Love on the Ranch Read online

  Chapter Five

  Blake stared at me over the rim of his cup.

  "So, what is a woman like you doing on the open road like this alone?"

  "I'm moving."

  "Where? If you don't mind me asking."

  "I'm not sure." I could not believe that I actually felt confident admitting that.

  He nodded, with a look of confusion. Blake did not feel like the kind of man that would harm me. I just did not get that kind of energy from him. So I broke down and told him a bit about what I was doing.

  "Sometimes, you just need a change in your life. That's all it is."

  "I can understand needing change. Did you have enough to eat?"

  "We had steak and potatoes. I am more than stuffed. Thank you for such a wonderful meal."

  "No problem. I haven't had anyone else besides myself to cook for in a while."

  "So you are here all alone?"

  "Yes. Like I said, my parents moved to a condo. It's good for them."

  I pushed my plate away and then sighed when he presented dessert.

  "So give me the damage on my car."

  "A cracked radiator hose and an oil leak. I can get all of this fixed for you, but you have to wait for the parts to come in."

  "And that will take how long?"

  "I already ordered them. At least a week."

  "Wait. What? A week. What am I supposed to do in that time?"

  He shrugged, matter of fact, as he ate his pie.

  "You can either stay here with me, where you are welcomed to stay. Or I can take you to a hotel while I work on your car and I can call you when it's finished. But as you can see, I have more than enough space here where we will not bump into one another."

  He had a point. The house was big enough. And maybe all of this was just part of the journey. Part of the adventure.

  "I'll stay." Plus that guest room was calling me. It would be much better than any accommodations I could pay for, and I needed to be able to hold on to my money as much as I could because it would start to dwindle if I was not careful.

  "Good. It will be nice to have a little company around here."

  This was not what I was expecting. "And you are sure that the car can be fixed in a week?"

  "And you can be on your way. To wherever it is that you are going."

  "I want to take that as a slight, but we don't know each other well enough for that to be happening."

  "Well. Are you going to eat your pie?"

  "I am full and I could use some fresh air."

  Truth was, I wanted a tour of my surroundings so that I could be comfortable with where I would be staying for the next week.

  "Let me show you around the house."

  The tour was amazing. "There is so much more house here than I was expecting."

  "Well, I did some more add-ons a few years ago and it was good when the house was full. But now, it's just a lot. So I have to say, it's kind of nice to have someone else here for a change. My parents come out for the holidays, and now since they are older, they actually prefer to travel elsewhere and see the world rather than come here where they've lived for years."

  He showed me the rest of the house which was breathtaking.

  "I'll show you the rest of the place outside in the daylight. But it's just a farm. Nothing too exciting. Just a lot of land and animals."

  "Sounds interesting. This is a lot different than the scenery that I'm used to looking at everyday."

  Blake snatched up the plates off of the table and put them in the sink.

  "I can wash those up."

  "No." His hands were big as he held them up in a motion to stop me. For a quick second, I wondered what it would feel like to have his hands wrapped around me. Touching my waist, holding me as he kissed me with those amazing lips.

  "You are a guest. I would never have you clean up. I will get them in the morning."

  I barely heard what he was saying because I had drifted off into a daydream. What on earth was I doing daydreaming about something sexy with this man that I did not know?

  "Thank you."

  I caught a glimpse of Blake looking me up and down, but before our eyes could meet, I turned away. He was gorgeous, rugged, a real man's man. I liked that. He was a stark contrast to Jeff. Not that Jeff was not an attractive man, but I never got the rugged vibe from him. And up until now, I was not aware that I was attracted to that rugged vibe.

  "Do you need anything else before I turn in?" he asked.

  "No. I think I will be just fine. Thank you, Blake. For everything."

  A faint smile came across his face as he excused himself and disappeared off down the opposite hallway from my room. He had this aloof quality that drew me in to him, but at the same time kept me at arm's length away.

  I went to my room to relax the rest of the night. Not sure where any of this was going, I found that soft spot in the bed and sunk in to it. The warm night breeze wrapped itself around me, a cocoon that I did not want to let go of. The curtains danced on the breeze as I stared out at the night sky. It was gorgeous out here. The sky was so clear and the stars looked like they were close enough to reach out and touch.

  For the first time in life, I felt like I could breathe. I felt free and it was like I could think clearly. This life that Blake had was exactly what I wanted. Peace, quiet, and a slow serenity that was the complete opposite of the life I lived in Louisiana. I could look out at the sky and the stars every night and listen to the sounds of the crickets and the complete silence. For so long, I thought that silence was scary. Now I was starting to understand that silence could be comfortable. This could be my life.

  I slept so long that afternoon, I was not tired by nightfall. The only thing I could think to do was go wandering through the house. Maybe it would help me to get to know Blake a little more. Why I wanted to get to know him, I was not sure. I just figured I better take this experience for all that it was. Hopefully it would be something to talk about later. A story to share with my friends, my kids, and my grandkids.

  My toes were cold on the marble floors and there was a little draft in the house flowing through the corridors. There were a total of six rooms. I found two half bathrooms and wondered if all of the bedrooms had their own en suite like mine did.

  The gourmet kitchen was like something on a television cooking show. There was also a den, a study that was used as an office, and a gym. The dining room could easily fit twelve people at the table. And the living room was complete with a bear skin rug and a grand piano.

  I could not understand the contradiction in the style that decorated the house and the rugged cowboy that I met at the gate down by the road. It was a fact that I wanted to reconcile, but it just did not make sense. Maybe there was a part of the story that I was missing. And I was certainly interested in what that story was.

  There was something behind the rough exterior and those baby blue eyes. His hardy demeanor let me know that he had been through something and that he was going to be guarded until the right person came along to make it safe for him to unlock his feelings.

  I was not sure if that person was me, but I knew that sometimes we all needed someone to help us to figure things out. Walking around the house, I finally took a closer look at the things that I had not looked at on the official tour Blake gave me. There were all kinds of family heirlooms, pictures of Blake from childhood to adulthood with his parents. There were even pictures of him in college and graduations. From the looks of it, he was an only child and his parents doted on him.

  I ran my fingers along the fireplace mantle, touching the frames and the trinkets carefully placed there. It was obvious that there was a lot of love in this house and in Blake's family.

  By the time I finished my tour, the craving for a glass of wine took over. I hoped that Blake had some ready in the kitchen. I was the worst at uncorking wine bottles. With it already being well past midnight, I did not want to do too much roaming around the house. If Blake was not use
d to having visitors, he would not be used to someone lurking around his home. I did not want him to think that I was being nosey, which was exactly what I was doing.

  After shuffling around, I found a bottle of wine that was perfect. There was also a perfect chocolate cake in the refrigerator too. A match made in heaven.

  "Are you going to eat that cake all alone?'

  I swirled around to see Blake standing behind me. Wearing only a pair of pajama pants, barefooted, and chest muscles rippling, he was standing there waiting for me to answer.

  Staring at him made it hard to do so. With his pecs on full display, it was hard to concentrate on what he was asking me.

  "Uh, yes. I mean, no. Do you want to join me?"

  Raising his brows, he gave me a flirtatious look. Blake did not answer verbally. Instead he went to the cabinet and got out two plates for us.

  I was sitting with the platter of cake and a fork in front of me. I had not thought of sharing the cake with anyone else.

  "On second thought. Here."

  Blake pulled out a fork for himself and dove right in to the cake. "Are you going to uncork that wine?"

  Telling him that I always struggled with the cork was not something I wanted to do. But he would soon find out if I did not open the bottle. Instead, I just passed him the bottle and the corkscrew and he got the point.

  I was happy to see him open it and pour the wine for both of us. It was the perfect compliment for the dessert. We ate in silence, but with our focus shifting between each other and the refreshments.

  "Did you enjoy your self- guided tour?"

  "I did. Made me feel like I got to know you a little better."

  "Do tell."

  I would normally be aggravated by a man of such short words and a challenging attitude. But there something about Blake that made me want him more.

  "Nothing much. Just got to see your family pictures. It looks like you come from a great family."

  He sipped the last of his wine, setting the glass on the counter. I could barely breathe as he came slowly closer to me. By the time he was standing right next to me, I was feeling dizzy.

  "I do. But that's not what you were looking for was it?"

  His words floated on his rich, baritone voice, leaving me hanging on his every word.

  "I was just looking around. Since I will be here the next few days."

  "Hmm."

  Not sure what his reply meant, I sat quietly waiting for him to say more. Instead, he just stared at me, those eyes penetrating my very being. I wanted to know more, to feel more. But was that okay due to the fact that I had just met this man?

  "Just looking around is perfectly alright. I told you to make yourself at home. I meant it." He let his gaze linger a few more minutes, and if I had not backed up, I knew that he would have kissed me. Licking my lips, I tried to imagine what that kiss would taste like.

  "But maybe I should go to bed now. I'm sure that you have to get up in the morning and do, well, ranch kind of things or something while we wait on the car parts."

  What was I saying? Ranch kind of things? I was not sure what that even meant. I was pretty sure that it sounded as ridiculous to him as it did to me now that it had escaped my mouth.

  "Anyway, I think I'll just turn in. The room is so very comfortable. Thank you, Blake."

  He took that opportunity to inch closer. "You are very welcome."

  Exhale.

  "Okay. Good night."

  I tried to suppress the urge to run down the hallway. This was all throwing my mind out of whack. My mind was spinning out of control as I closed the bedroom door. Leaning against the door, I tried to get my balance and calm my racing heart.

  What was a girl to do when she was in the house, so close to such an attractive, sexy man?