Trusting the Cowboy by Carolyne Aarsen

for that. She often made me feel guilty that I wanted more. Even Dad would tell me not to be so proud.”
    “Keith was a frugal man.”
    “That’s a kind way of saying he was stingy.”
    Vic gave her another one of his killer smiles that touched her soul.
    “So what was your passion when you were younger?” he pressed. “What did you always want to do? Where were you the happiest?”
    Lauren considered his questions. “You know, my favorite times were when I was in my aunt’s flower shop. My dad would send us there once in a while when he didn’t know what else to do with us. I loved working with the flowers. I loved watching my aunt arrange them and combine colors and textures and create interesting displays. When I was older, she let me try my hand at it.” She released a light laugh. “I think the true appeal of my aunt’s shop was the calm I felt there. The happiness. It was like a little sanctuary for me and my sisters.”
    “Sounds like it was a good place for you.”
    A memory floated upward and she caught it. “When I was eighteen, my last summer here, I remember my aunt suggesting that I stay in Saddlebank and help her in the flower shop.”
    “So why didn’t you?”
    “My grandmother became ill and she needed me back in Knoxville.”
    “And being the responsible person you are, you went and you took care of her.”
    “I owed her a lot. Erin had just been accepted at college, and I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do and hadn’t applied anywhere, so I figured it was best if I stay. Jodie was only sixteen and still in high school. Someone needed to help Gramma.”
    Vic looked at her with a fleeting sadness. “That’s quite a sacrifice for such a young girl. And quite amazing.”
    She heard warmth, approval and sympathy in his voice, and for some reason, it made her feel emotional.
    “She’d given us a home. It was the least I could do.”
    “And now, this business you’re buying?”
    His question lingered as if he wasn’t sure what he wanted to ask about it. She knew her decision was the reason she was selling the ranch and that it had a huge impact on him, but she had to stay the course.
    “It’s an opportunity. A good one. The woman I’m partnering with is energetic and hardworking, and I think this is a good chance for me to strike out on my own.”
    “Working with numbers every day.”
    “You don’t need to make it sound like a death sentence,” she added with a light laugh. “I’m good at it and this business I’m buying in to is a... I think this is a good opportunity. A chance to take care of myself.”
    “But I understand you’ll be doing that with a partner.”
    “Yes, but she’s someone I can trust.”
    You thought you could trust Harvey. You thought you could trust your boss.
    The words slammed into her and she had to clench her fists to control the anger that rose within her.
    Even as she spoke she found herself reaching. As if she had to convince herself as much as him.
    “And what about you,” she countered, tired of analyzing her own life. “What’s your passion?”
    “Ranching. Always ranching,” he said, his voice strong with a conviction that she envied. “That’s never changed. My dad worked the ranch I live on and his grandfather before that and his grandfather before that. We’re not as old as the Bannister ranch, but close. It’s my heritage and I love it.” He gave her a sheepish smile. “I’m just a basic guy. A cattleman born and bred.”
    “You’re fortunate to have that legacy,” she said, wondering if she could ever muster up the same passion for her work that seemed to be ingrained into his identity. Her work was something she’d stumbled into. Something she discovered she was competent at, and her career carried on from there.
    For a moment, however, she wondered what her life would have been like if she’d followed through on Aunt Laura’s suggestion. If she’d stayed in Saddlebank.
    It was a moot point, she reminded herself. Her