“Thanks for cooking.” He stood and carried his dishes to the sink, then rinsed them and put everything in the dishwasher.
“Don’t worry about cleaning up,” she said. “I’ll get the rest tomorrow.”
“Okay. It’s late. I’m going to get some sleep.” He started to walk out of the room, then stopped to look at her. The sweetness of her pulled something tight in his chest. “Thanks again for cooking. Good night.”
“You’re welcome. See you tomorrow.”
Not likely. Not after this sweet interlude.
“I’ll be gone before you get up.” And if he got back late again, she might be asleep and he could avoid her.
“Would it be all right if I bring Cassie down to the barn and you can show her the new baby horse? I’d like to see, too.”
“I’ll be out checking fences, but one of the hands will be around.”
Something changed in her expression, as if a light just flickered and went out. As if she could read his mind and knew he was deliberately staying away from her.
“Okay, then.” She walked out of the kitchen and left him standing there by himself.
The loneliness hit him like a punch to the gut. He’d disappointed her and he was truly sorry about that, but it was for her own good. He’d actually fooled himself into believing that having her here didn’t have to change anything and wouldn’t bother him all that much. He’d been wrong.
Now all he could do was count the days until Grace was gone and he could return to faking fatherhood on the weekends.
* * *
One second Grace had thought Logan was going to kiss her, and the next he made up an excuse not to be around to show her and Cassie the baby horse. That was two days ago, but she couldn’t get it out of her mind. At least for a few hours on her afternoon off she could get out of his house.
Earlier she’d dropped Cassie off at the barn with Logan but didn’t speak to him. In fact, she hadn’t seen him much since that night, but there were reminders of him all over the place. In the kitchen sink, the mug he’d used for morning coffee. A stray piece of mail with his name on it. The spicy, masculine scent of him on the sofa in the family room. It was a relief to be out of there and exploring Blackwater Lake, the part locals called old town as opposed to the resort area at the foot of Black Mountain.
She parked in the lot behind Tanya’s Treasures located on Main Street and used the rear entrance to go into the store. A bell signaled a walk-in for the pretty brunette who was behind the cash register counter.
Her name tag said Kelly. “Is there something I can help you find?”
“I’m looking for a wedding gift.” Tracy had invited her to the nuptials because they’d hit it off, but partly to back Logan up with Cassie.
“Do you have something special in mind?”
“No, and suggestions would be really helpful. The thing is, I don’t know the couple very well, so I don’t want it to be too intimate, if you know what I mean.”
“I think I do.”
“But I want it to be really nice. Although I haven’t known the bride very long, I really like her.” Grace decided to stop dancing around and introduce herself. “I’m Grace Flynn.”
“I know. Small town. News gets around.” She shrugged. “You’re taking care of Tracy and Logan’s daughter, Cassie, when her mom goes on the honeymoon.” The woman smiled. “I’m Kelly Black, and this is my store.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Kelly.” Grace thought about what she’d said. “So, your middle name is Tanya?”
“No.” The woman laughed. “I bought Tanya out. She met someone and moved away to be with him and get her happily-ever-after. I decided not to change the name of the store.”
“You’ve got a lot of nice things in here, that’s for sure.” She looked around and noticed everything from bedside lamps dripping crystals to Blackwater Lake souvenir T-shirts.
Kelly glanced around, and her search ended up on something in the display window. “Couples go through the work and expense of a wedding for the pictures, right? What about a silver frame to put one of them in?”
“That’s perfect.” Grace felt like clapping her hands or hugging this woman. “Eight by ten, or five by seven?”
“Good question. I think I’d go with the smaller one. But she can certainly return or exchange it if she’d like. And engraving of the bride’s and groom’s names and the date of their wedding is available. We can do it before you give it to her if you want to take a chance on the size, or she can bring it in later to have it done.”
Grace thought for a moment and made up her mind. “Five by seven, and hold off on the engraving. I’ll let her know that’s available.”
“I can take care of that with an information card inside the box with the frame. Also, if you’d like, I can do complimentary gift wrap for you.”
“Yes, please.”
Kelly smiled. “I wish all my customers were as easy to please as you.”
“You made it easy. But I suppose difficult people are a fact of life. Every job has its drawbacks.”
In Grace’s case it was the complicated yet too-handsome-for-his-own-good cowboy who was her boss. Some would say she was crazy to complain about the scenery at work, but beauty was only skin-deep. Logan was more than that. There was something about him, some hard-to-define quality that pulled her in and wouldn’t let go. That’s not what she’d signed up for, so it was a good thing this job was temporary.
“I’ll get a boxed frame from my inventory in the back, put in the printed card and take care of the wrapping. I also have gift cards for different occasions. Would you like me to include one for a wedding? It’s blank, so you can fill it in.”
“That would be fabulous.”
While her purchase was being taken care of, Grace browsed the shelves and corners of Tanya’s Treasures. She found more than one item that tempted her but held back because all her money was going into her house fund and it wouldn’t be long until her dream was a reality. Eyes on the prize, she reminded herself.
When she left the gift shop, it was past lunchtime and starvation mode set in. Bag in hand, she walked down the street to the Harvest Café for a bite to eat. Just as she got to the door, she saw Logan’s houseboat-building brother reach for the handle to open it.
“Hey, Grace.” Tucker smiled. “Where’s Cassie?”
“With her dad. This is my afternoon off.” She held up her handled brown bag. “I’ve been shopping.”
“That can work up an appetite.” He angled his head toward the restaurant. “You’re going in?”
“Yeah. Late lunch. You?”
“Same.” He thought for a moment. “How do you feel about eating alone?”
“You know, when I was a little girl I always said my goal in life was to eat alone.” She grinned. “Just kidding. I’m not a fan. I think it’s a lot like solitary confinement.”
“Let me rephrase. I don’t particularly enjoy eating alone. Would you like to join me?”
“That would be nice. Thanks for asking, Tucker.”
He opened the door and they walked in together. Lucy Bishop happened to be standing by the hostess stand, and there was surprise in her eyes.
“Grace, how are you? Nice to see you again. Hey, Tucker.”
Was there a slight edge to her voice? Or it could just be Grace’s low blood sugar inducing hallucinations of a teeny, tiny bit of jealousy. “I’m fine. I’ve been shopping and missed lunch. Then I ran into Tucker just outside.”
“I had a meeting with clients.”
“Your first Blackwater Lake houseboat contract?” When he nodded, Lucy clapped her hands, then jumped into his arms for a big hug. “Congratulations.”
“Thanks.”
“Look at you trying to be all nonchalant. I know inside you’re doing the happy dance.” Lucy playfully slugged him in the arm
.
Grace studied him carefully. He appeared as relaxed and composed, as if he’d been fishing all morning. “I’m not seeing the happy dance in him.”
“You have to know what you’re looking for,” Lucy said. “It’s enough that I know it’s there.”
Tucker squirmed under the glare of a double whammy of female scrutiny. “Can’t a hardworking man get something to eat around here?”
“Hey, shopping works up an appetite, too,” Grace protested.
“Truer words were never spoken,” Lucy agreed. “Let’s get some food into you quick.”
“Really?” Tucker said, looking from one to the other. “Shopping takes priority over an exclusive houseboat community on Blackwater Lake?”
“See? I knew he was high-fiving himself.” Lucy grinned and looked around. There were only a few diners in the place. “So pick a table, any table.”
“Don’t have to ask me twice.” Tucker headed for one by the window that looked out on Main Street.
Grace followed and took the seat across from him.
“Do you need a menu, Grace? Twenty bucks says that Tucker will order the chicken salad croissant with coleslaw and fruit.”
He opened his mouth but seemed to think better of what he planned to say. “That sounds good.”
“Make it two.”
“Coming right up,” Lucy said.
Grace saw the woman glance at Tucker one last time before moving away. She remembered Lucy saying that someone should marry this man, then swearing up and down that that someone would not be her. Not that she was an expert, but it sure looked like they had chemistry. Hmm.
“So,” Tucker said, drawing her gaze back to him. “You already know how my work is going. What’s up with you?”
“Your niece is a perfect angel. I love taking care of her. She makes my job not even a job.”
He met her gaze. “I couldn’t help hearing a slight emphasis on she. Does that mean Logan is making things tough?”
“He loves his daughter very much.” Did dumping on your boss’s brother count as biting the hand that feeds you?
“Loving her that way can present different kinds of challenges.”
“That’s very insightful of you. Do you have kids?” she asked.
“Not yet. But I’d like to very much.”
Men didn’t usually admit to being in touch with their feminine side so readily. It made her wonder. “What’s stopping you?”
“I haven’t met the right woman.” He shrugged.
“There’s no one from your past you made a pact with that if you’re both thirty and haven’t met ‘the one,’ you’ll have a child together?”
“No.” He laughed. “But back to my brother. Logan is giving you a hard time?”
“Not at all. He’s a good man. It’s just that I worry...”
“About?”
“He seems to hold back with Cassie. His kid instincts are great, but he doesn’t trust them.” She saw something flicker in the man’s gaze and took a guess about what it might be. “Logan told me about your mom leaving your dad and having no place to go.”
“Oh.” Tucker nodded slowly, as if he’d been weighing how much to say. “It was hard on all of us, but particularly Logan because he’s the oldest. Mom relied on him to take care of us when she was working. He was the one we looked to. When we were hungry he scavenged through Dumpsters for perfectly good thrown-away food. He took us into public restrooms and supervised us washing up. He got us to school and made sure strangers left us alone.”
“I can’t even imagine.” Grace had grown up in foster care and went from home to home, which was tough, but she always had a roof over her head. It was someone else’s roof, but still... Nothing like what Logan and his siblings went through.
“Then my grandfather took us in. He was a good man and taught us boys how to be good men. But he was alone because my grandmother left him. And my mom married a man who couldn’t be a worse husband or father.”
“At least you and your siblings were all together,” she said.
“True, and we were grateful for that. But neither side of our family was a shining example of a healthy relationship. It had an impact on all of us. Especially Logan, I think. And he takes the responsibility of raising and protecting Cassie to heart. Bottom line is we have no template of what love and family should look like.”
He wasn’t the only one, Grace thought. She was right there in that boat with Logan. Maybe something to bond over? But he walked away from kissing her. It was about not wanting to compromise her but still...
That was awfully noble really and tugged at her soft mushy center that he put her in the category of people to be protected. But she didn’t need him to do that. Clearly she and Logan were two lost souls who couldn’t let themselves take a chance on forever.
She was also a product of her environment. She lost count of which placement it was when she’d made an instinctive decision not to let herself care because the foster family was temporary. The only time she’d let a man in, he took advantage of her. But property was permanent.
That’s why her dream was to buy a house. A girl could count on four walls and a roof. It wouldn’t break her heart.
Only a man could do that, and she wouldn’t give him the chance.
Chapter Six
Logan missed Grace on her afternoon off, and it was more than just the fact that he liked being around her. Too much, really. When he took care of Cassie, work came to a halt. Ranch chores had to wait so he could focus only on her. But his little girl was getting bored. Normally on the weekend they shopped or went to a movie, but today was just a couple of hours and those things weren’t practical.
Right now she was watching a DVD of an animated mermaid movie and hanging off the side of the family room sofa. He’d seen her riveted by things on TV, but this wasn’t one of those times.
“Daddy, I wanna go see the baby horse.”
God, he hated when he was right.
“A baby horse is a foal,” he corrected. “And you just saw him a little while ago.”
“But I wanna see him again. And he needs a name, Daddy. We can’t just keep sayin’ ‘him.’”
He sat down on the sofa beside her. “So let’s talk about names. Give me some ideas.”
Switching her position, she was lying on the seat cushion with her legs up in the air and resting on the sofa back. “I hafta see him again. To make sure it’s the very rightest name for him.”
If she would stand still and just look he’d have no problem, but that never happened. She moved so fast and had a bad habit of disappearing. In the barn there were so many corners where he couldn’t see her, not to mention tools and sharp things she shouldn’t touch but always wanted to. She was safe right here in the house. He could live with her being bored until Grace got back. Which should be soon. It was almost dinnertime, and she’d told him to expect her before then.
“The horse is probably sleeping. That’s when he grows.”
“I won’t wake him up,” she promised. “I can be really quiet. Please, Daddy.”
It was the pleading expression in her big eyes that got to him. That and hearing Grace’s voice in his head saying that she’s a rancher’s kid.
“Okay, but you have to stay right next to me,” he warned.
“I will.”
“No running wild. There are things in the barn that can hurt you, Cassie. We’re just going to look at the baby.”
“Foal,” she said, grinning.
“Right.”
“And I get to name him.”
“Okay. Let’s go.” He got up from the sofa and turned off the movie before the two of them went outside, then headed to the right toward the corral. She started to run and he said, “Cass, what did I just tell you?”
She gave him the stink eye. “We’re not at
the barn yet.”
That was technically true but splitting hairs anyway. In her little pink shorts, her bare legs were unprotected. “How about if we just walk so you don’t fall down and get hurt? Your mom is getting married the day after tomorrow. You don’t want to ruin the effect of that pretty flower girl dress with a skinned knee, right?”
“I guess so.”
“Good.” Because that’s how it was going to be on his watch. He held out his hand, and in spite of the pout on her pretty little face, she took it.
The sun was lowering in the sky, and again he wondered when Grace would get back. It seemed an eternity since she’d brought Cassie to him in the barn then immediately left for the afternoon. He couldn’t look at her hard enough for those few minutes, and he wanted to kiss her. The only way he knew to prevent that was to maintain his distance. But that didn’t keep him from missing her.
They walked into the barn, where the new mother and baby were safe and secure in the first stall.
“Look, Daddy, he’s awake.”
“I see that.”
Cassie peeked through the slats as the little guy came over to her on his spindly legs. She held out her hand and touched him. “Hi, boy. I can’t see him very well,” she complained.
“I’ll lift you up.”
“But then I won’t be able to touch him.”
Catch-22, and it called for a distraction. The mare provided it when she moved closer to keep a watchful eye on her baby. Logan sure understood that.
“Have you come up with any names yet?” he asked his daughter.
“I was thinkin’ about Olaf or Kristoff.”
Logan had watched all the animated movies and knew those two were characters from Frozen. He’d promised she could name the foal and would keep his word. But...Olaf? Fortunately, this little guy wouldn’t have to beat up any kids at school who made fun of his name.
“Do you have any other ideas?” Please, God.
Just What the Cowboy Needed Page 7
