Page 56 of Worth Fighting For

I can’t help laughing at this. Oh no. All this time I’ve thought serious Work Shang was handsome. But this Shang, jokey and openhearted and armor-less, is gosh-darned irresistible. He grins, rolling his eyes. “How about this? You hold this pole, yep, and I’ll grab the stuff.”

I grab hold of the pole and continue screwing it in like Shang was doing, and in a short while, the tent is up. I look at it in wonderment. “I helped build this.”

“Yep.”

I unzip the front and duck my head to go inside. It’s a spacious tent, with enough room for two people. Shang pops his head in. “You like it?”

I hesitate only a second; after all, Shang was forced to give this tent up because of me, and I’m pretty sure that sleeping outside would be massively unpleasant for him. “Um, you know, this could fit the both of us.”

Shang frowns, bending over and walking inside. He looks around at the space. “I don’t know.…”

“I don’t snore, and I feel bad about you sleeping outside because my pack got washed away.”

“If you’re sure? But don’t feel like you have to.” Shang’s eyes burn into mine and I feel a tingle going down my spine.

What was I thinking? I’ve been so overwhelmed by the events of the day that, honestly, I wasn’t really thinking anything when I offered space in the tent, but of course, now it hits me that it means we’d be sleeping together, side by side. My insides turn molten and I swallow, the sound loud and clear in the enclosed space. Which version of me thought to offer to share the tent? Ranch Mulan? Work Mulan? Would my dad have said that? A small voice inside me whispers:I think that might’ve just been Horny Mulan. I smack the voice down viciously.

“Yeah,” I manage to say after an eternity. “As long as you keep to your side of the tent.”

“I don’t think this space is big enough to have ‘sides,’” Shang says dryly. “But yeah, thank you, I’ll take you up on your offer because it’ll be freezing cold outside. Uh, and another thing—”

“Yeah?” I say, my voice tight.

“I don’t imagine you have an extra sleeping bag somewhere on you?”

My mouth falls open. Damn it! I didn’t even think of sleeping bags.Argh.

Shang reads the expression of dismay on my face and sighs. “I thought so. It’s fine, mine’s pretty large and we can unzip it to use it as a blanket and maybe borrow some towels to use as a sleeping pad.” He gets out of the tent, leaving me to sink to my knees, pinching the bridge of my nose.

What is happening to me out here? This morning, I would’ve said the wildest thing I’ve ever done was to get into a bar fight. But now the day isn’t even over and I’ve just invited Shang into my bed. I shudder to think what else might happen before night’s end.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

There is nothing better than hot food after a whole day of riding. I realize this as I sit down near the campfire and Auntie Jiayi hands me a steaming bowl of ramen. The aunties have fortified the instant ramen with napa cabbage, shiitake mushrooms, crabsticks, and eggs, and it’s the most delicious thing I’ve ever eaten, boiling hot and spicy and savory and utterlyslurpable.

There is more than enough for everyone, and the mood is merry and lighthearted as we all sit around the fire and slurp at our noodles. At some point, Uncle Hong opens his cooler and passes around cans of beer to everyone. The switching back and forth between steaming-hot noodle soup and sparkling cold beer is heavenly. Even James fails to annoy me with his annoying jokes.

“To family,” Uncle Hong says, raising his beer can.

“To family,” we chorus, and I meet Shang’s eye and feel a warmth that has nothing to do with the hot food or alcohol coursing down to the depths of my stomach.

“You girls have impressed us on this trip,” Uncle Hong says.

“Thanks, you’ve impressed us, too,” Mushu says.

Everyone laughs.

“Ah, but really,” Uncle Hong says. “To tell you the truth, I was thinking before the trip that you definitely won’t be able to cut it out here. Two city girls coming all the way out here? Hah!” He smiles at me. “But you have been such a good sport about everything. To Zhou and Mushu.”

The mention of Zhou’s name turns the beer bitter in my mouth, but I swallow it with a forced smile anyway. “Thanks,” I say. “It’s been a true pleasure being here with all of you, getting to see your beautiful ranch and distillery. I see the love and care you’ve put into every part of the place, and I really admire it.”

Uncle Hong smiles and nods at the other uncles, who nod sagely in return. It feels like there’s been an unspoken conversation between the brothers, and I get the feeling that against all odds, I’ve passed the test. The cousins, too, look satisfied. All of them except James, who’s scowling at me, but James has been such a thorn in my side that, honestly, the thought of pissing him off delights me.

“Yes, I like you, Zhou,” Auntie Jiayi says. “I think you will give many good ideas for the company.”

“But we will still have creative control,” Uncle Hong says.

“Definitely,” I say. “Our company believes in working together very closely with our business partners, especially when it comes to creative decisions.”

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