Page 23 of His Cowboy Heart

Walking in the front door, I inhaled the stale scent of lavender amazed that Aunt Mayra’s signature fragrance still lingered. Dust covered mirrors flanked each wall. For a moment, I imagined looking at my reflection and seeing Shea standing behind me.

The last time I’d held her she’d been eighteen years old. Even now I felt foolish at the thought of us being married so young, but I had felt so certain in our ability to grow up together. I needed to see her. And if that wasn’t possible, I needed to find a way to help her family. Staring into that mirror, I looked at my reflection wondering if anyone would recognize the eighteen-year-old boy inside of me. Would Shea know me at a glance the way I imagined I would know her?

To tell the truth, I was scared standing in that dusty foyer with nothing but angry women in my wake.

I’d packed up and left New York City and I wasn’t certain how this would end for me. I didn’t have much of a plan. I had nothing but the certainty that I had unfinished business outside those doors.

If I helped the O’Toole family negotiate with Ardent Ventures, I might lose my job. That seemed a small price to pay for doing the right thing. I had no doubt in my company’s ability to survive. The O’Toole family orchard had existed for generations. If they lost control of their land or ended up in financial straits and I could have helped them, I’d never forgive myself.

I took a breath and dug deep for courage.

I picked up my bags and started up the stairs. I had some suits and a cowboy hat to unpack.