body suddenly wanted to give in to the moment. Stupid parts of her wanted to wrap themselves around Wynn, haul his mouth to hers and see if he tasted as good as he smelled. She wanted to drag him against that sugarberry and have her way—
But there was no way any part of her could do any of that.
She forced herself to remember that Wynn was off-limits. Ditto for his hot chocolate. One would expand her thighs. The other would break her heart—again. It was time to turn her back on both of these particular temptations before they ruined her life.
She ducked under his arm, pulled back her shoulders and started toward the house. Her exit would have been far more effective if she hadn’t had to dodge a frozen cow patty and a couple of surprised squirrels. She staggered and nearly head butted another tree before Wynn caught her arm.
“Careful there,” he mumbled.
“Too late for that.” Cursing herself for her near slipup and her sudden bout of clumsiness, Carlene extracted herself from his grip and got moving again toward the house.
“Doesn’t it get lonely out here all by yourself?” he asked, picking up the second cup of hot chocolate and following her.
“No. I date Birch Davidson now, and we spend a lot of time together.”
That was a total lie. She had gone on a few dates with Birch, one of the horse trainers at the nearby Granger Ranch, but Birch was about as interesting as that frozen cow patty she’d just dodged.
“I don’t mind being alone here, either,” she added. “I’ve always loved this ranch.” Which explained why she’d worked here for the past three years since...
Well, just since.
Running things was hard, sometimes backbreaking work, but Joe had allowed her to make it into the only ranch in the area that exclusively bred and raised champion-bloodline Santa Gertrudis cattle. People came from miles around to buy the calves and the bulls, and Carlene had plans to expand—to add a small, sustainable farm, too. There was an old cabin in the back that had once belonged to Joe’s dad, and she could convert that into a huge chicken coop.
Wynn stopped when they reached the back porch, and he looked out at the pasture. “I’ve got plans for this place,” he said.
That got her attention, and Carlene wondered if she’d said aloud what she had been thinking. She whirled around, frowned. “What?”
“Plans,” he verified. He went inside and looked around in there, too. Carlene went after him. “Now I can make it what I’ve always wanted it to be.”
Her heart went to her kneecaps. “What?” she repeated.
Wynn looked back at her, his forehead bunching up. Then he cursed. “You didn’t know? Joe didn’t tell you?”
Her heart just kept falling, but Carlene managed to shake her head. “Tell me what?”
Well, Wynn wasn’t grinning and charming her now. “I thought you knew. I thought that’s why you were being so chilly toward me.”
“I was being chilly...” Carlene stopped. No, best not to get into their past when it appeared there was plenty in their present they needed to clear up. “What did you think Joe had told me?”
Wynn stared at her. The stare of a man trying to figure out how to deliver really bad news. “Uncle Joe signed over the place to me.”
Oh, God. No, this couldn’t be happening.
“I’m sorry,” Wynn went on. “I honestly thought he’d told you.”
She managed a headshake. Nothing more. Hard to talk with no breath.
“Joe did have one condition, though,” he added a heartbeat later. “I own the ranch. At least, I will soon when the papers are all signed. But don’t worry, Joe’s condition was that I keep you on so you won’t be out of a job. And I agreed. So, I guess that means you work for me now.”
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