Page 11 of The Coolheaded Cowboy

“Yeah, we get it,” Sawyer said. “I’m still trying to figure out what your angle is, though.”

Sawyer didn’t get it, no matter what he said. Even with Georgia’s small outburst, he just didn’t understand. Dad never got it, either. He’d worked himself into an early grave because money mattered so much, and she knew why.

Growing up, they didn’t have much. Her parents struggled to keep this ranch afloat for a long time. By the time she was in middle school, though, they’d turned it into a thriving dude ranch, thanks to her parents’ business and marketing talents.

But at some point, Georgia came to realize there’d been a cost to all that. They were better off as a family struggling to pay the bills. At least then, they spent time together.

“I have no angle,” Clayton said. “You can believe that or not. Doesn’t really matter to me. I care about this town, and I care about these two ranches, even if the two of you can’t get along. You don’t seem to realize just how much you all have in common, and if you’d work together rather than against each other, there’s no telling what you could do.”

Sawyer made a face. “Can we save the pep rally?”

“I’ll walk you out,” Georgia told Clayton as she glared at her brother before squeezing around him and through the doors.

She headed straight for the closet near the front door where the family members kept their coats. As she turned, shoving her arm into the right sleeve of her coat, she noticed she was alone. Had Clayton gotten stuck talking to her brother? If so, she might need to go back in and help him out.

But then he emerged, same relaxed look he’d had on his face before the altercation. He was taking all this in stride. That was more than she could say for herself.

Georgia blasted out the front door, intent on getting out on the porch before Sawyer came out and started up again. The frigid night air helped cool her off. The ground was covered in snow and more was coming, but that was par for the course in January in Cupid Ridge.

She closed her eyes and inhaled the fresh air. As annoying as her brothers could be, she couldn’t imagine living anywhere but in this town, on this ranch.

A noise behind her caused her to jump, her eyes popping open. She turned and found Clayton stepping out onto the porch, looking around. No doubt, he was scanning for signs of her brothers lurking among the trucks, SUVs, and cars in the gravel parking area.

“Sorry about that,” she said once she’d confirmed the front door was closed. “My brother Sawyer’s the oldest. After our dad died, he seemed to think that put him in charge.”

“I’d say you and your mom are in charge around here.” He smiled. “Just from what I’ve observed.”

She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Yeah. Mom hasn’t taken Dad’s death well. They met in eighth grade and married right after high school graduation. She never even dated anyone else. Can you imagine?”

A long silence followed as he stared out across the snow-covered area in front of them. “It wasn’t all that uncommon back then in a town this size. Well, the size it was when they were kids, anyway.”

“Dad was in the military,” Georgia said. “He went away for a while, and they stayed in touch by mail. It was all so…”

She hesitated. She was a hopeless romantic. Despite her resolve not to date these days, she always jumped in with both feet. That romantic side made her easily won over by the type of guy who came into relationships guns blazing, then got cold feet when he realized she actually had feelings for him. Unfortunately, no matter how many times she’d been hurt, she always told herself this one would be different.

She didn’t have time for that anymore, anyway. There was a ranch to run, and a kitchen badly in need of a manager.

Speaking of which, she really needed to get inside. “Thank you for all your help.” She turned to him and gave him her politest smile. “You don’t know how much it means to me and my family. Even if they don’t know how to say thank you, someday they’ll realize you had our back and you didn’t have to.”

“I meant what I said in there.” Clayton glanced back at the building, then returned his overwhelmingly intense gaze to her face. “I care about both families. You’re the backbone of this town. You bring the tourists, and the Knotts keep the grocery store stocked in fresh meat and milk.”

“Milk?” she asked.

“Got to make a living, right?”

She had no idea. The next thing she knew, they’d be bringing in chickens and farming fresh produce right there on their land. It made her wonder if they were hurting for money. If they were resorting to selling their cows’ milk…

No, that was none of her business.

“I’ll send you the names of a couple of attorneys I think could help you,” he said, stepping to the edge of the porch, right where the steps started down. “I trust them.”

“Sorry for any trouble,” she said.

Clayton looked like he wanted to say something else. She waited, not speaking, and finally, he gave another nod and walked off the porch and to his truck.

Only as she watched him drive away did it occur to her that he’d said he was going to send her a list of attorneys. But how? He didn’t have her phone number or her email address.

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