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CHAPTER ONE
It didn’t matter how many family functions Rose attended at Sagebrush Ranch, she still didn’t feel like she belonged. She wasn’t supposed to be here, in Rocky Ridge. This place wasn’t home for her like it was for Ethan.
And now that her big brother had everything he wanted, she couldn’t expect him to uproot everything and move again.
Okay, he didn’t have everything he wanted. He wasn’t able to get that larger property just outside of the Rocky Ridge city limits—and that was all her fault.
Rose leaned against the wooden wall inside the barn where they were throwing a horse-themed birthday party for Lily. Every member of the Reese family hustled about preparing for more guests to arrive and that left her feeling more like an outsider. She’d asked what she could do to help and they’d all basically ignored her. So she watched absentmindedly the activity as thoughts rushed through her mind.
It didn’t matter how many times Ethan had told her that he didn’t hold anything against her, she wouldn’t believe it.
Her dream had been to run her own art gallery in the hub of Salt Lake City. She’d poured her whole soul into that business only to have it slip right through her fingers.
Ethan, on the other hand, was a cowboy through and through. He’d wanted to be one since the first time they came to visit Sagebrush Ranch as kids. Every single summer, he’d don his boots and hat in preparation for the long drive from Utah just so he could ride horses and work the ranch with their cousins.
He’d been so close to buying that large property and starting a place all his own—the Boone legacy. And Rose had ruined it all with her failures and her debt.
Ethan had been more than willing to cover every deficit she had, even if it meant downgrading his future. That was one of the big reasons why they were here today. Ethan still worked for their cousins. He was still a wrangler rather than a manager.
Sure, the Reese cousins would have still invited them to Lily’s birthday, but perhaps Rose would have been able to feign exhaustion from her job if Ethan wasn’t here every single day actually doing hard labor.
She sighed, her eyes flitting this way and that as the final preparations for her cousin’s adorable daughter were completed. Lily was getting so big. She could ride a horse better than she could run, but what did they expect? She was part of a family of cowboys.
Ethan hurried past her with a horse piñata, and Becca was on his heels. Katrina had left with Gabby to pick up the birthday cake, and Emily was helping Jack to fill the balloons with helium. What she wouldn’t give to just slip out of the barn and hide away in the house.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to be here. She was fine. It was the talk she wanted to avoid. Ever since she’d moved here from Utah, everyone had asked her what had happened with her art gallery. After she’d repeated her explanation that she was simply ready for a change a hundred times, they’d stopped asking. But she could tell they still burned with curiosity.
Art had been her world. She’d lived and breathed that gallery.
Rose pushed away from the wall, her emotions getting the better of her. She might not have a choice in staying. How would it look to all the guests if one of the adults burst into tears during the middle of a child’s party?
That might be pushing it. Her tears had all but dried up. But that didn’t mean her stomach would behave. Rose hurried toward the door only to be stopped in her tracks by her cousin.
Katrina’s worried face instantly broke into relief. “Oh, good, you’re here.” She grabbed Rose by the elbow. “You took some cake decorating classes when you were in high school, right?”
“What—”
“Lily’s cake. It tipped over in the box. The frosting is all smooshed and the sprinkles are… just… you’re going to have to see it.”
“But—”
Katrina wheeled her past a couple with a toddler. She smiled broadly at the guests and urged Rose to walk faster. “I know you can fix it. You have to. The kids are all expecting a fun cake.”
Rose snorted. “I’m sure they’re not going to care?—”
“I know you think two-year-olds won’t notice, but I assure you, they will. And I promised Jack that I would pick up the cake without issue.”
Fighting with her cousin was futile. Rose could hear it in Katrina’s voice. The woman had just come off a wedding high a few months ago. She needed something to keep her busy, and if that meant being the party planner for her niece’s birthday, then that’s what she would do.
Rose heaved a sigh. “Where’s the cake?”
She barely got the last word out before Katrina shoved her into the kitchen. “It’s on the table. Mom, grab a knife and let’s whip up some buttercream frosting.”
Aunt Jennifer hurried to the fridge and pulled out the butter. “Isn’t it supposed to be room temperature? I’m not sure this is going to work.”
Katrina grabbed the knife on her own and pressed it into Rose’s hand.
Rose smiled at her aunt. “You can soften the butter if you put it in a food processor or blend it up. Just cut it into pieces before you do. That should help.”
