Page 42 of The Rancher's Unrequited Love

You're not going to lose her.

ANAH KEPT WAVING GOODBYEuntil Ethan's pick-up had rounded the corner and disappeared from view. Then and only then did she let her smile fade and reach for her phone.

It's going to be fine.

She had received an email late last night from Guilia.

There's nothing to fix.

And since then, she had been filled with fear, wondering what was the right thing to do, if the message were to reveal that Guilia had decided to change for good, and she wanted Ethan back.

You're not going to lose him.

She tapped on the screen to start reading Guilia's email.

And a moment later, she was laughing and crying.

Because she had been right all along.

And she hadn't been imagining things last night when Ethan appeared stunned...almost as if...

Anah's phone slipped through her fingers.

Almost as if the ring wasn't meant for her.

Chapter Eighteen

THE RESTAURANT WASempty save for one table, and Ethan had risen to his feet by the time Guilia reached him. "I'm guessing this is one of your properties?" Even the classiest restaurants could be bribed into tattling about their guests, and more so when that guest happened to be the world's most notorious supermodel.

"Company property."

The polite brevity of Ethan's voice caught Guilia off guard, and the smile on her lips faltered. "You've changed," she blurted out.

Instead of answering, Ethan pulled a chair out for her, and she sank down on it without a word.He had changed.The words echoed in her mind endlessly as she watched him take a seat opposite her. He was still beautiful, still sexy, but his eyes...

"Ethan..."

His hazel eyes met hers without hesitation, and it was like seeing her world disintegrate.He can't see me anymore,she thought wildly.It's over. It's over. Over!

Ethan watched the play of emotions on Guilia's face with a disconcerting sense of disattachment. Did she know that she had revealed more of her thoughts in the past five seconds compared to all the years they had been together?

Guilia's sharp nails dug into her palms. "I'm too late, aren't I?"

"It was over between us for a long time," Ethan said evenly. "And I think you knew that well before I did."

Guilia couldn't help lifting her chin even as guilt colored her cheeks. "We were happy—-"

"For a time."

"I know I made a lot of mistakes," she burst out, "but I promise I'm going to change—-"

"Guilia—-"

Something inside her snapped at the way he said her name—-

Like her name was just any other name—-

Guilia grabbed the wineglass and smashed it against the table.

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