Chapter 35

Sara

Sitting across the table from Ryan, I kept thinking about his arms being around me the night before. I had been too tired to take it any further than that, but it was sweet how he had picked me up and tucked me into bed. That next morning, we were eating breakfast together, and I glanced up, watching him read the paper and eat his toast.

“So, what are you plans for today?” I asked, hoping the answer would have something to do with me.

“I, unfortunately, have to finish up some work,” he said with a smile.

“Oh,” I said, looking down at my plate. “Okay, cool.”

“But,” he said, chuckling. “I was thinking that when I was done sometime this afternoon, we could do something together, spend some time with each other since I left you in the neurotic hands of my best friend yesterday. I figure I owe you. Plus, I don’t want to waste the time I have you here on silly things like conference calls and paperwork.”

“Oh, those silly things that make you money?” I laughed.

“Yeah.” He chuckled. “Those silly things. Also, I had something I wanted to ask you.”

“What’s that?”

“Tomorrow night, I have an event to go to,” he said. “I was wondering if you would be my guest to the event?”

“What kind of event is it?” I asked, really not wanting to end up at some rich person party somewhere in Manhattan.

“It’s a charity event.” He smiled. “I go to a lot of charity events in the city every year. I choose the ones I care about the most to donate to, and it acts as a pretty good tax write-off at the end of the year while I’m doing something good for someone else. It’s really a win-win situation for me.”

“That’s really awesome of you. I try to donate to things that matter to me, too, but in Bonanza, that’s pretty much the horse ranch.”

“It’s definitely a morale booster, and out here, it’s almost trendy to do so, which is great for the organizations. It really helps them raise as much money as possible,” he said.

“What’s this fundraiser for?” I asked.

“Oh, well, it’s a little thing held at an art museum in town to raise money for animal preserves to fight back poachers in Africa,” he said. “I actually went on a tour with them when I was overseas and saw what they really do. It’s a big deal, and unlike most charities, a very large percentage of funds raised actually go to the cause.”

I sat there looking at him for a moment, unsure if he was for real or if he was mocking me. He stood up and walked over to the counter, grabbing an invitation and handing it to me. Sure enough, there was a fundraiser for that very organization. My jaw dropped open, not believing I would get to be a part of something so big and so amazing. They did so much work for animals, and being a vet and animal lover myself, I wanted to do anything I could to support them. I would never have a chance to be invited to something like this while living in Bonanza, and there was no way I could turn down the invitation while I was in New York.

“Holy crap,” I said. “Are you serious?”

“Yeah. When you said you were coming to New York, I thought it might be the perfect thing for you and me to do. I figured you might be interested.”

“Uh, yeah.” I gawked. “Of course, I want to go. Thank you so much for inviting me. This is really exciting. And I’ve never been to a fundraiser outside of Bonanza, so it should be an experience.”

“Maybe it’ll give you some ideas for your annual fundraiser with Alison,” he said. Then, his grin widened. “Shake it up a little in that small town.”

“You know how they like a good shake-up,” I said sarcastically. “But maybe I can at least get rid of the Christmas lights everywhere.”

“Might be time.” He laughed. “Anyway, what are you going to do this morning?”

“Probably check in with my clients, relax a bit, and then wait for you to be done.”

“Sounds good,” he said, putting his plate in the sink. “I’ll work as fast as I can.”

As he walked past me, he put his hand on my shoulder and sparks flew into my chest. I sat back and smiled once he was gone, thinking maybe this trip was a good idea after all. I finished up my breakfast and headed back to my room, pulling out my phone book and calling all of my regular clients. I wanted to make sure their animals were doing well and find out if they had found alternate care. In the end, the only one that had actually gone to another vet was a more urgent matter, and the dog was doing really well. They told me they couldn’t wait until I got back so they could bring the dog in for a check-up. It felt good to have clients who were so loyal to me and me to them in return.

When I was done with that, I dialed Alison’s number. I wanted to check on the horses, their medications, and also tell her the exciting news about going to the fundraiser. Surprisingly, though, I didn’t get an answer from her at all. Usually, she jumped at my calls, but I figured maybe she was out in the stalls without her phone. I was sure she would end up calling me back later. When I was done, I got up and walked around the room, looking at all the books on the bookshelf. There were all the greats, from Tolstoy to Shakespeare and everything in-between. On top of that, there were newer books, ones I hadn’t even heard of before. I started to pull them off the shelf and open them up, realizing that anything that could be signed by the author was signed. I almost felt bad for touching them. I chose one and sat down in the sitting area and read for a few hours, stopping when I heard a knock on the door.

I closed the book and carefully set it down, walking over and opening the door. Ryan was standing there looking handsome as ever with a charming smile on his face. He made my heart skip a damn beat every time he came around.

“Did you find something to keep you busy?”

“I started reading the books you have on the shelf. It’s an impressive collection. And many of them signed.”

“Yeah, it was kind of my first investment when I got the money,” he said. “I wanted to see if you wanted to grab lunch?”

“Sure,” I said.

“Great. You ready?”

“Yep.” I smiled, walking out of the room and following him to the front door.

We headed out to Manhattan and went to a fancy little eatery in the center of a luxury shopping district. It was the kind of place I imagined I would see famous movie stars shopping in. As we sat there talking about the city, Ryan looked over at me and sweetly smiled.

“What’s up?” I said, feeling like he was about to tell me something.

“I brought you to this place for lunch because it was so close to the shopping district,” he said.

“You don’t like my clothes?” I chuckled.

He laughed, too, and waved his hand. “It’s not that. I’m going to take you buy a gown for the fundraiser tomorrow night.”

I tilted my head and looked at him for a moment, getting the inkling this fundraiser might be a little fancier than I had expected. The last “gown” I had worn was my old prom dress during the auction, and I wasn’t sure I knew what to even look for. I could see him studying my face with a smirk.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “I’m taking you to a place where there’s a stylist to dress you in the best dress for your body. You won’t have to do anything but stand there and give a yes or a no.”

“All right,” I said with a laugh.

After lunch, he led me to a small boutique where, apparently, we had an appointment. The woman took me in the back and stood me up on a pedestal, trying several different gowns on me. Finally, I found one that took my breath away, and I okayed it. When I got dressed and walked out to Ryan, she followed, handing him the gown all wrapped up. I glanced down at the tag and shook my head.

“I cannot let you buy me this,” I said my eyes wide. “There are more zeroes than my car cost—hell, than any car in Bonanza cost.”

“You aren’t done yet.” He chuckled.

“What size are your feet?” the woman asked.

“Uhm, a seven, I think,” I said.

“Perfect.” She opened a box with a beautiful pair of shoes inside. “And this is the clutch that matches the ensemble.”

“That’s wonderful,” Ryan said to the woman as I stood there frozen. “We’ll take it all.”

He handed the woman a credit card and then turned to me.

“How about we go out to a fancy special dinner tonight?”

“Sure,” I said.

As we wrapped everything up and headed back to the penthouse to get ready for dinner, I thought about the fact that I was slightly tired of gourmet fancy menus. What I really wanted was a greasy cheeseburger, but I could tell Ryan was trying to take me somewhere nice, so I decided to go along with it. As long as it wasn’t covered in gold, I was pretty sure I would be okay. When we got back, we both showered and changed and then headed out to dinner. The restaurant was big, and they sat us at a beautiful little candlelit table by the windows overlooking the city.

“You look nervous,” he said, sipping his wine.

“I am, a little,” I said. “I’ve never been to something that I needed such an expensive dress for.”

He gave me a reassuring smile. “You’ll be fine. You can’t be anywhere as close to disastrous that I was when I went to my first fundraising gala. I had no idea what to expect, how to dress, what the procedures were or anything. I was like a child wandering into the big kid party, just gawking at everything. They have an open bar there, which I thought was great since I was nervous, and it would loosen me up enough to talk to people. Well, it did just that. I was loose and carefree, but still, no one wanted to talk to me. So, I kept drinking, without really thinking about it. Let’s just say I drank a little too much that night, and I ended up thinking the Prime Minister of Australia was my valet. I had to send quite an apology to him afterward. It was mortifying, but I lived, and I learned.”

“Oh my gosh.” I laughed. “You poor thing.”

We sat there laughing at the table like old times, and I watched as he continued the story in an animated way. He was so funny, and I had almost forgotten that. I did appreciate the story too. It was an excellent reminder not to drink too much the next night. I didn’t want my first event to be nerve-racking and devastating at the same time.