But I’m not finished,” Evan protested as Danny fixed him with a pointed stare. “Or, maybe I am.” He started gathering up plates. “How about I load the dishwasher while you make some more coffee and deal with the pans?”

“Hey, I cooked,” Danny reminded his younger brother. “So, you get to wash the pans.”

A while later when both Evan and his father had disappeared into their relative bolt-holes, Danny gave the kitchen countertops a last wipe down and set the rest of the meal in the refrigerator for when Kaiden came home from the Garcia Ranch. His brother was combining his carpentry business with helping manage the ranch and was a very busy man these days.

Danny was just about to check his phone when his mother joined him in the kitchen. Personality wise he was most like her, being the quiet dete. . .