by SJ McCoy
Chance gave him a puzzled look.
Dr. Johnny laughed. “I’m not sure there’s any point in my explaining that. You just live by higher standards than the rest of us. I understand you’re staying in town while your dad’s with us?”
Chance nodded.
“Good. I wasn’t sure that you ever got a break from the ranch.”
“I don’t usually, but sometimes you have to make an exception, you know? Family is always the exception.”
“I do know. I have family of my own in town unexpectedly today.”
“Good. I hope you enjoy the visit.” Chance liked Dr. Johnny, but he wasn’t sure why they were standing around here talking. He wasn’t one for chitchat and he was eager to get back to the house and take a walk on the beach.
Dr. Johnny looked as though he had something he’d like to say, but he changed his mind. “Feel free to drop in to see your dad any afternoon, won’t you? He’ll be busy with the various programs, but we make sure late afternoon is free for any visitors or family who want to check in.”
“Yeah. I said I’d leave them to get settled in today, but I’ll be back tomorrow.”
“Great, I’ll see you then.”
Chance headed back to the car. He was more than ready to get out of here now. As he backed out of the parking space, he had to slam on the brakes as the car across from him backed out at the same time. He pulled forward so it could leave first—he’d rather that driver got the hell out of here before he did. As the vehicle pulled away, the driver, a woman in a huge hat and dark glasses, gave him an apologetic smile and a small wave. He shook his head. Why did people always think that apologies made things better? When you screwed up, you screwed up. Saying sorry didn’t change anything, but somehow it made people feel okay again. He supposed he should envy them that. It never worked that way for him. He wondered about what Dr. Johnny had said—that he held himself to a higher standard than other people. Maybe that was true, but he didn’t think much of the standards the other people held themselves to.
He let himself into the house and looked around; it was nice enough, nothing fancy. He imagined people used it just as a base in the summertime. He went and stood in front of the big windows taking in the view of the ocean. He’d wanted to get away from his everyday life, and this was definitely different. He loved the ocean, even though he hadn’t seen it in years. He’d grown used to life in the mountains. Cattle ranching in Montana was a harsh life, no doubt about it, but it suited him. The days were long and the work was hard. He turned away from the window. What the hell had he been thinking? What was he going to do with himself here for two whole weeks? The thought of walking on the beach and doing some soul-searching had been appealing, but now he was here the reality seemed less so.
He decided to take care of practical matters first. He’d need to stock up. He should head over to the grocery store he’d seen. He checked the fridge and the cupboards, taking note of what he had and what he’d need.
Not ten minutes later he was wandering up and down the aisles of the grocery store. Everyone who crossed his path greeted him with a friendly smile and a hello. He liked it, which surprised him. Normally he liked to keep his head down and avoid eye contact. Once he had what he needed, he made his way to the checkout. The girl at the cash register greeted him with a friendly smile.
“Let me guess, you’re the tall, dark, handsome stranger staying up at the Seaside Cottages?”
Chance pressed his lips together. He knew how small towns worked. Gossip traveled fast, as did news of strangers in town. He’d been hoping for anonymity rather than being the subject of local gossip. Now he had a decision to make; he could go with his preference and say as little as possible, but that would only lead to speculation. If he did that, he’d become the mysterious stranger up at the Seaside Cottages. He went with option number two and gave her a friendly smile. “I guess that would be me. I’m a stranger in town at least, I don’t know about the rest of it.”
“Oh, I do!” The girl tossed her hair back over her shoulder in a flirty move that did nothing for Chance, other than make him feel old.
“Why, thank you, ma’am. I appreciate the compliment.”
“Are you really a cowboy? I mean, that’s what they said and your hat and your boots look like you are, but some guys just dress like that.”
He nodded. “I guess you could call me that. I work on a cattle ranch.”
He was grateful when he sensed the presence of another customer behind him. That should make the girl hurry up. It did. She rang up his items and continued to flash him flirty looks. He was hoping he’d get out of here without any further questions. No such luck.
“So, where is this cattle ranch?”
“Montana.” Why was it that when someone asked him a direct question, he felt obliged to answer, even though he didn’t want to?
He heard the person behind him clear her throat and turned to give her an apologetic look. He recognized the hat and glasses as the woman from the parking lot. He couldn’t say he recognized the face; there was so little of it on view. “Sorry to hold you up.”
The woman nodded and gave him the slightest hint of a smile.
Chance gathered up his bags and hightailed it out of there as fast as he could. When he got back to his car he sat there for a moment. Why did it bother him so much when people wanted to know who he was? The girl was nosy, for sure, but it was innocent enough. She was friendly. Why wasn’t he open to that?
While he sat there, the woman in the hat came out. The overall effect of the hat, the glasses, and the overcoat she was wearing made her look like she was in disguise. He had a feeling she would have been no more open to the cashier’s curiosity than he had. She was walking directly toward him. She moved with the grace of an athlete. Maybe she was some famous dancer or something, and that was why she was wearing a disguise? He rolled his eyes. Now he was as bad as the cashier, wanting to know what the woman’s story might be. For a moment, he wondered if she was coming to talk to him, but she opened the door of the car next to him. Maybe she could be his first attempt at opening up to a stranger. He decided that when she looked his way he’d give her a friendly smile. He didn’t get the opportunity. If he had to guess, he’d say she deliberately avoided looking in his direction at all. As she pulled away, eyes fixed straight ahead, Chance was surprised to find himself judging her. She was unfriendly, possibly a bitch. He had no proof that was true, he knew it was simply the way that being ignored made him feel. It gave him some insight into how people normally saw him. It seemed a friendly smile could go a long way. There might be a case for him to work on that. He turned the key in the ignition. He might be here to do some soul-searching and some self-reflection, but there was no need for him to do it in the parking lot of the grocery store.
~ ~ ~
As she pulled away from the grocery store, a little shiver ran down her back. Damn, that man was a handsome son of a gun. When she’d first seen him in the parking lot at the clinic, she’d thought she must be imagining things. Six feet of muscle dressed all in black, topped with a cowboy hat—that wasn’t reality, not here, not at the beach in Oregon. Back in Montana where she’d grown up, definitely, but not here. And then inside the grocery store he’d confirmed for her, well he’d confirmed for the cashier and she’d overheard, that he was, in fact, from Montana. She’d have to ask Uncle Johnny if the man was a friend of his. She pulled up in front of the house. No, she would not! She shouldn’t even be curious. She’d just had a messy breakup; technically, she was still in the middle of it. She should be staying well away from even the thought of men. And besides, she was here to support Toby. They’d both been surprised when Uncle Johnny told her that, due to a last-minute cancellation, he had a space available for Toby’s mom starting today. They’d been surprised, but had agreed that the timing worked well. She’d have to stay out of the public eye for a while anyway and a couple of weeks in Oregon was a good reason to leave the city.
She let herself
into the house and dumped the groceries on the counter. Toby had said he could come and stay here with her, but that was ridiculous. He needed to be with his mom. She was such a sweet lady and she’d been so grateful for the opportunity to come here. She was thrilled to be able to provide it. Her cell phone rang and she pulled it out of her pocket. Drew. “About time, too!” Although she didn’t feel as hurt as she probably should by what he’d done, she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t bothered by it at all. She was shocked by the fact that he hadn’t called her or made any attempt to contact her all weekend. She stared at the phone as it continued to ring, wanting to be sure she could remain calm if she answered it. It stopped, making the decision for her. Not for long though, within a few seconds it rang again. She pursed her lips. That was quite typical of Drew. The shit had hit the fan on Friday morning. It had taken him until Monday afternoon to call, and now that it suited him to talk, he would call and call until she picked up.
“Hello?”
“Hey, baby. Where are you? I’ve been trying to get hold of you all weekend. I can explain.”
She let out a short laugh, she couldn’t help it. “Drew, please don’t treat me like an idiot. You’ve obviously been lying for months, now the truth is out, don’t start a fresh set of lies. You have not tried to get hold of me, not that it would have made any difference if you had. It’s none of your business where I am, and I don’t want to hear your explanations.”
The line buzzed, she wondered whether he’d hung up, but apparently, he was just searching for words. “So, that’s it? You don’t want to hear an explanation?”
“I’d like to hear something, Drew, but before you say anything, please bear in mind that our relationship is well and truly over, so you don’t need to spin me any lies. If you feel the need to tell me anything, if you feel you owe me an explanation, then fire way.”
“That’s your explanation, right there. You are one cold bitch.”
She sucked in a deep breath. It wasn’t the first time she’d heard that accusation, and no doubt wouldn’t be the last. “That would explain to me why you would want to break up with me, but not why you would want to keep our relationship going while you fuck someone else.”
“What do you want me to say? That I stayed with you because your name and connections were useful? Okay, I’ll admit that. I got involved with Carrie because she’s sweet and loving and nothing like you.”
She closed her eyes against the tears that stung. No way was she going to let him make her cry. “I appreciate your honesty, goodbye.”
“Don’t go! I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it. I just know I screwed up so badly, I’m lashing out at you. It’s not your fault, baby. None of this is your fault. It’s me. Is there any chance we can try to work this out?”
“No. There’s no chance at all. I hope you and Carrie will be happy together, at least until she outlasts her usefulness, too.” She hit the end call button and sat down on the sofa. Her hands were shaking. She might like to think she was strong and tough, but being called a cold bitch and compared to sweet, loving Carrie was enough to pierce her tough outer shell and strike right through to her heart. She hated that Drew knew that, he knew her insecurities and her doubts; she’d stupidly opened up to him in the beginning of their relationship. Now she remembered why she never usually allowed herself to do that.
She stood up and started to pace. She wasn’t one to sit around at the best of times, and this most definitely wasn’t the best of times. She needed to do something; unfortunately, she didn’t know what. She wandered around the house. There was nothing she could do here. Everything was immaculate. She wandered into the kitchen and eyed the supplies she’d brought back from the grocery store. That bottle of Cab looked tempting, but no. Maybe she’d indulge later, but not yet. She headed up the stairs to the bedroom. She was going to get changed and go for a run. If she were at home she’d swim, but that wasn’t an option here. Running was her second favorite way to escape.
Ten minutes later she let herself out the front door and locked it. It meant she’d have to carry the keys with her, but there was no way she’d leave the place open.
Chapter Four
Chance sat with his arms wrapped around his knees. He’d walked down on the beach for a little while, but then he’d spotted this rock halfway up the cliff. He’d climbed the stairs to the closest point he could reach and then scrambled over the cliff face until he’d reached his goal. The view from here was amazing; the beach stretched out before him, and beyond that, the vast ocean held his gaze. The crashing waves had a hypnotizing effect, he had no clue how long he’d been sitting here. All he knew was that, as he let his mind drift with the tide, he felt peaceful. It was the kind of peace he hadn’t felt since he was a kid. What he couldn’t figure out, or at least what he was trying not to think about too hard, was whether he’d lost that peace because he was no longer a kid or because he’d lost Chloe. Either way, it felt good.
He’d thought he had a lot of hard work to do during his time here. He’d thought he’d have to think hard and analyze himself, his feelings, and how he planned to move forward in life. Instead, sitting here like this felt like he was getting a rest—not so much a rest from his work, which God knew he needed, but more a rest for his battered heart and soul, which he really hadn’t known he needed.
He dragged his eyes away from the mesmerizing effect of the waves and scanned the beach. There wasn’t a soul down there. That didn’t surprise him. It was chilly and the blustery wind carried a dampness that wasn’t quite rain. He tugged on the peak of his baseball cap, glad that he’d brought it. The guys on the ranch often teased him about whether he even took his cowboy hat off to sleep. He was attached to that hat, but it felt weird to wear it to walk on the beach. Like the girl in the grocery store had said some guys just wore cowboy hats and boots—they were a look, an image they wanted to project. That wasn’t the case for him; for him they were practical, as much the tools of his trade as cleats and a helmet were for a football player. Much as they were a part of him, he didn’t need them here. Sneakers and a baseball cap were a much better fit for a walk on the beach and especially for scrambling over rocks like a bighorn sheep.
As his gaze traveled along the coastline, he spotted a lone figure running. He pursed his lips; he felt sorry for people who felt the need to run for recreation. They were a step up from the ones who never managed to get off the couch, but it must be sad to lead such a cooped-up life. He spent most of his own time outdoors. Between the cows and the horses, his job was so physical that he wouldn’t have the time or the energy to go for a run at the end of the day.
He watched as the figure came ever closer. It moved at a good pace. He cocked his head to one side and narrowed his eyes. It was a she! And she not only moved at a good pace, but with a certain athletic grace. She had a long comfortable stride. He felt as though he recognized her for some reason, but that was crazy. He couldn’t make out a face from up here. All he could make out was a graceful figure with a blonde ponytail flying behind her like a banner in the wind. He watched her as she made her way up the beach toward him. Why would he think he recognized her? And then it hit him; it was the way she moved. He couldn’t describe it if he had to, other than to say she was athletic and graceful. Just like the woman in the parking lot at the grocery store. It was her. He knew it. He wouldn’t be able to recognize her face, even if he could see it. The hat and glasses were gone, as was the overcoat. And, as she drew ever closer, he had to wonder why in hell she wore them. She was gorgeous!
She was almost parallel with him now, and, as if sensing his presence, she looked up. Her stride faltered when she spotted him, making Chance feel a little uncomfortable. He’d be pretty weirded out himself if he spotted some dude sitting up on the cliffs watching him, and he was a big guy, he could take care of himself. How must she feel? He raised a hand and gave her a friendly smile. Hell, he’d been planning to do that at the grocery store. Hopefully now it might reassure her that he was n
o threat. It seemed to work; she raised a hand in reply. Unfortunately, as she did so, she tripped and went sprawling in the sand.
Chance jumped to his feet and scrambled across the rocks to the stairs, which he took two at a time. He kept his gaze on her the whole way down. The fall must have knocked the air out of her; she lay still for a few moments. He was relieved to see her push herself up to a sitting position. She didn’t get to her feet, though. Instead, she rubbed at her ankle. That didn’t look good. When he reached the bottom of the steps, he sprinted across the sand toward her. She watched his approach warily. Chance stopped a good ten feet short. If she’d been afraid of him when he was up on the rocks, she probably felt pretty vulnerable right now, sitting on the sand with no way to escape.
He held up both hands. “Hey, I just wanted to see if you’re okay.” He felt the air rush out of his lungs when her big blue eyes met his gaze. Damn! She was beautiful.
She nodded. “I’m fine, thanks.” The pinched look on her face belied her words, but she probably just wanted him to go away. Tough luck. There was no way he was leaving until he knew she was okay.
“Did you twist it?”
She rolled her eyes. “No, I’m just tired of running so I thought I’d sit here and take rest.”
Chance pursed his lips in an attempt not to laugh. “You picked a nice spot for it.”
He wasn’t sure, but it seemed she was trying not to laugh, too. “Thanks, I thought so. The view is wonderful, and, until a moment ago, it was lovely and peaceful.”
Okay, so she did want him to go away. “Well, as soon as you show me you can walk on that ankle, I’ll get the hell out of here and leave you to your peace and quiet. Until you show me that, I ain’t going nowhere, honey.”
She frowned up at him. “It’ll be fine in a minute. No one invited you to be a knight in shining armor.”
