Then Came You ; Written with Love

by Kianna Alexander

  He eased toward her, leaned down and kissed her forehead. “Hey, Mama Jeannie.”

  She offered a small smile. “Hello, sweetheart.”

  “Still reading the comic strips, I see.”

  Her thin shoulders lifted in a shrug. “It’s the only part of the paper that’s not full of bad news.”

  Pulling the nearby armchair closer to the bed, he sat down. “Helene called me and said you’re not feeling well. That you were asking for me.”

  “Both true. The doctor says my pressure’s up.” She paused, took a few shallow breaths. “I’ve been getting really tired and winded.” She reached up to stifle a yawn. “So, they put me on bedrest.”

  He studied her face, noting the pallor hanging over her. “I got here as fast as I could. Just flew back from North Carolina.”

  “How are my stepson Carver and his family?”

  “They’re doing well. All my cousins are married now.”

  Her eyes widened for a moment. “Really? Isn’t that something.” She eyed him.

  When the scrutiny went on a beat too long, he pursed his lips. “Come on, Mama Jeannie. Don’t give me that look. You know I’m not the settling-down type.”

  “You just haven’t met the right woman.” She smiled, but it faded as she went into a coughing spell. Covering her mouth with one hand, she gestured toward the glass of water on her nightstand with the other.

  He handed her the glass, watching her as she took a few long sips. When the coughing subsided, she handed it back to him and he returned it to its resting spot.

  “How long can you stay, Troy?”

  He heard the weariness in her voice as she asked the question, and the familiar pangs of guilt wrenched his lower abdomen. “I’ll be here for a while, Mama Jeannie. I just took a job here in town.”

  A bit of the old sparkle returned to her gray eyes. “Really? Where?”

  “I’ll be working over at the Chance spread as a lead rancher. Great benefits, good pay.”

  She nodded. “Benefits, you say.” She paused. “I’m sure you know Robyn is still there, don’t you? Only she’s ‘Dr. Chance’ nowadays.”

  “I know, Mama Jeannie.” Yes, he was well aware that his junior-year girlfriend was still in Grandeza. “In a town as small as Grandeza, there are very few secrets.”

  “Even for someone who only comes through once in a blue moon, huh?”

  He grimaced. I guess I had that coming. “What are you getting at?”

  “I’m not getting at anything.”

  He tilted his head, giving her a look.

  “I’m serious. Why should I meddle in your life? Fate always takes care of things. You’ll see.”

  He sighed and gave the only acceptable reply. “Yes, ma’am.”

  She yawned, then snuggled down deeper into the mound of pillows. “I’m tired, Troy. Will you stay around for a while, until I take a little nap?”

  He nodded. “I’ll be here.”

  Her droopy eyes slipped shut a moment later. Standing, he leaned over her and placed a soft kiss on her weathered brow. She’d lived eighty-nine years, and in that time, she’d buried her husband and her only biological son, and seen more than her share of hardships. While Mama Jeannie and Uncle Carver got along pretty well, their contact with each other was infrequent at best. Despite his wandering ways, Troy loved his grandmother fiercely. The two of them were the only living members of this branch of the Monroe family tree.

  Sitting back down, he watched her sleep as he pondered what fate had in store for him.

  Can I finally find what I’m looking for?

  A true home?

  Chapter 2

  Seated behind her desk Tuesday morning, Robyn paged through the online résumé database she’d registered with to help her find a suitable veterinarian for the ranch. While the service promised to help narrow her search to only the most suitable applicants, she’d still received quite a few duds. There were résumés from vet students looking for internships, recent graduates who lacked industry experience and vets who’d only worked with small animals.

  She reached for her steaming mug of Earl Grey tea and took a sip. It was still early, and already her eyes were beginning to cross from reading over résumés. At this rate, I’m going to have to switch to coffee.

  It took nearly an hour to pull three qualified candidates from the batch of résumés she’d been forwarded. She was in the process of saving them to her account files when she heard someone knocking on the door. She called out without looking up, not wanting to jeopardize the file transfer. “It’s open.”

  Moments later, the door swung open and a large, rather wide shadow appeared over her desk. When the computer dinged to indicate that her résumé files had been saved, she looked up.

  Her mouth fell open. Hot damn! She made a mental note to smack Mary Ellen for not telling her that he was the new ranch hand. What the hell is M.E. playing at?

  Standing on the other side of her desk was the tall, dark and rugged Troy Monroe. Dressed in a tan button-down work shirt, blue jeans and brown work boots, his broad frame dominated the space.

  “Morning, Dr. Chance.” He removed the sandstone-colored Stetson from his head and held it in front of him. “Hope I’m not interrupting.”

  She snapped her mouth shut, swallowing. “I, uh, no, I was just finishing something. Good morning, Troy. It’s been ages since I’ve seen you.”

  “I haven’t been around town much the past few years, Doc.” His rich brown eyes met hers.

  Their gazes held for a long, silent moment, and she felt sure he could read her mind.

  She took a deep inhale and tried to ignore the heady citrus scent, with warm and woodsy notes, that filled her nostrils. She cleared her throat. “Please, call me Robyn. We’ve known each other too long to be so formal.”

  “Sure thing.” He smiled, showing off two rows of perfect teeth. Gesturing to her guest chair, he asked, “Should I sit down, or...”

  She could feel her cheeks go warm. She’d been knocked off-kilter by his appearance, so much so that she hadn’t even thought to ask him to sit down. “Yes, have a seat. Sorry. I’m a bit...scattered this morning.”

  “I’m going to guess you weren’t aware that I’d be your new rancher.” He eased into the chair.

  She tried not to look at the way his jeans stretched around his powerful thighs as he sat. She failed. “You’re correct. I’m sure Mary Ellen is getting a big kick out of this. She knows I hate surprises.”

  He chuckled. “Hopefully I’m not the worst surprise you’ve ever gotten.”

  She met his gaze. “Not by a long shot.”

  An expression passed over his face, some combination of amusement and wickedness that fired her blood. But it disappeared as quickly as it had come.

  “So, do you want to catch up, or get straight to the particulars of the job?” He leaned against the chair back, his forearms resting on his thighs.

  He appeared deferential, and she almost didn’t know how to respond. That had never been their dynamic in the past. He’d been a brooding young man, watching his parents’ marriage dissolve before his eyes. She’d been his balm against the stormy sea of his troubled home. Or so she’d thought.

  Breaking the silence, she said, “I think we can spare a moment to catch up. After all this time, it would be a bit strange if we didn’t.”

  “I agree.”

  “So, why don’t you start? What have you been up to these last ten or fifteen years?”

  He shifted in his seat. “Let’s see. I went to community college in North Carolina, got my associate’s in business. Finished out with an animal-science bachelor’s from NC State. Spent about a year working in the hog-farm industry there but couldn’t really...” He hesitated. “It wasn’t my thing. Anyway, after I left North Carolina, I came back out west. I’ve worked on spreads in Te
xas, Colorado and Kansas. My last job was up near Durango. Now, here I am.”

  She nodded as she processed his words, more focused on what he’d left out than what he’d actually said. He never mentioned a wife, or even a girlfriend for that matter. “Sounds like you’ve been busy.”

  “I have.” With a slight narrowing of his eyes, he watched her for a moment. “You know, I can see the gears turning in your mind. No, I haven’t had any serious relationships or kids.”

  Yikes. He’d seen right through her like a freshly scrubbed pane of glass. Then again, he’d always been able to read her, so she shouldn’t be surprised. “Insightful as always. That will come in handy once you’re out working with the animals.”

  He pressed his lips together, his dark mustache becoming more prominent. “I hope you’re not trying to change the subject before you tell me what you’ve been up to.”

  She shook her head. “No, of course not.” Stroking her hand over the back of her neck beneath her bun, she began her tale. “I went to school at UC Davis, straight through from my bachelor’s in animal science on through my DVM. Came home right after college, and I’ve been working here on the ranch ever since.” She let loose a little laugh. “As you can see, I haven’t had nearly as much adventure and travel as you.”

  “You’re loyal to your family. I admire that.”

  I was loyal to you, too. But you never seemed to notice. “I suppose. But loyalty isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.” She cringed, wishing she hadn’t said those last few words aloud.

  He leaned forward, rubbed his hands together. “I couldn’t help noticing you didn’t mention any significant others, same as me.”

  She closed her eyes, knowing there was no sense in denying it. “True. I’ve dated here and there, but there was never anyone really special...” Except you. She knew better than to finish that sentence aloud.

  “Seems like we’re both bad at relationships.”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know. I never give it too much thought. When the right man comes along, I’ll know.”

  “Let’s hope so.” His expression unreadable, he settled against the backrest again. “I think we’ve probably spilled our guts enough. What do we need to discuss about the job?”

  Trying not to let his abrupt change of subject rattle her, she opened the top drawer of her desk and pulled out the standard new-employee paperwork.

  I may not get my answers today. But he’s going to have to explain why he ran off the way he did back then.

  * * *

  Troy flipped through the stack of papers Robyn handed him, listening as she listed his many duties and responsibilities as a lead rancher. Every now and then, he’d glance up from the pages, watching her lips move as she read from her copy of the paperwork.

  He’d come here today prepared for anything—work-related. But nothing could have prepared him for seeing Robyn again after fifteen years. She’d grown into a stunning woman. Even though she was seated behind a desk, he could tell she was taller than the average woman, though still likely shorter than him. She still had those deep waves of glossy brown hair, now streaked with golden highlights that accentuated her slender oval-shaped face. Her copper-colored eyes glimmered with light, and her soft pink lips matched the color of her button-down top beneath the white lab coat. The coat’s upper left chest was embroidered with the phrase Robyn Chance, DVM in black script lettering.

  “Troy, did you hear what I just said?”

  Her words, spoken a little sharper than he would have liked, snapped him back to reality. “I’m sorry, what?”

  “I asked if you have any expertise with calving.” She pursed her lips. “If you hadn’t been staring at my chest you would have heard me.”

  He swallowed. “I’m sorry. I swear I was admiring the embroidery on your medical coat. Who did it?”

  Her lips tightened. “Kramer’s Uniforms down on Main Street.”

  “Ah.” He nodded, knowing she probably hadn’t bought his explanation. Her full bosom held its own appeal, but he really had been looking at the embroidery when she called him out. Thinking it best to just move on, he answered her earlier question. “No. In general, I’m not a fan of calving, though I’ll help out as much as I can.”

  She chuckled. “You’re kidding, right?”

  He shook his head. “It...makes me uncomfortable. I don’t want to be around when it’s happening, but I’ll assist with the mother and calf after the, uh, carnage.”

  “You’re serious?” Her eyes were as wide as if he, himself, had said something outrageous.

  “Yes.” Perturbed, he folded his arms over his chest. “Haven’t I been clear?”

  She snorted, then covered her mouth with her hands. “I’m sorry. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a rancher say that before. And coming from a strapping man like you, well...it’s a bit of a shock.”

  He tilted his head to the right. “It is what it is, Robyn.” The last thing he needed was another woman making fun of him for something he had no control over. His mother had spent years harping on him to man up, to get over his so-called “girlish sensitivity” to violence, injustice and misfortune. No matter what he did, he was never man enough to please his mother. Fortunately, Troy and his father had finally escaped her tyranny, and he’d no longer had to try to be the kind of son she obviously wanted.

  She straightened up then, clearing her throat and disguising her obvious mirth. “Again, I apologize. It’s actually not a bad thing that you empathize with the animal’s pain.”

  He said nothing, waiting to see where she would go next.

  “Calving is a natural process. You know that—you studied animal science just as I did. Hopefully, over time, you’ll be able to handle it better. As for now, consider it our little secret.”

  He gave her a sidelong glance. “You mean you’re not going to share my issue with the other hands around the watercooler?”

  She shook her head. “I’m not much for gossip. And even if I was, I wouldn’t want to undermine you. Telling the four hands you’ll be supervising would probably create problems, and we don’t need that right now. We’ve got more than thirty pregnant cows and heifers due to calve before the year ends.”

  He swallowed the lump forming in his throat. He’d worked at cattle operations before, but never one as large as the Chance spread. The idea of that many calvings set his teeth on edge. “Sounds like an adventure.”

  She smiled. “You bet. And we’ll have another fifty or sixty calves due before spring.”

  His stomach clenched at the thought, and his face folded into a grimace. “Uh, is there a water fountain nearby?”

  She pointed toward her open office door. “Go out and look to your left in the hallway.”

  He got up and took a few long strides toward the fountain. As he drank from the cold spray, he admonished himself. Get it together, Troy. You’re a grown man. Once he felt he’d gotten enough, he stood and turned back toward Robyn’s office. To his surprise, she now stood in the doorway, holding his Stetson in one hand.

  Seeing her standing confirmed his assumption about her height. His petite former flame had blossomed into a statuesque beauty. He hadn’t anticipated the immense appeal of her curvy hips and long legs in the light blue jeans she wore. Not wanting to stare, he jerked his eyes toward his hat.

  “I’d like to take you on a tour of the property. Show you where you’ll be working, and let you meet some of the guys you’ll be supervising.”

  He walked over to her, taking his hat from her grasp. “Sounds good. I’d like to get familiar with how things go around here.” I’d also like to get more familiar with the woman you’ve become. He kept that to himself. As Mama Jeannie had said, fate would take care of it. He imagined she’d be quite tickled to know how fast he’d bought into her philosophy. Something about Robyn and being in her presence again, after all this time, gave him a little
more faith. “Lead the way.”

  Her glossy lips tipped into a smile.

  His insides warmed like a summer afternoon in Santa Fe. Offering his arm like a gentleman, he waited for her to loop hers through. Placing his Stetson on his head, he walked her to the front door of the building.

  Chapter 3

  That afternoon, Robyn drove into town to The White Rabbit to meet her best friend for lunch. The sandwich shop, with its Alice in Wonderland theme, served the best lunch in town.

  Kima Roberson, an esthetician at a local day spa, waved to her as she walked in. “Over here, Robyn.”

  She walked over and gave her friend a hug before taking her seat at the small table. Kima, dressed in her spa uniform of black scrubs with hot-pink piping, had pulled her jet-black curls up into a high ponytail. Her lipstick matched the accent shade on her uniform.

  They took a moment to order their food. Kima asked for her usual chicken salad on a croissant, while Robyn opted to try the buffalo shrimp salad. It didn’t take long for their meals to arrive, and over the food, they caught up on each other’s lives.

  “How are things at the spa?”

  Kima shrugged. “Same ol’, same ol’. Had a bridezilla and her eight bridesmaids yesterday. She insisted I didn’t steam her face long enough during her facial.”

  Robyn rolled her eyes. “What did you say to her?”

  “I told her if I steamed it any longer, she wouldn’t have to worry about how her skin looked at the wedding because she’d be in the hospital.”

  “Your clients are wild.” Chuckling, Robyn took a bite of her salad.

  “You know how it is. There are only two spas in Grandeza, and House of Enchantment is the only one with the child-care benefit. The owners letting Leah come there for after-school care has been a lifesaver.”

  “How is my goddaughter? I feel like I haven’t seen her in forever.”