“Maybe more. When you start with ten—” Thunder’s distinctive rumble wiped out all thoughts but one. “That’ll be Rance.” Heart racing, she left the table and carried her dishes to the sink.
Her dad stood. “I’ll get the door.”
“Thanks, Dad. Tell him I’ll be right there.” She put her mug and plate in the dishwasher.
“I take it you had a nice time last night.”
She kept her expression neutral as she turned to face her mom. “I did.”
“I wondered how it would go, since you two don’t always get along. But since you’re taking off with him this morning you must have ironed out your differences.”
“We have.” She did her best to keep a straight face. That meant ignoring the sound of Rance’s voice in the entryway, which gave her goosebumps. She chose her words carefully. “Since we’ll be seeing each other a few times a year, we might as well be friends.”
“I hope that’s possible. You probably know he has a crush on you.”
What the hell could she say to that? “Well, I?—”
“Hey, guess what?” Her dad strode into the kitchen carrying a glass container with a snap-on lid. “We have pound cake, after all!”
Rance followed him, all smiles. “Good morning, ladies! I realized after I brought Lani home last night that this hadn’t made the trip.” He gestured toward the container. “It spent the night in my truck so I wouldn’t forget a second time.”
“Thanks, Rance.” Her mom beamed at him. “Very considerate of you.”
“The credit goes to Granny. She put in the work. I’m just the unreliable delivery boy. You were supposed to have it with your breakfast. My apologies.”
“No worries, son.” Her dad clapped him on the shoulder. “I noticed the snow’s picked up. I see a cozy fire and a mid-morning snack in my future.”
“It’s snowing?” Lani glanced toward the window above the sink where she’d been standing moments ago. She’d been so focused on navigating the interior landscape she’d been blind to the flakes swirling outside.
“Yes, ma’am.” Rance’s eyes twinkled with amusement. “You’d best bundle up.”
Although there was nothing inherently suggestive in any of that, her heart stuttered and her cheeks grew warm. Not good. “I left my scarf in my room. I’ll be back in a sec.” She hurried past him. Had her folks heard his soft, sexy chuckle? She sure hoped not.
Since she didn’t plan to be out in the snow, she didn’t need the scarf but she’d wanted a chance to brush her teeth and put on lipstick. On the way back to the kitchen, she detoured past the entry, grabbed her coat and slipped it on.
In her absence, Rance had taken a seat at the kitchen table. Coat unbuttoned and hat on his lap, he looked right at home as her folks shared their tree-chopping adventure.
She hadn’t been around for it since they’d decided to do the deed before she arrived and surprise her. Sara had texted her about the incident, starting out withThe good news is Mom was not killed by a Christmas tree.
“I’ve never seen Vanessa move that fast.” Her dad shook his head. “I don’t know how we miscalculated the angle, but she wassmack-dab in the path of it. And she leaped out of the way like an elite athlete. Impressive.”
“Until I lost my balance and fell in a snowbank.”
“Better than having a seventy-pound tree land on you.” Her dad glanced up as she walked in. “Next year we’ll wait for you to get here, sweetheart. Chopping your own tree sure does jumpstart the Christmas spirit.”
“Yeah.” Her mom laughed. “Not to mention the adrenaline rush when you’re almost KO’d as it comes crashing down.”
“I admire your grit,” Rance said, “but just remember I’m available if you ever want some help.”
“Appreciate it,” her dad said with a grin, “but we enjoy screwing up these things on our own.”
“Alrighty, then. I totally understand.” He looked over at her. “We’d better get going.”
“Yep. Before the snow gets any worse.”
“We’ll be fine.” He picked up his hat by its crown and stood. “Thunder can handle it.” In a move that was all cowboy, he put on the hat and tugged down the brim.
A simple thing, but she found it mesmerizing. Always had. Cowboys. Who knew?
