Love All Out - The Complete Series (A Stepbrother Romance) Read Free Page A

girl.” I paused and lowered my voice. “I can handle the work, Daddy. The racehorses are my job, my responsibility.” I almost added that they were my birthright, but I didn’t want to sound like a spoiled brat.
    “I know they’re your job, sweetheart, and that you take the responsibility very seriously. But you need help and that’s final. I’m not suggesting that you hire someone, I’m insisting on it.”
    I narrowed my eyes and scowled. I wanted to argue, but Daddy very rarely put his foot down. I knew that if he insisted I hire someone, I’d have to do it.
    “Fine,” I finally agreed, pretending I had a choice. “Dallas told me he’s talking to people today. I’ll go down to the stables and sit in on the interviews. But I’m not going to hire just anyone. They have to be qualified and have lots of experience with breeding.”
    “I’ve already hired someone for you,” Daddy told us and leaned back in his chair.
    I was caught off guard by the announcement. My mouth opened and closed a few times before I could speak. “You have… who?”
    “Renee Parker. I’m sure you remember her. I think you guys went to high school with her son.”
    Matt sat up straight in his seat, instantly alert and downright giddy. James Parker had been the hottest guy in at our high school. Matt and I had both had desperate crushes on James, but neither of us had ever mustered enough courage to actually speak to him.
    “I remember Renee,” Matt replied quickly. “She volunteered at school stuff. She was always one of the nicest moms.”
    I scowled at Matt before turned back to my father. “Yes she’s incredibly sweet, but what does she know about horses? Doesn’t she work at Dr. Wilson’s office?” My voice was near growling and I didn’t bother hiding my impatience.
    “Yes, she’s been a nurse for quite some time, I believe,” Daddy agreed. “But she grew up on a place similar to this, in Kentucky. Her father bred racehorses… so did her grandfather and great-grandfather. Dr. Wilson is retiring and Renee’s decided to leave with him. You know the Parker’s only live a few miles from here. Renee is tired of driving in to town every day to work. I think it’ll be a perfect arrangement for all of us.”
    Matt grinned and I knew he was fantasizing about James visiting his mother here at the ranch. “I think it sounds wonderful, Cole. You were right, Willow and I could use some help.”
    I shot him a look that said “traitor”, but he didn’t miss a beat.
    “Just think about it, Willow,” Matt continued. “With any luck, Mondo or Denver’s Pride will place at the Derby. Hell, they may both place. And the better they do at the Triple Crown Races, the busier we’re going to be. We’ll need someone to focus on the dirty work while we negotiate six and seven figure contracts.” He gave me a wide, confident smile and I knew he truly believed our program was about to get attention.
    “Okay,” I agreed with a sigh. I turned to Daddy. “I wish you’d talked to me about this before you hired her, but I won’t argue about it.”
    “Fantastic!” Daddy stood up and collected our empty plates. He continued talking as he made his way to the sink. “I would have talked to you first, pumpkin, but it all happened kind of suddenly. I ran in to Renee at the market yesterday. We struck up a conversation and she mentioned that she was looking for work. I knew she had experience, so I offered her the job before anyone else had a chance to hire her. She starts tomorrow.”
    “Tomorrow’s Matt’s day off…” I mumbled. It was my turn to stare blankly at the table. I knew that Daddy and Matt were being reasonable and that an extra set of hands would be an asset. But I wasn’t looking forward to having an outsider in my barn and I wished I had more time to prepare myself.
    “I can come in tomorrow, no problem,” Matt quickly replied. “I’d love to, actually. You can train Renee and I’ll pick up the slack.”