No, he still remembered hiding in the closet as a little boy as his parents screamed and bickered and stomped around the house. He’d been so scared his big, strong father would hurt his delicate mother, but fortunately he never did. No, instead, he just left one day and never came back.
That’s probably what made Rhett such a good runner. It was in his DNA. Thanks, Bio-Dad.
At least he’d been able to make a career out of it, and he’d made sure not to fall into the trap of a bad relationship. He hadn’t gotten to know his father well enough to know whether he had much in common with the man, but that fear was always there.
That’s why Rhett Rockwell and relationships had just never mixed.
So then why was he so willing to forget all that when Cassie was around?
He didn’t know, but he sure needed to find out, if only for the simple reason that he couldn’t focus on anything else since meeting her. And a distracted running back made for a tackled running back, made for a loss, and possibly even an injury. He needed to figure out what was there with his angelic farm girl, if not for himself then for his team.
He glanced down at his new Apple Watch. Almost six, which gave him just enough time to shower, put on something nice, stop off at a local florist to get some flowers, and meet Cassie for dinner at the Riverwalk.
He finished his run and returned home to shower himself clean. As he fumbled with his key, he almost missed the petite blonde sitting on the porch swing next to a pair of overstuffed suitcases.
Tricia. Crap.
She stood and gave him a peck on the cheek. Normally she’d wrap her arms around him and stand on tiptoe to kiss his forehead, but apparently the sweaty residue of his workout put her off. Never mind that she had taken a three-hour flight to come out and surprise him.
Well, he was definitely surprised, but probably not in the way she’d expected.
“Hey, stranger,” she purred.
He was still too shocked to speak. Maybe if he skipped the flowers, he could still make his date with Cassie.
“I missed you,” Tricia prompted. “Did you miss me?”
He thought about her question. Had he missed her? Well, she certainly was the type of woman a guy like him was expected to date, but was she the kind of woman he wanted to be with?
Trish smiled as she waited for his answer, but he knew she felt nervous beneath the composed surface. Even she could sense that something had gone wrong. She lowered her lashes, lashes that were too long to be natural, and then placed a freshly manicured hand on his chest.
And he couldn’t help but compare her to his angel in blue jeans, a woman he’d only met once but somehow already mattered more than his on-again, off-again girlfriend.
There were many reasons they were off-again. And the only reason they were ever on-again, Rhett realized all at once, was that sometimes he was lonely. Maybe he’d been looking for something more all along without even realizing it.
That wasn’t fair to Trish, and it wasn’t fair to him either.
He grabbed both of her hands and walked backward as he led her inside. “I think we need to talk.”
He could do this. He could, but could he do it quick enough to still make dinner with Cassie?
That would depend entirely on Trish.
Here goes nothing…
Despite her better instincts, Cassie decided to keep her date—well, more like an appointment, really—with Rhett. Sure, she’d already worked everything out in her head and decided she absolutely, one-hundred percent, did not have time for romance, but she also didn’t want to stand Rhett up with zero explanation. Her family had raised her far better than that, which is why she had to fight so hard now to preserve their legacy. The ranch was worth saving, and she wouldn’t be the first Brown to mess things up, to let all the others down.
It would have been so much easier if they’d exchanged numbers and she didn’t have to show up to explain everything in person. She rehearsed what she’d say to him as she lingered in the shower. She’d thank him for the lovely evening they’d shared the night before, give him a quick hug, and say goodbye.
He’d understand, wouldn’t he?
Well, he’d have to, seeing as this was the way things were going to be. If the timing were different, perhaps... No, she couldn’t allow herself to think of what-ifs.
The only reality was this one.
There wouldn’t, couldn’t be any future for Rhett and Cassie. But hopefully this small sacrifice would mean a thriving, happy future for her and her ranch, her family, even her sister’s family—not that Jenny deserved it.
Yes, Cassie was doing the right thing. She knew that, so why did her heart feel as if it were breaking in two?
She put on her best dress and made sure to carefully smooth it over her lap as she settled into her truck and took off for the Riverwalk. Although the place catered largely to tourists, the Riverwalk had always been one of Cassie’s favorite spots in San Antonio. She loved the fresh clean walkways and the happy, flowing river. The shops and restaurants that clung to either side of the river offered a variety of curious delicacies, both local legends and hole-in-the-wall style eateries. And she absolutely adored how vibrant and full of life the Riverwalk became each night as the sun began to set.
Handsome men in uniform walked arm and arm with their sweethearts while mariachis serenaded them from the outdoor patios. Families huddled close to one another as they made their way across the crowded bridges or stopped to request a boat ride from one of the many gondoliers who were ready and eager to take their business.
And the smells!
Chili powder mixed with freshly squeezed citrus, the cinnamon of churros, and the subtler scents of green herbs and vegetables that wafted out from the nearby Italian café all mixed in each delicious breath.
Cassie’s senses came alive whenever she ventured to the Riverwalk. While she adored the large, open space of her ranch, sometimes she liked to come here just to be among it all, to remind herself that everyone was connected, that even though she sometimes felt like it, she wasn’t alone.
At about ten to seven, she arrived at Ricardo’s, the restaurant she’d handpicked for their date because they basically made the best fish tacos in the world. It wouldn’t be so wrong to stay for supper, would it? A quick scan of the bustling restaurant confirmed that she’d beaten Rhett there, so she requested a table for two on the patio and waited.
“Can I bring you a drink, ma’am?” the mustachioed waiter offered with a slight bow of his head.
“I’ll wait until my date arrives, but thank you for offering,” she answered with a smile. Although, on second thought, she probably shouldn’t drink at all, not when last night’s debauchery is what had landed her in this situation to begin with. Besides, hangovers and hard labor just didn’t mix. She’d been reminded of that the hard way this morning. Ugh.
Several minutes passed and the waiter returned with a glass of water and a platter of chips and salsa. “To keep you company until your date arrives,” he explained with a flourish, then hurried off to tend to his other tables.
Cassie took one chip and nibbled on it thoughtfully. What kind of guy showed up late for a first date? If she’d actually intended to pursue a relationship with Rhett, he’d have lost major points for this. After all, she had taken time off from her busy schedule of tending to the ranch and preparing to die alone in order to…
No, she couldn’t think like that.
This was a temporary sacrifice, her way of doing what needed to be done, of proving she could handle whatever life—or her sister, as the case may be—threw at her. There would be other dinners, other Rhetts… Right?
Yes. Probably. She didn’t know.
Sigh.
Half an hour later, Cassie had eaten away at the platter of chips and shooed off the waiter at least half a dozen times. She checked her phone, which confirmed that nearly an entire hour had passed. She wasn’t even hungry for those delicious fish tacos anymore. She was just angry.
Really angry.
Well, that was that. Perhaps it was for the best. A man who couldn’t even show up on time for their first date was not one who would fit into her already full life.
She should be thanking him really, because now she didn’t need to pine or wonder what if. She could chalk her feelings up to the one-too-many beers she’d consumed the night before. He probably hadn’t even been that handsome or kind or funny.
Surely all of this was true, so why did Cassie the sharp sting of loss as she grabbed a twenty from her wallet, placed it on the table, then snuck away, trying not to attract the attention of the well-meaning but overly concerned wait staff?
How come it felt as if she’d just missed out on something truly spectacular?
Time to get back to work. Time to move forward rather than looking back. She had a ranch to save, and now more than ever, she was determined to make sure she came through. Because if life had taught her anything, it was that she could only depend on herself to be there in the end.
She had both Rhett and Jenny to thank for reminding her of that.
Chapter 5
Rhett took his time talking to Tricia, even though he honestly didn’t have much to say. It was only right—to end things properly, once and for all. Even though Trish wasn’t the woman for him, he still owed her his respect and a bit of his time. Unfortunately, giving that to Trish meant missing his date with the mysterious cowgirl who’d trotted through his mind all day. His angel in blue jeans.
“What do you mean we’re over?” Trish said. Her eyebrows formed a straight ridge, her mouth a small bow.
He fixed his eyes on hers, willing her to understand that they really were over, this time for good. “It’s too hard with me here and you there. And we’ve always wanted different things even from the start. You deserve to be with a man who can give you all the things you want, who can make you his one and only priority. And that’s just not something I can do right now.”
She nodded, then burst into a lengthy explanation of all the things she had held back from saying during their five-month relationship.
“You never encouraged my acting,” she bawled.
Rhett listened soberly rather than rushing to his own defense by pointing out all the lessons he’d paid for, all the auditions he’d driven her to, all the lines he’d run with her. Those weren’t great memories anyway. Doing all this for her had been a huge inconvenience on his schedule, and to find now that she couldn’t even remember? Yeah, this relationship had definitely met its end.
“You always cared more about football than me.”
Well, that one was true, and since they were breaking up anyway, he had no need to deny it. Instead he glanced over Trish’s shoulder and at the kitchen clock.
7:07. Crap.
His date with Cassie had now officially begun, yet here he was being chewed out by an actual, real-life drama queen, being forced to listen to all his faults rather than getting to know the only woman he wanted to spend his time with this evening.
“I feel like I’ve wasted the last five months of my life on you,” Trish said.
But what did five months amount to in the end? Nothing really in the larger scheme of things. Still his newest ex had plenty to say, and he could at least pretend to listen—even though the whole time his mind kept recalculating how many minutes late he was for his date with Cassie, what the probability was that she would still be there waiting. She had to think he’d stood her up.
By the time Tricia had finally finished explaining things he already knew, the sun had nearly finished its descent. He was too late—much too late—but he’d done a good thing. With Trish gone for good, he could pursue whatever this was with Cassie, could actually give all of himself to her—provided she even wanted it. Provided he could even find her to explain.
“So, are we ending things with a dot-dot-dot or a period?” Trish asked when he dropped her off at the airport later that evening.
“Period, definitely a period.” Maybe he answered too quickly, but he needed to make well and sure she understood.
He smiled at the woman behind the ticket counter and handed over his credit card. “Next flight to San Francisco please. Make it first class.”
Once Trish’s insane amount of luggage had been checked, Rhett walked her to the security checkpoint and wrapped his arms around her in what he hoped read clearly as a platonic hug. “Have a safe flight. And good luck with everything.”
Trish stood on her tiptoes to kiss him on the forehead just as she always had. She didn’t even seem sad. “I can’t say I’m not at least a little bit relieved. Could you imagine me in Texas for more than just a few days? I mean, I barely made it a few hours. This dry heat does terrible things to my hair.”
Rhett laughed even though he knew that, when it came right down to it, Trish would always choose her hair, her clothes, her whatever over him. They hadn’t been right, not even from the start. With Cassie though, he had a real chance to find something that mattered. And, yes, he was going to take it.
As soon as Trish disappeared into the busy terminal, Rhett took off toward the Riverwalk. So he was—he glanced at the clock on the dashboard of his brand new Dodge Viper—three, three whole hours late. Maybe she would be waiting. Maybe she somehow understood that it had killed him not to make it in time, that he’d be coming no matter what…
Aww, why was he kidding himself like this?
By the time he arrived, Cassie was nowhere to be found. Of course she wasn’t. It would have been so easy to end things then and there, to say it obviously wasn’t meant to be if things had gone so terribly wrong from the get-go. But Rhett’s life had been too easy up to this point. At least since his father had left and his mother had remarried.
Now, for the first time in forever, he had a challenge—the good kind—and he refused to let it get away.
He settled back into his car and did a quick Google search for San Antonio area ranches. For the life of him, he couldn’t remember the name of her ranch, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t be able to find it. It would just take some persistence. Again, nothing wrong with a challenge. It seemed nature or God or whoever controlled the skies agreed with him on that point, because as he plotted the locations he found on his in-built GPS system, a pitter-patter of rain began to slosh onto his windshield.
Great, just perfect.
But he’d wasted enough time with Trish already that night. He wasn’t going to let a little rain hold him back.
He turned on his windshield wipers and took off toward the closest ranch. The hunt was on. Even through the heavy cover of rain, he knew right away that the first location was not the one he was looking for—it seemed far too small to be hers, and, with its curly-cued sign and ornate fencing, the place just didn’t feel like Cassie.
So, he took off toward the next one, and the next one. As he continued on his quest, it became more and more difficult to tell one ranch from the next. The rain was soon joined by hail and strong gusts of wind that blew his tiny sports car from one side of the road to the other and back again.
He tried to keep going, but all that wind threw the downpour right at his windshield as if it were raining literal buckets. Now he couldn’t see a thing, and besides it was late. Real late.
At last, Rhett admitted his temporary defeat and returned home. This was not the end of his search, just the end of the first round.
He would find her.
He would find his angel in blue jeans, no matter how long it took.
Cassie had always loved mornings like this, the grass springy beneath her boots, the air sweet, the sky so bright and new it was like someone had pushed the refresh button on the world. Still, the storm had done considerable damage, not the least of which was destroying a portion of the already weakened fence that held the cattle in their pasture. While most of the cows remained in their field like the good bovines they were, several had taken the opportunity to wander off to only God knew where.
Incl
uding the very pregnant Maybel. As if Cass didn’t have enough to worry about already. Sigh.
“Looks like we have our work cut out for us,” she said to her favorite painted mare, Susie Ann. She fed Susie Ann a quick breakfast while she prepared her riding saddle. Time was of the essence, but the horse needed her strength to get the job done.
And just as Cassie was about to slip her boot through the stirrup and climb onto the horse’s back, a fancy little sports car pulled up to the stable and a familiar, heartbreakingly handsome stranger got out.
Her heart sped up with the excitement of seeing Rhett there, but then she remembered how very angry she’d been the night before. How very angry she still felt.
“You’re a good twelve hours late,” she grumbled as he jogged over to her.
“I’m sorry.” His brow pinched, and he really did look apologetic in that moment. “Let me explain?”
But, still…
“You didn’t have time for that last night, and I haven’t got time for it now.” She focused on hitching up the reins, in making sure both she and the mare were comfortable for the ride ahead, at looking anywhere but at Rhett’s pleading eyes.
“Please, Cassie, I—”
She turned toward him without meaning to, and when their eyes locked, she felt a slight hitch in her breathing. Oh, he really was as breathtakingly handsome as she’d imagined.
Crap.
She cleared her throat, hoping he couldn’t hear the quiver in her voice. “Sorry, I have a lot to do. And seeing as there’s no way that little speedster could handle this terrain, and as I don’t feel like loaning you a horse, seems you’ll have to run alongside me if you want to talk.” She knew it was ridiculous and cold, but she’d almost compromised on the most important thing just because a good-looking stranger smiled at her.
No. Get a grip, Cass. Or at least get out of here. Go. Now!
The Alaska Sunrise Romances: A 9-Book Sweet Romance Collection Page 37
