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Jaxon figured the silence between them would continue unless he said something, so he did. “I understand you moved from Gamble when Dillon married Pam.”
She looked over at him. “Yes, that’s right.”
“What made you move back?”
She smiled again and he felt a deep fluttering in the pit of his stomach from that smile. “For the longest I had no intention of returning here. There was even a time when Paige, Jill and I tried convincing Pam to sell, but she wouldn’t. She wanted to hold on to it for our legacy. I’m glad she did. I hadn’t known how much I’d missed the place until we came back one weekend to attend a play at Pam’s acting school. That’s when I realized something.”
“What?”
“That saying ‘there’s no place like home’ was true.”
She took a sip of her wine then added, “Don’t get me wrong, I love Westmoreland Country, too. But I was born here. In this very house, and coming back that time made me realize it means a lot to me.” She paused for a moment. “What about your home in Virginia, Jaxon? I heard it’s beautiful.”
There was no need to ask where she’d heard that from since her sister Paige and his cousin Jess were frequent visitors whenever Jaxon was home. He liked that DC was less than an hour away from his ranch. “Thanks. Like you, I was born on the Circle R Ranch. My parents signed it over to me when they retired and decided to move closer to the city.”
“They were involved with your family’s company, right?”
After taking a sip of his wine, he said, “Yes. My father was CEO of Ravnel Technologies, and Mom was CEO of the Ravnel Institute of Technology. Now I’m CEO of both. Luckily, I have good people working for me.”
He paused a moment and said, “The Circle R Ranch will always be home for me, although because of all my travels I’m not there as often as I’d like.”
She nodded. “I understand you raise horses, Jaxon. And that you own several prized thoroughbreds. Some of which have competed in the derbies.”
It seemed that she was trying to keep the conversation on him and not her. He intended to remedy that. “Yes, the Circle R started out as a horse ranch with my great-grandfather. It still is and I have a devoted staff whose job is to handle the horses.”
He leaned back in his chair. “Now, enough about me. Tell me about you, Nadia.”
Three
Nadia glanced over at Jaxon again, wishing he hadn’t said her name like that and wishing even more that her body didn’t react whenever he did. He pronounced it with a Southern drawl that seemed to roll off his lips. Those same lips she enjoyed watching every time his mouth moved. Was there anything about him that she didn’t find a total turn-on?
“There’s not much to tell,” she finally said after forcing herself to stay focused on their conversation. “You already know that I’m Pam, Jillian and Paige’s youngest sister. And I’m sure you’ve heard the story of how we tried to ruin Pam’s engagement to this guy name Fletcher.”
He chuckled. “Yes, I heard about that.”
“Pam thought going through with a loveless marriage was something she had to do to save us from losing this house. It was a blessing that Dillon stopped by when he did. I don’t want to think where we’d be if he hadn’t.”
Jaxon nodded and then took a sip of his wine. She couldn’t help looking at his lips again. “There’s a lot about this house that reminds me of Dillon’s home,” he said, after placing his wineglass down. “They are similar in design.”
She smiled. “Yes, and there’s a reason for it. My great-grandfather Jay Winston Novak Sr. and Dillon’s great-grandfather Raphel Westmoreland were once business partners. I’m told that Raphel liked the design of this house so much that years later when he settled in Denver and built his own home, he used this same architectural design.”
“Dillon mentioned that the two great-grandfathers had been business partners here in Gamble. What sort of business was it?”
Nadia thought he was doing a good job of keeping the conversation flowing between them. She was glad since it eliminated any awkward moments, and she was beginning to feel comfortable around him. However, that comfort level didn’t decrease her attraction to him.
“It was a dairy business. However, from the journals Pam and Dillon discovered in a trunk in the attic, Raphel took care of the horses. I understand he was very good with them. Those Westmoreland cousins in the horse-training business probably inherited their love of horses from him.”
“Your great-grandfather raised horses?”
“Yes, and he passed his love of them to his son and my father. I’m sure Dad wanted at least one son instead of four daughters but that didn’t stop him from making sure we loved horses, too. He also made sure we knew how to take care of them, and he taught us how to ride.”
She took a sip of her own wine and then added, “I’ve been riding since I was two. Dad was a wonderful trainer and over the years all his girls had received awards for their riding skills.”
“All four of you?”
“Yes. Pam was a pro since she’d been riding longer. Jill wanted to be as good as Pam, and since Dad thought she had potential he sent her to horse-riding school. She competed nationally until Dad got sick. That’s when money was needed to pay for his medicine and care.”
“Did you enjoy living in Denver?”
