Secret Love by Brenda Jackson Read Free Book Online Page B

I’m sure they’ll get a kick out of it.” And I won’t be able to get a lick of work out of them for the rest of the day after they meet you, he thought further to himself.
    He watched her features soften into a relaxed smile. “Good.”
     
    “Do you know anything about cows?”
    Diamond glanced over at Jake, wondering about the question he had asked out of the clear blue sky. They had been riding in his Jeep for the last few minutes or so without much conversation. She tried not to concentrate on the large work-hardened hands that gripped the steering wheel and wondered how those same hands would feel on her.
    Her brows furrowed. The middle part of her body reacted to that particular thought. “I guess I know the same thing about them as everyone else,” she replied, deliberately turning to look straight ahead.
    “Which is?”
    “They give milk,” she said, looking back at him, meeting his gaze.
    Jake smiled warmly. Another thing he liked about Diamond was the fact that she had a sense of humor.“Yes, they do give milk but I’m not running a dairy, although all the milk served on the ranch is fresh.”
    “Even the milk we drank the other day with the cookies?”
    “Yes.”
    Diamond nodded, smiling. “No wonder it tasted so good. I thought it was delicious.”
    Her compliment pleased Jake. “Thanks. My father used to run a small dairy and make door-to-door deliveries to the neighbors.”
    “Have you ever considered going back into the dairy business?”
    “Nope. We have enough to do just to make sure we get the steers to the market on time. That alone keeps us pretty busy.”
    “I’m fascinated by all the things that you do around here. I’d like to learn more about it.”
    “Why?”
    Diamond shrugged. “I don’t know, I just do.” She didn’t want to tell him that for some reason, she wanted to know all she could about Jacob Madaris. She had a feeling that to know and understand Jacob Madaris, the man, she would first need to know and understand Jacob Madaris, the rancher. From the little bit Sterling had told her about him and what she had observed since arriving, Whispering Pines was his life.
    “Just what are you interested in?”
    She wanted to say you, but didn’t. “I’m interested in everything about this place. From fixing fences, driving the herd, doing the roundup to this very chic system I understand you use to guarantee you’re delivering the very best beef to the consumer that money can buy.”
    “I thought you came here to rest.”
    “I will be resting, Jacob. I haven’t enjoyed myself this much in years. There’s something about Whispering Pines that’s so exciting and refreshing. Everything here is so clean, pure and unique. I love it here.”
    Jake didn’t say anything as he kept driving. Jessie had also been excited when he had first brought her here. So excited that she had been adamant about planting those rosebushes everywhere, even in the least likely places where they would survive. But soon, like it usually happens with city slickers and sophisticates, the novelty wore off and instead of finding the ranch exciting, she had found it dreary and boring. One day Diamond would feel the same way. She was too well-traveled not to. Whispering Pines was just a hole in the wall compared to the other exotic places she had visited. The only saving grace for the ranch was that it didn’t come with reporters and provided her a lot more privacy than she was used to.
    When Jake turned the Jeep onto the road that would take them to the ranch house, he glanced over at Diamond and said, “We’re almost there.”

Chapter 6
    D iamond fell in love with the sprawling hacienda-style ranch house the moment she saw it. The sight of it simply took her breath away. It was truly magnificent, and the closer she got to it, another word immediately came into her mind.
    Gorgeous.
    It was as gorgeous as the land and the man. The scenic setting gave a breathtaking view of the ranch, the pine