by Emily Mayer
It didn’t take long for the family to understand why she had fallen for him. He was kind and laughed easily. He took Corinne’s boisterous personality in stride, and it was apparent that he absolutely adored her. When Celeste was born, Ted became the picture of a doting father.
I pulled my laptop out from my bag and sat it on the coffee table. I went to the kitchen and poured myself a glass of wine before settling back on the couch. Grabbing my laptop, I decided to do a little research before my sisters called.
I typed in the name Jack Danver but the search results didn’t yield anything promising. Chewing on my lower lip, I refined my search, typing in Jack Danver bull riding. Article after article appeared in the results this time.
"Jackpot."
I clicked on the first article that appeared. I saw a picture of Jack waving to an excited crowd in the middle of what looked like a dirt-covered arena. He was dressed in what I imagined was standard cowboy attire: cowboy hat, chambray shirt, and black chaps covering a pair of blue jeans. He was quite possibly the most attractive man I had ever seen. ‘Attractive’ didn’t really even do him justice. He was posing with one hand on his hat, the hat hiding his eyes in shadow, with a slight grin that suggested he knew just how good-looking he was. I thought he looked like every cowboy fantasy ever, all rolled into one man.
Maybe it was the wine and sleep deprivation but I found myself wondering what it would be like to be the girl he was searching the crowd for as he waved in that picture. What If he was so isolated on that ranch that he actually thought I was hilarious and sexy, not slightly awkward and shaped like a lumpy potato?
I forced myself to stop daydreaming and continued my super-healthy internet stalking. I scrolled through the search results until I found an article about Jack and Leigh. It was from a tabloid magazine, speculating on the cause of his broken engagement.
"For the second time in less than two weeks, Leigh Decker appeared at an event without her fiancé and without her engagement ring,” I read aloud. I scanned the rest of the article. A picture zoomed in on her left hand, obviously missing a ring. Further down, the article had a shot of the formerly happy couple. I felt a strange stab of jealousy. Leigh was the kind of beautiful that was almost hard to believe existed in the real world. She looked like she belonged on the red carpet, even in the outfit she was wearing as she walked down the street on a shopping trip with friends. Her long, platinum blond hair was perfectly styled in loose curls, and she was wearing stiletto boots that made her already long, lean legs look like skyscrapers. She wore a stylish crop-top sweater that would have made me look like I’d accidentally purchased something from the children’s section. There was nothing about her effortlessly glamorous look that I could have pulled off, even on my best day.
"I couldn't look like that unless… I had another body,” I said, taking a drink of wine. And then a second drink for good measure because honestly, those legs. It was like I could actually feel the wine drowning my short-lived hope of capturing Jack’s attention.
By the time I had paged through several other articles with pictures of Jack, my fantasy relationship was good and dead but my libido was very much alive. I was so focused on my internet stalking that I almost threw the laptop when the chat icon started ringing loudly.
“Get it together, Evelyn,” I chastised myself before hitting the accept button.
I waved at the camera as Elise’s smiling face appeared on my screen.
“Evie! Why are you so red? Did you just get back from a run?’ Elise leaned closer to her screen to get a better look.
“What? No. I’m not red, and you know I don’t run. It’s probably just the wine,” I said, raising my glass for Elise to see. There was no way I was going to admit my flush was due to ogling hot pictures of a cowboy I didn’t know on the internet.
“Oh, wine! Good idea. I’ll be right back!” Elise said, heading off camera. Elise was only nineteen months older than me, making her the middle sister, but she was the tallest of us three girls. Her height had earned her a volleyball scholarship, and was always a point of jealousy with me and Corinne, who had barely managed to sneak past five feet. Elise had honey-colored hair a few shades darker than Corinne’s, and it was currently dyed a light lavender, making her bright blue eyes look almost violet. She could have easily been an actress taking Hollywood by storm. Tall and athletic, Elise was all effortless beauty. Her laid-back personality sometimes gave people the impression that she was the stereotypical dumb blonde, but Elise was the farthest thing possible from an airhead. She was a registered dietician, and counseled patients at a weight loss clinic run by a health insurance company.
A request from Corinne to join our video chat appeared on my screen. Her smiling but tired-looking face appeared next to Elise’s.
"Hi ladies! It's so good to see your faces, your adult faces!" Corinne exclaimed, waving.
"Let me say hi to my nephew," I demanded.
"Your nephew is being a real pain. Feel free to ask him to ease up on the heartburn. Oh! and tell me what my feet look like. I miss them,” Corinne said, angling her camera toward her round belly.
"Hey baby boy, your aunties can't wait to meet you," I said, kissing the screen.
"We love you already, but cut your mama some slack, kid," Elise added. Corinne swung the camera back up to her face.
"I spent all day listening to a bunch of toddlers. I need to hear about someone else's life right now. Are you both drinking wine? You are so mean,” Corinne pouted.
Elise proceeded to tell us about her newest client at the clinic, who was significantly overweight and a difficult but hilarious case. He refused to follow the program she designed for him despite his increasing difficulty getting around, because he was the other half of a bluegrass duo called Fat and Sassy. Fans would be so disappointed if Fat Bill was skinny. Elise had spent the better part of an hour trying to convince Bill he would still be very sassy and talented even if he lost weight.
“What’s new with you, Evie?” Corinne asked when Elise finished her story.
“I have to go to Pine Hollow, Montana, with Ben,” I said with an exaggerated pout.
“Montana? What’s in Montana?” Corinne asked.
“Ben’s family has a ranch there. The Tribune article that was supposed to be about Sterling & Sterling and its young, ambitious CEO didn’t actually turn out to be about the company and its young, ambitious CEO.”
“Uh-oh,” Elise said.
“Yeah, a photographer captured pictures of Ben leaving a hotel with the wife of a city commissioner. It’s basically a tabloid piece disguised as serious journalism,” I explained.
“Not to be mean here, but Ben doesn’t exactly have a great track record with women. This is definitely not the first time he’s caused headlines for sticking his dick where he shouldn’t have. And there was the whole issue with the executive assistant before you—he’s had a long line of assistants who were a little too personal. He isn’t exactly an innocent victim here,” Corinne pointed out.
“I know he doesn’t make the best decisions when it comes to women. I don’t think he has much of a defense in that department at all. But the story was supposed to be about a young CEO successfully running an international corporation, and it turned into a tabloid story. Ben might be a womanizer, but he’s a brilliant businessman. One look at the annual earnings report is enough to prove how good he is at running the company,” I said, feeling a little defensive of Ben. He was a great boss and made me feel valued.
“Okay, but what does any of this have to do with his family’s ranch in Montana?” Elise interjected.
“The author of the article sent an advance copy to Ben and the board of directors as a courtesy before the article appears in the paper. They weren’t happy. I'm not sure exactly what they said, but there was a lot of yelling. I think this is Ben’s version of laying low until the whole thing blows over,” I said.
“But why Montana? I mean, the man has his own jet! He could pretty much go any
where in the world to lay low, like a beach or Europe. Montana seems… drastic,” Corinne said.
“Drastic and awful,” Elise agreed.
“His mom and younger brother still live there—it's been in their family forever. Maybe he wants to be near his family for support? He helps run the business part of the ranch too. I absolutely cannot picture Ben being on a ranch, let alone growing up on one. I keep imagining him riding a horse in one of his Armani suits."
"At least it sounds like you won’t be alone in the middle of nowhere,” Corinne said, trying to sound reassuring.
“I suppose. His brother Jack was a rodeo champion. He was pretty famous until he had an accident. He was even engaged to a model. Leigh Decker,” I said.
“Leigh Decker—the supermodel, Leigh Decker? She was on the cover of Sports Illustrated last year. Wait, what? Is his last name Danver too? I’m looking him up right now,” Elise said as she began typing. “Oh my gosh, Corinne, seriously, you need to see this guy! He is gorgeous. I’m about to start panting.”
“I’m looking at him right now! Is he even real? He looks like he should be on the cover of a romance novel. A very, very good romance novel,” Corinne said.
“He is really good-looking, isn’t he? Ugh,” I groaned, lowering my head to rest on my arms.
“Why are you making it sound like that’s a bad thing, Evelyn? This trip is starting to look a whole lot better. You’re going to be stuck on a ranch in the middle of nowhere with a real-life cowboy who looks like a freaking naughty dream come true. How is that a bad thing?” Elise asked.
“Do you know what I would give to be stranded in the middle of nowhere with him right now? Do you know what I would do to him if I was? So much, Evie, so much,” Corinne added.
“Honestly, what do you think is going to happen? I’m very clearly not his type. You saw the pictures of his fiancée and his rebound ladies—not to mention all the women who were pretty obviously his rodeo groupies. Did either of you see a single picture of him where he isn't with at least one gorgeous woman? I doubt he’d notice me if I was the only woman in all of Montana.”
“You’re going to be in his house, so I’m pretty sure he’s at least going to notice you, Evie," Corinne pointed out. “And according to Google, the proper term is buckle bunnies.”
“And you might be the only woman in Montana, so there is that. I mean what is Montana’s population size, anyway, twenty people and some buffalo? I’m kidding! Geez!” Elise said, laughing at my disgruntled look. "I think there are actually buffalo, though…"
“Okay, I will admit that I very briefly imagined a Jack-Evelyn situation, but I need to be realistic. There’s no sense getting my hopes up about something that is never going to happen. He isn’t going to be interested in the chubby brunette who works for his brother,” I replied, unable to keep the annoyance out of my voice.
“Why do you always do that? You make it sound like you’re the Hunchback of Notre Dame and you're not! You’re beautiful, Evelyn. I don’t know why you’re the only one who can’t see it,” Corinne scolded. Elise was nodding her head in agreement.
I didn’t want to talk about my lack of confidence about my appearance, so I attempted to steer the conversation to the obvious flaw in my sisters’ plan.
“It doesn’t matter. What would happen if he did—against all odds—find me attractive? I’d move to Montana and live on a ranch? He doesn’t seem like the type to move to Chicago, even for the deep-dish pizza. It would never work,” I said.
“Jesus, Evelyn, you haven’t even met him and you’re already planning your breakup! You can’t plan an entire relationship with anyone, let alone someone you don’t even know yet,” Elise said.
“Furthermore, who said you have to date him? It is possible to have fun with someone without being seriously involved with them, you know. Live a little for a change. And he looks like someone who knows how to have a lot of fun. A roll in the hay, if you will.” Corinne wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.
“First, I am legitimately worried for Ted’s safety with your hormones right now, Corinne. Second, you both know I’m not good at the whole casual, relaxed thing. I don’t know how to be casual. The whole idea of spending who knows how long trapped on that ranch is starting to make me want to quit. I’m dreading this trip even more now,” I said.
They spent the remainder of the video date trying to convince me that I needed to relax. I couldn’t help but feel like I’d had the exact same conversation with Anna and Hilari earlier. But despite the nearly identical pep talks, I still found myself lying awake late into the night worrying—and, if I was being honest, fantasizing about what Jack looked like in those chaps.
4.
Morning came way too soon. I’d spent most of the night going over what I needed to pack and everything I’d need to get done before Ben picked me up. I didn't think I’d slept more than a few hours. Sitting up, I felt a dull ache in my left temple, and I groaned. A migraine was the last thing I needed this morning. I grabbed two aspirin before starting a pot of coffee, even though I knew I’d spend the entire flight trying to remember if I had turned off the coffee pot before leaving my apartment.
My first task was to finish packing. Being someone who excelled at planning and making lists meant I was a terrible packer. I tended to pack for every possible contingency or scenario that could arise on any given trip, which often required multiple suitcases crammed with clothing. You never know when there might be a blizzard on the beach! It didn’t help that, according to my research, the weather was all over the place in Montana during September. My inability to pack light was a problem when we flew on commercial airlines, but luckily, we were taking the corporate jet for this trip so over-packing wouldn’t be an issue.
Three suitcases later, I finally felt like I was prepared for whatever Montana might throw my way. I moved on to making sure most of my appliances were turned off and the perishables were all thrown away. Ben called me as I was on my way back from taking out the garbage to let me know they would be there in ten minutes.
“Do you have a lot of luggage? Rodney packed for twelve people so we don’t have a lot of room left in the trunk.”
“How do you define a lot? More or less than three suitcases?” I responded, fumbling with my keys.
“I don’t understand what you two packed for. You realize there are stores in Montana, right?” I could almost hear him rubbing his forehead with his free hand.
“Actually, I wasn’t sure there would be stores in Montana, thank you very much,” I quipped.
“Just be ready in ten minutes.”
It took almost the entire ten minutes for me to lug my suitcases down the stairs of my old brownstone. I loved the historic feel of the building, but sometimes I wished they had updated it to include an elevator. This was definitely one of those times. The car pulled up and Ben hopped out, smiling. It looked like the stress of yesterday had already been forgotten.
“You better hope there isn’t a lot of traffic this morning or it’s going to be a long car ride with all that luggage on our laps,” he said, grabbing two of my suitcases.
“I can’t help it. You know I like to be prepared,” I said, dragging the last bag toward the back of the car while trying to take gulps of coffee from my traveling mug.
“What are you preparing for? Armageddon?” he mumbled with his head in the trunk.
It took a few minutes, but Ben was able to cram all the luggage into the vehicle. Even more miraculously, the trunk closed—after he gave it two solid slams.
Once inside the car, Ben began making introductions.
“Rodney, this is my executive assistant, Evelyn Mercer. She’ll be helping out as needed during the trip. She’s smart enough to do both our jobs and probably do them better, so don’t hesitate to use her as a resource. Evelyn, this is Rodney Ashcroft.”
Rodney extended his hand to me and almost crushed my fingers in a handshake that would have made the Hulk grimace.
“Pleasure to m
eet you, Evelyn. I was just telling Ben how valuable a good assistant is. My girl just left me after ten years and I’m practically helpless without her.”
I gagged inwardly at "my girl," but I smiled outwardly and allowed the two to slip back into the conversation my arrival had interrupted. Rodney was a junior partner at Porter, Crane & Wright, one of the largest mergers and acquisition firms in Chicago. Sterling & Sterling used them for all our acquisitions that were too big to be handled in-house. When Ben had mentioned he would be joining us on this trip, I had briefly considered resigning effective immediately.
Rodney was notoriously smarmy. He wore a wedding ring, but never missed a chance to corner female employees to introduce himself and "offer his assistance."
Obviously, Rodney had forgotten that we’d met several times before when I was working in the legal department. He had managed to corner me shortly before I took the job with Ben. I had been poring over a contract looking for mistakes, and was startled when he leaned over me to see what I was working on. He’d said he liked to introduce himself to all the newer associates, because he recognized how valuable all the players were to the success of the team. I had to concentrate to keep myself from visibly cringing and leaning away from him. It wasn’t uncommon for the girls from multiple departments to exchange horror stories over lunch after one of his visits. Rumor had it that his wife was equally transparent in her extramarital activities—two gross peas in a sleazy pod.
Rodney and Ben continued their conversation for the duration of the trip to the airport, and I was grateful for the chance to rest my eyes. The dull ache in my left temple was still trying to work its way up to a migraine. I was dreading the thought of a long flight with a migraine and Rodney, who was the human equivalent of a migraine.
