New Year, New Man: A Kiss on Crimson Ranch / The Dance Off / The Right Mr. Wrong

Sara turned to his daughter. “Would you show me the other cabins?” She glanced warily at the thick pine forest that surrounded his land. “I want the one least likely to be invaded by critters.”

Josh expected Claire to offer up one of the flip comebacks she gave him every time he asked for her help. To his surprise, she gave Sara a genuine smile. “Sure. Will you tell me about all the stars you know in Hollywood?”

A momentary cloud passed through Sara’s eyes before she smiled brightly. “Oh, sweetie, I’ve got some stories for you.”

Claire giggled. Actually giggled as she led Sara toward the row of cabins that sat in front of the small stream at the back of the property.

“Unbelievable,” he said under his breath.

He heard April laugh again and whirled on her. “What?” he demanded. “What is so funny?”

She took a step back, palms up. “Nothing at all. Do you want to discuss menus while I check out the kitchen?”

Josh recognized a peace offering and was smart enough to take it. “Let’s go,” he said, and headed for the house.

Chapter Three (#ulink_494024fe-5be6-5a63-9971-983e061707f7)

Sara glanced up from the computer in Crimson’s small-town library. It had been three days since she and April had arrived in Colorado. Word spread fast that former starlet Serena Wellens was in town for the summer. A steady stream of locals had stopped by the ranch for neighborly visits. Of course the disappointment in meeting a once-upon-a-time celebrity in real life had been obvious from the comments she’d received.

“You looked taller on TV.”

“You were so pretty when you were younger.”

“Do you still talk to Amanda? Can you get her autograph?”

Her favorite had been from the town’s mayor, who’d blurted, “I read you overdosed a year ago. I think I sent your gran flowers as a condolence.”

It was a good thing the ego had been pummeled out of her years ago. Otherwise, the blatant disapproval might have done her in.

She watched a couple of teenage boys stare at her from behind the bookshelves at the far end of the room. She pulled off her headphones and winked in their direction. Her smile broadened as they ran away, books clattering to the floor in their wake.

“You enjoyed that a little too much.”

She started at Josh’s deep voice and swiveled her head to see him approach. Quickly, she clicked the mouse to minimize the screen and turned to block his view completely. “The picture-book section is on the other side,” she said with a huff.

To her dismay, he gave her a knowing grin. “Whatcha doin’, Hollywood?” His lazy drawl made her insides twist in a way she didn’t like.

She shrugged in response. “Checking out the gossip sites. A little Facebook. April’s meeting with the owner at the market to arrange food deliveries to the ranch so I’m killing time.”

He craned his neck to peer over her shoulder. “I think you looked me up on Google.”

“You wish,” she sputtered as a voice sounded through the headphones that she’d dropped to the desk.

“Josh Travers does it again. It’s a new record and another amazing showing from bull riding’s reigning king.” Applause and cheers echoed in the background.

Heat rose to her cheeks as Josh arched a brow.

“Fine. I was curious. So what. Don’t tell me you haven’t looked me up, too.”

“I wasn’t sure which site I liked better—serenawellensforever.com or sarawellsstinks.com.”

“Just the Two of Us fans didn’t love it when I changed my name. They thought they knew me when I was Serena. Like my name mattered.”

“It mattered to you.”

“Reigning king, huh?” she asked.

“That was a while back,” he said with a smile, as if he knew she was changing the subject.

She studied him for a few moments. “I saw pictures of your accident.”

His back stiffened. “Pictures exaggerate.”

“The bull landed on top of you.”

“They got him off quick.”

“Does your knee still bother you?”

“Not really.”

“Liar,” she whispered. “Do you miss it?”

“Not really.”

“Did you ever see that Jim Carrey movie Liar, Liar when he can only tell the truth?”

He scratched his jaw. “I don’t think so.”

“It’s an interesting idea, don’t you think? Even if he tried to tell a lie, it wouldn’t come out of his mouth.”

He just watched her.

“I’m kind of babbling.”

“Yep.”

He did that to her, she thought. He was such a presence. Big and broad and totally in his space—in her space. People in L.A. were always planning what came next, even if it was a trip to the mall. But Josh stayed in the moment no matter what he was doing. He kept busy, and to her eternal gratitude, she hadn’t seen much of him other than watching him walk across the property early in the morning to take care of the horses, then catching glimpses of him throughout the day.

Yesterday, he’d spent most of his time on the roof of the largest cabin, replacing worn shingles. When the sun moved high overhead and the temperature rose with it, he’d taken off his shirt. Much to her dismay, Sara found herself staring out the window in the office far too often. It had been a while since she’d had a man in her life, but she figured she could get her wayward hormones under better control than that.

Here in the quiet intimacy of the library, those little buggers took flight again. With Josh standing in front of her, his faded T-shirt stretched over his chest and sculpted arms, she could imagine...

Nope.

She did not imagine. She’d given up her imagination when she’d abandoned her dreams, around the time she began filling in waitress under the occupation heading on paperwork.

This man was all that stood in the way of the possibility of reclaiming her life, or at the very least, creating a new one. The money from the sale would allow April and her to start over. The only view she’d let herself imagine was Josh Travers disappearing in her rearview mirror.