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As soon as I had a proper job and a regular paycheck, I'd visit her in New York, I'd promised her and myself. I'd been nowhere but London and Cornwall, where I'd gone for an internship, so New York was a world apart. Even now, I had to pinch myself every time I looked out of my bedroom window to see the tall mountains of Montana.
Ace's family raised cattle, and considering some of the steaks I'd eaten in the five days since I'd been at the ranch, I was in awe, and congratulated myself on my luck.
"So, Caitlyn and her parents will be over for dinner," Ace told me.
I tucked my hands in the pockets of my tailored shorts. I'd brought my very best clothes with me to Montana—not that I had many. But I'd made sure I'd be presentable. I'd invested in boots because I wanted to be able to walk around the ranch, and that, from my research, required proper footwear. It had been a significant expense for me, but I'd sucked it up. Now, as I wore my shorts with a white camisole blouse and boots, I felt like a Montana girl.
Beth Dutton, here I come!
"Are you sure you're doing the right thing here, Ace?" I asked again. I'd thought he was joking when he introduced me to his mother and brother as his girlfriend and not just a friend. When I'd asked what the hell he was up to, he'd confessed he'd done it with the sole purpose of making Caitlyn, his ex, jealous. She'd dumped him right before he'd left for London, and he wanted her back.
"Come on, aren't you getting a free vacation?" he barked.
I was horrified at that statement. "I didn't know that I was going to pay for this holiday by playing your fake girlfriend, Ace."
He sighed and ran a hand through his dark hair. Ace was a good-looking guy, if a little shallow. He was as old as me. He was tall, which was nice since I was nearly five-ten, and I struggled with being taller than most men around me, even when I didn't wear heels. Ace didn't have that problem. He was a pretty boy, and when we met in London, we had fun. He came to the bar where I worked, and we struck up a friendship.
"I'm sorry, Isha, that came out wrong. Come on, help a friend."
"It's dishonest, Ace."
"It's just for a few weeks, and then you'll go back. No harm, no foul."
It took a few conversations before I finally relented. "Fine, but I just want you to know how uncomfortable this makes me. I hate lying, Ace."
"I know. Thank you. She's going to take one look at you and be jealous as hell."
"Why?"
He grinned. "You're such an innocent at times. You're incredibly beautiful, you know that, right?"
I sighed. Not that again. I had no idea why people kept saying that because, when I looked in the mirror, I saw someone who was average. I was an orphan and always felt unwanted. I had no one to love me except for Yas. If I was such a great-looking girl, I'd have someone who'd look at me the way Derek looked at Yasmine, wouldn't I?
"I'm not ugly," I muttered.
He wrapped himself around me and gave me a quick hug, and dropped a kiss on my forehead. I wasn't a touchy-feely person growing up the way I did without much affection. It was new, this easy affection that didn't have a creepy sexual undertone.
"Look, I want to warn you—"
"Hey, Isha, Ace." Rowan, Ace's brother, stepped into the garden, and my heart pumped more blood into my body.
If Ace was a pretty boy, Rowan looked like…well, not Rip from Yellowstone, but it was close. He was big and built. All muscle. He didn't have a beard, and his hair was dark, lush, and curled around his neck. In a pair of jeans and a cowboy hat, he had me soaking through my pants.
He smelled of leather and spice, and whenever he came close, I felt like I was a feral animal, sniffing a potential mate.
"Having fun, Isha?" he asked.
"Yes, thank you," I replied politely.
"Deb wants to talk to you, Ace."
Ace gave me a warning look that I didn't understand, and he walked away from us. Well…more like stomped away.
"Is everything alright?" I asked.
"Why wouldn't it be?"
Left without a response, I instinctively tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear. Normally, I preferred wearing my shoulder-length hair down, but given Montana's scorching heat in August, I had opted for a practical ponytail to keep it out of my way.
