Page 1 of Cowboy Jeopardy

Chapter One

Danica Cooper’s legstrembled as she walked up the lane leading to the big house. Her suitcase thumped over the cracks behind her.

It had been three months since the fiasco with the Roberto family and her gambling addiction that had almost gotten her and her family killed. Still, she felt woefully inadequate to accept the job as girl Friday and nanny to ten-year-old twin boys. Was the father unaware of her past, or was he so desperate he’d hire anyone?

The folks of Misty Hollow, while friendly enough, still watched her with wary eyes despite adoring her twin sister, Delaney. But then, Delly had married one of the town’s favorite deputies while Dani had gone to rehab.

Horses grazed in paddocks on each side of her, doing little to still the nervous flutters in her gut. What if her new boss, Dylan Wyatt, canned her the instant he found out? What would she do then? She couldn’t work at the diner anymore. It got old being compared to her perfect sister all the time. Not to mention living with their mother in the camper. No, Dani needed a place of her own, and a chance to start a new life after being almost killed.

She squared her shoulders and pressed the doorbell. Westminster chimes rang out. She stepped back and licked dry lips.

The door swung open. A massive man with coal black hair and piercing blue eyes stared down at her before a slow smile curved chiseled lips. “Miss Cooper?”

“Yes, sir.” This hunk must be her new boss. Yowza. She hadn’t seen him…well, she had seen him. The cowboys had helped patrol the streets during her trouble, but she hadn’t known which one was him.

“Wonderful. Come on in. I’ll show you around while the boys, Eric and Derrick, are at school.” He snatched her suitcase from the porch as if it didn’t weigh more than five pounds, but which in actuality contained everything she owned. “Here is a photo of the rascals. One of your tasks will be taking them to school and picking them up. Of course, summer break is only a couple of weeks away. Let me show you to your room.”

He led her across polished wood floors and up a wide staircase. “These two rooms belong to the boys and are connected by a Jack-and-Jill bathroom. You’re right here across the hall.” He pushed open a set of double doors.

Wow. A four-poster bed adorned with a colorful quilt took up the space between two windows. A door to her left revealed a bathroom. Another door opened into a closet. A carved armoire took up another wall.

“I hope it’s sufficient.”

“It’s beautiful.” Her few clothes wouldn’t make a dent in the closet, much less the armoire.

“Great. Let’s start the tour. You don’t really have a specific time to wake up, especially once summer starts, but the boys don’t usually sleep much later than six or six-thirty. Once they go to bed at night, the hours are yours, and you have Sundays off.”

Dani nodded, not minding the early hours. She’d be up before then anyway.

He showed her the kitchen where she’d help the cook, Mrs. White, with the meals when she wasn’t busy with the boys. “She’s not here right now, but basically, you’ll help with whatever needs doing if the boys are at school.” He flashed a grin, revealing a dimple in his right cheek. “Even work in the barn. During the summer, the boys have a list of chores. You’ll make sure they do them.” He didn’t ask any questions; he simply rattled off her duties as they strolled the property.

Positioned on the top of Misty Mountain, few trees filled the acreage. Instead, red outbuildings and many horses provided a pleasant landscape. She’d heard that an extra-special forces vet had purchased and renovated the Rocking W Ranch, but hadn’t seen the place. Impressive, to say the least.

“I’ll introduce you to the men at lunch. They’re a great group of guys. All ex-military needing a new start in life.”

“Like me,” she muttered. Minus the military.

“Exactly.”

“So, you do know who I am?” She stopped and peered up at him. “I’d wondered.”

“Because I didn’t say anything?” He quirked a brow. “One of the things we value here, Miss Cooper, is discretion. As long as the work is done to my satisfaction, and trouble doesn’t come knocking on my doorstep, I’m good with an employee who used to be in trouble. I trust you’re no longer that person.”

“I’m not.” She felt more relaxed than she had since her ride had dropped her off at the entrance to the Rocking W.

“Then we’ll get along fine. I mean it when I say this is a place for fresh beginnings. No one will judge you here, Miss Cooper, as long as you stay clean, do no harm, and do what is expected of you.”

“Please, call me Dani. I can follow those expectations.”

“Great. I’m Dylan.”

Her phone dinged. She glanced at the text message.

Watch your back. This isn’t over. You still have a debt to pay.

Not even a big cowboy can save you from your transgressions.

~

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