Watching Shane stride up the walkway to the doors to the school, Paige couldn’t help but admire the way the man’s ass and muscular thighs looked in his Wrangler jeans. Not surprisingly, she wasn’t the only one. Several women’s gazes dropped to his fine derrière after he’d passed them. The rest of him wasn’t bad either, with those broad shoulders and narrow waist. Too bad he was gay. Then again, the last thing she wanted was to get involved with a man right then—especially one she was now working for.

Just before Shane reached the door, a bleached blonde, in tight jeans and an even tighter V-neck tee, stepped into his path. Even from the truck, Paige could see the lust in the woman’s eyes. Paige snorted and spoke aloud since no one could hear her. “What? Does she think she can convince him to take a walk on the wild side and try some pussy for a change? It doesn’t work that way, honey.”

Somehow, Shane managed to get past the woman, who stared after him as he entered the school. A thought crossed Paige’s mind. She wondered if Shane and Tucker had adopted their daughter or if they’d used a surrogate. Not that it mattered. She’d heard the affection in Shane’s voice whenever he’d talked about Arianna. The little girl was clearly loved.

A sharp rap on the passenger window startled Paige causing her to yelp. Her hand went to her chest as she saw a dark-haired woman with her hand over her mouth and her eyes wide. Paige hit the button to roll down the window.

“Oh, my God!” the woman squeaked. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Paige willed her heart and respiration rates to settle back down. “That’s okay. I just wasn’t expecting anyone to knock. It didn’t help I was daydreaming.”

“I’m sorry. I just wanted to introduce myself. I’m Nicole Mathers. You must be the Red River Ranch’s new house manager.”

It was Paige’s turn to gape. “Um . . . I am . . . but how did you—” She rolled her eyes. “Never mind. I used to live in a small town. News travels fast.”

Nicole giggled. “Yeah, it does. But in my case, my husband, Hank, and I both work at the ranch. I help out in the office part-time from 8:00 to 1:00, dealing with customers and orders. I saw Hank at lunch, and he’d said Shane had gone to the airport to pick you up. When I saw you sitting here in the Red River truck, I figured I’d introduce myself.”

Opening the passenger door, Paige hopped out and extended her hand. “Now that the butterflies have settled in my stomach again, it’s nice to meet you, Nicole. I’m Paige Merritt.”

The shorter woman shook her hand. “Nice to meet you too, Paige. My daughter, Joey, short for Joan Marie, is in Arianna’s class. They’re actually best friends. Anytime you have any questions, and Shane and Tucker are busy, feel free to call me if I’m not at the ranch. The guys have a class phone list on the refrigerator.”

“Thanks. I appreciate that. I’m sure I’ll have a lot of questions—especially about the town and where everything is.” Movement out of the corner of Paige’s eye had her turning her head. Shane was on his way back, and this time he managed to get by the blonde bimbo without being stopped. But Paige didn’t miss the dirty look the scorned woman gave his back.

“That’s Bridget Kline,” Nicole murmured, conspiratorially. “Her nose is so high in the air she could drown in a rainstorm. She’s had her beady little eyes on Shane and Tucker for a while now, but they want no part of her.”

“I wouldn’t think so, considering they’re gay.”

Nicole opened her mouth to respond to Paige’s statement, but let the subject drop as Shane approached them.

“Hey, Nic.”

“Hi, Shane. Just introduced myself to Paige. I told her to call me if she had any questions when you and Tucker weren’t around.”

“Thanks. I’ll make sure she knows where the class list is. How’re the rodeo plans coming along?”

“Fantastic! We’re expecting another great turnout.” Nicole’s gaze shifted to Paige. “Hazard’s big Rodeo Bonanza is coming up in about six weeks. It’s an annual thing and draws participants and fans from all over. I’ve been on the organizational committee for the past five years. If you’ve got any spare time, we could always use some help that day. No pressure, of course.”

Paige chuckled at the huge grin on Shane’s face. He winked at her, and she was surprised at the warm fuzzy feeling it gave her in her stomach and even further below. “Subtle, isn’t she?”

“Very. Well, since I haven’t even seen the ranch yet, and I’m still learning what I’ll be doing there, I’ll have to get back to you on that, Nicole. But if I can help, I will.”

The woman grinned. “Great!”

A loud bell signaled the end of the school day, and Shane crossed his arms and leaned against the front quarter-panel of the truck, his gaze on the front door of the building, watching for his daughter to emerge. It wasn’t long until two little girls came running down the walkway toward them, each with a knapsack on their back. One was blonde and the other brunette, and they both had their hair up in pigtails.

The darker-haired girl ran to Nicole, who said goodbye to Paige and Shane, before leading her daughter toward her vehicle. Meanwhile, the towheaded girl leaped into Shane’s outstretched arms when he squatted down. “Daddy!”

“Hey, pipsqueak.” Shane gave her a tight squeeze before letting go and standing again. “How was school?”

“Good. I got a hundred percent on my spelling test and a gold sticker next to my name on the board.”

“Fantastic. C’mere. There’s someone I want you to meet.” Setting his hands on the little girl’s shoulders, he turned her to face Paige. “This is Paige, our new house manager. Paige, this is my daughter, Arianna.”

Extending her hand to her new charge, Paige smiled. “It’s nice to meet you, Arianna.”

A shy grin spread across the little girl’s face as she shook the proffered hand. “It’s nice to meet you too. I like your name—it’s pretty.”

“Well, we have something in common, then. I like your name and think it’s pretty too.”

“Thank you.” A curious expression spread across her face. “Do you know how to make pancakes?”

“I certainly do. I can make them plain or with blueberries, chocolate chips, or butterscotch chips.”

Arianna’s eyes lit up in delight. “Butterscotch? I love butterscotch! Hannah used to make me butterscotch pudding all the time, but I’ve never had it in my pancakes. That sounds yummy!”

Her smile widening, Paige gave her two thumbs up. “Butterscotch-chip pancakes are my favorite. As soon as I can get some I’ll make them for you and your dads. Okay?”

“Okay!” She tilted her head back until her gaze met Shane’s. “I like her, Daddy.”

He chuckled and gently tugged on one of her pigtails. “Glad to hear it, pipsqueak. What do you say we get out of here and go show Paige the ranch?”

“Okay. You’re gonna love it, Paige. We have lots of animals.”

They loaded up into the pickup, with Arianna buckled into the back seat behind Shane, then drove toward the Red River Ranch. The little girl showed off her bubbly personality, telling Paige all about the menagerie of animals at the ranch and what she’d done in school that day. As she rambled on, Shane shook his head and whispered in Paige’s direction, “She does stop to inhale every once in a while—you just have to wait for it.”

Paige chuckled. “No worries. She’s sweet.”

“Thanks.”

When they turned off the main road onto a long, dirt drive, Paige took in the surroundings. A large, overhead, wrought-iron sign they passed under had a logo with back to back Rs inside a circle. The Red River Ranch was huge. Fenced-in pastures sat on either side of the driveway, and while one was empty, about half a dozen horses grazed to Paige’s right. The main house was about a half mile from the road, and beyond that, several bunkhouses, barns, and a silo could be seen. It was a typical ranch like those she’d grown up near. Although her family had lived in a house in what was considered “town,” she’d had many friends who’d lived on nearby ranches. Paige might not have wanted to return to her own hometown, but with each moment that passed, she was remembering how much more relaxing small-town life had been. The fresh air alone was bringing back welcome memories of a simpler time in her life. No, it hadn’t always been perfect, but what was?

Shane parked the truck under a carport attached to the house and killed the engine. Arianna was out of her seatbelt and opening her door in the blink of an eye. “Come on, Paige! I’ll show you my room!”

Climbing out of the driver’s seat, Shane chuckled. “Easy, sweetheart—there’s no rush. Paige will get to see the whole house, including your room. Right now, though, you have homework to do at the kitchen table, so hop to it.”

An exasperated pout appeared on the little girl’s face, but she didn’t argue, taking her knapsack into the house. Shane retrieved Paige’s carry-on from the back seat, then called out to a ranch hand who’d pulled up in a pickup truck behind them. “Hey, Seth, do me a favor and bring in the two suitcases from the back. I’ll be out to help with the rest of the stuff in a bit.”

The man was in his late twenties, with short, light-brown hair under his cowboy hat, wicked, blue eyes, and an easy grin that lit up his face. “Sure thing, Shane. Howdy, ma’am,” he added, with a tug on the brim of his hat.

Shane grimaced. “Sorry about that. I should have done the introductions first. Seth Parker, this is our new house manager, Paige Merritt.”

The cowboy held out his hand and winked. “Pleasure to meet you, Paige. Welcome to Red River. I maintain the property around the main house and bunk houses—fixing whatever needs fixing—and running errands into town as needed. I’m kind of a jack-of-all-trades, so just let me know if you need anything.”

“Thanks, Seth,” Paige said with a smile as she shook his hand. “And it’s a pleasure to meet you too.”

Paige didn’t miss how Seth held onto her hand a little longer than necessary, his gaze roaming down her body in appreciation. Apparently, neither did Shane, because he growled. “I doubt your latest girlfriend would like to know you were hitting on another woman, Seth.”

The younger man barked out a laugh as he let Paige’s hand drop. “Yeah, well, as of last night, I’m a single guy again—thank God.”

Shane smirked. “Let me guess, she said the ‘M’ word?”

“Something like that.”

Taking Paige’s elbow, Shane turned her toward the front entrance of the house. “Seth’s allergic to the word ‘marriage.’ C’mon, I’ll show you around inside while he gets back to work.”

The inside of the large home was tastefully decorated, and Paige wondered if the gay couple had done it on their own or had hired an interior designer. Each room had been done in earth tones that gave them a rich, yet comfortable feel. There was a small living room that appeared to not get much use as not a thing was out of place in it. In between that and the country kitchen was a dining room with a huge table that could seat twenty people. A family room that ran from the front to the back of the house seemed to be the most used room. There were comfortable couches and chairs in front of an entertainment center with a sixty-inch wide screen TV. An area had been sectioned off for Arianna’s toys, and from the looks of things, she favored Barbie and anything to do with horses. Off to one side was a crafting area complete with a sewing machine. Paige figured it had been for the former home manager—Shane had said she was an older woman. Well, Paige could cook, clean, and do a lot of different crafting projects, but sewing, beyond a simple button, wasn’t on the list of things she was good at.

Shane gave her a tour of the house and showed her where Arianna’s bedroom was as the little girl trailed behind, pointing out things she thought Paige should know about or see before her father instructed her to go back to her homework. There was a guest bedroom that wasn’t in use, and the master bedroom suite was huge with a sitting area, an attached bath, and the biggest bed Paige had ever seen.

“Sorry about the mess,” Shane said with a frown as he grabbed some discarded clothes from the floor and tossed them into a nearby hamper, then pulled the covers up to the pillows on the bed, trying to straighten them. “I’m a little tidier than Tuck.”

Paige smiled. “It’s okay. My husband wasn’t the neatest man in the world either.”

Crossing to the other side of the house, Shane showed Paige where she’d be staying. She was surprised to see it was almost a duplicate of the master bedroom. She had a sitting area with her own television, a king-sized bed, and en suite bathroom. Although she was used to a grand bedroom from the mansion she’d lived in for several years before her life had turned upside down, she hadn’t expected it on a ranch in a small town.

Seth had already been there and gone, having left her bags on the bed for her. Shane set her carryon next to the two suitcases. “The mattress, box spring, sheets, and pillows are all brand new. So are the towels and things in the bathroom. If you need anything we missed, just let me know, and I’ll have Seth grab it for you the next time he goes shopping in Garden City.”

After glancing into the large bathroom that had a walk-in shower and spa tub, Paige turned to her new boss. “I don’t think I’ll need anything else, but I’ll let you know.”

Shane shoved his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. “Um . . . why don’t you unpack and we’ll head into town for dinner later? I don’t want you to have to cook your first night here. Once in a while, Tuck, Arianna, and I go to the Bar None for dinner. It’s a combination restaurant, bar, and dance hall. Best food in town.”

“That sounds nice. Thank you. What time should I be ready.”

He checked the watch on his left wrist. “It’s 3:30 now, but we won’t be ready to go until 6:00. If you’re hungry, there’s plenty of food in the fridge and pantry.”

“I’m good,” Paige answered with a shake of her head. “I’ll unpack, then take another walk around the house and outside. Get the lay of the land.”

“Great. I’ll be out in the main barn for a bit. When Arianna’s done with her homework, you’ll need to check it. After that, she can play for a while or watch TV. I’ll give her a snack on my way out, so don’t let her convince you she’s starving.” Shane rolled his eyes. “I swear that little girl can out eat most of our ranch hands some days.”

Paige smiled. “No pigging out. Check.”

Glancing around, Shane looked like he wanted to say something else, but then decided against it. Instead, he strode to the door. “I’ll get out of your way. If you need anything, Seth is fixing the banister on the back porch. I noticed it was loose last night.”

“Okay.” Paige paused then added, “And Shane?”

He stopped in the doorway and looked back at her. “Yeah?”

“Thanks for taking a chance on me. It was very nice of you.”

The corners of his mouth tilted upward. “You’re welcome, Paige. See you at 6:00.”