had sold off most of his breeding stock two years ago and not brought in any youngsters. If Julia had her way, she’d ask Roy, the foreman at Morgan Ranch, to help her round up what remained and get rid of them so her father had more money in the bank. But she didn’t have the authority to do that, and, if her father had his way, she never would.
Julia stomped up the wooden steps to the raised walkway and went into the post office to check the ranch mailbox. Most of the mail was feed catalogues and Western wear, but there was the occasional letter from a friend or her mother’s family back in Guatemala that would cheer Juan up. She took the pile back to the truck without sorting it through and set it on the floor on the passenger side where she wouldn’t forget it.
After checking out the various shops on the way, she went into Yvonne’s and saw Nancy already sitting at a table waving at her.
“Hey!”
She walked over and took the seat opposite. “Hey, to you too. What’s up?”
“Nothing much.” Nancy indicated the third chair. “Beth’s just gone into the bathroom. She’ll be back in a sec.”
“Cool.”
Julia had decided to approach Beth Baker about looking after her dad. After consulting with Nancy, who knew everyone in town, she’d decided that a casual meet and greet with Nancy and Beth in Yvonne’s was the best way to go. If she liked Beth, she could always approach her more formally.
Beth was tall like her brother Ted, who ran the local gas station, and had the same friendly smile and quiet way about her. Julia already knew, courtesy of Nancy, that Beth’s recent past hadn’t been great resulting in her leaving her abusive husband and coming back to Morgantown. She had a teenage son and also gave Wes, her stepson who worked with Kaiden, a home.
Beth smiled as she spotted Julia. “Hey! How are you?”
“I’m good,” Julia replied. “I hope you don’t mind me butting in like this.”
“Not at all.” Beth reclaimed her seat. “It’s nice to see you again. Are you back for good, or are you just visiting?”
“I’m just here to help my dad with some family stuff and improvements to the ranch house for a couple of weeks.”
“Mr. Garcia has MS, doesn’t he?” Beth asked.
“Yes, and he’s had a major flare-up resulting in him needing to use his wheelchair more so we need to adapt the house.”
“At least it’s all on one level.” Beth nodded. “I hear you’ve got Kaiden Miller on it, so you’re gold.”
Julia might have snorted because both Nancy and Beth looked inquiringly at her.
“You’re still pissed with him?” Nancy asked.
“He is a giant pain in the ass.” Julia crossed her arms over her chest and dared either of the women to contradict her.
“I’ve always thought he was lovely,” Beth said. “He’s been so good with Wes. We were beginning to think he’d never settle into any kind of routine or work, but Kaiden has been helping with that.”
“Wes was great when I met him,” Julia said.
“Which wouldn’t have been the case pre-Kaiden.” Beth grinned. “Wes ran through three jobs before the carpentry apprenticeship opened up. Kaiden was the only guy left in the community college program who was even willing to give him a chance.”
“That’s really awesome,” Julia agreed. “I can’t say I’ve ever seen Kaiden Miller as a role model.”
The other two laughed.
“Nope,” Nancy said. “He was always the class clown, wasn’t he? Maybe karma does exist.”
Lizzie Taylor came over to the table, her tablet at the ready.
“Hey, guys, are you eating, or is it just a beverage kind of day?”
Julia’s avid gaze slid to the array of pastries behind the glass counter. “I think I might just have room for something sweet. How about you two?”
* * *
She came away from the coffee shop full of delicious cake and fairly certain that if Beth was interested, and her dad okay about it, she had found the perfect person to help him. She’d heard nothing from work all day, which indicated that both Melanie and Blaine were happy with how things had gone. In fact, it had been fun talking to Nancy and Beth, who had no idea what her kind of lawyer actually did, or any interest in exploiting her contacts.
As the sun was still shining, she checked in with her dad to make sure either he or the guys didn’t need anything, and then went in the general