Page 29 of Headstrong Cowboy (Montana’s Rodeo Cowboys #2)

R yder’s feet seemed to be cemented to the ground. The distance between him and where Chrissy had disappeared around the corner was only a few feet, but he felt like it was a hundred miles.

“What’s going on?” Eunice Bloom asked, clearly confused by her daughter’s abrupt departure.

“Yes, Ryder, why don’t you tell us what’s going on?” Sunny demanded, her eyes glaring at him and he was glad they weren’t at the farm where there may have been gardening tools within Sunny’s reach, because if they were, he feared she’d be tossing them his way.

“I wanted you to meet Ryder because he’s very interested in purchasing your farm. He wants to settle down in Marietta, and your property is in his desired location,” Lucinda prattled on, and Ryder wished she’d be quiet.

Weren’t Realtors able to read body language? Couldn’t she read the women around her and see that animosity coming from Sunny? The confusion from Eunice and Tilly’s disappointment?

“Oh, well, I see,” Eunice replied. “I don’t think this is the place to discuss it. Sunny, can you take me home, please? There won’t be any celebrations tonight.”

There was a firmness to Eunice’s voice that must have clearly surprised Sunny, by the way confusion quickly replaced her animosity. “Mom?”

“You heard me, Sunflower. I think we need to go.” Eunice looked over at him. “Mr. Chamberlain, I don’t believe a deal will ever be done.” With that, she marched away, both her daughters trailing after her.

“I’m missing something here, aren’t I?” Lucinda asked.

“You are,” Ryder said on a sigh.

“I’m sorry. I’m not usually so loose with my mouth and I pride myself on reading the situation, but I think the excitement with Chrissy’s win and with the fact that Eunice told me today that she would take the first offer that crossed the table, I saw you and—” She shrugged and a little pink bloomed in her cheeks.

“I forgot my professionalism. I’m very sorry. Maybe I can talk Eunice around.”

Ryder shook his head. “I don’t think it will matter. The deal’s dead. I’ll be in touch.”

And like the Bloom family, he exited the arena, ignoring the shouts of greeting from his former fellow bull riders.

Without consciously doing so, he found himself back on the river path and sitting on the bench he and Chrissy had sat on the previous evening.

He shouldn’t be surprised that everything had blown up in his face.

How many times had his inner voice warned him that he should tell her the truth?

Tell her what his plans were. Tell her why he was seeking her family’s land.

She would’ve understood the need to connect to a mother who’d left him all those years ago.

For her to find out when and how she did cut him deep.

Chrissy should’ve been celebrating an amazing rodeo victory.

He’d lurked in the shadows and watched her and Ranger do their circuit.

Her run had been one for the record books.

He’d wanted to rush up to her afterward, but he’d hung back.

When he’d thought it was safe to talk to her, it hadn’t been at all.

He should’ve stayed at the hotel. Waited until he knew for sure it was all over, like he had originally planned, but the pull to be near the woman who owned his heart had been too hard to ignore.

A lot of people would envy Ryder and his ability to be able to buy whatever he wanted.

Whenever he wanted. But he’d rather be poor and have the love of his life close by.

And did it really matter if he owned Munro land or not?

It wasn’t like there were any others around who wanted to reclaim a lost legacy.

Had it just been the depression talking in his mother for her to put a request to a son who had no idea of a family connection because his mother had never spoken about it?

Was keeping a wish to a woman who’d decided death was better than living worth it all?

He’d thought so at the time, but that decision was costing him someone in the present, not someone lost to a past long gone.

Would Chrissy even believe him now if he told her he loved her?

He couldn’t blame her if she didn’t, considering he hadn’t been honest with her from the start. Hell, he still hadn’t told her he was wealthy.

Something wet nudged his hand and he jumped from the bench, his leg buckling a little beneath him, but he managed to right himself and not fall flat on his face.

He looked down and found the dog from a couple of weeks ago, the same dog who’d stolen center stage the day before at the rodeo’s opening ceremony, staring up at him, mouth open and tongue lolling to the side as he panted loudly.

Ryder sat and the dog immediately rested his snout on his leg, as if he knew Ryder needed some reassurance.

Tentatively, he held out his hand, which the pup sniffed before giving it a lick.

Considering the last time Ryder had tried to touch the dog, he’d run away, the little guy’s acceptance comforted him.

“Hey, boy. What are you doing here? You’ve been causing some havoc around town, haven’t you?” The dog just lifted his head and gave him an innocent look.

“Of course you deny it.” Despite the turmoil of his emotions, Ryder chuckled at the dog’s antics. “What do I do, fella? How do I win the heart and trust of a woman after I obliterated it with my stupidity?”

The dog whimpered and jumped up on the bench before lying down beside Ryder, his whole head now resting on Ryder’s leg.

“You’ve got no ideas, huh? Well, that’s not helpful.” Ryder closed his eyes and stroked the dog’s head.

Whatever he did for Chrissy, it had to be from the heart. It had to be meaningful and not an empty gesture. Rocking up with a bouquet, one he’d brought from the local florist—which was more than likely made of flowers from the Bloom farm—would be entirely the wrong thing to do.

He had to show her that his dreams had changed. That before he arrived, all he’d wanted was to fulfill a dead woman’s wish. Now he wanted more. He wanted a family of his own. A family he was truly a part of. A family that loved him for him. He wanted to create all that with Chrissy.

He also wanted to do something to honor the memory of Chip because, without him, he wouldn’t be half the man he was. And maybe, if there was a way, he could honor his mother as well.

An idea began to form. A wild one that hadn’t seemed possible an hour ago, and might still not be possible, but he needed to give it a try.

The hurt in her eyes when Chrissy realized why he was apologizing wasn’t something he’d likely forget, but beneath that hurt, he thought he saw something else. Dare he hope that there was a chance that she might care for him like he cared for her and that he could win her back?

He had absolutely nothing to lose because he’d already lost the most important person in his life. But he was determined to win her back because he hadn’t gotten this far in life by giving up, even when the odds had been stacked so high against him he couldn’t see over them.

As if the dog knew that Ryder had come to a decision, he jumped off the bench, licked Ryder’s hand, and then took off running, like he had the first time he’d seen the dog.

“What is it with you and running away?” Ryder muttered as the animal disappeared around the bend. Hopefully, one day, the dog would find someone he could settle with.

But Ryder had plans to put into motion. Plans that he prayed would give him the future he wanted.

All he had to do was convince Chrissy that her future was meant to be tied to his.