Unbreak My Heart (Rough Riders Legacy #1)

“Why are you pressing me on this?”


Think fast, man. “Because I trust you. If there’s no commission on the line then you can be completely honest about my options.”

“You mean your friend’s options,” she said sharply.

Fuck. I almost blew that. “Yeah. You can help me narrow down my buddy Raj’s choices.”

“Why does Raj trust you so much?”

“Because I’m trustworthy.” Except you’re lying like a motherfucker right now, aren’t you? And what is going to happen when she finds out? I’d worry about that later; right now I had her on the hook.

Then something Kyler had mentioned clicked and I played my only trump card. “Besides, you helped Mase find the McMansion he bought last summer. Kyler wouldn’t shut up about how everything went seamlessly with you involved. Even when residential rentals and sales aren’t in your wheelhouse.”

“That big-mouthed asshat,” she muttered.

I moved in closer. “Would it really be horrible spending a few hours with me this morning?”

Sierra got that squinty-eyed stare as if she was envisioning her daily schedule.

So I quickly added, “Or I can come back this afternoon. Or even tomorrow sometime if that works better for your schedule.”

“Actually, today is the only day this week that my morning schedule is flexible.”

Do not punch your fist in the air and shout Boo-yah! “So you’ll do it with me?”

Those tawny-colored eyes of hers snapped to mine. “Excuse me?”

“You’ll give me an overview of Phoenix?”

She sighed. “You are such a pushy bastard, West. But yes.” She eyed the file folders on her desk. “I didn’t really want to deal with all of this quarterly stuff anyway.”

“I’m happy to be your excuse for ditching office work for a few hours.”

Sierra smiled at me and my heart damn near burst. “You tried to get me to ditch school with you once.”

“I remember. Feeling flush with cash for a change, I offered to buy you a DQ chili dog. I promised to have you back in time for fifth period. You turned me down.” My eyes searched hers. “Why?”

“Because I didn’t want you spending your money on me,” she said softly. “I knew how hard you worked for it.”

Being this close to her, smelling her perfume and watching the pulse pounding in her throat…I’d wanted this, but I had no idea how to act on it because I had zero experience with starting a relationship.

My conscience snapped, I’m pretty sure luring her in with a lie is the worst possible option.

Sierra sidestepped me and returned to her brusque demeanor. “I’ll need to speak with my assistant before we go. I’ll pick you up at the main entrance in ten minutes.”

“I have a call to make”—total lie and wasn’t I just turning into fucking Pinocchio?—“so that’ll work.”

I assumed she’d loosen up once we left Stepford Central. During my twenty-three-minute stint in the reception area, I’d watched Sierra’s colleagues, whose icy demeanors were identical to the one she’d perfected. I couldn’t blame her for following the crowd, especially if she was trying to blend in.

But she’d never blend. She never had.

After taking the stairs to the first floor, I cut across the blacktop to a small grassy area with a stone bench. What rocket scientist decided it’d be a great idea to plant grass in the damn desert? With time to kill, I checked my cell phone and saw that my dad had called again. With only a seven-minute window before Sierra pulled up, the callback couldn’t go long and I’d be done with it. I dialed and immediately began to pace.

He answered with a gruff, “Hello.”

“Hey Dad.”

“I started to think you wouldn’t call me back. It’s been a few weeks.”

You don’t get to lay a guilt trip on me, old man. “Life is busy and all that. What’s up?”

“Chet told me you were in Wyoming.”

“I spent two weeks working at the clinic in Sundance. Now I’m in Phoenix.”

“Chet was pretty vague about your plans. So was Remy when I asked him.” He paused. “My brothers have always looked out for you.”

They wouldn’t have had to if you would’ve stepped up and done your parental duty.

“That’s always surprised me,” he continued. “Growing up, they had their own little world. I never fit in. And our folks were…”

Goddamned apathetic. My grandparents had the same level of interest in me as their son had—near zero.

“Whatever. Did you really call me to talk about my uncles?”

“No. But I want to talk to you about some stuff.” He coughed.

“Are you sick?” I said sharply.

“Nah. Always been a point of pride I became a workaholic, not an alcoholic. Then one day I woke up and realized that too much work has the same effect as too much booze. I’d lived twenty-eight years of my life in an absolute fog.”

An uneasy feeling took root. “Did Chet and Remy put you up to this?”

“Nope. Look, this ain’t a conversation to have over the phone.”