Aria stared into the mirror and could not imagine what she’d been thinking when she agreed to this Cattleman’s Association dinner fiasco. This was their one big fundraiser during the year. Plates were horrendously expensive. And if it wasn’t bad enough to imagine how much money Laredo had paid for her to go with him, she had to consider whether or not this would make Laredo think he was entitled to something else for his money.
She put down the eyeliner applicator and stared at herself. Wrinkling her nose, she pulled a horrible face that made her look hideously deformed. It was really too bad that cosmetic technology hadn’t gotten to the point where you could choose a face on your smartphone and then have a machine roll it on over your regular look.
It wasn’t like Aria wore makeup on a regular basis. She was too busy trying to slather on enough sunscreen and moisturizer to keep herself from looking as leathery as her saddle to worry about color around her eyes. Now she was staring at her meager selection of cosmetic supplies and wondering why she was even bothering. Maybe if she just showed up looking like herself, nobody would pay her any attention. And that included Laredo Hernandez.
Aria put her hands flat on the countertop and stared down into the sink. Some of her cover-up powder had fallen into the white sink and had swirled with the droplets of water to create a very disgusting brown coating. She stared at the mess and tried to tell herself that Laredo wasn’t the type of man to expect anything after a date. He was a gentleman. Probably one of the last few around. She could trust him. She felt as though that was true. Perhaps if she hadn’t felt as though she could really trust him, she wouldn’t have said yes to this silly dinner thing. Or rather, she wouldn’t have said yes because she had been so angry at the way Laredo’s father was treating him.
How could Joe Hernandez talk about his son that way? The guy was worse than Helena had been. Every word out of his mouth was condescending or demeaning or devaluing toward Laredo’s skills. Could the man not see that his son had spent a lifetime trying to please him?
About this time, the doorbell rang.
Aria froze. Doorbell. Sometimes she forgot that she had a doorbell. Nobody came up to the house. They always met her at the barn. Even her office was in the barn. But tonight was different.
She took a step back from the bathroom vanity and smoothed the sides of her dress. It was the only dress she owned. Usually she wore it to funerals, because that was basically the only reason she ever had to wear a dress. Fortunately for Aria, black was always in style. The clingy material was flattering, and the skirt was somewhat sassy since it hit her above the knee. At least all of the horseback riding meant that Aria’s legs were nice and toned. However, pantyhose was a must since wearing blue jeans every day of the week meant her skin never saw sunlight.
Aria slid her feet into her low kitten heels just as the doorbell rang a second time. Then it was a mad dash to the front of the house to open the front door. Not that she could actually see her date. He was hiding behind the biggest bouquet of white lilies and yellow roses that she’d ever seen.
“Oh!” It was the only word that wanted to come out. Aria cleared her throat. Surely she could at least pretend to be eloquent or something. “Those are so beautiful! Thank you, Laredo.”
He moved the bouquet aside so that he could actually see her. “Can I come in? You would not believe how heavy this thing is.”
“Surely that’s not a big deal for a guy like you. It could be a bouquet of fifty-pound weights and you probably wouldn’t notice.” Aria stepped back so that he could enter her foyer.
She could have worried about what he would see when he walked into her house, but she’d been so worried about her outfit and makeup that she hadn’t even bothered to clean. The old place had been built five generations back and had been added onto three times until it was a sprawling warren of hallways, four large bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms, and an enormous eat-in kitchen that had been the heart of the whole house ever since Aria could remember.
“I’m flattered that you think my tiny baby arms could handle that kind of weight, but pushing pencils and pens across my desk is hardly wrestling steers or dallying a rope on my saddle horn.” His dry tone suggested humor, but there was something else too. Aria would have called it real regret.
“Do you miss that stuff?” Aria wondered as she led the way into the kitchen. She went directly to her cabinets and dug out a big vase. “Here. You can put those in here.” She began to fill the vase with water. “But back to my original question. How can you not miss that stuff? You were really good at it back when you were in school.”
“That’s being generous,” Laredo told her wryly. “Entirely too generous, actually. I was never the cowboy my brother Cal was.”
“I disagree.” She took the bouquet from him and pulled the paper off in order to arrange the flowers in the vase. “You were incredibly talented on a horse. You could rope anything that ran past you. And you weren’t a total dick about it, which, let’s be honest, is kind of unusual when it comes to cowboys.”
“Since you won’t stop being complimentary,” he told her, “I suppose I’ll have to return those pretty words and tell you that you look stunning tonight.”
“Thank you.” Aria struggled not to roll her eyes. “I feel ridiculous.”
He reached out and touched her shoulder. The gentleness in that contact made her belly knot with excitement and anticipation. “That doesn’t mean you don’t look like a million bucks.”
“So, you’re saying that I look like a million bucks even though I feel ridiculous. Right?” She turned around and poked her finger right into his chest. “Remember that next time I tell you that you look good on a horse.”
“Right.” He gestured toward her front door. “Shall we go? I really don’t want to be late.”
“Oh. Sorry.” Aria felt a bit stung and maybe even embarrassed. “I didn’t mean to make you late. You didn’t have to drive out here to pick me up. I could have met you there.”
“No. Please don’t take that the wrong way.” Laredo gently put his arm around Aria’s shoulders. “I would rather stay right here with you and never go anywhere. But if I’m late, I’ll hear about it from my father, and I’ve got enough problems with the old man right now.”
Aria and Laredo quickly exited her front door. Aria didn’t even bother to lock it. Why? It wasn’t as if the place was unoccupied. Anyone who attempted to break into her house would get all the grooms and that pack of insane dogs that they kept back by the doublewide mobile home they shared. Aria had most certainly always felt safe in her house here at Clouds End Farm. It was only when she went into Denver that she felt vulnerable.
Laredo helped her up into his truck, and Aria remembered to carefully tuck the skirt of her dress around her legs to avoid getting it caught in the door. Then he ran around and got into the driver’s side of the truck.
“So, when are you going to get all this damage fixed?” Aria wondered out loud. “It looks like you’re actually missing a headlight.”
“It’s definitely non-functioning,” Laredo agreed. “The blinker works, but the headlight is crushed.”
“So?” Aria prompted as Laredo started the truck and eased it back onto the long gravel drive that led out to the highway. “When are you getting it fixed?”
“That’s one of the things the old man and I are arguing about.” Laredo sounded so defeated that Aria wanted to slap him across the face and tell him to snap out of it. “Since it’s a company vehicle, he’s refusing to take care of the damage. He wants me to file an insurance claim, but my insurance company is already pissed because of the claim I had to file at the house.”
“Laredo,” Aria said in what she hoped was a calm, conversational tone of voice. “You have plenty of money. Right?”
He shrugged. “I suppose.”
“So, why are you waiting or worrying about what your father or your insurance company has to say? Just get the truck fixed if you want it fixed. And if you don’t want to fix this one, buy your own.”
“Huh?”
The expression on his face was priceless. Aria had always wondered about the Hernandez practice of everyone driving identical trucks with the Hernandez brand emblazoned on the doors. It wasn’t exactly an unusual practice in these parts for ranch trucks and the like. But these people had never owned their own vehicle. Ever.
“Grow up,” Aria suggested, trying to at least sound gentle. “Make your own luck. Make your own choices. Do your own thing and be happy doing it, Laredo.”
He reached over suddenly and cupped her cheek. Steering with one hand on the wheel, he glanced over at her with the softest of smiles on his face. “I suppose you must think I’m ridiculous that way. Right? A twenty-seven-year-old man who still lets his daddy pay his car payment and insurance.”
“No.” She turned to look at him and could not resist leaning into the gentle hand cupping her face. His touch made her feel both excited and yet so very safe and relaxed. It was a wonderful combination that left her ready for so much more. “I don’t think you’re ridiculous. I think you’ve been in a very difficult position for a very long time. I think you’re a good man. I think being a good man means that you’ve gotten stomped on a little more than you should have. That’s all.”
“You’re too gracious.”
“I disagree,” she snorted. “I’m not gracious enough.”
“Then, shall we agree to disagree?” He rubbed his thumb over her lower lip, and Aria felt as though she were melting right there into the upholstery. “Because I think you’re amazing. And graciousness is just one of your many qualities.”
“Oh, really?” Qualities? Really? She was blushing like crazy, and it was a good thing that the interior of the cab was basically dark because he would know how absolutely embarrassed she was and how ridiculous it made her look. “I’m thrilled that you think I’m such a great person, but at some point, you’re really going to have to accept the reality that I’m just a woman.”
“Never,” he argued quickly. “You’re Aria Callahan. You teach kids to ride, and you never seem to lose patience on a horse or in the barn.”
“Ugh!” She put her hands over her face and at the last minute barely remembered not to smear her makeup all over. “Don’t say that! I had this little kid the other night, and the father was so awful that I basically told them never to come back.”
Laredo did not miss a beat. “That’s just good business. And I bet it doesn’t happen nearly as much as it should. People are shameless that way. And you’re teaching kids. That means the parents have these overblown ideas of what their kids are like—talent wise that is.”
Something tight and uncomfortable took up residence in Aria’s gut as she thought about Laredo’s words and Bella’s natural talent for riding horses. “You know, you’re right. But there’s also the opposite thing too. You know?”
“Meaning what?” He glanced over at her as though he were really listening. Good. He needed to.
“Sometimes you have a kid who is very, very talented and the parent just thinks they’re either mediocre, or maybe the parent is even one of those people who is humoring the kid because they don’t believe in the sport. You know the type. Right?”
“Sure.” He shrugged. “Those parents don’t realize how much work and work ethic it takes to ride a horse and create a real bond with a thousand-pound animal. Those people don’t get it. That’s okay. Just let them put their kids in whatever activities they want. You’re not losing out on anything.”
“But the kids are!” Aria protested. “Those kids who are really passionate about this sport and have a parent that just refuses to support their interest. It’s sad.”
Laredo only shrugged. They were approaching the hotel where the Cattlemen’s Association was holding their fundraising dinner. Aria didn’t say anything else. She didn’t want to piss herself off or ruin her evening. Now wasn’t the time to start nagging Laredo about Bella’s interest in horses. The little girl deserved a chance to do what she loved. It was just too bad that they were going to have to convince her father that riding was a worthwhile sport for his daughter to participate in.
“Are you all right?” Laredo pulled the truck up to the valet park stand. “You look upset.”
“I’m not upset,” she told him softly. “I just get pretty passionate about the whole thing. You know?”
“I do know.” He got out of the truck and ran around to open her door in spite of the valet’s attempt to do the same thing. She got down from the vehicle and held tight to his hand in order to keep herself from pitching over in her heels. Then he leaned over and whispered right in her ear. “That’s one of the reasons why I’m so incredibly attracted to you, Aria. Your passion. I love the way you dedicate yourself to a cause. It doesn’t matter what else is going on. You know what you believe in. You know how to get the task done. And you will do whatever it takes to make things happen.”
She swallowed uncomfortably. Had anything ever made her feel so convicted about a lie? Aria felt her ankles wobble a bit in her heels as she struggled to keep herself from freaking out. What would he say when he found out that she was lying to him? What would Laredo Hernandez do when he discovered she had helped his own family to deceive him?
For now, she couldn’t pause to wonder. It was time to walk into that hotel ballroom and pretend that everything was just fine. Fortunately, she’d had a lot of experience in doing just that.