A Home With The Rancher. April Arrington

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A Home With The Rancher - April  Arrington

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all along and she wasn’t equipped to run the company? That she was just another spoiled, rich girl who couldn’t pull her own weight?

      “Do you know what you’re doing?”

      Dani looked over her shoulder. Jaxon straddled the top rung of the fence and stared intently at her. His green eyes held no mockery or disdain. Just a concerned, empathetic light. And the kind note in his small voice made her think he knew much more than foolish men like Cal gave him credit for.

      “No,” she said. “I don’t.”

      Jaxon glanced down and shrugged. “I could help you. I mean...if you wanted me to, I could.”

      She smiled, her heart melting for this boy who’d lost so much, and whispered, “That’d be great. Thank you.”

      He looked up, revealing a crooked grin.

      Dani’s breath caught. The tilt of his mouth was so similar to his father’s brief smile earlier. The one that had lifted the sagging fatigue from Mac’s muscular frame and the heavy shadows from his handsome face. The one that had made it too difficult to come clean entirely and risk adding to the painful load he carried.

      “Okay.” Jaxon straightened on the fence rung and gestured toward the stacks of wood. “First, you gotta pick out the best logs. My dad says the seasoned ones with the cracks in ’em are the easiest to break.”

      Dani nodded then sifted through several logs before hefting one out of the pile and tilting it toward Jaxon. She drifted a finger along a deep crack in the wood. “Like this?”

      “Yeah.” He pointed at a large stump on the ground. “Now, put it on that and hit it right on the split.”

      She set the log on the stump, steadied it then grabbed the ax. “All right.” Taking a deep breath, she lifted the ax and started to swing. “Here we go.”

      “Wait!”

      Dani jumped and her hands slipped on the ax handle. The tool plunged to the ground, slicing into the dirt and lodging dangerously close to the toe of her sneaker.

      “Sorry.” Jaxon winced. “But if you stand like that, you’re gonna chop your foot off.”

      She raised an eyebrow, a humorless laugh bursting from her lips. “Sure looks that way.”

      Jaxon hopped off the fence, tossed his baseball glove on the grass and walked over. “You gotta stand wide and bend your knees.” He tapped her insteps with his boot until her stance met his approval then squatted slightly and held his hands up as though gripping the ax. “Like this, see? One hand high and one hand low.”

      Dani grinned, grabbed the ax and mimicked his posture. “This way?”

      “Yep.” Jaxon smiled and tossed his brown hair out of his eyes. “Dad splits two piles every day and saves ’em up for the cabins during winter. He lets me help sometimes. He told me it ain’t about strength. It’s about finesse.”

      Those warm flutters returned to her belly. She glanced across the field. Mac stood still, eyes fixed firmly on her and Jaxon, as his daughters chased each other by his side.

      “You need gloves, you know?” Jaxon added. “And glasses. At least, that’s what my dad says. He doesn’t let me practice without ’em. Says it’s better to be safe than sorry. You could ask him.” Jaxon’s voice hardened. “But he’s probably too busy to get ’em for you.”

      Mac lifted a hand to his forehead and squinted against the sun, his scrutiny more intense.

      Cheeks heating, Dani tore her gaze away. “I’ll be careful.” She adjusted her grip on the ax and tipped her chin toward the fence. “Jaxon, could you please watch from over there? I’d feel better if you were out of the danger zone.”

      He nodded, darted off then ducked between the fence rungs.

      She eyed the thick log standing on the wide stump, steadied her stance and swung. The blade stabbed into the surface of the wood and stuck, the impact reverberating down her arms.

      “Take it out and hit it again.” Jaxon climbed on to the fence.

      Dani smiled, pried the ax from the log then struck it harder. The blade landed perfectly, a heavy thud echoing across the valley, but the log didn’t split.

      Her back and shoulders were another matter. Every muscle in her upper body stretched with strain, screaming that she’d pay for this later.

      Jaxon smacked the fence rung with his palms. “You got perfect aim. Better than Mr. Cal.”

      Dani laughed, the excitement on his face easing the painful throb in her arms. “Really? You’re not just trying to make me feel better, are you?”

      “Heck no. You’re a better shot than him any day.” He grinned and bounced on the fence rung. “Flip it over and do it again.”

      She did. Two more swift strokes of the ax and a satisfying crack rang out as the wood split, toppling off the stump and onto the ground in even halves.

      Dani tipped her head back, heaved out a satisfied breath and closed her eyes. The sun’s heat seeped into her skin, her muscles tightening deliciously and a sweet satisfaction vibrating within her.

      Take that, suits. She laughed. This was something those stuffy executives could never experience behind an office desk or in a corporate boardroom.

      “You’re good.” Jaxon hopped off the fence, scooped up his baseball glove and tugged it on. “Better than good.” He crossed to her side, pounding a fist in the mitt. “You play baseball? ’Cuz I bet you’d be killer at bat.”

      “Yeah. I like baseball.” She bent, grabbed another log and balanced it on the stump. “I watch the Mets on TV quite a bit but it’s been years since I’ve played.”

      “The Mets?” His brow furrowed. “You from New York?”

      Dani froze, the log’s bark rough against her palm. She glanced up and the innocent curiosity on the boy’s face intensified the churn in her stomach. “Yes.”

      He mulled this over for a moment then asked, “How’d you end up here?”

      She swallowed the thick lump in her throat. “It’s complicated.” And shameful. Which made her a straight-up awful person. She ducked her head and resumed her chopping stance. “I should get back to work. And you should probably check in with your dad. Thanks for the help.”

      Jaxon kicked the ground and spun away. “Whatever.”

      The hurt note in his tone sent a fresh wave of guilt through her. “Hey.” She waited until he stopped, back planted to her. “There’s no way I could’ve done this without your help. And I really do enjoy your company. I just need to finish this, okay?”

      He looked over his shoulder, voice hesitant. “So can I stay and watch? I promise I won’t get in the way.”

      What was it Mac had said? Just don’t mind them and go about your business as usual.

      Dani’s eyes returned to Mac. He’d rejoined the

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