Grumpy Cowboy (Single Dad Collection)

“Deal.” She nods, then yawns, and not even a minute later, those eyes of hers are closed tight and her breaths are coming out in soft, deep waves.

A low, amused chuckle spills from my lips as I reach down to remove her shoes from her feet.

First, her right boot and sock, but then, when I take off her left boot, a crinkled-up piece of paper falls out onto the bed.

I furrow my brow and pick it up.

Once I have it unfolded, I see that it’s a handwritten note—half of the handwriting is my daughter’s messy scrawl, and the other half is very legible and feminine in nature.

supar Sacret Leeah an Joey plan

Put Daddy’s knee on a pillow.

ice it wit frozen stuffs

Have Daddy take his medicine from Dr. Namath.

tell hims to do buble bath

A surprised, albeit exasperated-as-fuck, laugh falls from my lips.

And here I thought my Joey was just being sweet and wanting to make sure my knee was healing.

Looks like the joke’s on me.

Dr. Leah Levee has now wrangled my baby girl into helping administer her medical dirty work. Less than two weeks on my fucking ranch and the doctor has managed to get everyone on her side, including my own kid.

Well, everyone but me, that is.

I’m still hoping that city girl will eventually get the point—that I don’t need her damn help—and head on home.

Ha. That’s rich coming from the man whose fucking knee hasn’t felt this good since before he fell off that bronc…

June 26th, Saturday

Leah

The screen door swings open, and Rhett steps inside wearing nothing but a cowboy hat, a pair of well-worn Levi’s, and boots.

He’s shirtless and slightly sweaty, and I’m not sure if I should thank the rising summer heat in Utah for making it a frequent occurrence that Rhett spends the better part of his day showcasing the rippled muscles of his abs and chest or if I should be annoyed that the man who seems to thrive on making my life difficult looks that damn delicious with his shirt off.

Sigh. It’s quite the mental conundrum.

And, trust me, I know a thing or two about him making my life difficult. Today alone, I’ve done three free assessments on ranch guests and answered that woman who was worried about horseback riding’s medical questions about hypertension and diabetes.

“What the hell are you doin’ here?”

Those are the first words out of his mouth when he spots me sitting on his couch.

I flash a sugary-sweet smile his way. “Oh, you know, just waiting on my next patient to get home so I can treat his knee. Already finished up with my other four patients about an hour ago.”

He smirks, but then he scowls. “You do realize you already saw me this morning over at Barn Three, right?”

“I know, but see, this whole treating your leg thing is actually a full-time job. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be here.”

This morning, I tracked him down over at the stalls and managed to get some ice and ibuprofen down him. I also managed to get him to do some stretching.

And sure, I might’ve left him with the impression that I was done for the day, but I wasn’t. I knew he’d be taking a lunch break at his house this afternoon and made damn sure I could capitalize on it.

And today’s afternoon task is incredibly important. It involves attempting to finally get my hands on that leg of his and administering a deep tissue massage so I can get a good feel for what state those injured tendons of his are in.

“So, what?” he questions, taking off his hat and tossing it onto the coffee table. “You’re breakin’ in to my house now?”

“Nope,” Jenny answers for me, stepping into the living room from the kitchen. Her smile is knowing. “I let her in.”

Rhett lets out an exhale and moves his irritated focus to his mom. “And why are you here?”

His mom is completely unfazed and puts a hand to her hip. “Because Joey met a new friend while she was horseback riding this morning and wants to go swimming at the lodge pool. So, we had to stop here to get her suit.”

Right on cue, Joey comes running down the hallway with a pair of goggles and a yellow bathing suit in her hands. “Daddy, I met a new friend today! Her name is Kayla, and she’s staying in the lodge with her mama and daddy until Monday morning!”

His daughter’s exuberance eases the tension from his face. “That’s great, baby,” Rhett says with a soft smile and reaches out to feather her hair with his hand.

She giggles and jumps out of his reach. “You want to go swimmin’ too?”

He shakes his head. “Not today, but you have fun, all right?”

“Y’all set, Josephine?” Jenny asks and Joey nods.

“You betcha!” She wraps her arms around Rhett’s waist and hugs him tight. “Love ya, Daddy!”