9. Ranger
Chapter 9
Ranger
After a week of avoiding town, I found myself at The Roasted Bean because Callie Rose decided to drain my house of all its coffee last night when she decided to pull an all-nighter harvesting and cleaning vegetables for the weekend’s farmer’s market. Thankfully, Miles and I had finished tagging the new calves and I could afford to take the morning a little slower.
The small café was filled to the brim with patrons. I tried not to make my discomfort look too obvious as I stood close to the door after placing my order. Crowds had always been difficult for me and they were made even worse when I was in prison as they often meant trouble. I had to remind myself that I was a free man, no longer held behind iron bars. And these people were not a danger to me, even if some of them did look at me like I might be a threat to them.
“Ranger!” the barista called over the noise of the crowd before setting my coffee down on the counter .
Navigating my way through the bundle of people gathered by the counter, I tried not to bump into anyone.
With a quick, “Thank you,” I grabbed my coffee and headed out the door. The weather was perfect with the sun shining brightly in another cloudless sky and the air was cool against my skin. Just enough to make me feel alive, but not cold enough that irritation gripped me.
Winters in the foothills were harsh and the weather forecast suggested this one was going to be rough. There was only so much fleece-lined leather gloves could do for my hands while working in the frigid temperatures.
I should have headed for my truck to get back to the ranch, but instead, I found myself walking through the door of Sarah’s Bakery . A bell chimed above the door as I stepped across the threshold and the entire group of patrons seemed to stop and stare at me at once. I recognized several of them from my time in school, but there were a lot of faces I didn’t know the names of. But the only face my gaze settled on belonged to a beautiful woman standing behind the glass case of treats. Her long brown hair was tied in a messy bun on the top of her head, loose strands of curls framed her face as she unpacked a tray of cupcakes into the case.
Something squeezed in my chest as I took in the slight rosiness of her cheeks—flushed from working hard, no doubt. I watched her delicate hands as she reached in and out of the glass case, setting each cupcake in a perfectly neat row. I wondered if it was genetics or her upbringing that made her so detail oriented and I found myself wanting to ask her. To spend the rest of my day getting wrapped up in her luscious voice as she told me about herself.
“Are you in line?” Startled, I looked down to find an elderly woman with bright red lipstick and a little too much blush on her cheeks staring up at me. Her short black hair was curled tightly to her head in ringlets that were streaked with gray.
“You can go ahead of me,” I offered.
A deep scowl settled into her face as she looked me up and down before she ambled toward the checkout counter. If looks could kill, I’d be a dead man.
I took my place behind her and found myself looking for Sarah again. It was a bad idea, getting wrapped up in a woman knowing that our worlds were vastly different. She was the cream of the crop and I was just a man trying to make enough of a living to keep my ranch.
But dammit I couldn’t stay away from her. Not when those beautiful lips split into a wide smile that had my heart banging against my ribs. Disappointment flashed as I watched her disappear through the swinging door behind the counter with the empty tray in her hands.
Fuck.
She was probably heading back to work on her next batch. The young girl at the cash register looked similar enough to Sarah that they could be related. With long dark hair, a pert nose, and rosebud lips. But she wasn’t the woman I wanted to talk to. She didn’t have the rich brown eyes that made me feel like I could conquer the whole fucking world when they settled on me .
“Do you mind waiting here for just a minute?” The girl asked the man standing in front of her. “I’ll go ask Sarah when the next batch will be ready.”
“That’s fine, sweetheart,” the man at the counter said as he leaned his weight onto his cane.
The girl disappeared through the door for a few moments and when she came back, Sarah was trailing right behind her. Those brown eyes found me and the world shifted as she stumbled to a stop. I took a step forward, my hands instinctively reaching out to catch her even though she was several feet away and there were three people and a counter between us.
The most beautiful shade of red blossomed on her cheeks as she tucked her hair behind both ears. The other girl said something to her that snagged her attention away, cleaving the moment like an axe slicing through wood.
Whatever Sarah said to the elderly man was lost on me because the only thing I could focus on was keeping my feet planted firmly on the ground. The only thing they wanted to do was move closer to her. It was a pull I’d never felt toward anything in my life. The need I felt to survive and make it back to my ranch wasn’t even as strong as this and it suddenly dawned on me how fucking terrifying that was.
Time seemed to drag as the man stepped to the side of the counter, clearly waiting for something. And the woman in front of me finally placed her order before it was my turn. I glanced behind me to see if anyone was waiting and loosed a breath as I noticed it was just me tailing the line .
“Stephanie, do you mind checking on those cookies? I can take his order.”
The girl, whose name was Stephanie, looked at me with a wide smile before saying, “Sure,” and scurrying through the door.
“Hi,” Sarah looked up at me through thick lashes, that deep blush on her cheeks remained and I felt myself wanting to reach out and feel the heat of her skin against my palm.
Instead, I dove my closed fists into my jeans pockets and said, “Hey, looks like you’re pretty busy today.”
She looked around the bakery, taking notice of all the tables filled with patrons. “Yeah, it’s kind of surprising to be this packed on a weekday.”
“Your sweets are hard to resist.”
Those brown eyes widened at me and I could see the flecks of green and yellow dancing in her irises, like changing leaves on a tree falling to the earth.
“You liked the blueberry muffins then?” Her voice was barely above a whisper, but the sultry tone had my cock twitching against the fly of my jeans.
“They were the best I’d ever had. Just don’t tell my sister. She prides herself in her baking skills and I wouldn’t want her to feel bad.” I winked at her and the smile she shot me back nearly knocked the breath from my lungs. This woman was gorgeous, but I had a feeling there was more to her than what met the eye and that meant trouble for me because I wasn’t the guy a girl like her dated. Even if she did blush in my presence.
This is fun , I told myself. And that’s all it could be .
She pinched her thumb and forefinger together before running them over those perfect pink lips. “My lips are sealed. I won’t tell a soul.”
For some reason, I believed her.
“What can I get you today?”
Leaning back, I looked at the case of treats even though I already knew what I wanted. “How about another dozen of those blueberry muffins?”
“Sure thing.”
I followed her to the case where she carefully crafted the box and started filling it with the muffins. “I think I saw your sister at the farmer’s market last weekend.”
“Yeah, she started taking her harvest there to sell to help fund her winery.”
“She’s opening up a winery? Here in Pebble Brook Falls?” Her voice rose an octave.
“I just finished helping her run the wire last week and she did her first pruning. I think she’ll be ready to start making wine by next fall.”
“Oh my gosh, that’s amazing. A winery would do so well here. Is she planning on offering tastings?”
“Probably not right away, but it’s definitely in her plan. She’s even talking about building an event barn to host weddings and some other events.”
“She sounds like a girl after my own heart. Who doesn’t love wine and weddings?” The moment the words left her mouth her cheeks flushed again and she looked away from me, focusing on filling the rest of the box until she placed the final one in, folded the lid down, and handed it to me .
“Thank you. And you’re right you know.”
She raised her eyebrows.
“About wine and weddings. Anyone who doesn’t love both those things is a fool.” Her entire face lit up like a sunrise breaking through the fog of a hazy morning. Beautiful. So damn beautiful.
A noise that sounded like a hog grunting caught my attention and I turned around to find the line had picked up again and all the soured faces told me if I didn’t move my ass a riot might break out.
I turned back to Sarah and swiped my card. “Thanks again. The last box didn’t make it through the day and I’m sure this one won’t either.”
“It was good to see you, Ranger.” When she said my name, something in me cracked wide open like a dam breaking loose after too many years of holding the weight of rushing water. It was so startling I caught myself standing there—completely unable to move as I stared at this bright wonderful woman.
The only thing running through my mind was that if I came too close to her light, I’d ruin it. My shadows were too dark. Too fucked up.
So, I murmured another thank you and walked out of her bakery.
My pulse was quaking. I could feel it in my head, my throat, my wrists. Fuck.
I was halfway to my truck when I heard someone shout my name behind me. “Ranger!” I turned to find the very woman I was trying to avoid running directly at me. Her soft curls caught the sunlight and shimmered streaks of gold and auburn.
I shifted toward her, feeling that magnetic pull that seemed to have more control over my body than my own mind had.
When she stopped in front of me, she put her delicate hands on her hips and sucked in a lungful of air that had her dainty nose flaring slightly.
“I…um…I was wondering if I could ask you a question.”
“You can ask me anything.” The words were out before I had a chance to stop them.
“Would you like to go out on a date with me?”
Not the question I expected. Not even in the slightest and maybe that’s why I found it difficult to speak. Or maybe it was because this woman was doing strange things to me. Making me feel like I wanted to take chances and put everything on the line.
But there was always the risk that I could lose it all. It happened once and it sure as hell could happen again. I wasn’t the kind of man who had an easy go at life. Even now when the ranch was doing well, I had this feeling in my gut that it wasn’t going to last long. Some ill fate would come along and swipe my slate clean. Forcing me to start over, just like I had to when I got out of prison .
There was no way in hell I was going to put this girl through that. Not a chance.
I gave myself one touch as I reached out and tucked her hair behind her ear, letting my hand trail down the side of her face. Her eyes fluttered for a moment before I pulled my hand away.
“You don’t want anything to do with me, Sarah. I’m no good. Especially for a woman like you.”
The devastation on her face nearly did me in, but I knew this was the right call. Sarah Williams was a well brought up woman and I was a rancher with a blighted past. She was everything I wanted, but as I turned my back on her and walked away, I knew I’d made the right decision in saving her from all the things I couldn’t be for her.