Page 32 of Just Say When

“Sure,” I said. “But you’ll need to hire your own lawyer to look over it before you sign. Make sure it protects your interests.”

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Why?”

“Because, Essie, it’s a legally binding contract,” I said, exasperated. “You can’t just trust someone to look out for your interests, especially at the expense of their own. There’s a power imbalance here. I’m a lawyer. I couldwrite a prenup that screws you and you wouldn’t know it until it was too late.”

She leaned back and dismissed my words with a wave of her hand. “You wouldn’t do that.”

“Of course I wouldn’t,” I grumbled. “Get a lawyer anyway.”

“Fine, fine. Whatever.” She crossed her arms and stared blankly out the window, nibbling her plump bottom lip.

Jesus Christ. Was she actually considering it?

For fuck’s sake,why?

“What about the prize money, if Pirate ribbons? How would that work?” She kept her face averted when she asked that and the twist in my gut told me I had the answer to my question. “Fifty-fifty split?”

I frowned. Not because I disapproved of her mercenary instincts. But if she needed money, I’d help her. I sure as hell wouldn’t force her to marry me. “Are you in some kind of trouble?”

“Well, see, there’s this Russian…” She broke off with a laugh when I growled. “I’mkidding. Geez. No, I’m not in trouble. You were going to split the winnings with Zack, right? It’s a lot of money at stake, and I would like my fair share of it, that’s all. Is that a problem?”

I didn’t buy her bullshit for a second. I stared her down silently, eyebrows raised, and waited for her to give me the truth.

She sighed. “Fine. The owner of Sweetie Pie ismoving to Texas to be closer to her family and grandkids. She offered to let Mom buy the place, but Mom doesn’t have that kind of money. I could help—I saved a lot of money living at home, even considering the costs of hauling to shows and keeping the horses—but she won’t let me. It would wipe out half my savings. I told her I don’t care. I can earn more money. But she says it’s too risky.”

Frustration seeped into her voice. I understood the feeling. Cat was a proud woman with a fierce independent streak. Despite Essie’s dad’s family being loaded, she’d stubbornly refused to file for child support until Essie was in high school, when it became clear that if she wanted to take barrel racing to the next level, she would need a horse of her own. Horses were expensive.

Even then, Cat couldn’t afford the attorney fees. Fortunately, my boss, who happened to be the only attorney in Aspen Springs at the time, took her case pro bono. If she suspected I was the reason, she never said. There was nothing she wouldn’t do for Essie and Jack.

And there was nothing Essie wouldn’t do for her mom.

“We’ll split the purse fifty-fifty. Hell, I’d be happy to offer up my half as an investor. Cat deserves it.”

“That’s not necessary. I can take care of my mom myself.”

Of course she’d say that. God forbid she let me help. I made a mental note to reach out to Cat directly. Shewouldn’t take charity, but I was a businessman. She’d understand it was an investment. “You really think if you win on Pirate, she’ll be okay with taking your winnings?” I asked.

“Well.” Essie rolled her eyes and let out a huff of a laugh. “I might have played hardball on that one. Winning would be great for the career path I’m on now. If I could show clients I know my stuff in more than just barrel racing? Yeah. That would be great. Even winning the non-pro division is a big deal. You know as well as I do that those level four riders are every bit as competitive as professionals. So I told Mom the only way I’ll ride is if she agrees to take the money. And I reminded her that this way, I won’t have to touch my savings.”

“You…you told your mom we’d have to get married?” Shit. I’d better invest in a steel jockstrap. Cat was not going to like that idea at all.

“Oh. No. I…left that part out. I figured it was better to tell her after we nailed down the details.”

I studied her. Essie was close to her mom. I doubted she told her everything—Essie’s short stint as a horse thief, for example—but if she hadn’t told her this, it meant she still had doubts.

“What details are you concerned about?” I asked.

“Like, do we have to live together? Do we tell people why we’re getting married, or do we keep it a secret?” She pushed to her feet and paced to the window, then back again. “How can we keep it a secret if I’m entering acompetition for owners only, but everyone knows I’m not the owner?”

“The way I see it, the only way this works is if everyone believes it’s a real marriage. We can tell our families the truth?—”

“They’d never believe us if we said we were marrying for love, anyway,” she cut in.

“But everyone else needs to believe it’s real. That means we’d live together, at least until after the show. You could move in with me.” My insides engaged in a whole lot of unnecessary silliness. My heart picked up speed. My stomach flipped around.She’s not going to agree to this.

“Do you have an extra room?” she asked.

I nodded slowly. My heart got even sillier. “I have a guestroom.”

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