by Liz Isaacson
“Well, dig around some more tonight. I want details.” Renee found it ironic that she ate a salad for lunch—after consuming a cinnamon roll. At least she ate something green. Renee generally avoided anything in the plant family, as the thickness of her midsection testified.
The conversation moved on to work, to Delilah’s mother, who was in the hospital after surgery, to Renee’s housing situation.
“So are you going to move closer?” Delilah asked.
Renee scraped the tines of the fork along the bottom of the now-empty cinnamon roll box. “I don’t know.”
“Things must be more serious than ‘dreamy’ with Justy-Justington.” Delilah sang the nickname, which elicited a smile from Renee.
“It’s complicated.”
“How so?”
“I don’t see him very often. Only twice, actually. We’re meeting up again in a few weeks.”
Delilah paused with a forkful of baby spinach halfway to her mouth. “You don’t see him? The ranch can’t be that far from your place.”
“Maybe fifteen minutes.”
“Why don’t you go up there and see him?”
“He hasn’t ever invited me to.”
“Oh, honey.” Delilah patted Renee’s hand in a grandmotherly fashion. “You don’t need an invitation, especially if you take food.”
Chips and salsa, Renee thought. “You really think I can just show up unannounced?”
Delilah shrugged. “If you’re interested in him, I don’t see why not.”
A sliver of discomfort pressed into her heart. “I’m interested in him. I’m just not sure he’s quite as interested in me.”
“Only you can know that.” Delilah stood. “Well, duty calls. See you Thursday.” She bent down and gave Renee a hug before she headed out the door. Thoughts of Justin’s jealousy flooded her memory, and she got up and tossed her garbage in the trashcan.
Justin liked her. He’d said so right out loud. Renee wasn’t sure why she doubted it, doubted herself. As she took the golf cart back out to the entrance booth—the sun beating down on the red rocks, the black highways, everything with a fervor—she made a commitment to herself that she wouldn’t live so much inside her self-doubt. Not anymore.
Several days later, she darkened the doorway of the church again, this time wearing a black and blue maxi dress. Leah minced behind her in shoes with tiny pinpoint heels and straps that cut into the tops of her feet. But, apparently, there was a new bachelor in town, and Leah didn’t want to miss her chance to make a first impression.
Renee had argued for a solid thirty minutes that a fishmonger—in the middle of western Utah—was nothing to get excited about. Even if he was rumored to have delicious, dark hair and muscles from wrestling sixty-pound fish all day.
She’d have gone to church anyway; it was the one place where she never felt out of place, never felt overlooked, never wanted to hide.
This Sabbath was no different. Pastor Peters spoke about finding the qualities of Christ and trying to emulate them. He spoke about the Savior’s undying love for those around Him, and Renee’s heart expanded and warmed.
She felt loved when she was at church, despite Leah’s constant head-swinging. The sermon ended, and Renee leaned toward her cousin. “Maybe he’s not religious.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Leah grinned, looking very much like a wolf after her next meal. “All small towns revolve around a church, whether the people are religious or not.” She stood, her gaze sweeping the crowd. “Besides. There he is.” She strutted away, and Renee suddenly realized why Justin avoided Leah if possible. Did she look like her cousin? Wearing a too-tight dress, ridiculous heels, too much lipstick?
She self-consciously ran her fingers across her lips. “You okay?”
The male voice startled her, and she jumped as she turned, nearly throwing out her back in the process. There stood tall, dark, and dreamy Justin Jackman. Every nerve in her body fired on all cylinders. “Hey.”
“Hey, yourself,” he said in the same playful, flirty tone.
“I’ve never seen you at church.”
“I don’t always have Sundays off.” He offered her his elbow, and she laced her hand through it.
“Did you come down alone?”
“Sure did.” He leaned down and pressed his warm mouth to her temple. “Was hopin’ to see you. Maybe we could go to the park or something.”
“I have stuff to make sandwiches,” she said. “We could stop by my place first.”
He darted a glance in the direction Leah had gone. “Will your cousin be home?”
“I’ll meet you at the park.” She smiled at him so he’d know it was okay if he didn’t come back to the house with her. “Oh, and I do have an appointment at four o’clock.”
“An appointment on Sunday?”
Renee’s nerves bounced again, this time for a different reason. “I’m moving out,” she said. “I’m looking at a house for rent at the base of the canyon.” She wasn’t sure what meaning she wanted him to hear in the words, but he definitely heard something as his eyebrows nearly disappeared under his sexy cowboy hat.
“You’re staying here?”
“I don’t like my job much anyway, and I do like you, so I thought maybe I’d stick closer to Brush Creek for a while.” It was one of the most adult things she’d ever done, and pride swelled beneath her breastbone.
“Are you going to quit your job with the National Parks?”
“I’m looking into a couple of other options,” she said.
“Like what?”
Her stomach growled. “Let’s talk about it at the park, okay?” She glanced toward Leah. “Besides, here comes Leah.”
That got Justin moving, and Renee laughed as he practically ran from the chapel.
“Was that Justin?” Leah asked.
“Sure was. I’m taking sandwiches to the park, so can we go?” She tossed a look to where the fishmonger still stood with a gaggle of girls surrounding him. “How was the new guy?”
Leah grinned again. “I got his number, so it’s definitely time to go.” She walked out without looking back, and Renee appreciated her cousin’s determination.
A half an hour later, she arrived at Oxbow Park, the sky so blue above her head that it seemed surreal. She hadn’t changed out of the maxi dress, because it was the most comfortable piece of clothing she owned. She liked the way it swished around her legs, and she liked the glint in Justin’s eyes when he caught sight of her. He rose from the bench where he’d been sitting.
“Wow, a picnic basket and everything.” He glanced at the basket she carried, complete with a red-and-white checkered tablecloth peeking out the top.
“I don’t mess around.” She handed him the basket and slipped her hand into the crook of his arm again. “Where do you want to go?”
Oxbow Park was one of her favorite spots, with a river running down the edge of it. A large pond sat on the other end, with an island in the middle of it. Two bridges went out to the island, which was often crowded with families on the weekends.
A running path circled the park, and there were three separate pavilions for larger gatherings. The grass glittered like emeralds in the sun, and Justin smartly stuck to the shade of the larger trees that filled the park.
As they moved away from the parking lot and the street, it was almost like they’d stepped from city to forest. A lazy breeze whispered through the trees, and the faint scent of a campfire wafted toward them.
“I called my parents this weekend,” he said.
It took all she had not to look at him. “How are they?”
“Alive and kickin’.” He scuffed his boots along the path. “My dad owns a machine repair shop there. Ma bakes too much. She said I need to come home so I can try her peach pie.” He chuckled.
“Did you tell her you don’t like warm fruit?”
“She knows. That’s why she said that.” He pointed to a bend in the river, where a single picnic table sat empty. “What about right h
ere?”
“Looks good.” She took out the tablecloth and spread it into place. She pulled out a container of pasta salad she’d made the night before, as well as a loaf of bread, sliced turkey and cheese, and a travel-size bottle of mayo. With one ripe tomato sliced and ready, Justin placed a stack of paper plates and a roll of paper towels in the middle of the table.
Rene lifted two bags of chips from the picnic basket and a six-pack of soda. “I hope you like orange,” she said. “It’s not quite like a Tic Tac, but I thought it would suffice.”
He plucked a can from the plastic ring and studied it like he could taste it just by looking. “I can’t say I’ve ever had an orange soda.”
“Even as a child?”
“We didn’t have a lot of money growing up. My parents didn’t buy soda.” He popped the top, the satisfying fizz of carbonation filling the air. “Smells good.” He threw back a few swallows. She watched and waited for his reaction. He smacked his lips a couple of times, a completely adorable action Renee committed to memory. He met her eye. “It’s delicious.” He drained the whole can while Renee giggled.
He set the empty can on the picnic table and leaned into his palm. He lifted his leg and planted it on the other side of Renee, effectively trapping her. “You want a taste?”
“Mm hm.” She closed her eyes and tilted her head back to receive his kiss. His mouth was cold and tasted like oranges, with a little bit of bubbly left over. She was aware of his hands on her back, then the side of her face, and then she lost all reason as he deepened their kiss.
He pulled away, and Renee kept her eyes closed as she tried to regulate her breathing.
“You’re beautiful,” he whispered, brushing her curls away from her face. They settled right back against her cheeks the way they always did, and his fingers trailed down her neck and over her shoulders. “Should we eat?”
She opened her eyes, and the sun seemed ten times brighter than before. She felt cherished under the gaze of this man, and she’d never felt like that before. She smiled up at him and said, “Yeah, I’m starving.”
Renee spread mayo on two pieces of bread and layered on turkey and muenster. “Would you like to come with me to look at the house?”
He dropped the plastic knife he’d been using, his eyes flying to hers. “You want me to come look at the house with you?”
“Yes.” She’d asked on a whim, but she could see how serious this was to him. It probably should’ve been to her too. She chalked it up to one of their generational differences. She, a carefree millennial who did what she felt like without much thought. He, on the cusp of Generation X, who’d learned to work hard and take life seriously. Go after what he wanted with determination, creativity, and hard work. If something didn’t work for Renee, she tried something else. She didn’t stick with it.
And she wanted to stick with Justin. She’d made a decision to do just that by choosing to stay in Brush Creek.
He finished putting together his sandwich and ripped open a bag of chips, dumping a healthy portion onto his plate. “So the house is at the base of the canyon. I must drive by it every time I come down from the ranch.”
“I’m sure you do.” She thumbed on her phone and pulled up the listing. “It’s this one.” She showed him the phone, which displayed a cute little blue bungalow, white shutters on the windows, a front porch that had enough room for two chairs and a small round table between them, and a small yard. One tall tree dominated the front yard, and there wasn’t a full garage, only a carport.
He studied it for a few seconds, taking the phone and swiping down to read more about it. “Looks nice, Renee.” He handed the phone back with a gentle smile she could lose her heart to if she wasn’t careful.
She took the phone and turned her back on him, her heart suddenly thundering against her ribcage. Had she already lost a piece of her heart to him? Had she given it to him willingly? She wanted to, and that scared her more than anything.
Renee took a bite of her sandwich, hoping to calm the quaking in her stomach with food. And later, she’d need to call her mother to find out what falling in love felt like.
“He’s right behind me,” she said into her phone, her voice hushed like he could overhear her from inside another car.
“Well, honey, do you like him?”
“Of course I do, Mom. Can’t you hear how much I’m freaking out?”
“All right,” her mother said in the tone she used when she was trying to calm Renee down. “It’s only been a few weeks. Nothing has to be decided right now.”
“Right. Of course.” She pulled into the driveway at the blue bungalow, Justin only seconds behind her. “So just play it cool.”
Her mom laughed. “Honey, be you. That’s it. You’ll know what to do and when to do it if you trust yourself.”
“Mom,” she whined. “I don’t know how to do that.”
Justin got out of his truck, and a blip of panic flipped through Renee. “I have to go, Mom. Just tell me one more thing. How did you know Dad was the one for you?”
“The same way you knew Russell wasn’t.”
Renee ended the call just as Justin reached her window, the name of the one boyfriend she’d had in college ringing in her ears. Her mom was right. She’d liked Russell, but there had been no spark.
One look at Justin, and an entire fireworks show filled the space between them. She got out of the car and glanced around the yard. The grass needed to be trimmed, and weeds had started to take over in some spots. The flowerbeds hadn’t been planted this year, but the oak tree stood guard over all of it with a fierce protection Renee could feel.
She felt small under its branches, but she liked it. She turned to Justin. “I like this place.”
“You haven’t even been inside yet.”
“It feels good.”
He chuckled and tucked her hand into his. “You can’t rent a place because of how you feel standing on the front lawn.”
“Maybe not someone as old as you can,” she said, pushing away from him with a squeal when he protested. “But I can.” She bounded up the front steps just as the door opened.
The realtor stepped out, a smile on her face. “Renee, good to see you.” The two women shook hands. “And you brought Justin Jackman.” A strange look crossed the woman’s face, and Renee turned around to judge Justin’s reaction.
He didn’t give one. Simply stepped next to Renee, took her hand in his again, and said, “Mya.”
Renee had forgotten that everyone knew everyone else in Brush Creek. She was the newcomer, the outsider, the one still trying to figure out the community.
Mya recovered quickly, and Renee wanted to know the basis of her shock at seeing Justin, and gestured them into the house. The floors were new, the paint too. Granite countertops had just been installed, and the kitchen housed all new appliances. The backyard was twice as big as the front—a bit of a disappointment as Renee wasn’t exactly an outdoorsy person. Her idea of a fun afternoon was lying on the couch, reading.
“So, just let me know,” Mya said once the tour had finished.
Renee stood on the back porch, the scent of Justin’s cologne clogging her nose. She wanted to be where he was, wanted to see how far this relationship could go.
“I want it.” She turned back to Mya. “When can I move in?”
Justin’s arm slid around his waist. “You sure?” he murmured, his breath skating across her ear and neck.
“I’m sure.” She saw the way Mya catalogued the way Justin kneaded Renee closer, and she wondered what he was doing. He’d never seemed possessive of her previously, and she didn’t like being used in some game between locals.
You’re going to be a local, she told herself.
“Great.” Mya started through the house. “I’ll grab the paperwork from my car and be right back.”
Renee waited until she heard the front door close, and then she glanced at Justin. “What’s with you and her?”
“Nothing.”
&
nbsp; “You say that so much when it isn’t true.” She peered at him. “How many women have you dated in this town?”
“Hardly any,” he said. “I swear,” he added when she cocked her hip and gave him a dubious look.
“She seemed surprised to see you here.”
“I don’t get off the ranch much.”
Pieces clicked around her head. “So you blew her off by saying you couldn’t leave the ranch.”
Justin sighed. “She wanted to go out with me only a few months after Paulette.” He stepped into the house too. “I didn’t want to hurt her, but I wasn’t dating at the time.”
Renee followed him. “Who have you dated since Paulette?”
He paused with one hand on the doorknob. He turned halfway back to her, his head bent down so she couldn’t really see his face beneath his cowboy hat. “Just you, Renee.” He opened the door and stepped out into the sunlight.
Renee let him go, because she had no idea what to make of him. A man like him hadn’t dated in two years? And not because women hadn’t tried. She wondered what about her had attracted his attention, and how she could possibly maintain his interest when so many other, prettier, women hadn’t been able to.
Chapter Eight
Justin spent his Monday in the fields, with horses in the arena, and then all evening unloading Renee’s boxes into her new house. He worked methodically, ignoring the tightness in his muscles. Her quick smile sent his pain and exhaustion running for the hills anyway.
His feelings for her surprised him, and he’d been obsessing over their depth since yesterday at Oxbow Park. It had been quite possibly the best afternoon he’d spent with a woman, ever. With anyone.
Renee’s new house sat nine minutes from his cabin. He’d timed it on his way down to help her move in. He could see her every night if he wanted to. And he wanted to. So much that he didn’t think he’d be able to keep himself up at the horse ranch when she was only nine minutes away.
He set down the last box and pulled out his container of Tic Tacs. They wouldn’t satiate the hunger gnawing at him, but he downed a handful anyway. Renee came in from the backyard wearing a pair of cutoffs that got his blood racing every time he looked at her.
