He needs time to heal…

…but is she willing to wait?

Injured former rodeo star Brady O’Neil is looking for solitude in his Montana hometown when he takes a job at his best friend’s ranch.

Then he finds out he’ll be living with Katie, his friend’s sister, and the woman he fell for years ago.

His recent failures make him feel unworthy of love, so Brady tries to keep Katie at arm’s length. But is this girl next door exactly what he needs?

Titles in the ‘Sweet Home, Montana‘ series include – A Ranch Between Them – Montana Dad – Montana Homecoming –

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Title:  A Ranch Between Them
Series:  Sweet Home, Montana #1
Author:  Jeannie Watt
Genre:  Modern Western Romance
Published:  October 1, 2019
Publisher:  Harlequin Heartwarming
My Rating:  4.5 stars

‘A Ranch Between Them‘ begins the ‘Sweet Home, Montana‘ series with a romance building between two extremely stubborn people, each who has good reasons for why they’re trying so hard to… for one avoidance, for the other to push boundaries.  It’s going to be a long road full of potholes before Brady and Katie find their happy ending… but oh, the trip was so worth it.

Brady is working at the Callahan as ranch manager since the accident that ended his bull riding career, and one that he’s still healing from.  Brady has his eye on a nearby property – that ‘one-day’ future that he’s working toward but for now he’s holding down the fort at the ranch that was a safe haven for him in his youth.  Since his friend, Nick, is out in California planning his and his young daughters’ return home, and Nick’s grandmother is living and working on a unique Victorian home/business in town it’s just Brady on the ranch… and that suits him just fine.  Right up until he lands himself in another accident with an off-road vehicle with no help in sight.

Katie, Nick’s sister, had left the ranch years ago to follow a dream of college, and a career in the big city.  Both came true but weren’t exactly what she expected them to be – mainly fulfilling.  She’s been let go from that fancy job and has come home to pick up the pieces and figure out exactly what it is that she really wants to do.  Brady isn’t aware that she’s on her way, so when she stops along the road leading to the ranch to help him you could have knocked him over with a feather… in a very unwanted way.

Brady and Katie have each had a crush on the other for years now, yet neither has acted upon that attraction for their own reasons.  Now, even though they’re each in their own house on the ranch, they certainly are in close contact with each other – especially as Brady is still healing and cannot do everything he believes he can without some help.  As Katie begins to figure out her future, and Brady becomes more comfortable with a bit of help when absolutely necessary those feelings begin to deepen… but stubbornness and bad luck circumstances are going to play a large part in their happy ending possibility.

I’ve enjoyed Jeannie Watt’s work for years now.  And I’ve come to know that almost every secondary character in her books probably has a large part to play in the overall story… eventually.  So I keep my eyes out for what’s going on in the background as well, and I wasn’t disappointed to find more to the story there.  I enjoyed ‘A Ranch Between Them‘ so much.  There is attraction, yes, but there is also stubbornness, pride, fear, and putting someone else before themselves at play as well.  Katie and Brady will work well together for several reasons but they have to come to that conclusion on their own, sometimes the hard way.

Watching them work their way to each other was an emotional, laugh-filled, angsty experience that kept me flipping pages and completely enjoying myself in this world.  I’ll definitely be following the series (I’m catching up actually) and cannot wait to dive into ‘Montana Dad‘ next.  If you’re in the mood for a really good love story that will touch your heart, have you shaking your head, and rooting for two stubborn people to just trust their instincts – then  ‘A Ranch Between Them‘ is perfect for you.

I own a Kindle edition of this title.

Available in paperback or for your favorite e-reader, mine is the Kindle.