Page 34 of Billionaire Undeceived - Devon

“And there were no prospects?” I questioned.

“I guess it really hasn’t been my priority,” she confessed. “And it’s not easy to meet a nice guy, even in a bigger city. I’m not much of a clubber anymore, and I haven’t tried dating apps. I did a few blind dates with friends of friends, but they were a disaster. We just didn’t…click. And I absolutely won’t date somebody from the same workplace. I think that’s trouble waiting to happen. Who wants to keep running into an ex-boyfriend at work if it doesn’t work out?”

I had to agree with her. I never hooked up with anyone I worked with at the office. That would be awkward, especially since I was the boss.

“I think I finally got philosophical about the whole dating thing,” she informed me. “I guess it will happen when it happens.”

“Everyone in town will start to try to fix you up with their single relatives pretty soon,” I warned her.

She laughed. “It’s already happening. I’ve been working with some of your mother’s friends on the spring fundraiser. All of them are throwing me prospects.”

Oh, hell no!

For some reason I didn’t really want to see Reese dating someone in town.

“And?” I prompted.

“Um…it was a no to all of them,” she confided. “I don’t want to date anyone right now, Devon. It’s not the right time for me.”

I hated myself for being relieved, but I was.

“I don’t think you’re missing anything,” I said. “The townspeople aren’t particularly good matchmakers. They just want to see everyone married and happy. Especially their single relatives. There aren’t a lot of single people here. A lot of my friends got married to their high school sweethearts and stayed to raise their families here. It’s rare that someone like you moves here voluntarily.”

“I have to admit that I actually like it here,” she shared. “It’s different. The pace is slower. But it’s a beautiful place with friendly people who all help each other. It’s a real…community.”

“Sometimes that’s a pain in the ass, but I missed it when I lived in New York,” I told her honestly. “I had my brothers there, but I missed the wide-open spaces and being able to see the stars at night. I craved the sounds of nature and the peace of silence that you can never get in a big city. I missed that sense of a tightknit community when I didn’t have it anymore. I grew up on a ranch, and it’s probably in my blood. I ride as often as possible to make up for the years that I couldn’t.”

“You’re so good with your horses,” she said. “I’m sure you learned all of that from your parents.”

“Mostly my dad,” I admitted.

“I’m sure you miss him,” she said gently.

“Every single day,” I answered. “It was a tough time in all of our lives when he died, but we got through it together. It was a wake-up call for all of us not to take anything for granted. Life is short, which is why we all try to find our personal lives outside of work now. Remington was our life for a while. We grew up enough to realize that work isn’t our entire lives.”

“I admire that about you,” Reese said. “You’re a billionaire. It would be really easy to get caught up in the power and that lifestyle and make it your entire life. You don’t.”

“Oh, I did,” I answered. “All three of us did. That’s why Tanner and Hannah broke up years ago. We all had our heads up our asses and weren’t paying attention to our real priorities. Luckily, the knucklehead got a second chance. That’s definitely not happening again.”

Reese got up and started to grab the dishes. “Hannah told me a little about what happened. The two of them are really happy now, but that separation was hard for both of them.”

I took the dishes from her hands. “Hey, cleanup is my job. You cook; I take care of the dishes.”

She picked up my dishes and followed me to the sink. “I can help. I’m not going anywhere. I’m just trying to let my food settle before I work out since you insisted on eating first.”

I’d been starving by the time we’d finished our long ride, so I’d talked her into getting food first today.

“I was hungry,” I grumbled.

Reese actually giggled. “You’re always hungry.”

“What about that banana bread you brought today?” I asked hopefully.

She sent me a scolding look. “Later. You said you wanted to work out with me, and you can’t have a bunch of food on your stomach right before you work out.”

I knew better, but I’d done it a number of times anyway.

Since I wasn’t really hungry anymore, I let Reese have her way.

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