“So if I kiss you sometime in future…?”
I straighten and reach my hand over to cover hers, hoping she'll feel what I do when my palm touches her skin. "I’ll take that as you tellin’ me you understand what everythin’ with me means.”
"OK," she whispers, but this time she does it with a smile that brands itself onto my soul in a way that it'll be there forever.
I squeeze my fingers around her hand before letting go and regretfully pulling my arm back. “OK.”
“And until then?”
“We’re good, Dee. You’ve got a job here at Bull for as long as you want. Whatever happens, we’ll always be good.”
Then her smile turns blinding. “Bloody oath, we will,” she says in the thickest Australian accent I’ve ever heard.
"You've read Aster's books and other romances, yeah?"
Her brows lift. "Sure have. I love them."
“OK. So have you ever read one where it’s a bit of a slow burn? Where the hero and heroine in the story take their time and make sure it’s right before movin’ forward?”
“Yeah…” she says, leaning forward, her voice a soft whisper that I feeleverywhere.
“Let’s see what happens withourslow burn, Skippy. Just trust your gut and trust whatever you’re feelin’, whenever you’re feelin’ it. Can you do that?”
She nods and I give in a little to whatIreally wanna do, and what Ithinkshe wants to do, I press my lips between her brows, leaving them there as I breathe her in.
And I never thought I’d say this, but just that small intimate moment is more than enough to tide me over for now. Because as soon as Delilah Daniels makes her move on me, I have a feeling we’ll be moving at warp speed.
13
DEE
November
It’s definitely getting colder now–well, colder than it was when I first arrived–but it has not made me love Alaska, Spring Haven, or Bull Mountain Ranch any less.
Every morning I drag myself out of my warm bed when my second alarm sounds, make my way to the shower and collect the steaming mug of coffee from the kitchenette that Toby leaves for me every morning. That cup sustains me while I get dressed and trudge through the snow to get to the ranch house. Then I move on to the cowboy brew aka the ‘put hairs on your chest and make you feel like you’ve been defibrillated’ coffee and breakfast.
Most days, we also gather in the main house for a hot lunch as well. We all take turns to cook. A favorite that I've made for everyone is Mom's Beef Bourguignon I do in the slow cooker. It's only second to Red's once-a-year Moose Stew he made last week which was so good we all went back for seconds.
At the end of the work day, we get together for supper, sitting around the dining table to talk about the day, the animals, ranch operations and future plans, or any news and tidbits we’ve heard from around town. If you don’t believe that ranchers are some of the biggest gossips out there, you haven’t been around the Bull Mountain crew. If there’s something to know and someone to know it about, they’ve either heard it, or will find out about it.
Tonight though, dinner is a little different because Toby insisted we have an early 'Ranch-giving' since tomorrow I'll travel to Anchorage and fly home for two weeks to see my family. This will be the last time I visit Montana until next year so I'm super excited to see everyone but torn about leaving my new found family here too.
“What’s that frown for?” Cora asks, bumping my hip with hers as we stand in the kitchen getting ready to serve up dinner. “You not excited about goin’ home? If my family didn’t come visit us every six months, I’d be itchin’ to get back home to England.”
I give her a half smile, not hiding my conflicting emotions. “I miss everyone like crazy and I can’t wait to hug my parents–even my smelly, annoyin’ brothers too,” I say with a laugh. “But I’m gonna miss all of y’all like mad too.”
“All of us, oroneof us in particular?” she says, arching a brow. Her warm eyes twinkle and I can’t help but snicker.
“All of you. I’m still torn aboutthatparticular issue.”
“Why? I promise you, what you see is what you get with Tobes. If he likes you, he'll do anythin’ for you. If he cares about you, you’re in his heart for life. If you’re important to him, there ain’t anythin' he won't do or anywhere he won't go for you. All of the men here are like that.’
“I know,” I say softly. “I’ve never felt more at home anywhere else andwithanyone else before. You've all made me feel like I’m a member of the family.”
“That’s ‘cause you are, Dee. You’re one of us now. Not sure what we’ll do if you ever plan on leavin’ us permanently,” Cora says offhandedly but her eyes hold a glimmer of sincerity. It warms my heart to hear her say that. "I feel like one of you. Worked at a lot of ranches in my time and I've never been embraced like y'all have done to me here."
"Not just us. The townsfolk too. They did it to me when I arrived as well. You don't want friends, tough luck, you've got them. The Sallys, Mags, the church ladies, the lady at the animal rescue, they all adopted me just like the ranch family did. It's not a bad thing, Dee. Just hard to leave if you're thinkin’ about doin’ it."
