Reckless Heart Read Free Page B

of attraction. Which she immediately clamped down on. She wanted no distractions in any form. She had come to escape a domineering father who thought he had the right to run her life for her. And a faux fiancé who had followed her father's lead.
    She wanted to establish herself in a career of her choosing. She wasn't going to get sidetracked from her goal. The last thing she wanted was to feel any attraction toward her new boss. Or any other cowboy on the ranch.
    Not that she could totally ignore Josh Hart, of course. He was the perfect example of what a man should look like in her mind. She’d have to be dead to deny that. Not that she'd let herself act upon any attraction at all. She knew all about men. How they wanted women to wait on them hand and foot. How they derided any attempts to grow and develop. How they ignored her needs and wanted to use her for their own ends.
    She'd escaped that life. She'd observe the cowboys on the ranch and use them in her book. She’d research what they liked and what they didn’t. And it'd be strictly research, no personal involvement. She'd keep herself aloof and dedicated to doing the best job she could.
    She wasn't staying for life. Once her book sold, she’d move on.
    “You all right?” Josh asked, shaking her arm a little.
    Blinking, Molly nodded. She'd been daydreaming again. She had to watch that, it caused more trouble than she wanted in the past. She dare not let it affect this job.
    “A bit daunted by the task ahead, but I can manage.”
    He was too observant to let her slip away in her mind like she did so often and let it go unnoticed.
    She didn’t need that escape anymore. She'd left her father’s house and life and had no intentions of ever returning.
    He glanced around. “Wouldn’t take Rachel long to clean this up.”
    “My guess is Rachel would never have let it get this bad,” she replied tartly. “Don’t you have work to do?”
    “Miss Forrester, in case you were wondering, I run this spread, not you.”
    “I’m just trying to ease you out the door so I can get to work. I don’t need supervision to wash dishes.”
    She turned to face him. Big mistake. He stood too close. For the first time in ages, Molly wondered what she looked like. Had her lipstick worn off? Had the breeze in the yard tangled her hair? Did her clothes fit all right?
    Swallowing hard, she wished she dare move. Either a step back for safety’s sake, or a step forward so she could feel his heat, breathe in the scent of him that she’d caught when they had tangled on the stoop.
    “There will be five of us in for lunch. The rest of the men won’t be back until supper. Can you manage?”
    “Yes.”
    She watched him shake his head in doubt and head back outside.
    Josh paused on the stoop and gazed at the men near the barn. He'd tell them they had a housekeeper, but not to grow too used to the idea. He couldn't imagine this hothouse flower managing a single day, much less for the foreseeable future.
    He'd give her the chance, though. As she'd said, he didn't have any options. His sister had told him he needed someone the last time she'd been here. Not that he needed telling. Trying to do things around the house when there was so much to do around the ranch was impossible. He wouldn't call on his older brother for help, either. Jase had given years of his life to building the ranch to the spread it was now.
    The least Josh could do is keep it going strong.
    He set his hat on his head and started for the barn, wondering how long Molly Forrester would last.
    Breathing a sigh of relief when Josh Hart left the kitchen, Molly turned to the mess awaiting her. It didn’t look as if she would be writing anything today. Once she cleaned up the kitchen, she'd need to fix lunch for the cowboys. And then plan a meal for dinner.
    Sometime during the afternoon, she'd unpack, and get her laptop set up. At least she could do that much today.
    She wanted to explore the house, see which room would