Page 6 of Forever Enough

Lou was third-in-command after my mother and uncle. She knew everything there was to know about growing shit.

Frowning, I asked, “What greenhouse?”

“Jesus, Bradly, do you not ever go to the farm? Your uncle and mom had the greenhouse built a few years ago.”

Guilt slammed my chest. I’d just never been interested in that part of our ranch. Not since I was basically a toddler. Growing up, if I wasn’t following my dad around or working on the cattle ranch, I’d spent most of my spare time at Uncle Ty’s, learning everything I could about bulls and bull riding. I had chores to do on the Littlewood Ranch, but Avery had always helped on the farm side, and I helped on the cattle side.

I knew it bothered my mother that I’d never shown any interest in farming, and now I was regretting that I’d ignored that entire side of our family business.

“I didn’t know about it. I’m sorry, Dad.”

He sighed but didn’t reply.

“I’m going to drive over and make sure everything’s okay.”

“Your uncle should be there at the house. Maybe it’s him.”

“He went on a cruise with Lori, the new girlfriend. Remember?”

Dad was silent for a moment, then said, “That’s right. Well, in that case, I’m sure it’s just Mackenzie, but if you want to check it out, go ahead.”

“I’ll text you on my way back.”

“Sounds good.”

Hitting End, I drove slowly on the snow-covered road and parked in front of the barn. I got out and jogged over to the door, entering quietly. The sounds of Christmas music filled the space, and I couldn’t help but smile. A few horses popped their heads up to see who the newcomer to the party was. One of the horses—Barkley—was my mother’s. She was a beautiful paint.

I could hear someone singing along with Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” so I made my way toward the sound. As I rounded a corner, I came to a stop at the sight before me.

A woman with light brown hair, or maybe it was dark blonde, pulled up in a ponytail with a huge red bow on top of her head, was holding a broom and singing into the handle as she bent down toward a black and white cat that was sitting on a hay bale, seemingly enjoying the impromptu show.

Leaning against the nearest stall, I reached up and gave a beautiful paint horse a rub on the neck while he or she also watched. The horse must have been new, because I’d never seen it before.

The woman’s voice was damn good. I was captivated instantly. When she spun around, her ponytail did a little swish that immediately drew my attention. I had to bite down on my cheek to keep from laughing when a goat suddenly jumped up and stood next to the cat.

“What in the hell?” I whispered, as I noticed the goat was wearing Christmas pajamas that matched the ones the singer was wearing. He joined in on the song and dance, while the cat, totally not impressed with the goat, started to clean himself.

Turning to the horse, I asked, “Does this happen every night?”

He bobbed his head, and I let out a laugh.

A small shriek came from the direction of the dancing woman, and I whipped my head around to see her now standing there with the broom pointed at me like a weapon.

“Who are you?” she shouted.

I held up my hands and slowly walked over to the small blue Bose speaker that was sitting on a stall door. I hit the power button and stared back at her.

My breath caught in my throat as I took in the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen—and trust me, I’d seen plenty of attractive women. Something I’d never felt before rushed through my entire body as I studied her.

She was standing too far away for me to see the color of her eyes, but what I could see of her made my body take notice. A voluptuous figure, a round doll face with the cutest button nose I’d ever seen, and from what I could tell, light-colored eyes that demanded I get a closer look.

“Mackenzie Reeves?”

Frowning, she gave me a once-over. “And who are you, pretty boy, and how do you know my name?”

My brows shot up. “Pretty boy?”

With a hand on her hip and the other still gripping the broom, she said, “If you think you can try anything, let me give you a fair warning, if I have to, I’ll kick your ass.”

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