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Duke had never been mine to keep, and I would never love anyone like that again. Some people only got one great love, and he was mine. However, I wasn’t going to let the past prevent me from living my life.I was going to leave Wildflower Canyon.I’d find a place ofmy own. Make friends. Maybe fall inlikewith a man and build a family, a different kind than the one I’d lost.
I finished my drink, set the glass down, and let the sounds of the forest settle me.
I was alone.
But hell, that wasn’t anything new. I’d always been alone except for one summer a decade ago when I’d made a friend and found my soulmate—until he’d left, and once again I was…alone.
CHAPTER 14
duke
Ididn’t usually have meetings in paddocks, but this was a ranch—meetings happened where the work did, not in some polished office. Even Nash’s accountant—mine now—Amos Langley, had traded a suit for jeans, cowboy boots, a button-down, and a Stetson. Same as Hunt, Elena, and me.
The sun was high, the air dry and thick with the scent of horses, and it tickled memories of my time here. The stable stood just beyond us, the sound of hooves shifting in stalls, the occasional whinny breaking through. Hunt stood by the fence, arms crossed with Elena next to him, her posture relaxed. There was no evidence of the woman who’d cried by the river. This woman was impervious.
Fiona, however, was not and stood out like a damn sore thumb. She was dressed for a conference room, not a ranch—sharp gray business suit, four-inch heels digging into the dirt.
“We have a meeting with Piper Novak at four,” she reminded me, her voice clipped. “So, let’s get through this.”
Amos snorted. He’d been with the Wilder family for decades, but right now, he looked about five seconds from walking away. I didn’t need him to say anything to know that he didn’t care for Fiona.
“Well, since we’re on the clock.” He turned on his tablet, his reading glasses perched on his nose. “I’ll keep it simple. Ranch operations are stable. Debt is minimal. The books are clean—thanks to Elena.”
Fiona barely glanced at her. “Yes, well, let’s focus on what matters. The land.”
I saw the way her mouth slightly tightened when she said it. She wanted to remind everyone that this wasn’t a discussion—we were getting ready to sell the ranch, piece by piece. It was my directive, so why the hell was I pissed off with Fiona?
“I’ve already outlined the parcels that can be sold immediately,” Fiona continued, not reading the paddock and the people there. No one gave a shit about what she had to say. They were here because I asked them to be and not because they wanted any part of this meeting or Fiona.
“We have offers from multiple developers,” she continued. “We’ll need to start liquidating assets, and Hunt, I assume you’ll handle the cattle sale?”
Hunt didn’t answer right away. His jaw flexed, and for a second, I thought he might just turn around and walk off. Instead, he shrugged. “Elenadoes that.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” Fiona demanded.
Shit! The woman needed to calm her fucking tits before?—
“It means I do the selling,” Elena explained, no inflection in her tone. Nothing. Blank slate. She wasn’t rude or polite—just matter of fact.
Fiona’s eyes narrowed. “And why is that?”
Hunt huffed, already tired of this conversation. “Because she’s the fuckin’ expert.”
Fiona glared at him.
Elena didn’t rise to the bait, didn’t so much as blink. “I handle the buyers. I know which ones are serious and those who just want a tax write-off. I negotiate the prices, schedule the hauls, and ensure we don’t sell a single head to someone who doesn’t know what the hell they’re doing.”
Fiona crossed her arms. “We don’t have time to be picky.”
Elena looked Fiona in the eye. Not with anger—just with the kind of patience you gave someone too ignorant to know better. “We always have time to be picky.”
Hunt smirked, tilting his hat back. “Unless you wanna be the one explainin’ to the boss why we let top-dollar cattle go for half their worth to buyers who’ll run ‘em into the ground.”
Fiona’s nostrils flared. “You’re being dramatic.”
I cut in before Hunt could say something that would push this meeting straight to hell. “Let this go, Fiona.”
That got her attention. She turned to me, irritation flashing in hereyes. “Duke?—”