* * *
After cleaning up in the barn, Josie walked into the kitchen to find the plumber laid full out on the floor, his head and shoulders under the sink, which gave her an opportunity to check out his flat stomach and long legs. The fact that he still looked like a cowboy but was actually a tradesman made her want to smile. But she already knew that Morgan Valley was a small town where everyone took on multiple roles.
There was a knock on the open back door and a cheery hello as another guy, complete with a toolbox came into the kitchen and stopped dead.
“Morning, Ines. Why’s there a Miller under your sink?”
Evan was a Miller? Josie winced as the sound of a thud came from the cabinet quickly followed by a curse as Evan slid into view, rubbing his skull. His short hair had more than a hint of red in it.
“Hey, Bart. Just trying to help out.” He pointed at the pipes. “Looks corroded to me, but you’re the expert.”
Bart set his toolbox on the tiled floor. “I thought this was a dishwasher issue.”
“I fixed that part.” Evan got to his feet and grinned at the older man. He really was ridiculously attractive. “The pipes are your problem.”
“Thanks for nothing,” Bart said, but as he was smiling back at Evan, Josie didn’t think he was really offended. “Don’t expect a cut of my bill.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Evan said, his gaze finally settling on Josie. “Hey.”
“Hey.”
Ines touched her shoulder. “Why don’t you and Evan go and get acquainted while I finish up with Bart? I just made a fresh pot of coffee and some banana muffins. You can take them through to the family room.”
“That would be great.” Josie turned to Evan, who was regarding her with great interest. “Do you want to grab a couple of plates and I’ll get the coffee?”
“Sure.” He was already on the move and obviously familiar with the layout of the recently renovated kitchen as he found the plates first go. “Shout if you need any more help, Bart, okay?”
Bart muttered something uncomplimentary. Josie fought a smile as she poured out two mugs of coffee and set them on the tray with the muffins, cream, and sugar. She walked through to the sunny family room where she found Evan standing by the large woodburning fireplace.
“You’re Rio’s sister.”
Josie set the tray down. “Wow, when did you finally work that out?”
He pointed at the mantelpiece above the fireplace. “You’re in the photos with Rio and his mom.”
“You should be a detective. Isabelle is my mom, too. Rio and I have different fathers. I gather you’re a Miller.”
“Yeah, the youngest apart from Daisy.”
“Your brother Adam was married to Ines’s daughter.” Josie sat down and added cream to her coffee.
“Correct.” Evan sat in the chair opposite and took his coffee black. “He’s very fond of her and this place.”
“It really is lovely. So peaceful and tranquil.”
Evan made a face. “If you like that kind of thing.”
“You don’t?”
He set his mug back down. “I don’t know anything else. I’ve never been anywhere.”
“Like ever?”
Josie couldn’t keep the surprise out of her voice. She’d traveled between Brazil and the USA since she was a small child and had gone even farther afield with her job at Howatch International.
“Nope.” He eyed her consideringly. “Never felt the need until recently.”
“I suppose it’s good you’re happy here and know that you belong,” Josie said cautiously. “I’ve never felt like that about anywhere I’ve lived.”
“The thing is—” Evan said, and then stopped, his brow furrowed.
“Go on,” Josie said encouragingly. “You can say anything you want. I’m not going to tell anyone.”
He grinned. “You have no idea how appealing that is to someone who lives in a small town where every damn thing you do gets reported back to your family.” Evan paused again. “I want to change some stuff and I don’t know where to start.”
“Like what?” Josie leaned toward him. If she wanted to avoid facing her own problems, solving someone else’s was a great opportunity to procrastinate. It was central to her nature to want to fix things.
“Stupid shit, stuff I’ve never been able to do because—” He half smiled. “You’re going to think I’m nuts.”
“Does it matter if I do?” Josie asked. “Let me put it this way. I’m here for at least a month on vacation, I’ve got a lot of time on my hands, and helping you achieve your goals seems like a great idea.”
“You’re going to help me?” Evan looked taken aback.
“Isn’t that what you want?”
He studied her for a long, unnerving minute. “I don’t even know you.”
“You know I’m Rio’s sister and that I’m willing to help.”
He frowned. “Hold up a minute. Number one, you don’t know what I want to do, and number two, your brother would kill me if I got you into trouble.”
“My brother’s not here right now, and if you’re worried, why don’t you draw up a to-do list, and I’ll decide whether I want to help you or not?” Josie offered.
Evan sipped his coffee. “Maybe I’m not the only one who’s nuts around here. What’s up with you?”
She met his hazel-eyed gaze and tried to be honest. “I . . . need to focus on something that isn’t related to my work or myself.”
“What do you do workwise?”
“I’m a VP of Finance at Howatch International.”
“That’s Rio’s dad’s company, right?” Evan helped himself to a banana muffin and devoured it in two bites.
“Yes. Rio insisted I had to take a load of unused vacation days off before I lost them.” It was a lot more complicated than that, but Evan didn’t need to know everything. “I decided to come here and help out on the ranch.”
“Doesn’t your mom have a ranch in Brazil?”
“I . . . didn’t want her fussing over me.” Josie tried for a smile. “She already thinks I work too hard and I didn’t want to admit she might have a point.”
Evan nodded. He’d obviously met Isabelle and knew about her flair for the dramatic. “So, I’d be like your pet project or something?”
“Not exactly. I mean, I’m just offering to help if you need someone.” Josie blew out a breath. “Okay, it was a stupid idea. Why don’t we forget I suggested it and have some more coffee?”
“Hell, no. How about this?” Evan held her gaze. “We both write out lists and help each other out. I bet you have some stupid stuff you’d love to do on your vacation.” He rose to his feet. “Let me get more coffee while you start thinking.”
Chapter Two
After agreeing to meet Josie at the Red Dragon Bar in town that evening, Evan left the Martinez place and fixed fencing for three hours, his mind abuzz with ideas. When he got back home, he spent some time rubbing Joker down and making sure he had plenty of water before heading into the house. For some reason, he was reluctant to see everyone, and was relieved there was no one around when he entered the kitchen.