“Come on. I’ll take you back to the house.”
She hesitated, glancing up at me with her lip between her teeth as her gaze flicked back and forth. “Can’t we go see the horses first?”
I shook my head. “You can see the horses when you prove you can handle being on a ranch.”
Her lips pressed into a thin line. “How do I prove that?”
“Boots,” I said pointedly. “Possibly consider a pair of jeans too.”
She perked up. “I can do that.”
I groaned and swept a hand over my face, ignoring the quizzical look she sent me in favor of helping her pick her way back across the dirt so I could get her out of the sun—and away from all the lingering, appreciative stares she was drawing.
Two hours later, she was in yet another designer dress, a tight red little number that accentuated her curves and made it hard not to stare. As we walked into a restaurant in Dallas, she clung to my arm like she’d been glued to me, but I didn’t mind it as much as I could’ve. We just hadn’t come here for me to strut her around and feel like a god about it.
Okay, maybe a little bit.
The aim of making reservations at this particular restaurant had been for us to be seen together, and it was a gamble that paid off. As soon as I started introducing her to the country-club regulars and the other gossip-mongers as my girlfriend, heads turned and whispers started floating.
She might not be the type that my ranch hands had expected I’d choose, but around here, no one had any trouble believing I was dating the current sole female heir to the Chicago Westwood fortune. Most of these people knew how close I was to the family and that my sister had married into it.
The only curveball I hadn’t seen coming was that two of my friends, a married couple, were seated at the table right next to the one we were shown to. My stomach twisted a little when I saw them, Rob and Mabel Miller.
While the other people might not have any problem buying our story, these two actually knew me—and they knew I sure as shit had never mentioned having any interest in a relationship with Alex’s little sister.
Rob grinned when he noticed us walking toward them, but he did a visible double-take when I introduced her. “Mabel and Rob, meet Charlotte Westwood. My girlfriend.”
A mix of shock and amusement registered on both their faces as they rose to greet her. Charlotte shook their hands, probably realizing the social chaos she’d just stepped into, but she took it in stride and I had to give her credit for it.
Mabel, thankfully, took to Charlotte immediately. That alone eased some of the tension curling in my gut.
“Well, isn’t this an interesting development,” Mabel said, eyelashes fluttering in surprise. “What other secrets have you been keeping, Trent Shepard?”
“Hopefully just me,” Charlotte said, smiling as she leaned into my side. “Unless there’s something else I need to know about?”
I shook my head and both women laughed. She and Mabel started making small talk and I got to watch her transform into a confident charmer completely at ease in the situation. She was easy to talk to, and clearly, she appreciated all the subtle cues so well that I didn’t need to guide her through anything. She winked at me like she could read my thoughts.
“Come sit with us,” Mabel said warmly when she sank back into her seat. “We’d love to have you join us.”
Charlotte hesitated, probably weighing just how deep we were getting dragged into this, but she still slid into the chair Ipulled out for her. Rob leaned in as soon as I took my place by her side, his eyes narrowing with curiosity. “Sothisis why you’ve been spending so much time outside Texas lately, isn’t it?”
I just nodded, letting the lie take on a life of its own. “Yeah, Charlotte and I ran into each other at a Christmas party last year. We got stuck under the mistletoe together and it was love at first kiss.”
Charlotte’s gaze hit mine when I said it, her expression sharp and calculating, but I didn’t flinch. I just let the story roll out, lying through my teeth. I wished I had kissed her but there was no changing the past.
It didn’t take more than a few seconds for her to catch up. She laughed, but fixed her eyes intently on mine, sending a silent warning not to push it too far.
Rob stared at us with his jaw slack, like he might actually choke on his steak while Mabel melted, even waving a hand in front of her face. “Oh my word, that is just the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard.”
Charlotte smiled, her lips curving into a polite, carefully measured grin, but her eyes were still locked on mine.Don’t make me do something stupid.
In response, I draped my arm over the back of her chair, leaning in just slightly and letting my voice soften. “Isn’t that right, sweetheart?”
Her eyes widened for a heartbeat, but then she relaxed into me enough that I could kiss the corner of her mouth. She played along almost too effortlessly, leaning into my side and even turning her forehead into my cheek.
I smirked against her hairline as I held her, but in the back of my mind, alarm bells were blaring like a four-alarm fire had started somewhere.This is either really going to be fun. Or it’s going to become complete hell. One of the two.
“That’s right, baby,” she purred, but there were daggers in her eyes for a moment when she pulled away to look up at me. “I’m sure that’s enough of our story for now. What about you guys, how did you meet?”
