“Nervous still. This is a big step for me. I feel like I’m going against everything I learned at my mom’s side and I’m having a hard time with that. But with everything Brandon shared, he actually made it seem less like science.”
“Ultimately, there’s always some science involved. Even with live cover, you wouldn’t simply place any stallion with any mare. Decisions are made that involve the health of the horses and your bottom line, right?”
I had to agree, even if I didn’t want to. “Plus, I can still change my mind, right?”
“Sure. That’s always an option. And chances are, if you are dead set against it, I can find another buyer for the sample, so you may even get your money back.”
I winced at that. I’d put the cost of the two samples—the earlier one and this one—on my credit card and damn near melted it.
I watched Declan drive away wondering for the hundredth time if I was doing the right thing. Josh had been adamant that if I didn’t show that I was making positive changes to Lost Valley’s breeding program, I wouldn’t get the money I needed. Like it or not, I had to try. I just wished it didn’t hurt so damn much to move away from what my mom had built.
“Sorry, Mom. I wish there was another way but I’m doing this to save your legacy and Gran’s. I hope you understand.”
TWELVE
SHANNON
Ilooked at the three outfits spread out on my bed and frowned. I couldn’t remember the last time I went shopping, and my lack of options for a dressy night out made it painfully obvious. Usually, I didn’t get any fancier than nice jeans, but for this, I needed something more. Everyone I knew would be at Zoe and Josh’s engagement party, so for a change, I wanted to put some effort into the way I looked.
I tried to convince myself that it didn’t matter that Declan was also going to be there. It wasn’t like I was dressing up for him.
I had one good pair of jeans with no holes or stains, the ones I’d worn for my disastrous night out with Declan, and a pair of black pants that I’d worn to a friend’s bachelorette party that were too tight in the butt. The flowery skirt laid out next to them wasn’t even an option.
“Decision time, huh?”
Fiona was leaning against the doorframe, watching me.
“I have nothing to wear!” I whined. “And you look perfect, as usual.”
“This old thing?” Fiona laughed as she plucked at the dress I had never seen before. Fiona might have left the city to settle back on the ranch, but it didn’t mean she’d lost her cosmopolitan sense of style. The form-fitting gray silk slip dress looked incredible on her and perfectly complemented her auburn hair, which hung in beachy waves on her shoulders. “You want to borrow something from me? My closet is yours if you need it.”
“Yeah, right.” I laughed. “It’s not like we’re the same size.”
“But weare!” Fiona countered. “We’re the same height, and I bet that we’re pretty close on bust, waist, and hips, which is what matters for most dresses. You’re just a little more muscular in your arms and shoulders. I have plenty of sleeveless options you could try.” She spun on her heel. “Hold on, I’ll be right back.”
Even though my sister had moved into the foreman’s quarters on the property with Eli and his son, Patrick, she kept most of her clothes in her old bedroom here at the house. Eli had joked about building a separate room just to hold her wardrobe and when she hadn’t disagreed, he’d gotten a little worried.
I sighed, looking down at my options while I waited for Fiona to not find anything that would fit me.Whywas I making a big deal out of what I was going to wear? It was so unlike me to care.
Declan.
The name whispered through my mind, and I shook my head.
No. The only thing going on between us was business. He’d made it abundantly clear the night at the Rooftop when he’d all but recoiled at the suggestion that we were on a date.
Fiona speed walked back into my bedroom. “I was going to bring you a few options, but I know this dress is perfect for you.”
She held it in the air in front of me, and I frowned.
“That looks way too small.”
“Girl, youaresmall! Maybe if you stopped wearing those baggy T-shirts, you’d realize it. Just put it on.”
The cut of the dress was simple, just a razorback sheath that looked to be about knee-length, but the electric blue was traffic stopping. I stripped off my robe and slipped on the dress, expecting that I wouldn’t be able to get the zipper all the way up. But when Fiona walked over to pull it up the last two inches and I finally turned to look at myself in the mirror, I gasped.
It looked like it had been sewed directly onto my body, perfectly accentuating the curve of my hips and the swell of my breasts. The color made my pale skin glow.
“We’re done here,” Fiona said, stating the obvious. “Decision made.”
