* * *
Jillian slowed her pace and glanced over her shoulder to see Aidan make the same jump she had. She couldn’t help but be impressed at his skill, but she shouldn’t be surprised. She’d heard from Dillon that all his brothers and cousins were excellent horsemen.
In no time, he’d caught up with her. “You’re good,” he said, bringing his horse alongside hers. The two animals eased into a communal trot.
“Thanks,” she said, smiling over at him. “You’re not bad yourself.”
He threw his head back and laughed. The robust sound not only floated across the countryside, but it floated across her, as well. Although she’d seen him smile before, she’d never seen him amused about anything.
“No, I’m not bad myself. In fact there was a time I wanted to be a bronco rider in the rodeo.”
For some reason she wasn’t surprised. “Dillon talked you out of it?”
He shook his head, grinning. “No, he wouldn’t have done such a thing. One of Dillon’s major rules has been for us to choose our own life goals. At least that was his rule for everyone but Bane.”
She’d heard all about Aidan’s cousin Brisbane Westmoreland, whom everyone called Bane. She’d also heard Dillon had encouraged his baby brother to join the military. He’d said Bane could do that or possibly go to prison for the trouble he’d caused. Bane had chosen the navy. In the four years that Pam had been married to Dillon, Jillian had only seen Bane twice.
“So what changed your mind about the rodeo?” she asked when they slowed the horses to a walk.
“My brother Derringer. He did the rodeo circuit for a couple of summers after high school. Then he got busted up pretty bad. Scared all of us to death and I freaked out. We all did. The thought of losing another family member brought me to my senses and I knew I couldn’t put my family through that.”
She nodded. She knew about him losing his parents and his aunt and uncle in a plane crash, leaving Dillon—the oldest at the time—to care for all of them. “Derringer and a few of your cousins and brothers own a horse-training business right?”
“Yes and it’s doing well. They weren’t cut out to work in the family business so after a few years they left to pursue their dreams of working with horses. I try to help them out whenever I come home but they’re doing a great job without me. Several of their horses have won important derbies.”
“Ramsey resigned as one of the CEOs as well, right?” she asked of his oldest brother.
He glanced over at her. “Yes. Ramsey has a degree in agriculture and economics. He’d always wanted to be a sheep farmer, but when my parents, aunt and uncle died in that plane crash he knew Dillon would need help at Blue Ridge.”
Jillian knew that Blue Ridge Land Management was a Fortune 500 company Aidan’s father and uncle had started years ago. “But eventually he was able to pursue his dream, right?”
Aidan nodded. “Yes. Once Dillon convinced Ramsey he could handle things at the corporation without him. Ramsey’s sheep ranch is doing great.”
She nodded. She liked Ramsey. In fact, she liked all the Westmorelands she had gotten to know. When Pam married Dillon, the family had welcomed her and her sisters with open arms. She’d discovered some of them were more outgoing than the others. But the one thing she couldn’t help but notice was that they stuck together like glue.