“Sure thing.” He opened the door and motioned her through.
She followed him out and eyed the car he was heading toward. “I thought you had a truck?”
“I can borrow one from my brother once we get to my folks’ place,” he said. “We’ll grab it, then load the freezer and fetch the air popper too.”
She scratched her head. “Oh yeah. Sorry.”
He opened her door, and Lila climbed in. It was probably his mother’s car. It smelled like a cross between lavender and lemon polish.
As soon as they left the parking lot, she relaxed a little, but not enough to shake the awkward flutter in her chest. She wasalonewith TJ. He was handsome, tall, charming… and another tingle shot up her spine just looking at him.
But he was also leaving, returning to England, and she’d better remember that. Because why would someone like him stay for someone likeher? She was nobody. And everyone in town knew the Cookes, Joneses, and Turners didn’t date nobodies.
Chapter Eight
TJ tried not to steal glances at Lila as they drove, but it was difficult. She’d filled out over the years, and he’d forgotten how pretty she was. He was surprised she wasn’t married yet. But then, growing up in a town like Clear Creek, where everyone knew everybody else, made finding a match tricky. Maybe it was because she’d gone to school with the same crowd from kindergarten through high school. Even if she’d gone off to a university, most people ended up back here anyway.
“I forgot how far out your folks’ ranch was,” Lila said, breaking into his thoughts.
“Back in the day, on horseback maybe,” he said with a grin.
She laughed. “Yes, but how often did you ride to town?”
“Sometimes we’d make a day of it,” he said. “We’d ride in when we were kids, stop by Dunnigan’s Mercantile in Old Town, buy candy, then head to the park to go swimming.”
“You could probably still do that,” she said. “There’s a section marked for horse trails at the park.”
“Is there? Maybe I’ll haul the horses down and ride. I don’t fancy riding all the way from the ranch.”
“No, I suppose not.” She sighed and looked out the window.
“You’re worried about them, aren’t you?”
She turned to him. “If you’re talking about Tilly’s elderly help… yes. You saw the disaster they made a few days ago.”
He laughed. “They’re learning, Lila. You don’t have to worry. It’s not that hard.”
“Yes, but… to them it seemed to be. Good grief, they acted like they’d never seen an espresso machine before.”
He chuckled again but didn’t argue.
It wasn’t long before they turned down the long drive leading to his family’s horse ranch. The sprawling property still impressed him. And he’d grown up on it. There was the big two-story ranch house, and several smaller homes. Arenas, barns, outbuildings, and acres of fence pasture stretched toward the hills.
“This is incredible,” Lila breathed.
“Yeah,” he agreed, glancing around. “A lot of work. Not that I’m lazy. That’s not why I became a marine biologist, just so you know.”
“Oh, I’m sure it’s not,” she teased. “But still, how could you leave all this?”
“Have you met my mother?” He laughed, parked, and hurried around to open her door. She let him help her out.
“How very gentlemanly of you. England’s taught you well.”
He laughed and motioned toward the main house. “Come on. My mom will be thrilled I brought company, but we can’t stay long.”
“Of course not. I’m not leaving Irene and Grandma alone any longer than I have to.”
He laughed again and led her inside. The house was immaculate yet cozy, and smelled like cookies.
