Chapter One

      Jason Rayburn had never considered himself an early bird, but as the morning sun began to rise over the Leaning R Ranch, he found himself pouring his second cup of coffee.

      If his father hadn’t died, he’d be in Houston today—still in bed, most likely, but with thoughts of hitting the gym instead of repairing the barn door. After a good workout, he’d take a shower, then head to the downtown high-rise he owned and take the elevator to the top-floor office of Rayburn Energy Transport, where he was the founder and CEO.

      With the recent death of his father, he now controlled Rayburn Enterprises as well, not to mention his new role as the sole trustee of the Charles Darren Rayburn Family Trust.

      What a mess dividing that was going to be. And that’s what had led him back to Brighton Valley.

      The Leaning R had been part of his great-grandmother’s estate, rest her soul. And Rosabelle Rayburn had left it to Charles with a stipulation—that it be divided equally to his issue upon his death. She’d wanted his children to be in complete and wholehearted agreement about its daily operation and/or division.

      Yeah. Right. Jason and his half siblings had never been in agreement on anything. Granny, of all people, knew that. And he suspected it was her last-ditch effort to draw them together in a way she’d never been able to do while she was alive.

      But there’d been a reason for that. Jason, Braden and Carly had so very little in common they might as well be strangers.

      So that’s why he had to get the Leaning R up and running again and ready for sale. Because there was no way his brother and sister would make good business partners. He just hoped he could get them to agree on a real estate agent and a price.

      When Jason was a kid, spending summers and the occasional holiday at the ranch, he’d dreamed of being a cattle rancher. But those days were long gone. He was a busy CEO now.

      On rare occasions those old dreams might come back to haunt him, but there was a reason for that. He’d spent enough time on the Leaning R with Granny Rayburn growing up that he’d actually felt more at home here than he had anywhere else. Of course, that wasn’t the case anymore. He was a city boy now—and eager to get back to his life in Houston.

      He