Despite these excellent reasons why he would be at Greene Pastures today, Morris knew he was only here to see one person.
He hadn't even known her for a full twenty-four hours, and she had already wormed her way under his skin. He couldn't stop thinking about her last night after he got home, worrying about her. And he never worried. His dreams had been haunted by her emerald green eyes and soft, secret smile. The morning couldn't come soon enough. He had buried himself in work all morning, barely pausing when Rhett and Paige had stopped by. Their hands has been put to work on a project Morris kept meaning to get to and just never had the time.
They could have taken the hay for him.
Morris gripped the wheel, tempted to hit his head against it. What was he doing?
Allie was here to meet her father, to meet the family she never even knew she had. The last thing she probably wanted was some annoying rancher fawning over her at every turn. Besides, Morris really should be focused on the ranch. It was turning into the busiest time of year for him. He shouldn't be wasting his time mooning over a complete stranger.
It would never work between them, Morris tried to tell himself. He had come to that conclusion last night. Her life was in the city. His on the land. She expected certain conveniences in life. They were incompatible. It just wouldn't work.
And he needed to let it go.
Pushing the cab door open, Morris hopped out of the truck and slid it shut. He'd let Max know he was here, take a quick look at the horse, back the truck up to unload the hay, and be out of here before Allie even knew he’d arrived.
Sounded like a solid plan.
A plan which shattered to pieces as he walked around the side of the house and spotted Allie standing next to one of the pens, feeding what looked like baby carrots to the pygmy goats.
The world narrowed into a single focus, blocking out all other sights and sounds surrounding them. She looked beautiful, untouchable, and perfect in her designer jeans and filmy blouse, paired with the dirtiest pair of galoshes he'd ever seen. Those must be Paige's.
She made quite the pretty picture.
Morris stopped walking, hesitant to go any further and attract her attention. He wanted to watch her interact with the animals, see what a city girl like her would do. She smiled and laughed at the tiny nibbles the goats gave her, snatching carrots from her flat palm. Max must have given her the rounds already. Disappointment filled Morris that he hadn't been the one to show her around.
That realization nearly made him turn on his heel and march back toward the truck, ready to high-tail it out of there. He had no right to feel as drawn to her as he did. He needed to keep his distance for the next couple of weeks until she was gone.
"Morris! Good!" Morris turned as Paige jogged over toward him from the first set of stables, a knowing smirk on her lips. From the corner of his eye, he saw Allie's attention turn from the goats directly to him. The weight of her gaze on him nearly made him shiver.
He cast his eyes heaven-ward. What are You up to?
Shaking off his irritation at being caught, Morris gave Paige a friendly smile. "I have a load of hay I forgot to ask you guys to take this morning. And I thought I'd take a look at the foal."
"Great! I have to run off to town to pick something up, but Cam is in there. He can give you the run down. Allie would probably like to see the foal again, too," Paige said, donning an innocent expression.
Morris' eyes narrowed. "I'm sure she would."
Paige laughed as she walked off. Morris shook his head. It was official. He needed to steer clear of Greene Pastures until Allie flew back off to New York.
He contemplated simply walking off toward the stables without saying hello to Allie, but that would be beyond rude. Especially after everything she had gone through yesterday. His mother had ingrained good manners into his very blood since the moment he was born.
"Good afternoon, princess," he called, giving a slight tip of his cowboy hat. He only wore it to keep the sun out of his eyes while he was working.
"Good afternoon, Morris," Allie called back. He didn’t miss the slight narrowing of her eyes at the nickname. He bit his tongue to keep form smiling. "Here to see the foal?" she asked.
Morris watched in equal parts horror and excitement as Allie stepped away from the goats and walked straight toward him. It took him a moment to realize she has asked him a question.
"Yes," he said, clearing his throat of the frog that suddenly leaped into place there. "And hopefully give it a name."
Allie's smile widened. "That would be nice. He's this way." Without another word, Allie started walking toward the stables, as though it were natural that she would be the one to show him inside.
Resigning himself to his fate, though he promised to have a long conversation with God about it later, Morris followed close behind.
Of course, Cam was nowhere to be seen, leaving Allie and Morris alone together with the dam and her foal.
Grateful for the distraction, Morris turned his gaze on to the foal.
He looked strong, even for only being less than a day old. He had mastered walking already, and seemed to be curious about the world around him. He headed toward the gate of their stable fearlessly, making soft whining noises in an attempt to communicate. Charmed, Morris stuck his hand over the side of the stable, letting the foal get a good whiff of him.
"You're not skittish at all, are you?" Morris asked the foal. It tossed his head as in though in response. Morris turned to look at Allie, who stood stock still, eyes wide in wonder. "I bet he'd let you pet him."
Allie shook her head. "I couldn't. Penelope looks like she's going to bite my fingers off if I touch him."
Morris laughed. "No, she looks happy to have a moment alone. Come on." Morris reached down and gently grabbed her hand, bringing it up and over the gate. Feeling Allie tense, he paused. "Is this your first day around horses?" he asked.
"No," Allie said. Then licked her lips. "Yesterday was. If we don't count the NYPD Mounted Unit. Or those horse drawn carriages in Central Park."
"That's not quite the same, no," Morris said. "You should come over to my ranch and I'll show you some of the ropes when it comes to horses. Maybe even give you a few riding lessons." What was he saying? He needed somebody, anybody to come by and shut him up. Where was Cam?
"I think I'd like that," Allie said, giving him a soft smile.
He should let go of her arm. He shouldn't force her to do anything she didn't want to do. But he just couldn't. Being this close to her made his head swim.
"What are you going to name him?" Allie asked, looking up at Morris. It was then Morris realized just how close they stood together.
Panicked, Morris dropped Allie's arm and took two steps back. Long steps. He tried to ignore the frown on her face.
"I'm not sure," Morris said. "A name is such a personal thing. I like to look for physical attributes or personality traits. I'm considering 'George' for Curious George, or maybe 'Kirk' from Star Trek."
Allie crinkled her nose. "George is a little boring for a horse, don't you think? Same with Kirk. Though I've never watched Star Trek, so what do I know?"
"You've never watched Star Trek?" Morris asked, mouth agape.
Allie shook her head, giving him a sheepish smile.
"I'm telling Paige."
Allie's eyes widened. "No, don't!"
Morris couldn't stop the raucous laugh. The foal skittered away at the sound.
"Well, so much for 'George,'" Morris muttered.
"How about Chip?" Allie suggested. "His fur? Hair? It reminds me of chocolate."
Morris gave Allie a smile. "We usually just call it a coat. But yes, it's hair." He turned back to the foal. "How 'bout it, Chip?"
The foal danced, giving that soft pitched whine once again.
"We have a winner," Morris said, shooting Allie another look. Allie grinned.
"Thank goodness," Cam's familiar voice interrupted. "I thought we were all going to have to call him 'the fo
al' for the rest of his life." He looked over at Allie as he drew near. "Morris is terrible at picking out names."
"That is just not true," Morris said. "You can't prove that."
"Because you haven't ever named an animal?" Cam asked. "Why do you think that is?"
Morris heard Allie giggle and turned to her. "Don't you start."
She mimed zipping her lips shut.
"I'm glad you’re here," Cam added. "Chip's health is excellent. I don't think you'll even need to see me until the six month mark for the first round of vaccinations."
Morris nodded. "Hopefully, Chip will be over at the ranch by then. If everything goes well."
Morris talked a little more with Cam, while watching Allie from the corner of his eye. He knew he should be paying attention to whatever it was Cam was telling him. But the sight of Allie leaning her forearms and chin atop the gate, staring at Chip and whispering soft things to him made Morris want nothing more than to join her.
When Allie looked up at him from her position, she gave that soft, sweet smile of hers before standing straight up once more. Then she looked over his shoulder.
"Morris?" Cam said, interrupting Morris’ daydreaming. "Everything alright?"
Morris nodded, dragging his attention back to Cam. "I'm sorry. I got sidetracked, thinking about the other things that need to get done at the ranch today."
Cam gave Morris a skeptical look. "Uh huh. Well, if you have any questions, just feel free to call." And with that, Cam sent a meaningful glance back to Allie over Morris shoulder, then turned and walked away.
At this rate, everybody will think I'm attracted to Allie.
Morris raised his hands and rubbed them roughly against his face. He definitely needed to keep his distance.
"Everything alright?" Allie asked, stepping up close behind Morris. He straightened quickly, ready to bolt back to his truck, unload the hay, and get out of there.
"Yes, everything's just fine," Morris said. "I should unload the hay and get going though."
Allie nodded. "I'll walk you out. Do we need to find Max?"
Morris shook his head. "I'll just back the truck up and unload it myself."
They walked toward the front of the house to Morris' truck. Without thinking twice about it, he opened up the passenger side door for Allie to slip inside. She smiled in humor before climbing in.
"Everyone will think I'm lazy," she said.
"Nah, just keeping me company," Morris replied. Then he slammed the door and winced at himself as he walked around the back.
He took his time getting to the other side of the cab, hoping Allie would have magically disappeared by then. No such luck. So he did the next best thing. He raced the truck backward toward one of the barns, hoping nobody and no animal would accidentally end up in his way.
"Woah," Allie said, pressing a hand over her stomach. "Do you always drive like a maniac?"
Morris shot her a teasing grin. "Can't handle a little giddy up and go?" he asked.
Allie laughed and rolled her eyes.
Soon, Morris was out of the truck. He sucked in the fresh air, grateful to finally be rid of the heady scent of Allie's perfume. He would never admit it to anybody else, but he believed he found his new favorite smell in the world.
Shaking his head, Morris got to work. Rhett joined him quickly after, and between the two of them, the hay was out and deposited into the barn in record time. He told himself it was so he could get the work done faster and leave, not to impress Allie.
He never had been a good liar.
"Thanks, again, Morris," Rhett called, lifting a hand in farewell and already striding away toward the next chore on his list.
Allie had wandered toward the pen holding the mules and donkey, stroking Maribel's neck. Morris should have seized the opportunity and called a quick goodbye before jumping into his truck and peeling off down the drive. That exactly what he should have done.
Then why was he walking over to her just to say goodbye?
"Don't tell me she's your favorite, too," Morris said as he walked up to them. He clicked his tongue and Maribel shifted over toward him, appreciating the strong strokes he always gave.
"Well, it was the alpaca until I got close enough to smell her," Allie deadpanned. Morris snorted out a chuckle.
"Should have expected as much from a city princess," he said with a wink.
Allie rolled her eyes. "Being from New York doesn't have any influence over my sense of smell. In fact, I'd argue that being a ranch owner has damaged yours."
"Touché," Morris said on a laugh. He should leave. He should say goodbye and leave. Instead, he found himself reaching out to touch the light, frothy material of her blouse sleeve. "You still dress like a princess. I'd hate to see such a pretty blouse be ruined because a goat thought it would be tasty."
Morris watched Allie's face flush. He dropped the fabric and stepped away. That was too forward of him. He meant it as a tease, but once it came out, he understood how flirtatious a comment like that would sound.
"I should get going," he said, gesturing toward the truck. "Have a great visit with your family," he added. Then turned on a heel, sucked in a breath and began to stride away.
"What about those riding lessons?" Allie called from behind.
Morris froze mid-step before he could think better of it. He really should have just kept walking, pretended like he didn't hear her. But his mother had also taught him that ignoring people on purpose was rude.
He turned back around. "You let me know when you think you can head over. Max has my number." Hopefully, she wouldn't call.
Allie's answering grin made him feel like twice the heel that he really was. If he had an ounce of decency, he would just come clean and apologize to her.
But his pride outweighed any decency he had. He could still just walk away.
With one more wave, Morris turned back to the truck. He berated himself as he swung into the cab and slammed the door. He berated himself as his tires kicked up gravel as he sped down the drive. He berated himself the entire five minute drive home.
And it still wasn't enough.
____________
Allie had finally convinced Eleanor to put her to work in the kitchen to prepare dinner. Not without quite a bit of effort on her part, though.
"I'm not going to put you to work in here when you've been outside all day working," Eleanor had said, frowning at Allie.
"I wasn't doing much out there," Allie had replied. "Only feeding them enough to let me pet them. Oh, and I did get to muck a stall or two, but that's it."
The mucking had been an unpleasant surprise, but Rhett had challenged her and she had wanted to prove that she could work just as hard as the rest of them. When Paige stumbled across them, she gave Rhett an earful before escorting Allie away and asking for her help organizing the tack room. That had consisted of Allie sitting on a stool, admiring all of the equipment they had in there, most of it in the wrong place, according to Paige. Allie hadn't even known enough to be of any real help.
Now, she peeled and sliced potatoes at the sink, prepping them for an au gratin recipe that Eleanor said was "to die for."
"I heard you named the foal today," Eleanor said, chopping up greens for a salad. Two chickens sat at her elbow, prepped and ready for the oven.
"I didn't think Morris would go for it. It was a silly suggestion."
"I think 'Chip' is adorable. And perfect for the little guy," Eleanor said. Allie didn't have to look back to see the warm smile Eleanor wore.
Thinking of Chip brought back thoughts of Morris. He had been entirely too good looking that afternoon when he arrived. He wasn't even wearing anything all that different from anybody else, just a plain t-shirt and jeans, but they fell against his frame in a way that drew Allie's eye. She had told herself over and over again last night that she needed to get a grip on herself, that she was pretty sure God didn’t bring her out all this way just for a man.
Of course, all that went out the wi
ndow the moment he arrived with his truck full of hay. Allie's heart had warmed at the thought of Morris bringing extra hay to Greene Pastures every once in a while, just to help out. It probably meant a lot to the Greene family, to have such a supportive neighbor. Allie didn't know her neighbors well enough to invite that kind of support.
Morris' offer of horseback riding lessons had thrown Allie, but she couldn't deny her excitement at the idea. She wanted to do it because it was something she had never done before. She was borderline afraid of all of these animals and she knew she needed to take life by the reins and face those fears.
A Delivered Heart Page 6
