34. Chapter 34
Chapter 34
Joy
“I might be getting used to taking a nap and then waking up to dinner,” Tate says with a grin.
It’s been about a week since I showed up with a tote bag filled with a few items, and I haven’t been home since. Grayson has been learning what to do at Boulder Ranch, but since he’s only been cleared to do so much, Tate’s hours are still long.
“Don’t get too used to it. Once your schedule goes back to normal, I’ll be expecting long rides on horseback and dinners by the fire out back.”
Tate tilts his head back and laughs. His eyes crease at the corners and his dimples are on full display. I could kick myself for all the time I wasted trying to fight my feelings.
“You okay?” he asks when I stare at him a bit too long.
“Yeah. Just glad I decided to stop worrying about other people.”
He takes in a slow breath and nods in agreement while reaching for a plate. I watch in silence as he fills it before passing it to me. Pork chops, mashed potatoes, and green beans. It’s been a while since I’ve cooked a large meal, and I figured no better day to do it than Sunday. After passing me a plate, he serves himself.
“Thank you for cooking.”
Standing on my tiptoes, I give him a quick kiss just as my phone begins vibrating in my pocket. Ignoring it, I place it face-down on the table and we make quiet conversation while we eat. It’s delicious if I must say so myself, and I revel in his praise and smile of appreciation. My phone rings again, but I ignore it until Tate gives me a pointed look and nods in the direction of the device vibrating on the table.
“I’m sure it can wait,” I say with a shrug. “We’re eating. I’ll call them back.”
“They’ve called more than once; it could be important.”
“I didn’t look; it might not even be the same person.”
Leaning back in his chair, he folds his arms across his chest and lets out a low chuckle. The sound goes straight to my core, but I shake it off and flip my phone over, frowning in concern when I see my aunt’s name as it immediately starts to ring again.
Mouthing an apology, I stand and step away from the table to take the call. “Hello?”
“Joy, honey. How are you?” my aunt’s rich voice greets me.
“I’m fine. Is everything okay Aunt Sophia?”
My chest tightens when she hesitates, and I look up to meet Tate’s concerned gaze. He’s sitting at the table still, but all his focus is on me. After what feels like an eternity, my aunt finally responds to my question.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I just haven’t heard from you and wanted to hear your voice.”
I don’t believe her for two seconds. I can count on one hand the number of times she’s called me just to say hello. Actually, I don’t even need my entire hand to count.
“You never call me out of the blue. Did something happen? My parents okay?”
I hear her loud sigh on the other end of the phone. “Everyone is fine. I was just wondering how you are, and if you really like it way out there. I miss you.”
Now I’m even more at a loss. This is so unlike her. She’s a good person, but she’s not the sweet motherly type. She’s worked with animals all her life and doesn’t put up with anyone’s shit. Including family.
“Yeah, Aunt Sophia, I really do like it here.”
Tate stands from the table but doesn’t move any closer. I give him a quick nod, and he makes his way to me, placing a comforting hand on the small of my back.
“Well. Your mom said you’re down there burning the candle at both ends, cleaning horse stalls at some raggedy ranch because the doctor’s office doesn’t even pay you enough to live on. I don’t see why you had to run off in the first place.”
I stiffen, even though I doubt Tate could hear her. But still. She called me up just to question my decision to move here, and after all this time? I try not to let her piss me off. I know how she can be. I loved spending time with her as a kid—and I still do—but her way has always been the only right way. And her opinion, the only one valid.
“I didn’t run off anywhere. I simply moved here. It’s not like I up and disappeared. And like I said, I really like it.”
She huffs. “You deserve better than that. I always thought you would end up taking this place over for me.”
What? I find myself holding my phone out and staring at it in disbelief. Tate’s comforting caress snaps me out of it, and I place the phone back to my ear.
“Okay, tell me what’s really going on. You’ve never said anything about wanting to pass the torch to me. And you’ve never been this interested in my job.”
Another heavy sigh. “It’s just that you spent enough time around here and working with me that you can do better. If you want to work with animals, you should be here with me where at least you’ll get treated right. And then you can take the place over.”
“What are you talking about?” I ask as calmly as possible. “Both places I work treat me extremely well. And I’m happy here. In fact, I met someone, and he makes me happier than I’ve ever been.”
Tate stares at me, eyes wide with surprise, and it hits me that I just announced our relationship. To my family. If my aunt knows, the entire family will know within moments of us getting off the phone. And I don’t even care.
“I was in town at the grocery store, and I ran into—” she pauses for so long I don’t think she’s going to finish what she’s saying. “I ran into you-know-who at the store and he asked me if you were okay. Said you just left out of nowhere and he hadn’t seen or spoken to you. I asked your mom, and she told me you’re over there working two jobs and damn near killing yourself just to survive.”
“I’m fine, I promise. Mom’s just not happy that I moved away. And he’s full of shit because I ended things with him weeks before I even considered moving. I moved here because Rayna loves it and told me they needed help where she works. I’m not working two full-time jobs. They are both part time.”
Tate shoots me a look and my lips tug into a smirk. The ranch is beyond full-time at this point, but my aunt doesn’t need to know that. She’s all fired up as it is.
“Would it make you feel any better if I came to visit? So you can see with your own eyes that I’m fine. I’m not working myself to death.” I purposely avoid Tate’s gaze. We’re both working ourselves to death. But it’s only temporary. “You’ll see that I’m happy.”
“If you want to move back, you can stay with me. There’s plenty of room and I really do need the help around here,” she says, completely ignoring what I said.
“Aunt Sophia…”
“Fine,” she grits out. “If you say you’re happy, I can’t argue with you. But come visit so I can see your face. And bring that man with you. When are you coming?”
“When… am I coming?” I look Tate’s way, panicking slightly because I know we’re both too busy to get away. He’s struggling to take care of both places as it is.
“Next week,” he says softly, giving me a shrug.
My eyes widen, and I tilt my head toward him in question. Silence stretches over the phone as she waits for my response. Tate nods at me, silently emphasizing his words.
“Um. Next weekend?” My answer comes out as a question.
“Perfect! Oh, I can’t wait to see you. And I can show you how easy it would be to just live and work here. Okay, honey, I’ll let you go.”
As soon as I end the call, I spin to face Tate. “Next week? How?”
“It’s not that far. We can get away for a few hours.”
“No. She’s going to want us to stay for the weekend. I know her. If it’s more than a twenty-minute drive, she acts like you survived the Oregon Trail just to get there.”
Tate lets out a snort before pulling me into his arms and kissing the top of my head. Instantly, my nerves relax, and I nearly forget I just agreed to bring Tate home to meet my family. My relationship with my parents is complicated, so Aunt Sophia’s opinion is really the only one that I’m worried about.
“That’s fine. We can go there Saturday afternoon and come back Sunday morning if she asks us to stay.” He kisses my forehead. “Just fix one of your amazing breakfasts and she’ll forgive us for not staying the entire day. Between Hayden and Grayson, along with the ranch hands who come and go, I’m sure they can keep things over here covered. I’m sure Hayden will be fine coming here unless he has travel plans I don’t know about. And I’m hoping Gray will be okay to take care of Boulder Ranch for a day or two.”
He's like my personal bubble. When his arms are around me, the idea of bringing him to meet my family isn’t terrifying. He gives me a tight squeeze before stepping back and holding me at arm’s length while he studies me. Apparently satisfied with what he sees, he pulls me back into his arms without another word.
“Do you even want to meet my family?”
“If you’re okay with it, I’d love to meet your aunt and whoever else ends up there.”
I laugh because he has no idea how accurate that statement is. My aunt doesn’t care that I don’t really get along with most of my family. She’ll invite them all anyway. Tate doesn’t think it’s a big deal, but he doesn’t know how dysfunctional my family is. I’m not sure if I’m more nervous or excited. I’m only excited because I know my aunt is going to love him, and I have some tiny bit of hope that the rest of my family will be too busy to show up.
“I guess that makes this real, huh? Meeting my family?”
“Darlin’, this has been real since the first time you stepped onto my ranch.”