Ben stood and faced his father. “I’ll be working for BB Morgan for ten days, and then I’ll come back, and you can yell at me all you want, okay?”
“Perhaps I won’t have a job for you,” Jeff snapped. “I let you come back twelve years ago, and maybe once was enough.”
“Fine by me.” Ben walked past his father. “Have a great week.”
He kept walking until he reached the end of the long hall and took a right into his bedroom where he very carefully didn’t slam the door. There were enough drama queens at the ranch without him adding to it. The force of his father’s last words hit him hard and he sank down on the side of the bed. Had his dad meant it?
If he had ... what the hell was Ben going to be doing in two weeks’ time?
Chapter Two
Silver exited the hired Jeep and stared out over the lush green fields toward the towering bulk of the Sierra Nevada and let out her breath. It looked so empty out here and the sky was enormous. To her right there was the cutest little ranch house, and to the left a big wooden barn just like the one some enterprising kid in a musical would use to hold a show.
“This place has been here for over a hundred and fifty years,” her dad said coming to stand beside her. “Run by the same family as well.”
“Wow, that’s impressive,” Silver replied.
A dog barked somewhere, and a guy in a cowboy hat came out of the barn and walked toward them, his spurs jiggling like an old-fashioned gunslinger.
Silver’s dad stepped forward. “Hi! I’m Phil Meadows. Are you BB Morgan?”
“Yup.” The man shook her dad’s hand and then hers. He had such piercing blue eyes Silver wondered if he wore contacts. “Glad you found the place okay.” He gestured at the ranch house. “Come on in and meet my family.”
“I can’t stay long,” her dad said. “I’m leaving the Jeep here in case Silver needs it, and I’ve got a car picking me up in an hour to take me to the local airport.”
Silver frowned. “You didn’t tell me that you were going back tonight.”
“I had no choice, my love. Your sister’s got an audition tomorrow, and I promised to take her.”
Her dad sounded way too jovial, but Silver didn’t want to have an argument with him in front of the Morgan family. The fact that he was willing to leave her by herself for the first time in two years was amazing, and she wasn’t willing to sacrifice her freedom over something petty.
When she’d floated the idea of coming out to a ranch to do some research for the indie picture role, she’d expected him to immediately veto the idea like he had all her other attempts to regain her independence. When he’d agreed, on the proviso that he got to approve the place, she’d been thrilled, but suspicious.
It was her first chance to show him that she was more than capable of living her own life and picking acting roles that were serious and required her total commitment. If she got through this, she’d move on to phase two of her campaign to get her life back.
Silver paused at the door of the kitchen and surveyed the huge pine table and the elderly woman cooking at the stove.
“This is my grandma, Ruth Morgan,” BB said. “She runs the ranch and feeds the family.”
Ruth was as small-boned as Silver, and about the same height. She had the same bright blue eyes as BB and a very welcoming smile.
“My, you’re a little bitty thing, aren’t you?” She pointed at the table. “Now, sit yourself down and I’ll get you something to eat.”
“Just coffee for me, thanks,” her dad piped up. “I’ve got to go soon.”
Ruth Morgan placed mugs, cream, and sugar on the table while BB wrangled the coffeepot.
“Silver’s really looking forward to her adventure.” Her dad sipped his coffee. “She loves getting into a part and this will mean the world to her. When are you planning on ‘moving out’?”
BB sat at the table next to Silver who was wincing at her dad’s joke. “I’m not the guy who will be taking her; that’s my buddy Ben Miller. He’ll be here tomorrow morning to sort things out.” He looked at Silver. “You’ll like him. He’s really capable.”
Silver wanted to ask capable of what, but her attention was diverted to the huge peach pie Mrs. Morgan had placed on the table. She hadn’t seen anything like it since she was a kid at her grandparents’ house.
“Please help yourself.” Mrs. Morgan handed over plates and spoons. “I made it myself. Would you like a piece, Silver?”
Silver glanced warily at her father who was almost salivating at the fragrant sugary-spicy scent wafting from the pie. Like everyone in her personal team, he kept an app on his phone of the calories she consumed, and was usually quick to tell her everything she wasn’t allowed to touch, let alone eat.
Mrs. Morgan slid a plate over to her and then one to her father. For a moment, they shared a guilty look, and then he exhaled.
“One little bit won’t hurt us, will it, Silver?”
* * *
Silver woke up early to the god-awful sound of a rooster crowing outside her window. Even as she stuck her pillow over her head, the noise got worse as a truck pulled into the circular driveway and someone started whistling to the dogs. She’d met a whole houseful of Morgans at dinner last night, and still wasn’t sure of all the names. To her relief, after initially staring at her like she was some kind of exhibit in the zoo, they’d all gotten over themselves and treated her just like a regular person. She hadn’t even caught any of them trying to sneak a picture of her on their phone.
It had been weird to be surrounded by so much noise and laughter, which wasn’t directed at her. She tried to remember the last time she’d been out without her bodyguards, her publicist, at least one member of her family, and her personal assistant beside her. Here, she was just a guest on a ranch in the middle of nowhere, and, although she’d been included in all the discussions, no one had made them all about her.
As she sat up against her pillows, she realized she’d forgotten to close the drapes and that the sun was rising over the mountains to cover the pasture in soft, golden light. A group of horses ran past her window, like in a movie, tails and manes blowing in the breeze as they goofed off with each other. It was going to be a beautiful day.
She grabbed her phone and took a quick picture of the scene before remembering that she wasn’t supposed to let anyone know where she was so she couldn’t post it to her social media accounts. There were several texts from her siblings, her mom, and her PA, all asking how she was settling in. She was just about to start answering them when she remembered that her bedroom had no attached bathroom and that she’d have to run down the hall to pee and shower.
Normally, when she traveled, she had a huge suite to herself, and didn’t share anything with anyone, but she had to pee and that had to come first. She opened the door and looked cautiously out into the hallway. Most of the doors were ajar, indicating that everyone else had already gotten up. She ran down to the bathroom and locked the door, took
