Page 6 of The Rancher's Unrequited Love

While she was pretty much an open book to anyone, the same couldn't be said for Ethan, who only occasionally shared bits and pieces about himself. Although she had spent most of thesummer in his company, all that she knew of him could barely fill an entire page.

Of his family, she knew that his parents had died early in a helicopter crash, he had twin older brothers, and that while he was a third-generation Wyomite, he had also spent a few years with his English mother's side of the family while studying in Oxford.

Of his individual life, she knew even less. Several times, she had been tempted to ask Farica de Konigh, the beautiful blonde who co-owned the Redwood Cafe, if she knew anything about Ethan's past. But she always chickened out in the end, with Anah unable to shake off the feeling that the less she knew about the women Ethan dated, the better.

With only a week to go before her internship ended, Anah started feeling increasingly melancholic about the thought of being parted from Ethan. Although she read books to enjoy a temporary escape from reality, she was actually as pragmatic as they came, and one thing she had never tried to fool herself with was where she stood in Ethan's life. The man saw her as a little sister he could dote on, and she had learned to accept this. She might never become Ethan's girlfriend, but she could at least confidently say she was somewhat special to him. Or so she thought...until the day she visited Ethan's flower shop and saw the sign posted on its window.

TEMPORARILY CLOSED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE

Anah was shocked. Did this mean Ethan was gone, just like that? He had...left without saying goodbye? This time, she didn't hesitate to run down to the cafe and ask Farica about it, and the older woman was visibly reluctant as she confirmed Anah's worst fears.

'I'm sorry, Anah, he flew out this morning. I'm not sure when he'll be back.'

And that was when Anah realized how mistaken she was.

She wasnotspecial to Ethan at all.

Chapter Two

BEFORE HEADING BACKhome to Texas, Anah was given a chance to enjoy one last vacation in Wyoming. A few months ago, her newly-remarried godmother had moved to a small town just outside Jackson Hole, and the older woman had good-naturedly insisted that Anah visit her before flying back home.

An enthusiastic-looking Margery waved at her as soon as Anah came out of the airport, and the older woman gave her a quick hug before stepping back to subject Anah to a quick scrutiny.

"Oh, my Lord, Anah. How is it possible that you look evenyoungerthan I remembered?" Margery asked laughingly.

"Story of my life," Anah couldn't help admitting with a sigh.

Margery raised a brow. "Uh oh. Has an older boy caught your fancy?" She had only meant to make Anah laugh or even blush, but instead the younger girl simply shook her head.

There was something there, Margery thought, but Anah being Anah, she doubted the girl would talk about it.

With Anah's mother dying in childbirth and her father long out of the picture, Anah had been solely raised by her grandparents. As a result, the girl was more restful and well-mannered than her peers, and with a remarkably compassionate nature that always had Anah taking her time to pick her words with care.

If Margery wasn't mistaken, Anah didn't even have any personal social media account to speak of, and if that didn't make the girl a living anachronism, she didn't know what else would.

Margery began a steady stream of conversation, and soon enough she saw Anah working hard to cheer herself up.Sweet, lovely girl, Margery thought with a sigh. Her goddaughter was such a darling that the man she had fallen for could only be the most unscrupulous sort, to be able to stomach hurting her dear Anah.

IN THE MEANTIME, SAIDunscrupulous soul was battling the strangest urge to sneeze. It was almost as if someone had walked over Ethan's grave...either that, or someone might not exactly be thinking good thoughts about him.

Although he and his brothers co-owned one of the largest ranches in the state, it was not actually the primary source of their income. Rather, the majority of their fortune lay in e-commerce, and it was a technical emergency concerning the department Ethan was in charge of that had him dropping everything to fly back home.

But while he didn't regret fulfilling his duties, Ethan couldn't help feeling regret over not being able to say goodbye to little Anah. If he were not mistaken, today was her last day on the job, and after this she would be flying home to Texas.

He knew he could simply look her up online to reconnect, but he was reluctant to do this for some reason. If fate decreed that they were not to meet again, then maybe that was all for the best.

It was already a few minutes past seven by the time Ethan left the office and drove back to the family ranch. The main house was ablaze with light, and the sound of laughter ringing out from the open windows of the dining room belatedly reminded him about tonight's welcome dinner for the McGregors.

John had been in his family's employ for as long as he could remember, and the older man had also served as a father figure of sorts for Ethan and the twins when their parents passed away. A smile already curving on Ethan's lips, he strode inside the dining room and saw right away John, and beside the older man could only be the new Mrs. McGregor, who was seated next to...

His eyes widened."Anah?"

"That was exactly her reaction, too," Aidan said with a smirk, "when we told her we had a younger brother named Ethan."

TWO HOURS LATER, ANDAnah was still doing her best to come to grips with this new version of Ethan as she followed the others to the patio. "So, let me get this straight..." She glanced up at Ethan, who was keeping pace next to her. "You and all those guys are billionaires who pooled your resources—-"

"Founding members, in other words," he supplied.

"To start a company—-"

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