For a second, a single stupid second, I’d trusted him. He had been steady. Calm. A presence to lean toward when everything was unraveling. The kind of man who didn’t flinch from chaos.
My phone buzzed in my pocket. I ignored it. Then it buzzed again. And again. And again. Repeated, insistent. Eventually, annoyance won over despair, and I dragged the phone out.
Colin’s name flashed on the screen; there were a dozentexts. Had he always been this annoying? No, he hadn’t, it was only when he couldn’t have me, he got like this.
The phone buzzed again, but this time it was Dani. I smiled as I answered.
“Oh my God,” Dani breathed, her voice softening instantly. “I’ve been dying from worry.” Her frantic voice should have made me feel better, but I couldn’t even muster a laugh.
I sagged into one of the kitchen chairs. It creaked under me, and the sound nearly undid me. Ray’s weight had made the same noise every morning while drinking coffee and complaining about the neighbours dog.
“He’s trying to buy the ranch,” I whispered.
Silence. Actual silence. No ranting. No threats. No immediate homicide.
Then Dani said, very calmly, “Which part of this sentence am I supposed to process first? The part where he tried to steal your family home or the part where he lied to you while being sexy and helpful?”
“This isn’t funny.”
“I’m not laughing,” Dani snapped. “I’m homicidal.” She meant it.
I pressed my fingers to my forehead. “He’s been trying to buy it for years. Years. And Ray never told me. And now Wyatt just expects me to hand the place over to him.”
“Okay.” Dani took a breath so sharp I could hear the inhale. “Let me get this straight. Sexy rancher giant man shows up. Drives you across the prairies like some moody cowboy ride share. And then tells you he’s been circling the property like a vulture?”
“That’s exactly what I said,” I muttered.
“I hate him,” Dani declared. “I hope his sexy salt-and-pepper beard falls off.”
“He doesn’t have a beard.” I hate that I knew that fact.
“Fine. I hope his jawline gets slightly less sharp.”
“Do we have to go that far?”
“Yes,” she hollered into the phone.
I stared at the kitchen table, the old place mats Ray never let anyone replace, still sitting where he’d left them.
“I can’t do this,” I whispered. “Dani, it’s too much.”
“Yes, you can,” she said instantly. “I know you can because you’re stubborn and angry and filled with rage right now, and that’s basically rocket fuel.”
“That’s not helpful.” My voice, oddly flat-sounding even to my ears.
“Actually, it is. You need to be pissed off, you need to fight. That ranch is rightfully yours.”
I swallowed hard. “The debts are huge.”
“Okay. And?”
“And the taxes are overdue,” I answered, thinking that would be the end of the conversation.
“Alright.”
“And there’s a lien. A big one.”
“Oh my God,” she breathed. “Ray.”
