Heartbreak Ranch Read Online Free

that?”
    â€œI was telling Julie girl that there’s been big changes at the ranch since she was here last.”
    â€œSince she’s barely been home for the last seven years, I imagine it’s going to seem that way to her.”
    â€œWell, it certainly wasn’t the prospect of your charming personality that drew me home, big guy,” Julianne drawled. He slanted a glance her way. The light amusement on her face was a kick in the ego. Sarcasm was wasted on her; she skated right by it. It was one of her more annoying traits.
    â€œAre you planning on showing her around, Jed?” Gabe asked.
    Before he could open his mouth, Julianne answered quickly, “I’m just going to wander around by myself, see what’s new.”
    â€œShe can tag along with me today,” Jed replied. He felt a flicker of satisfaction at the visible start she gave at his words.
    Gabe nodded, as if it had been all decided. “Well, I gotta get to work and earn my paycheck.” He winked at Julianne. “See ya later, won’t I?”
    She smiled at the older man, that punch-in-the-gut smile of hers, the one she rarely wasted on Jed. “You know you will. Can I get in on a game of poker some night?”
    Guffawing, Gabe nodded. “You betcha. Got plenty of new hands since you’ve been here last. They’ll be easy pigeons.”
    The sunlight slanted and bounced over her hair whenshe tossed her head back and laughed. “That’s what I like to hear.”
    Jed got a mental image of Julianne in the bunkhouse playing cards with the hands, and for some reason it didn’t set well. She’d done so in the past, he remembered, when she’d still been in high school. Before the men had figured out that those batting eyes and sunny smile disguised the soul of a cardsharp, they’d been cleaned out several times. Cards were the one thing Harley had taken the time to teach his daughter, and she was ruthless. Not to mention being a consummate bluffer. But she wasn’t a kid anymore, and some of these hands weren’t men she’d grown up with.
    â€œC’mon,” Jed said abruptly, turning on his heel. “I’ll show you our new foaling barn, then we’ll take the truck. I need to check on the herd in the north pasture. You can ride along.”
    â€œNo, you go ahead. I’m just going to poke around on my own.”
    He stopped and turned back to her. She slipped her fingertips into the back pockets of her jeans and smiled winningly. With the back of his hand, he pushed up his hat and surveyed her. “It’s not like you to pass up an opportunity to tag along and pester me with a thousand questions.”
    She gave a shrug, and her smile never faltered. Only someone who knew her well would have seen the hint of nerves in her eyes, and wondered at it.
    His gaze narrowed. He figured he knew Julianne better than most. At least he once had. “Like Gabe said, we made some improvements around here. If you want to know what they are, come with me. Otherwise, get yourself back to the house and stay out of the way.”
    Her gold hair swirled as she angled her chin, and hereyes spit sparks. “You don’t give me orders, Jed. You never did.”
    The corner of his mouth tilted. Despite any other changes Julianne might have undergone, her temper had remained the same. She flared up as easily as dry twigs in a campfire. “The way I remember it, I gave plenty of orders. You just didn’t follow them.”
    â€œAnd what makes you think anything is different now?”
    â€œEverything’s different,” he said, suddenly serious.
    â€œIsn’t that why you came back?”
    Emotion flashed across her face so quickly he couldn’t be sure he’d seen it at all. For a moment, he thought she’d turn away without a word. Then that slow, mocking smile, the one she seemed to reserve especially for him, curved those full lips, and she