Color Me Love Read Online Free PDF Page A

eve of the biggest love day of the year.” I tried
really hard to forget last year’s Valentine’s Day when Bradley took me to our
favorite pizzeria on the outskirts of town, Pete’s Pizzeria.
    I
quickly hit send on Ron’s file so he knew he was free from Emma, and then shut
down my computer.
    “Listen,
my car broke down and I need you to go to the Heifers and Ho’s Dude Ranch to
meet Buddy for his date.” She said. I could tell she was on the verge of crying.
    “Where
is the big secret client?” I asked.
    Damn! If I’d known
she wasn’t going to show up, I’d have sent Joel on the date, then I wouldn’t
have to sneak and get his number.
    “She
got tied up. I need you to pretend to be her.” Erin now sounded panicked.
    “Whoa
there, Nelly!” I screamed.
    There
was no way I was going to Heifer’s and Ho’s Dude Ranch. I was not going to go
on a date where they offer bucking broncos. The last time I rode a bull was in
college at Smokey Scott’s Bar. And then it was only for free beer night.
    “Nelly?”
Now Erin was just plain confused.
    “It’s
an expression. No, I won’t pretend to be your ‘super secret client’.” I walked
into the kitchen and through the family room to let Herbie out the back door.
    I
loved my tree-lined land. It was perfect for the privacy I loved and the chain-link
fence was great for Herbie to roam freely without me having to watch him.
    “You
have to.” Erin protested. “You are my best friend and I need you to pretend to
be Jennifer.”
    “Jennifer?
You’re secret client is Jennifer?” I asked.
    All
the famous Jennifers ran through my head.
    “Oh!
My! God!” I screamed into the phone and jumped up and down. “Jennifer Aniston
is your client!”
    “What?”
Erin was annoyed. “No, not Jennifer Aniston. I wish, but somehow I don’t think
she has problems getting a date on her own.”
    “Jennifer
Lopez?” I took another shot.
    “Hello!
Jenny from the block is not going to be dating Buddy from the burbs.” Erin
sounded frustrated. “I just want you to pretend to be Jennifer. After this I
will show you her picture and tell you who she is. But this is the first date
for Color Me Love. I really need you.”
    When
she put it that way, it made it hard for me to refuse. She’s always been there
for me and she was trying hard to make this business work.
    “Fine,”
I agreed. “But I will not ride one of those bulls. Do you understand?” I made
sure to tell Erin up front that I wasn’t happy. “And he is going to think that
Jennifer is the biggest bitch in town.
    I
slammed down the phone, let Herbie in, grabbed my keys, jumped in the Toyota
and headed to Heifer’s and Ho’s Dude Ranch.

 
    Six
     
     
    I’ve
driven past the sign a million times on the way out to Pleasure Ridge Park and
never once had the urge to stop. The wooden sign that towered over the dirt
drive like a bridge read: Heifer’s and Ho’s Dude Ranch. The antlers, one each
side of the sign, were barely hanging on.
    The
things you do for friends , I thought, wondering which poor animals those
antlers came from. I needed to remind myself what a great friend Erin had been
through the years. Her loyalty was unwavering.
    It
was easy for me to pretend to be Jenn from Splitsville.com, so Jennifer, super
secret client, from Color Me Love should be a cakewalk.
    The
scenery was amazing, totally taking me by surprise. The long ranch style home
was nestled perfectly in front of the mountainous background. A group of men in
cowboy hats were twirling lassos in the air in a pasture just to the left of
the house.
    Beyond
that, there were at least two hundred head of cattle in a different pasture. My
math could have slightly been off, but I knew it was a lot of beef.
    There
were women, men and children roaming all around the property. I’d heard about
the ranch but never actually heard of anyone coming here.
    Lucky
me. . .I’d get to experience it first-hand.
    Damn! They
must not be doing too poorly,