Jessie’s Dusty Dreams by Kat Carrington

Jessie Mills and her brother, Jake, have worked and saved all their lives to buy a small ranch. Their savings, with a small inheritance from their father, has bought them their dream, Dusty Dreams Ranch. But soon after they move onto the ranch, Jake is deployed to Afghanistan, where he dies a hero’s death after barely a month. Jessie is determined to make the ranch what they dreamed of, but she is frozen with indecision on how to do it.
Until one day, a stranger comes to her door, a stranger who turns out to be Jake’s best friend from the Army, Brady Jensen. Brady is bringing a letter to Jessie from her brother, a letter that explains to her that Brady has promised him that he will manage the ranch until it is up and running. Jake knew that Jessie would be lost without him and he set a plan in motion for her.
He asked her to promise to carry out his plan, so Jessie agrees to let Brady take over the ranch. Sparks soon fly between the two of them, and Brady discovers that when Jake told him he would have to use a firm hand, he had been right. In time, Jessie comes to trust Brady, and the attraction between the two of them grows stronger and stronger.
Brady is in love with Jessie, but he knows she is still grieving for her brother, so he waits. When the man who thinks that Jessie rejected him becomes increasingly threatening, Brady vows to protect her. But when the hate-filled man abducts her and promises to have his way with her before he kills her, can Brady save her? Can the whole town save her? Will Jessie get the chance to tell Brady that she loves him?