Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 89170 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 446(@200wpm)___ 357(@250wpm)___ 297(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89170 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 446(@200wpm)___ 357(@250wpm)___ 297(@300wpm)
The corner of Ryan’s mouth twitched with a hidden smile. It was no secret that once upon a time Blayze and I liked each other. But we were sixteen, and that was ten years ago.
“He left,” Mindy called out.
Forcing myself not to show my shock, I repeated her words. “He left?”
She nodded. “Was he supposed to give you a ride? He made it seem like you came with Morgan and the girls.”
After blinking several times, I smiled. “I did. I guess I assumed I’d leave with him since I’m staying at his house.”
Mindy damn near spit out her beer while Ryan’s hidden smile became a full-on grin.
“You’re staying with Blayze? At this house?” he asked.
I nodded. “Yes. I was going to stay with his parents, but his grandparents are staying there while their house is getting remodeled, and they have some other guests as well. So, it was either stay in town or bunk at Blayze’s house.”
“Interesting,” Mindy stated.
“Not really. I’m here for work, and Blayze and I are old friends. That’s it.”
They both nodded but exchanged a quick glance.
I decided to take a chance and ask them about the person Blayze had been talking to.
“Who was that woman Blayze was speaking with? They didn’t seem to be getting along.”
“No one,” Ryan answered.
“Lindsay,” Mindy said, then snapped her mouth shut. When Ryan shot her a disbelieving look, I quickly figured out I wasn’t supposed to know who the woman was. That explained why Hunter tried to block my view of her.
“No one,” Mindy quickly added, and I nodded and gave them a small smile. Surely they both knew I would remember who Lindsay was. She was only the girl Blayze had slept with after our heated exchange that day we were caught by our fathers.
After a few minutes of small talk, Ryan got up to get a few more drinks, and a good-looking cowboy came to ask Mindy to dance. I was left sitting alone, except for a girl who looked to be around my age. I hadn’t noticed her earlier, so I wasn’t sure when she’d sat down.
“Hi, I’m Georgiana Crenshaw.”
She held out her hand for mine. “Wendy Reynolds. I’m Mindy’s sister.”
My eyes went wide. “Wendy! I remember you! How have you been?”
With a sweet smile, she replied, “Tired. I’m almost finished with vet school.”
“Oh, wow, congratulations.”
“Thank you. My sister dragged me out tonight, even though she knows I hate it.”
I nodded.
“Listen, I sat down at the tail end of you asking about the woman Blayze was arguing with.”
With a curious look in her direction, I said, “Yes?”
“I don’t know why no one ever talks about it—well, actually, I do. Blayze was starting to ride in the professional PBR circuit, though he only did a few rides before he quit, I think. Anyway, they were engaged.”
A million questions popped into my head that I wanted to hurl out at Wendy.
Had Lindsay been the reason Blayze left the PBR? Even when I’d been tracking his career, I’d never understood why he’d walked away. I was glad about it, deep down, since I would have never wanted to see him hurt. But did I really believe he simply left to be a rancher?
“Engaged? What happened?”
“He left her at the altar.”
Oookay. So that rumor was true. “He left her at the altar? Like, he didn’t show up for his own wedding?”
“Oh no, he did,” she said as casually as if she was talking about the weather. “When she walked down the aisle and turned to face him, he said something to her that no one else could hear and then walked away. Just left her there. To be honest, she deserved it.”
I blinked a few times as I processed everything Wendy had said. “He left her? Why did she deserve it?”
Wendy glanced over at Ryan, who was still at the bar. “You didn’t hear this from me, but she lied to him to get him to marry her. I’m guessing he found out the truth, and then left her at the altar as a revenge kind of thing.”
“What did she say?”
Wendy shook her head. “That’s his story to tell. I just didn’t want you to think there was something going on between them since I overheard Ryan and Mindy talking about what happened between you and Blayze.”
My mouth fell open. Jesus, this girl was a gossip encyclopedia.
“I saw the way Blayze looked at you when you were dancing with him,” she said. “I’ve never seen him look at another woman like that. As big of a flirt as he is, he’s never really had a serious girlfriend. I don’t think he’s ever been out with anyone more than a couple of times.”
I wanted to ask her more, but Ryan returned. Her words played havoc with my mind.
“I got you both a beer if you want it,” Ryan said as he set four beers down on the table.