Page 3 of Broncos and Ballads (Healing Springs Ranch #2)

Venus Vargas was digging herself into a deeper hole by the second, but now that she was in it, she didn’t know how to climb out.

The trouble was, she was dragging Brock McQuaid down into the hole with her.

His eyes, full of questions, held hers.

She’d been around Brock enough over the years to guess that he’d go along with her charade for now. He was fun-loving and easygoing and seemed to like challenges.

Hopefully he wouldn’t call her out as a liar right here. Not in front of Lexi. Would he wait and let her talk with Reed in private first?

As though he’d heard her unspoken request, he nodded.

She gave a tiny nod back. Somehow she’d find a way to make this up to him, to thank him for saving her from utter humiliation.

But first, she would need to let Reed know how she really felt…that she’d been in love with him for years and wanted to marry him.

Why couldn’t he see that? Had she gotten so good at hiding her true feelings that he believed what they’d both told the press, that there would never be anything between them except friendship?

She stifled a sigh.

Why had she decided it was a good idea to spy on Reed and Lexi?

One of Lexi’s hands was nearly stuffed into Reed’s shirt, and the other was rubbing up and down his arm.

And her lips were swollen from the kisses she’d just shared with Reed—kisses that didn’t belong to her, kisses she’d obviously facilitated because she was jealous, kisses that Reed had no choice but to give back.

If only Lexi wasn’t so pushy…

“I’m so happy for you and Brock.” Lexi plastered on one of her gametime cheerleader smiles. “You’re perfect for each other.”

“Perfect for each other?” A new voice came from the other side of the trellis, and a moment later, a man stepped outside of the lounge into the waiting area.

He was holding an expensive camera in one hand and a phone in his other.

Lanky, with long blond hair pulled back into a ponytail, the man was Peter Flemming, a freelance photographer that many celebrities used for private affairs.

Had he just overheard the whole conversation about being in a relationship with Brock McQuaid?

The small bubble of panic from earlier swelled inside her. She hadn’t meant to lie. It was just that with Lexi hanging onto Reed as if she wanted to gobble up every inch of him, the words had taken wing and escaped before she’d been able to cage them.

If only she hadn’t overheard two of the staff at the pool talking about how Reed planned to propose to Lexi tonight during the party, that essentially the gathering was their engagement party.

Venus had panicked and fled from the pool, desperate to find Reed and have him reassure her that he wasn’t getting engaged, that he wasn’t ready to settle down yet, and that he was busy with his career. Because that was everything he’d been telling her for years.

For the most part, his inability to commit hadn’t been a problem for Venus. She hadn’t been ready to settle down either, had been equally as busy with her career.

She’d searched the resort on a mission to corner Reed and find out what was going on. Yes, she knew he liked Lexi. But she hadn’t expected him to get so serious, had thought Lexi was another passing fling like previous women.

The truth was, she’d assumed she was Reed’s girl, that when he was ready to commit, he’d let their friendship blossom into more. She was ready for more. She’d been ready for a while. She’d just been patiently waiting for him.

When she’d located the couple in the rooftop lounge, she’d heard the happiness in Reed’s laughter, and she’d needed to know more, needed to hear more. So she’d done the first thing that had come to her mind and climbed the trellis, hoping to eavesdrop and maybe even view them from above.

She might have done so if Brock McQuaid hadn’t startled her.

“Yes, I do agree with you, Lexi,” Peter was saying as he cocked his head and studied Venus in Brock’s arms. “They do look perfect together. Almost as perfect as you and Reed.”

With a hop of positive energy and another bright smile, Lexi pressed a kiss to Reed’s lips again. But this time he was too busy staring to respond. His brows were pulled together into a stormy line, and his handsome hazel eyes were filled with concern.

Concern over what? Maybe seeing her with another man made him jealous.

“Actually, you two look stunning.” Peter was still examining her. “Can I photograph the two of you together?”

“That’s not a good idea,” Reed replied.

“Okay. Why not?” Brock said at the same time.

With Brock holding her almost effortlessly, she lifted one of her arms and one of her legs into the carefree pose she’d perfected. She angled her head closer to Brock so that they looked more intimate, and she turned on her most flirty smile.

Peter had already ducked behind the lens of his camera and was shooting pictures rapidly. “Beautiful,” he crooned.

“As beautiful as I am,” Brock said in a playful tone, “I’m told I need to lie low and not make any waves on social media.”

“No worries.” Peter lowered his lens. “All the pictures from today and the party tonight are strictly for Reed and Lexi and no one else.”

Reed’s scowl remained firmly in place. “We won’t need any pictures of Brock and Venus.”

“Now, baby.” Lexi’s lips curved into a pout. “Be excited for them. They deserve to be just as happy as we are, don’t they?”

“Of course.” Reed caught Venus’s gaze and seemed to be trying to see into her soul and find the truth. But she’d been hiding the truth about her feelings for so long that she’d gotten really good at keeping them out of sight.

She smiled at him, a dazzling smile that usually softened his irritation.

He tried to smile back, all the while avoiding looking at Brock. “We need to talk.”

“Sure.” Relief rushed in to replace the panic from moments ago. Surely by seeing her in Brock’s arms, Reed was already realizing what he was losing. They would talk, clear up the confusion, and then move forward with the relationship they were destined to have.

“I’ll look for you later,” he said, “before the party.”

“I’ll be waiting.” She tried not to sound too eager, but from the pinch in Lexi’s forehead, she guessed she hadn’t succeeded.

As Reed walked back toward the lounge, Lexi slipped her arm around his waist and plastered herself to his side.

She was so handsy with him, always touching him.

He had to find that overbearing. In fact, he had to find so many things about her over-the-top.

Venus knew Reed and knew the type of woman he liked.

And Lexi, with her outgoing and loud personality, was not who he needed for a life partner.

He needed someone more serious, independent, and deep. Someone like her.

They’d already bonded as friends because of how similar their personalities and interests were.

They came from the same background, from wealthy families in Malibu.

They liked the same serious movies. They liked the same types of organic and healthy food.

They liked the same upscale vacations. They could talk about anything, although lately Reed had been calling less often and the conversations had been shorter.

She’d thought it was because they’d been working in opposite time zones and had kept crazy work hours.

She considered Reed her best friend, and she’d always told him that any girlfriend would have to accept her as his best friend, too, or that woman wouldn’t be right for him. Of course, Venus had never imagined he would actually choose someone besides her.

When only she and Brock remained in the waiting area of the lounge, she released an exasperated sigh.

“I don’t mind holding you.” Brock’s voice was lighthearted. “I might even hold my girlfriend the rest of the day.”

What had she just done? She mentally slapped herself before wiggling and freeing herself from his grasp. As he placed her down gently to her feet, she took a rapid step away from him.

His gaze slid over her bikini-clad body before shifting to the mountain range that spread out to one side of the resort.

She was accustomed to men staring at her in all kinds of clothing, some even as revealing as a bikini.

She was used to her body being handled and poked and prodded and repositioned and moved around.

It was her job, she’d grown a thick skin, and she rarely took offense or took anything too personally.

But at Brock’s effort not to stare at her body, she wasn’t quite sure what to think, and she felt oddly bare. She stepped toward the trellis and yanked on her swimsuit cover. It didn’t come loose now any more than it had earlier.

Before she could voice her frustration, Brock was beside her and tugging on the garment. In the next instant, it came loose, leaving only a small sliver of the sheer material behind. He also swiped up her hat. Without glancing her way, he held out the items.

“Thank you.” She quickly put both back on. “Can we discuss things?”

He was peering at the mountain range. “Might be a good idea—”

“But not here.” Not where Reed or Lexi or Peter could overhear their conversation.

She headed down the stairs to the lobby. At midafternoon, the area was deserted, with only the staff at the front desk and a valet.

Even so, she crossed to a side room with tall potted trees surrounding a cluster of plush chairs and couches. She wanted to rush off and leave Brock and the embarrassment of the incident behind. But she waited for him to catch up.

He sauntered down the last flight of stairs.

She’d been too busy on the rooftop to pay him attention.

But now without any distractions, she took him in—attired in his usual jeans, cowboy boots, and formfitting T-shirt that showed off his well-defined muscles.

Although the sunglasses were off, he was still wearing a baseball cap but had situated it backward.