“Is my mom still looking?” she asked, stepping up into her seat.
Nash took a quick glance, then nodded.
“Give her a wave. She might be coming around to you.”
Nash complied, and Heather turned around just in time to see her mother wave back. That was a good sign. No more grief from her mother meant an easier life for Heather while this whole thing was still going on.
“So, did you have anything to do with it?” she asked, as they pulled out into the soft summer night.
“Did I have anything to do with what?” Nash responded, feigning ignorance.
“It must have been hard to convince people to give my uncle a job if it took you, the great Nash Winthrow, this long to get it done,” Heather teased.
“Did you talk to your uncle?” Nash asked with a raised eyebrow.
Heather shook her head.
“Well, from what I’ve heard, over the past two weeks, he’s had enough interviews to fill up a lifetime,” Nash smiled. “It must have just taken him this long to settle on which job offer to accept.”
“Why so many interviews all of the sudden?” Heather could barely contain her smile. She wondered how big of a deal it was to Nash to have actually done this. She knew it meant the world to her family, but had it just been a snap of the billionaire’s fingers, or something more?
“He probably just had some great recommendations,” Nash chuckled, before clarifying. “More than just a simple former linebacker could have offered.”
So, it wasn’t just a snap of his fingers. “What did you have to do?” Heather asked.
Nash turned onto the highway. “I may have called in some favors from a few former teammates and coaches. Nothing too outrageous.”
It warmed Heather’s heart to think that Nash had actually taken it upon himself to help her family out. She knew now how silly it had been for them to have blamed him so fervently, for so many years, for something that had been so out of his control, but it didn’t seem to matter to Nash that it wasn’t directly his fault that Uncle Ernie had lost his job. It obviously meant a lot to Heather, and so he had done what he could to rectify it.
Heather couldn’t imagine that getting her uncle back into the league was part of Nash’s whole ‘fake-couple’ plan—it must have been a more personal detour. Maybe, she let herself hope, the distance that Nash had been enforcing between the two of them since Denver was coming more from a place of fear that they’d get too close than from a place of regretting that they already had.
Over the past two weeks, Heather had been trying to get him to open up again, but Nash was stoic if nothing else. Perhaps this whole business with her Uncle Ernie was a sign that she shouldn’t give up on her true feelings for him just yet. If Nash was willing to call in favors just to make her happy, could she really be so sure that their relationship was just another business deal to him?
She slunk down in her passenger’s seat and watched the lowering sun shimmer on the horizon.
Nash pulled into Winthrow ranch and a trail of dust plumed up behind them as he raced along a side road.
“Where are we going?” Heather asked.
“Well, it’s just about sunset,” Nash answered. “So, at Winthrow ranch, there’s only one place to be.”
Heather understood immediately, and the warmth inside of her grew tenfold.
Chapter 21
Heather
There were no underground garages or hidden elevator doors where they ended up.
A quaint little wooden table, draped with a subtle floral-patterned linen, and centered by a big, rosy candle, awaited the two of them on the second floor of the Winthrow ranch barn. A glassless window pane overlooked the field where a group of cowboys were sending off the ranch’s customers for the day.
For Heather, it was a whole new perspective on an old memory. The purple and orange and yellow hue of the horizon framed the whole picture like a dream. Heather could only sigh as Nash held out a chair for her.
“This is beautiful,” she said.
“I thought we deserved a little change of pace,” Nash replied, taking his own seat.
Two whiskey glasses were already waiting for them. Heather took a sip. She couldn’t help but smile at the taste. It was an Old Fashioned.
The two of them watched the cowboy show outside until a rustically dressed waiter came to take their orders. The menu at the makeshift restaurant wasn’t particularly big, but Heather recognized the name of every meal. Nash was right, it was a welcomed relief to take a step back. She recognized her roots in what he was doing, and it made her feel appreciated. Maybe all of her stress and hard work wasn’t going completely unnoticed after all.
Heather ordered a roasted pheasant with steamed vegetables. When the waiter left, Nash reached into his pocket and pulled out a small lush black box.
Heather’s heart fluttered.
“I didn’t want to make a big deal out of this,” he said, placing the box beside the flickering candle. “But I thought you at least deserved a peaceful meal out of it.”
Heather took the black box and opened it up. The glow from the diamond inside nearly blinded her, it was so bright. The silver studded band twinkled in the firelight like it held all of the stars of the universe inside.
“It’s beautiful,” Heather stated, carefully holding her emotions back. She knew this was all business; yet, even with Nash’s understated proposal, she couldn’t help but be flustered.
“It’s perfect for you,” he smiled.
The crowd of ranch visitors outside clapped as the cowboys finished up their show. The sun was half-way gone. A blanket of stars was slowly being pulled over the sky.
Nash reached over the table and took Heather’s hand. She let him have the ring, and he softly fit it around her finger. Nash’s staff had measured her for the wedding band back when they’d first started this venture, but it still came as somewhat of a surprise to her that it fit so well. Heather would have never guessed that such opulence would rest so easily on her rough and weathered skin.
“Beautiful,” Nash whispered, and when Heather looked up at him, she saw that he wasn’t looking at the ring, but at her.
She sighed. “I guess that means no more managing at The Horseshoe anymore?” She tried to laugh, but something caught in the back of her throat.
Everything was so gorgeous, but the idea that it was all a veneer troubled Heather. The strong waves of emotion lapping up on her inner shores betrayed the fact that this was a business deal.
Nash’s ruggedly handsome face flickered on the other side of the candle light. He wasn’t wearing his usual Stetson, but his hair and been carefully placed and his face looked as clean and washed as you could expect from a cowboy. He’d clearly put effort into this whole evening, just as he had clearly put effort into helping out Heather’s Uncle Ernie. He hadn’t had to do any of that. No one was watching this. Nash could have just dropped the ring off with her and told her that they were engaged now, but he was being as sweet as any girl could ever hope for from their fiancée. It barely mattered that it was fake. Heather felt like she was living out a dream.
“I really appreciate all this,” she said, gesturing around at the cozy barn.
“You deserve it,” Nash started. “I’m sorry for being so distant over the past couple of weeks. I just have to remind myself sometimes that this is only business. It can be hard.” He laughed and Heather’s heart did a back flip. Was that the confirmation she’d been looking for? Did Nash feel the same way about their relationship?
“I know,” Heather replied. “We’ve experienced some super romantic moments, and it’s hard to just take a step back and not get caught up in it all.”
“Don’t I know it,” Nash chuckled.
Heather remembered the taste of his lips. “... Though, sometimes I just wish I could.” She looked up at him and their eyes met. The shimmering blue of Nash’s soul sparkled through the descending flame on the candle. Heather’s stomach went wild with a kaleidoscope of butterflies.
Her breaths deepened and her heartbeat slowed.
Neither of them spoke. Heather tried to guess what Nash was thinking, but it was no use. He’d spent so much time in the spotlight that he was an expert at keeping his emotions off of his face.
“Heather...” he finally started, but stopped before he could go any further. Heather could hear the conflict in his voice.
“Listen,” she took up the torch for him. “I know I haven’t been very business-like over the past two weeks. It’s just that, when you kissed me in Denver, I realized that I had stronger feelings for you than I had realized. Before that, I could have fought off my attraction to you for long enough to get this all over with. But after that concert, I realized that it was more than just a simple crush. I’ve never felt this way about anyone before, and it makes me feel foolish, because I can’t quite tell if any of it is real, or if it’s all just part of the show we’re supposed to be putting on. It’s tearing me up inside. I need to know what side you’re on, just for my own mental health. Be honest, please. Just this once. I can take the truth, I swear.”
Heather reached her hand out over the table. The brand-new engagement ring glimmered in the candle’s firelight. She watched carefully as Nash’s façade slowly broke. She could see the struggle on his face. It worried her.
Finally, he reached across the table and took her hand. His skin was so rough, yet his grip was so soft and caring.
“I... I feel the same way,” he said, and Heather’s heart nearly ruptured. She’d known it was true. After their kiss in Denver, there had been no doubt in her mind, but Nash had been so good at concealing his true feelings, that she had finally begun to doubt herself. She’d felt like she was going crazy, but now she was vindicated.
A wooden floorboard creaked and Heather looked over to see their waiter returning with dinner. They let their hands fall apart while they were served, and, then, when they were alone again, they started to eat and talk in a whole different light
“So, what do we do now?” Heather finally asked, after swallowing a forkful of her pheasant. It was delicious; both crispy and juicy, but her true appetite was entirely focused on the man sitting on the other side of the table.
“Business wise or relationship wise?” Nash asked.
Heather felt a weight lift off her shoulders. It felt so freeing to finally know that there was indeed a difference between the two. “Both, I guess.”
“Nothing changes on the business end,” Nash said. “Nothing can change. Things are going too well; all we have to do now is not screw it up. As for our relationship, that’s a bit trickier.”
“Why?” Heather asked, taking a light sip of her drink.
Nash put his cutlery down. “Well, because it’s not like we can slow down what we’re supposed to be doing. Business deals have set timelines and deadlines and beginning and ends, but relationships aren’t so straightforward. How do we deal with moving forward so artificially fast while also maintaining a healthy personal relationship? Like, take tonight for example. It’s absolutely wonderful and I’m having a blast and I feel like we’ve connected on a deeper level than ever before, but we also just got engaged. We’re definitely not at that point in our organic relationship, right?”
“Right,” Heather agreed.
“So, how do we make sure we continue to separate the two sides of our lives together?” Nash asked.
Heather shrugged. She wasn’t sure. “One step at a time?”
Nash let out a deep chuckle. “You know, you’re smarter than you look.”
“Hey!” Heather shot back. “Don’t I look smart to you?”
“Well, you know the stereotype, about how all good-looking girls are dumb.”
There went those butterflies again. “So, you think I’m good looking?” she teased.
“I think you’re perfect,” Nash answered, reaching his hand back over the table.
Heather didn’t hesitate to touch him again. It felt so freeing to be able to talk about these things without the dark cloud of formality hanging over their every word. Nash shifted his seat around the table, so that he was sitting beside Heather. They gazed out over the dark blue horizon and listened to the crickets’ chirp until Nash pulled up on Heather’s hand. She exchanged her view of the land for a view of him, and before she knew what was happening their lips were locked.
They had kissed again since that fateful kiss in Denver, but only ever in public and only ever for show. There was no passion in those kisses—tonight was different though. No one was watching. The intimacy that coursed through their lips sent electrical currents all through Heather’s body. She felt like she was being reanimated; all her stress evaporated in the heat. She felt like she’d found love—it was all that mattered.
That kiss lasted for well over the time of their previous record, and when they finally pulled away from each other, Heather felt like the whole night was singing just for them. A crescendo of cicadas pierced the quiet ranch air as they gazed into each other’s eyes.
Nash stayed in his new spot, by Heather’s side, as they finished their meals. Their skin touched and tingled and their free fingers intertwined. By the time Heather had finished eating, she felt full in more ways than one. It hardly even mattered that they were now ‘engaged’. Nash’s ‘proposal’ hardly felt like a big step anymore, considering the new revelations that had just come to light. Still, as they left the barn, hand in hand, Heather thought about how she would say yes if Nash suddenly asked her to marry him for real.
He’d chosen her for a reason, she thought, as they wandered through the night towards his truck, and it wasn’t just because she fit into her role as his business partner so well. He must have seen something he liked in her, back on that night when she’d cursed him out in front of the whole bar at Chacho’s, otherwise, why not choose someone else? There were other working women at the ranch; women who would have been far more willing to go along with Nash’s whole plan than she had been, but Nash hadn’t chosen them; he’d chosen her—and she was glad for it.
“What’s the plan for tomorrow?” Nash asked.
Heather closed the passenger door behind her and buckled in. “I guess I don’t have to work, huh...?” She felt a tinge of guilt. “You don’t think I should at least give my two-week’s notice first? It’s been so busy, and with me gone, it means Caroline will have to take on three jobs: one as the owner, one as the manager, and one as a waitress. Melany and Ava are still away with their husbands for the week. So, besides the cooks, that only leaves Stacey and Lola as regulars.”
“Maybe Caroline will promote Stacey or Lola to manager; that’d make you happy, right?” Nash asked, pulling out onto the dirt road.
Stacey and Lola... If today had indeed been Heather’s last day working with them, then it meant that she wouldn’t get to say a proper goodbye. Sure, they could hang out during their off-hours, but Heather was well aware of the shift in dynamic that took place between people who used to work together. Tonight was the last night they could actually be considered co-workers, and Heather felt bad for not having taken advantage of it, even if it wasn’t her fault.
“Even with a promotion, they’d still have to pick up waitressing duties. We just don’t have enough servers for the recent uptick in business,” Heather pointed out.
“That’s a good problem to have,” Nash said.
“Easy to say from the throne,” Heather responded. She checked her phone for the first time since dinner had started and was surprised to see a whole string of texts from her friends.
It looked like Stacey and Lola were back at Chacho’s and looking for company.
Heather giggled at their silly messages. Ever since it had come out, they had been merciful in their teasing about her relationship with Nash, but they’d also never shied away from it. Heather was so thankful to have friends she could confide in, even if she couldn’t tell them everything. “Doesn’t look like either of them will be in any capacity to take on the task of ‘Acting Manager’ tomorrow,
” she joked to Nash. “It’s been a stressful week, and it looks like the girls are unwinding at Chacho’s tonight.”
Nash slowed down just before the turn onto the highway. He let his truck idle for a moment while he processed a thought. Heather ignored the rest of Lola and Stacey’s messages and watched her real boyfriend and fake fiancé consider something important to him. Finally, he turned to her.
“Why don’t you go have one last night with them?” he offered. “I’ll talk to Caroline and settle this whole thing. I have managers who work for me that will be more than willing to help out at The Horseshoe until they can find your permanent replacement.”
Heather felt a tingle of appreciation at Nash’s thoughtfulness. She immediate took to the idea—one last night with her working girls sounded great, but she also didn’t want to leave Nash so soon. “Are you sure?” she asked. “What are you going to do for the rest of the night?”
Nash chuckled. “Maybe I’ll finally get a good night’s sleep. It’s not like we’d be spending that much more time with each other anyway. I was just going to drop you off and then head home myself. I need to be well rested for tomorrow. It’ll be a big day. Our engagement will be announced and everything.”
Heather looked down at her phone just as another text from Stacey came in.
Where are you!? Hellooo!
Heather couldn’t help but laugh. “Alright, fine. You win,” she told Nash. “Before I quit, I’ll spend one last night with my girls at the place where all of ‘this’ began. Chacho’s, here I come!”
Chapter 22
Heather
Heather went out with a bang.
An Old Fashioned from her dinner with Nash, combined with a few beers at Chacho’s and the fact that this was the last night she’d be a fellow working girl with Stacey and Lola, made the time they spent together a blur of good times and happy memories—a makeshift bachelorette party.
Heather didn’t let on as to what would be coming tomorrow; she’d even left her ring with Nash. The rest of her night was all about the girls, and when the three of them finally stumbled out of Chacho’s on the other side of midnight, they were all deliriously happy.
A Cowboy's Fake Fiancée Page 13
