Free Alexander Ranch by Marla Josephs

feeling you would enjoy working with the horses. They have to be exercised and worked each day.”
    “I would definitely love that,” I admitted.
    “Then tomorrow we will work with the horses,” Ethan chimed in.
    “Sounds great,” I smiled enthusiastically. Working with the horses would be fun.
    “Then, you’ll be spending the day with me tomorrow,” Ethan winked. I snuck a quick glance over at Rene who was still watching Ethan’s every move. Her face fell a little after he winked at me. I was getting used to Ethan’s flirting now, but this was awkward. He teased and flirted with everyone. It all seemed to be harmless though. But, I noticed he wasn’t paying much attention to Rene. And, I didn’t want her initial kindly feelings towards me to change because she felt I was an obstacle for her to Ethan’s affections. However, she didn’t look my way at all. She simply looked down at her plate and ate quietly.
    I was distracted by Jordan’s entrance. He looked over at our table and sent a general nod and wave in our direction in response to the greetings from our table. Now it was my turn to look down at my plate. Aside from a curt greeting, he had generally acted as if I wasn’t there throughout the first half of the day whenever Daisy and I came across him. He did not join our table either but grabbed a plate of food and left.
     
    Chapter 11
     
    After lunch Daisy decided that we were done for the day. I was escorted home that night by Ethan and Daisy. Since they were on security detail with me all night anyway, Ethan asked if we could have a movie night. I agreed. I’d had a great day. I hadn’t socialized that much outside of work in years. It felt good. Why not cap it off with a movie and my new acquaintances.
    Surprisingly, Ethan offered to cooked dinner. Daisy assured me he was a fantastic cook so, I pointed him towards the kitchen and told him to make himself at home. His shoulder had miraculously healed quite well. He wasn’t even wearing a bandage anymore, just a sling. His injuries must not have been as bad as I thought. So why was everyone claiming I’d saved his life? He apparently hadn’t even been very hurt.
    I took the opportunity to try and let Ethan know that Rene had some form of a liking for him. I didn’t want the woman hating me.
    “Hey, Ethan,” I said, entering the kitchen just as he was putting pasta in the pasta water.
    “Hey yourself,” he smiled back.
    “Hopefully you’ll take this the right way. I noticed that Rene seems to like you a lot.”
    “Rene?” he said absently stirring the pasta.
    “Yes, Rene,” I continued. “I’m pretty sure she has a crush on you or something.”
    “Oh. Yea she does,” he said distractedly. Then he turned to me and grinned a sly, sexy grin, “You jealous?”
    “Nice try,” I answered blandly, “but no.”
    “It was worth a try,” he laughed, shrugged and went back to stirring his pasta.
    “So , you knew?”
    He sighed, “Yes, I know. That is why I don’t flirt with her. She’s super nice , and I wouldn’t want to do anything to lead her on.”
    “I take it you don’t return her interest?”
    “No, I don’t. I have known Rene all my life and love her like a sister. Why she had to go and start crushing on me is a mystery and darn awkward,” he frowned. “But, don’t worry. She won’t take it out on you, even if we did end up together.”
    “Which we won’t,” I added hastily.
    “Ouch,” he teased then grinned mischievously.
    “I’ll leave you to dinner,” I said shaking my head at him.
    While Ethan cooked and Daisy sat huddled over her laptop, I went to my computer to do some research. I looked up Alexander Consulting and, sure enough, there it was. The contact number was the same as the one John had given me that morning. Finding this information was somewhat reassuring. These people were the real deal, so I probably wasn’t in any danger from them and possibly well protected. The unsettling part was, if