Her eyes shoot wide. “We? Does that mean you’re not still pushing Pops to sell?”
I shake my head, finally sure of myself. “Not anymore.”
A slow smile tugs at her lips. “So, I actually accomplished what Pops asked me to do?”
Crossing my arms, I lean against the tack room door. “And what exactly did Pops ask you to do?”
Her gaze flicks away. “He stopped by after you first got here and asked me to help you fall in love with Cottonwood Creek again.”
Everything inside me goes still. “What? Why would he do that?”
Sawyer closes one eye and looks at me like she’s lining up her shot. “Maybe he thought you needed a reminder of thegoodthings about this place, considering how determined you were to hate being here at first.”
“That’s ridiculous,” I scoff.
She skewers me with a glare sharp enough to make my insides clench up. “You had a piss-poor attitude and needed to get knocked off that high horse you were sitting on. You were his last chance at saving the ranch. I’m not surprised he asked me to give you a little nudge with the horses.”
I frown, unease stirring in my gut. “Wait. What the hell does that mean?”
My temper spikes, heat crawling up the back of my neck. I pace the length of the stable, breathing hard as I try to work through it. It's reminiscent of the way my mother always operates, influencing and manipulating until I do what she wants.
Sawyer exhales, crossing her arms. “It wasn’t exactly my idea to have you help train Luci,” she admits. “But it worked out. He took to you much easier than he did to me.”
I freeze mid-step and stare at her. My heart drops to the floorboards, leaving my chest hollow.
Was everything I thought we had some ploy she and Pops cooked up to keep me here? Was I just some idiot who fell in love with a girl who was doing her best to tie me to this place?
I’m lost for words, or just too mad to find the right ones. I’m angry at Pops for dragging Sawyer into this in the first place, pissed at myself for being so easily manipulated, and mad as hell at Sawyer for making me believe she actually cared about me.
Everything between us feels tainted now—like it was never real in the first place, and I was stupid enough to believe it.
“So, was this all part of the plan?” I gesture between us, my voice rough. “Sleeping with me just to make sure I stayed?”
Her mouth drops open in shock and then her temper rises, coloring her cheeks a bright, mottled red. “Nothing that happened between us has been a lie, Wes. I swear.”
My jaw clenches tight in an effort to bite back my retort. Right now, there's nothing I can say that isn't laced with anger or disappointment. I can’t even look at her without second-guessing everything.
“Wes...” Her voice trails off when she sees the look in my eyes. Tears form at her lash line, and I look at the rafters to stop myself from reaching for her.
“I can’t do this right now, Sawyer,” I grit out, knowing that I need to get my head on straight before I try to talk to her.
She flinches as I stalk past her, and it kills me, but I keep walking.
Because if I stay, I might say something I can’t take back. And as much as I want to be angry at everyone else, the truth is—I’m angriest at myself.
For falling for it all.
For Sawyer.
For the ranch.
For this whole damn town.
The screen door slams on my way through the door and Pops glances up from the pot of coffee he’s making. His eyes sweep over me, and the wrinkles on his forehead pull together in concern.
“What’s gotten into you?”
I slam my fist on the counter next to him. “When were you gonna tell me you and Sawyer were scheming to get me to change my mind about the ranch?”
