 by Kristen Proby.jpg)
Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 90164 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 451(@200wpm)___ 361(@250wpm)___ 301(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90164 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 451(@200wpm)___ 361(@250wpm)___ 301(@300wpm)
Remington Wild is a single dad of two adorable kids, and as the oldest son of the Wild family, has recently taken over the Wild River Ranch from his father. Life is crazy, and he’s finally willing to admit that he needs help, and the sooner the better. He has no idea that the beautiful woman he sees every day at Bitterroot Valley Coffee Co. is the woman who would show up for the job.
Erin Montgomery couldn’t get out of Seattle fast enough. It’s not that she doesn’t love her big, loud family, but living in the big city just wasn’t for her. The minute she stepped foot in Bitterroot Valley, she knew she was home. She loves the slower pace, the friendly people, and her job at the coffee shop. Even the smoking hot grumpy guy who stops in every afternoon can’t put a damper on how much she loves small town life!
Thanks to car trouble, and her stubbornness when it comes to using her trust fund, Erin needs a second job and applies for the position of a part-time nanny. She’s surprised to find that it’s Grumpy himself who answers the door at the ranch, but Erin quickly learns that she loves his kids and the ranch, and it’s a no-brainer to take the job. She just has to remind herself to resist the sexy rancher and keep it strictly professional.
Remington is attracted to his younger nanny, and finds himself falling headfirst in love with her. He and his kids have never been happier, and he knows she is the perfect addition to their family for as long as she’s willing to stay. Hopefully forever.
But when secrets are exposed, one of which endangers his children, will their love survive? Or will it tear them apart?
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
Prologue
Remington
“Sir?”
Numb, and not a little lost, I turn from the window that looks out to Bozeman, to the woman standing behind me. “Yes?”
“I know this is an incredibly difficult time, but would you like to meet your daughter?”
My daughter.
Our daughter. Mine and Jessica’s.
“Oh, of course. Yeah.”
“Right this way.” She gestures for me to follow her and leads me down a long, stark hallway lit too brightly with fluorescent lights. Behind closed doors, I can hear people talking, some crying.
And all I can think is, get me out of here.
“I understand that the circumstances are, well, different, but I have to ask you some questions.”
“Sure, just let me see the baby first, okay?” Yeah, my voice is harsh and short, but for fuck’s sake, I haven’t even met my child yet.
“Of course,” she says and leads me into a room.
A recovery room.
“This is where your wife would have been—” She breaks off and clears her throat. “Go ahead and have a seat, and I’ll wheel your daughter in.”
I nod and sit in the one uncomfortable chair opposite the empty bed.
That’s where Jessica should be, not on her way to an operating room to—
“Here she is,” the same nurse says as she walks back into the room, wheeling the hospital cradle to me.
I look inside, and there’s my little girl.
“Six pounds, four ounces,” the nurse says, “and eighteen inches long. She’s perfectly healthy, Mr. Wild.”
“Yeah.” I have to clear my throat as I gaze down at the baby. “She’s beautiful.”
“What’s her name?”
I reach in and scoop her up, then lift her to my face and breathe her in. She smells like baby powder and, ironically, hope.
“Mr. Wild?”
I kiss my daughter’s cheek and then look up at the nurse, raising an eyebrow. “Yes?”
“What’s her name?”
“Holly,” I reply, looking down into the face that looks so much like Jess’s. “She wanted to name her Holly.”
“That’s lovely. I’ll leave you be now. The doctor will be in shortly.”
I nod but don’t reply, and when it’s just Holly and me, I let out a long breath. The baby’s eyes are open, and although I know she can’t see me, she’s looking up at me.
“You are the most beautiful, amazing girl ever born,” I whisper. “And you and your older brother are going to be best buds.”
I swipe at a tear running down my cheek as Holly opens her tiny mouth and searches for her fist.
She’s hungry.
“Don’t worry, okay? We’re going to make this work. I mean, this isn’t my first rodeo, and my parents live close by. Heck, you have three uncles and an aunt close by, too, so there are plenty of grown-ups to take care of things.”
I sigh and lean in to press my lips to her forehead.
“But, my sweet girl, your mama didn’t make it. I’m so sorry.”
I swallow hard and cuddle Holly against my shoulder as I wonder what in the hell I’m going to do.
“I’m so damn sorry.”
Chapter One
Erin
“You’re changing the sign!”
I grin up at the man who’s screwing in the new sign.
Welcome to Bitterroot Valley, Population 8,746.
“The population changed again,” he calls down to me, and I nod.
Yeah, I am one of the new residents who has changed the population from 8,731. I moved here in December, and since then, three babies have been born, along with a couple of new families that moved to town.
Just in the past four months.
“How often do you change it?” I call back.
“Once a year, when it’s warm enough to climb up on a ladder without freezing to death,” he informs me. I nod, look at the sign once more in satisfaction, and then keep walking, on my way to work.
It’s official. I’m a citizen of Bitterroot Valley, Montana. I mean, sure, I’ve technically been that since December when I came here with all my cousins for a vacation and decided to stay, but it feels extra official now, and I couldn’t be happier. I knew as soon as we landed here that this was my home.
With a little more bounce in my step, I make my way down the sidewalk. It’s finally springtime, which means that the bitter cold from winter seems to be over. We still have a little snow on the ground, and I’ve been told that the mountains will have snow until early summer, but it’s finally warm enough to walk to my job at Bitterroot Valley Coffee Co.
I love my job. I’ve met so many people already, thanks to the coffee shop. I have my regulars who never miss a day, and the best part is, I’m still meeting new people all the time. I’ve never really considered myself to be a social butterfly, but I admit that it was hard to move away from my huge, loud family to a place where I knew absolutely no one. But I’ve started to weave myself into the community, and it’s only made me love this little town more.