by Natalie Dean
The New Cowboy at Miller Ranch
Miller Brothers of Texas Prologue
Natalie Dean
Kenzo Publishing
© Copyright 2020 by Kenzo Publishing - All rights reserved.
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In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any part of this document by either electronic means or in printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly prohibited, and any storage of this document is not allowed unless with written permission from the publisher. All rights reserved.
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Respective authors own all copyrights not held by the publisher.
Dedication
I’d like to dedicate this book to YOU! The readers of my books. Without your interest in reading these sweet romance stories, I wouldn’t have made it this far. So thank you so much for taking the time to read any and hopefully all of my books.
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And I can’t leave out my wonderful mother, son, sister, and Auntie. I love you all, and thank you for helping me make this happen.
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Most of all, I thank God for blessing me on this endeavor.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
NEXT BOOK!
About Author - Natalie Dean
Book Description
He’s a rich Texas rancher. She’s just a tomboy ranch employee. Can she make him see life can still be happy without all that money?
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Samuel Miller is as tall and strong as they come. And if he wasn’t so soft-hearted, he’d be set to become the head of his family’s ranching empire. But as his father sees it, one of his younger brothers is better equipped to do the job.
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It’s no wonder that when his Aunt Annie Miller from Montana asks him to come and help out at their ranch for a little while, he jumps at the opportunity.
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Right off the bat, Samuel notices how different things are at the Miller Ranch. It’s more down to earth than his family’s ranch. There’s more manual labor, which he enjoys, and the animals are allowed to roam around freely.
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But… That’s not the only thing he notices.
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There’s a certain someone around the ranch with wild, curly hair and big, hazel eyes. Virginia West. She’s a tomboy through and through. So strong and sure of herself that it was mildly intimidating.
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Seems she’s noticed him too, but only because Samuel can’t stop staring at her. Still she can’t seem to get the curious new Miller out of her mind.
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Being at the Miller Ranch makes Samuel realize he wants more from life and ranching than the money-hungry way his father runs their ranch.
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He’s strong for sure… but is he going to be strong enough to stand up to his father when the time comes? And even more so… Will he ever be able to work up his courage to ask Virginia out?
Author’s Note:
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Miller Brothers of Texas is a spin-off series of my best-selling series Brothers of Miller Ranch. Fans have liked the Miller brothers so much I decided we couldn’t give them up just yet! So this new series is all about their cousins in Texas who own a Texan ranching empire. This series will take you on a journey with six handsome brothers who end up helping their father realize there’s more to ranching than just a profit.
1
Samuel
Samuel checked over his arrival details again even though he had already looked at them at least a dozen times. But he couldn’t particularly help it. He was full of a nervous energy that he didn’t quite understand, anxious to get to where he was going but also entirely apprehensive of actually getting there.
He had no reason to be. He’d been to his aunt and uncle’s place plenty of times growing up. Sure, it certainly was a long haul from Texas, but it was one he and his family had made at least once a year as long as he could remember.
And he had a pretty good memory.
Maybe he was just nervous because he wasn’t going there for a holiday and was headed there all alone, none of his five other brothers or mom or dad with him. Just eldest Samuel, all by his lonesome.
If he hadn’t been feeling so tense, Samuel might have chuckled at that. He was always doing things on his lonesome. For being the eldest brother, he was definitely on the fringe of his siblings, not one hundred percent dedicated to the business but not independent enough to strike out on his own.
No, even at thirty-four years old, he was a man in limbo. A sort of spare wheel to his family’s business who just kind of rolled wherever he was pointed.
But that sort of disconnect was working out to the advantage of Aunt Annie who apparently had taken a bit of a tumble and broken her wrist.
At first Samuel had been surprised when she called up asking for a little help. Not because he thought it was bad or anything like that, but the hippy-Miller brood had nearly doubled in recent years, with all five of the sons getting married to different ladies around the town and already popping out a kid or two. That seemed mind-boggling to Samuel, as they had all been single just a little over five years ago.
He had always just assumed it was part of the Miller curse. Rich and successful but alone. The only one in his family who seemed like he was going anywhere romantically was Silas, but he and his girl had had a rather dramatic breakup just a couple of months prior. That further cemented Samuel’s stance that romance wasn’t in the cards for any of them.
But in any case, apparently Aunt Annie’s eldest and his wife were off… opening another shelter or something; Bradley and his new bride were off on their honeymoon, and her youngest was rebranding a huge chunk of his business, and she didn’t want to bother any of them. Samuel knew that they would all undoubtedly come flocking to Aunt Annie if she just said the word, but the woman didn’t want to interrupt any of their goings-on or be an inconvenience.
But he had nothing going on for him so there was no inconvenience to be had. If there was a benefit to being the least business-minded of his family, it was that he could pretty much fill in anywhere in a pinch.
The train came to a complete stop and he grabbed his luggage, heading toward one of the exits. It was surprisingly empty considering how nice and easy the trip was, but he supposed it wasn’t really tourist season and not many stopped at the train station in the middle of nowhere.
Normally, whenever his family visited, they flew into the city and rented a van or a couple of trucks and drove the hour to the Miller Ranch. But as it was, Benji was supposed to pick him up and take him to the ranch where they had a spare truck waiting for him.
His cousins were funny like that. Obviously, none of them were lacking for money, but they were still so communal with all of their belongings. They thought nothing of making sure that he would have his own method of transport and even covered his tickets—which was completely unnecessary. He knew that his dad sometimes took offense to it, calling them cheap or saying that they were trying to treat others like charity cases, but Samuel thought it was nice.
He made his way into the train station and then headed outside. He knew he didn’t even have to check his phone; if Benji said he was going to be there to pick him up, then Benji was going to be there.
Although Samuel wasn’t exactly close with his cousins, he knew all their little quirks. Ben, short for Benedict, was the eldest and painfully responsible. He re
minded Samuel of his next-younger brother, Solomon, but without the money and business obsession that his close family seemed to value so much.
Next was Bart. He’d always been a showman and a bit of a charmer. All American apple pie and all that. But then he’d joined the army and hadn’t come back for a long while, and when he did, he was… different. He was still different, but better, going to therapy and committed to a woman who was basically the modern equivalent of an Amazon. He was still a sensitive man, and he had his struggles, but Samuel liked him well enough.
And Benji—short for Benjamin—was the most like himself. He was the middle child and could basically fix anything once he got a good look at it, working as a sort of catch-all for his family. If there was anything Samuel understood, it was that. Sometimes it seemed the only thing he was good for was repairs when the rest of his family was busy planning brand expansions and new business endeavors.
Then there was Bradley, the math and accounting whiz that Samuel didn’t know very well but was a funny enough guy once he came out of his shell. Finally, Bryant. Samuel knew the least about that cousin other than he hadn’t exactly been in the right with the family for a long while, running some sort of gambling and liquor business while he was estranged. Apparently, he’d come back in from the cold, however, because he and his family were back on good terms. And Bryant was apparently seeing a nice lady from the church—who Samuel also suspected could be an actual superhero, judging from how all the rest of the family talked about her.
There were also countless cousins and pseudo-family that had been basically adopted by the family. If there was one thing Samuel’s dad thought was ridiculous, it was how Uncle Douglas basically let his wife turn him into a ‘softie.’
Samuel didn’t think it was so bad to be kind-hearted though. At least that meant you were still alive. Better than a stone heart.
But maybe that was why he never really fit in with his own clan.
“Hey there cousin! You’re looking well!”
Sure enough, a tall man was striding towards him, long hair pulled back into a series of very complicated and Viking looking braids. Benji, of course.
“Thanks, cousin. You do that to your hair yourself?”
He let out an affable snort. “Hardly. Dani’s getting to that stage where she’s so uncomfortable that she can hardly sleep, and braiding my hair seems to be one of the things that puts her out like a light.”
For a moment Samuel was confused, but then he remembered that Benji’s wife was expecting their very first child and was due any day. Strange, that a cousin considerably younger than him was starting his own family. Had he missed the boat entirely?
“I’m surprised you look so spry then,” Samuel said, following along behind the relatively lanky man. He was jacked compared to the average person, but for a Miller son, he was relatively slender. Funny considering that Samuel had once seen him eat more pancakes than should be physically possible by a single human. “Aren’t you tired?”
“Are you kidding me? You ever have someone play with your hair? Knocks me out. Dani doesn’t care as long as I stay in place.”
“Huh. Sounds like it works out for the both of you.”
“Yeah, it’s pretty nice. Bart’s made some comments about it, but I think he’s just jealous because he still keeps his hair cropped pretty short.”
“Does he? I almost never see him without his cowboy hat in the past few years. Wondered if he was balding.”
“Nah, that’s Missy’s work. He got sunburn on his scalp real bad once when he was helping tag some calves, and she insisted that if he was going to keep his hair buzzed short that he had to wear it whenever he was working outside.”
“Missy? Oh, right.” The Amazon. Tall, blond, and built like a Coke bottle. Samuel remembered when he’d first met the woman, he’d been a little tongue-tied, but she’d quickly put him at ease with her casual way of talking and welcoming nature. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t slightly jealous of Bart at first, but seeing the way the two looked at each other made his heart warm for his cousin who had already been through so much. There was something special between that pair. Something Samuel had mostly given up on finding himself.
“Anyway, I brought you some cold water and a snack from Ma. I know they have stuff on the train but there ain’t nothing like home cooking. Figured you could nibble while I drive the half-hour or so. Dinner will be later, once you’ve got a chance to settle in.”
“Alright then.”
They both got into his truck and headed out. It wasn’t like there was a lot of traffic on the back roads in the country, so Samuel was able to roll down the window and lean into the opening, enjoying the wind on his face as they listened to what sounded like reggaeton music from one of Benji’s CDs.
The middle brother didn’t talk much, mostly just mumbling along to the Spanish words and bobbing his head, but Samuel didn’t mind. While he wasn’t stand-offish, he had never been very good with words and preferred to listen. Probably one of the reasons his family thought he never had anything to say. He did, most of the time, he just usually didn’t know how to go about getting the words out.
They arrived not too much later, and before he could do anything, Benji was grabbing his lone suitcase and hauling it inside. Samuel wanted to tell him that he could handle his own things, but he also knew his cousin would just wave him off anyway, espousing good hospitality or something like that. That whole side of the family was funny that way.
So instead he followed along, into the relatively quaint house. His own dad had built a large mansion on their estate, with more than enough room for all five of Samuel’s brothers and then some. It was too big, often leaving him feel like he lived in some massive hotel rather than a home.
But his uncle and aunt’s house was nice. Plenty of room for everyone, but not oversized.
“So Bart finally fully moved out of his bachelor’s addition here. I guess after he and Missy had their first kid, it gave him something to root him there even when Missy’s gone.”
“Oh, and is she gone a lot?”
“No, I wouldn’t say a lot,” Benji answered, opening the door to the addition that was just under the stairs.
Samuel wasn’t sure what to expect, but it wasn’t the homey sort of bachelor pad that he was greeted with. There was a sitting area, a kitchenette, and a short set of stairs leading up to what he assumed was a bathroom and bedroom. It was enough for Bart to have had his own place like a grown man when he first returned, but close enough to his family that he could get help.
“It’s just that she does volunteer work in the city and sometimes will get called in for emergencies in other counties.”
“She like… a veterinarian or something?” Samuel asked, vaguely remembering something about animals.
“No, a tech. But she’s real good with rescue cases. She just has a knack with helping things that are hurting, ya know?”
Samuel didn’t, but he nodded along agreeably anyway. “Yeah.”
Benji set the suitcase down then turned to him, still grinning amiably. “You want to go take a look around the ranch? I’ve probably got a bit before I have to go check on Dani.”
“She have you on that tight of a leash, huh?”
It was the first time Benji gave him a reproachful look. “Um, no. It’s just if she gets hungry, she’ll get up and cook for herself but she’s supposed to be on bed rest.”
“Oh, right. Sorry.”
Benji let out a very soft laugh. “Don’t worry about it. I’m just, uh, protective of my girl, ya know? Some days I wake up and it’s almost painful how much I love her.”
He said it so casually, so matter of fact, that it threw Samuel for a loop. What was someone supposed to say to that? “Huh. I wouldn’t know.”
“Right. Sorry. Um, I’m sure you’ll find someone. If you want to, that is. Romance isn’t the end all be all of everything.”
“That would be more convincing coming from someone who apparently
hasn’t found the love of their life.”
“Yeah, probably. Anyway, how about that look around the ranch we were gonna do?”
They headed back out of the house, and Benji really did show him around. Samuel was always surprised by just how small it was compared to their ranch back in Texas, and how so few things were automated. Uncle Douglas and Aunt Annie had a great brand under their name—he knew from how often his dad complained over and over again about them hogging the name just because Uncle Douglas had been the eldest.
But that was an old beef that went back to before any of them were born. It mostly came down to Uncle Douglas saying something about Dad being too obsessed with profit and not interested enough in nurturing and kindness, and Dad calling Uncle Douglas a crazy hippy.
After getting a good inside look at things, Samuel could see why his dad made the hippy comment. The animals were allowed to wander as they pleased, with the exception of the pigs who had a very set area that was dedicated to them. Made sense considering how… mouthy they could be if the mood struck them.
But other than that, the cows, the goats, the geese, the ducks, the chickens, pretty much could go anywhere on the property that wasn’t fenced off.
It took a while for Benji to show him it all. Samuel got the impression that there was even more that he was missing, but his cousin said he was out of time and needed to get back to the Missus.