Page 8 of A Montana Childhood Promise (Sagebrush Ranch Sweethearts #3)

CHAPTER SEVEN

It had been a few days since the gala had taken place. The turn out had been phenomenal. Noah’s board members were moderately impressed by the outcome. Noah had known it would be great, and he was already making plans to host another one in the near future.

He shoved his hands into his pockets as he wandered down the middle of town. A whistle on his lips, he thought back to the last couple of times he’d spent with Jane. For someone who was so amazing, she sure had a skewed view of her life. Then there was her opinion of people with money.

To be fair, she didn’t seem to dislike wealthy people. She simply had bad experiences with those who used their money to garner attention. It didn’t sit well with her, and he couldn’t blame her. On the other hand, she didn’t seem to want to trust anyone who didn’t show their face.

The whole issue was a conundrum in and of itself.

What would she think if she found out that he was the very boss she thought was hiding something illegal?

He snickered, but then the amusement faded.

It could go either way. He truly didn’t know Jane well enough to predict if she’d be upset over his secret billions or if she’d be able to look past it and see him for who he was.

Keeping his wealth a secret had started out as a way to protect himself from people who wanted to take advantage of him. He’d never thought he’d continue to need to keep that information private as a means to win a girl over.

He sighed, his steps slowing as he approached the building where they’d set up his charity.

The Wounded Heroes Project had once been the most important thing to him—besides his relationship with his family.

Now, he was starting to wonder if it would be the one thing that stood in the way of what he had wanted since he was in seventh grade.

Jane.

Right about now, he was supposed to be helping out on the ranch. Mack had mentioned something about Bo wanting all hands on deck. It was time to vaccinate the cattle, and it was a headache to get it done quickly and efficiently.

But one pair of hands missing wouldn’t be the end of it all.

He’d slipped off the property, not telling anyone why he planned on playing hooky.

Now that the gala was over and they had time to get organized, the folks working for him here were busy sorting out donations and scheduling appointments to meet with people who needed their assistance.

They could use volunteers to help out. Since no one knew who he really was, Noah was more than happy to lend his talents.

He took in a deep breath and released it through pursed lips. What he was doing—obsessing? It wasn’t healthy. Logically, he knew that.

But the romantic in him thought otherwise. The more time he spent with Jane, the better his chance at winning her over.

Noah nodded as he strode forward. Even if he didn’t win her over, he wanted to be near her. He wanted to hear her laugh. He wanted to be the reason she blushed.

Stepping through the glass doors, Noah let his gaze sweep from one side of the space to the next. He offered a smile to the receptionist as she lifted her eyes to meet his.

“Hi. What can I do for you?”

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “I thought I might come to volunteer today.”

Her eyes brightened. “Wonderful. Did you set up an appointment?”

He grimaced. “I didn’t. Was I supposed to?

” Of course he was. That was the preferred way to keep tabs on the people coming and going.

But he also had a policy where they wouldn’t turn away a charitable individual.

He’d specifically chosen not to have his name put on the list in case Jane saw it and requested that he not be placed under her supervision.

The receptionist, whose name was Courtney, nodded. “That’s perfectly fine. We have a lot of work to do since we recently opened our doors. I could put you with?—”

“Is there a chance I could work with Jane Ashley?”

Courtney blinked a few times. “Do you know her?”

He nodded. “She’s a friend. Told me all about this place. Thought I’d come check it out.” Who cared that he was lying through his teeth. No one had to know that he was the one funding this whole operation. He flashed Courtney his most charming smile. “Is she in today?”

The woman rifled through some papers then trailed her finger down a list. “Yep. She’s on the schedule. She’ll be in?—”

A woosh of air at Noah’s back had him turning to find Jane striding into the room. She stopped, her focus bouncing from him to the receptionist and back. “Noah,” she murmured, “what are you doing here?”

Courtney’s spunky voice didn’t allow for him to explain. “He’s volunteering today. You up for some help?”

He didn’t want to look to closely at Jane. What if she told Courtney no? She wouldn’t do that, would she? Thankfully—or perhaps unfortunately—he couldn’t get a read on her.

Jane shrugged. “Sure. It’s gonna be boring, but you’re welcome.” She jerked her chin toward a hallway. “Follow me.”

Noah grabbed a visitor’s pass from the front desk and scampered after her. Was this weird? Yeah, he was pretty sure it was weird. They hadn’t spoken since the gala. While he’d asked her to dance twice, and she’d accepted, they’d steered clear of any conversation regarding the marriage pact.

It was clear enough to him that she still thought it had been one big joke. She wasn’t interested in him that way. And she wasn’t going to marry him just so she could have what she considered a simple life or to appease her mother. The only way to get to her would be the old-fashioned way.

He grinned as he strolled behind her, hands in his pockets as they wandered down the hallway toward a door at the end.

The storage room. It was the largest room except for the space they had set up for veterans to stay the night on cots when the weather was bad.

The storage room was full of food, clothes, and other donations that needed to be sorted through.

Sometimes they had to throw out some of those donations because they were spoiled or unusable.

It was best to go through them right as they came in.

Jane pushed into the room and flicked on the light. She placed her purse and jacket on a table and shot him a quick look. “So…” she drawled. “You wanted to volunteer?”

Noah rocked back on his heels. “That is why I showed up.” Then he moved closer to her and whispered, “Unless I came here just to see you.”

She gave him that smirk—the one that said he needed to stop flirting with her. But he wasn’t going to do that. Nope. He was already hooked, and he was going to do whatever it took to get past those defenses she’d put up.

Jane motioned toward several boxes near a door that opened to the alley behind the building.

That was another reason this room was perfect for sorting.

The items that were donated could be left or dropped off in the back of the building and easily brought inside.

“We need to go through that stuff, organize it, and toss what we can’t use. ”

He nodded, unbuttoning his sleeves and rolling them to his elbows.

He didn’t know why he’d opted for one of his button-down shirts rather than a t-shirt.

Probably had something to do with being able to see Jane today.

He needed to make a good impression on her.

He needed her to admire him for volunteering.

Normally, none of that mattered. He didn’t care for recognition, but with Jane, it was different. He needed her to see that he was worth something.

Was that wrong?

Maybe a little.

He shrugged off that feeling and headed for the boxes.

He scooped up one of the larger ones and brought it to the table.

Jane retrieved one for herself and placed it beside his.

She pointed to the shelves lining the room.

“They’re labeled. Food items go over there.

Clothes, shoes, and blankets there. If you can’t figure it out, let me know. ”

Noah nodded. Simple enough.

They worked for a short while in silence until he couldn’t take it any longer. He kept looking in her direction, hoping, praying she’d start some small-talk so he could hear her voice. He loved the way it sounded—like the beautiful sounds on a spring morning just as the sun came up.

But she didn’t talk.

It’d be up to him.

He cleared his throat. “So, you like working here?”

She glanced up at him, tearing her gaze away from folding a pair of pants. “I do. This charity is one of the better ones out there. They put everything they raise right back into helping people. I don’t think their board even gets a huge paycheck. Most of the people involved just want to help.”

“Except your boss?” he asked with a knowing grin.

Jane rolled her eyes. “There is literally nothing out there on him besides the fact that he runs the charity through a trust. I don’t even know how that’s possible. How can you be so invisible that people only know you for the money you throw at your company?”

He shrugged. “You were working at a different location, right?” It had to be fate. Out of all the charities she could have been drawn to, she’d come to his. And the cherry on top? She’d come to Rocky Ridge.

She nodded, getting back to work.

“How come?” He hadn’t seen any evidence that she’d moved to be closer to anyone. She’d left her family to move out here. There were no boyfriends—no noticeable reasons.

Without looking at him, she said, “They were paying more out here. With this being a new location and the town being pretty small, they were desperate to send out people who knew what they were doing.” Her eyes flicked up to meet his, and her cheeks flushed a pale pink.

“I’m helping my folks pay for my grandfather’s care back in Billings.

It’s been tough on all of them. The move was the right one to make, even if it means I don’t see them as much.

” There was a degree of sadness in her voice—one that had his heart being ripped out.

Jane was struggling financially, and only because she wanted to help her family. He wasn’t sure how much her position paid, but he’d been made aware that there would be some positions opening up at this location due to a few people realizing they didn’t want to relocate after all.

Perhaps he could bring Jane’s name to the top of the list of candidates. That wouldn’t happen right away, so it wasn’t going to help for a while yet.

He inched closer, wondering if he should even be telling her what was on his mind. Would she get offended at it? “I know this place keeps you busy… but have you considered getting another job?” He breathed a silent sigh of relief when she didn’t appear upset in the slightest.

“I’ve thought about it.”

“What would you want to do?” He didn’t dare hope that she had a similar thought process as his own.

He’d seen just how much she enjoyed being with Caspian.

She loved animals. If she was interested in helping out on a ranch, he didn’t think it would be difficult at all to get Bo on board with hiring her part time.

Then again, she’d have to be assigned to some of the more menial tasks, seeing as she wasn’t experienced in this field.

Jane paused, tilting her head as she considered his question. “I don’t know. I guess I could look into waitressing. Or maybe I could see if the animal shelter needed help.”

Without realizing what he was about to do, Noah blurted, “What about working on a ranch?”

She laughed, sneaking a look in his direction. “Yeah. Right.” It wasn’t a dismissal. If anything, she’d said it with more disbelief—like she didn’t think anyone would be willing to hire her.

“I mean it. I don’t know if you know this—” He winked at her, “but I have some connections.”

She laughed again, and it brought a smile to his lips. Then she seemed to really consider what he’d said. “Wait, you’re serious.”

He nodded. “I’m sure Mack would go to bat for you, too. Sagebrush is growing so much that my cousin had all of us move out to help on the ranch. The pay is decent, and you get to see the animals. It’s smelly and dirty, but totally worth it.”

“Oh, yeah?” she murmured with amusement. “What makes it worth it?”

“Besides getting to see me every day?” He beamed at her. “Well, you’d get to see Caspian every day, too. And maybe you’d meet some other critters that could be your friends.”

“You had me at Caspian,” she grinned. “That horse is a total stud.” The way she teased him with her breathless statement had him laughing right along with her.

“Yeah,” Noah confessed, “he totally is. He might even have a crush on you.”

Her eyes widened. “Really?” Then she tapped her finger on her chin. “I don’t suppose he’d be interested in applying for the vacant role my mother wants me to fill in my life.”

Silence hung in the air as he put two and two together. Then the realization dawned on him, and he laughed out loud. “While the guy is tall, dark, and handsome… no. I don’t think your mother would approve of your choice of men when it comes to Caspian.”

She giggled at the turn of their conversation, and all he could do was smile back. “Yeah, I suppose you’re right.”

They worked quietly for several more moments before she spoke again. “You really think that your cousin could use the help? I wouldn’t mind the extra pay, and I’m a fast learner.”

He nodded. “I do. It’ll be great.” Between her promotion and working at the ranch, she’d be able to get what she needed. As much as he’d wanted to solve her problems and give her the money outright, he knew enough to stop him from making that mistake.

Jane was independent, and she didn’t take kindly to wealthy people just throwing their money around. He wouldn’t be that guy.