Matched With Her Cowboy Billionaire Ex-Fiance Page 20

  The sun room was well lit, even with the cloudy sky overhead. UV lights had been set up in insert light inlets in the corners of the room. They made you feel like you were getting a good dose of sun and vitamin D even in the middle of a snow storm.

  Taylor’s father sat on the loveseat beneath the large bay window while Elizabeth Wilson rocked gently back and forth in the recliner not far from Dad’s spot. They both smiled at Taylor’s appearance.

  She pressed her lips together. How did she feel about finding them together? There wasn’t any real reason they would be together except for her. They were probably talking about her lack of matches.

  Just what she needed. More bad news.

  Wait, when had she started being so negative? When Roman had come back home. She had to stop letting her opinion of their lack of relationship get her down. She wasn’t negative. She had to stop being that way.

  Taking a deep breath, she grimaced, knowing full well it wasn’t enough to pass as a smile. “Well, since you’re both here, I guess I should start with questions on my matching. How is everything going?” She flopped onto the couch, folding her feet up under her. She waited for their reply.

  Elizabeth glanced at David and then leaned forward, folding her hands as she braced her elbows on her knees. “The thing is Taylor, we know who you should be matched with, we just aren’t sure how to tell you.”

  Taylor tilted her head to the side as she considered Elizabeth. She bit her inner cheek and took another steadying breath. “I don’t mean any disrespect, but I’m starting to wonder if you actually do know. Bryson was… a complete flop. He didn’t know anything about me and, to be honest, he’s a complete misogynist. I don’t need that. I don’t know any woman who does.” She shook her head. What did she need to do to get a match around there? She turned her gaze away from them and asked in a monotone. “Who do you think it is this time?”

  “Actually, it isn’t this time, per se. We actually have known this is your match for quite a while. We knew Bryson wasn’t your match.” Elizabeth spoke softly, the tone designed to keep Taylor calm, but she wasn’t as successful as she hoped.

  “Then why make me go out with him? That was… humiliating and unnecessary. He took me out in the snow and cold. We could have gotten hurt or the horses could have.” She shook her head. The entire situation had been an ordeal, all the way down to being rescued by Roman.

  “What were you coming in here to tell me?” Her father deflected the direction of the conversation.

  Taylor narrowed her eyes and dropped her gaze back to split between them. She knew he was just changing the subject, but she honestly didn’t care. She needed to vent about that just as much as she wanted to know who they thought she’d match up with. “Well, I guess it applies to Elizabeth as well as you, Dad. I just came over here to tell you what was happening with the contest and with Roman.” Taylor paused, her breathing speeding up as she thought about what Roman had told her.

  “Go on.” Elizabeth leaned back in her seat, concentration in the lines of her forehead and around her eyes.

  “The thing is, Roman made a deal with Stephen to throw the contest. I’m going to lose.” She blinked back more tears. Who would have thought she would be back to crying all the time over Roman? She thought she’d gotten over that years ago. Apparently, that wasn’t the case.

  “He was cheating?” Elizabeth furrowed her brow. “I don’t understand.”

  Taylor dropped her feet and sat straight. “He admitted that his friend, Olivia, the woman who is the main client for the contest, is planning on picking Roman. The Wilsons will win. That’s all there is to it. He said Stephen – my suitor – asked him to throw the contest so that Stephen could ask me out. I don’t know why that would happen, but I told Stephen no. I was up front with him. I want to win this contest.”

  “Why?” Her dad narrowed his eyes at her and folded his arms.

  “Why what?” Taylor blinked at the question.

  “Why do you want to win? You used to tell me the contest was just a farce and I shouldn’t care if I won or not. Why do you feel so strongly this time? Why does it matter to you so much?” He stared at her like the answer would solve all their problems.

  “I want to win because our family needs the publicity. I…” She didn’t really believe that, though. Holy smokes. She wanted to win the contest and not because of any altruistic reasoning.

  Because if she won, then Stephen would be with Olivia and that would leave Roman fair game. Not that she could declare any affection for the man who had left her at the altar, but she couldn’t deny the fact that she didn’t like thinking of Roman with anyone else. It hurt. Like deep down hurt and she didn’t want to suffer through that.

  Again.

  “So, you want Roman to do what?” Elizabeth glanced between Taylor’s dad and Taylor. “I mean, he’s already stuck finishing the contest as the suitor. He knows he made a stupid mistake in declaring that spot as himself. What do you want him to do?”

  “I want him to not cheat in the first place.” Taylor pushed herself from the couch, striding around the room, randomly picking up small trinkets and then putting them back on the shelves she’d picked them up from.

  “Okay, but that’s over. He can’t take it back. I’m sure he would, if he could. So, what do you want him to do now?” Elizabeth wasn’t letting up.

  Taylor didn’t know. She hated that she didn’t know. She swallowed past the tightness in her throat. “I want… I don’t know. I want the contest to go forward in all fairness. If Olivia chooses Roman because she actually likes him more than Stephen, so be it. But if not, then, I want to have a fair shot.” She folded her arms and turned, studying her dad and Elizabeth in turn.

  Neither of them seemed surprised or even shocked. Why? Taylor had just dropped on them that Roman was cheating. That was a big deal when they were speaking about a contest that affected so many people. “Why don’t you guys seem more surprised about this?” She suspected, though.

  “We already knew. He was explaining things to us the other day.” Dad twisted his lips to the side, rueful even when admitting he’d known.

  “You’ve known.” Taylor blinked as she tried to process what they were saying. How many people were against her? The contest, the town, the matches, everything seemed to be against her. Whether it was or not, she couldn’t help the way she felt.

  She sagged against the wall, letting her shoulder blades press against the paneling. “You all knew about this? You’ve all been laughing at me? You can’t find a match for me. I’ve been working so hard on this match and this whole time it was rigged anyway. Against me.” She closed her eyes and pressed her fingertips to her forehead. How had she been so stupid?

  “No one is laughing at you, Taylor.” Roman’s deep voice burst through her confusion, creating a chaotic burst of emotion that split through her anger. Why was he there? He was there when she needed him to be anywhere else.

  “You’re not laughing at me? Are you joking right now?” Taylor pushed off the wall and faced him, squared up with her chin lifted and her shoulders back. “Then what do you call it? And why are you here?” Her arms akimbo, she stared at him in confusion.

  Roman stepped into the room, his expression calm as he held his hands out like he approached a skittish horse. “No, just a second. One, I’m not laughing at anyone. No one is. I know this because you wouldn’t be the one they’re laughing at. I would be. I would be the reason they wouldn’t win or the reason they win unfairly. Not you. I’m the one who arrogantly put himself up as suitor, placing himself as the prize. Could I get cockier than that? I don’t know. All I know is I put myself in this position and now I have to somehow get myself out.” He hadn’t removed his hat and the brim barely protected his eyes from the UV rays from the lightbulbs.

  Taylor searched his face, sadness curling around the hope she’d had with the matchmaking and the contest. She’d wanted so badly to have a chance to prove herself. She really had thought Stephen and
Olivia would make a good couple. But how was that possible, when Olivia couldn’t see Stephen through the charismatic man that Roman was. Why would any woman choose anyone else over Roman? She couldn’t see it happening. And because of that, she was going to lose.

  “Look, we just want to help. I want to make it right. I don’t want to make it worse.” Roman set his hat further back on his head to try to see her better. She’d done it herself with hats before.

  She blinked, her chest rising and falling as she tried to breathe normally. None of them could know the panic spreading through her. “Well, it might sound petty, but I don’t want your help. I don’t want special treatment because you feel sorry for me, or whatever this is. I honestly just want you to do what you promised you would, what you agreed to do. You know? I just want things to be fair.”

  But they’d never be fair. Not with anything around Roman and love.

  Taylor shook her head and brushed past Roman, ignoring their parents sitting there. “I can’t believe I thought we could be friends. I can’t be friends with someone I can’t trust. And I can’t trust you.” Before storming out, Taylor turned back to her father. “Who? I want to know who my match is.”

  Her dad looked at Roman and then back at Taylor. “Roman is your match.”

  Taylor snorted. “Dad, you’re Oh-and-two. I’m not sure I should have asked you for help.” She turned and blinked back tears. How could she have been so out of touch that she thought she could be matched? She wasn’t matchable and the sooner she accepted that, the sooner she could move on with her life.

  Outside of Montana.

  Chapter 26

  Roman

  Roman was Taylor’s match. How was that possible? His dad had been adamant that Roman and Taylor weren’t right for each other. Not then.

  Could matches change? But then that went against everything he’d ever been taught in a family of matchmakers.

  None of that mattered. He had to brush it off. Taylor didn’t want anything to do with him. Nothing. That hurt more than the fact that even if he wanted to, he wouldn’t be chosen for the contest and therefore he wasn’t going to win. His competitive edge aside, his family wasn’t going to win. Roman could tell in the way Olivia talked to Stephen, the way she looked at him, and the way she sweetly brushed her hand on his.

  Olivia hadn’t even treated her first husband that way.

  Two weeks to go.

  Christmas was right around the corner. Excitement and anticipation rode the air like children on a rollercoaster. Emotions were up with the announcement of Santa coming to the Christmas Carnival and then down when children found out there wasn’t going to be enough snow for a snow sculpture contest, and then back up when a blizzard hit and dropped close to eighteen inches of snow overnight. Not only did they get their snow, they also got a day off from school.

  Roman was on highs and lows as well.

  On the schedule, he was supposed to go on a supervised date. Olivia would be there but then again, so would Taylor. He would get a chance to see her and she wouldn’t be able to ignore him because there would be other people around. If nothing else, she would have to keep up appearances.

  Roman would exploit everything he could to get her to give him a chance to speak to her. That’s all he needed. He would beg for her forgiveness, tell her all the ways he loved her…

  And he loved her. He’d always loved her. How could he let anyone else get in the way of that? Whether it was him or his father or anyone else, he should have known better than to let anything get between them.

  He had to tell her that. He had to make her see how foolish he’d been.

  With his anticipation high to see her, he’d sat across from Olivia at an appetizer bar, glancing every few seconds toward the door. Olivia wasn’t even paying attention to him as she constantly checked her phone, randomly texting someone and then giggling at the response.

  Roman shot a glance her way and furrowed his brow. “You and Stephen texting?”

  Olivia rolled her eyes and nodded, a teasing smile on her lips. “Yes, he’s so funny. He’s talking to someone about a deal. It sounds like he might try to buy another restaurant? I don’t know. I tried warning him against getting in over his head. I just don’t want him to be stressed out, you know?”

  “What’s one more when he already runs twelve? I mean, it’s just one more. He’ll be fine.” Roman looked toward the door distracted by the expected impending arrival of Taylor. Would it be rude of him to ask to speak to Taylor alone? Everyone needed to keep up appearances, not just Taylor.

  Silence from Olivia’s side of the table dragged Roman’s attention from the front of the restaurant.

  She had leaned back against the bench seat, staring at him with her mouth slightly agape. “What are you talking about twelve? I said restaurants, Roman.” Olivia stared at him like he might be going crazy.

  Roman swallowed. He was in too far. If he lied, he would just make things worse. He opted to shrug it off. “How many did you think he had?”

  “One. That’s all I understood that he had. You mean he has twelve?” Olivia must have seen the truth on Roman’s face. She pressed her fingertips to her forehead, leaving her palm down and covering her eyes. “Oh, my word. All this time I’ve been acting like he doesn’t understand business that much and that he doesn’t have any money. Twelve restaurants is a huge amount. That’s amazing. I can’t believe I treated him like that. Why didn’t you warn me?” She lowered her hand. “He probably thinks I’m completely dense.”

  “I didn’t realize you’d treat him differently based on what type of assets he has.” But that was a lie. Of course, Roman knew how she would react. She’d be interested in Stephen as a businessman and not as a potential love interest. Take the money out of the equation for her and things were able to bloom organically.

  “Roman? Olivia? Sorry, I’m late. Have you already started?” The soft voice wasn’t the voice Roman had been waiting for.

  He turned, finding Lily Dean standing at the table, smiling at the two sitting. Her thick dark hair had been twisted back into a professional looking braid and her large green eyes had a tinge of dusky mint around the edges. So similar to Taylor’s, but so different at the same time.

  Roman stood, pulling a chair over from a nearby empty table and watching Lily sit with a pad of paper in her arms. She looked from one to the other and smiled. “How is everything going?”

  Roman reclaimed his seat and beckoned between Olivia and himself. “Things are good, right, Liv?” He rarely called her Liv, but the pet name might keep people thinking they were holding their end of the deal. Roman waited for Olivia to nod in agreement before he turned back to Lily and folded his hands on the table. “Where’s Taylor? I thought she was running this?” Had she slipped back into not scheduling anything anymore?

  Lily lamely waved her fingers toward the door and shook her head, avoiding Roman’s gaze. “She’s not feeling very well. I told her I’d cover for her. Is that okay?” Lily opened the notebook like she wasn’t going to wait for a reply.

  Roman doubted Taylor wasn’t feeling well. She just didn’t want to be around him. He didn’t blame her. He wasn’t happy with the way things were turning out either. But denying him the chance to apologize only stung when he wanted to make things better.

  Could he make things better though? Or were things so far under the bridge, there was no coming back?

  Roman cleared his throat and met Olivia’s gaze. Something in the depths of her eyes agreed with what he was about to say. He nodded at Lily, a warm smile taking over. “Of course, we were just talking about family life and what kind of a family we want. Did you want us to catch you up so you can take notes or can we keep going?”

  The last thing he needed was for Taylor to think Roman was trying to swing the contest in either direction. She already thought the worst of him.

  Why add more fuel to the fire?

  ~~~

  Only three hours later, Roman found himself standing o
n the steps to Taylor’s house. With the green shutters and the brightly lit Christmas lights, her home could have passed as a gingerbread display like the ones in the center of town.

  He didn’t want to go inside and feel her disdain like cold water splashing over him. But at the same time, he needed to be around her. Since coming back to Mistletoe, he didn’t really feel like he was home without being around Taylor.

  Had she felt the same way he did when he’d left? Like a fish out of water or a horse away from his herd? Nothing felt right unless Roman was within view of Taylor. Even when they were fighting, things felt more right then when they weren’t.

  He had to be around her. He had to know if she’d ever forgive him. That’s all he wanted and needed. Was there a chance?

  He climbed the cement stairs to the porch, the soles of his boots crunching on the unshoveled snow. She needed someone to take care of her. She hadn’t shoveled her walkway. He could do that for her. Or pay someone to do that for her, rather.

  Either way, he just wanted to take care of her. Would she ever think about letting him do that?

  Knocking on the door, Roman tried ignoring the crisp chill in the air on his bare skin. He wore a warm jacket, but had left his gloves at the ranch. Not the smartest in the bitter December weather.

  After a solid minute the door opened and Taylor jolted to a stop, pausing as she pulled her dark brown coat on. “Roman.” She glanced behind him like he was there to carol or something for her. “Um, what are you doing here? Don’t you have a date?” She didn’t ask it with bitterness or even any hint that they’d fought a week ago. In fact, she acted like he didn’t mean anything more than a stranger selling encyclopedias on the front stoop.

  Roman tilted his head, nodding to the woman he couldn’t stop thinking about.

  She pushed past him before he could answer her. “Excuse me. Sorry, I’m running late.”