Page 43 of Last Chance for Her Rancher Boss

What did she do now?

The thought of going back to a job on the industrial lot crossed her mind and she stamped it out just as quick. No way. She was never going back there, not for double the salary and a lifetime of free food. Well, she could always just get another transfer, which was what she had planned to do anyway when the ranch evaluation was done. That idea was dashed just as quickly as the first. In fact, any thought of going back to work for the mega corporation, or any corporation really, made her feel slightly sick. She hadn’t realized how much she’d hated it, how miserable every day had been until she’d been surrounded by fields and fresh air.

She’d been so relaxed on the ranch, in a way that she hadn’t been in years. Maybe ever. Everything had been so simple, so peaceful, and Meg was only just now realizing that she had envisioned her life continuing there. She had thought her life would continue with Nash…

She flopped back on the bed. Why couldn’t things just go well? Her job had been great… well, not great butfine,and then Mitch had taken over and ruined it for everyone. The Callahan Ranch really had been going great, and then she had to find out about Nash’s secret agenda. Maybe if he had told her from the moment she’d set foot there what had actually happened, then everything would have still been fine. But then again, she might never have warmed up to him at all. It was all just a line of dominoes, eachaction dependent on such a specific order. Trying to sift through it all was making her head spin.

Why did life have to be confusing? The planet was old enough now; couldn’t someone have written a handy rule book for everyone to follow? At least jot down some tips and tricks?Here’s how to not be an idiot. Five easy steps.

Meg kept her face shoved into a pillow, trying to block out the world and all of the mess she kept finding herself in. She heard her mom walking up and down the hall as she tutted over laundry. She was sure that her dad was at the kitchen table reading while the lasagna baked.

Meg didn’t know what she had expected, calling out of the blue and asking to stay with her parents. She hadn’t really expected them to say no, but she hadn’t been prepared for this sort of open-armed hospitality either. It was like the last decade hadn’t happened, like she had just come home from school and retreated to her room. Mom was doing laundry. Dad was reading. Dinner would be ready soon. It was the most potent déjà vu Meg had ever felt, and she looked down at herself more than once, checking that she wasn’t suddenly sixteen again. Honestly this day had gone so badly wrong that time travel wasn’t out of the question. She had no room left to be surprised anymore.

As hard as she tried to avoid it, her thoughts circled back to Nash. Because outside of all this drama, she was still contracted to do that evaluation on his ranch. Before she would be able to move on inanydirection, she needed to wrap that up. Nash had said in the treehouse that he no longer wanted to sell. That he wanted to try this one last time, and he wanted a way out. Meg could be cruel for once and screw him over. She deserved thatmuch, at least, after everyone else had felt entitled to interfere in her life. Right?

But of course she had to do the right thing. Because that was how she was programmed. Being a terrible person would make everything so much easier…

She sat up, grabbed her phone and started typing her official findings. She’d already called her parents and asked for help. After that, typing out an email was easy.

It was professional and to the point. The ranch wasn’t suitable for acquisition, and Meg could provide all the necessary paperwork and reasons if needed. But in her professional opinion, the sale should be abandoned. Also, she was resigning. She added the necessary “thank you for the experience” and similar words before hitting send.

A thousand-pound weight was lifted off Meg’s shoulders, and she finally felt tears roll down her face. Feeling that release was way too overwhelming to keep inside for a second longer.

CHAPTER 15

NASH

Nash felt like he was currently stuck at the end of a very long tunnel. On the other side is the rest of the world, continuing on as normal, carrying on just fine. Meanwhile he’s stuck there, in the dark, so far away from it all. The worst part was he only had himself to blame.

He’d gotten another chance to have Meg in his life. Never in a million years did he think he’d ever get to see her again, let alonemeansomething to her again. Then there she was, on his ranch, in his tree house, in his bed. They were making plans. He wouldn’t have to sell the ranch, and he might actuallyget out the other side of that deep, dark tunnel that he’d been stuck in for years. And now he was right back at the beginning. Everything bright was out of reach. He was alone, and Meg was gone. The old wound in his chest that had never really healed, that had only partially scarred up, well, now it had been ripped open again, worse than the first time she’d left.

He was in a bit of a daze after she drove off. He went into autopilot like he usually did when he had to face the music. He fed the horses, checked on the cattle, did the usual chores,and waited for some sort of feeling to return to his body. When feelings did start to trickle back, it was anger. Then the trickle became a tidal wave and all he felt wasrage.None of it was towards Meg, never towards her. Mostly he was angry at himself, revisiting the loathing he’d fallen into over the course of his life. But then thoughts about a certain brother of his surfaced, and that deep, dark anger found a target.

Nash got in the truck and drove out to where Will lived on the outskirts of Fordswell. The whole way there, part of him wanted to take a different road, to veer off course and find Meg. He should have chased after her, should have left to go find her, to get on his knees and beg for forgiveness. He wanted to beg her not to leave. But no, he’d just stood there like an idiot and let her go. Again.

He only got angrier over the course of the drive, his knuckles white as they gripped the steering wheel. Why couldn’t Will, foronce, have kept his big mouth shut?

Half an hour whizzed by in a blur and Nash parked his truck in Will’s driveway, slamming the door shut hard enough that the side mirror rattled. Will was already out of the house, closing the front door behind him, looking confused.

“Hey, man,” he said, cocking his head to the side like he was trying to figure out what was wrong with Nash. “You all good? What’s with all the door slamming? I thought you were all loved up and happy for once?”

The rage that had only grown hotter and meaner with every passing minute wouldn’t even let Nash speak. He had no words to even beginto explain what was going on in his head. All he could do was storm forward, surging towards Will.

“Hey!” Will said, instantly shifting, feet apart, shoulders wide. “If you swing, man, then it’s on. You know I can lay you out in a heartbeat.”

Nash forced himself to stop. It was hard, but he did it. Standing just a few feet away from Will, his hands curled into fists beside him. He did want to take a swing; he wanted itbad. But Will was right; he might be the smaller of the two, but he was quick and hit hard. So Nash stayed very, very still, using what was left of his self-control to lock his feet in place. Will didn’t relax, not once leaving his fighting stance, but he did nod.

“All right, what’s up?”

“What’sup?” Nash asked. It sounded way too casual a question when he felt like the world was falling down around him.

“Yeah, what’s up? Why are you in my yard looking like you’re ready to murder someone?”

“I’m here ready to murderyoubecause you couldn’t keep your stupid mouth shut.”

Will screwed up his face in an all too familiar expression. “Me? What did I say?”

Nash laughed a little at that. He was starting to feel a little crazy, and that was scarier than the rage. Rage he could control, but if he started spinning out, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to get a handle on himself again. Everything felt way too fragile right now. Will, at least, seemed to finally realize how close to the deep end Nash really was.

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