Page 28 of Hope's Highest Bidders

I smile and put my hands deep into my pockets. “You walk around your ranch like that?”

She looks down at herself as if she doesn’t see what the big deal is. I swear this image of her is burned into my mind forever. I won’t be forgetting it. “In my underwear? No, of course not.”

I nod, and I know I shouldn’t ask the next question, but I do it anyway. Maybe because it’s just the two of us out here and it’s the only time I’ve ever been completely alone with her. Or maybe because she’s all I’ve thought about, and I need to know the answer. “Anyone see you like that? Ever?”

She scrunches her nose up and seems to think about it. “Are we counting the girls in gym class in high school?”

I shake my head side to side.

She brings out her hand and acts as if she’s counting on her fingers. When she gets to her second hand, I’m ready to go off. But then she raises her head with a glint in her eye. “Just one person... just you.”

I let out the breath that I didn’t realize I was holding. It comes out in a big poof of air. “So I’m the only man to have seen you in your underwear?”

She swallows, licks her lips, and nods her head. “Yep.”

It’s not my place, and I know I should keep my damn mouth closed, but I can’t hold it in. “That’s good, Sassy. Boys your age only want one thing. You should wait... before you show another man what you look like under your clothes.”

She leans down and looks at herself again. “What do you mean? I look the same with clothes on... or at least a bathing suit.”

I shake my head and try to hide my laugh. She may be twenty years old, but her dad has sheltered her most of her life. I’m sure it doesn’t help that I’ve made sure to keep men away from her. “No, honey. Trust me. You definitely look different like that.”

She tilts her head to look at me. There’s a question in her eyes, and before I change my mind, I say to her, “What is it? You look like you have a question. What is it?”

She licks her lips nervously. “I do have a question.”

I nod, following the path that her tongue took across her lips. “Yeah, you can ask me.”

She nods and swallows hard. “The boys at school always made fun of me. Said I was an ugly tomboy. Do you think I’m ugly? I mean, do you think any man will ever look at me and think I’m pretty?”

Two thoughts go through my head. The first is that teenage boys are idiots. The second is that I’m wondering how she doesn’t see what I see.

I lift my hat off my head and hold it to my chest. “Okay, so whatever idiots said that to you lied. They probably said it because they knew they weren’t good enough for you-“

She interrupts me with a surprised gasp. “Good enough for me?”

“Yes. You’re pretty, Sassy. Smart, kind, funny, independent, you don’t take shit from people, you’re good with animals...” I let my voice trail off before I admit to her what I really think about her. About how she’s always on my mind and I dream about her every night. Yeah, I’d better keep that to myself. “One day, you’ll find a man that treats you right. Don’t waste your time on the ones that don’t see your value.”

She nods her head, and a grin overtakes her face. “You think I’m pretty?”

I laugh. Of everything that I just said, that’s what she’s hung up on. “You’re beautiful, Sassy. Don’t let anyone ever make you think different. If they do, tell me and I’ll take care of it.”

She looks at me curiously. “Why are you being nice to me?”

I gape at her. “Aren’t I always nice to you?”

She tilts her head back to look at me. “Yeah, you are, but you never talk to me.”

I don’t deny it. As a matter of fact, I go out of my way to avoid talking to her, but I can’t explain why. “Will you do me a favor?”

She doesn’t hesitate. She nods her head vigorously, always happy to please.

I put my hat back on my head and shove it down over my forehead. “Don’t go showing your body to men that aren’t worthy, sweetie. Promise me no more swimming in your underwear.”

She shrugs. “Okay, I promise.”

I remember that I forced myself to walk away from her after that. I could have stayed and talked to her all day, but I knew Iwouldn’t be satisfied with just looking at her. No, I would have wanted to touch her, and I knew I shouldn’t.

I turn Zeus around and look in the direction of Sassy’s ranch. Can I let her do this? Can I let her auction herself off and maybe marry another man? All this time, she’s been right next door and I’ve told myself that I’m too old for her and she deserves a better man than me, but we’ve reached a crossroads. I let her do this and I may lose her forever.

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