The Bull Rider Meets His Match Read Online Free Page A

wrapped a blue silk scarf loosely around her neck.
    All of her looks seemed to be concerned lately. Stress had taken a toll on his sister. She didn’t smile as much as she used to, didn’t seem to feel as bulletproof. She was dressed for her interview in clothes that Grady recognized, and he hadn’t been home for two years, which made him wonder if he should have pressed harder for her to take the money he’d offered her. Annie had her pride, but there came a point where accepting monetary help was a matter of common sense. The house needed work, she needed some new clothes and there were her two young daughters to care for.
    â€œI’m sure,” Grady said with an easy grin.
    â€œEmily offered to take care of them.” Emily Mansanti was the girls’ usual afternoon babysitter, who’d happened to have a free morning today.
    â€œWhy spend the money when you have me?” He wasn’t fool enough to add, “How hard could it be to take care of two little girls?” The past several days had taught him exactly how hard it could be. Kristen and Katie put new meaning into the word energetic. Although they were blond-haired-green-eyed images of their sensible brown-haired, blue-eyed mother, they seemed to have inherited their uncle Grady’s sense of adventure. And now he was getting an idea of the challenges he must have presented his own parents. Constant energy was exhausting.
    Annie gave her head a small shake. “Just making sure,” she said as the girls walked into the kitchen.
    â€œGood luck on your job,” Kristen said, hugging Annie around the waist.
    â€œI don’t have it yet, sweetie, but I’m going to give it a shot.”
    â€œWe still get to go to riding lessons, right?” Katie piped up. “If you get the job.”
    â€œI’m going to take you to lessons,” Grady said.
    Before the girls could respond, Annie said, “He’ll take you to lessons if you behave while I’m gone. If you don’t...” She held up a finger in a warning gesture, and both girls nodded solemnly.
    Somewhere along the line Annie had shifted from easygoing sister to strict mom.
    â€œYou’re going to be late,” Grady said.
    â€œYeah. Wish me luck.”
    â€œGood luck,” Grady said. He’d told himself a couple of times that morning that they wouldn’t have called her in for an interview if she wasn’t a serious candidate. He didn’t trust Lex, but he did trust Danielle, and the fact that she’d arranged for the interview after they talked made him feel hopeful for his sister’s chances. Heaven knew she was due for a break.
    â€œDo we get to help you build the garage?” Kristen asked as soon as the door shut behind her mother.
    â€œPlease?” Katie asked. “We like to hammer.”
    â€œYeah,” Grady said. In fact, that sounded like a fine idea. They could hammer nails into a board and he could get some work done on the frame. He found two lightweight tack hammers in the tool box and two sturdy boards. After partially hammering ten nails into each board, he cautioned the girls to grip the hammer with both hands and to never hold the nails with their fingers. He also told them to tap, not wallop.
    Maybe he’d given a few too many strict instructions because after ten minutes, the girls became bored with mindless hammering and wanted another job. It didn’t take long for him to realize that he wasn’t going to get a lot done while they were there helping him.
    â€œWhat else can you guys do while I work?” he asked. An idea struck him. “Hey, shouldn’t you be reading books for that library award thing your mom told me about?” After the twins had gone to bed the previous evening, Annie had explained to Grady that her girls were dead set on winning the local library’s Dedicated Reader Awards. It was a big deal in town, and part of Grady’s duties would