Wild Ride Rancher

“Big plans,” he mused.

“You bet,” she agreed, flashing him a quick look and a smile. “At some point, I want to buy land myself. Set up a permanent camp. Buy horses, cattle, hire wranglers, and have a place where girls can go to dream.”

She watched him take her measure and saw that he wasn’t amused by her dreams, her plans. That was a step in the right direction.

“I can see how important this is to you,” he said. “But I’m not convinced yet.” He shifted his focus from her to the computer screen, then scrolled down the images she had posted.

“I haven’t finished my pitch yet,” she reminded him. And he hadn’t walked out yet, either. Good sign? “If you’ll check the map I posted, you’ll see where I want to set up the tents.”

“Tents,” he repeated. “And with all these girls there, what were you thinking of using for bathroom facilities?”

Chloe winced. This was one of the sticking points she was still working out. “I thought they could use the bunkhouse—”

“I don’t think the ranch hands living there would go for that.”

“It wouldn’t be easy, true.” Actually, she hated the idea of the girls using the bunkhouse bathroom. Because it would be awkward along with a host of other possible problems. “But if that doesn’t work, then maybe Sterling would let them use the bathroom off the kitchen.”

“Know about that, do you?” His gaze shifted to hers.

She smiled. “I’ve been to the Perry Ranch many times.”

“Yeah. For parties.”

“You say that like an insult.”

“I don’t have a lot of time for parties.”

“Well, maybe you should make time,” Chloe countered. “It might help you lighten up a little.”

“I don’t do light.”

She sighed. Seriously, the man was sex on a stick, but his personality was so prickly, she wondered if anyone ever got close enough to find out if he was as good in bed as she thought he was.

“All right then,” she offered. “We could bring in Porta Potties for the week.”

He snorted. “And portable showers?”

“These are just tiny details that I can figure out later,” she said, exasperation setting in. “You’re being deliberately confrontational. I wonder why.”

He unfolded his arms and tucked his hands into the back pockets of his faded jeans. “Because it’s my job to look out for the ranch.”

“It’s not like a handful of girls would be there to destroy anything.”

One eyebrow winged up. “Just the working routine for the ranch hands.”

“Briefly,” she reminded him. “I’m thinking camp would be a week long. And I’m sure we could work out the bathroom issue,” she insisted, and made a mental note to talk to the housekeeper at the Perry Ranch. Chloe was pretty sure the woman would allow a few girls to use her shower for a week.

“Look, this would be a test case. To see if there are enough girls interested.”

“And if there aren’t?”

“Then I drop it,” Chloe said, then added quickly, “but there will be. If Sterling goes along with this, we could hold one camp week a month. I could even pay to have a bunkhouse with bathrooms built on the land.” Inwardly she winced at the idea of taking money out of her savings to do it, but it would be worthwhile.

“So when you eventually move your camp somewhere else—”

Chloe shrugged. “Sterling will have a new bunkhouse he didn’t have to build.”

Outside, the world darkened and the wide front window rattled with a gust of wind. The rain against the glass was heavier now, a continuous assault, and pedestrians hurried along the sidewalk, looking for cover.

Liam straightened up, looked down at her and Chloe felt a rush of heat. Amazing that a man who irritated her so much could cause such a reaction.

“You said at some point you’ll be looking for a permanent place?”

“Well,” she said, amazed that he would ask, “yes. This isn’t a one-off thing. I’ve been thinking about this for a long time, and I really believe that girls will love it.”