Loving Lauren Read Online Free Page A

him, waiting.
     
    “He also tells me things are running smoothly at the ranch.” Her eyes narrowed and she could feel her blood beginning to boil. “I suppose I'll head out there later this week, just to check up...on the livestock.” She slowly crossed her arms and felt her face turn red with anger. “You know, since I'll be taking over dad's practice at the end of the year.” His smile got bigger.
     
    She looked over to his dad and frowned. “You're retiring?” He nodded and she felt her heart sink. That meant that...she looked over at Chase quickly and his smile dropped a little. That meant that Chase was here to stay. Her shoulders slumped a little. Feeling defeated, she said. “Yes, I suppose you'll want to stop by the ranch. I'll be there all week.” She knew she sounded a little deflated, but she couldn't help it. She felt that way.
     
    After her shift was over, she drove home and tried her best to hide the fear she felt inside so that her sisters wouldn't see. Before going inside, she walked into the barn and stayed there until she felt like she could control her fear. She walked over to Tanner's stall and leaned her head against his tan one while stroking his blond mane.
     
    “Why does everything have to be so complicated?” she asked the horse.
     
    She heard a noise behind her and when she jolted and turned, she saw Hewitt, her foreman’s nephew, whom she'd hired on a few weeks back.
     
    “Pardon, miss. I didn't know you was in here.” He shuffled his boots and nodded his head. Still, his eyes bore into her, making her feel a little uncomfortable.
     
    Hewitt was a good fifteen years younger and two times larger than Jimmy, the man that had been her foreman since her father had run the ranch. She'd only seen Hewitt a few times and each time his shirt was dirty and untucked, and his jeans had holes in them and looked like they could use a good washing. His hair looked like he'd greased it back with something dark, causing it to look constantly wet. She knew that he and a few other hands smoked, and she didn't mind as long as they didn't do it anywhere near the barn or house, but he stank of cigarettes. But Jimmy had vouched for him so she'd hired him and eleven other men this year to help around the ranch. She only employed six men year-round. The others came and went depending on the ranch needs.
     
    “I was just checking on the horses. Good night.” She nodded as she walked by him. When she reached the barn door, she took in a deep breath of fresh air and headed towards the back door of the house. Haley was sitting at the kitchen table watching the news on the old TV set when she walked in.
     
    “Where's Alex?” Lauren dropped her bag on the counter and leaned against it, then watched Haley lift her shoulders and drop them again, not removing her eyes from the set. Lauren took just a second to watch the news, then turned and started pulling out items to make for dinner. She knew that if she didn't cook, her sisters would grab just about anything, usually cold cereal or leftover pizza someone had ordered for lunch. Haley occasionally got the idea to cook, but Alex steered clear of the kitchen altogether.
     
    Family dinners were a ritual she tried to keep for her sisters. Even if she couldn't cook every night, she at least tried for a few nights a week. Plus, cooking always gave her time to think. On more than one occasion tonight, Chase Graham's image popped into her mind. She was worried what his moving back into town meant, and knowing he was planning on stopping by the ranch later this week set her nerves on high alert.
     
    “Hey.” Alex came in the back door a few minutes later. Her shirt was untucked and she had hay in her hair. Her sister leaned against the counter top, picked up an apple, and bit into it.
     
    Lauren looked out the window and saw a truck spitting up dust as it flew down their drive, heading back towards town. “Is that Travis Nolan's truck I see driving away?”