Page 1 of Mountain Rancher

Chapter One

ABIGAIL

“Ugh,these shoes were not made for what I’m putting them through right now.” My sister-in-law Melody adjusts her cute maternity sundress as we power up the gentle slope. “Who decided a ‘hot girl walk’ was appropriate for someone seven months pregnant?”

“Don’t blame me,” Savannah chimes in from behind us. Her ponytail swings with each step. “I suggested yoga by the pond, but nooo. Somebody”—she nudges Jasmyn—“said we needed to ‘work those glutes.’”

Jasmyn shrugs, not the least bit apologetic.

“Fresh air is good for the baby. Besides, Wyatt mentioned that Melody’s been restless at night.”

“Oh, did he now?” Melody raises an eyebrow at her husband’s betrayal. “Tell me, what else does my darling husband share about me when I’m not around?”

“Only the good stuff.” I pat her arm. “Like how you’ve been organizing and reorganizing the nursery at three in the morning.”

“I’m nesting!” Melody defends herself, but she’s laughing. “It’s a documented biological phenomenon.”

The Wyoming sun beats down on my shoulders as I follow my three sisters-in-law along the familiar trail that winds around the Clayton Ranch. My childhood home has been in my family for generations and sprawls across the landscape with its rolling hills, pine forests, and grazing pastures.

We crest the hill, and I pause to take in the view.

From here, I can see all the way to the main house, the barn, and the outbuildings clustered in the valley. The ranch looks smaller from up here, though I know it stretches for ten thousand acres in every direction. It’s strange being back. It feels both completely at home and somewhat out of place.

“I still can’t believeJace and Lindsay are getting engaged,” Savannah says, breaking the silence. “I mean, we all saw it coming, but still."

"I wassure it would take those two forever," Jasmyn says with a laugh. "Talk about the slowest burn in history."

I smile,thinking about my brother and his fiancée. For years, they'd been "just friends," both secretly pining for each other while everyone around them saw what they couldn't. The ranch hands even had a betting pool going for when they'd finally get together.

"Sometimes the bestrelationships start as friendships," Melody says, rubbing her belly absently. "You already know all the worst parts of each other and love them anyway."

"Speaking of relationships,"Savannah turns to me with that look in her eye that makes me want to run for the hills, "how's your love life going in the big city, Abby?"

I groan."Nonexistent. Between work and traveling to client sites, I barely have time to water my plants, let alone date."

"But you're meeting people, right?"Jasmyn presses. "Handsome executives? Dashing creative directors?"

"Sure, lots of people,"I say vaguely. "Just no one special."

The truth is more complicated.I've had a few dates in the past year, but nothing that sparked. Nothing that made me want to rearrange my schedule or check my phone constantly for messages. Nothing like what my brothers have found.

“What happened to that investment banker?” Jasmyn asks. “The one you mentioned at Easter. David, right?”

I shrug, trying to appear nonchalant. “It didn’t work out. We wanted different things.”

What I don’t add is that what David wanted was someone who would prioritize his career over her own. Someone who would be content playing corporate wife and would host dinner parties and eventually step back from her own work to raise children. No thanks.

“That’s too bad,” Melody says, but I can tell she doesn’t really mean it. None of them liked David much when I mentioned him. “But you know, being single isn’t the worst thing.”

“Says the woman whose husband brings her breakfast in bed,” Jasmyn teases.

Melody pats her baby bump. “True, but I had my fair share of terrible dates before Wyatt.”

They don’t say it, but I know what they’re thinking. I’m the last Clayton standing, the only one without a partner. Wyatt has Melody, Brody has Savannah, Luke has Jasmyn, and now even my baby brother, Jace, is engaged to Lindsay. I’m the odd one out.

“Honestly, I’m too busy for dating right now. The Houston office is launching three new investment portfolios, and I’m leading the team.”

It’s not a lie. I do have a successful career. My corner office has a view of the Houston skyline, I closed on my own condo last year, and I’ve been shortlisted for a promotion that would make me the youngest financial director in the firm’s history. By any objective measure, I’m doing great.

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