CHAPTER ONE
Sun filteredthrough the puffs of clouds overhead, causing bits of shadow to slide across the grass. Three white canopies had been erected specifically for Mack’s wedding. Champagne flutes clinked as guests toasted to the happily wedded couple.
Noah held up his glass and smiled at Mack over the heads of several guests. Mack did the same. They had a tighter connection than they’d had in years, and that could all be thanks to the secrets that Noah had kept for his brother—and the matchmaking, too.
He grinned. No one deserved a happy ending like Mack and Lacey. They were so good together—so deeply in love.
It would have made Noah sick if he wasn’t so proud of his brother for going after what he wanted. Mack had finally made a decision to chase that happiness, and he’d won.
Air filled Noah’s chest as he sucked in a deep breath and let his focus shift to the one woman he’d always loved. Of course he’d never tell anyone that. His brothers would only laugh at him, and his folks would look at him like he’d sprouted a second head.
Jane had been Mack’s friend growing up. Not only was she a couple years older than he was, but she had come from a strict family—highly religious. Her father had been the town’s pastor, and she’d been the perfect eldest daughter of their family.
Noah’s family hadn’t been super religious, and they’d not gone to church every Sunday. It wasn’t that they didn’t believe. Their family had simply been busy keeping a roof over their head, and when his parents had to work, that fell on Sundays quite often.
Jane had been a vision even when they were younger. He’d developed a crush on her the first second she walked onto their property when she’d been in ninth grade and he’d been in seventh. Noah had used every excuse in the book to spend time with her when she hung out with Mack. And she’d allowed it.
Often, he’d wondered if she might like him more than she’d let on. But reality crashed down on him when she stopped coming over and her friendship fell away from Mack due to his brother’s poor choices.
Noah knocked back the drink as he continued to watch Jane Ashley with some of the other guests. She’d had a simple beauty to her when she was younger, and it had flourished into something more as she’d grown. Her brown hair seemed highlighted with strands of gold, and her brown eyes had matching flecks in their depths. He’d caught sight of them when he’d been seated beside her during the vow exchange.
She’d smiled at him, and his mind went completely blank. He’d wanted to flirt with her, get closer to her, and find out why she was in Rocky Ridge when they’d all grown up miles from here.
He refused to believe that she’d come just for the wedding. What friend would seek out another after so many years of no contact?
Jane pulled her brown tresses over her shoulder, and her eyes locked with his. They crinkled at the corners, and for a brief moment, time stood still. His heart stuttered. It practically tripped over itself when she looked at him like that.
The worst part was that her smile was one she gave everyone. It wasn’t made special for him, even if deep in his soul he’d always thought God had made her to be a big part of his life.
Noah swallowed at the lump in his throat and flashed her a smile. His nerves had gone into hyperdrive for no other reason than his crush on that woman.
All around him, people mingled. They chattered on about the happy couple. These people were humble working folks—nothing like the wealthy people he’d occasionally had to spend time with.
He turned his focus to his brothers, who were now speaking. Mack and Caleb had no clue that their baby brother had become the one billionaire to live in the state of Montana. In fact, no one in this group of people knew that Noah Reese had spearheaded one of the biggest charities that had grown in popularity across the country.
And they never would.
He didn’t need recognition. He didn’t want it, either. Noah would remain content in the shadows and allow his board of directors to be the face of all the good he did in the world.
It wasn’t just because he wanted privacy. He knew better than to let people know what he had. He’d seen the way others treated people with money. They could usually be put into two categories. Those who wanted something and those who didn’t know how to treat them like humans.
The second his family found out, they’d definitely treat Noah differently. They wouldn’t demand anything from him—he knew that well enough. But they’d act differently all the same. With money came problems—problems he had zero interest in dealing with.
So, he lived with his parents, worked his cousin’s ranch, and moonlighted as a mysterious benefactor of sorts.
As if against his will, Noah’s focus shifted to the girl he’d always been drawn to.
She was gone.
Noah straightened, his drink forgotten as his gaze swept through the crowd of people. She couldn’t be gone. He’d needed to talk to her. When they’d been seated by one another, he hadn’t had a chance to say anything more than hello. If she’d left, then how on earth was he going to see her again?
How could he have let her slip through his fingers? He wasn’t the inexperienced kid who had attempted to flirt with her—admittedly very poorly—when he was younger. Now, he was older, wiser, and… who was he kidding? He was just as full of nerves as he’d been all those years ago.
He dragged a hand down his face and spun around, searching for her again only to nearly collide with her.
Jane gasped, a soft laugh trilling from her as her hand flew to her chest. “Careful, Freckles. You nearly made my drink spill.”
He grimaced. He’d always hated her nickname for him. It made him feel small and insignificant, like he wasn’t worth her attention.
