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The woman sent by the enemy to seduce me.
The woman with the gorgeous green eyes and dark hair.
The woman who smelled of cherries and happiness.
That woman was now standing beside Tim Moonie dressed in the same outfit from that first day. Tim wore a snarky smile as he ripped a check from his checkbook.
“Pleasure doing business with you, Ms. Cross.”
Her green eyes shone, and when she smiled, it reminded me of the smile Cathy wore when my brother found her in my bed. My gut twisted violently, like there was a knife being shoved into to it, along with the one in my back. I blinked, but the image didn’t go away.
Now, there was the man from the other day. The bald man. He came up behind Valerie and put his hand on her shoulder.
“Aren’t you going to say something, Val?” he asked, jerking his chin to me.
She looked at me, and the love I’d seen in her eyes the last few weeks was gone, replaced by pride. “Checkmate, cowboy.” She gave me a wink and my chest cracked open.
“Denver!”
I blinked and Hallow Ranch returned to normal, but the woman was still in front of me. She was closer now, her hair braided, hanging over one shoulder, and she was wearing a red sundress with little white polka dots. Her cherry scent took over my senses, as her green eyes bounced back and forth, scanning my face.
“Honey, you are you okay?” she asked, her voice soft, like an angel.
I pulled the phone away from my ear, hanging up on Grayson as I stared down at her. There was a pain inside my chest I hadn’t felt in a long time. The first time I felt it was the day Momma was murdered. Today was the second.
The second time that my heart would be broken—shattered into jagged pieces so small that it would takedecadesto put back together. I’ve done it before. I could do it again.
“So, all that bullshit about money last night…it was guilt, wasn’t it?” I asked, keeping it short and to the point.
Valerie jerked back slightly. Clearly, she wasn’t expecting my question. Then again, she wasn’t expecting me to find out.Right?
“Smoke, what are—”
“Don’t you dare,” I seethed, stepping to her, closing the distance between us. I looked down at her like she was the shit underneath my boot, and she was. “Don’t you dare call me that.”
Her head shook, and she brought her hand up to her chest. “What’s going on? Did something happen?”
A harsh, dark laugh escaped me, and I adjusted my hat, looking away from her. “How long were you going to take my dick before you tried to convince me to sell the ranch?”
Her skin paled, and her eyes grew wide. “Denver, what are you talking about?”
God damn, she was a good fucking actress. There were tears forming in her eyes. She got me good.
“That’s why you were nervous when that bounty hunter came by the house. You knew t he would look into you. He looks into everyone.”
“Joseph? Did he call you? What did he—”
“Did you think I wouldn’t have found out? That somehow with your kind eyes, breathtaking smile, and your sweet pussy would convince me to sell my home to a greedy bastard like Moonie? How did you think that was going to work?”
She stared at me.
Another laugh left me. “Fucking Christ, I am such a fucking idiot. Told you that first day my dick wasn’t a leash, and yet here we are…”
“Denver,” she croaked, tears slowly falling down her cheeks now.
God, I wanted to wipe them away and I hated that. Fuck, her claws were in deep.
“Fuck, but I fell in love with you, ya know?” I bellowed, backing away from her and holding my arms out wide. “You were going to leave me and my son in the dust, weren’t you? After Moonie signed your check?” My voice was getting louder as my anger grew. I needed to be angry. I needed to hate her. It would numb the earth-shattering pain in my chest. I heard the bunkhouse door open behind me. Good. They needed to hear this, too.
