Chapter Two
BEFORE HEADING BACK home to Texas, Anah was given a chance to enjoy one last vacation in Wyoming. A few months ago, her newly-remarried godmother had moved to a small town just outside Jackson Hole, and the older woman had good-naturedly insisted that Anah visit her before flying back home.
An enthusiastic-looking Margery waved at her as soon as Anah came out of the airport, and the older woman gave her a quick hug before stepping back to subject Anah to a quick scrutiny.
"Oh, my Lord, Anah. How is it possible that you look even younger than I remembered?" Margery asked laughingly.
"Story of my life," Anah couldn't help admitting with a sigh.
Margery raised a brow. "Uh oh. Has an older boy caught your fancy?" She had only meant to make Anah laugh or even blush, but instead the younger girl simply shook her head.
There was something there , Margery thought, but Anah being Anah, she doubted the girl would talk about it.
With Anah's mother dying in childbirth and her father long out of the picture, Anah had been solely raised by her grandparents. As a result, the girl was more restful and well-mannered than her peers, and with a remarkably compassionate nature that always had Anah taking her time to pick her words with care.
If Margery wasn't mistaken, Anah didn't even have any personal social media account to speak of, and if that didn't make the girl a living anachronism, she didn't know what else would.
Margery began a steady stream of conversation, and soon enough she saw Anah working hard to cheer herself up. Sweet, lovely girl , Margery thought with a sigh. Her goddaughter was such a darling that the man she had fallen for could only be the most unscrupulous sort, to be able to stomach hurting her dear Anah.
IN THE MEANTIME, SAID unscrupulous soul was battling the strangest urge to sneeze. It was almost as if someone had walked over Ethan's grave...either that, or someone might not exactly be thinking good thoughts about him.
Although he and his brothers co-owned one of the largest ranches in the state, it was not actually the primary source of their income. Rather, the majority of their fortune lay in e-commerce, and it was a technical emergency concerning the department Ethan was in charge of that had him dropping everything to fly back home.
But while he didn't regret fulfilling his duties, Ethan couldn't help feeling regret over not being able to say goodbye to little Anah. If he were not mistaken, today was her last day on the job, and after this she would be flying home to Texas.
He knew he could simply look her up online to reconnect, but he was reluctant to do this for some reason. If fate decreed that they were not to meet again, then maybe that was all for the best.
It was already a few minutes past seven by the time Ethan left the office and drove back to the family ranch. The main house was ablaze with light, and the sound of laughter ringing out from the open windows of the dining room belatedly reminded him about tonight's welcome dinner for the McGregors.
John had been in his family's employ for as long as he could remember, and the older man had also served as a father figure of sorts for Ethan and the twins when their parents passed away. A smile already curving on Ethan's lips, he strode inside the dining room and saw right away John, and beside the older man could only be the new Mrs. McGregor, who was seated next to...
His eyes widened. "Anah?"
"That was exactly her reaction, too," Aidan said with a smirk, "when we told her we had a younger brother named Ethan."
TWO HOURS LATER, AND Anah was still doing her best to come to grips with this new version of Ethan as she followed the others to the patio. "So, let me get this straight..." She glanced up at Ethan, who was keeping pace next to her. "You and all those guys are billionaires who pooled your resources—-"
"Founding members, in other words," he supplied.
"To start a company—-"
"The Hartland Initiative," Ethan named.
"And use it to buy up every inch of land of Hartland, Wyoming—-"
"Right so far," he confirmed.
"Because you guys want to eventually lead ordinary private lives—-"
"Don't forget safe," Ethan said lightly. "The less info you have on the web, the safer you tend to be these days."
"So if I Google your name," she said skeptically, "nothing pertinent's going to show up?"
"If you searched for the twins' names, I'd say yes. But my case is slightly different." Anah couldn't help noticing the way Ethan's handsome face had suddenly turned expressionless. "I used to date someone famous."
And now it was her turn to work hard at keeping her face just as blank.
"So it's taking our I.T. team more time to scrub my digital footprint," Ethan finished.
"I see."
Ethan glanced down at Anah. "That's all you have to say?"
"I'm sorry it didn't work out between you two." Anah meant every word even though her heart was still breaking at the knowledge that Ethan's ex was "someone famous". A.K.A. someone she could never hope to compete with , Anah thought, and the realization made her heart squeeze even more—-
The sound of Ethan's snort interrupted her thoughts, and when she glanced up, she was startled to see him smirking down at her. "What?"
"You just found out I'm a billionaire," Ethan drawled, "and you were more concerned about my single status."
Anah couldn't help giggling. When he put it that way, her priorities did seem a little skewed.
Ethan ruffled her hair. "You're a good kid, little Anah."
Aidan watched with interest as Ethan and Anah finally joined them in the patio. The two took up a couch and barely seemed to notice the rest of them. They were deep in conversation, heads bent close, and with one or the other occasionally breaking out a smile or a laugh.
Before tonight, Aidan couldn't even remember the last time he had seen his younger brother smile. Perhaps...six years ago, before Ethan had started going out with Guilia? Either way, he preferred the Ethan that he was seeing now. It was like having the old Ethan back, and if the only way to keep things like this was to keep the teenager around...
Aidan made his move as soon as their guests had left. "Would you say Anah's the trustworthy sort?"
"She'd have to be," Thornton said dryly, "since she just found out about our biggest secret."
Both Aidan and Ethan grinned at this, especially since it was rare for the former soldier to crack any kind of joke.
"Are you seriously concerned, though?" Ethan couldn't help asking with a frown. "She's a good kid."
"I actually think so, too," Aidan murmured, "which is why I was wondering if perhaps we could get her and her grandparents—-"
"Parents," Ethan corrected his older brother. "She knows they're her grandparents, but she doesn't think of them that way."
"Duly noted." For Ethan to care enough to make such a distinction clear was a very good thing, and Aidan was privately encouraged by this. "As I was saying, we could get Anah and her parents to move to Wyoming. Her parents could stay here in Jackson or Laramie if they wish, but the end goal is to get Anah as a permanent resident of Hartland."
Ethan's expression cleared. Beefing up Hartland's local population was one of their high-priority targets for this year, and he already knew how fond Anah was of Hartland. However...
"You do remember she's still in high school?" Ethan questioned.
"So? She can finish high school here, and we can even get her parents jobs. Margery's already on the local school board. We can get her to open up a slot for Anah's parents."
"That could work," Ethan acknowledged, remembering how Anah had mentioned that both her parents were professors.
"Good. Do I tell her or..."
"I'll do it," Ethan said right away. "I'll call her now."
Thornton waited for their younger brother to be out of earshot before raising a brow at his twin. "Are you playing matchmaker or godfather to the kid?" If the girl and her parents agreed to becoming part of The Hartland Initiative, they'd be set for life and never have to worry about money again.
"Time will tell, I suppose." A shrug of Aidan's broad shoulders accompanied the casual response, but Thornton was far from fooled. Aidan was the typical big brother in the sense that he often acted with the unassailable belief he knew better than most. It often turned out to be true as well, but with Ethan and the girl...
Thornton thought about all those times that he was in the same room as Ethan and Guilia, and how they had always appeared to him like a train wreck waiting to happen. Ethan and Anah, however...it didn't even seem like they were running on the same tracks.
His lips tightened as a realm of possibilities occurred to him. It was possible that things between Ethan and the girl would eventually change, but if it didn't...
Thornton was certain that Anah would be the only one who'd end up hurt.