Dearest Cowboys Box Set

by Mia Brown

  “She showed up at my house and asked me to move to Paris to her.”

  I noticed that my mother shot my father a look and I could only imagine how worried they were. I wished they would have more faith in me.

  “What did you say?” she asked nervously.

  “Mom, I’m sitting here. What do you think I said? Of course I said no. She’s gone now. Anyway, seeing her was the best thing that could’ve ever happened to me. I realized that I was never in love with her. I was just in love with the idea of her and that’s a different thing altogether. I don’t want to be with her, and I don’t anyone like her. I had no idea she was so awful. What was I thinking before?”

  “So you’re over her?”

  I smiled. I couldn’t stay mad at my mother. She was only worried because she cared. She must’ve been so scared that I would end up with Mary for the rest of my life. I had no idea what it was like to be a parent but I could imagine seeing your child with the wrong person must be heartbreaking. “I’m over her. Don’t worry, mom. I’m never going to go back to her.”

  I told them all about how she had phoned me to try and get me back and Tyler was delighted by the fact that Mary was the one now pining after me. Thankfully my story about Mary had made my mother completely forget that she was trying to set me up. Either that or she now felt bad about pushing me. I think she was just relieved that Mary was no longer in my thoughts. Eventually I said my goodbyes to my parents and made my way to the car. I had a meeting with Steve and I still had to go home and get ready. Tyler walked me to the car and when we were out of earshot of my parents he asked about Dallas.

  “I didn’t want to say anything, but I figured the two of you got together again because you really were grinning like the cat that got the cheese when you arrived.”

  I laughed. “That obvious, huh?”

  “So, round number two. Does that mean my suggestion worked? Did you go over there with food?”

  “I did. I took her Chinese this time and once again we didn’t have a chance to eat it because she pulled me in and took her clothes off. She’s quite something in bed, nothing like what you would imagine. She likes to take charge and boss me around.”

  Tyler grinned. “I bet you love that.”

  “I can’t say I’m opposed to it,” I said with a grin. In fact, I hadn’t stopped thinking about it since I left her house. I had been so sure that there wouldn’t be a second time but now that there had been I couldn’t help but hope that there would be a third. I knew that there was no way I would ever get tired of doing that with her.

  “And did she kick you out again like the last time the moment you were done?”

  “Not this time,” I said. “We sat in the living room to eat and watched a movie. It was nice. We actually didn’t argue for the first time.”

  Tyler raised his eyebrows. “Is that so? Hmm, so what does this mean? Are the two of you a couple or something? That sounds promising.”

  “No, I still have a long way to go to get her to actually like me like that. She’s totally using me for sex and I’m just going along with it. She still hates me. I need to get Steve off my back and get her out of that apartment before things go downhill for me. With Steve out the way I think I can get her to finally see me in the right light. For now, it’s just sex.”

  “Oh, you poor man,” he teased.

  I laughed. “Okay, I better get going. I’m meeting Steve at his office and I’m not looking forward to it.”

  “Good luck.”

  I headed back home to get ready, and then made my way over to Steve’s office. I had been hoping to meet at a café again but he had insisted I come over to see him. He said he was a very busy man and that he couldn’t just run off to a café whenever he wanted to see me. Again I had to grit my teeth when he spoke. Steve was one of the rudest men I had ever met and I knew the only way he got ahead in life was with money and force. He definitely didn’t have any sort of charm to get him somewhere. When I arrived his secretary let me in and I had to wait ten minutes for him to see me while he spoke on the phone. Even from the reception I could hear him speak from his office and I noticed how his secretary rolled her eyes when she thought I wasn’t watching. I felt sorry for her that she had to work for him on a daily basis. She must’ve been desperate when she took the job.

  I smiled at her. “Tough job?” I said.

  She chuckled softly. “Something like that.”

  “I hope he pays well.”

  She sighed. “I think I need to find another job,” she whispered which was probably her way of telling me he didn’t pay well. I could see she wasn’t too sure whether she should be saying something to me or not because she quickly waved her words away. “Ignore me.”

  “He’s so annoying,” I said.

  That made her smile. “He is.”

  “I’ll help you,” I whispered back.

  Steve came out of his office then and made a big show of telling me how busy he was. He then told his secretary to hold all his calls while he took this meeting. I followed him into his office and took a seat. Once again he was wearing one of his ridiculous suits. This time it was purple with a striped orange tie. Perhaps some people could get away with it, but he couldn’t. He just looked silly. It was actually very hard to take him seriously in this outfit. Yet, once again, it was clear that he thought he looked incredible. He kept touching the arm of his jacket as if he was waiting for me to mention how amazing it was. I decided not to say anything.

  “How’s it going, Steve?” I asked him instead.

  “Not so good,” he said. “Not so good at all. I’m getting increasingly annoyed and desperate with this whole thing.”

  “Has something happened?” I asked.

  “I’ve had some issues with the development deal, and it’s very close to falling apart. Do you have any idea what that means to me? I’ve put my heart and soul into this and I can’t have it just falling down because of some girl who refuses to move. I swear if she doesn’t leave soon I’m going to go there and kick her out myself.”

  “You know you can’t do that,” I pointed out.

  “Look, Blaze, it’s time for you to do some work for me. I know you’ve been doing your best to find some sort of loophole in this but I think it’s time we take some action. I need her out of that building now.”

  “What are you proposing?”

  “I need you to draw up some eviction papers. No, I demand that you draw up some eviction papers. It’s time for me to get this girl out. I could do one myself but I would prefer to have it legally certified by you. Now, can you do that for me?”

  I shook my head. “Steve, it’s pointless. You can’t just hand her some eviction papers and except her to move out. If you and evict her it will be in violation of her lease. She can sue you for that.”

  “So what? Let her sue me. I don’t care. I have more money than her. I can win this. I honestly don’t care.”

  “Well, you should care a great deal because if you do that you are not going to look good in court and you might spend all your money on a lost case. Also, going to court is only going to make this go on for longer. Suing her is only going to delay matters further for you and I know that you are desperate to move out. That’s not the way to do things. I’m saying this as your lawyer, Steve. I would definitely advise against it.”

  “Oh yeah? So what would you advise then?” he asked.

  “I think you need to make her a better deal. Moving out is going to cost her a lot of money, especially if she doesn’t have a place to store all her stuff for now. I know you don’t want to spend money on her but you really should consider buying her out,” I said. Steve wasn’t going to give up, and neither was Dallas. I figured I would try and get her some money in the process. Hopefully it would help to make me look a little better in her eyes when she saw that I was at least trying to help her out. Right now I was still not in her good books.

  Steve shook his head. “Nope, I’m not giving her money.”

 
; “I would suggest that you think carefully about this, Steve. This could be your one chance of getting her out.”

  “I’m not going to lose money because of some stubborn and immature girl.”

  The more Steve spoke the more I relaxed. If he wanted to sue her then he was going to lose and I didn’t really mind. It was probably the first time that I didn’t care about fighting for my client. I did my best to talk to him and remain as professional as possible but I didn’t really care. I knew this probably wasn’t good for business, but perhaps I shouldn’t have gone into business with this man in the first place. I still hoped that he would pay her out because that way both of them would get what they wanted, but I wasn’t sure. Steve was incredibly stingy with his money and didn’t give it away easily. Especially not to a woman he was growing to hate.

  When we were done I made my way out and headed straight to the receptionist’s desk. Once there I asked her to quickly write down her details for me on a piece of paper. Once I got into my car I made a few phone calls and set her up with a few interviews. I had no idea what was going to happen with Steve, but I was glad I could get that poor girl out of there.

  Twenty-Three

  Dallas

  “Will called,” Madison said the moment I stepped through the door.

  “Oh yeah? Everything okay with his horses?” I asked. I had received bad news just that morning from one of my other clients and I wasn’t sure if I could handle any more.

  “He just asked if you could come over to see them, but it didn’t sound like anything was wrong. I think it’s more a case of him wanting to see you.”

  I laughed. “I doubt that. Did he say when I must come over?”

  “He said anytime is fine.”

  “Okay, I’ll head over soon.”

  “While you’re there, have a little look around for any receipts lying around. You know, for the flowers.”

  I chuckled. “I don’t usually go inside his house, but maybe I’ll excuse myself and go to the bathroom. Although I don’t he’ll leave the receipts lying around.”

  “Ah, so you do think they’re from him,” she teased.

  “I think it’s a possibility,” I admitted. “But mostly because I honestly don’t know who else it could be.”

  I still had no idea but I hadn’t in contact with many other potential candidates, unless it was from someone who I would never suspect. I had received three bouquets now so surely whoever was sending them would want me to know soon. Maybe today was the day Will was going to tell me. I had no idea how I felt about that, but I headed to the bathroom first to freshen up just in case. At least I’d slept well the night before so I didn’t look like a raccoon as I made my way over. Not that I was trying to look attractive for him. I groaned as the various thoughts ran through my head. I didn’t seem to know what I wanted at the moment.

  “Hi Will,” I said when I arrived at the ranch. He had spotted my car and come over to me.

  “Hey, Dallas. You got my message. Thanks for coming over on such short notice.”

  “Not a problem at all. Is there anything wrong or did you just want a general check up?” I asked. Madison had said to me that if there was a problem with the horses than perhaps he wasn’t interested in me, but that if there was nothing wrong with the horses he might be.

  “Nothing is wrong as far as I can tell. I guess I’m still a bit paranoid. Mind giving them a look to see if everything is okay. I’m getting my new horses next week so I want to make sure these guys are doing well.”

  “Of course,” I said as I followed him over to the horses. They all looked great and he definitely didn’t need to worry. It made me wonder if Madison was right. He didn’t really seem to have any need to call me over.

  “Right, let’s take a look at them,” I said and then gave them the once over. Definitely nothing to worry about. I told him and he seemed relieved.

  “Good to hear.”

  “So, you’re getting the new horses in next week? From Billy?”

  “Yes, I made my choice when I was there. Billy is such a great guy. I think he’s sad that he has to give the horses away but he knows he can’t look after them all on his own. I feel sorry for the guy. It must be hard to give up your horses like that but I think he’s doing the right thing. He’s putting them before himself. I’ve promised he can come and visit them whenever he wants.”

  I smiled. “That’s nice of you. I’m sure he’ll appreciate that a great deal. Well, you are definitely ready to get more. I’m going to give these guys their vaccinations and then I’m all done,” I said.

  “Great. Uh, would you like a drink when you’re done?”

  “Just a cup of coffee would be great,” I said.

  “Absolutely. You’re welcome to meet me in the kitchen when you’re done.”

  “Thank you,” I said. I was glad we were going to sit inside. It would give me the chance to look for those receipts even though I highly doubted I was going to find anything. In a way I hoped I would just so that I could finally get to the bottom of them.

  When I was done with the horses I went to the kitchen but first excused myself to go to the bathroom. On the way there and back I did a quick scan as I walked but there was nothing to be found. Perhaps I should just come right out and ask him but for some reason whenever I tried to say the words I froze. Will would be embarrassed and then I would get embarrassed and I still didn’t know whether or not I wanted them to be from him. He was such a lovely guy, and when I joined him in the kitchen I saw that he had made me coffee and had also put out a plate of cookies for us. He was very thoughtful, and quite possibly the nicest man I had ever met. If my mother was still alive she would’ve loved him. He was definitely the sort of man you brought home to meet your family. He couldn’t do anything wrong. And yet, why didn’t I get excited when I was near him?

  “Thank you,” I said as I took a cookie. They looked amazing, and they smelled like they had just come out of the oven. “Did you make these?”

  He laughed. “No. If I did you wouldn’t be able to eat them. I’ve tried before but I am definitely not someone who should stay in the kitchen. No, I got them from the store. They do look home made though so maybe I should just tell people that I did.”

  I chuckled. “You should. Nobody would know. Well, thank you. They’re great.” I took a bite and smiled. They were delicious.

  “Oh, I wanted to ask what was happening with your work building? I heard rumors that that Steve guy wants you out,” he said. He pulled a face when he mentioned Steve’s name which made me laugh. Nobody liked Steve.

  I nodded. “Yep. Between him and Blaze they’re both trying to get me out before my lease runs up. It’s very frustrating. I love that building. I’m having a hard time leaving to be honest. I still have a few more months left on my lease so I’m not budging until then.”

  “So Steve got a lawyer involved. How about you? Have you also gotten a lawyer?” he asked.

  I shook my head. “Nope, I don’t want to waste money on a lawyer. Also, right now I’m not sure if I even need one. I have read my lease and all the fine print, and I know that I have my rights. I’m not going to let them force me out when I don’t have to go.”

  “But what are you going to do when the lease runs out?” he asked.

  “Well, then I’ll figure something out. I am actually looking for new places and I know that I’ll eventually have to leave. But that’s not the point for me. I just want to make life difficult for Steve and Blaze. I don’t want to be that person who just rolls over when they ask me to. Steve hasn’t exactly gone about this in the nicest way and I’m definitely not going to make this easy on them. I think my sole goal in life at the moment is making their life hard. I know that sounds awful but I just can’t help myself.”

  Will laughed. “You’re as stubborn as ever. You know, you always were someone who stood up for themselves. Even at school.”

  “Really? I had no idea you thought that.”

  He grinned. “Oh yes
. There was this one argument at school with one of the teachers. I can’t remember exactly what it was about but I do remember that the teacher was the one in the wrong and not the students. You were the only one who stood up and had something to say about it. The rest of the kids were all so shocked that you would talk to a teacher like that but you said it wasn’t right. You were very calm about it and you were never nasty to her, but you stood your ground. Like I said, I don’t remember the specifics but I remember the way you made everyone feel. It’s a very good thing that you’re like this. You don’t let people get away with murder. It’s good.”

  I grinned. “That rings a vague bell but I’m also not sure what it was about,” I said. “I do remember how nervous I was. My legs were shaking so much I thought I was going to fall.”

  “But you still did it,” he pointed out.

  “I guess I did. That’s a nice memory. Wow, school was such a long time ago. Man, we’re old now.”

  He laughed. “No we’re not. We’re still young. Uh, Dallas, I have a question for you,” he said and his voice got all serious suddenly which made me feel nervous.

  “A question? Sure, go ahead,” I said. I reached for a cookie just to have something to do.

  “Uh, are you seeing anyone at the moment?”

  His question took me by surprise. It made me think that he must surely be behind the flowers. It would make sense. Will was sweet and romantic but he was also shy. This is exactly the sort of way I would imagine him going after someone he liked. In fact, it was his shyness that got in the way of us in high school. People kept saying he liked me but he never said it to my face. I often wondered what would’ve happened if he had just asked me.

  The moment he asked me the question I thought of Blaze. My mind just went straight there. Blaze and I weren’t going out, but we had slept together twice and that made me feel bad. I couldn’t go out with Will so soon after I had been with another man. It just didn’t feel right to me. But at the same time there was no way I could tell him about Blaze. Especially not after I had just told him how much I hated the guy. I was starting to wonder if I really was such a good person after all. I got angry at Blaze for hanging out with Steve, but I was sleeping with Blaze and I didn’t even like him. I wasn’t sure which one of us was worse.