Page 24 of Samuel

“What?”

Now it was her turn to chuckle. “Blue Bonnet is a type of butter. Or, maybe margarine? It comes in a tub. In the grocery store. My nana used to save the containers and store all her sewing odds and ends in them.”

“No.” He smiled. “Texas bluebells are a type of wildflower, but not the ones that tourists flock here for. Bluebonnets are the flowers you are thinking of. They grow in a field and attract a bunch of annoying tourists every spring.”

“Oh.” Evie laughed. “I guess I can add that to my list of things I learned today. I was absolutely thinking about bluebonnets.”

“It’s definitely something special to see, if you can find a place that hasn’t been trampled by a million out-of-towners. Even though you missed it now, there’s always next year.”

“True.” Evie patted her stomach. “And Jellybean will be here then. I can lay her down in them and take some really cute pictures.”

Sam groaned, shaking his head back and forth as he took his hat off and wiped the sweat from his brow. Damn, that shouldn’t be stirring up wild and crazy thoughts that had her core clenching. Stupid pregnancy hormones. If she wasn’t crying lately, she was horny as hell.

Focus, Evie. Less drooling at the sexy cowboy, more chit chat. This was the most open he’d been since she got to the ranch, and she wasn’t about to lose the headway she was making with him.

“What? Why are you laughing at me?”

“You’re already planning photo shoots for your baby?”

“Well, yes. I’m a Pinterest mom, through and through.”

“Do I even want to know what that is?”

“Probably not. But I’m going to tell you anyway, Cowboy. It’s an arts and crafts mom. She finds all these elaborate party or activity ideas from the website and recreates them for her kid.”

“Pinterest is a website?”

“Yeah.”

“Sounds like a lot of work.”

“Oh, I’m sure it is! But I want Jellybean to have the best childhood. I want her to have so many happy memories that even if there is a sad one sprinkled in there, she isn’t overwhelmed by it.”

“This looks like a nice place to stop for a few minutes.” Evie hoped Sam would agree. Carting Jellybean through the pastures and across the sloped landscape of the ranch had proven more difficult than she’d anticipated, and her back was aching more than it already had been over the last few weeks as her center of gravity shifted.

“This is perfect. One of my favorite places to just come out and think.” Sam set down the backpack and pulled out the blanket Evie had packed.

“It does seem really peaceful.” She grabbed two corners from him and spread the fabric out over the grass.

“Evie, if this is too personal, just tell me to mind my own business.”

She grimaced, sitting down and taking a long drink from her water bottle. “Go ahead. I try to be an open book.”

“Why did you leave your last job?”

Wow. That wasn’t the question she was expecting him to ask. Her anxious stomach rolled as she thought about how to explain everything that had happened.

“It was a really complicated situation.”

“I’m sorry. You don’t need to answer that. As your boss, I probably have no right to ask. I just remember seeing on your resume that you were with that office for years. Doesn’t seem like the right timing to just up and leave them.” He nodded towards her belly and she understood what he was saying.

“You’re not really my boss, right?” she joked.

“I guess not.” Sam slid the backpack in front of himself and rummaged through to get the container of cookies out. Evie’s eyes trailed down his legs and to the grass in front of them. How on earth was she supposed to start sharing this story?

“I didn’t leave by choice,” she blurted out. Great. Her mind just decided to go the very direct route, apparently. “My boss accused me of stealing from the company.”

“What?” Sam’s eyes snapped to her, his hands stilling in the cookie container.

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