Wild Ride Rancher

“Oh, yes it is.” She shook her hair back, lifted her chin and locked her gaze with his. “All my life, people have been telling me no, you can’t, you won’t. Well, every time they said it, the words only fired my determination to prove them wrong. This time won’t be any different.”

“Damn it, Chloe—”

“And as for the ‘newness’ wearing off...” she continued, cutting him off neatly. “Well, you don’t have to worry about that. I pass your test, I get the land. That was our deal.”

“I know what the damn deal was.”

“Good. Just make sure you honor it.”

“I don’t go back on my word,” he said, sounding as insulted as she felt.

“Well, how can I be sure? Turns out I don’t really know you, either.”

* * *

Two days later, Liam was a man on edge. And walking across the yard to a meeting with Sterling wasn’t improving his mood any.

Since their confrontation at his ranch, he and Chloe had hardly spoken. She’d moved out of his room and back to the guest bedroom, and that was eating at him. Probably for the best, he kept telling himself, though his dick didn’t believe him.

And it was more than the sex he missed, damn it.

He liked waking up with her snuggled against him. Liked how she smiled at him when she first opened her eyes. Liked the way she sang in the shower. Liked too damn much about her, really.

But memories of her sister crowded into his brain and reminded him that Chloe was no different at the core of it. How could he trust her when a part of him was waiting for her to become who she was born to be?

Nine

“I need you to do something for me this Saturday.” Sterling Perry leaned back in his chair and tapped his fingers on the desktop.

Liam slapped his hat against his thigh. Impatient, he’d been making small talk with Sterling for a few minutes now. He was supposed to meet Mike out on the range, show him the canyons where the herd was most likely to wander. Instead, he was standing here, waiting for Sterling to get to the point. God, he was looking forward to being at his own place.

He liked Sterling fine, but the man had a way of stalling, dragging things out that drove Liam nuts. “Yeah, so you said earlier. What’ve you got in mind?”

“Simple,” his boss said. “I was invited to an engagement party for your girl Chloe’s younger sister.”

Liam stiffened. Cagey as ever, Sterling noticed plenty even if he was rarely out and about on the ranch. Somehow, he’d picked up on what was between Liam and Chloe. “She’s not my girl. Not anybody’s girl. She’s a woman.”

Nodding, Sterling said with some amusement, “So you did notice.”

Oh, he’d noticed all right. Not that it was any of his boss’ concern. “Sterling—”

The older man shook his head and held up one finger for silence. “Not my point. What you do on your own time is your business. But her father is something else again. Hemsworth is a client. I should be represented there, but I’ve no interest in going.”

Liam scowled. “Neither do I.”

Sterling actually laughed. “Yes, I know. But you’re still my foreman and I need you to be there, representing me and the ranch.”

This wasn’t the first time Sterling had thrown a curveball at Liam. He’d stood in for the older man at meetings, at the new TCC, at horse auctions and now, it seemed, at an engagement party. Well, he wasn’t going to surrender without a fight. Hell, he’d met Ellen Hemsworth for five minutes and couldn’t stand her. Not to mention that Chloe would be there and he was, at the moment, actively avoiding her.

“Damn it, going to parties isn’t part of my job.” There was nothing he wanted to do less than go to that particular celebration. Hell, it sounded like torture. Mingling with the rich and useless. Making small talk with people he didn’t give a damn about. Plus, it was black tie. Wearing a damn tux all night?

“It is now,” Sterling said flatly. “You represent the Perry Ranch at the party, Liam. We keep our clients happy.”

“Send Mike,” Liam said, grasping for any straw at all. The fact that it meant he was throwing a friend under the bus didn’t bother him in this case, either. “He’s your new foreman. He should get used to dealing with this stuff.”