Bo shrugged. “Then what’s the hold up? Tell her that you want to make good on that pact?—”
“Don’t you think I’ve said that?”
His cousin gave him a pointed look. “Did you tell her when you were joking around, or were you serious?”
Noah snapped his mouth shut at that question. Once again, Bo had made an excellent point. Jane was the only person in the world that Noah could see himself with. She was the only person he’d loved. The last week had been utter torture.
“You’re right,” Noah muttered as he straightened. “Maybe all she needs is to know how I feel about her and how I’ve felt about her since I was a kid.” He tossed Bo a nervous glance. “Though, I don’t know that a marriage proposal a logical next step. Clearing the air seems to be a better option.”
“It’s definitely a start,” Bo nodded. “And if it doesn’t work the first time, don’t give up.”
That idea was terrifying in and of itself. But he couldn’t think about that right now. He needed to focus on brighter thoughts. He could do this. He could win her back. Jane had enough time to cool down. Maybe she’d be open to hearing him out now that she could step back and see him for who he was.
He had to have hope.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Jane wrung her hands.She’d already paced a path in the dirt leading to the barn from the edge of the building. All the back and forth had kicked up enough dust that there was now a thin layer on her clothes.
She probably should have called first.
Okay, she definitely should have called first.
Noah was busy. What if he was dealing with something related to The Wounded Heroes Project? He might not even be here. Though she had bumped into a cowboy who had insisted he’d seen Noah go out on a ride with a few of the other men.
Shaking out her hands, she glanced nervously at the fields where the cowboy had pointed. There was no way she’d be able to find him, so saddling a horse was out of the question. All she could do was wait for him to come back. Because if she left now, she knew she’d be too nervous to come back. And there was no way she’d message him something so important.
Jane focused on her breathing when she became lightheaded. All she had to do was tell him that she still loved him. She didn’tneed to make excuses for her behavior, though that was where her heart was going. She wanted to assure him that he was still it for her, and she prayed that he’d accept it, and they could move forward.
There were going to be other hurdles that they’d have to overcome. She wasn’t so naïve to think there wouldn’t be.
“Hey, Jane. How’s it going?”
Her head snapped up, and Reese wandered toward her. He was clad in a pair of worn jeans that was topped with a green t-shirt that brought out the specks of jade in his hazel eyes. Much like his cousins, he was handsome, but he didn’t hold a candle to the man she was waiting to see.
Jane offered him a shy smile. They’d worked together every so often on various chores around the ranch, but they hadn’t really gotten to know one another all that well. “It’s going okay, how are you doing?”
Reese shrugged his shoulders. “Can’t complain, I guess.” His eyes widened. “But I heard all about how great that event went. Congrats.”
She blushed. “Thanks, but I didn’t really do much.”
Reese scoffed. “I wasn’t able to attend, but I heard all about it. And one of the triplets posted all about it on her social media. Don’t downplay your work. Everyone can see you’re a shining star when it comes to this stuff. Have you considered taking things to the next level?”
“The next level?” she asked.
“Yeah. Like a bigger charity. I’m sure there are loads of people who could benefit from what you bring to the table.” Reeseflashed a smile. “I could totally see you working for some big hot shot over at a children’s hospital.”
“Actually, I?—”
“Jane?”
She whirled around at the sound of his voice, and her heart hammered in her chest at the sight of him. Noah rose out of the saddle where he had been seated and jumped to the ground at the side of his horse. He frowned, his eyes darting from Jane to Reese and back again.
The pain was still so clearly etched in his eyes that it made her heart ache. Their distance from one another had been too much. She could see that, now.
“Hey,” she murmured, taking a step toward him. He didn’t move, and she hesitated moving closer. Had she taken too long to clear the air?
Noah rubbed the back of his neck and nodded curtly toward her. “I wasn’t expecting you to come by. Bo said that you’re taking some time off.”
