The Hopeful Heart

by Jaclyn Hardy

  Lance stopped what he was doing. “Sure I’ll go. What time are you heading out?”

  “We said seven. Is that too early?” She kicked at a small rock, avoiding Lance’s gaze.

  “Nope. That’s what time dinner is here. I’ll be ready.” Lance waved and turned back to the tractor. He was going on a real date with Brianna. He couldn’t help the grin that spread across his face as he finished the tractor.

  Brianna stepped back from the mirror and inspected her hair one more time. It was just a dinner with friends, but she really wanted to look good for Lance. How he could look so good even with grease smeared across his face was a mystery, but she loved it.

  She was a little self-conscious wearing the sundress she bought from Mandy’s shop, but had to admit it looked good on her. Her cowboy boots would have to do that night because her feet were so sore from wearing the heels she wore to school. It was rather obvious that another shopping trip was in order. Maybe that weekend.

  The bell rang downstairs for dinner, so Brianna knew she was out of time to get ready. She grabbed her purse and jacket and went down the stairs to the kitchen. Thomas stood leaning against the counter. He smiled when she appeared.

  “Hey. Lance is almost ready and then we’ll go.” Thomas grabbed a cookie from a tray on the counter. “I’d grab one of these before they’re gone, though. You don’t skip Angela’s cookies. Or pie.”

  “Well, I guess I’d better have one then.” Brianna took one off the pan and took a bite. There was something different about them. Sweeter. The cookie practically melted in her mouth. “Oh, my word.”

  “Right?” Thomas popped the last of his cookie into his mouth. “Oh, hey, there’s Lance.”

  Brianna turned and caught the stunned look on his face. “Hey.”

  “Wow. You look . . . really nice. Now I know I should have gone with a nicer shirt.”

  “It’s fine. I’m just wanted to get out of my school clothes and this dress is super comfy.” Brianna winced. That sounded so lame.

  Lance grabbed a cookie off the tray and took a bite. “Comfy is important. Okay, let’s head out.”

  Angela burst into the kitchen with a grin on her face. “Not yet. We have news.”

  Brianna glanced between Lance and Angela. By the hopeful expression on Lance’s face, it was something huge. Angela set a paper in front of Lance.

  “What is it?” Lance picked up the paper, and his eyes widened as he read. “I got it?”

  “You got it. They accepted the offer. Apparently the other family went much lower, and Ed really wanted Carl to have the land if possible.” Angela took the paper from him. “I need to go show Carl, but I wanted you to see it first. Congratulations.”

  By this time, Brianna was ready to burst with anticipation. “What did they accept?”

  “Wait—you got it?” Thomas asked.

  Lance turned to Brianna. “We went and looked at a property today and the offer was accepted.”

  Brianna’s emotions warred between excitement for him, and sadness that he wouldn’t be here at the ranch anymore. “That’s so exciting. Where is it?”

  “He can show you on the way to dinner. Come on.” Thomas clapped Lance on the back. “I knew you should go look at it today. That’s so awesome.”

  Lance nodded. “Thanks again for showing me the listing.”

  Brianna held back a little, feeling a little left out again. She knew it was silly, since Thomas and Lance had been good friends for years, and they had every right to be talking about Lance’s house. It was great he was getting it.

  Thomas climbed in his truck, but Lance gestured for Brianna to follow him to his truck. Lance opened the door and placed his hand on the small of her back to help her up. Brianna felt the absence of his touch the moment he let go and went around the other side.

  “Sorry for not going with them, but he’ll be staying in town after dinner so we wouldn’t have a ride back.”

  “Ah. Makes sense. So they live in town?”

  He nodded. “It’s a cute little house. Mandy bought it when she moved here, and they’re staying there until their house out here is done.”

  “So they’ll have two houses?”

  “No, the plan is to sell it to her parents. Which I’m still shocked about. They’re about as big city as you can get.”

  Brianna raised an eyebrow. “Is that bad?”

  Lance winced. “Sorry, but in this case, yes. They almost didn’t let Mandy and Thomas get married. Which I probably shouldn’t tell you since we’re heading to dinner with them and that’s kinda rude.”

  “I was kidding. But I’m on the opposite end of the spectrum, thanks to my teacher’s salary. Tiny apartment, not a great neighborhood.”

  Lance slowed and turned down a road Brianna didn’t recognize. Not that she recognized many. “You can’t see much from here, but there’s a barn, a few cellars, and then the house. I’ve been eyeing it for a while.”

  Brianna scanned the property and her breath caught when she saw the house. “This will be yours? It’s amazing.”

  “Yep. Well, that is if everything goes through. They accepted the offer, but things could happen.”

  “I guess that’s true. But I think you’ll get it.” Brianna could picture him here, working on his tractor.

  Lance looked down at her. “Why do you say that?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know. It just feels right.”

  “It really does.” His face turned red as he put his car into reverse. “We better catch up to Thomas or he’ll eat everything in the restaurant without us.”

  “That better not happen. I’m starving.” Brianna buckled her seatbelt, glancing back at the property as they drove away. It was so completely perfect.

  The diner Lance stopped at wasn’t too far away from Mandy’s store. It was adorable with its decor and the cheery atmosphere. Lance seemed to know everyone there, and talked with each one. But instead of feeling left out while they talked, she was flattered by the way he introduced her to everyone, keeping a hand on her back or an arm around her waist protectively.

  Thomas and Mandy were already in a booth near the back. Brianna slid in first, and she couldn’t help the sigh of relief. It was great being treated so nicely, but that much attention drained her after a while.

  “So what’d you think? Totally Lance, right?” Thomas grinned.

  “Totally.” Brianna had to admit she didn’t really know what a Lance thing was. Whoa, had it really just been a few days? She stared down at the menu, trying to decide what she wanted.

  Mandy leaned forward. “The biscuits and gravy are my favorite, but their steaks are also really good.”

  “Hmm, both sound so good.”

  Lance nudged her with his elbow. “Why don’t you get one and I get the other and we can share?”

  Brianna brightened. “That sounds perfect.”

  True, she could always just order both of them at different times—she was stuck here, right?—but it was more fun sharing with Lance.

  Mandy handed her menu to the waitress and ordered, then turned to Brianna. “That dress looks great on you.”

  “Thank you. I love it.” Brianna caught the snicker from Lance—most likely remembering the comfy remark from earlier—and elbowed him. “Do you have this in other colors?”

  “Not yet, but that’s the plan. It should be rolling out here soon.” Mandy pulled out her phone and swiped it a few times. “What do you think of these?”

  Brianna gasped. The dresses flared out at the waist, and the material had large white daisies on them. “These are adorable. Your design?”

  “Yeah, when I saw this fabric, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it.” Mandy tapped the phone. “Check out the next one. I still can’t decide if I like the length.”

  Brianna looked at the next picture. “They’re really nice, but I think I would like them a little longer. That way I can wear them for both nice and casual occasions.”

  Lance leaned in. “She’s r
ight. The longer one looks better.”

  “That’s what I was thinking too.” Mandy put her phone away. “And since when did you care about fashion, Lance?”

  “You just never asked me.” Lance shrugged.

  Brianna’s eyes grew wide as the waitress set her biscuits and gravy in front of her. The plate was huge, and the smell had her mouth watering. Lance’s steak looked just as amazing. It was going to be hard to pick a favorite.

  ***

  Brianna leaned her head against the window as they drove back to the ranch. There was no clear winner between the dishes because they were both so good. And now she’d have to try everything else on the menu to see if there was something better.

  “Have fun tonight?” Lance asked.

  “Yep. Thanks for coming with me.” She yawned. “Man. I’m sorry. I’m more tired than I thought.”

  Lance laughed. “That’s why they call it comfort food. And Jamie does it best.”

  “Yes, she does.” Brianna shifted in her chair. “So, did you two go to school together?”

  “I was only here for the summers until I graduated, but she went to school with Rachel, Thomas, and a few others.”

  Brianna looked at him surprise. “You didn’t grow up here?”

  “Nope. I’m from Boise. It’s small compared to New York, but here it’s the big city.”

  “Hey, I’ve actually heard of Boise, so that’s saying something, right?” Brianna climbed out of the truck and stretched. “I better get to bed. I have to give a test tomorrow, so I need to make sure everything is set.”

  Lance walked up the path next to her. “Wow, you’re a tough teacher. Here for three days and they already have a test.”

  Brianna gave an evil laugh. “They had no idea what trouble they were getting into by hiring me.”

  “Well, I for one, am very glad that they did hire you.”

  They stopped at the front door, and Brianna felt a shock of nervousness. She stared up into Lance’s eyes, trying to come up with something to say. Anything. Funny, sweet, anything. But all she could do is stare up into his blue eyes.

  “Um, me too.” It was all she could get out and she wanted to kick herself.

  Lance brushed a lock of hair from her face, and his hand lingered, his thumb running along her jaw. “Do you think you could ever fall for a rancher boy? I mean, I have a little city in me, so that counts, right?”

  Brianna smiled, her stomach now doing flip flops. If he had any clue how much she’d wanted to find the perfect cowboy . . . “I think I can handle it.”

  Lance leaned forward and brushed her lips with his. Brianna leaned into the kiss, and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. She’d dreamed of this moment countless times as she read those novels, but nothing compared to the electricity she felt at that moment. When he pulled away, Brianna stared up into his eyes.

  “Have a good night. Good luck with the test tomorrow. Don’t torture them too much.”

  “I’ll do my best.” She smiled and kissed him one more time.

  Lance went around to the bunkhouse, and Brianna opened the door. She floated past Angela and simply waved—she wasn’t sure she could say much else—and went up the stairs. She’d just kissed Lance. She’d just kissed a cowboy.

  She did her best to pay attention while she ran through the test questions, but finally gave up. They could all just pass it, right? Or maybe she should take turns failing or passing them. Brianna sighed and dropped the books onto the floor. Working was obviously not in the cards tonight. And the students proved they were competent enough that the test would go well. For now, she would just sit and relive the kiss over in her head.

  ***

  Brianna parked at the high school, and grabbed her things. Students were already filing into the school. Her alarm hadn’t gone off that morning, and while she welcomed the extra half hour, she was going to be late for her first class.

  A few students were already sitting in the room when she got there. Brianna waved and went straight to her desk so she could organize her thoughts before the bell rang.

  “Miss Nielson?” Hannah stood at her desk. She was one of the students who actually answered questions.

  “Yes, Hannah?”

  Hannah shifted uncomfortably. “We’re testing for the whole year, right?”

  “Yep. We’re getting ready for the end-of-year tests, so it has to be the whole year.” Brianna covered the test with her history book.

  Hannah sighed. “Okay. I missed the section on the Revolutionary War while I was at an FFA thing.”

  Brianna raised an eyebrow. “You missed the entire section? That’s like five class periods.”

  “I got sick after.”

  “Okay. Well, hopefully you still did the reading, because that’s on the test. I’m sorry.” Enough people came up with excuses in her last school that she had little tolerance for it. And while Hannah had been good over the last few days, Brianna didn’t know her well enough to know if it was a normal thing.

  Hannah sighed. “I did. I just don’t know it as well as the rest of it.”

  “I’m sure you’ll do just fine.” Brianna smiled. “Now, go sit so we can start the class.”

  The rest of the class quieted down when the bell rang. She went through the roll, still trying to memorize who was who. One of these days she’d have it right. Probably about the time school got out.

  Brianna stood holding the tests. “You guys know the drill. This should take you all hour. If you finish early, go over your answers to make sure you got them right. Any questions?”

  Hailey raised her hand. “Did I really see you out on a date with Lance last night?”

  A few of the kids snickered. Brianna rolled her eyes and handed out the tests. “What I was doing last night isn’t anyone’s business. Good luck.”

  While they took their test, Brianna prepared for the next class. This one was a little more difficult, and she wasn’t sure they’d do well on the test. But that was kind of the point. She could see where they were, and then they could study it in the week before their test.

  A text buzzed on her phone.

  How’s the test coming? Have you turned them all into frogs?

  Brianna grinned. Nice one, Lance. She responded. Not yet. That’s next week so they won’t suspect a thing.

  Ah. Good plan. Dinner tonight?

  Don’t you ever work?

  I do. Which is why our dinner will be in the tractor. I need to finish marking the potato field and wanted some company.

  Let’s do it.

  Brianna glanced up and caught Hailey’s smirk. Was her excitement over dinner plans obvious enough that her students noticed? Most likely, considering the giddy smile she couldn’t wipe from her face. She glanced up at the clock.

  “You have about ten minutes left in the test. Make sure to check your answers.” Brianna closed the government book and moved on to the next one. It felt strange not teaching the same class over and over all day, but she loved changing topics. It made grading easier because she could switch gears.

  As the bell rang and they handed in their tests, Brianna sighed. One test down, three more to go.

  When it was finally time for lunch, Brianna pulled out her lunch and opened the container of chili Angela had packed for her. Getting the leftovers from dinner the night before was a huge perk of living with Angela and Carl.

  “You’re just going to eat in here alone?” Cassidy, one of the other teachers stood in the doorway.

  “Yeah, I figured it was easier than going to the faculty lounge.” Brianna set her container down.

  Cassidy walked inside the room and sat at a desk. “You know, it’s going to be hard to get to know the people here if you don’t actually hang out with us.”

  Brianna leaned back in her chair. “I’m sorry. You’re right. The first day I was so overwhelmed by everything and I haven’t tried since.”

  “Well, come on. We have chips and salsa in there, and I hear there’s cake for M
r. Randalph’s birthday.”

  “Cake? I’m totally there then.” She stood and gathered up her things and followed Cassidy to the faculty room.

  Several of the teachers looked up when they entered, and Brianna wanted to sink into the ground. She was either ignored or stared at—there was no in between.

  “Look who I found.” Cassidy pulled a lunch bag out of the fridge and found an empty chair.

  “Hey.” Brianna waved and sat next to Cassidy.

  “It’s the lost history teacher!” Thomas pointed at Brianna’s container. “I recognize that chili anywhere. Angela packs your lunch for you?”

  Brianna shot him a sly grin. “I’m her favorite, I guess. You get stuck with school lunch.”

  Thomas huffed. “That’s okay, because I got the last piece of chocolate cake.”

  “Wait, what? I go and save the day by finding Brianna and you ate my cake?” Cassidy crumpled up a piece of paper and threw it at Thomas. “You owe me cake. Brianna too, because she didn’t get any either.”

  “No, she lost her cake. She gets all the good stuff from the ranch.” Thomas threw the paper back.

  Brianna sat back and enjoyed her food while the others fought. This was definitely better than sitting in the classroom by herself. When her chili was done, she reached in to get the veggies she’d packed. Another container sat in the bottom. She pulled it out and laughed. It was carrot cake and there was a note attached.

  For you and Thomas. Have a great day!

  Brianna pulled the sticky note off the container and handed it to Thomas. “See? She loves you too. Except I think I’m going to eat it myself because you stole the last piece of chocolate cake.”

  “No one comes between me and my carrot cake. Hand it over.” Thomas held out a hand.

  “You know, I’m not so sure Mandy would be thrilled that you’re fighting over cake that she didn’t make.” Brianna scooped one of the pieces out of the container and handed it to him.

  Thomas pointed at the slice. “Mandy’s had this. She’d totally understand.”