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Evidently, he saw the sadness in her eyes from remembering that time when her father was sick and he had quickly changed the subject. She appreciated him doing so. That hadn’t been easy time for the Novak sisters. Pam, who’d had a bubbling career in Hollywood as an actress, had come home to help take care of their father as well as her three younger sisters.
In a way Nadia knew that’s what made Dillon and Pam the perfect couple. Just like Pam had put her sisters’ needs before her own, Dillon had done the same by raising his siblings and cousins after his parents, uncle and aunt had died in a plane crash.
“Yes, I enjoyed living in Denver. When Dillon married Pam the entire Westmoreland family claimed us as theirs. Pretty much like they’re doing to you now. That’s the Westmoreland way. They are big into family.”
She watched the smile that spread across his lips and fought hard for her body not to respond. “I can see that,” he said. “I had a younger sister who died before her first birthday of a heart defect. I grew up without any cousins and admit the Westmorelands and Outlaws were a bit overwhelming at first. There are so many of them.”
“I’m sorry to hear about your sister.” She touched his arm. “But you seemed to have fit right in with our families.”
“They didn’t give me much of a choice,” he replied, grinning.
She couldn’t help but grin back, knowing exactly what he meant. It had been that way for her and her sisters as well. In no time it was as if they’d known the Westmorelands all their lives. She’d observed Jaxon with them over the past year and like she’d told him, he seemed to fit right in. They included him in just about everything. She’d heard he’d flown to Denver, Montana and Atlanta a number of times to take part in those infamous Westmoreland poker games.
“I understand you attended Harvard,” he said in a voice that felt like warm honey being poured over her skin.
“Yes, I did. However, first I attended the University of Wyoming for my bachelor’s degree. Then I went to Harvard for my MBA.”
He nodded. “An MBA is impressive, especially one from Harvard. I was in a long line of Ravnel men who’d attended MIT and decided not to break tradition. I did, however, go to Harvard Law School.”
“Did you practice law?”
“I did for a couple of years as one of the firm’s attorneys. However, when my father let it be known he would be retiring in a few years I figured that was my cue to get ready to take over the reins as CEO.”
Nadia had googled him and knew all about his family and how they’d acquired their wealth. She’d read how Jaxon’s paternal grandfather founded the Ravnel Institute of Technology and how it was revered the likes of MIT in providing technological advances in higher learning. There was a waiting list to get master’s degrees in technology management from the institute and the majority of the students were all but guaranteed six-figure jobs upon graduating. A good number went to work for Ravnel Technologies Incorporated, which was reputed to be one of the most successful technology firms in the nation. At some point, the firm had decided to expand in several parts of the country.
“I understand you’re VP of the acting school here,” Jaxon said, intruding into her thoughts.
“Yes. My original plan was to move back to Denver after college and go to work at Blue Ridge Land Management,” she said, mentioning the billion-dollar corporation owned by the Westmorelands. “However, Pam knew I was interested in moving back to Gamble and when this position came up, she thought I’d be good for it and she offered it to me.”
After taking another sip of her wine, she added, “The school depends on donations to award scholarships to deserving students as well as to put on special programs and projects each year. One of my jobs is to make sure we continue to receive funds for all those things.”
“Sounds like you’re kept pretty busy.”
“Not too busy. Once in a while it requires some travel, but I like what I do.” That was true. Even now when she needed more funds for the upcoming play and had no idea where they would come from.
They continued conversing through dinner and it was easy to tell that Jaxon was confident with himself but not overly so and definitely not cocky. He had the type of voice that whenever he spoke, she couldn’t help but listen. It was just that captivating. She was glad she was taking this time to get to know him and a part of her wished she would have done so sooner.
The reason she hadn’t done so was her fear of him realizing just how attracted she was to him. Even now she hoped he hadn’t figured it out. The thought that he might have sent panic skidding up her spine. More than once he’d caught her staring at him. Each time, he’d just given her a friendly smile before striking up another conversation.
“I understand you’re looking for land to expand here in Gamble,” she said when they had finished their meal and had pushed their plates aside.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Why Gamble? What made you turn your sights here, Jaxon?”
Jaxon fought back telling her thatshewas the reason he had set his sights on Gamble. However, if truth be told, once he had visited the town, he’d discovered it was truly a hidden treasure.
Something similar had happened last year. His actual reason for arriving in Forbes, Texas, was to expose Simon Bordella and his betrayal of the Outlaws. His claim about wanting land to expand had been a ruse. But, in the end, just like in Gamble, he’d seen the potential of actually expanding his business in the area.
“The suggestion to expand here actually came from Dillon,” he said. That much was the truth. It had happened the night of the poker tournament, when he’d announced his intentions toward Nadia. “He mentioned he’d thought about expanding Blue Ridge Land Management to Gamble because land was plentiful here and at a reasonable price.”
She nodded. “I recall Dillon changed his mind after deciding Wyoming was too close to Colorado and if he was going to expand it would be best to do so in another part of the country.”
“Yes, and he suggested that I come and check out Gamble. I’ve only been here a little more than a week and so far I’m impressed with what I see. Wyoming is the least populated state in this country. There’s a lot of untouched land here and a lot of ranches. I can see why Wyoming is considered the Cowboy State.”
“Yes, we are known to have our cowboys, which equates to plenty of rodeos,” she said.
That made him wonder. Nadia was a beautiful woman and with so many cowboys around, he could see her catching their attention. Had none caught her eye? A lot of women went for the rugged, bronco, chaps-wearing type. Jess and Maverick claimed they’d never known her to be involved in a serious relationship. The Westmorelands had claimed the same. He couldn’t help wondering why. Had some man broken her heart at some point in time?
