to be, and I’m sorry.”
She lifted her chin. “No, you haven’t.”
“I don’t want you to feel like you’re not welcome. Obviously, you’re very important to this ranch and to my parents. I had no right to say some of the things I said.”
“Is there anything else?” she clipped.
He took a deep breath, opened his mouth, then closed it as he shook his head. “No. That’s it.” He offered her his hand. “Truce?”
Kate eyed his hand, then glanced up at his face. What was he playing at? Had his parents pushed him into this? Her eyes narrowed. “I’m not dropping out of the competition if that’s what you’re expecting me to do.”
His face flushed and he shook his head. “I didn’t think you would.” His eyes dropped to his hand and he brought it up to run through his hair before dropping it to his side. The other hand holding the hat bounced against his thigh.
AJ glanced over her shoulder to the interior of her cabin. “Nice place.”
Kate leaned against the door jamb, her arms still tightly folded. “What do you want, AJ?”
Eyes widening, AJ shifted his weight. “The way I see it, whether I win or lose, we are both going to be working this ranch.”
She lifted a brow. “You really think you can take orders from me?”
He worked his jaw and his eyes hardened. “This is my home, Kate. I don’t plan on leaving it even if it changes hands. If you win, I will still be around to work. My family built this place and I won’t just walk away.”
Kate studied him. From the focus in his eyes to the conviction in his voice, the temptation to just back out grew stronger. What claim did she have on this place anyway? “That’s good. But I still don’t know why you’re here. Are you expecting me to just forget everything that you said and pretend we’re best friends? ‘Cuz that ain’t gonna happen.”
AJ blew out a long breath. “I suppose not. But I do want us to get along. It’s easier to work with someone when you’re both agreeing to respect each other.”
Snorting, she pushed against the doorjamb and straightened. “I’m sorry, AJ. But there are things even I can’t promise. I won’t get in your way if you won’t get in mine.” Her fingers wrapped around the door and she moved to shut it.
The door bumped against the toe of his boot and she peeked at him through the crack. “AJ, kindly move your foot.”
He pushed on the door until his tall frame filled the doorway. She looked up at him and took a step back.
“Look, AJ. I appreciate the effort you’re making right now, but I have to get going. Unlike you, I haven’t been gone for the last few years and I have a lot of work on my plate today. I don’t have time to placate you and your guilt.”
His brows lowered over his eyes. “You can deny it all you want, but something’s changed between us. When we were kids, you were always around. We got along. What happened?”
Her heart fluttered. He couldn’t have possibly known she’d had a crush. Not even Dakota knew about her feelings. Besides, those feelings were long gone and she’d matured. She’d realized there were better men out there—she just hadn’t found one yet. “I grew up,” she stammered.
AJ pressed his lips into a thin line. “I don’t think that’s it. There’s something else going on, and I’m going to figure it out.” He turned on his heel and headed across the grass to the main house.
“There’s nothing to figure out, AJ. This is just what it is,” Kate called after him.
He lifted one hand in a wave as he placed his hat on his head with the other. “Breakfast is ready if you’re planning on joining us.”
She cupped her mouth with her hands. “I mean it, AJ!”
That ridiculously obnoxious cowboy, with his too-long hair and those piercing green eyes, needed to vacate her thoughts. The sooner the better. Kate groaned as she slammed the door shut and hunted for her boots again. She stumbled over one of them as it peeked out from under a stray piece of clothing.
Kate snatched it and pulled it and the other on her feet. She braided her hair back and grabbed her hat from the table before hurrying out the door and running toward the house. She’d never been late for breakfast in the last seven years. The day after her father