Chase had never pretended to be anything other than who he was. She’d known this could happen going in. It was why she’d tried so hard to resist him. And failed. Once that had happened, she’d gone ahead and fallen for him anyway. Even though she knew it was a mistake. Of course, she hadn’t expected to fall in love with him, at least not so quickly. And she sure hadn’t expected him to fall in love with her.
Ella knew Chase would want to make love before doing anything else. And while she wanted to, badly, it wouldn’t be right. ‘Let’s make love, oh, gee we have to break up’ wouldn’t be fair to either of them. So she had dinner on the table when she heard him at her door.
She opened the door and he stepped inside before he kissed her. He must have felt her hesitation because he let her go and said, “Tell me what’s wrong. And don’t try to bullshit me into believing it’s nothing. You’ve been different ever since we got back from the Fort Worth rodeo.”
She didn’t deny it. That was when she’d finally begun to admit that the two of them weren’t going to work out. No matter that they loved each other, that love would soon turn to resentment on both sides, regardless of how they felt now.
“Let’s eat and then we can talk.”
“About that rodeo,” Chase said to Ella. “I know we didn’t get to be together as much as we’d planned but that was mostly my fault for forgetting about the endorsement shoot.”
“I understand, Chase. Let’s just eat.”
He gave her a long look. “All right. If that’s the way you want it.”
She didn’twantit that way. But that was the way things had to be. How long could she live with a man whose first priority would always be something other than their relationship? And more, how could a quiet life on the ranch with her compete with the fame and adrenaline rush of the rodeo? The gold buckle. The fans. The excitement.
He wouldn’t get any of that here. Only a woman who loved him. A woman who wanted a partner, not a man she could count onnotto be there.
