Rocky Mountain Romance (Six Pack Ranch Book 7)

by Vivian Arend

  Pure relief lit his eyes. “Sweetheart, that’s the best news I’ve heard in a long time. And I’m going to keep working to make sure you feel that way two months from now.”

  “I’ll do the same,” she promised.

  He leaned forward and kissed her, tender and sweet. Her heart skipped a beat, and something inside seemed to crack open a tiny bit. Maybe she’d been holding back. Worried this was going to end the same way as before?

  Not anymore. He’d done enough to prove that some things were different.

  “Hey, did you want to meet up with the dog I found you?” Steve asked when they were walking back to his truck, hand in hand.

  A shiver of excitement hit. “You think she’s ready?”

  He nodded. “The pups have all been adopted. I had Jesse bring Charlie over to our ranch, and she’s been hanging out with Prince and the other dogs. She’s definitely got some moves, so if you’ve got time this weekend, let’s set it up.”

  She waited until he’d put the lawn chairs into the back of his truck before wrapping her arms around his neck and letting him lift her in the air for a hug. “I’m excited. I really hope this works out.”

  “Me too,” Steve agreed.

  New dog, new relationship.

  New tomorrow.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Steve’s truck pulled into the driveway, and Melody found her heart fluttering. She jiggled on her feet with both anticipation and concern, which was kind of crazy when she considered it.

  She was getting a dog. Holy moly, and oh my goodness.

  She also didn’t know who she was more excited about seeing—the dog or Steve.

  Steve’s dog Prince hopped out of the back of the truck and made a beeline for her. She squatted to greet him, her gaze lingering on the truck to take in the two men striding toward her. Every move Steve made seemed to threaten the existence of his black T-shirt, and Melody smiled as she gave Prince a final pat on the head and stood to continue to admire the view.

  Solid arms and broad shoulders, with trim hips filling his faded in all the right spots jeans. On every step the toes of his cowboy boots poked out, and he adjusted his hat as he sauntered forward.

  Man, did she ever love living in cowboy country.

  It was only after she’d ogled him for a while that she took a quick peek to discover Trevor was the other man rapidly approaching. The two of them stopped a few feet away as Prince ran in excited circles around the three points of their triangle.

  “Good to see you again.” Trevor offered a wink.

  Melody tore her gaze away from Steve’s bewitching eyes, nodding politely at his younger brother. “Good to see you, as well.” She glanced around in confusion. “But I don’t see Charlie, only Prince.”

  “We didn’t bring her.” Steve held a hand out. “We’ve been working with her at our ranch, and she’s familiar with the location and the animals. I thought maybe you’d like to run her through her paces there for the first time.”

  “Good idea.” Melody patted her pockets to see if she had everything she wanted. “You should’ve called. I could’ve driven over to your place.”

  “We were in town anyway,” Trevor admitted. “Picking you up works better than trying to coordinate where to meet.”

  “And don’t fuss about anything else. Come on.” Steve caught her fingers in his and pulled her to the driver side of the truck, whistling for Prince who obediently came away from where he was sniffing fence posts.

  The dog raced forward like a banshee until he was within jumping range, crouched momentarily then sprang into the truck box without pausing. He moved to the front of the box and vanished.

  Melody glanced over the edge, curious to see what he was doing. She was surprised to discover Steve had a dog bed in the corner, and had trained Prince to stay.

  Interesting.

  “There’s a sight I don’t see very often in this community.” She reached her hand over and gave Prince a quick pat. He pressed his head against her hand, his tail thumping, but he didn’t get up.

  “He’s not riding in the cab with us,” Steve explained, “but I’ve never liked seeing dogs bouncing all over the place.”

  “You baby him,” Trevor teased. “Everyone else lets their dogs ride as they will.”

  Melody had seen it often enough, and most of the time it was fine. “This is a lot safer, though.”

  “I don’t like the distraction. There’s no reason why he can’t lie down and take it easy for the trip. He gets to run around every other hour of his day.”

  Steve helped her into the cab, and Melody slid to the middle, boxed in on both sides by one hundred percent Coleman male in their prime.

  It wasn’t a bad place to be.

  She glanced over her shoulder to see Prince lying contentedly on the thick mat, the animal curled up as they headed to Moonshine land. “I like that. I’ll have to see if I can train Charlie to do the same thing.”

  Steve lifted his hand off the wheel and laid it on her thigh. He didn’t say anything else, but he didn’t have to because Trevor started a travelogue, pointing out all sorts of things outside the window.

  This was a good thing, as well as a great distraction. Melody knew bits about the area, but missed the history. “Hey, do me a favour,” she begged. “Point out some of the old landmarks.”

  Trevor paused, twisting in his seat to give her a confused look. “Old landmarks?”

  “You don’t know how frustrating it is when people give me directions. Even after having lived here for a couple of years, I often have no idea what they’re talking about.”

  Steve chuckled. “I know what you mean. People tell you to ‘turn right where Pearson’s barn used to be’?”

  “Exactly.” Melody glanced out the window at an old shed and snapped up a finger. “See that? I got heckled the other day for not knowing the locals call it the Crestview Castle.”

  This time Trevor laughed out loud. “Hell. That’s a tale I haven’t heard in a while.”

  “You know the story?”

  “That place has been there on the edge of Winston Crest’s land forever. Anytime he went out drinking, his wife, who didn’t approve of hard liquor, would lock the house doors and refuse to let him in, and he’d end up sleeping in the shed for the night.”

  “Only she was nice about it,” Steve cut in. “She had the soul of an angel, just hated liquor with a vengeance. She didn’t want him to be uncomfortable, so she hauled an old rocking chair under the overhang. And she didn’t want him to catch cold, so she bought him an extra pair of slippers and robe on sale one time and kept them in the shed. In the morning after he’d tied one on, everyone driving by would see Winston sleeping in the rocking chair, all done up in regal purple.”

  Melody found herself smiling. “How come nobody’s ever written a history of the area?”

  Steve thought for a moment before answering. “Probably because it doesn’t feel like history to us. It just is.”

  She caught hold of Steve’s fingers with hers, squeezing tighter the closer to the Moonshine ranch they got.

  He flipped his hand over, linking their fingers together, and while Trevor continued to ramble, Melody sat and enjoyed their company. Protected and surrounded for a short period of time by a couple of gentle giants.

  But by the time they’d reached the ranch, her butterflies had returned.

  “I’ll go get her from the barn,” Trevor offered, sauntering on ahead.

  Melody was held back, Steve’s hand firm but gentle on her arm to keep her in place as he turned her toward him. He tucked his fingers under her chin and lifted her face to his as he leaned down and pressed a kiss on her lips.

  She let herself enjoy the moment. Running her hands from his wrists up his arms until she was holding onto his broad shoulders. Just a momentary interlude in the middle of the excitement, and it was amazing how pleasurable she found it.

  She was the one who stepped back, breaking contact between them but offering him a smile.
“I guess I forgot to say hello to you properly before, didn’t I?”

  “That was part of my master plan. Right now there’s no one around, so it’s not considered a kiss in public,” he teased. “I’m still good to lay one on you whenever I want.”

  Prince let out a bark, and she turned her focus toward the new dog joining them, shuffling around their feet.

  “Oh, she’s a beauty.” Melody offered her hand to the shepherd who sniffed her before turning her attention back to Prince and other more important dog-type duties.

  Steve motioned toward the side of the yard. “Trevor said he’d get some of the calves ready if you want to see her in action.”

  Melody nodded. “Let me say hello first.”

  She dug her hand in her pocket for one of the ever-present treats she carried. Prince paced forward eagerly—he already knew the routine. Melody offered him a treat, patted him on the head and got another biscuit ready, this time extending it to Charlie. “Hello, girl. I hear you’re looking for a new job.”

  Charlie took the treat then nudged forward as Melody scratched behind her ears. It was comfortable, and it was right, and a few minutes later when Charlie bumped her head into Melody’s leg for attention, it felt like the start of a beautiful friendship.

  For the next hour they put the dogs through their paces. Trevor and Steve ordered their dogs to round up the calves or herd them into the side corral. Melody observed how Charlie reacted, both while she was waiting, and when she was allowed to join in the work.

  “She’s been here for a week, and we’ve had no incidents.” Steve smiled as the dogs danced around each other for a moment before coming sharply to heel when Melody called them. “Damn if Jesse didn’t do something right. Charlie might be a better-trained dog than Prince.”

  Another rush of joy hit as Melody smoothed her hand over the dog’s head, happiness rising. “I think Charlie’s going to work out well,” she agreed.

  He’d caught himself staring far too often, but there was no way to resist. The expression of sheer delight Melody wore was enough to make the strangest sensation rise in his gut.

  It wasn’t nervousness, so he couldn’t call them butterflies. But there most definitely was something going on as she got to know Charlie.

  Trevor took off ahead of them, but Steve laid a hand on her shoulder. “Stay for supper,” he offered.

  Melody glanced toward the ranch house. “Here? With your parents?”

  “I mentioned you were going to be around, and Mom insisted you should join us.”

  “Okay. I didn’t have any other plans, and I like your folks.”

  He tucked an arm around her and led her toward the back door. “Of course you like them. I’ve trained them to be fabulous parents.”

  “All your doing. Are you sure about that?”

  Steve jerked to a stop and grinned guiltily at his mother. “The only bad habit I haven’t been able to break them of yet is eavesdropping.”

  Kate tilted her head to the house. “Get in there and wash up. Your father’s in the living room, and Anna called to say she and Mitch will be here in ten minutes.”

  “I’ll just take Melody—”

  “Run along, little boy,” his mother ordered, flicking her fingers at him. “I’ll take care of her.”

  It wasn’t as if he were afraid his mother would do something to ruin his chances with Melody, but at the same time Steve hurried to the boys’ bathroom, as his mom called it, and washed up as rapidly as he could.

  “Bringing her for supper with the folks already. It’s that serious?”

  Steve glanced in the mirror to discover his sister, Anna, standing behind him, her long dark hair loose around her shoulders, the hint of a flame tattooed on her shoulder peeking out from under her tank top.

  His sister, the straight-laced cop who was head over heels in love with the last guy he’d expected her to fall for. But then over the past month, he’d never seen her happier.

  Maybe they all had someone special who’d bring out the best in them.

  But now he had to head this one off before it went out of control and made things tougher. “It’s nothing like that. I mean, yes, I want this to be serious, but having dinner with Mom and Dad is just dinner—I don’t want Melody to feel rushed or anything.”

  Her expression remained serious “You know people are talking?”

  Steve paused. “About me and Melody?”

  “They’re talking mostly about her, and a little about you.”

  He turned to face his sister, leaning a hip against the counter. “You’re not making any sense.”

  She hesitated then spoke clearly. “Mitch hears a lot of gossip down at the shop and out on the street. Some of the old-timers aren’t happy with her work.”

  “Well, that’s bullshit on their part. I’ve seen her in action. She’s been working for us and the other Coleman ranches without any complaints.”

  A slim finger pointed in his direction. “That’s the biggest talk. How maybe you aren’t the best judge of whether her work is any good or not, since you two are involved.”

  Steve grabbed the towel off the rack, drying his face and hands as he prepared to go back upstairs and join the family. “And if all they have time to do is sit around and gossip, then I don’t know that I give a shit about any of those old men’s opinions. Melody knows her job, and she’s good in the sack, and she’s a ton of fun to be around, period. Those are three separate things, and if they’re not smart enough to see that, fuck them.”

  His sister’s smile bloomed. “Good. You’re not an idiot anymore.”

  “Nope,” he agreed, before grinning back. “Did you bring that bad-ass fiancé of yours along tonight, or do we get to eat dinner without having to fight him for it?”

  Anna backed down the hall, her smile taunting him. “He’s here, so don’t let your guard down. I hear we’re having meatloaf, and he’ll do anything for third helpings.”

  Steve shook his head at people’s foolishness. So what if he and Melody were going out? They weren’t hurting anyone, and that was the plain truth. He paused at the top of the stairs, mesmerized by the sunlight shining in the window catching a loose strand of her hair and turning it into molten gold.

  She’d pulled a stool beside the La-Z-Boy his father had settled in, a ball of wool held in front of her. Yarn draped across to his father.

  Randy was explaining his situation. “Until we figure out what’s wrong, I’m stuck looking for things I can do that don’t mess everyone else up.”

  “I’m sorry you’re still not feeling well,” Melody said. “But it’s good to see you’re keeping busy.”

  Steve stepped forward far enough that his father’s hands came into view. The knitting needles he held moved steadily, nowhere near as quickly as his mom or any of the aunts, but there was a respectable looking dishcloth hanging underneath the work surface.

  “I can’t cook, and I can’t drive, because both those things make me feel like I’m ready to fall over.” Randy let out a massive sigh. He lifted his head and his gaze met Steve’s. “So instead of doing my work, I’m sitting here like a slacker and letting my sons work like dogs.”

  “I’d far prefer to have you bossing me around,” Steve confessed.

  Randy made a face and went back to finish the row. “I’m knitting up the washcloths Kate promised to donate to the church fair.”

  “Good for you for knowing how,” Melody said. “That’s a trick I’ve never learned.”

  “Mama Coleman insisted all her boys learn how to do everything, from splitting wood and fixing cars to cooking dinner and sewing on buttons. She always said there’s no shame in getting the task done.”

  Kate stepped out of the kitchen, hands full with a dish of steaming hot food, Lee right behind her. “We’re ready to go to the table. Randy, if you feel up to it, come join us.”

  He wrinkled his nose. “I think I’ll stay here. I’m close enough I can give you what-for if the conversation starts to get boring
.”

  Steve paused to greet Mitch with a firm handshake; the man’s hands calloused from his hours of labour down at his family’s garage.

  “Good to see you again.”

  Mitch nodded in response before turning to rescue Anna and the heavy casserole she’d brought to the table.

  “That one’s mine, anyway,” he claimed, taking a deep inhale and smiling contentedly. “Kate, you made meatloaf. You’re spoiling me.”

  “You make my daughter smile. If meatloaf makes you happy, you get meatloaf,” Kate teased easily.

  Steve pulled back the chair beside his usual one and seated Melody at his side. Her blue eyes sparkled as the rest of the family joined them.

  “Everything looks great, Kate,” Melody offered.

  “Thank you. In spite of Randy’s comment about not being able to cook, he put most of this in the oven a couple of hours ago.” Kate glanced at her husband, concern and affection written on her face. “I don’t know what I’d do without him.”

  Trevor asked about Melody’s work. Mitch shared a story from his day at the garage. Kate mentioned a couple extra chores for the following day. Good conversation and good food settled together, and again Steve felt the contrast between now and last year.

  Why the hell had he not seen before how much he was missing?

  Melody glowed brighter as the meal went on, her happiness clear as she shared with Kate her plans to train the new dog. Trevor joined in and even Randy offered a few suggestions.

  She fit so well into their family, Steve wanted to jump up right then and there and point it out to her. Of course, that would be awkward as hell and probably get his foot stomped, but the thought did flit through his mind.

  Trevor poked Lee in the arm. “How come you’re not talking?”

  Their little brother shrugged. “You’re all talking enough without me.”

  “But tonight is different. You’re quieter than usual.” Trevor glanced down the table. “Ahhh, Melody is here. That’s it. You’re too shy to talk around girls.”

  “What am I, an elephant?” Anna demanded.