Page 19 of The Rancher's Plain Jane Wife

Sarah followed his line of gaze and started in surprise when she saw Damian standing on the porch while deep in discussion with Tommy.

"You told me he wouldn't be here," Colton hissed under his breath.

"Obviously, I'm wrong," Sarah hissed back. "Last time I checked, being wrong isn't a crime—-"

"Easy for you to say," Colton snarled.

"You're a professional football player, for heaven's sake! Start acting like it!"

And as the two of them continued bickeringsotto voce,neither was aware of how deceptive their posture appeared, with their heads bent close to each other and their bodies nearly touching. The whole thing smacked of romance, and the sight had the billionaire fit to kill.

Damian strode forward to deliberately place himself between the two, and as Sarah and Colton jumped away from each other, he didn't miss the way the pair exchanged nervous looks with each other.

Oh God.Sarah couldn't help but sneak an anxious look towards Damian. Could he have heard what they were talking about?

I'm fucking dead. Colton could feel himself losing color as the billionaire's chilling gaze settled on him. Could Damian have misunderstood Sarah's whispers about (faking) passionate kisses?

Damian, mistaking their worry for looks of guilt, had to clench and unclench his fists several times before he was properly rid of the urge to beat the shit out of the younger man. Turning to Colton, he said in a treacherously soft voice, "We're about to have dinner inside. Would you like to join us?"

Colton, who was no idiot, shook his head. "Thanks for the offer, but I, ah..." He tried to think of an excuse, found himself too nervous to come up with any, and decided to simply let it end at that. "I should go now." And without meeting Sarah's gaze, he turned away, got back into his car, and sped off.

"You deliberately scared him," Sarah accused him.

Damian's shrug was dismissive. "I can't control how other people react to me."

Sarah couldn't help rolling her eyes. "Do you even care how arrogant that sounds?"

Damian didn't even bother answering her and instead placed his hand on the small of her back, saying, "Let's go in. Father and Naomi are already waiting."

It was Sarah's turn not to speak, mostly because she didn't trust herself to. It had been ages since she last felt his hand on her back like this, and just like before, his every touch was heaven and hell all rolled into one.

Naomi burst into tears the moment she saw Damian and Sarah walk in together. "I'm so happy."

"Oh, Mom." Sarah rushed forward to give her mother a hug. "I'm so sorry for making you feel bad."

"It's fine." Naomi hugged her back tightly. "Everything's fine, now that we're all together again."

And for a time, it was really just like before, and Sarah couldn't remember being this happy in years. Josiah and Damian were arguing over everything under the sun, Naomi was doing her best to play peacemaker, while Sarah...well, just this once, Sarah was back to her old ways as she earnestly sided with Damian on every matter.

"You can't be serious, Sarah," Josiah blustered.

"But I am." Sarah smiled up at Damian. "He's always right because he's the smartest guy in the world."

Josiah groaned, Naomi laughed, and Damian...well, usually, the billionaire either snorted or grunted at this, but tonight he did neither. Tonight, he gently ran his knuckles down her cheek, and as she trembled at his unexpected touch, he looked straight down into her eyes, saying quietly, "You're wrong."

"Then you're admitting it," Josiah crowed triumphantly. "You're an idiot—-"

"I suppose I am."

"Yes or no, son," Josiah insisted.

"If you insist on it, thenyes. I am an idiot." Damian let go of Sarah as he turned to Josiah, saying sardonically, "I must be one, for letting her walk out of my life."

Nine

Sarah was distraught, and it had her lying on bed for hours, staring blankly at her ceiling. She couldn't stop thinking about how disastrous last night's dinner was, thanks to Damian's bombshell of an admission. His words had made herthisclose to booking a flight back to Miami and begging for her old job back, but after taking several deep breaths, she had somehow found the strength to paste a smile on her lips while playfully wagging a finger at his too-handsome face. 'I'm not so easily fooled like before, Mr. Fox. You're just pulling all our legs here, aren't you?'

To which, the billionaire had simply leaned back against his seat and drawled,'Is that what I'm doing?'

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