She's Far From Hollywood. Jo McNally

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СКАЧАТЬ “But of course, this is a mutually beneficial arrangement.”

      Bree looked confused. “I’m sorry?”

      “Oh, didn’t Caroline tell you? I need someone to help me with the farm. It gets so busy in the summer, and I just can’t handle it all on my own.” Cole frowned. Nell was the most capable farm woman he’d ever known, and she abhorred offers of assistance.

      Bree started to protest. “Oh, Mrs. Patterson, I’d love to help, but I’m afraid I know nothing about farming. I’m a city girl through and through. I know how to cook vegetables, but I know nothing about growing them. As far as I’m concerned, they magically appear at Whole Foods Market. And animals...well, animals and I don’t get along all that well...”

      “First, call me Nell or Miss Nell. And second, don’t be silly. You can learn to grow and pick veggies, and you’ll get along just fine with all the animals. Why look, Shep likes you already.” They all looked down to where Shep was lying close by Bree’s feet. Damned if the dog wasn’t looking up at Bree like she was an angel or something. Maggie sat in his truck with the same adoring expression. What the...?

      Nell continued. “The cottage is just one hay field away, so you go get yourself settled, and we’ll talk more tomorrow about what you can do to help around here.”

      Cole coughed back a snort, and Bree spun to slice him with her angry eyes. He raised his hands in surrender.

      “I’m sorry! I can’t help being amused at the thought of you sloppin’ hogs and picking tomatoes and feeding those one-ton horses over there.” He nodded toward Pete and Ruby, Nell’s elderly and famously gentle horses. Bree’s back stiffened, and he knew he’d struck home with his not-so-subtle suggestion that she couldn’t possibly be a farmer. But just look at her, for heaven’s sake.

      “Are you saying you don’t think I can do it?”

      “Isn’t that what you just said?”

      She put her hands on her hips. “I said I didn’t know anything about farming. I didn’t say I couldn’t do it if I wanted to.” She turned to Nell, and he couldn’t miss the stubborn set of her chin. The woman didn’t seem capable of turning down a challenge. “Nell, I look forward to learning more about your farm.”

      Oh, this was going to be fun.

      “Cole, honey.” Nell dropped something in his hand. “Be a dear and drive Bree over to the cottage, will you? Here’s the key. You know your way around the place and can show her where everything is.” Before he could object, Nell turned back to Bree. “I stocked the fridge with plenty of food, and there’s a dish of my beef stew there for you to heat up for dinner tonight. There are clean linens on the bed. You must be exhausted. And don’t worry about not having a car, honey. I’m sure Cole will give you a ride anywhere you need to go.”

      Bree started to say something, then closed her mouth. She’d just been bulldozed by Miss Nell, and Cole knew exactly how she felt.

      * * *

      BREE WAS USED to waking up in unfamiliar surroundings. She’d traveled nonstop as Miss California, and again as the wife of Damian Maxwell. When she joined the cast of Hot Hollywood Housewives, they were constantly being shuttled off to exotic locations to spice up the show. There were trips to Paris, Hawaii and even the Australian outback on a ridiculous survival challenge. She’d probably slept away from her beloved Malibu home as much as she’d slept in it.

      But she still wasn’t prepared when the predawn light filtered through the thin cotton curtains and nudged her from a restless night’s sleep in Nell’s cottage. She sat up and blinked in confusion. Even the outback accommodations were fancier than this place. The bedroom barely managed to contain the queen-size iron bed and a dresser.

      She stood and stretched slowly, sighing at the feel of her satin nightgown sliding against her skin. The luxurious fabric was a welcome reminder of her real life, which should be taking place right now far, far away from this country cottage. She’d packed the fancy sleepwear for her trip to her cousin’s baby shower over the past weekend. It was entirely appropriate to wear as a guest at Amanda and Blake’s historic home, or even at the lakeside resort they owned next door to Halcyon.

      Here in this rustic whitewashed cottage? Not so much.

      But she didn’t have a lot of wardrobe choices, since whatever she’d packed in her weekend bag was pretty much all she had left for clothing. She ran her hands down the expensive material and shook her head. It was ironic that the one thing she’d fought for throughout her adult life—indeed, the driving force behind nearly every decision she’d made—was her desire for security and stability. And now that she’d finally achieved it, some psycho had snatched it all away by torching her clothes and forcing her out of her home.

      She jumped when her phone chirped in her purse, indicating an incoming text. The alarm clock on the bedside table showed it wasn’t even 5:30 yet. She grabbed her Hermes bag and dug around inside for the phone. Her personal phone had been left behind in Gallant Lake to prevent anyone from tracing her location. This was just a throw-away burner phone and only a handful of people had the number. She couldn’t imagine which member of that small club would be awake at this hour.

      R U awake?

      The text was from her cousin, Amanda. Bree grinned and was quick to type a response.

      Barely. Why are YOU awake?

      Instead of a responding text, the phone rang in her hand.

      “Bree! How are you, sweetie?”

      “Amanda, what on earth are you doing up at this hour? Did your ghost rattle some chains in the hallway or something?”

      Amanda, normally such a level-headed woman, insisted the castle she’d remodeled for hotelier Blake Randall before marrying him was haunted by its original owner.

      “Very funny. It’s not the original Madeleine that’s the problem. It’s her namesake. This baby kicks me awake earlier and earlier every morning. If she’s not born soon, I won’t be sleeping at all.”

      Amanda not only believed that a ghost named Madeleine haunted Halcyon, she’d also insisted on naming her unborn daughter after her. A feisty five-foot-four, her cousin had been miserably uncomfortable at her baby shower, with the baby occupying a beach ball-size bump directly under her breasts.

      “Yeah, well, little Maddy isn’t due for another month, so you’d better start grabbing naps during the day to get your rest.” She left the bedroom in hopes of finding some coffee, and almost swooned at the sight of a small coffeemaker sitting on the counter. She popped in a pod of Sumatra Dark and inhaled the rich aroma as her mug filled.

      “Now you sound like Blake. He’d make me stay in bed twenty-four hours a day if he could.”

      “That sounds like your husband, for sure. Is he home yet?”

      “He won’t be back until next week. He wants to visit all of the resorts one last time before Maddy arrives. So tell me, how are you really doing? Did you get settled in without any problems?”

      “Well, I don’t know if I’d call it problem-free, but yeah, I’m here in my temporary prison.” She sat on the blue plaid sofa and told Amanda about her arrival in Russell yesterday and the drama at The Hide-Away, as well as her introduction to Nell and the rustic cottage she СКАЧАТЬ