Chapter 31
Chapter Thirty-One
Olivia
I follow behind Rhett, feeling slightly giddy, but that feeling quickly fades when the barn door slams shut, rattling the whole building. A tall woman with beautifully full golden waves rushes into the barn, tears staining her cheeks. She wipes her palms across her face and peers up to see Rhett and I staring at her.
Her hazel eyes go round, and she looks horrified to see us standing here. “Oh, Rhett! You scared me. I didn’t know you’d be here.”
She plasters on a smile, but I don’t miss the pain in her eyes before that smile reaches her lips. It breaks my heart to see. I am all too familiar with the burden she’s clearly carrying, thinking she has to deal with her pain alone. I just want to wrap her up in a hug.
Awkward silence falls over us, so I swoop in. “I’m Olivia. I don’t think we’ve met yet. It’s kind of crazy to think there are still people in Roots I haven’t met considering how small this town seems to be.”
“Oh, sorry! I don’t know where my manners have gone. I’m Lauren Rhodes. My family owns the ranch. It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard so much about you.”
I blush, and she quickly corrects herself, trying to make me feel better. “I’ve heard you’re putting on a fundraiser for Resilient Paws. That’s incredible! It’s about time Carol and those dogs get some real support. If there’s anything Copper Hill can do to help out, let me know. Maybe Austin and I could set up a booth to sell some tallow and steaks. I’d be willing to donate all the proceeds for such a good cause.”
“You would do that? That’d be amazing!”
“Of course. I’m more than happy to help out.”
“Thank you so much.”
“Well, I just came to—” She glances around desperately, “—to check the barn for my hat. I can’t seem to find it anywhere. Guess it’s not here.”
She rushes off, and I want to call her back, give her a hug, and ask her to tell me everything that she’s dealing with, but I don’t know this girl. She clearly didn’t want to be around us, so it’s best to just leave her by herself.
Rhett seems completely unaware of what just happened as he leads me out to our cars. I grab him by the wrist, stopping him in his tracks. “How old is Lauren?”
He scrunches his face as he thinks. “Umm, twenty-three I think? She’s a year younger than Charlie and Callie.”
I nod. “I’m surprised Callie hasn’t ever mentioned her before. She seems super nice.”
“Callie has always been pretty averse to associating with anything related to Copper Hill. I’ve learned not to press it. We all have things we prefer to keep buried in the past.”
Man, I want to ask Callie about that.
“So, what’s your big plan?”
Rhett presses his lips together as he realizes we both have our cars here. “How about we drop your car off? Then we can pick up Maverick and grab swimsuits.”
“Where are we going that we need swimsuits?”
“You’ll see.”
“Don’t make me wait to find out what we’re doing. The curiosity already killed the cat, don’t let it kill me too.”
“A little mystery won’t kill you. Just follow me home, and we can go from there.”
* * *
Thirty minutes later, we pull to a stop in Rhett’s truck. Maverick nearly leaps from his spot in the back seat into my lap as his excitement grows to be too much for him to contain.
“Mav!” I giggle. “You need to calm down.” Turning to Rhett, I say, “Curiosity is going to kill the dog too.”
“You’re so dramatic.” He rolls his eyes, but a smile is spreading across his lips.
I take in our surroundings. We drove down a gravel road for the last five minutes, and it has reached a dead end that doesn’t appear to lead anywhere.
“You just dragged me out into the middle of nowhere. I think it’s more than fair to ask what we’re doing here.”
“We aren’t in the middle of nowhere. You could throw a rock and hit the center of town.” He grabs my door handle and swings the door open for me.
“Are you ready to go?”
“I guess. Let’s see what Texas has to offer.”
He leads the way to a trailhead that’s nearly hidden amongst the overgrown grass and dainty wildflowers. “I didn’t know Texas had so many wildflowers. I’m obsessed.”
“Yeah, they’re pretty.”
“They’re more than pretty. They’re gorgeous , and yet simple. They’re one of the first things I noticed when I was driving into town. I love that they can grow all on their own wherever they’re planted and thrive.”
“That reminds me of someone else I know, Wildflower.” Heat rushes to my cheeks. “They are pretty, but not the best sight in Roots.”
“What is?”
Rhett glances down at his feet. “I think you know.”
I bite my lip, letting it pass, even though I want to hear the words from his mouth.
The open landscape that welcomed us at the beginning of the trail is now engulfed with trees. I’m thankful for the small relief their shade provides from the beating Texas sun. Paired with the humidity, this heat is borderline intolerable. “San Francisco never gets this hot. No one prepared me for this kind of torture when I came to Texas.”
“It’s not usually this hot in June, but you get used to the heat.”
He pushes aside a branch and waits for me to catch up to him, still holding it aside. I move in next to him to see a waterfall trickling down the rocks. It’s not huge, but it’s still magnificent, and the pool of water sitting at the bottom is calling out to me.
I stand there in awe, just looking at the water flowing.
“What do you think? Are you in love with Roots yet?”
“It’s beautiful, but it’s going to take a bit more than a little waterfall to convince me to stay here.”
Rhett gives a curt nod and then crouches down to rifle through the backpack he’s been carrying. He pulls out two rolled-up beach towels. “What if I told you we could swim in the water to help get you out of this heat?”
“I’d say I like you a little better now.”
He smirks as he begins tugging off his shirt. Suddenly all I can focus on is shirtless Rhett. He’s all hard edges of sculpted muscle. I suppose doing manual labor at the ranch every day pays off for him.
Glancing back at me with a smirk, he asks, “Are you going to join me or just stand there?”
I open my mouth and close it again, desperately trying to pull my attention away from his perfect six-pack. Maverick barks with joy as he meanders down to the water’s edge. When he bounds in, the splash of the cool water on the backs of my legs is enough to snap me out of my thoughts.
Rhett dives in gracefully and rises quickly back up gasping and shouting, “It feels amazing! Hurry up and get in.”
“Okay, okay, I’m coming! Don’t get your panties in a wad.”
Something about that grin on his face, and the adorable dimple in his cheek, makes me practically delirious.
“I’m not getting my panties in a wad, I just want you to experience—” He stops mid-sentence as I tug my t-shirt over my head and shimmy my shorts over my hips, moving closer to the water’s edge. Now it’s him who’s there with his mouth open. I’m not going to lie, it feels good.
“You better scooch back. You’re right in my diving spot.”
He doesn’t budge, so I shrug and instead opt for a cannonball, landing right in front of him. When I come up for air, he’s still right there, wiping water from his eyes. “You did that on purpose!”
A giggle slips from my lips. “Only because I asked you to move, and you didn’t.”
“You’re dead.” He narrows his eyes and pushes off a rock to lunge at me. When he reaches me, he circles his big arms around me and pulls me toward him. The feeling of his skin on mine is electric. His face is so close to mine. All I have to do is make one small movement and our lips would be touching. I’m no fool. I know he feels this too. Whatever is going on between us isn’t just physical, and we both know it.