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      Ashby sighed again. “But will I be a hundred?”

      “Ashby, listen to me,” Sheri said. There wasn’t a twinkle anywhere to be seen in her eyes as she leveled them on Ashby. “You may have to take the bull by the horns in order to make your dreams come true.”

      “That’s right.” Esther Mae shook her handful of pea pods for emphasis. “Empower yourself.”

      Ashby expelled an exasperated breath. “I thought I did. I moved all the way out here to Mule Hollow, but nothing has changed. The only man who has asked me out is a shallow playboy, whom all of you for some reason think is a good match for me.”

      “First of all,” Sheri said, “I do think you have Dan all wrong. And second, you changed your zip code. You didn’t change yourself.”

      Leave it to Sheri to be frank. Ashby felt the sting of her words all the way to her toes. “So you think I am stuck-up. You think they’re right about me?”

      “No.” Lacy jumped in. “That’s not what Sheri’s saying.”

      “It certainly isn’t. I think you are afraid. Believe me, I’ve been there. I think you are afraid of looking silly.”

      “He said that, too.”

      “Who, Dan?” Lacy asked.

      Ashby nodded, feeling like a loser.

      “Is it true?” Sheri asked.

      “In a way. I was brought up in a setting where looking silly was the cardinal sin. I’m not sure I can do it. Really, that first day here, I thought I could, so when Brady grabbed me to be in the three-legged race with him, I did it. But when it was over I just couldn’t stop thinking about how foolish I’d looked. Don’t get me wrong, I love my mother, but I can’t seem to get her voice out of my head.” Now they probably all thought she was an awful person. Her relationship with her mother was complicated, but she did love her….

      No-nonsense Sheri shook her head. “There comes a time when you make your own way in the world, Ashby. Totally and completely separate from your past. Even your mother. It’s the only way to truly know who you are. What I found out as an adult is that my life is between me and the Lord.”

      Echoes of agreement rang out across the room.

      “You would have had a blast riding those handlebars,” Sherri continued. “And you could have a blast chasing a pig, too. Don’t relegate yourself to the corner just because you don’t have the best hand-eye coordination or because you think acting or looking silly is wrong. You have to laugh at yourself, take chances. Boy, did I ever learn that.” She frowned. “Not that I meant to preach to you or anything. It just hit a nerve.”

      “Sheri’s right,” Lacy said. “If these cowboys see you out there laughing at yourself, they’re going to start seeing the Ashby we know. The one who would make a great wife and mother…and who’s one brilliant businesswoman.”

      “That’s right,” Norma Sue called out. Esther Mae and Adela were nodding and smiling in vigorous agreement.

      Ashby fought back the lump that had lodged in her throat. “I wish it were that simple.” She thought about the bike. She’d always wanted to ride a bicycle. What about scrambling for a pig? Could she? Dan Dawson would say no. “So you really think me getting into that arena and trying to catch that pig might help me get a husband?”

      Sheri and Lacy nodded like bobble heads.

      Ashby inhaled sharply. “Okay.” She had to do this. Even though her mother would be appalled at the idea…. Ashby had lived with the fear of a reporter saying the wrong thing about her in the Nob Hill or Pacific Heights society pages. Laughable, since her parents hadn’t ever been considered elite enough to be newsworthy themselves. This was, however, Ashby had realized, one reason her mother was so preoccupied with fitting in with the upper crust. She lived, breathed and dreamed of the days when she or Ashby would be mentioned on the right pages of the right papers. This was why Ashby had let herself be pushed into dating first Brad and then Carlton. Both were highly newsworthy—and both had passed her over for more compatible matches for their blue money within the space of six months. Her mother had not been happy with Ashby on either count. To her way of thinking, Ashby had “lost” them deliberately.

      Ashby hadn’t dated again until after she’d moved away from home in San Francisco and opened her store in San Moreno, where she’d met Steven. Brad’s and Carlton’s rejection had devastated her mom. Steven’s rejection had devastated Ashby. It was time to make a change.

      Taking a deep, calming breath, she let the idea sink in.

      She took courage from everyone’s smiles. “I’m probably going to be the laughingstock of Mule Hollow. But I’m in. I’m going to show certain people that I can loosen up.” She gulped a very unladylike gulp.

      She—Ashby Renee Templeton, who had never even played in a sandbox, much less in dirt—had a date with a pig!

      Imagine that.

      Chapter Three

      The rodeo had been a good one, but it was about to get better. Leaning against the steel bars of the arena, Dan watched the group of laughing women prepare to do battle with the squealing pig in the pen behind him.

      When he’d first learned that Ashby was going to participate, he figured it might be another train wreck. She’d been heavy on his mind in the month since they’d walked or limped the bike into town. Ashby had not been able to hide the pain of her blisters by the end of the disastrous ordeal. The cantankerous woman had refused all his attempts to help, and he’d finally stopped trying. Fortunately, by the time they’d made it into town, almost everyone was off participating in other festivities, sparing them some of the hoopla associated with coming in dead last.

      Dan had to hand it to her, she’d said she wasn’t riding the bike and she’d stuck to her guns. Blisters and all.

      It stood to reason that when word spread of her raising money to win herself a spot in the scramble, there had been a stampede of cowboys lining up to help her along. The chance to support a worthy cause and see Ashby pitted against a pig had been too good to pass up for some people.

      Not that she’d let Dan help her out. Oh, no, she’d refused to sell him a ticket.

      Yup, she was still miffed at him.

      Watching her now, he decided she looked stiff and nervous. He had to admit, though, that she looked nice, as usual. But his attention fixed on her luminous eyes, wide with trepidation.

      His gut twisted. Those eyes should be wide with anticipation. He wanted her to relax and have a good time.

      Not that she’d believe him.

      Her back was as rigid as a ruler as she waited for the signal to enter the arena. Much like it had been every time she’d seen him over the past month.

      Sunday school had been awkward, but he’d refrained from teasing her, not wanting to add to her dilemma. The one she had no idea she had. He’d tried to get the guys to stop with the “Ashed” nonsense, but his efforts had only drawn more attention to her plight. He had hopes for her tonight.

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