Page 2 of The Rancher's Wedding

“Go on, tell him.”

“All A’s, sir.”

“That’s mighty impressive,” Estelle’s father said. “Don’t be shy, that’s something to boast about.”

“Thank you, sir.”

The other adult continued. “I propose an arrangement whereby we agree that my son will marry your daughter, when she comes of age. In the meantime, you will act as Ethan’s mentor, with the eventual goal being to merge our two banks with him eventually, down the line, acting as successor to us both.”

Did Estelle hear them right? Was this her future husband in the other room? She imagined the weddings that she used to play out with her dolls when she was younger. Did she want to see him?

Estelle had just reached an age where the boys at school, once vile little things that the world would be better without, had become slightly interesting. A few years earlier, she would have felt sick at the idea that she would have to someday marry a boy, but now it didn’t seem so bad—depending on what he looked like.

Part of her wanted to see her future husband. Would he be tall and handsome? Or maybe he would have dirty blond hair and a smile that could make her heart flutter.

“Gotcha!” Megan tagged Estelle, giggling.

Estelle turned toward Megan, putting an index finger to her lips. “Shh!”

“What is it?” Megan whispered. “What’s going on?”

Estelle pointed to the slit between the wood. “In there, it’s the man I’m going to marry.”

“Well, then,” Megan replied, pulling Estelle up, “we have to meet him.”

“What? No, Megan!”

Megan pulled her out of the nook and tugged her down the hall. Estelle wasn’t ready to make that decision on her own, but Megan dragged her into it.

Through the doorway, Estelle saw the man. He was tall and certainly older than a child, maybe in his 20s, with thick locks of golden blond hair and a very slim build.

He was an utter disappointment.

And he was shaking her father’s hand.

“I believe we have a deal, young man,” her father said.

Thiswas her Prince Charming? This was the man she was going to make babies with? Maybe someone else would find him attractive—indeed, he was attractive, in a boyish sort of way, but that’s not what Estelle wanted in a husband.

She wanted to one day marry a man who was strong and could take care of her. This man just looked like a grown-up brat.

Chapter One

Seven years later

By her 18th birthday, Estelle had all but forgotten about the blond man. Her father had never mentioned him to her, so she thought perhaps she had only imagined it. She had been known for her wild imagination as a child, so it would stand to reason that maybe she’d just made the whole thing up. His face seemed so specific, though, more like a real person she had met than a fuzzy picture of someone that her imagination would come up with.

The blond man wasn’t on Estelle’s mind at all when her father told her that somebody would be joining them for dinner and he would very much like her to meet him. The guest was a man that her father had been working with for a long time at the bank, and so he wanted her to be on her best behavior.

“My lord, father,” Estelle said. “I’m an adult now. You don’t need to talk to me like a child.”

“I know, I know,” he said. “I just want to be very clear that you need to be using your pleases and thank yous and demonstrating proper manners. This is a very important evening for both of us.”

Estelle assumed this would be an older gentleman who was interested in some sort of business deal that only affected her tangentially.

He was not an older gentleman, however, and when he arrived and removed his hat, she recognized him by his eyebrows and the odd way his nose seemed to turn up toward her.

“Hello, Miss Williams,” he said, taking her hand and kissing it, “it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

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