The Rancher Meets His Match (The Millers of Morgan Valley #4) - Kate Pearce Page 0,39
want to come down to the Red Dragon with me? We can have dinner as well.”
She looked up at him. “Like go out in public? Together?”
He shrugged. “You owe me, remember?”
She considered him for so long that he almost forgot how to breathe.
“If Dad’s okay with it, I’d like that.” She pointed at him. “But, it’s on me, okay?”
He held up his hands. “I’m not going to argue with you. I’m just a poorly paid carpenter, Miss Hot Shot Lawyer.”
She reached for his hand, which gratified him immensely. “Then, let’s get these chickens fed and go and check in with Dad.”
* * *
Julia glanced over at Kaiden as he opened the door into the bar for her.
“Ma’am.”
“I think I preferred ‘my lady,’” she joked as they made their way through to the bar where Nancy and Jay were working. It wasn’t that busy seeing as it was a Sunday, and a lot of the older folk wouldn’t dream of drinking on the Sabbath. Kaiden pulled out two stools.
“Hop up here, and I’ll go check in with Bella about dinner.”
Kaiden disappeared and Julia climbed onto the barstool.
“Hey.” Nancy grinned at her. “Was that Kaiden Miller? The man you shouted at the other day? I told you he’d like it.”
“He’s been doing some construction work up at the ranch for Dad, so I thought I owed him dinner,” Julia explained, not yet willing to consider why else she’d accepted his invitation, and what it might imply. “He’s been great.”
“He’s certainly talented.” Nancy put two beers in front of Julia and winked. “In many ways. Are you wanting a menu?”
“I think Kaiden’s going to get us a table,” Julia said.
“Wise choice. He probably doesn’t want the whole of Morgantown listening in while he charms the pants off you.”
“Hardly.” Julia took a swig of beer and immediately coughed.
“Careful now, slugger.” Kaiden patted her on the back and then perched on the edge of his stool. “Bella says we can go through right now if we like.”
“Okay.” Julia wheezed as he offered her a hand to get down. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” Kaiden turned to Nancy. “Hey, what’s up?”
“Nothing much.” Nancy cleaned the bar where Julia had spilled the beer. “Just watching the fools of Morgan Valley make complete asses of themselves.”
“That’s a bit hard on Julia,” Kaiden protested. “She just choked on her beer.”
“Ha ha.” Nancy waved him off with her hand. “You’re not as funny as you think you are, Kaiden Miller.”
“I’m funnier.” He winked at her and took Julia’s hand. “So nice to come into my local bar and be insulted by a professional.”
“You’re welcome!” Nancy called out as they went through to the dining area.
“Do you ever leave without trying to get the last word?” Julia asked him.
“I just did,” Kaiden pointed out. “I gave up trying to outdo Nancy years ago.” He slid into the booth and she took the seat opposite. “The food here is really good. Bella’s got Sonali Patel working with her now. She just graduated from culinary college.”
“I know.” Julia unwrapped her silverware from her napkin. “I came to see Nancy the other night. I had the fish. It was really good.”
“You drink by yourself a lot?”
“Yup, I’m a complete lush.”
He shook his head, his gray eyes glinting. “I would never have guessed that in a million years. You’ve always struck me as someone with their head screwed on just right.”
“I didn’t really have much choice,” Julia confessed. “After Mom left, Dad basically handed me the keys to the house and expected me to take on all her jobs.”
Kaiden frowned. “But you were just a teenager.”
“Yeah, but who else was there? Dad and Miguel needed to manage the ranch, they didn’t have time for the house.” She sipped her water. “It wasn’t all bad. By the time I entered high school I knew how to manage a budget, take care of a house, and keep a four point two GPA.”
“All by yourself.”
She raised her eyebrows. “Don’t feel sorry for me. You didn’t have it much better when your mom left, did you?”
“There were more of us, and Adam took the brunt of it. And, we had Auntie Rae who turned up and took over everything.”
“She was awesome.” Julia took another sip of her water. “I often wished . . .” She stopped talking.
“You’d had someone like her,” Kaiden finished her sentence. She wasn’t sure if she liked it.
“Anyway, it taught me how to be self-reliant, how to manage stuff, and made me the independent person I am now.”