Page 8 of The Rancher's Heart

“You’re telling me to back off.” The corners of his lips twitched up. “You’re right. What was I thinking?”

Sloane finally let go and cut him a break. This was the Jonas Lohmen she knew and... liked. “I don’t know.”

She scooted her plate closer. She’d been a pushover in junior high and high school. A dreamer who kept hoping her best friend would come to his senses and like her as much as she did him. Thank goodness she was leaving that behind.

As soon as she got done with work, she would go on an exploratory mission. She was tired of playing the proverbial wallflower while she waited for her BFF to notice that she had more to give than merely being the girl he put back on the shelf when it suited him. Her next date on Perfect Match was waiting for her to find him.

“Are things improving at the ranch?”

Before making the move back to Strawberry Ridge, he’d told her that the Triple L was in trouble and since then, while they were getting his new office ready to open for business, he’d mentioned the brothers had gone to the bank to see if they could refinance the Triple L.

He had her sympathy. She would be shattered if she lost the garage her dad had grown into a viable business.

He’d come back to Strawberry Ridge, part-time, for the time being, and rented the Iverness Building—without mentioning that he was interested in pursuing a more serious relationship with her—that was when she’d decided that waiting for Jonas Lohmen was like trying to spit into a gale-force wind. Useless and would not get her what she wanted.

“We still have a way to go, but things are getting better.” He sent her a half smile and went back to his meal.

After finishing her biscuits and gravy in silence, Sloane tried again. “I heard that the Triple L is going to be a sponsor at the rodeo.” She’d bought her banner for the garage, not because she needed the business, but it never hurt to remind folks where they could get the best car repair service.

“That’s something Nathan and Izzy are working on to bring the ranch more attention, and hopefully, business too.” He pushed aside his empty plate.

“Are things really that bad?” She shouldn’t ask, but hey, if he couldn’t confide in his best friend, who could Jonas talk to about his troubles?

Jonas settled back in his chair. “Let’s just say we’re working hard to keep the Triple L in the family.”

The implication wasn’t good. She didn’t realize things had gotten that bad. What kind of friend did that make her?

“I have some money—” she blurted, then sat up straight. Most of her life, the Lohmen family and the Triple L were inseparable, connected in ways that bound them and the ranch together through two and now three generations.

Jonas waved her offer aside. “No need, but thanks. We have some things in the works and if I can figure out Duke’s pedigree records, we’ll be fine.” A frown pulled his brows together, quickly replaced with the tenaciousness she’d come to expect from him. She shouldn’t be surprised. “Guys in this town must be lined up around the block to take you out.”

“You would think so, wouldn’t you?” she said, barely keeping the irony out of her voice. She hadn’t seenhimgetting in line.

“They just don’t know a smart, pretty lady when they see one.” The corner of his lips lifted as the smile finally reached his eyes.

Sloane’s sarcasm eased. There was no point in wanting to clobber the man. This was just Jonas being Jonas.

Dang it. She took a breath, pasted on a smile, and stood. “I need to get to work. I can walk from here.”

He followed her after leaving cash on the table for their meals and Betsy’s tip. Holding the door open, he was still with her when she hit the sidewalk. “We should date the old-fashioned way.”

“What are you talking about, Jonas?” Sloane was confused and maybe a little insulted.

“You could go on a date with me.”

And now suspicious. “Why? You don’t love me.”

“Maybe not in the way you’re thinking, but we’ve been friends for a long time. If you want to go on a date, I’m here for you.”

That did it. “You’re here for me? If I’m hearing you right, you’re offering to take me on a pity date?”

“No—”

What the man needed was a splash of the unvarnished truth. She took his hand and said clearly, “I understand why you think you’re too busy to give a woman the attention she deserves. Sort of. But I want something you’re not willing to give. I want more than a single date or two because you don’t think I can find a guy on my own. I want love and kids and to do all the things a family does together. Someday, you may regret growing old alone. Not me. I’m going to keep looking for the right guy until I find him.”

Especially since the man staring at her didn’t want to be that guy.

Breaking their connection, he pushed his hands into his back pockets. “I won’t be alone. I may not have immediate plans to look for romance, but my brothers are making families as we speak.”

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