AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“It’s cold, Olivia.”
“Please.”
“Fine,” I said. I sat back down, put her head back on my lap, and stroked her hair.
“Brittany is an ex. We dated, but she was crazy. She told her dad we were going to get married, and when he found out I had no intention of marrying her, he threatened to kill me. I told her I never wanted to hear from her again. It wasn’t even a serious relationship. We hooked up a few times. I have a past, yes, and I made a mistake. Lots of us men do. She was hot and—”
“You don’t have to tell me anymore.” She was starting to look annoyed.
“Fine. I just wanted you to know that she means nothing to me. You have to believe that.”
“I was wondering how you could be with someone like her. She’s horrible.”
“Trust me, I know. And I will have to have a very serious conversation about what she said to you this afternoon.”
“I don’t want you talking to her again. She’s a bitch.”
“Don’t worry about it, Olivia. I need to talk to her again, because if she thinks she can go around lying about me, she’s got another thing coming. I can ruin her father. She doesn’t know this, but we have an eighty percent stake in his ranch. I could have them out within days if I chose.”
“Oh, wow. I didn’t know that.”
“No one knows that,” I said. “Part of the reason why we’re so overextended is because we’ve invested in a lot of smaller ranches in the area that haven’t been doing well financially. I know you don’t really know about dairy farms and farming in general, but it’s a dying industry. And a lot of families haven’t been making enough money to pay their bills and take care of their kids and families. And my family and I, we don’t want to see people losing their livelihoods. People losing the ranches that they’ve had in their families for years. So we’ve been helping them out financially.”
“That’s really kind of you.”
“Oh, we’re not a nonprofit. It’s business, and we’ll make a profit. It’s just a slow process.” I sighed. “But enough about that. I need us to talk about us.”
“Us?” she squeaked.
“Yes, us. Brittany lied because she was mad, and she was jealous because she knows I want you. I don’t want her. I’ve never wanted her. And she knew that. She was mad because I finally found someone that I did want.”
“You did?”
“That’s what I wanted to tell you this afternoon. I had a meeting with my brothers the other day, and they made me realize that I’m not in this alone. We can handle this business at the ranch together. I’ve been obstinate and stupid, and it’s been a lot of pressure, and I didn’t think I could handle taking care of the ranch and being in a relationship because relationships require time and energy. But I realize now that there’s nothing more important to me than you.”
I stroked her hair. “You make me happy. You make me feel things I’ve never felt before. You make me want to be a better person and help others. Have a family and love. I want to see little kids around here.”
“But you know I might not be able to have kids, Beau. I told you about my PCOS.”
“I know.” I nodded. “We’ll go to fertility doctors and whatever we need to do. If we’re not able to have our own kids biologically, then we can adopt or foster. It doesn’t matter. You do want to have kids, right?”
“I want a huge family; I told you that before. I just don’t know if it’s going to be possible.”
“You know, Olivia, whatever God’s plan is or whatever the universe has in store for us, it’ll happen. I have faith in that. If it’s meant to be, it will happen. Because you know what?”
“What?” she said, beaming up at me.
“Years ago, I wished for a happy marriage and a connection with someone like my mom and dad have. I’d almost forgotten about that. But as I thought about how much I loved you and wanted to be with you, I realized that we have that. We have something really special. And even though it wasn’t something I’d been looking for recently, or even on my mind, it was something I wanted subconsciously. I don’t want to lose you. I need you, Olivia. I think I’m falling in love with you. I don’t want you to go back to New York; I want you to stay here. I want to continue getting to know you better and making love to you every single day. And you can design our cabins from here, and our house.”
“Our house?”
“I’m not like Austin. I’m not crazy, and I’m not going to propose after a few dates. But I already know you’re the woman I want to marry. I want to see you walking down that aisle in a white dress someday. And who knows? Maybe by the time Lucy and Austin get married, we’ll be ready as well, and we’ll have a double wedding.”
“Firstly,” she said with a laugh, “I hope when you do propose, it’s much better than this. And secondly, I don’t know about a double wedding. Every woman wants to feel special on their wedding day.”
“Fine,” I agreed. “Trust me, I might not be the most romantic man in the world, but when I propose, it will be the most romantic experience of your life.”
“Really?” She was smiling now.
