Ken stepped past me and headed for the truck. He grabbed a bag of feed and hoisted it onto his shoulder.
“There’s supposed to be a few more bookings coming up; you’re welcome to get first pick at whoever checks in,” I said. “That is, if they don’t decide they’d rather have me first.” The last part was meant as a joke, and thankfully my brother realized it. He laughed.
“I hope they are as beautiful as the girl you picked up last night.”
With good reason. Natasha was gorgeous, and not in the typical sort of way. There was no doubt she probably had a few flaws, but she was one of the prettiest girls who had ever been up to the ranch. And I wasn’t just saying that because I had a bad memory. I remembered the pretty girls, and the sexy ones, and the sweet ones. Overall, we tried to remember who came to the ranch, in case they ever came back. But she’s different. It was like when I’d first met Jamie.
The thought shocked me more than I wanted to admit. It didn’t make sense. There was no reason for me to think about her. More than anything, I never wanted to think about Jamie again. I’d wasted too many years on her.
Of course, that didn’t stop me thinking about the girl who had broken my heart.
Natasha
I didn’t miss the tone the girl used. It was close to disgust. I opened my mouth to say something, but my best friend cut me off.
“Yes. It was about time we had a girl’s trip.” I could tell how uncomfortable Christy felt by the way her voice sounded.
“And how are you enjoying it?”
“It’s been nice so far. We’ve just stayed the one night.”
My brow furrowed. Why did the lady at the store give a shit about how we were enjoying our stay? What isn’t she saying? I wished she would just come out with it and say what was on her mind. That way I could get out of here.
“Anyway, thank you.” I grabbed my plastic bag and glanced at Christy. Our eyes locked for a fraction of a second and I gave her a grin. “Ready to hit the next shop?”
“Of course.”
I turned on my heel without saying goodbye to the lady behind the counter and headed out of the store where I had just gotten some new sunglasses.
It felt odd to use someone else’s money, but when Jeff offered me some cash, I wasn’t going to turn it down. I mean, it’s not like he had paid for anything. Right? Of course not. It was just … an odd way for him to show me he wanted to see me again. Or something. The truth is I still had no clue why he had done it. Every reason I came up with just didn’t make sense. But it’s not like I was going to turn it down. I mean, it was only fifty bucks, and it was a nice gesture. Plus, I was fucking broke, and I learned a long time ago not to object if someone wanted to give you money for no reason. I might be starving some nights, but I wasn’t stupid.
“So, she was kinda …” I trailed off not willing to finish my sentence as people passed us.
“Yeah, she was. Did you notice her reaction when we said we were staying at the ranch?”
“Yeah.” At first, I thought it was all in my head. I frowned. “It was almost like she was worried.”
“I don’t know why she would be.” Christy sounded nervous.
“Maybe the guys who own the ranch are serial killers?” I teased.
“Somehow I doubt that.” She didn’t laugh.
We headed into the next store. The truth is, I wasn’t paying much attention to the signs. We just went into each store as is and wanted to get a feel for everything. Plus, there wasn’t much here, so to make our shopping trip last longer, we’d have to go into every little shop and boutique.
I looked around. Books, pottery, junk food. It was a knick-knack kind of store. Just the kind of store that would screw me over.
“Hello.” A woman at the front of the store gave us a large smile as she folded scarves. We both smiled in response.
We walked to the back where there was a sale going on. I glanced over at Christy. “You like him, don’t you?” I whispered.
I was utterly aware of the woman watching us. Christy’s cheeks turned a deep shade of pink. That was enough of an answer for me. She gave a small nod.
“He’s nice. I mean, I know it’s silly to get involved with someone when it just for such short time.”
“Not silly. Fun.” It was perfect. I’d done lots of thinking about it. “No feelings. No strings. No worries.” It was something I was used to by now, and it was something I was a huge fan of. No feelings made things so much easier.
“Fun, yes. But I don’t know. What if … something happens?”
“Like what?” I asked as I reached out and touched a blanket on display. It was the softest blanket I’d ever touched. I should get it for mom, I thought. If I knocked out some of my Christmas shopping now, it would be much less hectic later. Then, I’d have less to worry about. Plus it would be unique, I thought as I mulled over the idea.
“I don’t know … something.”
I turned to my friend. I’d known her for a long time now and I understood what was going on.
“You’re scared.” It wasn’t a question, it was a statement. I watched my friend’s cheeks turn a deeper shade of pink.
I glanced over her shoulder to see the woman had moved. She was closer now. I wasn’t sure if she could hear us or not, but I noticed she wasn’t doing anything. She was just standing there, holding a pile of books in her hands.
I frowned.
“I -”
“We’ll talk about it later. I’m sure you can get over this fear.” I cut my friend off so she didn’t say anything the woman didn’t need to know. I didn’t look back at Christy the entire time I spoke. “Let’s go to the next store,” I said, finally looking away from the woman standing there.
I stepped past Christy and headed for the door that was open, letting in the breeze. Without paying any attention to the woman, we left.
“Have a good day!” I heard her call after us, but I was already uninterested. I couldn’t blame her for trying to listen in on two out of towners, but I could hold it against her that she did such a shitty job at eavesdropping.
Christy and I headed down the street. Well, it wasn’t really a street. The whole town itself consisted of five roads. The one we were on was Main Street. Still, there wasn’t much to it, and the street itself was more like a pathway that could fit a few cars. All gravel, just like the drive up here had been.
“Whatever your fear, it could be worth trying to get over if you actually like this guy. And Chris, it’s been a long time since you had someone. I don’t think it would hurt you to have a little fun.”
“It’s been a long time since you had someone,” she reminded me.
Yes. Four years.
“But I have a lot of fun.” I grinned. Just because I hadn’t had a boyfriend in years didn’t mean I didn’t see lots of guys.
“I don’t know if fun is a good idea for me.”
I shrugged. I couldn’t convince her to loosen up, but I would love to see her do it, like she had in the old days. “Say what you will, you know I make a good point. After all, we’re here to relax. And clearly he likes you.”
I stopped in front of a small café and looked inside, but there was nothing I really wanted. I had a bottle of water in my purse and it would tide me over until we got back to the ranch. “Do you want to go in there?”
“I don’t need to.”
“Good. Same.” We kept walking along. The next building was a bright purple one and I was excited to see what it might be.
“And what do you mean he likes me?”
“I mean I can tell. The way he looks at you; he’s obviously into you.” I saw the way they were at dinner last night. Just because I was a little busy with someone being into me didn’t mean I wasn’t keeping tabs on my friend. After all, she was my bestie.
“What makes you think that?”
I just know. I shrugged. She hated when I said I just knew.
“I’m not normally wrong when it comes to boys who like you.
Remember, your past four boyfriends I predicted the first time you met them.”
We came to the purple building. Turns out it was a clothing store. I pulled the old door open and Christy stepped through.
Looking around, I tried to take everything in. There was some damn cute stuff in here. Oh these could easily leave me broke, I thought as I headed toward the dresses. There were a whole bunch of them on sale. I reached out and touched one of the blue lace ones. A grin spread over my face as I pulled it down from the sales rack.
“Good afternoon, ladies. How are you doing?”
I turned to the girl looking at Christy and me. “I’m good, thanks. Yourself?”
“I’m not too bad. Anything I can help you with?”
“Just browsing,” Chris and I said in unison. I caught her eye.
“Okay, if there is anything I can help you with just let me know.” She walked away, heading for the checkout desk.
She was the kind of sales person I liked. She came over and offered help, but didn’t push it on us. I looked the dress over carefully. It was really cute, but I’d have to try it on. I wasn’t really looking forward to that. It always made me a little nervous.
“That’s cute.”
I looked up at Christy, saw she was staring at the dress, and then everything clicked. “Yeah, I thought I might try it on.”
“You should!”
“Are you going to try anything on?” I wanted my friend to have fun, too. I wanted her to spoil herself. I wanted her to treat herself to more than just a ranch hand or two. This trip had been about getting away and being free for a couple of days with everything going on back home.
“Well …” I could hear it in her voice; she was already trying to come up with reasons not to try something on. “I do really like this.” She grabbed a plaid skirt off one of the racks near us.
“Oh, that is so cute,” I gushed.
“Yeah. I thought I might try it on, but …”
“But what? What harm can trying it on do?” I could see it. She wanted to listen but she was too busy thinking about the cost. I tried to catch the price tag, but didn’t have any luck. “I’m going to try the dress on. You should come.”
I knew with everything she was going through it was hard to think about spending money on a stupid skirt. But I wanted her to feel like she could. I wanted her not to worry about something like the price of the skirt. I just hope it’s cheapish. It didn’t have to be super cheap, but if it was reasonably priced …
“Are we allowed to just go into the dressing rooms?” I heard Christy ask the girl behind the counter.
“Yes. Take whatever you like.” She gave us a wide smile, then eyed Christy’s skirt. “That is so cute.”
I heard Chris thank the girl as I headed toward a changing room, slipped inside, and closed the door. I stripped quickly and pulled the dress on. Yes. It was perfect. I touched the small curves of my body. It just seems fitting, I thought. I mean, I knew it would probably be a surprise.
I stripped out of the dress and pulled my clothes back on before stepping out of the room.
“How’s the skirt fit?” I called to my friend.
“It … it’s nice.” My heart skipped a beat. That was her happy voice. That meant she liked it. She was happy with it, and that was what I cared about.
I waited a few seconds as I heard clothing shuffle. Christy stepped out of the room, holding the skirt in her hand.
I frowned looking down at it. I reached out my hand. “Can I see it?”
“Sure. What’s wrong?”
She handed the skirt over to me, worried by what she thought she had missed. I took it. I caught sight of the price tag. Yes. I was lucky.
“Nothing.” I spun on my heel and headed for the counter, leaving my friend behind me. I dropped both the dress and the skirt onto the counter.
The girl behind the counter smiled.
“What are you doing?” Christy asked behind me.
“I’m paying for the clothes.” I said watching the girl ring in both items. I didn’t look at my friend, but I made sure to stand in her way of giving money to the cashier.
“You’re not buying me -”
“Yes. I am.”
“But -”
“It’s cute and you like it and I’m buying it for you.” I turned to my friend and smiled. Our eyes locked and I could see how conflicted she was. She wanted to let me, but part of her wanted to protest.
I turned my attention back to the girl as she placed the second item in a bag and clicked a button on the cash register.
“$42.73.” She smiled widely.
I pulled my wallet out of my purse, opened it, and pulled out the cash. I handed over a fifty dollar bill and waited for my change. She gave it to me with the receipt.
“Thank you.” I tucked my change into my wallet and took my bag.
“Have a good day,” she said as I turned and headed for the door.
“You too!” Christy and I said in unison.
I reached the door first and stepped out into the fresh air.
“You shouldn’t have done that.”
“I wanted to. The skirt is fucking adorable, and it will look awesome on you. Plus, I knew how much you wanted it. You might be able to trick yourself, but you don’t trick me very well.”
I turned to look at Christy. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She closed it, and I turned back to the street before I ran into anything, which honestly was super unlikely to happen.
“Thank you,” she said.
“Anytime.”
And I meant it. She had done so much for me in the past, and I wanted to do as much for Christy as I could. After all, that was what friendship was all about.
Christy reached for the door of the next place. The second the door opened I knew what was inside. I could smell the coffee and the baked goods. My stomach grumbled a little. It hadn’t been long since we passed the last cafe, but as I realized how hungry I was, I wanted nothing more than to go in and get something sweet to eat – even if I was going to have to limit myself in order to save room for dinner. Jeff is a damn good cook.
I looked around. It was something right out of a movie. There was a small bakery area and a few booths where you could order a coffee, but mostly this place served ice cream. With red tables and black and white floors, it almost looked like we’d jumped back in time. It’s so cute, I thought looking around.
There was a large sign listing all the ice cream flavors they had. I went up to the counter where a woman who looked like she might be in her mid-forties stood. She gave me a wide smile. “You’re not from around here.” It wasn’t a question.
“Nope.”
“So … you’re staying at the ranch?” She looked me up and down. This had a little bit more question to it, but still not quite a question.
“Yes,” Chris said beside me.
The woman frowned. “Well, what can I get you? It’s on the house.”
“O-oh. Um,” my mind raced to decide what I wanted.
“Bubble gum, please,” Christy spoke first.
I stared up at the board, trying to decide as the woman got my friend her ice cream. I waited until Christy had been handed a cone.
“I’d love mint. Thank you.”
She nodded and scooped out my order. “So … are you two enjoying the ranch?”
I wasn’t sure if she tried to hide the fact her nose wrinkled or not, but if she had, she did a horrible job.
“I am so far,” I said as Christy took a lick of her ice cream. We eyed each other. What the hell is going on? I wondered.
“And you’ve been there long?”
“Nope. Less than a full twenty- four hours,” Christy piped up.
The woman nodded as she handed me my ice cream. “Look, I should probably mind my own business, but I feel responsible to let you know … the men there are dogs. There is no other way to put it. Girls come and go from there, and it’s not uncommon for the boys working to … you know.”
>
She wouldn’t say it. She just raised her eyes at us, but we knew what she was getting at. I felt my cheeks burn a little and hoped it wasn’t showing.
“You two seem like nice girls who wouldn’t get taken advantage of dirty old men, but I figured I should let you know.”
Ha! “Um, thank you,” I stammered.
I turned to Christy, and she just stood there looking horrified. “That’s good to know,” she finally said.
If only this poor woman knew what I’d been doing last night. A grin spread over my face. “Well, thank you for the ice cream. We’d better get going.”
Jeff
I watched as she and her friend pulled into the driveway. I tried not to stare, but I couldn’t help it. I thought about the girl that had come before her. She had probably been twice Natasha’s age, but she hadn’t given me the same feelings Natasha did. She hadn’t made me want to see her again. She hadn’t made me feel like I had to see her again.
The last time I’d felt like this … well, I didn’t even like thinking about where that had gotten me. I shook my head, trying to forget the past. I’ve done it before. It’s been a long time since I thought about her. I would be fine. I just needed to get her out of my head again. Not that hard.
“Don’t let what she said get to you,” I heard Natasha say. They had grabbed their first load of bags and were headed back for the second. “She’s just an old lady who doesn’t know what she’s talking about.”
“Yeah.” But her friend didn’t sound convinced. My brow furrowed.
They went to town? And some old lady had been saying stuff. My heart stopped for a fraction of a second as I wondered what the townsfolk had been saying about us again. I tried not to let it bother me, but it did.
I turned and headed for the kitchen. It was just about time to get started on dinner, and I didn’t want it to be late.
Natasha
“I have something I’d really like show you.”
It had taken most of the night to work up the courage to say it, but now it was out and here I was sitting, waiting for him to say something. Anything at all.
The Billionaire's Fake Marriage: A Single Dad Next Door Romance Page 29