Page 13 of A Montana Childhood Promise (Sagebrush Ranch Sweethearts #3)

CHAPTER ELEVEN

“Are we done yet? I’m pretty sure Bo is going to be expecting us to finish brushing down the horses before it gets dark,” Noah said, leaning against the bookshelf at his back.

Jane’s eyes darted up from the book she was skimming. “One more stop, I promise.”

He nodded to the book in her hand. “And why did we have to stop here after we were done sorting stuff back at your work?”

She wiggled the book in her hand with a broad grin. He couldn’t even be annoyed that he’d been dragged along for her errands before she showed up at the ranch. When she was in a good mood like this, his whole world seemed to brighten. And she’d asked him to tag along.

Granted, that might have only been because he’d shown up to help with sorting today, and he’d offered to drive her out to the ranch so she didn’t have to waste gas.

“This book just came out yesterday, and it’s the last one in the series. I totally forgot about it and didn’t preorder it.”

“That good, huh?” he said, his tone flat but his attitude anything but.

She smirked and pushed the book into his chest. “You could learn a thing or two about girls from a book like this.”

He pulled the book away from his chest and gave it a once over.

“Lassoing Her Heart.” Noah arched a brow.

There was a couple on the cover, pulled together with a rope around the two of them.

Noah snorted and turned the cover so Jane was forced to look at it.

Then he wagged his brows. “You want this? I could do this for you.”

The depth of red that seeped beneath her skin was so worth it.

The way Jane’s eyes practically bulged out of her head and the way her mouth fell open was utter comedy.

It didn’t matter that he meant every single word he’d said.

He chuckled at her reaction as he moved closer to her and placed the book back into her hands.

To add insult to injury, he lowered his voice as he murmured beside her ear, “You know, fantasies aren’t just meant to stay between the pages of a book.

” With that, he brushed past her. If he looked back to see her reaction, he might have completely lost it.

This back and forth they had was getting more intense with how much time they’d been spending together.

Sometimes she caught him off guard, but more often than not, he was the one who had the upper hand.

“Jane? Is that you?”

He slowed then turned around to find Jane stopped a few feet away from him. The woman who was speaking to her had thrown her arms around her.

“It’s been forever. I can’t believe I’m bumping into you. Here .”

“Tif! Yeah, I live here now. What about you? Last I heard, you’d moved down to Texas.”

Tif sliced a dismissive hand through the air. “Just passing through. My cousins live here.” Her eyes slid over to where Noah stood a few feet away, and a sly smile touched her lips when she set her gaze on Jane. “And who is this tall drink of water?”

Jane stiffened and turned to him. He watched as Jane battled out how she wanted to introduce him. He could practically read her thoughts on the matter. What were they to each other? They’d gotten closer to each other lately, but did that mean they were more than just friends?

“This is Noah. He’s my friend.”

Friend .

There wasn’t a single word in the English language that could cut deeper than that one.

Friends. They were just friends. No matter how hard he’d tried at getting past her defenses, he hadn’t managed to get her to change her mind on the subject.

She didn’t see him as anything other than a guy she could joke around and flirt with without the risk of making things weird.

Noah held out his hand with a tight smile. “Yep, we’re real good friends. Dating back to when we were teenagers.” He didn’t bother looking at Jane as he said the words. She’d agree with his sentiment based on the label she’d put on them herself.

Tif took his hand with a giggle. “It’s too bad I’m not staying longer. I would have loved to get to know you a little better.”

Jane moved closer to him, her arm brushing his. “He’s really busy these days—helping out with the charity and working his family’s ranch. I don’t know if he’d have time for the kind of fun you like to have.”

Was she… jealous?

Noah shot a look in Jane’s direction. He was probably hearing things. The way she stepped forward didn’t mean that she was trying to lay her claim or anything. She was simply letting her friend know that their schedules wouldn’t match up, so she shouldn’t waste her time in trying to plan something.

Tif’s eyes bounced from Jane to Noah. If Noah didn’t know any better, he would have believed that Tif saw something in Jane’s demeanor, too. She smiled and nodded. “Yeah, I get it. My cousins work from sunup to sundown most days. It’s not an easy life, but it’s totally rewarding.”

Noah nodded. “It sure is.”

Jane and Tif spent a few more minutes catching up. Jane told her all about the promotion she’d been given and how inadequate she felt about the whole thing, but Tif’s sentiments were similar to Noah’s. Jane needed to accept just how capable she was.

When Tif was called away, Noah was left with the strange feeling of distance that Jane had put between them. That label hung over his head like a giant sign letting everyone in the vicinity know just how Jane felt about him.

They were in line to buy her book when she pulled out her phone and groaned. “Not again.”

He glanced at her. The crease of her brows. The pallor of her skin. The way her shoulders sagged. “What’s wrong? Is it the event you’re planning?”

She shook her head and held up her phone. “My mom is requesting my presence at Sunday dinner. We have these like once every few months, and if I don’t go, then I will never hear the end of it.”

“And you don’t want to go?”

She gave him a flat look. “What do you think? I’m the only daughter without a family, without a home, without… everything that she thinks is important.”

He frowned. “And you think she judges you for that?”

“It’s all I ever hear from her. How my sister just found out she’s pregnant.

How my other sister signed the paperwork to build a new house for their growing family.

How they’re giving her everything she could ever want.

But here I am. Husbandless. Childless. Just a career driven woman who won’t leave behind a legacy. ”

Noah reached out and grabbed her hand, squeezing it. “You’ve accomplished a lot. And you’re not that old.”

Once again, she set those eyes on him that said he didn’t know what he was talking about.

“You know the way I was raised. My parents are ultra-religious. It’s important to start a family—to bring more souls into the world.

That’s all she’s ever wanted for me.” She pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a sigh. “I really don’t want to go.”

“What if I went with you? You know—as moral support or something. I could tell her how much of a difference you’re making?—”

“You’d do that?” She wrinkled her nose then shook her head as if she realized what she’d just said. “No. You wouldn’t want to do that. She’d end up interrogating you.”

He shrugged. “I’m good with moms.”

She laughed then, and the sound eased the tension that had surrounded them. “You don’t know what you’re getting into.”

“I know that it would help you out, and you’re important to me.”

Her eyes snagged on his for a moment as that reality settled in.

Noah captured her jaw with his finger and thumb. “I mean it.”

Jane blinked only once. There was surprise in those crystal-clear eyes. But just as quickly as he saw that bit of hope, her eyes fluttered, and she looked away.

Shoot. He probably shouldn’t have said anything. Noah hadn’t exactly been hiding just how much he liked her. But they hadn’t spoken about their closeness specifically, so he wasn’t sure he wanted to bring more attention to it.

He cleared his throat. “But it’s fine if you don’t want me to.”

“No. No, it’s fine.” She forced a smile and met his gaze again with a nod. “That sounds great. I’d like it if you’d come with me.”

“Then I’ll come.”

Lightning flickered in the distance, and thunder rolled loudly overhead. A sprinkle of rain had begun, but from the looks of it, the storm was only going to get worse.

Jane folded her arms, hugging herself. She looked more nervous than anything. Man, he must not have realized just how hard her mother was on her.

Noah moved toward her and pried her hand from her side. He laced his fingers between hers and brought her hand up so he could pat it with his free one. “It’s gonna be fun.”

She cut him a sharp look, and he chuckled.

“Okay, it might not be fun, but it’s gonna be fine . Your sisters will be here, right?”

Jane nodded.

Noah smirked, pressing a kiss to her knuckles. “Then let’s just make sure your mom focuses on them more than you. If we don’t succeed, then I’ll create a distraction, and we can hightail it out of here.”

Laughing, she leaned into him. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For being here with me. For making me laugh.”

“Always,” he murmured.

They strode up to the front door, and Jane pushed it open, guiding the two of them into the foyer. It was a modest home, one similar to his own. The living room was off to the left, and a wide hallway ahead would lead to the kitchen. Voices could be heard in that direction.

“Mom? We’re here.”

The voices stilled, and Jane’s mother materialized.

Her eyes darted from Jane to Noah and back before she clapped her hands with a squeal and rushed forward, arms outstretched.

“Jane! You made it.” She pulled Jane into a hug, forcing her to release Noah’s hand.

Then she glanced to him. “And who is this?”

“Mom, you remember the Reese family? This is Mack’s little brother, Noah.”

Her mother’s brows creased momentarily, then she grinned. “Oh, of course, Noah .” There was something in her gaze as she slid her focus back to Jane, an unspoken question hanging in the air.

Before Noah could clarify that he was here as her friend, Jane blurted, “We’re dating.”

Noah had to fight the urge to gape at Jane. What? When had she decided on this? What was she up to? Thousands of questions dragged through his head, demanding answers, but he knew he wasn’t going to get them right now.

Jane avoided his gaze while her mother pulled him in for a bear hug. “That’s wonderful! We’ve waited so long for Jane to find someone. I suppose the adage is right. The best things come to those who wait.”

“ Mom ,” Jane groaned, flicking one quick look at Noah. “Don’t embarrass him.”

“Oh, he’s not embarrassed, are you, Noah?” She slipped her arm through Noah’s and guided him toward the kitchen. “I have so many questions.”

Noah shuffled forward. Was he going crazy?

He had to be. First with Tif, Jane had insisted that they were friends.

But with her mom? Now they were dating? Nothing would make him happier than for this moment to be real, but he knew better.

She was manipulating the situation. She wanted her mother to ease off her, and she’d made a decision without his input.

They made it to the kitchen table, and just before he took a seat, a bright flash of light splintered the sky outside the kitchen window. Jane’s sisters startled, varying squeaks of surprise escaping their lips. Their husbands chuckled.

Seconds later, thunder boomed, eliciting more murmurs of surprise.

“I don’t know if it’s a good idea for you two to drive all the way back to Rocky Ridge,” Jane’s mother mused as rain now pelted the window. “The house is big enough for you to stay. It would be best if you stay the night.”

“Oh, I’m sure we’ll be fine,” Jane insisted.

Noah nodded in agreement. “My truck has been through worse.” At his words, the rain pounded against the house some more.

“If you lived close, I’d agree. But Rocky Ridge is too far. The weather service has said that the wind is going to pick up.”

Jane and Noah exchanged looks. He couldn’t see a way out of this without making Jane’s mother upset. It appeared that Jane felt the same when she sighed. “Yeah, okay. But we’re leaving first thing.”

To someone on the outside, the conversation around the table would appear easy. People laughed and caught up with each other’s lives. But between Jane and Noah, the tension had skyrocketed. He could taste it in the air between them. She’d said they were dating.

And he wanted nothing more than to tell her he wanted it to be the truth.

Jane fidgeted with the hem of her shirt as she sat beside him.

He watched the movement with mild amusement.

Then he reached for her hand and took it in his own.

She risked a look in his direction, and he offered her a reassuring smile.

Everything would be okay. He wasn’t mad.

Either something would come of this, or it would be a story they could laugh about.