Page 7 of The Rancher's Heart

He looked up from the menu he held in front of him like a wall of bricks whose sole purpose was to keep people out. “What are you having?”

“The special.” She laid aside her menu and leaned on her forearms. “Come on, Jonas. Don’t be a brat. Spill.”

His brows shot up. “Brat?”

“You heard me. Why breakfast this morning? We could have talked anywhere. Even at your office.” Hopefully, his sudden need to speak to her wasn’t because she’d gone on a date to get him out of her system. A pleasant excursion, if not an event that would be repeated with that particular gentleman.

Laying his menu flat on the table, he leaned toward her, copying her posture. “Because we’re best friends?”

“Maybe, but I don’t think that’s why we’re here.” She narrowed her gaze on the man who was giving her heartburn.

When he had business on his mind, he usually dressed to impress. This morning he’d left his suit in his closet. He was up to something. She recognized the signs. The clean cut of his jeans and western shirt. His hair brushed off his forehead. He was eye-catching in his everyday rancher garb.

Betsy returned to take their order. Two specials. Coffee for Jonas. Orange juice for herself.

When the waitress left, Sloane raised one brow and stared at Jonas. Sooner or later, he would tell her what he wanted. She was pretty sure that wasn’t his best friend, so she ignored the wishful thinking gnawing at her belly and kept her lips clamped tightly together.

Finally, he leaned back and asked, “Why are you using a dating app to find guys to go out with?”

Sloane shrugged. Just what she’d suspected. She wasn’t sure who’d told him she’d signed up with Perfect Match... probably Nathan or Izzy since, at the moment, they were the only ones who knew. This should be good. “When was the last timeyouwent on a date?”

It’d been unexpected when her dad retired a few years back, leaving his baby, Michaels’ Garage, in her care, to realize that she loved Jonas Lohmen with her whole heart. He didn’t return the feeling, so it didn’t take long to figure out that she didn’t need a guy, like most women did. She could take care of herself. She just wished he saw her as wife material.

“It’s been a few months.” His expression went blank, making Sloane suspicious. “With the move back to Strawberry Ridge, I’m too busy to give a woman the attention she deserves.”

“So, you want to become a hermit like Scrooge and keep any warm feelings you might have toward your someone special to yourself? Well, I’m not too busy.” She took a deep breath. “I want to find a man who will love me, heart and soul, so”—Sadly, Jonas wasn’t that guy. Never had been, if she was reading him right—“if I can’t have that, what I want from a lifetime partner is someone who shares the same interests. A guy who will laugh and have my back when the chips are down. And someone who loves Strawberry Ridge enough to want to raise our family here. And I’m hoping to find this fella this year.”

The shocked look on his handsome face almost had Sloane laughing. But not quite. If he knew her as well as he thought he did, he wouldn’t be so surprised.

“Isn’t that kind of fast?”

“Look. I’m thirty-five. I don’t want to wait...” She almost finished that sentence. Barely refrained. She was not going to tell Jonas how she really felt about him. “Any longer.”

He locked her gaze in disbelief. “So, you’re willing to settle?”

She scooted back her chair. “I’m not settling. And it’s none of your business, Jonas, what I do about my personal life.”

“Wait! Hang on.” He held up his hand to stop her from leaving the table. “I’m sorry. You’re right. I swear I only have your best interests at heart. It is your life to live. I just think you can do better than to date random strangers. You should get what you want in life.”

She sank back into the chair. “Like find a man who loves me enough to want to marry me?”

“Of course. You will make someone a great wife.”

“I know.” Sloane stared at her best friend for a long moment. How could he NOT know?

Betsy brought their order. “Is there anything else I can bring you folks?”

“Are we good?”

Sloane wanted to say no, but it wasn’t a question about their relationship he was asking. She nodded.

When Betsy went to the next table, Sloane picked up her fork. She stared at Jonas and, before she lost her courage, raised her chin and asked, “Are you applying for the job?” He choked on the bite of gravy-covered biscuit he’d put in his mouth. That answered her question. Jonas wasn’t the guy.

“Don’t answer that.”

He swallowed a gulp of coffee. His gaze latched onto Sloane’s. “We’re best friends.”

“I know. I’m just giving you a hard time,” she said to cover up her mistaken thought that maybe, just maybe, he saw her as more than a friend. She knew she shouldn’t say anything else but couldn’t stop there. “Just so you know, I don’t keep track of your dating habits. That also means you’re not allowed to get all up in arms about mine.”

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