Page 97 of Ace of Spades
“Do you see yourself, buddy? You’re already a cowboy, you've got the hat and everything. And maybe one day, when you’re a little bit older, you can come work on the ranch if you want.”
“Really?”
“Definitely.”
“I wanna stay here forever,” Drew tells him.
“It’s pretty great, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, it really is.”
“So, where are you guys from?” I ask, forcing myself to draw my
attention from Weston for the sake of my ovaries.
“Virginia,” Hannah answers, exchanging a loving glance with her husband. “We’ve always wanted to do something like this, but we’d never really found the right place. But here, the place you guys have—oh, wow—it’s so perfect, it feels like a second home. Shoot, we’re about ready to move in.”
“It’s pretty great,” I admit. “Weston actually grew up here. It wasn’t my cup of tea at first, but it has a charm to it.”
“What’s your favorite part?”
I take a moment to think about it, the soft sound of hooves in the grass taking over as I breathe in the fresh mountain air.
“The people. Without a doubt, there are some amazing people around here. It’s like a community, and everyone helps each other out.”
“I love that,” Hannah says. “We felt such a warm welcome when we went into town yesterday.”
“That tends to happen around here. It’s like one giant family.”
“So, how long have the two of you been together?” she asks.
I freeze in the saddle, Blackjack moving onward as my mind goes blank. We weren’t together—were we? We hadn’t exactly talked about it, and from what I had heard, Weston didn’t do relationships. I couldn’t help the panic that bubbled inside of me, scared that the question might chase him off.
“Oh, we’re not—”
“A few months now,” Weston interrupts. “Officially, though? I guess that all depends on her. She kinda runs the shots around here.”
“So you’re not dating?” Hannah asks.
“We are,” Weston answers. “If she’ll have me, that is. She’s a bit hard to read, this one.”
He looks over his shoulder, throwing a playful glance in my direction. Something about it allows me to relax, a smile blooming across my face.
“We are. Dating, I mean,” I admit.
“So, when did you know?” Hannah asks. “That she was the one?”
Weston doesn’t miss a beat.
“Well, I actually didn’t particularly care for her at first.”
I can’t help but roll my eyes, my hips rocking in the saddle as we continue to move up the mountain.
“We hated each other,” I tell her.
“I see. And what changed?”
I chance a glance in his direction, my mind racing to figure out the best response.
