The Rancher's Fake Fiancée. Amy Vastine
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the forest. It had an expansive front porch that overlooked the horse pasture. Two buffalo-check flannel pillows sat on a wooden bench, the perfect spot to sit and watch the sunset over the mountains.
“We set you two up here. This one is called Heavenly Pines. I like to think of it as the honeymoon suite,” Ethan said with a wink.
Hadley ignored the flutter in her stomach. This was a game. A means to an end. No honeymoon.
Ben and Ethan helped unload the bags from the car. Hadley wasn’t used to having so many strong, handsome gentlemen around to do her bidding. She could get used to the Blackwell Ranch quite quickly if this kept up.
Heavenly Pines was a quaint little cabin. Inside there was a sitting area, a small kitchenette with a microwave and a king-size bed in the bedroom. Two towels were folded on the bed with tiny scented toiletries tucked in the front fold.
“Jon and Lydia invited everyone over for dinner tonight. The twins are excited to see Uncle Tyler and their soon-to-be aunt Hadley,” Ethan said, setting her suitcase down in the bedroom.
“Sounds good,” Tyler said. He glanced at the bed and she saw the same discomfort that Hadley felt looking at it. “Are we going to talk business now or when we’re all together tonight?”
“That depends,” Ethan answered, his gaze jumping back and forth from Tyler to Ben. “We’re wondering how set you are about selling the ranch.”
Tyler’s eyebrows pinched together. “I’m all in. Why wouldn’t we sell?”
“Ethan thinks the ranch should stay in the family,” Ben interjected. “He’s been trying to convince me to do this with him, but I can’t. Rachel and I are focused on keeping Double T afloat. Jon has his ranch to run.”
“So that leaves you and Chance,” Ethan chimed in. “We both know Chance doesn’t care what happens to this place. He sure isn’t going to help run it—”
“But I might?” Tyler interrupted. “Have you lost your mind? I didn’t want to come here in the first place. I’m definitely not going to stay and help you run it. Sorry, man. I don’t know what you thought was going to happen, but I am set on selling.”
“Seriously, Ty. I saw your face when you walked into the old house,” Ethan said.
“That’s all you’ve got?” Ben asked. “Everyone looks sick when they walk in there. Zoe ruined it.”
“It was more than Zoe’s bad taste.”
Hadley knew Ethan was right. She had seen it, too. Tyler had been devastated by what had been done to the house.
“That house means something to all of us,” Ethan continued. “It’s where Mom and Dad tucked us in. Where—”
Tyler put his hand up. “Stop. I don’t need a walk down memory lane. I don’t want to talk about Mom and Dad. I don’t want to rehash the things that happened in that house. I want to help you sell this ranch and go back to Portland. Where I live. Where I work.”
“Where your fiancée lives and works,” Ben added.
Hadley had no place in this discussion. Stuck in the middle of a very private family matter was not where she wanted to be. Tyler’s brothers might have thought she influenced whether Tyler stayed, but the truth was she had no say in what was happening here.
“I’m sorry, Hadley,” Ethan said. “I know what I’m asking impacts you, too. You two have a life together in Portland, but I’m asking you to consider another possibility.”
“It’s never happening,” Tyler said through gritted teeth. “Drop it.”
“Okay...” Ben jumped in. “Ethan and I are going to let you two get settled. We’ll see you at Jon’s for dinner. We can talk about the marketing plans when all of us are in the same room.” Ben guided Ethan toward the door.
Hadley could see the frustration coming off Tyler like steam. His chest rose and fell like he’d been out for a run. She’d seen him upset before at work but not like this. This wasn’t simply anger. This was pain.
“I’m sorry,” she started.
“Go unpack, Hadley,” he snapped.
She didn’t argue. She turned on her heel and headed back to the bedroom. He was the boss. This was a job. They weren’t a real couple. They never would be.
SLAM!
Hadley had never been so happy to hear a door shut behind someone as he left. After a half hour of silence, Tyler announced that he was going to finish the drive around the ranch. Alone. He’d take some pictures and they could talk about how they want to proceed with things when he got back.
It was a relief to finally be by herself. The tension in the cabin after Tyler’s brothers left was so thick, Hadley felt like she was suffocating back in the bedroom while he brooded in the sitting room.
She wasn’t sure why Tyler hated it here so much, but whatever the reason, it was clear he had no intentions of staying past the two weeks already on his calendar. She would have to play the part of the supportive fiancée tonight at dinner. Let the brothers know she didn’t want to live in Montana either.
Hadley stretched out on the king-size bed and texted Maggie about her day so far. Before she could update her completely, her phone rang. It wasn’t Maggie, though. It was Hadley’s mom.
She suppressed a groan and answered. “Hi, Mom.”
“Hadley?” For some reason, every time her mother called her, she acted surprised that Hadley was the person on the other end of the line. Who else did she think was going to answer?
“It’s me.”
“Oh, good. It’s your mother.” She also didn’t realize that Hadley always knew it was her calling.
“I know, Mom. How are you?”
“Good, good. Your father and I are driving down to Portland next weekend and thought maybe we could do lunch before we fly out to see your brother. Did you see last night’s episode? That was one of my favorites. I’m so glad they’re replaying episodes over the summer.”
Hadley occasionally watched Asher’s show. It wasn’t on her DVR, but if she remembered, she would have it on in the background while she was surfing the internet at night. She didn’t watch the reruns, though. Her parents, on the other hand, never missed an episode—new or previously aired. They wouldn’t want to miss a second of Asher’s brilliance.
“It’s always great. That’s why it’s getting all that Emmy buzz.”
“Can you imagine if your brother won an Emmy this early in his career? He’s been so fortunate and your dad and I are just so proud.”
So proud. Always so proud when it came to Asher. Even if Hadley could do something worthy of their pride, it wouldn’t make them so proud like her brother always did.
“If he does, it will only be the first of many,” Hadley said, knowing that was what her mom wanted to hear.
“That’s what I was thinking! I can’t wait to see him. He invited us to be there when they announce the nominees. He also said he’s got some good news about a movie. Did I tell you he auditioned for the lead in a movie directed by... Oh, I shouldn’t say. I don’t want to jinx it for him. Let’s just say it rhymes with Hint Leastwood.”
Hadley stopped listening. This was so typical. Her mom would call to ask her to lunch and they’d somehow spend the next twenty minutes talking about Asher. It never failed.
“I’m not in Portland,” Hadley said once her mom stopped giving her the latest details of Asher’s fantastic life.
“What