Page 32 of Captured By the Billionaire Cowboy
“Really?” Spencer grinned wider. “Even though it rained all day yesterday and half the night?”
“So I’d say the answer is no. You were saying something about a contest?” He frowned. “Did you say you were going to auction me off?”
Before his brother could answer, his true focus walked through the door and once more stole his attention. Ciara gave a smile as bright as the Irish sunshine. “Hi guys! I was just outside.”
“We noticed,” Spencer remarked.
“Some of us more than others,” Quinn added.
“He was spying on you,” Davey shared.
Ciara’s eyes widened.
“Davey has something to tell us,” Rowan quickly interjected. “I mean somethingelse.”
Ciara’s gaze turned speculative, mirroring his own feelings, rare vulnerability, loss of control, uncertainty for the person who affected him more every single day. After her phone call with hersister earlier, she’d rushed out on some clearly made-up errand. Sooner or later, she’d have to face him.
He wouldn’t let her get away. Not again.
“You should run a contest.” Davey repeated his earlier proposal.
“A contest?” Ciara dragged her gaze away to regard the youngest brother. “A contest for what?”
“A contest to earn money.” Davey smiled broadly. “I heard you and Frank talking about the rescue center. You could sell raffle tickets to raise money. I bet tons of people would donate to such a great cause.”
Ciara gave him a warm smile. “Oh, sweetie, that’s a great idea, but I’m afraid I don’t have anything to offer as a prize.”
“What about Rowan?” Spencer grinned. “He’s real popular. You could offer a date with an actual cowboy. Or why stop at one date? You could offer him as a boyfriend or as a–”
“Absolutely not!” Everyone stared at Ciara. Her mouth was agape, her eyebrows angry slashes. Well, how about that? Clearly, she didn’t like the idea of other women dating him. “I mean, I don’t think that’s a good idea.” She blushed, yet a slight edge belied the words. “Although I can see you were joking. Of course, so was I.”
Untrue.By her pink cheeks, she meant every single word. Spencer tried again, “What about a date with you?”
This time, Rowan interjected, “Not going to happen.” He didn’t apologize. Didn’t explain. Instead he stared boldly at her.
Her blush deepened.
“Maybe you could offer something else as a prize, like a horse,” Davey suggested.
“I’m afraid we can’t do that.” Ciara’s voice was kind. “It’s important to find responsible owners for every horse, especially those who endured trauma. We couldn’t just give a horse to whoever had the winning ticket.”
Davey wrinkled his nose, sighing loudly. “What about something else? It could be something fancy like a television or a gaming system. Maybe a big stuffed horse. Oh, I know! What about giving away a free vacation to the retreat?”
Ciara paused, before shaking her head. “I’m afraid it still wouldn’t work. We don’t even know if the horse rescue will open. I can’t promise a prize I might not be able to deliver.”
“What if you can deliver it?” Rowan turned to Ciara. “Even if the horse rescue isn’t open yet, or if it never opens, they can still stay here. As Grandma Leigh said, this is a real horse rescue. They can still enjoy a week working with the horses.”
She bit her lower lip. “But there won’t be any rooms to accommodate guests.”
“We have tons of rooms.” Rowan gestured to the hallways, which led to multiple chambers. “It wouldn’t be difficult to set up lodgings for the winner.”
“It could work,” Quinn broke in. “People will pay a lot for the chance to win a great prize. You could highlight the work you’re doing with the horses so they know their money is going to a good cause. It could also double as marketing for the center.”
“But aren’t there laws and regulations about this sort of thing?”
“That could be an issue.” Rowan tapped his chin. “Instead of selling raffle tickets, we could make it free to enter, however, we could make a big pitch for donations on the page. Hopefully, people will donate at the same time they enter. I’ve done something similar with my charitable organizations.” He cringed. He hadn’t meant to mention his philanthropy.
His brothers displayed various shades of surprise. Quinn regarded him carefully. “I knew you donated to worthy causes, but you never said you ran any organizations. What do they benefit?”
