“You heard me, Reecee Cup. No sense in beating around the bush. You crossed the threshold of being grown a long time ago. We can talk like adults. You’re sweet as pie, honey. Got a good heart and can cook your butt off, but what’s going to catch that man, any man, is the eye candy. Those other things are what’s going to keep him.”
I grinned because this woman was ten messes on a good day. Double that when she was inspired. Apparently the prospect of a love connection with me and Ro had her inspired. “I appreciate the advice but I’m not looking to catch or keep Ro.”
“Why the hell not? I know you wear glasses and all, but even still, you should be able to see how handsome he is. Had me stealing a few extra looks while we had coffee this morning and you know you got them child bearing hips. No sense in wasting ’em.”
“Okay, I’m going to go now. I love you and I’ll see you at Jubilee. I’ll have some new stuff you might like.”
“Chile, I know exactly what you’re doing and I’m gonna let you because staying tied up on this phone with me means you’re not having dinner with him. Tell Ro I said hello and that I called to make sure he was settling in.”
“Yes, ma’am, I sure will.”
I shook my head, grinning after I ended the call, then glanced at the plates sitting on my counter. The two plates had my mind wandering to the reason there was one instead of two and I pulled my lip between my teeth and headed to the landline. My father didn’t believe in cellphones being the only source of communication, so we had them throughout the ranch—one in the horse stables, the foreman cabin, and our house.
At the moment I was grateful because it was the only connection I had to Ro aside from taking myself over there. Being in his presence was not the best plan of action considering the way I was currently feeling. Sex probably wasn’t a great negotiating tool for having him help me around the ranch, even if my goal was no strings attached. According to Mrs. Mel, Ro was originally looking to get put on at Phoxes and that meant temporary. Once the season ended, he would be on to the next town, so the only thing we could offer each other was a no strings attached temporary fix.
Damn if I didn’t really need a fix.
I huffed and lifted the phone, dialing the number to the foreman’s cabin, only to be disappointed when no one answered. I tried several more times, then thought about what he’d mentioned earlier, a thirteen-hour drive and wanting to shower and relax.
Then you worked him all day doing strenuous manual labor…
That he led the charge for. It wasn’t my fault the man didn’t know what pacing was…
“Shit,” I mumbled to myself, considering the obvious. He was asleep…or didn’t want to be bothered.
“Oh well, his loss,” I said with a shrug, deciding to get dressed, eat, drop his plate off, then head out to meet my girl. I wanted Ro to be my good time tonight but time with Wren would be equally satisfying. Drinks and laughs with the bestie were always a good time.
Chapter 5
Ro.
My sluggish mind heard a phone ringing but my body wouldn’t cooperate enough for me to move, so I buried my face deeper into the pillow. The clean, floralscent of fresh laundry pushed a feeling of calm through me. Traveling to various ranches over the past six months landed me in some decent spaces, but not one I could recall with bedding that smelled like flowers. The thought reminded me of the reason for my current situation.
Reece.
The next thought I had was the dinner she’d promised and my stomach knotted from being empty. But I couldn’t will myself to move, so I drifted again and didn’t wake until I heard what sounded like boots moving over the hardwood floors then a door shutting.
I immediately lifted my head and groaned as I did my best to drag myself off the bed. My knee gave out as soon as I took my first step and I barely managed to prevent the tragedy of busting my ass. I moved to the front of the house sluggishly and frowned at the sight of Reece walking away from the cabin. As much as I enjoyed the visual of her legs exposed from the short jean skirt she had on, it was too damn cold for her to be in it.
I kept my eyes on her until she climbed into her Wrangler and the taillights blurred from the distance. I yanked a hand down my face, realizing I was annoyed because where the hell was she going dressed like that.
Probably to her man…
That thought shifted my annoyance to anger because who the hell was getting her time? Once again I was trying not to re-evaluate what the hell was going on with me. Reece wasn’t my concern, and if she had a man, that was none of my business unless I was considering replacing him.
I grunted and yanked my hand down my face once more before the scent of grilled meat had my stomach once again reminding me that it was empty. I turned toward the kitchen and my eyes dropped to the plate centered on the tiny wooden tablenear the window. A kitchen I hadn’t taken the time to notice a few hours prior.
It was small, L-shaped, basic, and clean. A two-seater square table sat near the paneled windows and not much else. The deep brown weathered texture of the wood floors were on the cabinets as well. The living room housed a brown leather framed sofa with Aztec cushions and pillows, a black leather two seater, reclining chair, and wide screen TV on the wall. There wasn’t much else to the place but it was enough and damn sure better than sleeping on a hard spring mattress in a bunk house where I always had another person below or above me.
I made my way to the table, lifted the foil from the plate, and smiled at the juicy, perfectly grilled steak sitting next to a baked potato split down the middle and loaded with some type of herb butter. It smelled damn good and had me yanking open drawers in search of utensils.
I quickly dropped my ass in the chair, cut into the steak, and my first bite was so damn good I lifted a follow-up bite with my mouth still full from the first.
“Gotdamn,” I murmured. Either I was on the cusp of starvation or Reece had skills.
I was so focused on the food that I didn’t notice the note sitting on the table until my plate was almost empty. I dragged it closer and grinned at the girly ass handwriting.
Called but you didn’t pick up. Figured it wouldn’t be a good idea to let you wither away on my watch, and besides, we have a lot more work to get done. Heading to Forty Acres to grab a drink or five. Left you beer in the fridge. Enjoy.
