Page 93 of The Lies We Told Ourselves

“Oh my god, this is amazing.” I shook my head and leaned back in my chair. “You’re going to do it, right? I mean, you’re bored. What else do you have to do? Oh, she could turn it into a life drawing class.”

I pulled my cell out of my pocket, and Xander physically dived across the desk to wrestle it from me.

“Don’t you dare!”

He scurried across the office, clutching my phone to his chest with his eyes wide. “I’m going to meet the building inspector, and I’m taking this with me. You’ve lost your communication privileges, missy.”

Then he strode out of the house, taking my cell with him.

I didn’t care. It wasn’t like I actually used it.

“At least Blake has found someone else to torment,” Booker said from where he was leaning in the doorway watching me. “Wow, this is what it feels like when you have everything you need in life. It’s pretty awesome,” he said, rubbing his chest with his good hand.

It was weeks until he’d be getting the cast off his other arm, and I still hated it every time I saw it. I doubted I’d ever get used to the thing. It was a reminder of the single most frightening thing that had ever happened to me. And that was saying something.

But right now, the house was empty, and we had nothing urgent we needed to do for the next couple of hours.

I looked at Booker, a wicked thought entering my mind.

“I know that look,” he murmured, standing straighter and taking a step closer, just as his cell rang. “Damn it. I need to takethis,” he said as he pulled it out of his pocket and glanced at the screen.

I stood from my seat and walked over to kiss his lips gently. “I’ll be waiting for you,” I whispered, slipping out the room to the sound of his groan as I left him to take his call.

This was perfect. It gave me time to have a quick shower and put on something I’d had delivered yesterday that I knew would blow Booker’s mind.

I rushed through the shower, not knowing how long Booker’s call was going to take and wanting to quickly give my legs another shave before it finished. When I came out of the bathroom and found him sitting on the end of the bed, I sighed in defeat.

“Damn it. I thought I had more time,” I said, clutching the towel at my chest and then shrugging because this was as good as anything else.

But then I saw Booker’s face and his look of annoyance.

“What happened?” I asked, sitting beside him on the bed.

“One of the backers just dropped out,” he said, looking at me grimly.

That wasn’t good, especially with the accelerated rate we were going for opening.

“Okay, did they say why?” I asked.

“He said that it didn’t seem advisable in the current political climate to be investing money in a project that could face issues in the future?”

I frowned, not understanding at first what he was talking about. What issues? There was nothing we hadn’t covered, and when Booker had talked me through his business plan, it had seemed absolutely solid.

“No,” I said when the wording he’d used ran through my mind. “You don’t think…”

“Camden,” Booker said grimly. “Or maybe his father.”

“He can’t do that!” I said, surging to my feet and starting to pace beside the bed as I gripped the towel to my chest. “Oh my god, Booker. I’m so sorry. This is all my fault. The ranch?—”

“Is fine,” he said gently, reaching out and taking my hand to draw me down into his lap. “The ranch will endure, no matter what. This is why I had investors, and we still have three more.”

“But if he got to one of them, he could get to the others.”

I’d thought Camden’s threat was an empty one when he’d shouted it as he fled the barn. I didn’t think he’d actually follow through. Mainly because it seemed too much like hard work. But if his father was behind this, then he was spinning some kind of story to make it look like he was the victim. We’d assumed he’d try to cover his back, but he was doing damage control in a whole other way.

There had to be a way to stop this. I couldn’t bring down the business that Booker had put so much into. What he’d worked so hard to become a reality here at the ranch.

“Hey,” Booker said gently, his fingers coming to my chin as he tipped my head up so he could see my eyes. “Don’t worry about this. What we’re doing here will happen no matter what the investors decide. It might just take longer. The important thing is that we’re here doing it together. Got it. Nothing in my life is more important than you, Reece. And together I know we’ll build something amazing here.”

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