License to Love

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 “A Great Romance for the Holidays and Anytime You Like!”
Coffee Time Romance and More

Missy is suddenly an unwanted co-owner to Ocean View Stables
by Florence, Oregon. Missy wants to start over somewhere new after her old boss
burned her. She's jobless and has a wrongly ruined reputation, so this works
out perfectly . . . until she meets the cowboy running the place. Brent built
his dream with determination and his two hands; he's responsible for everything
that happens there. Secretly, he feels responsible that his former partner
died. He also doesn't hide his belief that Missy won't stick around. Women tend
to take off on him so why would she be any different? They both have a past
that can ruin their future. Can he trust her to stay? Can she trust him with
her heart?

Chapter One

If her name meant anything to the tall cowboy who leaned
against the porch rail, he didn’t react. Instead, he appraised her with sky
blue eyes while the afternoon light slanted against him. She’d pulled up to the
house and introduced herself, and now waited for his name or a hello.

“The name ain’t ringing a bell,” he said quietly, then
looked her up and down. “And believe me, I’d remember your face.”

Would you now?
It sounded like a compliment, but he
didn’t smile with it. Missy wasn’t sure what to make of him.

His voice carried like a gentle breeze. The man, however,
looked rough as the landscape around them. Hard stance, set jaw, arms folded.
His long, lean body might be perfect for pressing against a woman, but his eyes
were distrusting.

The sign clearly said Ocean View Stables, so she knew she
had the right place.

“Melissa Nelson,” she repeated. This was awkward. “Ben may
have called me Missy.” Come on, nothing? She rubbed her arms through her
jacket, chilled from the cool Oregon weather and this overly warm welcome. “I’m
Ben’s sister. Aren’t you Mr. Hatcher?”

“Nope.” He tilted his head and stared some more, like he’d
never seen a woman before. The daylight darkened. Raindrops plopped on her
while she waited for some kind of answer. Any kind of answer would be nice.
“Ben’s lawyer called you,” he added, “And you came right over. I see.”

He wore a tan Stetson on his head, a rich blue shirt with
sleeves rolled up, snug Wranglers, and boots. He’d make a great bedroom poster,
something to ogle on lonely nights, but his too sexy look only distracted her.

Did she really lose her train of thought while checking him
out? “I flew in from Nevada . . . He asked me to come.” She almost added that
Mr. Hatcher was supposed to meet her here. Wouldn’t this guy know that?

“Come on in, then.” Without introducing himself, he turned
to the front door and led the way in. Inside, she fought off a shiver. It
wasn’t the cold this time, but a reaction to his nearness. His eyes were so
intent on her, she could scarcely breathe.

Scents of leather and pine met her inside his home--a man’s
home for sure. “How did you know Ben?” she asked.

He opened a closet door and gestured to her coat. She wanted
an answer, but decided to shrug out of her coat, since it was thin and wet
anyway.

With his brows creased at her, he took it. “We went in
fifty-fifty on this place.”

Oh, no. She hadn’t considered there would be other
investors. That explained why he was here. “So you live here?”

“Yup.” He faced her and rested his hands on his hips in a
lazy manner. Irritated, she turned and glanced around at the open floor plan.

She spotted a kitchen nook off to her left. What kind of man
had a kitchen nook? To her right, a fire smoldered in the large brick fireplace
in the living room. What she could see of that room gave an impression of
comfort, where a family could gather.

His house was beautiful, but it looked more like a family
home than a bachelor’s place. Well, it could be with some personal touches. At
least it was warm and dry, unlike the misty weather outside.

While she took in the house, he continued staring at her. Since
he blocked her way, she couldn’t ignore him any longer. “What?” The word burst
out, and sounded desperate to her own ears.

“You look like him.”

She stopped her quick inhale mid breath and had to take a
moment to take that in. Well, he knew her late brother, but she didn’t know
enough about Ben’s life to guess who this guy could be. She asked, “Were you
close to my brother?”

“Friends, business partners,” he said with a shrug as if it
didn’t matter.

He moved toward the kitchen, but turned back around and
looked her over again. “Ben never talked about any sister.”

Ouch.
“Well . . . We weren’t raised together. We
didn’t even know about each other until our father died three years ago.” Since
she could lose herself in the hurtful past, she tried to ignore it.

“Missed the funeral, you know.” Arms folded, he leaned back
against the counter. She couldn’t pinpoint anything about him that would make a
shiver race up her back, though one did.

“Ben’s lawyer didn’t get a hold of me until yesterday,” she
explained. He walked around the counter and into the kitchen, a tidy space
decorated only with a lone marble horse statue on the counter.

Sighing, she rubbed her temples while his back was turned.
He couldn’t know she was jobless, with an uncertain future, and had spent a
pretty penny on the airfare to come out. She’d withdrawn some of her savings to
make the trip. The lawyer wouldn’t have asked her to come unless there was
something here for her. Now she was facing the holidays alone, in a new state,
without any job prospects or plan.

“I get it.” He faced her, planted both hands on the counter,
and leaned toward her. “You hoped to make out with some dough. Too bad you
didn’t know about me.” He ignored her gasp and pulled several things from the
refrigerator, then started lunch on the opposite counter, with his back to her.

“What kind of person says something like that? You don’t
know me!” Who cared if it might be true? He had no right to be so rude, not
when he didn’t know why she hadn’t been able to get better acquainted with her
brother.

“Exactly.” He didn’t turn around to speak. It appeared like
he wanted her to leave. He added, “I don’t know you. I knew Ben, and you never
came to visit.”

Heat burned her face so she turned away for a moment. It was
more than embarrassment—it was hurt and frustration too. How could she have
known they were out of time? She and Ben were slowly getting to know each
other, and now it was too late. She turned back to him. “Listen, I don’t have
to explain myself to you. I was
asked
to come here, remember?”

No answer.
Figures.
She tapped the toe of her shoe as
she sought another angle to try. “So who are you?”

His face, when he glanced back at her, softened. Those blue eyes
could melt a woman’s will, but she doubted he’d use them on her. All the
better, because she didn’t need another man using her and then tossing her
away.

“Brent Williams. Ben and I started this place together.”

Brent meant the ranch, the hills and paths she’d seen when
she drove in, and the horses that grazed and ran in the pastures. Maybe she’d
get somewhere now. “Is the lawyer coming?”

“He’s on his way over.” He turned around and pushed a plate
across the counter. “Might as well join me for lunch.”

“Lunch?” At the word, her stomach growled. After the flight
into Oregon and the drive west to Florence, she felt starved. She’d been too
distracted to eat as she thought about the past and worried about her future.
“Umm, thanks.”

“You look like you need some good food in you.” He poured
her a glass of milk to go with it before he walked around the counter with a
stool for her to sit on. She didn’t know what to make of the sudden hospitality
from the cold cowboy, but once she bit into the sandwich, she didn’t care.
“Wow.”

He sat on a stool on the opposite side. They ate without
discussion, and the passing minutes grew more tense.

When she couldn’t take the silence, she asked, “How did Ben
die? The lawyer didn’t tell me.”

Brent’s gaze dropped down to the counter. “You can ask him
when he gets here.”

Okay, so no more playing nice. While he didn’t look
distraught over Ben’s death, he sure closed up when she asked about it.

Why did he have to be so brutally attractive? Why was he
rude to her and then fixed her lunch? Could there be a softhearted man under
that hard exterior? She contemplated while she nibbled on the last of her
sandwich.

He drained his glass and set his plate next to the sink,
then stood in the kitchen and looked at her. And, boy, did he look at her.
After he searched her face, his gaze slid down her throat. She tried to keep
the color from her cheeks, thankful she hadn’t worn anything low-cut.

“Are you sure Mr. Hatcher is on his way?” She couldn’t take
much more of this.

“Yeah, he called right before you showed up.”

Now why didn’t he mention that before? She glared. He glared
back. Someone knocked.

“That’d be him.” He left her trembling with anger and
answered the door, where a middle-aged man in a suit waited. She stayed by the
kitchen counter.

Brent greeted the shorter, dark haired man by saying, “Did
you know Ben had a sister?”

“He mentioned some family,” the other man said with an
easy-going smile as he came in and offered a hand to Missy. “Nice to meet you
in person, Miss Nelson. I’m Nick Hatcher. Looks like you found the place
without problem.”

“The problems started after I got here.” She threw a look at
Brent.

Nick turned to Brent too. “Are you giving her a hard time?”

Brent gave him a
what can I do?
shrug. Nick sighed
and said, “Ah, he’s rough on the outside, but he’s a good man.”

“You two are buddies?” she asked. Great, a big conspiracy.

“That doesn’t mean anything bad for you, Miss Nelson.” He
looked at Brent and held up his briefcase. “Is there somewhere you’d like to
sit down and go over this?”

Brent led the way into the living room. He sat on the couch
across from her and sank back, his eyes once again on her like a hawk about to
strike. Did he look at her because she reminded him of Ben, or was he thinking
of the quickest way to get rid of her?

She took a deep breath and decided to pretend indifference.
In reality, she hoped this would give her a way to start over, somewhere new.
After her last relationship and her job crumbled, she needed direction.

The fire popped. The cozy room did nothing to relax her as
she waited.

“Ben left no children, as you both know, and no other
relatives but you, Miss Nelson,” Nick started. “As such, his interest in Ocean
View Stables goes to you.”

“No!” Brent sprang to his feet. “That’s just not right. This
is my ranch, built by my own sweat and blood. Ben’s interest should go to me
now.”

Missy stiffened. Had that really taken Brent by surprise?
She wondered why Nick hadn’t explained any of this beforehand. Glancing at the
lawyer, it dawned on her that he might have wanted to keep Brent from gaining
steam before she arrived.

Nick sat forward. “Now, hold on and let me talk. Miss Nelson
didn’t come here to take over your ranch. There’s no reason why you can’t buy
her out.”

That’s what she wanted to hear. It should appease Brent to
know he could send her on her way now. She looked at him. Brent glared back at
her as if she’d set the place on fire.

Somewhere a clock ticked. She could faintly hear a breeze
blowing outside as well.

“Brent,” Nick started, “Is there a possibility you can buy
her out?”

Brent went to the window that overlooked the pastures
outside and spoke. “We just got started two years ago, and we’re not turning
much of a profit yet. So, no, there isn’t the capital to do anything like
that.”

Missy yanked in a breath. Now what? “What does that mean?”

Nick’s brow furrowed and he puffed out his cheeks. “Well,
you have half interest in these stables. Do you like horses?”

Brent spun around. “This is my place and it’s staying that
way.”