Page 23 of The Boss

Her foot taps in the dirt. "I'm going to need you to explain that, please."

"Think about it, baby." I pause to let a loud squawking crow pass overhead. "If there's an abandoned horse all by himself in a field, slowly starving, is it better to leave him there or steal him away to a ranch where he’s cared for properly?"

She bites her lip, then nods.

“Sometimes we pay people under the table when we need extra labor in the fall. That way we can pay them a lot more without raising eyebrows. If they're running from something, that is not our business."

My hand lands on her knee. "Now, about the hiding women claim. Twice now a friend of a friend has sent us a woman who's been running from an abusive husband. The second one had a toddler with her. We hid her here for a month, calling her our kitchen help. Got the two of them new IDs. Flew them somewhere safe, with enough money to get settled in a new life."

"Wow. That's so good of you."

I stare off into space. "We still get a card from both ladies at Christmas. Have to say, I do miss Tonya's cheese bread."

"And the illegal gardening?"

I chuckle. "That's actually just a running joke around town. We provide the rhubarb and strawberries so Mrs. Oakley can sell her amazing pies every fall. She doesn’t have food permits or a vendor license, and I doubt she charges sales tax. She’s seventy and I don’t think she’s ever touched a computer to do the paperwork. It’s fine."

I'm relieved to see Etta is smiling again. "So, yes,” I continue. “We do a lot of illegal shit around here. But we think it’s also the morally right thing to do, so we’ll keep doing it.”

"And you're running this ranch from your savings, not actually making money?"

"From the income on our savings and other investments. It's like our money is paying us a salary each month." I sigh. "We've all been incredibly lucky to end up rich. So we’re paying that forward to animals and people that need it."

Etta snorts. "Interesting that you mention animals before people."

I shrug. "Some animals are a lot better than people." Lifting her hand, I kiss her fingertip. "Present company excepted, of course."

Her teeth sink into her bottom lip, and her head drops. "You don't even know me. It's only been⁠—"

"Time works differently out here. You'll see," I say quietly. "Will you stay out here with me? Work on the ranch in any capacity you like? Help with weird real estate questions, maybe keep an eye out for any farms that need our help or protection?"

Her eyes lift to mine. There’s a long pause. "What's the llama's name?"

"Oh, we haven't named him yet. He's just Llama."

"Can I meet him? I want naming rights. I've always thought those things were cool."

"Baby, you can be the new Queen of Llamaland, if you like."

She grins, her smile growing wider as I stand, pulling her up with me and wrapping my arms around her. "You're staying?"

“Yeah." She hesitates. "Until you get sick of me or something."

"Not happening. But I can see you're nervous. How about you stay a few weeks, then see how you feel?"

Etta nods eagerly. "Perfect."

This time when I kiss her, there's more heat. More meaning. More weight to every touch.

"You're free to leave anytime, but I’m going to convince you stay.” Tipping her chin up with my finger, I whisper, “From the first second I saw you, I knew you were the one. I love you, Etta."

Her breath catches as she grips the front of my shirt. “I love you, too. But this is all too fast and crazy, right?"

"I have no idea." I hug her tightly. "You'll have to ask the llama."

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ETTA