Chapter 7
Lauren
“See, you’re not so bad on your feet,” Joyce insists as she spins into Bronco’s arms, her skirt twirling around her. She moves with the skill and grace of someone who has been dancing her whole life.
She took it up five years ago when she arrived, and she hasn’t stopped since. But I’m not the only one staring at Bronco and Joyce. Their impromptu tango has caught the eye of Mr. Dunn. He’s staring at her with the appreciation of a male, and I make a mental note to encourage that connection later.
Bronco looks up then, as if he sensed my presence. “Are you ready to spend the week alone together?”
Everyone is watching us. I roll my eyes and stalk toward the door, throwing over my shoulder, “Let’s get this over with.”
“Foreplay already, I love it,” Bronco answers to the crowd before hurrying after me. He follows me to his truck. I manage to get inside of it without his help, feeling mildly miffed at him.
“You could have just asked me,” I sulk from my seat. Also, he’s never been flirty with me. But that’s the way he was acting at the center. I want to ask him about that. I’m just too much of a coward and the words stick in my throat.
“I would have come,” I admit, not liking the vulnerable note that creeps into my voice.
He chuckles.
“You know what I mean!” I insist and reach for the radio, turning up the country song that’s playing.
Bronco and I don’t talk for the rest of the drive. But I don’t mind that much because even being in silence with him is nice. Just his presence brings me comfort and warmth.
When we arrive at the ranch, I take a deep breath of the fresh air and breathe a soft sigh of relief. My problems always seem a million miles away when I’m at the ranch. “This place is magic.”
He grunts and says something under his breath that I miss. But I’m pretty sure he said it is now, which doesn’t really make any sense.
Menace bounds over to me, eager for cuddles. I reward him with lots of petting and croons, grateful that he’s always so enthusiastic about seeing me.
“Let’s grab some dinner before all the good burgers are gone,” Bronco says and leads me toward the back of the property where a lot of the men are gathered around a campfire. There aren’t any women here, but no one says anything to me about crashing their guys’ moment.
Instead I settle into one of the two open chairs. Menace sits right next to me, licking his lips like he can’t wait for a burger of his own.
Cord and Flint are across from us. I think they’re arguing about which one of them could wrestle a bear with his hands and win. Actually, I think it’s mainly Flint doing the arguing though judging by the amusement in Cord’s eyes, it’s exactly the kind of silly conversation he needed.
I expect Bronco to take the empty chair beside me, but instead he moves closer to the fire and claps Ridge on the back. He says something in a low tone that I don’t catch, because my attention is back on Cord and Flint.
Flint is the one who brings me into the conversation. “Be real here, Lauren. Which one of us do you think would win if we were wrestling a bear?”
Cord lifts his head, and now they’re both focused on me.
Ridge saves me by settling into the chair next to me with a noisy sigh of contentment. He crosses his ankles and gives me an assessing look. “How’s the auction going?”
“Pretty good,” I answer. “Cord is already taken, and Flint is on the auction block now. Someone keeps upping the bid. She must really want you.”
“Or she’s just desperate,” Cord points out.
Flint shrugs. “Desperate works for me.”
“Probably the only way he’s ever gotten a date,” Ridge adds which earns him a flipped bird from Flint.
Ridge nudges the cooler between us with his boot then opens it. It’s filled with sodas and beers. “What can I get you?”
“I’m good with a water, thanks,” I tell him.
When he passes it to me, I take a long sip and roll the edge of the wrapper underneath my thumbnail.
The other guys on the ranch have already agreed to have their photos taken tomorrow.
The only one I haven’t had a chance to talk with yet is Ridge.
He’s one of the older guys here, a silver-haired fox with a blue gaze that never seems to miss anything.
“What do you think if I put you on the auction block?” I ask him.
“What do you think if I make a sizeable donation to your cause?” He offers in return.
“Come on, some sweet girl wants to win that pretty face,” Flint teases.
“You never know. You might get lucky,” Cord adds.
“To be clear, we’re not encouraging hook-ups,” I point out, not sure if that helps the cause in Ridge’s eyes or not. It’s hard to read him. What is it with these tough, macho military men? Do they take a special course that teaches them how to school their expressions so well?
“Color me disappointed,” Flint drawls. “Are you saying if I get some sassy little vixen who wants a ride on the Flint Express I can’t rock her world?”
“The Flint Express?” Cord chuckles. “Sounds like it should be a credit card.”
“Unlimited rewards with every ride.” Flint waggles his eyebrows.
Ridge snorts. “If I agree, does that mean the idiot over there has to shut up?”
“I’ll make him stop calling it the Flint Express,” I promise.
“Done.” Ridge clinks his beer can against my water.
The rest of my time around the fire passes far too quickly. The men here spend all of their time teasing each other, eating countless burgers, recalling funny memories from their time in the service, and remembering what it means to come home.
“What are you thinking about?” Bronco asks me as we walk back toward his place. It’s dusk, the sun having set already and the crickets are singing love songs tonight. Menace is following along with us, content to stay close to my side.
“I’m thinking about you.”
“Me?”
“And what a good thing you’ve done here with Valor Ranch. It’s really cool, Bronco, and it’s exactly what these guys need.”
“It was Vale’s idea,” he says the words softly, and they hang between us. The ghost of my brother will always be the quiet third wheel. Not unwanted but not letting either of us move forward either.
“You brought it to life though,” I point out.
He shrugs and doesn’t say anything. Of course, he doesn’t. I’ve never seen him take credit for anything. He’s content to simply be in the background, unseen and unnoticed but quietly making sure the world is still spinning.
As we approach the house, he fights a yawn and manages to say around it, “I’ll get the guest room set up for you. Won’t be much but it’s clean.”
I stop him on the front porch. “I think I’m going to stay out here for a minute. Maybe record a live video for viewers following the auction.”
He nods and disappears into the house.
While he’s gone, I set up my phone on a mini-tripod, fluff my hair twice, and hit the button to go live.
Talking to the camera feels natural to me.
Maybe it’s because I love this farm so much or my heart is so filled after spending time with these amazing cowboys.
Whatever the reason, it’s easy to chat with the viewers.
I watch the reactions and comments come in, responding to them in the moment.
Then Bronco opens the door and steps back outside.
I gesture him close to me, so viewers can get a look at him. “And this is Bronco, one of the cowboys from the ranch.”
He gives the phone a nod, tips his hat, and mutters howdy.
They eat it up. Comments are flying in even faster as dozens of hearts and likes fill my phone screen.
“Just to be clear, he’s my cowboy,” I chuckle to keep it light. I shouldn’t have said that, but I already hate the comments. He isn’t up for auction. He’s mine, and the whole world should know that. Or at least, all these girls in their low-cut shirts with their boobs spilling out the top.
“Damn straight,” he says.
Then he does the unthinkable.
Right there on camera, he pulls off his Stetson, drops his head, and kisses me. If I thought the chaste peck in my little kitchenette was hot, this kiss is scorching. His tongue invades my mouth, plundering and claiming every part of me.
I lose all sense of reality, grabbing fistfuls of his shirt and plastering myself against his big, warm body. His hands roam, one finding the back of my neck and cupping me so gently while his other goes to my hip, kneading my flesh in a possessive hold that has me nearly melting into a puddle.
When he lifts his head and stares down at me, I could almost swear that the kiss meant something. I could almost swear that everything I’ve felt for him all this time wasn’t one-sided at all.
Then Menace makes a soft noise. Suddenly, I’m back down to earth and realizing that I’m still live on camera. I manage to stammer out a closing with heated cheeks and a body that’s buzzing, all thanks to the handsome cowboy next to me.
The moment the camera clicks off, and I’m certain we’re not live anymore, he opens his mouth. I wait for him to speak, my heart pounding so loudly that surely every cowboy on this ranch can hear it.
He doesn’t say anything.
My heart sinks.
“What was…that?” The words are a hoarse whisper torn from my throat.
He shrugs. “That was theater…for your audience.”
And my pounding heart shatters right there on the porch.
I manage a nod I don’t feel, smile robotically, fake a yawn. “Awesome. I’m gonna hit the bed.”
“Lauren…” He calls my name softly.
But it’s too late. I’m already in the house, screen door slamming behind me as I hurry toward the guest bedroom.
After a sleepless night spent tossing and turning in the guest bed with sheets that smell of Bronco, I’m up with the sun. I take a quick shower and walk through the house, but he’s already gone to work on his chores. He was probably up when it was still dark.
I don’t mind his absence so much right now. My heart is bruised from last night, and I’m not sure it’s ever going to heal. A kiss that melted my bones and he called it theater. Guess he’s a much better actor than I am because I could never fake that kind of passion.
I settle on his couch with my phone and answer endless comments about the auction before I open my laptop. There are emails to answer, mainly questions from the bidders and even more media requests. The whole thing is surreal and right up until last night, I was crazy excited about it.
But then the wind got taken out of my sails. I’m mad at Bronco for not feeling the same things for me that I do for him. But I’m more mad at myself for getting the wrong idea about what all of this meant. Bronco is only doing this because he’s loyal to my brother.
My shattered heart will just have to accept this fact and move on. I’m not entirely sure there will be any moving on, but I have to try. If Aunt Elaine can be strong enough to overcome betrayal, then I can get over a silly crush on my brother’s best friend.
I’m still telling myself that an hour later when I walk down to the barn.
The cowboys going up for auction agreed to meet me here for photographs.
After Bronco interrupted the first photo shoot, I only had pictures of Cord and Flint.
Now, I plan to get shots of the rest of them.
The problem is the lighting outside isn’t great today.
The weather is too overcast, the cloud coverage promising thunderstorms within a few hours.
That’s when I realize the barn doors are already thrown open wide, bright lights shining inside.
“Lauren,” Flint calls my name and gestures me over. “We’ve been waiting. Sorry about the lights. I couldn’t get photography lights out to the farm on short notice. So, we mounted some high bay lights. It’s the best I could do. Hope that’s okay.”
I wasn’t expecting him to help with the lighting. “That’s perfect. I was planning to use natural lighting but…” I gesture toward the sky behind me.
“I figured and look…” He holds up his phone and swipes the screen. A loud, rowdy country song starts to play. “Cord figured out the playlist. Seems like the right music might loosen everyone up.”
“You really thought of everything,” I admit. “Doesn’t the music bother the horses?”
“We play music in here all the time. None of them have complained yet.”
“One last question. Any chance I could hire you to be my assistant at Wildflower?”
He chuckles. “I saw what I sold for at the auction. You can’t afford me.”
“That’s true,” I agree as I take in what he’s done. The lights are bright, and the guys are already milling about and shirtless. The scent of coconut is overpowering.
“Oh, and I upgraded us from the Crisco,” he says. “That part was actually my idea. Smells nicer too, doesn’t it?”
I frown, not sure what he means about coconut oil being his idea. But before I can ask, he goes to talk to Cord who’s fiddling with the speakers.
The next four hours pass quickly as I photograph all the cowboys.
They’re good-natured and joke with each other easily.
But the entire time I’m taking pictures, I’m aware of Bronco.
He slipped into a dark corner of the barn just as I pulled out my camera.
I haven’t let myself acknowledge his presence.
Finally, just as we’re breaking down, he approaches me. “Hey.”
“Hi,” I answer, not bothering to inject any fake cheerfulness into my voice. What does it matter anyway? It’s not like he cares.
I pretend to fiddle with my camera. That’s twice now that we’ve kissed and both times have been a mistake. It’s not his fault, but I also can’t keep hurting myself this way.
“About last night, well, the thing is…” He fumbles for the words, clearly not having thought this through. How can the man not have fixated on that one moment all night long like I did? How did he not lie awake for hours obsessing over the most perfect kiss in the history of the entire world?
“It’s fine. You were doing what you had to do. For the audience. Views went way up after that. Gold star for you, Marine.”
He opens his mouth, and I’m not sure what he’s going to say. I interrupt him before he can offer an explanation, “Everything is fine. Go. Have fun roping steers or whatever it is you do. I have to edit these photos and get them done. I’ll see you later.”