Page 130 of Cash

Mollie’s lips twitch. “Yessir.”

“Is he making you call him sir?” Sally furrows her brow.

Mollie sends a wicked little glance my way. “Isn’t he such an asshole?”

My body pulses. “Don’t make me pull rank, y’all. Get this done.”

They do. Mollie’s confidence grows with every cow, until they’re all done and she’s still smiling like an idiot.

Or maybe I’m the one who’s the idiot, because I can’t even pretend not to stare at her as she digs her phone out of her pocket. She frowns when she sees the screen.

My heart dips. Something happen? Something wrong? It’s close to four o’clock, which means it’s time to turn in. By “turn in,” I mean sneak Mollie away in an ATV so we can shower together at the cabin before supper.

“I need to return this call.” Mollie glances at me. “I’ll see you at dinner. Sally, John B, thanks again for the hands-on coaching. I really appreciate it, y’all.”

“Anytime, Mollie. You’re an excellent student,” John B says, waving goodbye as Mollie scurries out of the barn.

Sally ducks out, too, saying she’s going to clean up.

Then it’s just John B and me and the knowing look he gives me as I pretend to tidy up the shovels by the door.

“Mollie’s turned out to be a lot more interested in the ranch than we initially thought,” he says after a beat of pregnant silence. “Y’all seem to be getting along a lot better.”

Straightening, I draw in a slow, deep breath. Put my hands on my hips. My body is tired, but my blood is anything but. It races through my veins, thrumming with excitement at the prospect of spending the evening with Mollie.

There’s a good bit of trepidation there too.

I swallow. “She’s not who I thought she was.”

“I can see that.”

My face burns. Meeting John’s eyes, I see a knowing gleam there.

Aw, shit. He’s on to me. Might as well be honest.

“You and Patsy—I know y’all met in high school. But how did you…” I ponder my words carefully. “You know, keep her? Get her to stay?”

John B’s face creases pleasantly as he tucks his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. “I kept her by letting her go.”

“That makes no sense.”

“It does, though. Patsy’s a dreamer. I knew she had plans for her life. Whether I fit into those plans or not, that was her call. Relationships are about compromise, sure. But no one should have to compromise on the big stuff. The big dreams.”

I kick at the dirt on the floor. “I don’t disagree.”

“Patsy and I were together in high school. But we went to different colleges, and obviously, I went to veterinary school after that. Throughout that time, I always made sure she knew how much I loved her. That I’d work my fingers to the bone to make her happy.”

My heart bangs against my breastbone. “Right.”

“So first, you tell her how you feel.”

Literal gulp. “Mm-hmm.”

John chuckles. “Telling Patsy I loved her for the first time might’ve been the most terrifying moment of my life. And I’ve been gored by a bull. Twice.”

“Jesus, John.”

“Occupational hazard. Anyway, the risk was worth the reward.” He sweeps out his arm. I know what he’s referring to—the life he’s built alongside Patsy. “I think because I was unafraid of telling her how I felt, telling her what I wanted, she did the same. We always knew where we stood with each other.”