Page 21 of The Rancher’s One and Only

“You’re a godsend, Noble,” Jessica said, standing up from the table.

Oh. She was very pretty. And that envious feeling grew.

“Yeah. Of course. This is Ernestine. Dr. Martin.”

Jessica turned to Ernestine and smiled, her expression showing genuine interest. “A doctor? What kind?”

“PhD. Not MD. I’m a paleontologist.”

“Oh,” Jessica said, her eyebrows shooting up. “And how do you know Jax?”

“I was going to tell you,” Rowdy said. “That we had her staying here and digging.”

“Well, way to bury the lead, Rowdy. That’s about the most interesting thing to happen around here in years.”

“This is a very fossil-rich location,” Ernestine said. Her words sounded hollow and a little bit disconnected to her own ears. She wasn’t a fan.

“Oh. I didn’t know that.”

Jessica went to the fridge and opened it. “Beer?”

“Yes,” everyone said. Ernestine needed to get back to the car to get her groceries that needed to be refrigerated. And she needed to get her lemonade.

“I’m just going to go grab my—”

“No. Sit down. I’ve got it.” Jax offered easily, leaving the room, and leaving her standing there with those three relative strangers that she didn’t feel as comfortable with. She swallowed hard. “So. I heard that Rowdy and Jessica were in the rodeo together?”

“Oh yeah,” Rowdy said. “She was a barrel racer.”

“Not anymore?”

“No,” Jessica said, shaking her head. “I got injured a couple of years ago. Got my leg pinned between the wall and the fence, and my horse kept running, not pretty.”

That challenged Ernestine’s initial perception of her. “Oh. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. I came back here to work on my dad’s ranch. I can still do some things.”

“How extensive was your injury? Why does it keep you from riding?” She was doing it again. Asking too many questions. But she really did want to know.

“It was my knee. Which obviously causes a lot of pain. I can still ride, I just can’t do it on the level I need to to really compete. And there’s no point doing it if I can’t win.”

“Really? Not even for fun?”

“Would you dig up dinosaur bones for fun?”

“Yes,” said Ernestine. “Though usually it’s fossils. And my focus is mammals.”

“Oh,” Jessica said.

And Ernestine wondered if she had gotten too weird again.

“So…are you still in the rodeo?” She directed that question to Rowdy. She was trying to minimize any awkward silence.

“No. I gave it up so that I could come here and do this. Which has had its moments. I’ve questioned myself more than once.”

“What about you, Dakota?” she asked. “What did you do before you came here?”

“Oh, I still do it. I’m a sculptor.”