Back to the Heart (18 page)

“Soon, we’ll be together again. But for now, I need to get to bed. I wish I could stay up all night and talk with you, but business calls.” He sighed.

“Of course.” Ana nodded, a bit sad that their little tryst was over. The truth, though, was that she needed sleep too. With a full day of work ahead of her, she could use all the rest she could get.

“I love you, Ana White. You are my world, and I can’t wait to get back to you.”

His sweet profession of love made her blush, and also reminded her that he would never hurt her. Every doubt she had had that he wouldn’t come back was wiped away in that moment. All she had to do was wait for him, and he would be there, as sure as the setting sun.

“I love you too, Ryan Black.”

Ana awoke the following morning feeling like she was walking on cloud nine. All throughout the day, she wore a smile on her face. She chastised herself for ever thinking that Ryan would abandon her. He was the man of her dreams. There was no question about that.

She went about her day, counting down until the moment that they’d see each other again. It played like a romantic movie in her head. He would pull up in his old beat-up pickup truck, and she would run out the front door, right into his arms. They’d embrace, and he’d lift her off the ground and twirl her around.

The hours dragged on until all of her chores were done, and Ana was looking forward to the distraction of going out with Celia and her friends. She wasn’t going to be a gloomy Gus like she had originally feared. Now she’d be able to enjoy herself and have a good time.

With the day’s work done, Ana went up to her room to get dressed for her evening out. She threw on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, something simple and comfortable. Attracting male attention wasn’t her goal, not that she’d get much being pregnant. This was her off-the-market look, the way she dressed when she just wanted to have a good time.

She arrived at the Cowboy Bar a little after eight, wanting to be fashionably late so she wouldn’t have to wait. Celia and her friends were already seated at a table near the bar with cocktails in front of them. Celia’s face lit up, and she hopped down from her stool to give Ana a hug.

“Hey, Sis. How have you been?”

“Pregnant and moody,” Ana admitted, giving her a squeeze before pulling up a stool for herself.

“You remember Michelle and Joann and Brenda.” Celia gestured to the girls one at a time. The only one Ana recognized was Joann, because they had gone to school together. Brenda and Michelle had been at the wedding, but Ana wasn’t familiar with them.

“How far along are you?” Michelle asked, looking down at Ana’s stomach, which made her feel self-conscious.

“Four months, give or take.” Thinking about the child inside of her made Ana decide against the glass of wine she was originally supposed to have, ordering water instead when a waitress finally came around to them.

“I remember being four months.”

“You have kids?” Ana could hardly believe it. The woman was a stick figure.

“Two. Jason and Mallory. Loves of my life. It’s nice getting away from them from time to time, though.” Michelle took a long sip of the margarita in front of her.

Ana couldn’t imagine what her life would be like when she had the baby. “I’m sure being a mother takes some getting used to.”

“You’d be surprised at how naturally it comes to you once you have them. You’ll still have questions here and there, but for the most part, instinct takes over.”

Ana liked Michelle already. She seemed friendly and helpful. Perhaps they could babysit for each other sometime. Maybe this was the friend she had been needing.

“So, is it his?” Brenda asked, breaking into the conversation.

“Whose?” Ana gave her a confused look.

“No.” Celia shook her head. “It’s not Ryan’s. Ana was pregnant long before Ryan came along.”

“That’s too bad. That man looks like he would make some beautiful babies.” Brenda brought a hand up to her mouth as if it would stop the words from coming out. “Look at me, only one drink down, and I’m already babbling.”

“It’s fine.” Ana wrapped her hand around her glass of water, trying to hide her nervousness. Obviously, the news about her and Ryan being an item had circulated around town. Brenda probably wasn’t the only one who thought Ryan might be the father.

“He does look familiar, though. Has anyone else thought that?” Michelle squinted across the table at the other girls.

“Yeah. Like the man of my dreams. You’re so lucky you snagged him, Ana.” Brenda gave Ana’s shoulder a playful slap.

If Ana had seen his face before, she was certain she would have remembered it. He was the kind of guy who turned heads, not someone you’d pass on the street without a second glance.

“So what is going on with the two of you?” Celia leaned in. It seemed she still wasn’t thrilled with the idea of Ana and Ryan being together. That didn’t matter to Ana. Celia had already gotten her happily ever after. Now it was Ana’s turn.

“I think we’re dating,” she stuttered, not exactly sure how to classify their relationship.

“You think?”

“We are dating,” she confirmed, and the other girls squealed, though Celia just sighed. It took everything in Ana not to tell them that he had already hinted about marriage. That just seemed too unrealistic, and she didn’t want to look like a fool, especially since she and Ryan had only met recently.

“What happens when he leaves?” Celia’s tone was dry.

“I don’t think he is leaving. I mean, he just went on a business trip, but he’ll be back tomorrow, and then he’s going to stick around for a while, and we’ll see how things go.” She shrugged, suddenly wanting to talk about anything else. It felt like Celia was putting her under a microscope.

“A business trip.” Celia rolled her eyes. “The guy is practically a hobo, going from place to place, staying wherever someone will have him.”

“A very hot hobo,” Brenda reminded her.

Ana wasn’t about to stand for her sister talking badly about Ryan. “He got his lawyer to contact Rick Fasken, the baby’s father. I threatened to sue him for defamation, and he’s going to pay for my lost wages from when I was in New York. That never would have happened if not for Ryan. Not to mention how he’s helped out around the house. He fixed the barn and replaced the fence posts, and God knows what else.”

“Oh, someone sounds like she’s in love,” Michelle teased, sending heat through Ana’s face. Was it that obvious? Not that Ryan didn’t deserve to be defended.

Celia reached across the table and slid her hand on top of Ana’s. “I just want you to be careful. You’ve already been hurt once.”

Ana pulled away from her. “I know what I’m doing, Celia. I’m not some child who needs to be told who I can and can’t date.”

“Girls, girls.” Brenda looked between them. “I thought we were going to relax and have fun tonight. Let’s order another round of drinks, and another water for you, missy.” She pointed at Ana. “Maybe we can have them squeeze some lemon in it to make it more exciting.”

Ana was thankful for the distraction. Just like that, the tension dissipated from the room. Celia mercifully dropped the subject and moved on to talking about how she and David wanted to try for a baby soon, that way their child and Ana’s could grow up together. It was an endearing thought, and a much better conversation than how wrong Ryan was for her.

It was grocery day. Or rather, grocery day had been switched from Sunday to Wednesday in preparation for Ryan coming back. Molly insisted on making a pot roast to celebrate his return, and Ana would make him a lemon meringue pie. In truth, they had both missed him. The ranch just wasn’t the same without him.

Going to the store put a bit of stress on their daily chore schedule, but tomorrow Ryan would pick his duties back up, so it didn’t hurt to hustle for one day. Besides, this gave them both a nice break, something that Ana was sure her mother needed. The woman rarely left the ranch unless she was going out for groceries or to stop by the bank or post office. And of course, she still went to church on Sundays.

Ana’s mind was aflutter with romance as she cruised down the aisles alongside her mother’s basket. Her sweet reunion with Ryan was only a few hours away, and she could hardly wait to jump into his arms.

“Does Sunshine even like lemon meringue?” Molly asked as Ana checked the lemons in the produce section for firmness, not that she’d need anything but the zest.

“I don’t know, but we’ll find out.”

They gathered up the rest of the ingredients and headed to the checkout line, where there were a few people ahead of them. Ana sighed and glanced at the magazines on the stand at the register. She had never had much interest in celebrity gossip, but it gave her something to look at.

Her eyes danced from one cover to the next. A famous actress was rumored to have gotten pregnant on one. A rock star was caught cheating on his wife on another. When Ana’s eyes landed on the third magazine, her breath hitched. She reached across the lady in front of her to pull the magazine off the rack, unable to believe her eyes, which fell to the title of the article.

Elusive billionaire Brennan Demars was spotted buying an engagement ring. Is New York’s most eligible bachelor finally tying the knot?

It was just a coincidence that he looked the same as Ryan. It had to be. Her hands shook as she traced her fingertips over the face on the cover, and when her finger stopped on a very distinctive freckle below the right corner of the man’s lips, her heart froze. “Holy crap.”

“What? Some rich half-wit get caught hosing the babysitter?” Molly joked.

“Look.” Ana shoved the magazine in her mother’s face.

Molly scanned over the cover for a moment. “Brennan Demars. Isn’t he that rich kid who does all of that charity work? What about him?”

“It’s Ryan.”

“Huh?” She looked closer still, then she laughed, pushing the magazine back toward Ana. “No. That’s not Sunshine. Sunshine is blond, remember?”

Ana took a deep breath. “It’s Ryan. When he Skyped me the other day he had dyed his hair brown and taken off the contacts. Plus, that freckle is unmistakable. I should know.”

“Because you’ve been close to his mouth so much,” Molly teased, causing her daughter to blush.

“Ugh. You still don’t believe me. I’m buying the damn magazine.” She tossed it onto the conveyor belt the second there was enough space for their groceries.

“I think you just want him to come home so badly you’re imagining things. Sure, they look similar, but it’s not the same guy. You know Ryan. He’s not a billionaire.” Molly made the very idea sound preposterous.

“Whatever.” Ana threw her hands up, frustrated. She knew Ryan Black, knew his entire body, every line in his face, and this man was definitely the same guy.

The rest of the magazine didn’t interest Ana in the least. When she got home, she jogged up the stairs to her room to flip to the article about Brennan Demars. For his image being so big on the cover, they didn’t give the story much space. Only two pages, which outlined the guy’s past as founder of Demars Holdings, Inc., highlighted the charity work he had done, talked about rumors of him being with various starlets and models, and then discussed his disappearance just over six months ago.

“Six months ago,” Ana whispered, thinking about how Ryan had told her he’d taken a vacation from his life around that time. Was this his real life? Was Brennan Demars who he really was? It sounded so outlandish, but the images were unmistakable. If Ryan Black wasn’t Brennan Demars, then Brennan Demars was his identical twin. Ryan had mentioned having a brother who was an important businessman. But that wouldn’t explain the different last names.

It was all so confusing. Ana sat with her head in her hands, trying to make some sense out of everything. Brennan had been spotted in a New York jewelry store buying an engagement ring. The ring was rumored to be for a model he used to date, or was still dating. Sources couldn’t be sure. It just didn’t add up to the Ryan that Ana knew.

“Maybe Mom is right. Maybe I just miss him so much that I’m making things up in my head.” But even as she said it, the tears started to roll down her cheeks. If this magazine article was true, and Ryan really was Brennan Demars, then he wasn’t coming back. He had lied to her, used her, and now he was going to marry someone else.

No. He wouldn’t do that to me.
Ana shook her head. If she allowed herself to fall into that pit of despair, she’d be an absolute mess. It was better to pretend everything was all right, that she hadn’t seen the magazine, and that he’d arrive on time, as he’d said he would.

Mom’s right. That’s not him.
She threw the magazine in the trash and then stood up to smooth down the front of her shirt and jeans before heading downstairs. Ana would bake the pie, then continue with her chores and wait for Ryan dutifully. They’d talk about the magazine when he returned, and he’d laugh at her for even thinking he was some famous billionaire. Then they would pick up where they left off, and everything would be perfect.

Ana pulled herself together, though she wasn’t able to smile. The tears were never far from her eyes, but even so, she pressed on. Only time would tell if she was worrying for nothing.