BELLA GLANCED DOWN AT her riding attire and smiled. She wanted to be ready when Jason returned.
Grabbing her hat off the rack she placed it on her head and opened the door to step outside on the porch. Riley had gotten out of the truck and was leaning against it. He glanced over at her and smiled.
“Ready to go riding I see,” he said.
“Yes, Jason told me to be ready. We’re having breakfast with Dillon and Pam.”
“Yes, I had planned to have breakfast with them as well but I have a meeting at the office.”
Bella nodded. “You enjoy working inside?”
Riley chuckled. “Yes, I’ll leave the horses, dirt and grime to Jason. He’s always liked being outdoors. When he worked at Blue Ridge I knew it was just a matter of time before wanderlust got ahold of him. He’s good with horses, so are Zane and Derringer. Joining in with the Montana Westmorelands in that horse business was great for them.”
Bella nodded again. “So exactly what do you do at Blue Ridge?”
“Mmm, a little bit of everything. I like to think of myself as Dillon’s right-hand man. But my main job is PR. I have to make sure Blue Ridge keeps a stellar image.”
Bella continued to engage in conversation with Riley while thinking he was another kind Westmoreland man. It seemed that all of them were. But she’d heard Bailey remark more than once that Riley was also a ladies’ man, and she could definitely believe that. Like Jason, he was handsome to a fault.
“So, Riley, when will you settle down and get married?” she asked him, just to see what his response would be.
“Married? Me? Never. I like things just the way they are. I am definitely not the marrying kind.”
Bella smiled, wondering if Jason wasn’t the marrying kind, as well, although he’d given a marriage proposal to her. Did he want joint ownership of her land and Hercules that much? Evidently so.
JASON SMILED AS HE HEADED back to Bella’s ranch with a horse he knew she would love riding. Fancy Free was an even tempered mare. In the distance, he could see Bella was standing on the porch waiting for him. He would discount the fact that she seemed to be having an enjoyable conversation with Riley, who seemed to be flirting with her.
He ignored the signs of jealousy seeping into his bones. Riley was his brother and if you couldn’t trust your own brother who could you trust? A lightbulb suddenly went off in his head. Hell. Had Abel assumed the same thing about Cain?
He tightened his hands on his horse and increased his pace to a gallop. What was Riley saying to Bella to make her laugh so much anyway? Riley was becoming a regular ladies’ man around town. It seemed he was trying to keep up with Zane in that aspect. Jason had always thought Riley’s playboy ways were amusing. Until now.
Moments later he brought his horse to a stop by the edge of Bella’s porch. He tilted his Stetson back on his head so it wouldn’t shield his eyes. “Excuse me if I’m interrupting anything.”
Riley had the nerve to grin up at him. “No problem but you’re twenty minutes late. You better be glad I enjoy Bella’s company.”
Jason frowned at his brother. “I can tell.”
His gaze then shifted to Bella. She looked beautiful standing there in a pair of riding breeches that fitted her body to perfection, a white shirt and a pair of riding boots. She didn’t just look beautiful, she looked hot as sin and a side glance at Riley told him that his brother was enjoying the view as much as he was.
“Don’t you need to be on your way to work, Riley?”
His brother gave him another grin. “I guess so. Call if you need me as Bella’s bodyguard again.” He then got into his truck and drove off.
Jason watched him leave before turning his full attention back to Bella. “Ready to go riding, sweet heart?”