Page 42 of Home to the Cowboy

As she parked her car, Daisy barked and came charging down the steps. Dylan was waiting for her. Bending down to get Daisy to settle down, she exhaled slowly. She was so happy they were here.

As she got up, Dylan walked closer, his hands in the back pockets of his jeans.

“Hi.” Just his voice was enough to melt her down to a puddle.

“Hi. You want coffee?”

He moved a few steps closer to her. “Nope.”

“Tea?”

He was right in front of her, touching the stone of the necklace. “No.”

“So what do you want?”

“You.” Picking her up he walked back toward the house with Daisy yapping at his heels.

Chapter Fourteen

June was still a bit hesitant when Ellie picked her up on Wednesday afternoon. “Are you sure I won’t be in the way? I don’t have to stay for the night, I can go back after dinner.” Being where she wasn’t supposed to be had been an all-too-familiar feeling growing up; it wasn’t an experience she wanted to repeat. She would love to see more of the ranch, though.

As Ellie drove away from her house, she touched June’s arm. “I wouldn’t have asked you to come home with me this afternoon and to stay with us tonight if it was a problem. We like you, June, you better get used to it.”

“Thank you and thanks for last night. I really had a great time at the book club.”

“We so enjoy your input. You certainly do know your classics. I don’t know if you’ve been on a ranch before, but I think you’ll enjoy seeing what happens this time of year around here.”

“I’m looking forward to it,” June said. “Last year when I was here, I drove past all the beautiful pastures, but I only had one mission and that was to talk to Becket. This will be my first time on a ranch. I grew up in Seattle, so I’m very much a city girl.”

“I lived in Phoenix before I moved here,” Ellie said shaking her head. “Now I can’t imagine ever living in a city again.”

As they left town, June looked through the window at the gorgeous mountains all around them. “It’s so beautiful. The day I arrived in town, it was raining so I couldn’t see much, but this view is breathtaking.”

“I never tire of it,” Ellie smiled. “We’re very fortunate to live in such a picturesque part of the country. I’m so glad you’ve agreed to spend the night with us. Waking up on a ranch is such a special experience.”

They chatted for a few minutes before Ellie’s car slowed down. “Here we are.”

June’s heart kicked up a beat. She’d texted Dylan earlier to say he didn’t have to pick her up, Ellie was bringing her. Whether he’d seen the message yet, she didn’t know, and she didn’t want to check while she was with Ellie. She knew the teasing was meant well, but she still wasn’t comfortable with the idea that everyone knew what was going on between her and Dylan.

“If you’re game,” Ellie said as she stopped in front of a beautiful house, “I can take you to where the guys are working, checking on bulls. During summer the herd is sorted in their different breeding groups.” Ellie laughed. “Don’t worry, I still don’t know what that means. What do you say?”

“Yes, I’d love to see what they’re doing, thanks.”

“Great. Willow is also helping them. She brought a pair of boots for you earlier. Apparently, she bought them a while ago but has never worn them, they’re too tight for her. According to her, they will fit you.”

“But how does she know my shoe size?”

Laughing, Ellie opened her door and got out. “I don’t know. What I can tell you is that the boots will fit you.”

As June got out of Ellie’s car, she inhaled the fresh air and turned to look around. Slowly, as if she’d been holding her breath for way too long, she exhaled. Her senses gobbled up everything around her—the birds chirping, the scent of soil and animals around her, the sun warming her back, the ground underneath her feet, the sight of the majestic mountains.

This … this was what coming home felt like. This land, this ranch made her feel at home.

“… June?” Ellie’s voice finally penetrated her thoughts.

“Sorry,” June smile, “it’s just so beautiful. Those mountains,” she said pointing to rugged mountains all around them, “what are they called?”

“We are at the base of the Absaroka Range, a sub-range of the Rocky Mountains. It really is something, isn’t it?”