Page 59 of A Sunny Sweetheart for the Cowboy

Her question didn’t sound impertinent. “Because I think I can help.”

“Right. Because you’re a Sullivan.”

“That, too.” He pivoted away from the door. “Meanwhile, just keep doing the stuff you’ve got scheduled.”

“Not much else I can do, cowboy,” she muttered.

He glanced at the clock in the dining room as he walked through. 10:48 already. It was his weekend off, so Darrell would be managing the stables today and tomorrow with a couple of the other staff members.

“Weston?”

He turned to see his mother coming around the end of the long serving counter separating the kitchen from the dining room. “Hey, Mom.”

“Have you talked to Paisley today?”

“No, not since last night.” Not that Mom needed the details. “Why?”

“I had breakfast with her.” Mom frowned. “I’ve never seen her so discouraged. I didn’t even know what to say, but I thought you might know what’s going on.”

Weston blinked. “Why?”

“Because I know you two like each other.” Mom’s eyebrows peaked. “Right?”

“Well, uh, yeah. Kind of. But Cindy said she’d left the ranch.”

“I was afraid that might happen. Did she tell you about her mother?”

Weston nodded. But why had Paisley confided to his mom about hers? Not that he was unwilling to share the only person who’d always believed in him.

Mom sidled closer and lowered her voice. “Are you going to go get her?”

Paisley shoved her backpack into the overhead bin. She’d scored the last seat on a direct flight to Phoenix with minutes to spare.

No doubt she’d be second-guessing herself all day — all week — but she was committed now. She texted Kait her ETA and turned off her phone.

There’d been no texts or missed calls from Weston. Why would there be? They were barely an item, despite those kisses last night. He’d move on quickly enough now that she’d proved to him how flaky she was beyond a shadow of a doubt.

Which was absolutely not what she wanted, but it seemed she couldn’t have everything she wanted. She’d pretended she could for the past several years. Pretended she loved the excitement of seasonal work and the swing from being a ski instructor in Colorado to offering activities for families at the Montana ranch.

She did kind of thrive on the stimulation, but she’d thought she was ready for a different sort of challenge, the kind where she figured out how to stick to one job — one man — for a lifetime.

But she wasn’t that sort of person. Not with the mess her family life was. Weston may have lost his dad a few years back, but he had a stable mother and brother. Now that they’d connected with their extended family, the cowboy was set for life. No guy like him would want to be saddled with a mess like her when he had all the money and connections and security that anyone could dream of. Now that he was out of his shell, he’d have all kinds of great women throwing themselves at him.

He had her to thank for that. Yay, her. She dashed tears away with the back of her hand, hoping her two seat mates wouldn’t notice. The suit by the window already had his ear plugs in and his laptop out. He was tapping away at whatever was important in his life.

But the middle-aged woman in the aisle seat leaned closer. “Are you all right, dear?”

Paisley tried for a smile, but it was probably more like a grimace. “I will be.”

“Did he break your heart?”

What? Why was the woman still talking? “No.” But the word ended on a hiccup. So not convincing.

“There’s a friend who sticks closer than a brother.”

“I don’t have any brothers.” Paisley was not in the mood to be preached at. She’d said she’d pray about the situation, but she hadn’t had time. Fine. She hadn’t taken time, because what she ought to do had been so clear.

Right. She knew she had to run off from the best job she’d ever had, from the only guy she might have fallen in love with, both without a word? Well, she wasn’t due back into the office until Monday morning, so she had time to contact Mr. Sullivan. She had no such excuse for leaving Weston.

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