Page 112 of Wild for You (The Wilds of Montana)

“I went on a date with Remington once,” a woman named Helena says smugly.“We had fun, but there was no spark.Of course, that was more than fifteen years ago, and we were practically babies, but yeah.He’s hot.”

I can’t help but laugh at that.I’m going to have to ask Joy if she can show me photos of Rem when he was about twenty.I’d love to see them.

“Okay, everyone,” Christine announces, pushing a cart loaded with snacks.“Let’s eat!”

Holly isfast asleep in the back seat when I pull up to the farmhouse.I don’t want to disturb her, so I shoot Remington a text.

Me: Sitting in the car with Holly, running the AC.Nothing’s wrong.She’s sleeping, and I don’t want to wake her.

Five minutes later, I see Remington walking toward the car in the rearview, from the direction of the barn.

Not wanting to wake Holly, I slip out the door and carefully latch it shut.

“Hey,” I say in a low voice.“She’s all tuckered out.I don’t mind sitting out here to keep an eye on her while she naps.”

“How did it go?”

“I think Holly and I both had a blast,” I reply with a grin.“I made a couple of new friends, and the whole party was just really fun.Also, I met your old flame, Helena.”

He looks confused for a second.“Helena Brown?”

“It’s Ryerson now.”

“I think we went on one measly date.”He shoves his hands into his pockets, clearly uncomfortable, and I laugh.

“It made an impression.Everyone was nice, but that seems to be the norm for this town.Holly had a blast.And she informed me that her birthday is in a couple of weeks, and I haven’t even started planning the party.”

“We don’t usually do parties,” he says.“We just have family dinner and cake.”

“She’s in school now.That won’t work.She deserves to have a party with friends, Grumpy.She’s a good kid.”

“Yeah, yeah, okay.We’ll do a party.”

“It’s too bad the old barn hasn’t been transformed into that event space we talked about.That would be akillerparty.”

“You know, I’ve been thinking about that,” he says as he leads me to the steps of the porch.We sit down, side by side.“I think it’s an excellent idea, and I’d like to take it to the rest of the family.I know that I’m technically in charge now, but it’s a family ranch, and they should have a say.”

“I love you.”

My eyes go wide, and I slap my hand over my mouth in shock.Did I really just blurt that out like that?When he’s talking about his family?

“I mean—” I clear my throat, but before I can say anything else, Remington pulls me into his lap, and as I straddle him, he kisses me silly.

“I love you, too,” he whispers against my lips.“Madly.Stupidly.Irrevocably.I’m wild for you, Doc.”

“Oh, thank God.I thought I’d really made things awkward there for a minute.”

He laughs and cups my face.“No.You didn’t.”

“It’s awkward timing,” I admit.“But damn, Grumpy, I love how much you love and respect your family and the legacy of this ranch.Iloveit.I didn’t know if I’d ever meet someone who had a similar family dynamic as mine, but I did.And it’s one of the things that’s always attracted me to you.”

“I know,” he says and brushes my hair over my shoulder.“And I feel the same.”

“You were saying you’re going to talk to your family about the old barn?”

“Yeah.And I want you to be there because if it’s going to happen, you’re going to be in charge of it.”

“What?”Stunned, I sit back and stare at him.“Why me?”

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