by Vanessa Vale
She set a plate of grilled cheese beside the soup. Dammit. She knew I wasn’t going to walk away from butter and melted cheese.
After Sawyer had stormed out of the police station, Huck had handed off Tom—now obviously known to locals as Bunky—to Graham to whine to and file his police report about the fire. Huck had tucked me into his SUV—again—and this time driven me to the ranch. He hadn’t said a word the entire way.
He pulled up in front of the big house, not to Sawyer’s place. He’d literally walked me to the front door, handed me off to Alice then left.
I had no idea who’d won him at the auction, but I had to hope he wasn’t as much of an asshole with her as Sawyer was with me.
Then again, he was protecting his brother, and I appreciated that loyalty. Although why he hadn’t just put me back in jail—and locking the cell door this time—or pushed me out onto the station’s front steps, I wasn’t sure.
“Because you must be hungry,” Alice said although it made no sense for him to bring me all the way out here since there were several places to eat in town.
I took a bite of the grilled cheese. Dammit, I couldn’t even argue because I was hungry, and the sandwich was incredible. I peered at it, thinking she even buttered and toasted the inner sides of the bread before she put the cheese on.
“I don’t think Huck likes me.”
She laughed. I guessed Alice was in her sixties, her long hair pulled back in a loose bun at her nape, a rich brown turning toward gray. She was simply dressed in jeans and a burgundy top, but she added flare with a paisley scarf tied loosely over her shoulders. This was the woman who put all three Manning men up for auction, which showed they respected her and also feared her. This was why I didn’t leave. If grown men were scared of the woman, I was smart enough not to cross her. She might be small, but I had a feeling she ran this ranch and let the men believe they did.
“I think you’re worried about the wrong Manning,” she said, using a dish towel to wipe down the already clean counter.
It was clear this part of the house was old from the ceiling beams and well-worn plank flooring, but the kitchen had been updated recently. Claire’s artwork was stuck to the fridge. A wall had been taken out and a great room added, allowing for a family room/kitchen combination. Pictures hung on the walls. There was a row of hooks by the back door. Boots stood in a line beside it. This place was lived in. Loved. It was a home. I could imagine Sawyer growing up here, having his parents eat dinner with him and his brothers. His grandparents living in this place before him. And another generation before them.
I sighed, dipped my sandwich half in the soup and took a bite.
She poured herself a cup of coffee then stood on the other side of the center island.
“I don’t think Sawyer likes me all that much either.”
I swallowed hard, suddenly not all that interested in the meal. I’d hurt Sawyer, and I’d done it intentionally but only because I’d been afraid and tried to push him away.
“He’s a big man. Strong. Beneath all that, he’s got a tender heart. Probably more so than his brothers.”
I’d picked up on that.
“Irene told me what’s been going on with you.”
I whipped my head up and met her even gaze. I didn’t see sympathy in her eyes, the words only stated as fact.
“You didn’t have to stay in the preschool. There were many people who would have helped you. Irene included.”
I rolled my eyes. “Her son put peanut butter on my face while I was sleeping.”
She laughed, put her fingers over her lips. “She told me about that too.”
“I need to stand on my own two feet.”
Her smile slipped, and she nodded. “I understand that, and that shows the kind of person you are. But being independent’s possible to do while people have your back. Standing on your own two feet is one thing, but you don’t have to do it alone.”
I frowned, scooped up some soup and ate it, so I didn’t have to answer.
“You think Sawyer can’t take care of himself just because he’s got his brothers to be there for him?” she asked me.
I frowned, thought of Sawyer loaded with responsibility as the fire chief and also on the ranch. To his family. He was strong. Protective. Bossy. “Well… no.”
She looked around as if to confirm we were alone. “I’ll have you know those three men wouldn’t be able to find dinner if it wasn’t put before them. They can cook, but they’re men.”
She paused there, as if that answered everything.
“They rely on me, probably more than they ever realize,” she added. “It doesn’t make them less, it makes them family. We take care of each other.”
“I have my mother, but she’s not what you’d call… maternal. The last time she texted, she asked for rent money, which I find ironic.” I shoved a big bite of sandwich in my mouth.
“Blood doesn’t always make a family, Kelsey,” she said then took a sip of her coffee. “Sawyer’s a helper.”
When I finally finished chewing and swallowing, I said, “He wants to save me. I really, really need to save myself.”
“You saved him from Delilah.”
I shrugged. “That’s different.”
“Sawyer, Huck and Thatcher are all a little afraid of Delilah. Let me tell you a story about that one.” She pursed her lips as if she was sucking on a lemon. Then she proceeded to tell me about how she’d climbed in Sawyer’s bedroom window when he was in high school. “She didn’t succeed then or now.”
I could picture Delilah as a teenager being so bold. I could also see now why Sawyer had been extra thankful I’d won him in the auction.
“You need to know some things about Sawyer. About Huck, too. Thatcher as well, but he doesn’t show it as much.”
I stirred the corner of my sandwich around in my soup and took another bite. “Okay.”
“You heard their momma and daddy died.”
I nodded.
Sadness flitted across her lined face. “The boys were young when it happened. Sawyer was fifteen. The others even younger. One day Paul and Carolyn were just… gone. Sawyer, Huck and Thatcher were crazy boys.” She laughed then sighed. “What boys aren’t crazy? They did things like what Irene’s son did to you.”
I could only imagine what kind of hellions those three were like.
“But after the crash, they got serious. Maybe too serious. Learned quick what was important. I’d say Sawyer and Huck went into the careers they did because of their parents’ deaths. They couldn’t save them, so they’re going to try their darndest to save everyone else.”
“Oh,” I breathed. That made sense. Too much so.
“I think that’s why he fell so hard for his ex, Tina. Had stars in his eyes and missed that she was a schemer.” Her mouth turned down into a frown. “She wasn’t for him.”
“So Sawyer wasn’t trying to help me specifically, it’s just the way he is.”
She laughed, waved her hand. “Honey, he helps the ones he cares about the most.”
I let that sink in. Had he tried to help me because he cared about me? That’s what normal people did. But I’d pushed it away because I wasn’t normal. I was feeling more like an idiot by the minute.
And it only got worse. “Sawyer’s not mad about all that though,” I admitted.
“Oh?”
“I… I compared him to Tom Bunker.”
She stared at me wide eyed. I had a feeling I’d surprised the woman, and it wasn’t something easily done. Not after raising the three Mannings. “Bunky?”
I nodded. I never knew Tom by that name, but it made sense, and it made him sound like a country bumpkin. Which he was, even in his golf shirts.
“Why?”
“Because he was the guy who lied about being in love with me, why I followed him to Montana.”
“Oh, honey.”
I ran a hand over my face, suddenly weary. I was exhausted.
“That makes more sense. Why Sawy
er’s mad, I mean. The only thing he and Bunky have in common is that they have penises.”
I’d just taken a bite of sandwich, and I coughed. Sadly, I could confirm her statement, but there was no comparison.
“That boy is… well, he’s an asshole.”
I’d never expected her to swear, but there wasn’t any other word for it. “I agree.”
“If you think he’s an asshole, why did you compare them?”
I told her about how I’d fallen for Tom, followed him, learned the truth about him.
She frowned more and more as I went on and grabbed an apple and a knife from the drawer and started slicing it up.
“Sawyer’s nothing like Bunky.” The words came out in a tone that made my comparison almost an insult of her child rearing abilities.
“I know, but… I kept pushing him away.” I pushed my hair back behind my ear. “After Tom… Bunky, I don’t trust men.”
“I don’t blame you. What he did was wrong. His wife has to know what he’s up to. She has to be lingering for the money.”
“Yeah. My mother always found the worst apple in the bunch.” I said the last because she placed some slices on my plate. “I think it’s hereditary.”
“People make bad choices all the time. It’s whether you learn from them that’s important,” she told me pointing the knife at me.
“My mom sure hasn’t.”
“Then it’s not hereditary because you have.”
“I have horrible luck. The preschool burned down. God, maybe I’m cursed.”
“I think you’re a little hard on yourself. And Sawyer,” she added.
“I had no place to live, and Sawyer would have offered if he knew the truth, which would have made me just like her. What would have happened once he dumped me?”
“Why would he do that?” She looked almost bewildered I even suggested the possibility.
“I’ve known him two days!”
“So?”
I tipped my chin down and gave her a level stare. “I bought him at an auction.”
“Exactly.”
“Exactly,” I repeated, now completely confused. I eyed her, unsure. “Are you agreeing with me?”
“Did Sawyer say he wants to keep you?”
“Not in those exact words but yes.” I flushed, remembering. I’m your man. This pussy’s mine. You’re it for me. Definitely words I wasn’t going to share.
“Then he will. But that doesn’t mean he’s taking over your life. He wants to join his with yours.”
Still… “I can’t move in with him.”
“Then don’t.”
“I don’t have a place to live. Heck, with the preschool burned down, I don’t even have a job.”
“The preschool’s going to be run from one of the rooms at the community center. Until the building’s redone or Irene chooses another location. You’re not the only one who needs the preschool to stay open. Who’s accepted help,” she added, giving me a pointed look. Irene must have been offered the space and taken it, taken the help that had been freely given.
People moved fast around here.
“Wow, okay. That’s… good to hear.”
“As for a place to live, there are enough beds on this ranch to sleep in instead of his, if that’s what you want. Do you think I’m going to let you stay anywhere else until you get back on your feet? Think Thatcher or Huck would either?” She went back to the coffee maker and topped off her cup.
“Huck might.”
She glanced over her shoulder at me. “Huck brought you here. I think he wants you with Sawyer more than you think.”
I wasn’t so sure about that.
“Honey, do you want Sawyer?” she asked, coming back to the spot she had and leaned forward, resting her forearms on the counter.
I licked my lips, thought about it. Then stopped thinking about it. There wasn’t much to consider. My heart knew the truth better than my head. Maybe that was what had gotten me so screwed up in the first place.
He’d punched Tom… Bunky in the face defending my honor after he’d broken up with me.
“Yes. But he said he didn’t give a sh—sugar about me.” I blushed at my cussing.
A smile spread across her face. “I think I’ve heard that word before. I won’t faint dead away. If he didn’t give a sugar, then why was he so upset?”
I blinked, thought about it. If Sawyer didn’t care about me, about whatever it was between us, then he would have shrugged it off. He didn’t. Far from it. Was Alice right? Did he care so much that I’d truly hurt him?
“Get some rest, honey. I’ll show you to Huck’s room, so you can take a nap. The boy’s not going anywhere. Let him work off his mad for a little while.”
“He’s really upset,” I told her.
She came around the counter, patted me on the arm. “I’m sure you can think of a way to fix that.”
An idea did come to me based on what she’d told me about Delilah. Could it work? Would Sawyer be receptive or toss me out?
12
SAWYER
I walked from Thatcher’s place in the old barn back to my place, the moon lighting my way. When I left Kelsey at the station, I’d driven back to the ranch. Pissed. I’d come across my brother, and he’d dragged me out on four-wheelers to ride the fence line. We spent the rest of the day fixing shit. Digging holes, hammering nails, running barbed wire.
Thatcher might be considered the easygoing one of the three Manning brothers, but he knew when to keep his mouth shut. When he’d first asked after Kelsey with his signature grin, I’d glared and asked him after the woman who’d bought him at the auction. That had wiped the look off his face and shut him right up. I had no idea what the story was there, but I wasn’t going to push because I didn’t want him to push right back. So we’d spent the day talking only about the land. I’d gone back to his place for dinner and a beer, watching a stupid car chase movie to pass the time.
I didn’t want to be in my house where Kelsey had been. I had no doubt her sweet scent would be lingering, ready to drive me fucking insane. I was already out of sorts. Angry. Restless.
As I climbed the porch steps to the kitchen door, I tried to figure out how a woman I’d known for two days could bend me so far out of shape. No, that was wrong. I knew exactly how Kelsey had done it. I’d fallen for her, first glance.
That smile. That red fucking hair. Her sass. Even the way she’d kneed my balls. Then, once I got her bare, I couldn’t get enough. I loved her body. Her curves. The way she responded to me. We had serious chemistry, but more importantly, a connection. Something… lasting.
I just knew. I wanted her. I still did, even with her hang-ups and issues.
I unlocked the door, pushed inside, tugged my boots off and left them beside the door. Set my hat on the hook.
I shouldn’t be bent out of shape that she’d been with Bunky. I hadn’t known her then. She was just one of many who’d fallen for his shit. I wanted to break his nose all over again for how he treated her. Out of all the things I could do in this moment, that was one of them. My fists clenched, wishing he was around.
I cut through the dark house to my bedroom. There it was, in the air. Her scent.
“Fuck,” I whispered then paused and took a deep breath.
As for Bunky, I should actually be thanking the little shit. If not for him, I’d never have met Kelsey. There was no fucking way I would admit that aloud to anyone, especially since I couldn’t get her to see that I was nothing like that fucker. She’d have to do it on her own. I’d given her enough examples of what kind of man I was. How I’d treat her. How we’d be together.
She had to come to me.
I just didn’t know if she would.
At the bedroom doorway, I flicked on the light.
Froze.
There she was, sprawled across my bed. Naked. Eating directly from a carton of ice cream. She pulled the spoon from her mouth, licked it with her tongue.
“Holy shit,” I murmured.
My heart skipped a beat. My dick went instantly hard. I couldn’t move. The sight of her… fuck me. Her clothes were a pile on the floor beside the bed. She was laying on her side, the sheet seductively pulled over her but didn’t cover any of the important spots, like that fiery thatch of curls that covered her pinkest of places. I watched her nipples harden. I knew those curves. I’d kissed and licked and—
Her smile slipped a little when I continued to just stare.
“I hope you don’t mind, your window was open.”
I looked to the open window, imagined her climbing through.
“I figure if Delilah could do it, I could manage. Maybe I’ll be a little more successful than she was.”
I reached down, adjusted myself. “My dick’s hard. I’d say that’s a good start.”
I’d always pictured my woman in my bed but never knew who it was. For a little while, I’d thought it had been Tina, but what I felt for that psycho in six months of dating could fill a thimble in comparison to what I felt for Kelsey in two days.
I knew now. No question. I wasn’t going to tell Kelsey that though. Not yet. I might have zero doubts that she was the one, but she hadn’t come to the same conclusion yet. She was right. We’d only known each other two days. Two fucking days, and my world had changed.
I was keeping her. I had the rest of our lives to convince her.
Last night, we’d been too exhausted to do more than climb beneath the covers and conk out.
Now? Now it was time to make things right then make her mine.
She set the spoon in the carton, placed that on the bedside table. Then, with so much fucking shame, she sat up and held the sheet over her body.
“I’m sorry,” she said, her green eyes on mine. “I know you’re nothing like Tom… Bunky. But you’re a guy, and I’ve been wary of all guys. And you came on so strong. So fucking nice, and it scared me.”
The words were coming out in a tumble.
“And sneaking into my house, into my bed isn’t coming on strong?” I countered.
Those slim shoulders went up and down. “I’d hoped—” She stopped, glanced away then started again. “It makes no sense that I’m afraid of how you make me feel when everything is good while I ditched my life in another state to follow an asshole.”
