The Cowgirl and the Geek: Small-Town Sweethearts, #2

By Aileen Fish

On the verge of seeing her dream of owning her own restaurant become a reality, Katie Wooten questions her brother's motives when he enlists the aid of his friend, Juan Diego Santiago, for the renovations on her bar and grill. The guy's known as a player. She doesn't need his drama. Katie's life is all about cooking, and no man is going to distract her from making her business a success. Oh, but this temptation was so distracting. So handsome. She'll have to use the same determination she puts into the renovations to convince him to find someone else. She doesn't have time for love.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Aileen Fish
• Release date: Oct 5, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223140047

Book preview

Chapter One

Katie Wooten performed one last head count on the calves she’d trailered over from the ranch for the junior rodeo at the White Oak rodeo grounds. All present and accounted for. She offered a mock salute to Ted, one of the coordinators, and went in search of her BFF, Cheyenne Miller. The next few hours were hers to enjoy.

Cheyenne was wrangling a small herd of her own, but her critters had two legs. She tugged on a boy’s sleeve. Tommy, we do not practice our roping skills on each other.

Katie shook her head and grinned. Her calves were so much easier to control. I think my charges listen better.

Yeah, but your charges grow up to be dinner. Cheyenne wrinkled her nose and tucked her thick blonde hair behind one ear. Spreading her arms, she indicated the kids around her. One of these darling little people might grow up to be the president.

There’s a scary thought. When do you get to turn these guys over to their parents?

After the dummy roping. Cheyenne reached out to grab a lasso that flipped into the air. Tommy! Jilly isn’t a dummy. And it’s not nice to pretend she is.

Katie clenched her jaw to keep from laughing. Tommy McCallum was the wildest kid she’d ever met. Seeing him in action made her question having kids of her own someday. Tying him to a chair or caging him was illegal. How did his parents cope?

Shouts rang out from the direction of the calf pen and Katie turned to see what the problem was, her body tensing in preparation to respond as needed. Two men were chasing one of her calves, which was high tailing it toward her. And the kids. Get the kids back, she told Cheyenne as she began to run.

The large, big-eyed brown calf looked terrified at all the commotion. Katie anticipated his direction and the muscles in her thighs bunched, ready to jump as it ran nearby. She watched, waited…closer…now! Katie leaped—and collided with something hard and much larger than a calf.

Oof! She landed on top of whatever she hit. Her lungs refused to inflate. Feet pounded past her, voices shouting directions, kids yelling.

Are you okay? The body beneath her rolled to one side, easing her to the ground.

I’m fine. Where’s my calf? She bounced to her feet, searching for her calf. The poor creature stood bawling near a man who clutched the rope looped around the calf’s neck. The other end of the rope was in the hands of none other than Tommy McCallum.

A male voice said, That kid’s pretty good.

Katie suddenly noticed the man who’d collided with her. She ran her gaze slowly up the length of him, all six feet of lean male, clad in jeans and a tan Henley T-shirt that accentuated his pecs. When she met his chocolate brown eyes, he grinned. She didn’t. Juan-Diego. What are you doing here?

His lips twitched. I came to watch the rodeo, like everyone else here.

No, I mean here. She pointed at their feet. Slamming into me. Didn’t you see the calf had escaped?

Yeah, and I saw it was heading for you. I tried to keep it from running into you.

I was trying to catch it. She let her breath out in a huff, just barely containing the anguished, exasperated wail the situation begged for. It’s one of ours. I’m responsible for getting them home safely.

He lifted his hands in appeal. Hey, sorry. I was trying to help. His smile disappeared and he glanced away.

No problem. Thanks for the thought, I guess. She should have known it was Juan-Diego Santiago. The guy was like an albatross around her neck. Either he or the universe had it in for her.

Walking toward her calf, Katie reached for the rope restraining it, but Tommy wasn’t relinquishing his end.

No way. That’s my rope. I need it for the dummy roping. He tugged on his end.

Tommy, I need to get the calf back in the pen. Since you did such a great job of roping him, can you help me lead him back?

He grinned and stood taller. Yeah, sure.

She had to hustle to keep up with him. The calf bawled but followed the tugs on the rope.

Juan-Diego followed, too. This is a really big deal.

It’s important to the kids. They practice their skills year-round. We’ve had a couple of kids go on to compete nationally.

The man probably couldn’t help his urge to rescue her from what was a normal part of life on the ranch, since he was a weekender. Katie tried to not use the word as a pejorative.

Weekender.

They weren’t all players. That title was reserved for Dan. Thank God Dan had stopped coming to town once he’d gone off to college.

Juan-Diego reached for the latch on the gate. That’s got to be great for skill-building, and confidence.

Katie jumped in to block him. I’ll get that. We don’t want any more escapees.

Once the four-legged adventurer was safe and the junior cowboy escorted back to Cheyenne, Katie turned for the refreshment stand. Coffee and a doughnut were the perfect cure for her morning so far.

Juan-Diego strode next to her. Do you watch from the stands or hang out by your calves during the events?

I stay near the calves or help in the ring if needed. But you’ll have a much better view of the activities from the stands. Hopefully, he’d take the hint. She wasn’t in the mood to teach a weekender. Especially not this weekender. He was bad luck.

Reaching the booth, she joined the end of the refreshment line.

He studied her for a few moments. She could practically feel him tugging at the door she kept bolted between herself and single men. Single players. She knew what Juan-Diego was all about. She’d heard her brother Josh talk with the other guys on the ranch. A hookup was the last thing she needed.

Good to know. I’d better go find a seat. He nodded his goodbye and strolled off into the crowd. He must have given up on picking the lock she kept around her heart.

Katie’s breath left in a rush. She was going to need at least two doughnuts this morning.

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Sitting in the dusky twilight in his home office that night, Juan-Diego saw headlights flash across the wall, and he glanced out the window. Katie pulled up outside the Royal Oak Bar & Grill, kitty-corner to his Victorian house.

She climbed from her truck, paused to look at the front left wheel well, then walked around the back of the building.

Guilt kicked him in the gut. She hadn’t gotten that fender ding fixed, and from the cold shoulder she’d given him at the junior rodeo, he’d bet she hadn’t forgiven him, either.

He wasn’t born to the mountain