9. Kassie
KASSIE
Ihadn’t expected to see Oliver at the diner this morning.
I’d assumed he was gone for another one of his meetings.
Or to the ranch. But sitting in a booth, looking far too handsome for Richton, he was larger-than-life.
The man he was having breakfast with was good-looking, but he had nothing on Oliver.
Oliver was masculine, broad-shouldered, his hair slightly wild, his scruff thick.
He wore a plaid shirt and looked relaxed in the simple setting.
His friend was slicker, his light hair brushed off his forehead, clean-shaven.
Somehow, he screamed rich, his hair too precise, his clothing perfect, as if a wrinkle wouldn’t dare show up on the fabric that draped his body.
He seemed slightly out of place—a city dweller.
Maybe that was why I didn’t find him as attractive as Oliver.
I tried to ignore them both, but I was finding it hard to do so. Especially the way Oliver was acting.
Why was he staring like that? Every time I looked up, his eyes were on me.
Watching. Incredibly intense. His eyes were an unbelievable shade of blue that seemed to lighten and darken with his mood.
I could always read his temperament with his eye color when we were younger.
And as he matured, he emoted his feelings on-screen with his gazes. Longing. Anger. Sadness. Joy.
But this level of intensity, I had never seen prior to now.
I tried to concentrate on my conversation with Quinn and John.
The vast number of pies she was going to need.
The request she had for hundreds of cookies.
John teasing her about being starstruck.
But each time my gaze would drift past them to Oliver, he was already looking.
Even while he conversed with his very good-looking breakfast companion.
He had seemed displeased when his friend offered me his card, although I wasn’t sure why.
It was only to call him if I changed my mind about being an extra.
Maybe Oliver wanted me to ask him instead of Derek. Or was it Daniel?
A discreet glance at the card I’d slipped into my pocket showed me it was neither. Davis.
I wanted to laugh. I was so fixated on Oliver, I couldn’t even recall the other man’s name.
What if he had wanted me to reach out for something other than being an extra?
Maybe I’d mistaken the signs. I shook my head at the thought.
I was rusty at relationships. Dating and I were not great friends, and I couldn’t recall the last one I had been on.
Probably back in Toronto. Before my life fell apart.
“What do you think?” Quinn asked, finally able to sit down for more than a minute after John left and the crowd eased. “A big cookie-baking party here? With so many hands, we could get all the batters done, then use the ovens to bake, and we can freeze them to keep them fresh.”
“I can take some home too. My ovens hold a lot, and I have the extra freezer too.”
She chuckled. “With the number of pies they want, your freezer is going to be full. When Mr. Director behind us tasted the pie the other day, he was determined to add them to the catering on the days I’m handling it.”
“How often?”
“Every Friday. He has a nice lunch every Friday while they’re filming.
He has a standard catering place for the other days.
But it’s five hundred cookies and twenty pies included, if you’re willing.
” She leaned closer and dropped her voice.
“And maybe a hot date or two with a sexy Hollywood celebrity.”
“Oliver and I are just friends.”
She widened her eyes, looking amused. “I meant Davis, but interesting that your first thought was of your ex.”
“Oh, um…”
She laughed. “Not that I can blame you.” Once again, she dropped her voice. “My goodness, that man is sexy. Those eyes. And I could feel him staring at you.”
“You could not.”
“Well, I saw his reflection in the mirror behind you. Same thing. He watched you.”
“I hurt my foot yesterday. He was being nice.”
She snorted. “Nice. Right. I felt the heat. Whatever happened between the two of you isn’t over.”
“We were kids. It’s long in the past.”
“That’s why he couldn’t stop staring and why you watched him leave, looking like someone kicked your puppy. You barely noticed the other good-looking man who was interested.”
“Stop it.”
“Just calling it like I see it.”
“You’re seeing things that aren’t there.”
“Uh-huh. I’ll remind you of this conversation at a later date.”
I threw up my hands. “Even if there was interest, he lives in LA. I live here in Richton. He’s famous and wealthy and lives an extravagant lifestyle of parties and premieres.
He has women hanging all over him. I bake pies and am an accountant.
I can’t recall the last date I was on. We couldn’t be more different. ”
“Maybe he wants more.”
“Maybe I can’t give him that.”
She stood. “Okay, I’ll drop it. But sometimes, appearances are deceiving. You, of all people, should know that, Kassie. You learned it the hard way. Maybe Oliver needs quiet and one person more than he needs crowds and glory.”
“You are romanticizing something not there.”
“Okay,” she repeated. “I’m going to get a pad of paper and a pen. We need to write out our lists so I can order what we need.”
“Sounds good.”
She stopped and leaned over the edge of the table. “And just so I go on record? Oliver is a far better choice than Davis.”
“Why is that?” I asked dryly.
“A rock versus a player.”
“A rolling stone, you mean.”
“The stone only rolls until it finds home,” she replied tartly, leaving me speechless.
Then she flounced away.
Oliver
It was surprisingly enjoyable to be back on the ranch where I’d spent so many summers in my youth.
I had gone to school with Brent and Sadie’s boys and had loved being on the ranch whenever I could.
We walked around with one of the set decorators, listening to her vision, watching and admiring Davis’s focus and his own vision for the movie.
He was thrilled at how much of the ranch worked for the story, with some of the interiors being shot elsewhere since the family didn’t want their lives totally uprooted.
Much of the film was set outside or in the stables.
The unused bunkhouse was the perfect place for my character, and most of my scenes would be shot there or the stable, as well as the outside scenes.
A lot of the scenes for the two leads were being shot in another location that didn’t involve me.
In the stable, I visited with the horses, taking up Luke’s offer of going for a ride.
It felt good to be in the saddle again, although I knew I’d be sore tomorrow.
I trotted around the paddock, laughing as Mike, Luke’s brother, offered me his cowboy hat to shield my eyes from the sun.
He opened the gate, and I urged Rusty toward the open field and let him fly.
The sheer joy of the moment caught up to me, and I lifted the hat from my head, holding it aloft, feeling the wind whip my hair back as the vista around me opened up so many memories I’d allowed myself to forget.
The feeling of freedom being on a horse brought.
The scents and sounds of the fields and trees as they went past.
A sudden memory slammed into me. Kassie behind me, clutching my waist as we raced past the same fields, the sun high in the sky.
Her breasts pressed against my back, her breath hot on my neck as she laughed in delight.
How, not long after, I’d helped her from the horse and we wandered by the brook, eventually making love under the trees in the soft evening light, our bodies still learning the art of being together, our souls and hearts totally entwined.
I slowed my pace, stopping for a moment as the thoughts overwhelmed me. Leaving here had been easy. Leaving her had been the hardest thing I had ever done. And I knew in that moment, losing her was something I still hadn’t recovered from.
And if I was honest, I wasn’t sure I ever would.
“You looked like a natural.” Davis was enthusiastic when I returned. “I snapped some photos I think we can use. And this place is even better than I remembered.”
“How did you find it?” I asked, curious.
“Dumb luck. A friend was passing through and got lost. Found his way here to get directions. Sadie invited him in for coffee, and he asked if he could look around. Told her and Brent that he was from LA and knew I was looking for a place to shoot a movie. He sent me pictures. I flew out and knew this was the place. We worked it through from there.” He clapped me on the shoulder.
“I hear it’s a coincidence for you as well. ”
“Yep.”
“Maybe more of a homecoming than you expected.”
I only grunted, pleased when he dropped the subject. I was glad I had held my temper. I liked Davis, and I doubted he was really interested in Kassie. He had his choice of women everywhere he went, and one small-town woman wouldn’t make any difference to him in the long run.
But it made a big one to me.
Davis left, and Marg, one of the set decorators, followed him. I stayed and had coffee with Sadie and Brent. They caught me up on some of the local gossip, news of their growing family, with Luke’s wife about to have their first child.
“Where are you staying?” Brent asked. “The Big Inn?”
I chuckled as I always did when I heard the name Big Inn. It was the only inn around and not very large.
“No. It was full, as was the travel lodge. I’m renting a place. Um, Kassie’s upper floor.”
Sadie lifted her eyebrows. “Oh.”
I chuckled. “Yeah, oh. I didn’t know it was her, she didn’t know it was me, but…” I let my words drift off.
She nodded sagely. “Lots of years have passed.”
“Yep.”
“She was gone for a while. I was pleased to hear she came back after that awful business in the city. Poor Kassie.”
I sat up straighter. “Awful business?”
Brent clucked his tongue. “Sadie. That’s gossip.”
“It’s truth.”