Chapter 12
Levi
T hat pumpkin has been in my head all damn morning.
I can see it plain as day, sitting on her porch like a huge boulder.
Ivy will want it carved. No kid in the world looks at a prize winner like that and doesn’t dream of a jack-o’-lantern taller than themselves.
Hannah won’t manage it alone, and she knows it. God, I wish she’d just call.
I work the ranch like usual … placing orders, fixing a stubborn valve on the irrigation system, hauling feed.
But every task feels slower, my mind split in two.
Half on the work, half on her. By mid-morning, I’m pacing the supply shed, phone in my pocket burning a hole like it wants to be used.
I realize I don’t even know her phone number … only where she lives.
I never asked Hannah where she works – if she works.
Seems like I would have collected more information last night, but I could tell she was guarded with me.
I didn’t want to overwhelm her. I put myself out there.
Told her to call if she needed me. If I push again, I risk crowding her. She’s not ready for that.
So I force myself to lay low. Let her be the one to reach out. It’s the hardest damn thing I’ve done in years.
The day drags on. I check fences, talk to vendors about the next weekend rush, nod through conversations I barely hear. Every free second, my thoughts circle back to a Hannah and her cautious, yet beautiful, smile.
Her move, Rowe. Let her make it.
???
The sun tilts low by the time I shut the barn doors and stretch the ache out of my shoulders. I’m about to head for the cabin when my phone buzzes. Unknown number, local area code. My pulse spikes before I even look at the screen.
It’s her. It has to be. I swipe to answer so fast I almost drop the damn thing.
“Hello?”
There’s a pause, soft breath, and then her voice comes through. It’s timid, shy, sweeter than anything I’ve heard all day.
“Levi? It’s Hannah. I, um … was wondering if you might have a small saw or another tool. Ivy wants to carve all the pumpkins, but the big one …” She laughs nervously. “My kitchen knives aren’t going to cut it. Literally.”
Relief and excitement hit me like a hammer. She called. She actually called. I grip the phone tighter, trying to keep my voice steady. “I’ve got just the thing. I’ll bring it by.”
“Thank you.” Another pause. “And … if you don’t mind, maybe you could stay for dinner? Nothing fancy, but … it’s the least I can do.”
Dinner. At her place. I bite back a grin, leaning against the truck like I need the metal to hold me upright. “I’d like that,” I say. “Very much.”
We hang up, and I stand there for a long moment, staring at the sky. I’ve handled emergencies on this ranch, weathered storms that flattened whole crops, but nothing feels as monumental as this.
Hannah just invited me into her world.