Chet
I watched as Arya drove off in her car, wondering exactly where she was going. She’d said she was going to look for a job, and I was peeved that she wasn’t considering my offer to work at the ranch. I understood that she wanted to be independent and make her own way, but I was frustrated that she wouldn’t just accept my help. And if I was honest, I was also pissed off that she hadn’t accepted my offer to be my fake fiancée, though admittedly, it had been a spur-of-the-moment idea.
My night with Arya had been amazing. Her skin had responded to my every touch, and the way her eyes had followed me as I kissed and teased her had turned me on even more. Arya was a mix of innocence and minx, and being with her had felt like being intimate for the very first time.
“Hey, what you doing?” Wyatt slapped me on the back.
Startled, I turned towards him with a frown. “Not much. What are you doing?”
“Going to train some horses,” he said with a smile. “Want to help?”
“Not really.” I shook my head. “That’s your thing.”
“It could be your thing, too. It could be what we’re known for at Horseshoe Ranch.”
“Yeah. I don’t think so,” I said. “You’re the only one that’s interested in the races.”
“You say that now, but if I train a winner, and we make millions of dollars, and everyone in the country is coming to us to buy horses, then everyone will be wanting to get in on the game.”
“You train that winner first and then we’ll see.”
“I’d love to get a horse entered into the Kentucky Derby,” he said, a dreamy look in his eyes. “That would be so cool.”
I nodded. “Is Sadie going to help you?”
“No, I think she is going to go into town to check on some cakes or something.”
“Shouldn’t you go with her?”
“Why?” He looked at me with a confused expression.
“You’re really not going to let Sadie do everything for this wedding herself, aren’t you?”
“What are you talking about? I’m going to be there at the church.”
“Yeah, but she’s planning everything. I’m sure she wants you to help.”
“You know Sadie loves planning. She’s had this shit in her little black book for years.” He chuckled. “She doesn’t need me getting in the way.”
“Don’t you want a say in your own wedding cake?” I asked him.
“She knows what I like.”
“Okay,” I said. “But I’m just saying I think your fiancée would like you to be more active in the planning.”
“What would you know?” He rolled his eyes. “You don’t even have a girlfriend, let alone a fiancée.”
“Yeah. Well, that’s because…”
“Don’t tell me. It’s because you’re helping to save the ranch.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It just means that Beau and Austin used the same excuses and look where they are now.”
“Yeah. Well, they can afford to.” I paused. “It doesn’t matter, anyway. I’m not looking for a relationship.”
“Even though you’ve got your eyes on Arya?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I snapped.
“Dude, if you guys aren’t fucking already, then you will be soon.”
“Excuse me?” I narrowed my eyes at him.
“It means I see the way that you look at her, and I see the way that she looks at you. Talk about explosive.” He let out a low whistle. “Even Sadie was telling me that she thought you guys had chemistry, and you know Sadie doesn’t notice anything.”
“Um, I think Sadie notices quite a lot, but you guys both have it wrong.”
“So, you are not interested in Arya?”
“No, I’m not.”
“So, you haven’t slept with Arya?”
“No, I haven’t,” I said quickly, looking away.
“Uh-huh,” he drawled. “Chet, I may be your younger brother, but I can smell your bullshit from a mile away.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means I know you guys have—” He paused. “Well, I’m going to be a gentleman about it.” He cleared his throat. “I know you guys have made love.”
“You know what, Wyatt? Shut up.”
“Would you rather me say I know you guys have fucked? Bow chicka wow wow.” He winked at me.
“You’re so immature, Wyatt Hamilton.”
“Yeah. Well, it takes one to know one.”
“That doesn’t even make sense,” I grumbled.
“What’s going on, Uncle Chet?” Eloise came running into the corridor with a cookie in her hand.
“Nothing,” I said. “I was just speaking to Uncle Wyatt.”
“Hi, Uncle Wyatt,” she said, tugging on his shirt.
“Hi, there, Eloise. How are you?”
“I’m good, thank you. I think Grandma Amelia and I are going to cook lunch soon. Do you want some?”
“I would love some. What are you going to make?”
“I don’t know yet,” she said, seriously. “What do you want?”
“Ooh, I would love a shepherd’s pie.”
“We’re not cooking shepherd’s pie!” Mom shouted from the kitchen.
“Are you listening to our conversation, Mom?” I shouted back.
“Yes, I am.”
I bit back a curse. Exactly what had she heard? If she’d heard what Wyatt had been saying to me, I would kill him.
“I’m going out to the stables,” I said quickly and hurried out the front door. “See ya.”
I ran my hand through my hair as I made my way around the side of the house. I wasn’t going to go to the stables because I knew Wyatt was going to check on his new prized possession, and I didn’t want to have any more conversations with him. I needed to figure out exactly what was going on. I needed to figure out exactly how I felt about Arya and what I wanted from her.
I liked her. I liked her for more than just sex, but I wasn’t sure how she felt. I knew that she wasn’t interested in anything short-term. I knew that she wasn’t the sort of woman who could have a casual relationship. But as much as I wanted to be able to give her more, I just didn’t know that I was in that place.
The ranch was struggling, and now three of my brothers were getting married. That was three weddings we’d have to pay for, though I wasn’t sure if Sadie’s parents were going to put in money for her and Wyatt’s wedding. But I knew Arya didn’t have anything, and how was I going to pay for a wedding and to take care of her and Eloise? I just wasn’t in the right stage of life to take on that responsibility. They deserve the best, and I wasn’t able to give them the best just yet.
I sat on a pile of rocks and stared out at some of the buffalo. If only life could be as simple for me as it was for them.
You like her, my voice whispered in my ear. “I know I like her,” I mumbled back to myself. No, you really, really like her. The voice in my head was getting louder. “I know I like her,” I growled. But as I sat there thinking, I knew it was more than like.
Arya and Eloise had been growing in my heart for quite some time, and I was falling in love with Arya. The previous night, the way her body had felt against mine, it was more than just sex. It was more than just two bodies coming together for mutual satisfaction. She had fit against me as if she were made for me. When I’d woken up this morning and realized she’d gone, I’d panicked, and when I’d seen her walking down the corridor towards her room, that sweet little smile on her face when she saw me, I’d felt overjoyed.
I needed to figure this shit out. I needed to figure out exactly what I could offer Arya before it was too late because one night with her was definitely not going to be enough.