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“Okay. I promise.”
“I love you, Lucy. I miss you already.”
“I love you too, Olivia. And maybe if everything works out, you can come out and visit.”
“Well, I’ll have to be there for the wedding, won’t I? I’m going to be the bridesmaid, right?”
“Well, duh,” I laughed. “Okay. Well, I’m going to go now, okay? I’ll call you as soon as I get there.”
“Okay. Sounds good. And Lucy?”
“Yes, Olivia?”
“Good luck. You got this, okay?”
“Thank you.”
”And if he’s butt-fuck ugly …”
“Uh-huh?”
“You can always close your eyes and think of Brad Pitt when he’s fucking you.”
“Oh, ew! Really, Olivia?”
“What? You’ve never had to pretend you’re with someone else?”
“No, of course not!”
“Oops. I guess it’s only me, then. Bye, girl!”
I put the phone down and then entered the address into my GPS. Olivia was a good friend to me—more like family, really. And what she’d said was true, I really didn’t know what I was in for, but a part of me didn’t really care. I’d been heartbroken when my mom passed away. She’d only been 58. She was in the prime of her life. She died of heart failure and high blood pressure, and we hadn’t even known that she had a heart issue. It had absolutely devastated me and changed the way that I’d looked at life. If I got married and had kids, they wouldn’t have a grandma. At least, they wouldn’t have my mom as a grandma. My whole life I’d always expected that she’d be at my wedding, that she’d babysit my kids, that she’d be there through every new job and every new boyfriend and every new life experience.
And now she wouldn’t be.
Living in the city wasn’t the same anymore. Nothing was the same anymore. And I needed a change.
I knew I was being reckless. If I were in my right mind, I wouldn’t do anything like this, but my mom’s death had taught me one thing: that you couldn’t just be safe. You had to live life because you never knew when you were going to die. You never knew what could happen.
And this? Well, maybe this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Maybe, just maybe, this guy at Horseshoe Ranch would be the one. And if he wasn’t, maybe he’d have a friend or maybe some other dude in Montana would light a fire in me. I didn’t know, but it was worth the risk. You have to take risks in life. I knew that now.
My mom and I had planned for so many different things. And now we weren’t able to do any of them. If I stayed in New York, I knew I’d be stuck in the same old rut. I loved Olivia and we had so much fun, but I was living a life that I couldn’t afford, and ultimately, it wasn’t making me happy.
I looked up at the big blue sky and took a deep breath. I’d never imagined living in a place like this, but it was beautiful. I hadn’t lied about that. Nature was all around me. And while I was a city girl, there was something to be said about the quiet and stillness of a place that wasn’t jam-packed with buildings and people. Maybe I didn’t need to be crammed into tiny bars and restaurants, meeting the who’s who of New York City. Maybe I would be okay on a little ranch with some cowboys living the Walton Family life.
I’d give it a chance and I’d see. I had absolutely nothing to lose.
Chapter Four
I stared at the large ranch house in shock. It was huge. What was this family? Were they millionaires? Maybe even billionaires? Maybe they were like the Beverly Hillbillies before they moved to Beverly Hills. Maybe they had a bunch of oil. I didn’t know, but I was suddenly very intimidated. I hadn’t expected the house to look so grand. This was more than just a farm or a small ranch. They must have owned hundreds, if not thousands, of acres. I should have known when I’d seen the sign and driven up the long driveway that the house was going to be grand.
All of a sudden, I wished I’d asked more questions and done more research. I had absolutely no idea who the Hamiltons were and what Horseshoe Ranch was all about. I decided to open my emails and re-read the correspondence with Amelia and Ranger. I quickly grabbed my phone and tried to pull up the emails.
While I waited for them to load, I stared out of the windows. I could see some sort of pasture to the right of the house. There were three chestnut horses grazing. I wondered if they were gentle and calm. I’d never ridden in my life, though I’d always wanted to. I figured I might be a good rider, at least I hoped so. I looked back at my phone and pulled up the chain of emails.
I realized that I could have just emailed Amelia and Ranger for the address, but I had completely forgotten about that in my panic. I’d been so focused on the piece of paper with the address and phone number I’d left on my nightstand. But maybe this was for the best. I didn’t want them to think I was irresponsible.
From: [email protected]
