Her eyes flashed, but her voice remained cool. “Don’t flatter yourself. I intend to live at the Double Circle.”
He snorted in disbelief. “For how long? Until you get bored with life in the slow lane?”
“Indefinitely.”
“Hell, you don’t belong in Sunshine Gap and you never will. Once the novelty wears off, the isolation will drive you nuts, and when winter sets in, you won’t believe how bleak and unforgiving this place can be. You’ll hate it.”
She spread her feet wider apart and propped her hands on her hips, her eyes narrowed like a gunfighter’s. “I don’t think that’s any of your concern.”
“You’re dead wrong,” Jake said. “Everything that goes on at the Double Circle concerns me.”
“And you believe that because?”
Jake stepped closer, intentionally invading her personal space. “I’ve been running that place for George for the past ten years. I know every inch of it, every cow, calf, steer and bull on it and where they go whenever a section of fence goes down. I know where to find every irrigation gate, every pump, every piece of equipment and spare part on that ranch. I’ve earned the right to buy it. You haven’t.”
“Did you have an option to buy it from George?” she demanded. “Or any other sort of legal agreement?”
Jake wanted to lie, but knew if he did, she’d make him produce proof he didn’t have. Because he’d been a trusting fool, dammit. Time to change the subject.
“You don’t know the first thing about ranching,” he said.
Her smile told him she knew exactly what he was trying to do and she wasn’t going to fall for it. “George will teach me whatever I need to know.”
“It takes years to learn everything you’re gonna need to know. I doubt he’ll live that long.”
“I’ll take my chances.” Hope’s tone was as dry as the dust on her shoes. “George is in terrific shape for a man his age.”
“I won’t help you the way I’ve helped him,” Jake said.
“I’ll hire whatever help I need.”
“It’s not that easy—”
She cut him off with a huff. “Give me a break. Ranching’s a lot of hard work, but it’s not rocket science. It’s a business, and even us flaky Californians have to conduct business sometimes. I’m not a complete idiot.”
“I never said you were,” he grumbled.
“Close enough. For your information, I have two full-time employees in California, so I know how to be a boss. I also serve on the boards of directors for several multi-million-dollar charitable foundations.”
“It’s not the same thing.” Hearing his own voice rising to a near-shout, Jake inhaled a deep breath, consciously trying to calm down. He’d never won an argument by losing his temper.
“Of course it’s not the same thing,” she said with an exaggerated patience that made Jake grit his teeth. “But I’m a quick study. With George’s help and advice, I can learn how to manage one small Wyoming ranch.”
“Small? You think the Double Circle is small?” In spite of his best efforts, his voice rose again. Rebel whinnied and stamped his feet as if the shouting was disturbing him.
Hope glanced at the horse, then looked back at Jake, a grin tugging at the corners of her mouth. “It’s only one business. I can handle that much.”
“Don’t bet on it.” He doggedly ground the words out, desperately wishing she would listen, but not really expecting her to. “You’re playing with something you don’t understand.”
She rolled her eyes toward heaven and her grin widened into a cheesy, Hollywood smile. “Do try to be a good loser, darling. Since you won’t have to worry about the Double Circle, think of all the free time you’ll have. Maybe you should get a hobby.”
That did it. Jake’s temper snapped and he found himself shouting. “Dammit, lady, the Double Circle’s been a great ranch for over a hundred years, but you’ll run it into the ground inside of three months. Then you’re gonna come to me, begging for help. You don’t belong out here.”
“Get over yourself, McBride,” she said with an indignant huff. “It’s my ranch now. Whatever I do with it is no business of yours, and the devil will play ice hockey before I ask you for anything. You’ll have to excuse me.”
She turned away and jogged back toward the Double Circle without so much as a glance over her shoulder at him. Jake stood in the middle of the gravel road, watching until she rounded the curve by the big old cottonwood tree marking the boundary between the Flying M and the Double Circle.
His gut churned. His head ached. His chest felt…empty. As if somebody had scooped the heart right out of him and left only an empty carcass behind. He’d lost the Double Circle.
Most likely for good.
And for the first time in years he didn’t know what to do next. Hope was right. It really wasn’t any of his business what she did with her own ranch.
But he was right, too. She didn’t have a clue what a huge bite she’d just gnawed off. If there was any justice in this world, she’d choke on it. And he’d be damned if he’d do one blessed thing to make life any easier for her.
“Wretched man,” Hope muttered, dodging around an enormous pothole in the gravel road. “Who does he think he is? I belong here as much as anyone else. George said so.”
At the sound of a car coming up behind her, she moved to the side of the road. It wasn’t nearly as hot here as it was in L.A., but the elevation and lack of pavement made jogging in Sunshine Gap more of a challenge. She swiped the back of her hand across her forehead, then rubbed the muddy mixture of dust and perspiration down the side of her shorts.
“Hey, baby,” a familiar voice called from the vehicle, which had pulled up beside her. “What’s shakin’?”
Hope slowed to a walk and turned to find Marsh McBride grinning at her from the driver’s side of a black BMW convertible. The top was down, and his black hair was wild and windblown. Though there was a striking family resemblance among all of the McBride men, Marsh was the most classically handsome.
Even in Hollywood, where gorgeous men were as common as street signs, he was considered one of “the beautiful people.”
Hope had met him years ago in a screenwriting class at USC. Over endless drafts of screenplays that were never produced they’d become fast friends and writing buddies.
How odd was it that Marsh had never aroused a single spark of sexual attraction in her, but his obnoxious cousin Jake could make her heart pound with a look?
Which only went to prove there really was no accounting for taste. Or, perhaps, she simply was perverse. Or crazy.
Still, after that confrontation with Jake, the sight of a friendly face warmed her heart. “Marsh, darling, where have you been since the wedding?”
Leaning across the gearshift, he opened the passenger door for her. “Get in and I’ll tell you.”
“I should cool down first.” He stared at her deadpan, making her laugh. “Oh, all right. My run’s already been ruined anyway.” She climbed into the car and pointed straight ahead. “Take me home.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He drove off toward the Double Circle.
“So tell me. Where have you been?”
“In Reno.”
“What have you been doing there? Gambling?”
“More like drinking a lot and sulking