Page 169 of Her Boss, Her Rancher: Sunrise On The Ranch

“There’s nothing you can say—”

“I’ve been lying to you.”

He blinked and gave her a dubious look. “What are you talking about?”

“I promised your mother I would tell you. And I meant to right away, but then Sienna got sick—”

“My mother?” His brows furrowed, his expression growing dim. That and the blood caking on his face made him appear dangerous. He was, to her well-being. “Bella, what does she have to do with this?”

“My name’s not Bella. My real name is Francesca Isabella Forte. I’m heiress to the Forte Foods empire. Your mother recognized me. I’d met her once, a long time ago.”

“Where?” he demanded.

“In San Francisco...where I grew up. I only came to Dallas to spend time with my friend Amy. And then I met you.”

He pushed a hand through his hair. “I can’t believe this.”

It killed her to see his utter disappointment, the admiration he held for her rapidly fading. The loss hit her in the pit of her stomach and she felt the blood drain from her face. How would she ever get over Jared Stone?

She went on to explain. “I’m estranged from my father, and I’ve been...I’ve been hiding out here at Stone Ridge Ranch. Trying to make a new start.”

His eyes shot fully open. “So you’ve been lying to me about everything?”

“I’m terribly sorry, Jared. But my father cut me off, or so I thought, and I needed to—”

He stood now, on his own. Pain lined his face and she cringed. He could barely hold himself up, yet he remained standing, favoring his wounded leg. “You needed what? To lie and deceive me? Give me a run for my money? Oh, no, maybe not that. Since you’re loaded,” he said, raising his voice. “Here I thought I was giving you a home, a job, a place to raise Sienna and all the while...what? You were playing a sick game with me.”

“No, it’s nothing like that. It’s about Sienna. I really thought she was in danger.”

“From who?”

“My father. He threatened to take her away from me, to sue me for custody. I panicked and ran. I’ve been through a lot this past year and I—”

Jared stared at her and began shaking his head. “Are you really a widow?”

“God yes, I wouldn’t lie about something like that. Everything I told you about my life before was true.”

“You lied about everything else. You didn’t trust me. You didn’t tell me the truth. And you know how much Ihateliars.”

A shudder ran through her. He was comparing her to Helene, a woman who’d broken his heart and made him wary and closed off. Now he equated her with that awful, cheating woman.

Her emotions high, tears spilled down her cheeks. She never wanted to hurt Jared. She still loved him, but now, even friendship would be too much to ask of him. “I...I couldn’t take the risk.”

“I’ll never be able to trust you.” His eyes grew cold, hard. She’d never seen that look on his face before. “I thought you were perfect. My perfect angel.”

She didn’t have to say she wasn’t. That had become abundantly clear.

“You saved my life and I’ll always be grateful...” His voice trailed off and he fell back onto the bed, his shoulders slumped. “We were never meant to be.”

“No, I know that now. But, Jared, I really didn’t want it to end this way. I had planned to tell you the truth.”

He snorted in disbelief.

“I really did.” Her daughter was her primary concern, and she couldn’t subject Sienna to Jared’s reckless ways. Even if he could ever forgive her, they wouldn’t work. They wanted different things in life. Heartbroken, she had to face facts.

There was no way back from this.

Dread pulsed in the pit of her stomach. “I guess we’ll be moving out.”