Page 20 of The Holiday Heartbreaker

Ashley wasn’t as accomplished as Elizabeth was. Not even close.

So there.

She was petty, perhaps. But she kept it inside so it didn’t infect Benny, and that was all that mattered.

“Seems we have a lot of work to do to convince you that horses are actually amazing.”

“And why do you like horses, Brody?” Elizabeth said. She hadn’t really meant to ask that, because she wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answer. She wasn’t sure she wanted to begin to turn this paragon of masculinity into a fully fleshed out human being.

“Because I never liked people all that much, Elizabeth. And horses consistently proved to be better companions. It was the best thing about growing up on this ranch.” There was some other truth underlining the words, and she couldn’t quite get at it.

They came to their first stop, a beautiful, white stable in pristine condition. And inside were some of the most stunning horses she’d ever seen. Older and docile, horses that would be past their prime to a lot of the people who came to look at them, but she thought they were glorious. It was a roan mare that really caught and held her affection.

“Over there you’ve got Blueberries and Flowers. This here’s Strawberries. Strawberries is a good girl,” he said. “Hunter and Elsie got her from a ranch up in Washington a few months ago. Actually, that was the trip where they hooked up. That’s a whole story.”

“What does hooked up mean?” Benny asked.

Horror hit Elizabeth in the chest, and she looked at Brody, who looked equally horrified. And she decided she was going to let him answer that question. See just how he did it. Because he was going to have to learn how to talk around Benny.

No, he doesn’t. Benny isn’t his child. He does not spend any time with Benny if he doesn’t want to.

This wasn’t going to be a regular thing. There were tons of people on this ranch. She wouldn’t always need him to play tour guide. Realistically, they were never going to have to see each other. Or at least, they shouldn’t have to see each other all that much.

“They started dating each other,” Brody said. “They were, um... She... Well, she’s Hunter’s best friend’s sister, so it was a little weird at first, but it’s...well, it isn’t...weird now.”

Elizabeth laughed, because she knew there had to be a lot of drama going on in that situation.

“Yeah,” he said, looking at her with an expression that was far too close to wicked. “It’s exactly what you think.”

“Well, the horse is glorious. And even if it did cause a little bit of family drama, I think the trip was worth it.”

“Seeing as they’re engaged now, I think it was worth it either way.”

She wondered if he meant that. He didn’t seem like a romantic, and Elizabeth had a hard time not being cynical about romance. Even when people seemed as happy as Gus and Alaina, and Elsie and Hunter. Or Tag and Nelly. They all seemed ridiculously happy with each other, and with their love. But Elizabeth knew that those things didn’t last. And the promises that somebody made in the first blush of those feelings didn’t necessarily stand the test of time. Not when somebody prettier, somebody better, came by.

And she really did try not to be bitter about that. It wasn’t bitterness, it was just a healthy measure of cynicism. How could you not be cynical when a man you had been with since you were fourteen years old turned into an entirely different person one day? As if there had been some finger snap that had created a before and after that made no sense at all.

It was different than being heartbroken. She wasn’t. It was just that she had learned that you might think you know somebody, but you don’t really. And maybe they didn’t even know themselves.

Because if she believed what Carter told her, he was just as surprised as she was. And while she had a hard time trusting that, she had a feeling there were shades of truth to it.

“Definitely,” she said, rather than giving voice to any of the strange thoughts rolling around inside of her.

And supernaturally handsome Brody just smiled.

“How many horses are in here?” Benny asked.

“Fifteen,” Brody said. “And most of them used to be in rodeos. Barrel racers, bucking broncos.”

“Were you in the rodeo?”

“No. I’m not a rhinestone cowboy, Benny, I’m a real cowboy.”

Benny wrinkled his nose. “I don’t know what that means.”

Brody laughed. “Right. Well, do you want to go for a ride?”

“I don’t know how to ride.”

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