Page 76 of Tempting Wyatt
“What can I do for you?”
I fidget where I stand for a second, remembering Isaac’s warning and hoping Willow doesn’t have the same grudge against people in the movie business that Wyatt does.
“I wanted to talk to you about what I do for a living. And a project I’m working on.”
She moves the résumés aside, stands and props on the desk beside me.
“This I’ve got to hear. I have you pegged as a travel influencer or trophy wife in training. Am I close?”
I let out a small laugh. “Really? I don’t know if I should be insulted or say thank you.”
She grins. “It was the fancy car and designer shoes.”
“That’s fair.” I take a deep breath. “So I’m a writer. A screenwriter. And I came here to write quietly and disappear for a while. Not stir up trouble.”
Willow snorts. “Too late. Trouble was stirred up the second my brothers laid eyes on you.”
I smile, but there’s a twist in my stomach. “Is this where you tell me Wyatt’s going to hate me when he find out what I do for a living?”
She chews her lower lip for a second. “Not hate. Wyatt doesn’t hate easy. But he’s—” She exhales and examines a nearby brush that I assume is for horses. “Cautious. Protective. And yeah, he’s got an unpleasant history with people who make a living off stories they don’t have to live through. Especially when that story is ours.”
I let my teeth pull at my lower lip. “Isaac told me a little bit about Nina.”
Willow makes a face. “That bitch did a number on all of us.” Her scowl deepens. “I think having you here has helped us all to see that not everyone wants to make a spectacle of our way of life. Some people just appreciate it.”
My heart races in my chest. “That’s part of why I’m nervous,” I admit. “I was stuck when I got here, wounded after an ugly break up and already behind on my deadline.” I take another deep breath and do my best to keep going. “But then I was deeply inspired by the ranch, by the family dynamic, and the grit it takes to do what all of you do.”
She huffs out a small laugh. “Well, we’ve got plenty of drama—that’s for sure.”
And super-sexy ranchers and cowboys all over the place,I think, but don’t say since they’re her brothers.
“It’s good drama though. You love and support each other and it shows. Oddly enough, I was planning to write another dark romantic suspense series. But this setting—the cabin, the ranch—it inspired a romantic family saga instead.”
Her eyes meet mine. “So you’ve already written this?”
I nod. “I’m over halfway finished with what I need toofficially submit it to the network that made a preliminary offer on my next project. But I’m scared. No, I’m terrified. Because I don’t want Wyatt—or any of you—to think I’m doing what Nina did. I would never.”
She whistles low. “Damn. Well, Wyatt is not going to love it, that I can tell you.”
“I know. And I’m reaching a point where it’s either time to talk to him and submit it, or I’ve got to scrap it and start over and risk losing my streaming contract.”
She grimaces. “Maybe talk to my mom first. See what she thinks about it, and about the best way to break it to Wyatt.”
The tension lifts from my chest. “Smart thinking. Willow, you’re a genius.”
She nods. “I keep telling people this. And, I mean, it goes without saying, but as long you write me as the badass sister that keeps everyone in line, I’m good with it.”
“Already done,” I tell her with a smile.
For the next half hour, Willow gives me a tour of the place. She shows me an empty arena and says Sutton wants her to save space for a therapeutic program for special needs and differently abled kids. I fill her in on the events from the other night, and we commiserate about Sutton’s shitty ex-boyfriend.
When she asks if I want to grab dinner, I glance at my watch and tell her I’ll have to take a rain check.
“Isaac invited me to hear a band play at a bar in town,” I tell her. “You want to join us? I asked Wyatt but he only clenched his jaw and said he had work to do before marching off, as if he had better places to be.”
She shakes her head. “Yeah, sounds like him. I don’t go out much these days. But thanks for the invite. I’m going to order pizza and probably keep sorting through these résumés.”
We say our goodbyes and Willow surprises me with a hug, saying she can’t wait to read my screenplay.
