Page 2 of Second Chances with my Billionaire Bosses

“It’s good. Great.” I took a deep breath. “Your friends are here. They said they bought the Mays’ ranch.”

“Arlo, Shep, and Rhett are here? Tell them to come on in.” West smiled and stretched his legs out in front of him. “It’s been forever since they were here.”

I knew exactly how long it’d been since they visited Devil’s Den. I knew the exact day they’d left with no plans on returning. I hadn’t realized that at the time, though age and maturity told me they’d known the morning they left.

“Maxie? Bring them on in.” Mills frowned at me. “Everything okay?”

I straightened my shoulders and nodded. “Did we buy the Mays’ ranch?”

Tate licked his lips and frowned. “We paid a small amount to have partial ownership.”

Panic hit me hard. “Andtheyown the rest?”

“Yeah. What’s the big deal, Maxie?” Mills stood up and shook his head. “I’ll just go get them myself.”

I was furious but it didn’t matter. It never mattered. I made sure my face was blank as I held up my hands. “No, I’ll get them. You stay here.”

West studied me. “Are you sure everything is okay? You’re still going to be managing the ranch, Maxie. We wouldn’t take that away from you.”

I swallowed around an angry lump in my throat. “Everything’s fine. I was just surprised. I’ll go get them for y’all.”

“Thanks, Maxie. You’re the best.” Mills ruffled my hair and sat back down.

I turned around and left but instead of facing the three men who’d once crushed my heart, I walked toward the barn and only managed to take my first deep breath once I was on Bob, riding away from the ranch.

CHAPTER 2

Maxie

No one would ever call me daring or bold but if they saw me ride Bob, they might’ve changed their opinion. Bob liked to run fast and I liked to let him. I rode him bareback, leaning with him as he moved with my hands in his mane. He was an abnormally large and muscular black quarter horse. More than a few times I’d been offered a hefty sum of money for him but I’d never trade Bob for anything in the world. I wasn’t sure if it was sad or not but he was my best friend. He knew my moods and he was always ready to cheer me up with his silly personality. When we ran together, though, there was nothing silly about him. He was a beast on a mission.

Bob ran full out until my thighs ached and my stomach hurt from my core being engaged for so long. He didn’t stop until we were at the creek at the far north corner of the ranch. One of the best things about riding Bob like that was that my brain shut off while we ran. It was the only time my thoughts weren’t racing. The moment I jumped off him, the anxiety came back. While he drank from the creek, I stood next to him and stared out across the property.

I’d been excited about the ranch growing. I didn’t think I’d ever have children but I wanted my nieces and nephews, however many I ended up with, to have something to be proud of. Taking charge of the new ranch had been something I’d looked forward to. I wanted to start something on my own and prove I was stronger than everyone thought I was. I wanted to prove it to myself. Instead of that happening, though, I was going to be working for the three men who’d single-handedly convinced me I was meant to be alone.

I wanted to scream. My palms and lips were raw from fighting back the feelings that raged inside me but I knew I wouldn’t say anything. I never said anything. I knew what everyone called me.Perfect Maxie. Perfect Maxie didn’t scream at her brothers for screwing her over. Nope. She just smiled and did whatever they needed her to do.

I doubled over and screamed into my hands, the sound closer to a wild animal than a woman. It shocked Bob enough that he jumped and then, seeing I was fine, he neighed and nudged my butt with his head hard enough to send me tumbling into the creek. Warm water soaked through my clothes instantly and I came up spitting out dirty creek water.

“Bob!” I sliced my hand through the water, sending a wave of it at him. “That was mean!”

Sighing, I climbed out the creek and flopped down on the ground. Bob immediately settled next to me and I had to snatch my arm out of the way to avoid him crushing it. He flopped his head over on my stomach and curled his lips like he was smiling.

“You’re a jerk sometimes but I love you.” I stroked his big face and closed my eyes, trying to let the peace I felt while riding Bob fill me. Instead of peace, though, I felt the same tension as always. There was so much to do and hiding with Bob wasn’t going to get any of it done. I couldn’t force myself to get up, though. Not yet. The idea of potentially facing Arlo, Rhett, and Shep again kept me right where I was.

I could only hide from my responsibilities for so long, though. I lay there for as long as I dared with thoughts of the party clean up and everything else I needed to do racing through my tired mind. When Bob stood, I took it as my cue and climbed to my feet. Instead of riding him back to the ranch, I chose to drag it all out by walking.

When we returned I led him into the barn and took some time to cool him down and hydrate him before letting him into one of the smaller paddocks to roam while I cleaned up after the party. Almost all of the vehicles were gone and the ranch had fallen into a peaceful silence again. The place was littered with trash,but I’d expected it. I rolled one of the trash cans over and started picking up.

The drinks table still held a few bottles of beer and something about the return of the guys had me reaching for one of them. I wasn’t a drinker and I didn’t like the taste but the beer went down easy when I pictured them standing in front of me. It wasn’t fair that they were even better looking than I’d remembered and imagined. It wasn’t fair that they were back, giving me looks which still made my body heat.

I collected the trash with anger, the bottles and cups rattling harder and harder as they went into the can until one of the bottles smashed and I forced myself to calm down. I didn’t want Patrick, the garbage man, to cut himself because I couldn’t keep my emotions in check. Leaning against Mills’ truck, I took a few deep breaths and finished my beer. That quickly I was tipsy. It would’ve been embarrassing if anyone had been around to see it. I was blissfully alone, though, just the way I liked it.

The quiet voice at the back of my mind called me a liar but I was an expert at ignoring that part of myself. I pushed off the truck and went back to cleaning up. That was better than standing around, feeling sorry for myself.

I was bent over, picking up a handful of confetti someone had thrown, when Rhett’s voice came from behind me and nearly sent me tumbling over. I jerked upright, clutching my chest, and frowned.

“You scared me!”

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