Page 42 of Marrying Bonnie

Bonnie shook her head as she addressed Jace. “He’s way too modest. He and Chrissy are the heart behind Joyful Hope Stables, and don’t let him convince you otherwise.”

Her loyalty and encouragement had Wyatt smiling at her, but it also filled Jace with pride. He knew how important it was to have Noel’s support and to know Bonnie was the kind of woman who helped her brother was just one of the many reasons why he’d fallen in love with her.

The realization struck him as surely as a blow. He was completely, head over heels, in love. And it wasn’t a recent thing, either.

Jace had loved Bonnie for months. Maybe longer. But he hadn’t allowed himself to even consider the possibility.

Until now.

Now, he could picture building a life with this woman by his side. He imagined raising Gunner together.

God, is this real? I know she adores Gunner like a mom would, but could she love me as I love her?

His heart soared, and he had to force himself to focus on the conversation shifting around him and the food that was being placed on the table. Bonnie had been hesitant to be friends with him; if he told her how he felt now, he was afraid she might pull back.

As much as he’d love to talk to her tonight, he needed to give it some time. The last thing he wanted to do was make a mess out of something that had potential.

For now, he enjoyed lunch and watching Bonnie with her family. She was relaxed, and at one point, laughed at something Wyatt said until she had tears in her eyes. He wanted to laugh with her like that one day.

His thoughts briefly switched to Samantha. For the first time, there was no guilt there. No comparison. It was simply an acknowledgment that things were different, and that was okay.

It was okay to love Bonnie.

Chapter Fifteen

It was a whole lot easier to be friends with Jace than it was to avoid him. Bonnie wasn’t sure which had been harder: Ignoring how she felt about Jace or barely talking to him for a while. When Noel had commented about Jace caring for her, it’d given Bonnie some hope. Until Jace said he wanted to be friends. The idea of not being more than friends resulted in stabs of disappointment that she had to fight to ignore.

Until he’d accepted her invitation to church. Not only that, but he’d joined them for lunch, too. It’d been surreal to have the two biggest parts of her life—which she’d kept completely separate before—essentially in a room interacting together.

It’d been wonderful.

But where did that leave her and Jace?

Speaking of her handsome employer, it was Monday, and he was running a little late today getting home, and so was Noel. It was frustrating because no matter what she told herself about them being friends, she still couldn’t wait to see him when he got home.

She played with Gunner and tried to keep the little boy busy. Dinner was in the slow cooker, and honestly, the day had dragged by.

As though it had been orchestrated, the front door opened to admit both Noel and Jace. Noel waved her hands around, her voice raised.

"The next time she bothers me at work with one of her 'talks,' things are going to get downright uncivilized."

Bonnie tried not to chuckle since she could hardly picture Noel as being anything but civil to anyone. Instead, she focused on the tower of blocks she and Gunner were building and tried not to listen in on their conversation. It was impossible.

Jace closed the door harder than necessary. "You need to tell the people up front that they shouldn't allow Mother through without your approval first. She assumes everyone will rearrange their lives for her, and when they don’t, she manipulates things in her favor."

"I'd like to think we proved she doesn’t have control over us by taking over the ranch." Noel sank to the couch near Bonnie with a satisfied smile on her face. "I sure don't lose sleep over it."

"Me either," Jace agreed. "Speaking of the ranch, I need to eat fast and get back out to the barn. I may be out there most of the night."

That had Bonnie's attention. She sat upright and focused on Jace. "What's going on?"

"We're stretched thin. Cabe had to go out of town for a couple of days. Brady and Elvin are taking shifts patrolling the fence line and keeping an eye on the herds. Meanwhile, we have a ewe that's in labor with twins and having some difficulty. I'm going to stay in the barn and keep an eye on her. Make sure we get the lambs here safely. After having so many stolen, we can't afford to lose either of them."

Noel nodded. “I've got Gunner tonight. No worries. I hope the little ones make it okay."

Bonnie did, too. "I'd be happy to help if you need me."

Immediately, Jace shook his head. "I couldn't ask you to do that. Who knows how long we'll be out there?"

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