The Me I Used to Be

by Jennifer Ryan

  She envied their closeness. The intimacy between them, the knowing looks and familiar touches, showed the bond between them.

  It hadn’t happened all at once. They’d shared a long relationship that had to have had its ups and downs. All of which strengthened them as a couple and individually.

  She saw it in Charlie and Lindsey’s relationship, and the way Jill talked about Sean.

  She wanted that with Chris.

  A lifetime of leaning on each other, supporting each other, propping each other up, and catching the other when they stumbled or fell. That was love.

  “Darren and Tom will get what’s coming to them.” She hoped they got everything they deserved.

  Scott glanced up at the ever-darkening sky. “Rain seems to be holding off, but it’s going to pour soon.” The forecast called for rain last night, but another system was building offshore, coming down from the north and combining with a small front coming up from the south. The forecast now called for thunderstorms. The lightning could spark more wildfires, but they hoped for enough rain to help contain the ones already burning in the state. She hoped it gave the firefighters here the upper hand.

  Scott went on, because there was nothing more to say about the weather they were all waiting for to give them what they desperately needed. “I got the results from the soil samples. We’ll need to amend the soil before we plant, but it’s good, rich dirt. I’m thinking of four, maybe five different types of grapes. As I said, a test farm for some new vines.”

  Evangeline tried to wrap her head around what he was saying. “You mean you want to lease the land?”

  “Yes.” He pulled some folded papers from his back pocket. “I took the liberty of having my lawyer draw up a lease agreement. It’s mostly what we talked about when you showed me the land. I think you’ll find it to your liking.” He handed her the papers with a huge smile on his face.

  Renee stared at her, practically bouncing on her toes, waiting for her to read the agreement.

  She skimmed the first page and the second and third and shook her head, completely taken off guard and not believing what she’d read. “This is more than I asked for.”

  “You didn’t ask for enough.”

  She let her hand with the papers fall to her side and met Scott’s bright gaze. “You gave me a shot at doing your website and inventory system. I needed that break. More than you know. But I also opened you up to even more losses from Darren. I wanted to do this land deal to make it up to you. To let you know I value your belief in me.”

  “We do believe in you.” Renee’s smile grew wider. “We knew you’d do everything in your power to stop Darren from stealing from us again. You didn’t have to tell us your plan. You could have carried it out without our knowing. You trusted us. We trusted you. Friends do that for each other. You did the job we hired you to do. We are booked solid for events and weddings for the next four months and are only a few days shy of full for several months past that. You don’t owe us anything. You deserve to take credit for all your hard work and what it took for you to do what you did to get Darren locked up where he belongs.”

  “What Renee is trying to say is that we’re grateful to you. We value you as a friend and business partner. The land is worth a lot more than you asked for and I want you to have it because it’s what you deserve.”

  Scott held out his hand.

  She took it.

  He held on. “You talked about helping your brother build the house his family deserves. You wanted this deal to help someone else. That says so much about you. Not only have I given your name and a wonderful recommendation to six other wineries, I’ve also passed it to several of our vendors and businesses we use.”

  Renee placed her hand over their joined ones. “Whatever you need, we’re here to help. The way you helped us.”

  A tear slipped down her cheek. Their generosity and kindness made her chest tight and her throat thick. She didn’t have words to express her overabundance of gratitude. “‘Thank you’ doesn’t seem enough. But I am so grateful to know you.”

  Scott squeezed her hand. “You’ve done so much for us and others. We wanted to do something for you. It was the least we could do.”

  “It’s so much more than I ever expected. I swear, this partnership, though very generous, isn’t as important to me as your friendship.”

  Renee gave her a mischievous smile. “We feel the same way. That’s why I hope you’ll have your wedding at the winery.” Scott tapped his elbow into her side, and Renee added, “When that day comes.”

  Evangeline blushed. They must have sensed something the day she and Chris had met them at their home.

  “Soon. I hope,” Renee added.

  “Sweetheart, give the girl a chance to live a little now that this business with Darren is over.”

  The thing was, she could already see herself walking down a white satin aisle toward Chris standing under the white-rose-covered arbor with lines of vines in the background, their families filling the chairs as she walked to the man she loved, and Chris’s green gaze locked on her and filled with love. “It’ll be a magical day.”

  Renee beamed. Scott chuckled.

  “When it comes,” she added, because that was a ways off. “Let me read over the contract one more time and have my lawyer check it over before I sign it. I should have it back to you in a day or so.”

  “Sounds good. We’d like to get started on the water and electricity as soon as possible. You’ll see in the contract that I’ve stipulated we’ll split that cost.”

  She nodded. “I saw that. Thanks for seeing my vision for what that land can be for you and Charlie’s family.”

  “We live here among the vines. I don’t see why Charlie can’t live among the ones we plant there.”

  She gave in to her heart and threw her arms around both of them. “Thank you. Thank you for everything.” Choked up, she barely got the words out, but they heard her.

  Their generosity reminded her that they thought of their employees like family. They made her feel that way, too.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  After her meeting with the Crosses at the Cross Cellars Winery, Evangeline spent the afternoon with the owners of the six ranches that had transported their livestock to her property. While two could take back their animals, the other four had been wiped out.

  Given the time it would take to rebuild, they all needed to sell their livestock. Right now they had no land on which to keep them.

  And that’s where she came in.

  Helping out a neighbor was one thing, but no one expected her to do it for the long haul. So she’d made each ranch owner a fair offer given the circumstances based on their herds and needs.

  She made the hard choices and used most of the life insurance money she received to make the deals.

  And now she had one last meeting. If this went well, she’d have everything Charlie and Joey wanted locked up and she could let them run things from now on.

  She waited in the restaurant booth and texted Chris, since she had a few minutes until the rep from Warley arrived.

  Evangeline: Meet me at the place where we had our first date

  Chris: When?

  Evangeline: ASAP

  Chris: On my way

  “Evangeline, so good to see you again.” Lance stood beside the table, looking down at her, his warm smile making her believe he meant it. “I was surprised you asked to meet. I figured, with all that’s going on with the fire and the extra work you’ve taken on at the ranch, you’d want to postpone until things settle down.”

  Evangeline stood, shook his hand, and waved to the chair across from her. She kept an eye on the door despite knowing Chris wouldn’t be here for a little while yet. But her heart already anticipated seeing him.

  “Thank you for agreeing to meet me.”

  “I never turn down a beautiful woman who asks me to drinks.”

  Lance, cute and a bit older than her, gave her that warm smile again, but it didn’t ma
ke her stomach flutter and her heart explode with fireworks the way Chris’s did.

  “I appreciate the compliment, but I invited you to have drinks and finish our business.”

  The waitress showed up and made the fleeting disappointment in Lance’s eyes disappear. “What can I get you?”

  Lance nodded to Evangeline. “Ladies first.”

  “I’ll have the peach sangria and whatever IPA you have on tap.”

  Lance eyed her. “Dewar’s neat.” Lance waited for the waitress to leave. “Wine and beer?”

  She chuckled. “The beer is for my friend. He’ll be here in a little while. Until then, let’s get to business.”

  The disappointment came back into Lance’s eyes. She had to admit, his attraction to her did her ego good. But she needed to stick to business, because it had been a long day, she was tired, and she wanted to get this done so she could enjoy her evening with Chris.

  She pulled the contract from her computer bag and set it on the table, facing Lance.

  “That’s a lot of red ink.”

  She couldn’t help the smile or teasing him. “I made some changes.”

  “That’s a lot of changes.”

  “A lot has happened since we last met. Our herd is six times bigger now.”

  Lance sat back and gave her an appreciative grin, already feeling the impact of her outmaneuvering him. “I see. You’ve been busy.”

  “You mean I beat you to buying the cattle from the displaced ranchers.”

  That smile notched up with respect. “We were waiting for the ranchers to assess their situation and come to terms with reality.”

  “The reality is that the land is scorched and in order for them to feed their herds they’d have to buy feed and possibly lease land, making it near-impossible to break even after the added expenses.”

  “Your brothers don’t give you enough credit. Charlie didn’t think you understood the importance and ins and outs of ranching to make an informed decision.”

  “Charlie can be narrow-sighted. Joey complicates things by not considering alternatives or by simply diving in headfirst without checking to see how deep the water is and hoping everything works out fine. They aren’t wrong, they’re just not wholly right.”

  “Your father said you’d be tough.”

  Thinking about her father dredged up conflicting emotions. Anger. Hate. Love. Nostalgia for what was. Wishes for what could have been.

  The girl she used to be would have left the decision to Charlie and just gone along. She’d learned to take charge, think things through, and do the hard work and make the tough decisions.

  “You spoke to him about the contract.”

  “He was ready to sign. He thought it was the best setup for success for Charlie and Joey. Then he heard about your upcoming parole and put it on hold. Your impact on the ranch and your family is tremendous. What seemed like a good idea before you came home didn’t make sense to your father when he knew you would be home soon. Your father couldn’t get your brothers on the same page and working together. He knew you could.”

  “That’s because I know what he refused to believe.”

  “They can’t work together,” they said in unison.

  She smiled, liking Lance for understanding the monumental task she had ahead of her to make this work. “As manager, you planned to separate them and the tasks they oversee.”

  “It’s the only way to keep the peace and get the job done.”

  “It’s the only way to make them both feel like they run the ranch. So here’s the new deal. I will sign with Warley for a five-year contract. Enough time for my brothers to find their place on the ranch and become who I believe they can be. At the end of the term, I will let Charlie and Joey decide whether we’ll renegotiate or terminate the agreement.”

  Lance read over the changes she’d made to the contract. “I should hire you to work for Warley as a manager. This is pretty much what I had in mind for your ranch, but you’ve scaled it up to incorporate the size of the ranch now and what it could be in five years with a lot of hard work.”

  “I think Charlie and Joey will surprise you. Once they aren’t battling for supremacy, they’ll get to work. Charlie has a family to support. He wants them to have everything. He’ll work hard to give it to them. Joey has something to prove.” And maybe a woman to impress and build a life with if he stepped up and put his heart on the line like she was trying to do with Chris.

  Lance glanced at the contract again and pulled a pen from his shirt pocket. “Your brothers are lucky to have you on their side.”

  “I want my family to keep the ranch my father built and have the life they deserve.”

  Lance nodded. “Then let’s settle this and get to work.” What he meant was let’s negotiate, because some of the changes she made heavily weighed in favor of her family. She gave a little in some areas and stood firm in others.

  The waitress delivered their drinks, but that only paused their discussion.

  Lance took a healthy sip of his whiskey and dove back in on the next few items. By the time they reached the last page, his drink was nearly gone. She’d kept him on his toes. And the light of appreciation she’d seen in his eyes had changed from being about his romantic interest to his admiration for how hard she fought for her brothers and the ranch. “You are one tough lady.”

  She’d learned to be one.

  “But I think I can sell this to my boss. Let me take it to him, see what he says, and get back to you tomorrow.”

  “Sounds good.”

  He held out his hand. She shook it, but he held on. “Is there any way I can persuade you to either come work for us or go on a date with me?”

  She smiled, not because of his offer, but because of the man walking in the door behind him. Chris spotted her and his gaze narrowed to a death glare for the man holding her hand.

  “No. On both counts.” She slipped her hand free and sat back, watching Chris stalk to their table. “While I’ve enjoyed spending time with you and working out the details of the contract, I haven’t spent nearly enough time with this man.”

  Chris stood next to the table, six-foot-two of male claiming his territory as he shifted his weight closer to her and squared off with Lance.

  “Lucky guy.” Lance held up the dregs of his drink.

  She clinked her glass to his. “I’ll drink to that.”

  Lance downed his drink and picked up the contract, which was now covered in her red ink and his blue.

  Evangeline stood and hooked her arm through Chris’s. “Thanks for meeting me here tonight.”

  Chris glanced down at her. “I thought I was meeting you for a date.”

  “You are. Lance, this is Lieutenant Chris Chambers. Chris, this is Lance. He’s going to be the new ranch manager from Warley, working with Charlie and Joey. We just negotiated a contract that will be beneficial to all parties.”

  Chris’s gaze bounced from Lance to her. “You signed it?”

  “Well, not yet. But if Lance comes through with the changes we discussed, I’ll sign it as soon as possible.”

  Lance held out his hand. “Nice to meet you.” They shook. “I’ll leave you to your evening together.” Lance turned back to her. “Your father would be proud of you.” He held up the papers. “This is a good deal.”

  “I think so, too.” She wasn’t sure about the part about her father, but the contract was fair and lucrative for her family and Warley.

  Lance tucked the papers into his inside coat pocket and left them with a wave goodbye.

  Chris pulled the chair over to her side and took a seat.

  She handed him his beer.

  He took a sip and sighed. “I thought I might have to dump that guy out of my chair and bash his face in for touching you.”

  She laughed, knowing he didn’t really mean it, but understanding what it must have looked like when he walked in and saw her with another man. “How was your meeting with your boss and lawyer about the shooting?”

&nbs
p; “That can wait until . . .” He leaned over, hooked his hand around the back of her neck, and drew her in for a long kiss. “Made my day.” He kissed her again, then smiled. “Thank you for the beer.”

  “You’re welcome. I’m glad you came.”

  “Well, I’m on paid leave for a few days until the investigation wraps up, but it looks like I’m in the clear.”

  “You should be.”

  “Then I’ll be back to work.”

  She laid her hand on his shoulder, then pulled it away when she felt the wetness. “Is it raining?” She glanced to the front windows, delighted to see rivulets of water cascading off the awnings. With the music and crowd in the restaurant, she hadn’t heard the rain.

  “It started about an hour ago. They’re predicting up to three inches over the next few hours.”

  “That much.” She cocked up one side of her mouth. “It’ll help with the fire but cause flooding and landslides.”

  “You gotta take the good with the bad.”

  She picked up her drink and clinked it with his. “I’ll take it.”

  “Do I get to take you home tonight?”

  “If you don’t, I’ll only sneak in using my key.”

  “No need to sneak. Just come on in anytime.”

  “So generous.”

  “The word is greedy.” He kissed her quickly, then sat back again. “And starving. Let’s order food and you can tell me how you dominated the world today.”

  She laughed and her ego swelled, because he meant that. And she had dominated today.

  They called the waitress over, ordered food, and settled back into their quiet corner of the restaurant, where they felt like they were all alone.

  “Spill it, what else happened today? Did you deliver any more cows?”

  The giggle bubbled up easily when she was with him because he made her feel so light after a long, hard day. “I got my hand pecked by a very prickly hen who didn’t want to give up her egg.”

  Chris’s laugh made her stomach tighten and her heart fill with the joy she saw in his eyes.

  “Ever heard that saying ‘Do good things and good things will happen to you’?”