Page 51 of The Cowboy Fix

“Yeah. Quicker than we thought. You’ve done it, Izzy. You’re going to save the ranch.”

“Not all by myself. This was a group effort. And we’re not quite there yet.” She’d come to the ranch full of excitement at the opportunity to bring the Triple L out of its financial slump. Unfortunately, one week of earnings wasn’t solid proof of her success.

Aside from the finances improving somewhat, nothing had changed except she’d kissed Nathan Lohmen. And when she had, she’d also realized she would give up too much if she followed her longing down a road that would not end up where she’d planned to go.

“Where do you go next?” Malorie asked quietly.

Good question. “I’m not sure.”

Suddenly, none of her choices appealed as much as staying in Strawberry Ridge and finding out if she and Nathan could come together in something more personal than a business deal.

Chapter Fifteen

Over the nextfew days, Nathan kept an eye on Izzy as she practiced her barrel technique. They cleaned the stalls together after he put the horses out to pasture, and they cleaned the tack, but they didn’t talk much. He’d thought about what he wanted—as if he didn’t already know, and by the end of three days, he wished she had more to say.

He wanted to do everything he could to make sure the Triple L survived. That was a no-brainer and nothing new, but he didn’t only want the ranch to survive, he wanted it to thrive. After the over-the-top offer Jaeger had made, Nathan was more certain than ever that right here, where he’d started, was where he wanted to spend the rest of his life. And he wanted to spend it with Izzy Payton.

Changing her mind about leaving was the next hurdle.

Before he met her, he’d thought he wanted the Triple L to stay exactly as it was when his parents were alive. But in all truth, nothing stayed the same. Izzy had taught him that. She was right about the ranch, but she wasn’t right about moving on. All the traveling she did, going from place to place, might be exciting, but where was home for the surprisingly curious woman?

Even if he could convince her to plant her roots entangled with his, that they could work it out so she could take on jobs that challenged her but also allowed her to come back home, would she still walk away?

If she did, he would feel the loss deep inside his soul.

He needed her, like his dad had needed his mom. The Triple L needed her. Even after they got the ranch back on its feet, they would need each other.

But she didn’t need him. Backing away from their kiss hadn’t been his first clue. The whole thing was poor timing on his part, unfortunately, but how did he convince the stunning woman they would make a great team?

Finally, tired of hearing his voice chasing itself round and round in his head, he said to the woman who’d dismounted Rosie, then hugged the horse’s neck, “Blake and Malorie’s wedding is only two weeks away. Do you want to go to the cottage with me and make sure everything is exactly how you want it?”

He knew she was helping Malorie plan the wedding and could almost see the thoughts whirling in her mind while she took a long look at him as she leaned against the horse.

“I was going to check in with Mal and see what she has left to do.”

He took the reins and led the horse to her stall. “I’m sure she has a lot to do with the kids, and Blake. He’s getting nervous.”

“Has he changed his mind?” Izzy pulled off the saddle and put it in the tack room on its saddle stand.

After being left at the altar, of course, that would be her first thought. He started to brush down Rosie. “No. Nothing like that. He hasn’t written his vows yet.”

“Mal has had hers written for a week,” she confirmed what Nathan already knew and laughed. “Just like a girl to be ahead of the game, right?” She held out her hand for the grooming brush. “I can do that.”

He was sure she could. He handed her the brush. The woman was amazing. “So, what do you think? Do you want to do a last walk-through? We can check on the garden, too, and see how it’s growing.”

“All right. I just want to take a quick shower after Rosie is settled.”

“I’ll put the rest of the horses in their stalls.” He headed for the pasture.

Izzy headed for the shower as Nathan closed up the barn. He wasn’t far behind her and half an hour later they met at his truck. She was dressed in a flowing, blue summer dress with thin straps that was made for her fair skin. She’d let her wild red hair hang free.

If he didn’t think she’d run in the opposite direction, he’d tell her how gorgeous she looked. He settled for, “I like your dress.”

“Thank you.” She blushed, which was the prettiest thing he’d seen in a long time. He offered his hand and helped her into his truck before sprinting around the back to get behind the wheel and start the engine.

He briefly glanced at her, barely refraining from muttering,Wow!

Izzy Payton made his heart pump like mad. She was beautiful and spunky, knew what she wanted from life—which he was only just now figuring out—and lived to make her own rules. She hadn’t been deterred no matter how much he’d grumped at her.

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