Pretend Love Romance by Penny Wylder
Clayton
I look out the window over the river, not absorbing the view in front of me, but looking past it, completely lost in my thoughts. I had hoped that the message that I’d gotten from Katie was wrong, and that this was all a dream, but it’s right in front of me. All of my worst fears.
“I’m so sorry, Clayton,” she says. “But there’s still a way to make it right. I’m already working on it. Hopefully by the end of the day the ranch will be yours.”
I fight back the instinct to growl at her. Katie is an older woman, and undeniably kind—especially for a lawyer. That’s a rarity in itself, and I’m not surprised about the fact that this was the person that Evelyn chose to trust with her estate. I am surprised that Evelyn’s last wishes can’t be followed.
“Rocking R Ranch should already be mine, Katie,” I say, working hard to keep my voice even. “The will is incredibly clear. It’s black and white. There isn’t any reason to discredit it or think that I pressured her into changing it. It was signed long before I even knew that she was leaving the ranch to me.”
Evelyn Roscoe. My heart still hurts when I think about her. It hasn’t been long since she died. It was definitely her time, and I’m grateful she went peacefully, but it still hurts that she’s gone. She wasn’t just my boss; she was my mentor. For so many years. She was more like a mother to me than my own family ever was.
Despite our close relationship, I never imagined that she would leave the ranch to me. Rocking R was her baby—her whole life. She loved it like it was her child. She needed that land and open space like she needed oxygen. And whoever she met or brought on to that land, well they left with the same appreciation and love in their heart for the Rocking R as she had.
And I vowed to her that I would take care of it. I would preserve her legacy as best I could. But it seems like the universe is doing everything in its power to try to stop me.
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you, Clayton,” Katie says gently. “No one is contesting the will.”
“Then I don’t understand. What’s the problem?”
“It goes well beyond the will or Evelyn’s wishes. Originally Rocking R Ranch was specifically a homestead. It’s been passed down for generations, but that original designation still matters.”
I know that. It’s part of the history. Hell, I’m pretty sure that that exact line of owners is on the website and brochures for the resort on the property. “Right.”
Katie sighs and pulls some papers from a folder before fanning them out on the table. I’m surprised these still exist, they’re so old. The papers are photocopies, but you can tell the originals must have been very delicate. The writing on the copies is faint, the creases and folds from the originals darker than the ink, probably signed over a hundred years ago. I can’t make out the writing.
“This is the paperwork that was signed by Evelyn’s family generations ago, Clayton,” Katie begins, speaking slowly and carefully. “It is very clear that the homestead must be passed down through a familial chain, and if it isn’t, then the land has to revert back to property of the government with proper compensation. They were very clear that this document would supersede all future wills.”
“Shit.” I mutter the word under my breath, momentarily ashamed that I would swear like that in front of someone like Katie. On the phone she said that there was a problem with the transfer of ownership, but I didn’t think that she meant something like this. I assumed I’d need to sign a few extra documents or pay some fees for transfer of liens. I couldn’t have predicted something like this, something that is so completely out of my control. Hell, this has nothing to do with the land today or how much I value it. This decision was made before I was even born. Before Evelyn was even born. I feel this dream slipping farther and farther away from me.
“Do I have any options? Evelyn didn’t have any family.” I finally say, my voice sounding raspy since my mouth is completely dry.
Katie’s mouth turns up into a sneaky smile. It’s both amazing and disturbing in a woman of her age. She’s been doing this a long time and I’m sure that she’s pinned men to the wall with that smile. “See, that’s not exactly true. Evelyn had a son.”
I knew that. “He died ages ago.” And good riddance. Evelyn’s son was always a sore spot. He never gave her anything but grief when she was alive, and then that grief was insufferable after he died because she spent so much time imagining what could have been. It was a complicated relationship that caused her so much heartache. She felt like she failed him, even though there was nothing she could have done to make him better.
“Yes, he did,” she says. “But not before he had a daughter. She lives in Colorado.”
Shock rolls through me. Evelyn had a granddaughter? A brief flash of hope shines down on me before flickering out once again. “That’s good that it won’t immediately pass to the government, but how exactly does it help me if Rocking R just goes to a stranger?”
Katie looks at me. “Evelyn wanted the ranch to go to you. The law says that it has to pass to a blood relative. There is a very simple way that both of those things can be accomplished.”
Clarity, and then nausea, hit me in two distinct waves. I turn back to the window, this time using the view to distract me from the reality. Katie wants me to marry this woman. Evelyn’s granddaughter. A complete stranger.
In my mind, the dreams I had in my head since I’d found out the ranch would be mine disappear. I’d imagined finding someone and raising a family together on the ranch. And when I got old enough, I would pass it on to my children as well. All of those dreams evaporate in a second with the idea of marrying this woman.
But I swore to protect Evelyn’s legacy, and if marrying a stranger is the only way I can keep my promise, I will do it. No matter what it costs me. “What’s her name?” I ask.
“Rachel Dover,” Katie says. “She took her mother’s last name. And this doesn’t have to change anything for you, Clayton. It’s purely a business arrangement. Nothing more. A means to an end.”
I know logically that it’s true, but it doesn’t feel that way. “And you think that she would actually agree to this?”
She shrugs. “I don’t know, but she’ll be here this afternoon and we’ll find out.”
“What?” Brand new shock straightens my spine.
That smirk again. “I’m flying her out from Denver. She confirmed. We have a few hours to work out the details of what you want so that we can present a united front. We have to make sure this deal is lucrative enough for her, and also make sure it’s iron-clad so you end up with what’s rightfully yours, and we fulfill Evelyn’s last wishes.”
I shake my head. It’s not what I want, but if this is the way that it has to be, then I will make it work. “All right then,” I say. “Let’s get to work.” And I sit down to plan how I’m going to marry a stranger.
* * *
The more that I think about this the more that I dislike it. I’ve put my life into Rocking R Ranch, and the idea that I have to bend over backwards to save my life’s work from an archaic law grinds under my skin and makes me clench my jaw. And the more I think about marrying this girl—the daughter of Evelyn’s one true source of pain—the more uncomfortable I am.
She’s a villain in this story whether or not she realizes it, and I’ve already built her up into someone that it’s easy to hate, despite the fact that I’ve never met her.
Katie and I strategized, and it’s a good pitch. But we’ve never met Ms. Dover before. We can’t predict how she’s going to react, and if she’s anything like her father…Hell, this could all backfire and she walks away with the ranch.
We’re in the same conference room overlooking the river, Katie and I sitting on one side of the conference table awaiting the arrival of Rachel Dover.
I turn the name over in my head, trying to put a face to the name. Trying to get used to the fact that this stranger holds so much power over me. I don’t want to be here. I don’t want to do this. I don’t want to be in this uncomfortable suit or away from the ranch when there are things that need doing. I’m feeling trapped.
All I know about this woman is that she works in the food industry, and that her mother is dead as well. There honestly wasn’t a lot to dig up on her, even with Katie’s extensive resources. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.
Katie’s secretary opens the door, and I’m prepared for an even more visceral hate to fill me up, so bitter that I could already taste it in my mouth. I’m ready to hold myself back from anger and pretend that I’m okay for the sake of my promise to Evelyn.
What I’m not ready for is one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen to walk into the room. Waves of dark hair fall around her shoulders, framing a delicate face that could easily be at home on a magazine cover. Legs in dark leggings that go one for what feel like miles. Perfect curves barely hidden under her dress; a style that looks like a large button-down shirt belted at the waist.
My body reacts to her at the same time that my mind does, with sudden, animal longing. She’s damn gorgeous, and suddenly the deepest part of me identifies a need that hadn’t been there moments before I first laid eyes on her. A need very specifically for her. It tells me that being married to her won’t be so bad if this marriage requires any kind of consummation to function.
But this isn’t a day where I can let my dick lead me. This is a day where my dick needs to keep itself in check. So I think about mucking out three-day old stables to keep my mind in the game. I stand to reach across the table and shake her hand.
I’m definitely not thinking about the way it would feel to sink my hands into that gorgeous hair or how those curves would look if I got so lucky to strip her completely bare.
Our hands connect, and she’s staring at me just like I’m staring at her—like I’m something entirely unexpected. I wish I could say that there was no reaction when I touched her skin, but the electric current that runs between us is impossible to ignore.
Katie breaks the somewhat awkward silence. “Miss Dover, thank you for making the trip on such short notice. This all must be quite a surprise.”
She gives us a tight smile. “It’s not a problem. Your email was intriguing, though. I have to admit I have no earthly clue what is going on. My father never gave me anything except for my DNA,” she says with a chill in her voice.
Well, at least it seems we share the same opinion of her father.
Her eyes flick to me again. Gorgeous green eyes that I could get lost in. It’s like she’s studying me and trying to figure out exactly who I am in this strange situation. That’s fine, she’ll find out soon enough.
Katie clears her throat. “Be that as it may, your grandmother recently passed away, I’m sorry to tell you.”
The look on Rachel’s face is one of genuine shock. It seems she wasn’t even aware of Evelyn’s existence.
“She was the owner of Rocking R Ranch.” Katie slides one of the ranch’s brochures across the table to her. “It’s a fully functioning ranch as well as an elite resort and vacation destination. When she passed away, she left the ranch to Mr. Burgess here. But there are some very old laws in Wyoming, and the ranch has to pass to a blood relative or be sold to the government. You’re the last living blood relative.”
Rachel’s eyebrows raise into her hairline. “Are you serious?”
I don’t have to look at Katie to know that she’s pinning the woman across the table with the look that she gave me a couple of hours ago: not unkind, but absolutely unyielding. “I promise you, Miss Dover, I’m not a woman who plays games. I wouldn’t have flown you all the way out here for any kind of practical joke. You’re the last living blood relation of any kind to Evelyn Roscoe, and so the ranch now belongs to you. You own it.”
I watch as she processes the information. First shock, then anger and sadness. Disbelief. Her face is like an open book. “This can’t be real,” she mutters. “My father didn’t even like me enough to give me his last name. I’m supposed to want a ranch from his family? No thank you. The Roscoes have done enough damage to me already. I don’t want anything to do with that loathsome family.”
“Evelyn was nothing like your father,” I snap, and her gaze locks on mine. They’re the first words that I’ve spoken to her, and she’s appraising me with new and curious eyes. “I know what kind of man he was. But Ev—your grandmother was nothing like him. She was kind and genuine, and she cared about the ranch.”
She looks at me for a long moment, and then back at Katie. “I’m sorry to have wasted your time, but I’m not interested. Sell it and have them send me a check. You clearly have my details.”
She moves to stand, and red tints the edge of my vision. How can she be so callous? So dismissive? She doesn’t understand and I’m going to make her understand. My mouth is opening to tell her exactly what I think about her and her attitude when I feel Katie’s hand on my shoulder.
“I’m afraid it’s not that simple, Miss Dover. If you’ll listen, I can explain everything to you.”
Rachel looks hesitant, but nods.
“Rocking R Ranch isn’t just a ranch like you might see in the movies. There’s a full staff who live on the property, as well as the people who come and visit for vacation. It’s a community in itself, and the center of the local economy. It supplies local stores with meat and dairy. If the ranch is sold to the government, everyone who lives on the ranch will lose their homes and jobs. They would likely turn the property into a straight mass cattle ranch. But, if Mr. Burgess continues to manage the ranch, everything can continue as normal, and it will be much more profitable for you. He’s Evelyn’s chosen beneficiary of the property and has an excellent reputation.”
Rachel looks between the two of us, and I can see her mind going into overdrive, trying to figure out exactly what we want from her. “There’s a catch,” she says. “There’s got to be. That speech is one that you could have given me over the phone, so why I am I really here then?”
I have to give the woman credit. She isn’t stupid. Glancing over at Katie, I see that killer little smile again. “In order to stay within the limits of the law, Mr. Burgess has to be a relation of the late Mrs. Roscoe. In order to make financial decisions for Rocking R. Ranch, he would need to be a part of the immediate nuclear family.”
The air stills, and I see the question in her eyes. Katie goes in for the kill. “In order to save Rocking R Ranch, you and Mr. Burgess need to marry.”
