Chapter 19
OLIVIA
Packing my things to go home from the ranch was a weirdly bittersweet time for me. I’d only been here for a few days, but already, I felt like this place had stolen a little part of my soul.
While I still wasn’t sure I would ever want to live like this permanently, there was a definite charm to taking night swims in the creek and spending the days on horseback with a super hot cowboy by my side.
I’d even enjoyed running around in the rain with him—and the absolute majesty of watching lightning race across the sky out here was something I wouldn’t soon forget.
All in all, despite how exhausting these last three days had been, I felt incredibly energized and unbelievably alive. It was a strange feeling, but it was almost like this experience had woken me up to some little things in life I’d never paid enough attention to.
As I slotted the last of my toiletries into my vanity bag, I heard the hardwood floor creak in my bedroom and I smiled, sensing that it was Charlie before he even said anything. I’d become surprisingly alert to his presence, like some part of me had become tangibly connected to some part of him.
“Do you want to come to the rodeo with us this weekend?” he asked, his voice much closer than that creak had been.
I glanced over my shoulder to find him leaning against the doorframe of the bathroom adjoined to my room. As always, he wore jeans and his boots. A khaki button-down covered his strong torso today and he held his hat loosely in his hands.
“Us?” I cocked my head at him. “Who’s us?”
He stared into my eyes, those piercing blues making my heart flutter as he held my gaze. “My family and me. You’d be able to get all the content you need for socials and the marketing of the brand and the ranch from a different perspective.”
Oh. Right. So not a date, then.
I wasn’t surprised, but I was a little more disappointed than I should’ve been. On the other hand, after the time I’d spent here, I was chomping at the bit to get stuck into the actual job I had to do for them.
“I’d love to.” I grinned and turned to face him as I zipped up my vanity bag. “Thank you for putting up with me while I was here. It was such a great experience and I learned so much. I’m going to do you and the ranch proud, Charlie.”
Gaze held firmly on my own, he nodded. “Just remember what we talked about.”
“You bet.”
He pushed away from the door and strode into my bedroom, eyeing the suitcase zipped up and ready on the bed. “Can I take this for you or are you going to insist on doing it yourself?”
“If I say that I’m going to do it myself, are you going to take it anyway?”
He shrugged, a smirk on his lips. “Uh, let me think about that. Yes. My mom’s down there. She’ll skin me alive if I make you carry your own luggage. Even if I try to tell her that you wanted to.”
I chuckled but held up my palms in surrender. “Far be it from me to upset your mother.”
My footsteps faltered when I saw a wrapped gift sitting on the mattress next to my suitcase. It was rather large and square, with plain brown wrapping paper around it. I frowned. “What’s that?”
“What does it look like?” he said mildly. “It’s for you, but open it later. Not now.”
My heart stuttered. A warm flush spread on my cheeks and my jaw went slack. “Are you serious? You got me a gift?”
“I did.” He hoisted my suitcase off the bed and slung my laptop bag over his shoulder. “Let’s not make a big deal out of it. Are you ready to go?”
No, but I suppose I have to be.
“Sure.” I forced another smile and picked up the gift. Running my fingers lightly over the outside, I was bursting with curiosity to find out what it was, but he’d asked me to open it later and I would honor his request.
Grabbing the last of my things, I followed Charlie out of the room and down the stairs to find his entire family waiting for me.
Wyatt and Cody immediately grabbed me for a group hug, sandwiching me between their towering frames until their mom scolded them and pulled me closer for a much gentler hug of her own.
“Thank you for everything,” I murmured against her hair as I squeezed her. “I loved spending time here with all of you.”
“We loved having you,” she replied. “You’re welcome any time, darling.”
When she released me, I said goodbye to Mason and Colt, shook Mr. Anderson’s hand, and then met Charlie outside at my car. He helped me load everything into the truck but sadly kept a few feet of distance between us at all times.
“Goodbye, Cowboy.” I looked into his eyes across the short distance, wishing I could hug him as easily as I had his brothers, but I also knew they were probably all watching us from the kitchen.
And with him, it was just different. Something told me if I hugged him, they’d all immediately know how we felt about each other. “Thanks again.”
“See you later.” He tipped his hat at me, turned, and strode away without a backward glance.
I climbed into my car and left the ranch for the first time in days.
Instead of going home, I headed straight to the office.
As much as I already missed my cowboy, I had so many ideas and I wanted to start working on them now.
Excitement fluttered through me, even though my heart was a little heavy about leaving the ranch behind.
That heaviness turned to determination as I strode into our building. The Andersons and the sprawling property they called home deserved the very best I could give them, and I was determined to deliver in every possible way.
“Good morning, Brenda,” I said to the receptionist when I climbed out of the elevator on my floor.
She smiled at me. “Welcome back, Ms. Walker. Or should I say, howdy?”
I laughed and rolled my eyes. “I haven’t gone totally native yet.”
“You will,” Brenda said.
I made a beeline for my office, needing some time to get my own head and heart organized before I saw Lacey, London, or my dad.
I spent the day creating a media packet of my experiences at the ranch, including pictures I’d taken while there, and put together a full promotion plan for it.
It took a few hours, but when I went over everything one last time before sending it to my dad for final approval, my chest swelled with pride over what I’d done.
Charlie had been beyond frustrated with me because of all the pictures and videos, but as I scrolled through them all, I was grateful for every last one.
I’d also pre-written a bunch of posts about the family, the animals, the land itself, and the production side of things.
I’d added in anecdotes, potential hashtags, and I’d focused on humanizing the family without sacrificing their privacy.
By the time I packed up to go home, I still hadn’t seen any of my family or my friend, but I got a text from London telling me to meet them at her place. I smiled. A night with the girls sounded exactly like what I needed to unwind and get back into my own routine.
After dropping off my things at my house, I changed into a pair of shorts and a comfortable shirt, but I found myself putting my boots back on. It felt a little silly, but I’d gotten used to them.
A fact my sister zeroed in on as soon as she opened the door.
“Welcome back, Cowgirl.” She pumped her eyebrows before tossing her arms around me. “God, I missed you. How was it?”
“Surprisingly fun.” I hugged her back and embraced Lacey next as I walked into London’s place. “How did everything go here?”
“Oh, we’re fine.” My sister waved me off, sticking a freshly made Cosmopolitan cocktail into my hand and gesturing for me to take a seat on one of her plush couches.
London’s house in Houston was a lot like mine, with plenty of big windows and natural light, but somehow, the view of her gorgeous garden just wasn’t quite as enchanting as it had been before my time on the ranch.
They sat down with me. Lacey immediately seemed to notice my expression as I stared out the window. “Uh oh. Something’s wrong. What happened?”
“Nothing.”
“I think it’s time you tell us all about your trip to the ranch.” London crossed her legs underneath her and brought her drink closer to her lips, but didn’t take a sip just yet. “Something for sure happened to you out there. Did you see a cow give birth or something?”
“Nothing happened.” I rolled my eyes and giggled. “Nothing bad, anyway. I think I just got used to the wide-open spaces and the view.”
“The view of the hot cowboy?”
I pursed my lips at her, trying to hold back a grin. “Not only him, but sure. That too. I think it’s just going to take me a minute to get used to being back in the city. Everything feels so crowded.”
“Like that holiday hangover feeling?” Lacey asked sympathetically. “It always takes me a day or two to get back to the real world if I’ve been away.”
“Exactly that.” I shifted my gaze back to the window and the sun setting outside. “It feels a little surreal to be back here, which is weird considering that I was only gone for three days.”
“Yeah, but it’s about what happened in those three days.” My sister widened her bright blue eyes at me. “Spill the tea, Liv. It’s time. You’re lucky we didn’t call you every five minutes while you were there.”
As I looked from her to Lacey and back again, my resolve about not saying too much crumbled. I brought my Cosmo to my lips and took a long sip, swallowing before I finally broke down.
“I had so much fun with the cowboy,” I confessed, suddenly unable to wipe the smile off my face.
“Not only that, but I came back so super inspired. And I absolutely got with our biggest client, who happens to be a freaking billionaire but doesn’t act like it, and as long as my dad doesn’t find out, all is well, but shit. I actually did it.”
My sister and my best friend exchanged a look, then both leaned forward to set their glasses down before they burst into applause and cheers. I laughed, pretending to take a bow as I felt my cheeks heat.
“Alright, well, that was a good start,” London said as she picked her drink back up. “Now, let’s get to the important stuff. What was it like taking a cowboy to bed? Was he a cowboy or a cowman?”
“No, no,” Lacey interjected, giggling as she gave me a conspiring look. “The most important questions of all are, did he pull your hair a little bit and is he good with his hands? Because if so, we might just have a winner, if memory serves about the biggest items to check on your list.”