by Liz Isaacson
She did attend church with him two more times, adding ten minutes to each session. It wasn’t horrible, and she’d felt a tiny flicker of faith start to grow in her chest. Cache seemed to have all the faith in the world, but she pushed against the negative thoughts that she needed to be like him.
That was impossible anyway. The man could lift a hundred pounds right over his head.
Karla smiled at her own wit and finished designing a flyer for the Fourth of July picnic partnership happening in a few weeks. Surprisingly enough, Forever Friends, Last Chance Ranch, and the church were putting on a three-tiered event.
Dog adoptions, dinner, and fireworks. Karla had been working for weeks to get the word out to the community, and she’d be going on a local morning show next week to talk about the event.
She’d spent some time in the fields with Cache, too, and they could get six cows in a circular formation now. She’d never cuddled with him, each of them choosing their own cows to work with throughout the session. But they’d spent plenty of time in the evenings eating, talking, and snuggling together.
He still hadn’t kissed her, and Karla wondered what he was waiting for. Every time she thought about it, her mind wove right over to the dark side, yelling things about her unworthiness and inability to be forgiven for the ugly things in her past.
But Cache didn’t treat her like that. Scarlett praised her for everything she did, and slowly, Karla was silencing the voices.
Oh, so slowly.
At least that was what she told Morning Glory as she cuddled into her one morning. They’d talked a lot about Cache too, but Glory didn’t seem to have any strong opinions about the cowboy the way Karla did.
The sound of the gate swinging closed had her startling, and she realized she’d been cuddling with the cow too long.
Cache had arrived from the Canine Club.
“Glory,” he called, but the cow didn’t move.
“Good girl,” Karla said softly, patting her side. She knelt up and looked over the cow to find him several paces away.
His steps stuttered, and then he tipped his head toward the sky and laughed. And laughed.
Karla couldn’t help smiling, but she had no idea what was so dang funny. He was still chuckling as he came around Morning Glory and stepped into the space where she still was.
“Room for one more?” he asked.
Karla shifted toward Glory’s front legs. “Maybe if your shoulders weren’t as wide as a barge.”
He nudged her with one of those shoulders deliberately, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. “You’re the one who’s been watering my cows.”
“Yeah, well, I know how busy you are.”
He laced his fingers through hers. “And you’re cuddling with them and sneaking away before I get here.” He wore questions in his expression now, and Karla didn’t know how to answer them.
“We work together with the cows,” she said.
“Mm hmm,” he said, a clear prompt for her to keep talking.
“And I like…I like talking to them. Well, just Glory really. She keeps a lot of secrets for me.”
“I’ll bet she does.” His hand on hers tightened. “What do you tell them?”
“If I told you, they wouldn’t be secrets.”
“Nope.”
“It’s good stuff,” she said, sinking into his side though the day was already warm, and she didn’t need the extra body heat. “Mostly about you. Glory won’t tell me a dang thing.”
He chuckled again, sweeping his lips across her cheek.
“And I don’t know,” she said. “It’s nice here. It feels like I’ve stepped out of my real life into this small space.” She shrugged. “In here, things make sense.”
“Hmm.” The humming vibrated his body and skipped over to hers too. “How are things going with the flyers?”
“Great,” she said. “Almost done. Then I’m back to the website.”
“Think we’ll be ready by July Fourth?”
“Yep,” she said, bound and determined to have information about the ranch’s adoptions—and not just cats and dogs like most people thought—goat yoga, and cow cuddling ready for the community event at the church.
“So I have a confession,” Cache said, glancing at Karla in a way that made her heart send out three beats in one. “Do you want to hear it?”
Chapter 13
“Is that a real question?” Karla asked. “Of course I want to hear it.”
Cache hadn’t told a single soul what he’d considered telling Karla. He hesitated, deciding against saying anything more about his finances. He’d been oscillating about it for a couple of weeks now, since she’d told him about her previous relationships, her baby, and her insecurities.
They’d grown closer as they worked together, saw each other, and interacted over the past few weeks. Cache knew that was because he understood her better. Knew what made her tick.
“Are you going to tell me?” she asked.
“Yeah,” he said. “I’m just trying to figure out what to say.”
“It’s better if you just rip it off,” she said. “Like a bandage. Blurt it out.”
Cache opened his mouth to do just that, and said, “I’m broke because of a previous gambling problem.”
He drew in a breath as if he hadn’t been doing so since arriving in the pasture. The space between him and Karla was intimate, only a few inches.
Her eyes searched his, compassion and concern there. “Do you still have that problem?”
“No,” he said. “I mean, sometimes I think about it, obviously. The way you think about…things from your past.” He shook his head and looked at his calloused hands. “But no.”
She let several seconds of silence go by. “How much debt?”
“Twenty thousand,” he said, his voice dropping to a whisper. But he wasn’t ashamed. He’d made things right between him and the Lord, and now he just had to deal with the temporal consequences of his prior behavior.
“I’m okay,” he said. “I just wanted you to know.”
She squeezed his hand. “You’re a good man, Cache.”
“You think so? After knowing that I’ve done some bad things too?”
“Yeah, of course.”
“That’s so interesting,” he said.
“It is? Why?”
Could she really not see it? He looked at her, the sun overhead starting to beat down on him a little too hotly. Or maybe his blood started pumping extra hard because of the glint of desire he saw in her eyes, or the way her gaze dropped to his mouth and rebounded back to his.
“Because if I’m a good person after doing some bad things, don’t you think you are too?”
“I—” She clamped her mouth shut and looked away. “I’m working on it,” she said.
“I know you are,” he said, leaning over and pressing a kiss to her cheek. “And you’re doing great. I mean, we went to church for thirty minutes last time. That’s about half.”
A smile touched her lips for only a moment. There, then gone. “I like taking care of the cows for you,” she said softly.
“You do a lot for me,” he said. “I’ve never eaten so great, or actually….” He paused, not quite sure she was ready for this confession.
“What?” she asked, looking at him.
“I know you show how you feel by what you do,” he said. “I’m more of a sayer. And Karla, I’ve never been happier that I’ve been the last few weeks with you.”
Everything in her face softened, and Cache allowed himself to look at her mouth now. It was perfectly kissable, her lips oh-so-inviting.
He leaned toward her, hoping she’d make a move too. Her eyelids drifted closed, and Cache took that as a sign that he had her permission to kiss her.
His hand on hers tightened as he drew closer. His own eyes closed. And then his lips touched hers. He detected a trembling there, and he pressed harder, kissing her like he’d been dreaming of doing for so long.
She kissed him back, and bef
ore long, he felt her fingers on his face, pushing his hat off, and curling around his ears.
His desire to show her how he felt surged forward, and right there as they cuddled with Morning Glory, he kissed her and kissed her and kissed her.
He finally got control of himself and pulled away. “Wow,” he whispered, opening his eyes to look at her. He’d mussed up her hair by running his hands through it, but she was still absolutely gorgeous.
Karla giggled as their eyes met, and she dropped her gaze to her lap. “Yeah,” she said, snuggling into his side, her face pressed against his chest and both of her hands covering one of his. “Wow.”
“That note is not right,” Sawyer said over the drums. Since he stood so close to Cache, he could hear him and stopped playing. Dave quit too, and everyone looked at Sawyer.
“Fix it then,” Cache said, feeling frustrated with the band. No one seemed to care about performing the way he did. Dave, especially, as he continued to date Sissy. He knew things were sort of stalled with them, but he didn’t know how to help. And they really did need to practice.
Sawyer picked up a pencil and started scratching something out on the paper in front of him. He plucked strings from time to time, frowning and making changes. Dave set his guitar aside and went into Cache’s kitchen for something to drink.
Lance actually provided all of the beverages, something Cache was very grateful for. He’d offered to pay Lance back, but the man had refused. He stepped over to the drum set that was a permanent fixture in his living room and tried not to roll his eyes.
“Just give him his time,” Lance said under his breath.
“I know,” Cache said. “Do you think we should try for another gig in July?”
“I think if you do, you’ll make a gasket in Dave’s head blow.”
Cache laughed with Lance.
“Where have you been disappearing to at night?” Lance asked, picking up his can of soda.
“Nowhere,” Cache said. He’d believed Karla when she said she just didn’t want people talking about her. She had some secrets and had probably imagined that everyone knew what they were.
Cache understood that on a much deeper level than he wanted to.
“I don’t believe you,” Lance said. “Sometimes there are lights on here when I know you’re not here, and there’s been some mighty delicious smells coming from your house, and you don’t cook.”
Cache glanced over his shoulder to the kitchen, where Dave stood at the back door. Sawyer was still busy with the sheet music, seemingly in his own world.
“Fine,” he whispered. “But you can’t tell anyone.”
“Who would I tell?” Lance asked. “You’re my best friend.”
“I’m seeing Karla Jenkins,” Cache said. “It’s not common knowledge, and I’ll deny it to the death if you say something.”
Lance’s eyes widened. “Wow, Cache.” He grinned at him. “Good for you.”
“Yeah.” Cache couldn’t help smiling too. “So what about you? Any progress with Amber?”
“Am I interested in Amber?” Lance asked, glancing away.
“Well, you volunteer every Tuesday,” Cache said. “I didn’t realize it was because you have a heart of gold.”
“Yeah, well, maybe I do.” Lance looked at him and smiled, and Cache shook his head.
“All right.”
“Ready,” Sawyer said, passing out the pages with the new music on it. Dave returned to the living room, picked up his guitar, and they played.
Cache loved the freedom that came with the simple action of playing the guitar. Singing some backup vocals. Feeling like he was part of something bigger than him.
In fact, that feeling was what had rescued him from the edge of a complete breakdown. Last time he’d needed something like this, it had come in the form of his family. Leo and his father coming into Cache’s bedroom at the house on the dairy farm and intervening in Cache’s gambling habit.
That felt so long ago, and yet it had only been four years.
Cache definitely knew there were some things a man had to spend his whole life paying for.
Their practice broke up after that, and Dave seemed happier than he had when practice started. He lingered after the others left—especially Sawyer, who sure could take his sweet time on the music but bolted the moment he could.
Cache supposed he did have a wife and a new baby now, and he was glad Sawyer hadn’t quit the band entirely. He wondered if Karla wanted kids at all, or if she’d just been relieved her last pregnancy had failed because of how it began.
“How’s the base?” Cache asked.
“Great.” Dave looked tired, and Cache knew he’d been taking on a lot out at the pet cemetery this summer. “What’s going on with you?”
“Not much,” Cache said, wishing he had some of Karla’s pizza. In fact, he could probably go over to her house and find some…. The thought danced around in his head, making him smile when he shouldn’t have.
And Dave saw it.
“Yeah, I think something’s going on,” he said.
Cache had already confessed about the secret relationship to one person. If Dave knew, then Sissy would find out, and before Cache knew it, everyone on the ranch would be talking about them.
Exactly what Karla didn’t want.
“Really,” Cache said. “Nothing.”
“You’ve been comin’ over to Horse Heaven later than usual.” Dave folded his arms as if he could intimidate Cache by making himself look bigger. Well, Cache could fold his arms too, thank you very much, and he was no lightweight.
“Yeah,” he said, setting his guitar in the corner near the front door. He turned and started picking up soda cans and water bottles. “I’m…dealing with the cows in between chores.”
Dave accepted that, nodded, and picked up a couple of cans too. “You and those cows.”
“Yeah,” he said. If only he could tell Dave all about the cow cuddling, but things weren’t quite ready yet, and Scarlett hadn’t given the go-ahead. The cows were ready. Karla was working on the website. They had preliminary plans to have everything ready for the Fourth of July shindig down at the church.
A tremor of nerves ran through Cache. What if no one signed up? What if Scarlett wanted to keep all of the money from the cow cuddling?
Cache needed to talk to her, and he determined to do that tomorrow morning.
“Why are you hanging around here?” Cache asked. “Don’t you have a girlfriend you can go kiss?”
Dave laughed, the sound truly joyous. Cache grinned at him, but it was time for Dave to go, and Cache practically shoved him out the front door.
He felt like a caged tiger as he forced himself to wait ten minutes. He turned off all the lights in the cabin except for the one above the kitchen sink. Nothing abnormal about that; it wasn’t even nine o’clock yet, and Cache worked hard. Lance wouldn’t be able to make assumptions about Cache and Karla—unless of course, he saw Cache sneak out his back door and cross through his backyard on his way to her cabin.
He really needed a couple of pieces of pizza—and to kiss the woman who made them.
Chapter 14
Karla woke the next morning, trying to remember what day it was. She yawned, her eyes drier than normal, and wished she could go back to sleep. She stayed in bed, but falling back asleep was fruitless. Once she was awake, she couldn’t go back to sleep.
The exhaustion level of entertaining Cache late at night was more than she’d anticipated. Probably because she was no spring chicken anymore. Semi-frustrated at herself for such a lame idiom, even inside her own mind, she got up and raked her fingers through her hair.
She didn’t always work on ranch business on the weekends. Scarlett didn’t expect her to, because if Karla lived down in Pasadena the way Amber and Sissy did, she’d have neighbors and friends outside of the ranch. She’d be able to go walking on Saturday morning or take her dog to the park. Go to lunch with her girlfriends.
Living on the ranch had been
interesting, and it had taken her several months to carve out a routine that didn’t have her working seven days a week.
Sitting on the edge of her bed, Karla took a moment to say a prayer. Her journey back to the Lord was going to take a while, and she knew that. Felt it way down deep in her soul. She was just glad she could feel her soul again.
“Thank you for a great night with Cache. Bless me with a relaxing weekend.” She hadn’t known one of those for a while—especially since going back to church brought her so much anxiety—but she felt good about today.
The website was done and ready to start accepting registrations. If anyone found it by clicking around, they could sign up. A hint of trepidation clicked through her, because if people signed up, then cow cuddling became real.
For some reason, she liked that it was something only she and Cache knew about right now. Sure, others on the ranch knew about it intellectually. But Karla liked that she and Cache had such intimate experience with it.
She brewed coffee and sat in front of the computer to finish a few final details for the posters and flyers for the Fourth of July events in a couple of weeks.
About mid-morning, someone knocked on her front door. She glanced toward it, her neck stiff from staring at the screen for so long. Cache always came to the back door, so as Karla got up and went to the door, she expected to see Scarlett standing there.
But it was Cache. “Oh,” she said, glancing at the little of the backyard of the homestead she could see past his body. “What are you doing here?” She didn’t mean for her voice to come out quite so hiss-like.
“Scarlett approved my request.” He grinned like he’d won the lottery—and that would be a very big victory for Cache. If he gambled like that, which he didn’t.
“That’s great,” she said.
He laughed, the carefree, laid-back cowboy she’d first met on the ranch returning. Karla sure did like his appearance, though she enjoyed Cache’s more serious side too. His kind side. His caring side. The side that held her and promised her everything would be fine, because he was there.
Oh, yeah. There was a lot to like about Cache Bryant.
