The Rancher's Rose: Ranchers Only Series by Elle Christensen

Author:Elle Christensen [Christensen, Elle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-09-03T04:00:00+00:00

9

Rose

I raised my face to the sun and soaked in the warmth of the summer day. I’d needed this ride to alleviate the stress that was starting to wrap itself tightly around me. We’d taken the horses out to the fields and since Lia was pregnant and Helena had never ridden before, they stayed at a steady walk while I took Chrysanthemum for a hard run. I’d joined them after a while and now we were leisurely making our way back to the ranch.

“How are things going with Garrison?”

Lia’s question startled me, and I jerked hard on the reins causing Chrysanthemum to whinny in protest. I patted her neck and whispered a soft apology before sitting up straight in the saddle and throwing Lia a quick glance.

I agitatedly smoothed back the wisps of hair that had come loose from my ponytail during my ride. Did she suspect something? I wanted to look at her and see if she was fishing, but I was afraid she would see the nervousness on my face. “Uh, what do you mean?”—I tried to keep the anxious squeak out of my voice—"How we are working together?”

“That was what I meant, but from your reaction, you obviously thought I might be asking about something else.”

Son of a bitch. I should have known I wouldn’t be able to hide this for long. Not only did Lia know me too well, but I was the worst liar on the planet.

Helena snickered, her blue eyes dancing merrily. “It’s nice to know I’m not the only one who falls victim to her freaky ability to see right through me.” Her shoulder-length, wavy blonde hair swished as she shook her head in mock exasperation.

Lia laughed and shrugged. “It helps that you both telegraph your every emotion on your face.”

I frowned and finally looked over at Lia. “Am I that transparent?”

She winked at me. “Nah, I just know you both that well.”

“Well, that’s a relief,” I said flippantly, then tried to change the subject. “We have a couple of potential buyers coming in next week to look at—”

“Oh no,” Lia interrupted me. “Back to my original question. What’s going on with you and Garrison?”

“No, you asked how things were going with him,” I corrected.

“Okay, so now I’m asking what’s going on between you two.”

I started to deny that there was anything happening between me and Garrison, but the truth was, I needed to confide in someone. He had me so confused and turned around that I felt lost and didn’t really know which direction to go. “I’ll tell you, but you can’t tell James.”

Lia laughed heartily, making her pregnant belly bounce. “James is so oblivious to you and men, Orchid. He likes to live in his little bubble where he can believe that his sister doesn’t even know boys exist.”

My eyes rolled so hard I wondered if James could hear it from wherever he was. “Let’s not burst his delusion just yet.”

I hadn’t intended to tell Lia the whole story, but it

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