The Virgin Next Door (Stud Ranch)

But there was still her spawn left.

Calla. The uppity little bitch who wouldn’t disappear no matter how Bethany tried to ignore her. Always trying to pretend she was equal to her betters.

Every time Bethany came in second place to Cal and her ugly mongrel horse, it was a thorn that dug deeper and deeper under her skin.

But then, finally, finally, natural order was restoring itself to the world.

Daddy bought out the Carter ranch, leaving Cal with almost nothing. She had to work as a ranch hand for God’s sake.

And Bethany’s plans to capture Liam O’Neill’s attention and secure her place as billionaire royalty had been this close to falling into place.

Until Cal fucking Carter had put her whore fucking nose where it didn’t belong and fucked everything up.

Bethany wasn’t runner up to Miss Natrona County Jr. two years in a row so she could lose the biggest prize of her life to the town fucking tomboy.

And Bethany knew if Cal hadn’t been distracting Liam with her little I’m-poor-and-helpless-and-oh-yeah-also-a-whore-who’ll-let-you-stick-it-anywhere act, he would have been able to see Bethany for the treasure she was.

Daddy always said no man would ever be good enough for his little princess and it was true. None of the grimy Wyoming farmers were. But Liam was a prince if she’d ever met one and they were meant to be together. She’d known it ever since she took a picture of him in the bar, googled his face, and found out he was worth approximately three-point-seven billion.

But then to be so roundly humiliated in front of him and all because of that tomboy he-she freak! Ugh! Bethany’s whole body went hot when she remembered Liam’s words to her at the feed store. No one talked to her like that. Ever.

And all because, like, Cal had poisoned him against her.

Well Bethany was putting things right. There was an order to the world. And she was restoring it.

No Carter would ever get in her way again.

Bethany approached Cal’s horse. It neighed and shifted back and forth on its hooves, tail lifting.

“It’s all right,” Bethany said, voice gentle. She needed this stupid horse to stand still for what she was planning. When she stepped forward and grabbed the bridle, the mare’s eyes went wide. Bethany clicked her teeth and ordered her to stay, and the horse went still.

Which was, in itself, a little annoying, because fine, it was well trained. So what? Bethany’s mustang would have been superior, hands down. But she couldn’t compete, could she? Because they’d given her a lame horse.

The stupid thing had weak joints and went lame right after the trail trials. She’d only been training it in basic reining and cutting skills. And sure, she was pushing a little—but none of her purebred horses would have batted an eye at the exercises.

She gave it two whole weeks off training to rest its strained joints. But after just an hour of getting back out in the training paddock, it was limping again.

So now here she was at a horse competition with no horse. Daddy had even called the BLM and tried to make a generous donation if only they’d give her another horse but they said it was too far into the competition for that.

That was the final straw. Like, you could only push a woman so far.

So she’d called and called for weeks until she finally got through all the stupid secretaries and whatever until she could finally talk to Liam’s dad and tell him where his son was. There wasn’t a reward or anything, but she figured there was the smallest chance Liam would be so grateful for reuniting him with his father, he’d give her another chance. And if not, well, at least that bitch Cal wouldn’t get him.

She wasn’t about to let her win this competition either.

She ran her hand down the flank of Cal’s horse’s.

“Just stand still, stupid horse,” she whispered in a soothing voice. She glanced around, didn’t see anyone, and pulled the small buzzer out of her pocket. It was about the size of a cigarette lighter and it easily slipped underneath the back of the saddle against the horse’s flank. The horse turned and looked toward her, ears flicking back and forth.

“Oh you’ll be fine,” Bethany muttered, taping the small device in place. “People use these things on race horses all the time.” Sure it was illegal but God, if those stupid animal rights activists had their way, everyone would be, like, eating tofu and kale for every meal.

Bethany pulled the remote out of her pocket to test the buzzer. Before she could, though, she heard voices coming her way.

“Shit.” She slipped through the bars of the stall and down the hall before anyone could see her.

She smiled as she took the long way around to the arena seating. She couldn’t wait to watch the show.