Chapter Fourteen
Fourteen
Ryan didn’t know if this plan was going to backfire or win him more points, but he hadn’t gotten this far in life without taking risks.
His staff was all too thrilled he’d dismissed them for the day when there was still daylight.
But Ryan wanted his land to be all about him and Morgan for the day.
He wasn’t sure when his feelings shifted from wanting to fulfill a legacy to wanting to share all of this with Morgan.
No matter when the slow fade happened, Ryan knew without a doubt this was where Morgan belonged.
And for her to understand and see that as well, she needed to know about his life and what led him to this point.
There was nothing Ryan was more proud of than Yellow Rose Ranch. He didn’t think that made him shallow or egotistical at all. He’d worked damn hard from his inheritance and wise investments, coupled with smart business sense, and he wanted to show off what he had created.
“What are we doing in the stables?”
Ryan turned as Morgan stepped inside. Her polished look never failed to impress and amaze him. She was everything he wasn’t, and she didn’t seem to mind that he lived in the same style of clothes every single day. She, on the other hand, never wore the same thing twice.
Today she had on a long black dress, cowgirl boots, and a fitted denim jacket. She could go from the girl next door to the elegant partygoer to the bedroom vixen in a blink and he was quickly discovering just how much he enjoyed each of Morgan’s personalities.
“I thought I’d show you around,” he told her.
She stopped at the stall that just so happened to house his stallion.
Morgan smiled and reached her hand in. Midnight’s nose came out enough for Ryan to see.
Morgan’s gentle touch and kind smile hit him in the gut and all he could think of was how she belonged here.
This is where he would raise his family, and his wife would make this ranch her own.
“He’s gorgeous.” Morgan’s hand rested on the side of Max’s face as she glanced Ryan’s way. “So gentle and sweet.”
“He can ride faster than lightning,” Ryan added. “He’s my best buddy here and I wouldn’t get anything done without him.”
She dropped her hand and started moving toward him once again. Those eyes were fixed on his and he still couldn’t figure out how she held such a strong power over him. She was absolutely mesmerizing in the most intriguing way.
“And is that why you brought me here?” she asked. “To introduce me to your horse? That’s a big step in a relationship.”
Ryan couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s part of the reason. I want to show you around the ranch and since riding a horse is out because of the baby, I thought we’d start here and then we can ride around in the Jeep to look through the acreage.”
Morgan reached him and crossed her arms over her chest. “I grew up on a ranch, Ryan. I’m well aware of what they look like and how they work.”
“You don’t know about Yellow Rose,” he corrected her as he turned and held out his elbow. “Walk with me and I’ll figure out where to start.”
Her eyes darted from his face to his arm and she slid her hand into the crook of his elbow.
“Why don’t you start with the name,” she suggested. “Yellow Rose Ranch is beautiful, but I do wonder where it came from.”
Ryan laid his free hand over hers as they headed toward the other end of the stables.
He couldn’t recall a time he wanted anything more than to have Morgan agree to marry him.
They could live like this together, raise their child and any future children right here.
Growing up on a ranch would instill values they wouldn’t learn anywhere else.
That was just another area he and Morgan had in common.
Even though she’d turned from the lifestyle, she still knew the ins and outs because she, too, had grown up on a large ranch.
This step toward marriage was the right one and the only solution that made any sense.
He had to make her see that she wasn’t settling, she wasn’t losing. In the long run, they’d both be happy.
“My mother’s favorite flower was the yellow rose. She always had them in the house and apparently everyone knew because they were all over at her graveside service.”
Ryan could finally talk about his mother and remember the good instead of that instant feeling of pain and loss. Those emotions were still present—they would never go away, but at least he had learned to compartmentalize and he could smile when he thought of her.
“She was always happy, always wanting to make sure everyone around her was in a good mood,” he continued. “It’s just appropriate that her favorite color was yellow.”
“She sounds like an amazing woman.”
Ryan nodded as he led Morgan to the Jeep parked behind the stable. “She was, and she would love knowing she’d be a grandmother. No doubt she would have already had a nursery painted and fully stocked. She was all in with everything and loved her family.”
“Family is important to both of us.”
Morgan started to reach for the handle of the Jeep, but he beat her to it and opened the door. When he gestured her in, she gave him a side-eye and took a seat.
“You know, I’m still moving out at the end of the month, right?” she told him.
Ryan shrugged. “Of course.”
He closed the door and rounded the vehicle to climb in behind the wheel. He started up the engine and turned the heat on because even though they were still in Texas, there was a chill in the air in December.
“I own just over twelve thousand acres,” he started. “Definitely not the biggest ranch, but I’m proud of it and we’re profitable and productive.”
Morgan reached over and laid her hand on his on the console. Her soft touch stirred something inside him, something that wasn’t arousal...but more pure and innocent. There was almost a comfort and understanding to her gesture.
“This isn’t a job interview,” she informed him. “Don’t sell me this place, Ryan. Why don’t you tell me why you love ranch life so much?”
Thoughts instantly swirled around in his head of all the reasons he felt alive on this property. From sunup until sundown, there was so much packed into a day. Not to mention the nostalgia surrounding him at any given time.
“Even on the hardest days, there’s nothing else in the world I’d rather be doing.”
Morgan squeezed his hand before releasing him. “That’s how you know you’re in the right profession. Nothing is perfect and it’s not always easy, but if you still love your job in those down times, you’re blessed.”
“It’s not just all that I’ve accomplished here,” he added. “I have women and men who work for me that have become like family. This industry forms such strong, tight-knit bonds. Unless you’re part of it, the concept is difficult to grasp.”
Morgan pointed out her window as he drove along the edge of the pasture.
“What’s that peak over there?” she asked.
“That’s where we’re headed first.”
“I’m intrigued.” She turned her attention toward him. “I thought we were just coming out here to look at your livestock.”
“They’re already in another pasture,” he informed her. “There’s something I wanted you to see other than animals.”
Silence settled in the small space as he headed toward the surprise that he hoped didn’t backfire.
He wanted Morgan to see his life, really see it.
She’d turned away from ranching before and here he was trying to pull her back in, to accept this and a marriage that was more like a business arrangement than anything else.
Could he fault her for turning him down?
Even she admitted that she didn’t believe in love, so why wouldn’t she just give in already?
“I spoke to Vic this morning before the shop opened.”
Her statement pulled him from his own thoughts. He already felt sorry for Vic because he knew how angry Morgan had been last night when she’d figured out what had happened.
“How did that go?” he asked.
“I’m still irritated, but I truly think he had good intentions. Even if his methods were ridiculous, he really just wants to see me happy.”
“And are you?”
He wanted her to be happy. He hadn’t realized how much so, but if she couldn’t see herself here or find contentment, then they both lost.
“Morgan—”
“My happiness is the least of my worries.”
He reached over and took her hand in his. “Your happiness is equally as important as our child.”
“No, it’s not.”
Ryan maneuvered around the bend as the old structure came into view. Just like every other time he rounded that fence line, memories came flooding back. He hoped they always did because that kept those moments, those people, alive inside him.
“I don’t have you at my house just to convince you to marry me,” he told her. “I’m trying to do what is best here and I want you to see that you can be happy, we can be happy, and that’s what will make a good environment for our family. So your happiness is at the top of my priorities.”
“How do you do that?” she asked.
“Do what?”
“You make me think and feel and...want.”
Her last word came out on a whisper and damn it, he had a burst of hope. Having her come to the decision to stay had been his initial goal. He didn’t want to force her to marry him or trick her into this union. Morgan was a strong woman and that was who he wanted by his side raising their child.
Ryan thought it best to say nothing and just let her deal with that statement and her thoughts on her own. His actions would more than show her why he wanted her here.
He pulled up to the old stone house and shut off the engine. He glanced toward Morgan to see her face and gauge her reaction.
“This is an adorable cottage,” she stated. “I didn’t know this was back here.”
“This is where I grew up.”
She jerked her attention to him, her eyes wide.
“There was all of this land surrounding the house,” he told her. “Some was used for a farm, but it was all owned by different people. I knew I wanted this land, all of it, when I grew up. I wanted to prove I’d made it and that I could do anything I wanted.”
Ryan reached up and cupped the side her face.
“I know the ranch life isn’t for you,” he said, stroking his thumb over her bottom lip.
“But all I’ve ever wanted was to be a cowboy, and that little boy’s dream came true.
I’m not trying to change you into someone you’re not, and I’m not asking you to settle or rearrange your life.
I’m asking you to be a part of this legacy and just marry me. ”
Tears filled her eyes and he didn’t know if that was the pregnancy hormones or if his words were finally getting to her. All he could offer was his little piece of the world, but never his heart.
“I have another surprise for you after this.”
Morgan laughed as a tear slid down her cheek. “Do you sit around and think of ways to keep me guessing what’s next?”
Ryan shrugged, swiping away the moisture from her silky skin.
“Never thought of it that way. I’m just making sure you know that I’d take care of you and we don’t need to get into the fact you’re capable of taking care of yourself.
I’m well aware. I just want you to know that you’d have a good life here and so would our baby. ”
He moved his hand to settle over her still flat stomach, all the while keeping his gaze locked on hers.
“I know we would,” she admitted as she rested her hand over his. “But everything moved so fast and there hasn’t been time to process all the changes so it’s impossible to fully grasp another life change.”
She closed her eyes and blew out a sigh before meeting his stare once again.
“I see my siblings all falling in love and getting married,” she told him.
“Part of me wants to believe love is real and if it’s real, shouldn’t I hold out for that?
Shouldn’t we both? We deserve to have that person in our lives who will be forever.
Because you and I both know that if there hadn’t been a pregnancy, then we wouldn’t be here right now. There’s no love between us, Ryan.”
While he did hear what she was saying, and firmly believed that she meant each word, Ryan also knew he was wearing her down. She still had a few more weeks here and he wasn’t giving up on his family.
“Not every marriage is a fairy tale.” He turned his hand to lace their fingers together. “But we can make our own happy ending.”
When she opened her mouth, no doubt to turn him down again, Ryan held up his hand.
“Keep thinking about it,” he told her. “Don’t turn me down this second. My ego can’t take all of the negative answers.”
Morgan smiled and that was exactly what he wanted.
He didn’t want every moment between them to be so intense and serious.
He didn’t want to fight anymore when they got along so well in too many other areas.
The only thing he wanted her to fight for was them.
He wouldn’t back down, not when he knew Morgan valued family and they had the same ideals.
But he still needed to show her where he came from so she could appreciate what he had now. He loved riding back here and getting the reminder that he’d started from humble beginnings.
Some had questioned why he never tore this place down since it was in the middle of his acreage, but that would be like trying to erase his childhood and those were memories he never wanted to lose.
“I have a few more areas on the ranch I want to show you before head back to the house.” He eased away and started the engine back up. “The next surprise is even better than this one.”
Morgan chuckled. “Can’t wait.”