Page 33 of The Cowboy Fix

Izzy glanced at the boy in the rearview mirror. “That sounds like it will be fun.”

For the first time since she roomed with Mal in college Izzy was a little bit jealous of her best friend’s good fortune. Who took a temp job and found the love of her life? And another child to love, too? Mal did. Of course, she’d had a hard time getting there, but here she was.

“How about you, Aunt Izzy?” Andee asked. The twins had called her aunt practically from the moment they could talk, so that kind of made them her family, didn’t it?

Aside from the challenge of bringing the ranch back to financial health? Or that she got to spend time getting to know Nathan? “I like... hmmm... that’s kind of hard to say but I like the guesthouse garden the best.”

“Is that why we’re planting a garden at Grandma’s shed?” Andee twisted to face Izzy. It hadn’t taken the twins long to adopt Timmy and Blake, and the rest of the Lohmen clan. “Can we grow snapdragons? B.J. says they were Grandma’s favorite. They’re my favorite too.”

There was that twinge of envy again. Izzy nodded as she parked near the cottage. “We’ll put them at the top of our list.”

The brothers had gotten a lot done. There was a new shed behind the cottage. The buildings’ gray color turned almost teal in the bright sunshine. The front porch was closed in and stained wood trim had been added to the eaves and around the door and windows, giving the tiny place a bit of a gingerbread look. The matching flower boxes under the two front windows were stained to match the trim. The arch she’d envisioned was built at the far end of the garden. White pea gravel covered the ground. Long raised garden beds that also matched the trim lined the area where seating could be set up.

Her vision had come to life. It was beautiful, with birds chattering in the background and sunlight adding its special chorus.

Her car door popped open. “Hi. We weren’t expecting you today.”

After not seeing him for days, Nathan was a sight for sore eyes. If she wasn’t so sure she wouldn’t fall in love again—at least not until she figured out what had gone wrong the last time—this cowboy could be the one. The rare smile in his dark eyes took her breath away. His black hair stood on end where he’d pushed the dark waves off his forehead. A probing look took her in from head to the toes of her work boots.

Man oh man, did she have a problem. She’d thought she’d fallen hard for her ex. And look how that had turned out. By the time he didn’t show up on their wedding day, she hardly knew Jim. That was not a mistake she was tempted to repeat. Could she really and truly fall in love again? She wasn’t sure.

Pasting a smile on her face, she eased out of the Rover, making sure she didn’t brush Nathan’s solid abs. His shirt was off and tied around his waist. A tool belt hung low on his hips. Thank goodness he stepped back, leaving room for her to breathe.

The kids were already out of the car and heading for Blake and Jonas, who were adding benches in the shade of the trees between the garden and the cottage.

“We finished our chores and wanted to see what you boys,”—not just Nathan, Izzy told the gal inside herself who couldn’t take her eyes off the rancher—“have done with the place. It’s looking good,” she admitted as casually as she could manage. There was no point in telegraphing her attraction to the man since she had no plan to do anything about it.

He turned toward the cottage. “We’re almost finished. Do you like what we’ve done so far?”

“I do,” She switched her gaze from Nathan to the cottage. The man was more appealing than her favorite brand of ice cream. The whole sexy cowboy vibe he had going was hard to resist. “How’s it looking inside?”

The cabin, not the man, crazy girl.

When she graduated from college, she knew exactly what she wanted to do. And she was doing it. Saving struggling businesses from their financial burdens. The money she earned gave her a certain amount of independence and a cushy savings.

Because of the sense of freedom she’d developed as a kid going from adventure to adventure with Sylvia, Izzy was grateful. Maybe that was also why she hadn’t known the man she’d agreed to marry. She was too busy subconsciously trying to create what she didn’t have as a kid. A mom and dad who loved their daughter.

She hadn’t told her mom any of this. The whole thing was silly. Sylvia loved her. That’s all Izzy needed.

Jim had proved that with his parting words when she’d called to see where he was.You don’t need a husband, Izzy. You’ve got your whole life planned out.

And surprise, her heart wasn’t as broken as it should have been. Was Jim right? Except for worrying about a mother who didn’t want her daughter hovering, was there no room in her life for that perfect long-term relationship?

So, what was her perfect life supposed to look like? She was afraid to admit she didn’t know.

“What do you think?” Nathan stood aside, holding the door open for her after he entered.

What she thought was that she was out of her league when it came to love. Pushing the thought away, she looked around the cottage. The brothers had kept the original footprint, but they’d raised the ceiling and added a small, simple kitchen. New flooring close to the same color as the trim had been laid down. Izzy checked out the bathroom. It was updated and cute in shades of green and blue.

Finally, pushing her regrets about Jim aside, she faced the rancher making her have second thoughts about the direction she’d chosen for her future. “This is wonderful. It’ll be cozy when we add some furniture and decorate.”

Nathan asked, “Do you need help with the landscaping, plants, and things?”

“I’ll get my mom and Mal and the kids to help,” she said, a little desperate to leave behind her attraction for Nathan and think of something else. “How about we make a trade?”

He gave her a speculating look. “What kind of trade?”

“Well, you’ve already agreed to give me barrel-racing lessons. What if in trade, I give you a new brand?” Hoping to escape into the big wide open where only the mountains towered over her, Izzy edged toward the door.

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