Marissa rolled her eyes and shook her head. “I had no idea you were such a hopeless romantic,” she drawled. “In the city, you were the hard-nosed marketing expert who ate men for breakfast and spat out the bones.”
“What can I say I’m starved for some romance,” Phil said.
“Well be prepared to be disappointed,” Marissa said, placing her bowl on the table and rising to head for the coffee pot. “Trace was just being friendly. I think he has a hero complex or something.”
Phil’s harsh laugh made Marissa turn from the coffee pot with a scowl.
“Believe it or not that is a good thing in a man,” Phil said. “I had no idea when I took over this ranch that they still made men like that. Chase came as quite a surprise to me.”
Marissa smiled taking in Phil’s words. “It is rather surprising,” she agreed.
“Tell me about it,” Michelle added a soft light entering her eyes as she thought of Kade. It had taken all of her courage to walk down the aisle the day she agreed to meet her mate at the altar. She’d met Kade once before but the huge, overly muscled man had been intimidating to her. At five-foot-nothing, she didn’t know if she could stand up to him. Fortunately, she didn’t have to. After a previous bad relationship, Kade had been a revelation. He was her gentle giant.
Phil smiled reaching across the table to pat her friend’s hand. “We are so blessed,” she said happily.
Marissa watched her sister and Phil for a few seconds once again struck by the changes they had both gone through after joining the crew of the Broken J. For a moment, she wondered if there was something in the water that made them change so.
Michelle had grown confident and self-sufficient after her marriage to Kade, even sending her controlling ex-boyfriend packing with a flea in his ear when he’d come to demand she come home.
Phil, on the other hand, had softened finding the strength to depend on someone else and trust them with her very heart. She was still a driven businesswoman but she didn’t seem to need to prove anything to people.
Marissa couldn’t help but wonder if she would ever feel that secure. All through college and training, she’d been told that women didn’t need a man to have everything they wanted, but what if one of the things you wanted was to have a partner in life who filled in the gaps when you were tired.
Perhaps, Trace was right. Perhaps she could let him take some of the burdens this change to her life would add.
Looking at her sister, and seeing her bright smile as she thought of Kade, was almost enough to convince her that marrying a stranger might work out for her as well. She needed to talk to Trace about his proposal a little more.
Last night she was angry and was trying to push him into admitting he didn’t mean what he had said, but today it all seemed too real. The temptation to go through with it was so strong.
“I think it’s so odd how you two ended up married and living on the same ranch,” Marissa said before thinking. “Who would believe that a purple-haired matchmaker would match you with your best friend’s cousin? It’s like some weird science fiction plot.”
Phil laughed, turning and touching Marissa’s arm. “Or maybe it’s just part of a grand plan worked out by a God who loves us,” she said.
Marissa pulled her arm back from Phil’s touch as a cold chill raised down her spine. She didn’t need some fairytale being in the sky to organize her life. Outdated beliefs in God and religion only held the world back sinking them into strife and conflict.
Finishing her breakfast, she bid her goodbyes to Michelle and Philomena then excused herself slipping outside to visit the horses.
***
Trace caught a hint of movement along the fence line and turned to look out the window of the stall he had been cleaning. He was hoping that he might see Marissa again today, but with as busy as the ranch was right now, he couldn’t be sure if it was her or another guest watching the foals play.
Squinting he made out the slim form of the pretty teacher and grinned. Although he knew he had pushed her the night before, he couldn’t help but like her, and if he were honest, he couldn’t deny his attraction to her.
Last night he had fallen into bed kicking himself for rushing his thoughts. Of course, he had her considering the mad idea of marrying him, even if temporarily, to ensure she didn’t make any other rash decision.
Was he a fool for doing this? He couldn’t see it if he was. He wanted her to know the love and joy that was waiting for her on the other side of this life-changing event.
Turning to finish his work Trace grabbed a halter, slipping it over the young horse’s head and led it outside, so he would have an excuse to meet up with Marissa. He couldn’t help but pull his hat down a little lower as he walked out of the barn though. There was no denying he felt a little like a love-struck teen instead of the sensible man he was known to be.
***
Marissa gazed across the fields smiling at the antics of the baby horses as they kicked and bucked, or raced across the fields. In the two-and-a-half years that she had been coming to visit the ranch, she had always loved the summer season and watching the fuzzy foals learn to use their long legs.
“Cute, aren’t they?” Trace said making Marissa start.
“Very cute,” she said turning to look at the cowboy who was busy fiddling with the lead line on
