Read Online Claiming the Rancher's Heart by Cindy Kirk - Free Book Online

bite. “You’ll love mine.”
    “I don’t think I made myself clear,” Josh said. “I can’t stomach the stuff.”
    His tone left no room for argument or doubt.
    Stacie leaned forward, letting her hair swing to cover her face as she rummaged in the basket, not wanting him to see her distress. “That’s okay.” She told herself not to take his dislike personally. “There’s plenty else to eat.”
    “The smell alone nauseates me,” he added.
    “I understand.” Disappointment caused her voice to be sharper than she’d intended. She lifted her head and softened the words with a smile. “We all have foods we don’t like. In fact, this reminds me of a story my mother liked to tell.”
    Uncorking the wine, Josh filled each glass halfway and handed one to Stacie. He took a seat on one side of the picnic table and she sat opposite him.
    Josh took a sip. “Did the story involve tuna?”
    Stacie laughed as she pulled out the rest of the food. “Scalloped potatoes.”
    His eyes lit up. “A favorite of mine.”
    “Mine, too,” Stacie said. “Pretty much every one I know likes them…except my mother. She got sick after eating a big helping one year. After that, her formerly favorite casserole shot straight to the top of her cannot-stand-the-sight-or-smell list.”
    Josh grabbed a piece of French bread and scooped out a little of the basil and brie spread.
    “What was weird was a couple of times every year she’d make it for my dad.” Stacie could still see the look of surprise and pleasure on her father’s face when he’d see the casserole dish on the table.
    “Why did she do that?” Josh added a healthy helping of shrimp and rice salad to his plate. “I’m sure he didn’t expect it.”
    “You’re right. He didn’t expect it at all.” Stacie’s lips lifted in a smile. “Whenever I asked her, she’d just laugh and say ‘nothing says love like scalloped potatoes.’”
    Josh paused, a piece of French bread in hand, a thoughtful look on his face. “She did it to show how much he meant to her.”
    Stacie took a sip of wine. “I didn’t understand when I was little, but as I got older I came to that same conclusion. It was a way of saying ‘I love you’ without words.”
    “They sound like a nice couple.” Josh took a bite of the French bread with spread and murmured his appreciation.
    “They are,” Stacie admitted. “Their only fault is an intense desire to make me more like them.”
    “I understand.” Josh’s eyes took on a distant look. “From the time I was small I was pushed toward a career in business, not ranching.”
    Boy, did Stacie understand what that was like. She’d never bought into her family’s rigid definition of success. And because of that, they’d always thought she was a flake.
    “My dad has a successful auto dealership in Ann Arbor. My mother is a CPA with her own firm.” Stacie shook her head. “My siblings all inherited that entrepreneurial spirit.”
    “At least you have that in common,” Josh commented.
    “What are you talking about?”
    “Your dream is to own a catering firm,” he said. “Doesn’t get much more entrepreneurial than that.”
    “I disagree.” Stacie took a bite of the shrimp and rice salad and chewed thoughtfully. “I’d be doing it because it’s my passion, not because I want to make gobs of money.”
    “Success and passion don’t have to be mutually exclusive.” Josh’s gaze lingered on her face. “I have to turn a profit to keep the ranch going.”
    “I realize that. I just don’t want money to be the main focus.” Stacie sighed. Sometimes it felt as if she’d never find her bliss. “At least Amber got to live out her dream.”
    A lump formed in her throat. Stacie glanced down at the food on her plate. Her appetite had vanished.
    “Losing a good friend,” Josh said in a soft, low voice, “is like losing a family member.”
    “She was so full of life. And such a good person.” Tears filled Stacie’s eyes despite