Chapter 11
Ro.
Aweek and some change…
I woke up early and left Reece sleeping peacefully. After I made my rounds in the bathroom, I dressed for the day, making sure to do layers because we would be out in the cold until later.
Reece was so damn excited about Jubilee that I couldn’t wait to experience it through her enthusiasm.
The event was a big thing in Miller’s Pointe and would be my first. The first of many because my mind was made up about where I planned on setting down roots.
That was another reason I was up so early.
I was restless as hell, processing what staying would mean to my brother.
I was more than positive he’d assumed the past six months were just me trying to figure shit out and I would be home eventually, running the ranch beside him.
He never pushed too hard, just told me to do what I needed.
Keron loved me and would also accept the things that kept me level.
Being here was that thing. I needed Reece.
It didn’t matter how fast we fell into this.
One thing I’d learned was, when it was right, time didn’t matter because it didn’t exist.
The connection was the driving force and my connection to Reece was strong as hell.
So while I let her sleep in, I made my way to the kitchen to make breakfast. I fried bacon, scrambled eggs, and brewed a pot of coffee.
Once everything was done, I placed the food in the oven to warm until Reece was up then settled at the table to call my brother.
“Keep calling me like this and I’m gonna think you miss me, Ro.”
I smirked and slouched down in my chair. “Kinda impossible to miss you when I see your damn face every time I look in the mirror.”
He laughed. “True but the visual is not attached to my smooth ass personality.”
“Never fucking fails…”
“What’s that?”
“Your damn ego.” I smirked.
“Game recognizes game, little bro. I could say the same thing. You’re an arrogant muthafucker too.”
I was. Our father taught us to stand on who and what we were.
I didn’t give a damn if anyone doubted or questioned me, as long as I knew who I was and never questioned my relevance, shit was always cool.
The only time I ever wavered from had been when I was dealing with my ex.
The accident, losing my career, then her leaving me because of it was hard as hell to deal with.
I laughed about it now because she wasn’t my one and her lack of care didn’t fucking matter.
“True but I wanted to holla at you about something.”
“Do I need to sit down?”
“Are you standing?” It was early on Christmas Eve. If I knew my brother, he was in bed, likely with multiple women he would be replacing today.
And I knew my brother very well…
“Nah, I’m not,” he said in an amused tone. “What’s on your mind, Ro?”
I brushed a hand over my head. “I’m not coming home.”
“Ever?”
“To visit, yeah, but I can’t live there when my heart is here.”
“Your heart?”
I glanced toward the back of the house and nodded before I responded. “Yeah, my heart.”
“So that three a.m. call was about a woman.”
I smirked. “Yeah, something like that. She’s important.”
“She?”
“Sareece. I’ve been with her on her ranch since I got here. I can’t really explain what it is or how I know, but she’s mine, Keron. I gotta be wherever she is, so unless she’s open to packing up and coming to Texas, then I’m gonna be here.”
“I can respect that, but this is our ranch, our business, and I want you to be part of it. I don’t want to do this by myself, Ro. We gotta figure out a way to make that work.”
I nodded because I had already considered that. “Yeah I know and I think I have it figured out.”
“I’m listening.”
“I know the rodeo circuit and I know cattle. If I take over purchasing and selling livestock, along with transporting them, that frees up a lot of your time. I’m not competing anymore, so I can make that my priority, but it means moving Dex out of that position.”
My brother had hired someone who primarily handled that role and I wouldn’t dare take food off his table. Dex was a good guy with a wife and kids.
“Dex will be fine with traveling less. His kids are young and would rather have him here instead of traveling all the time. I’ll work that out. There’s plenty he can do here.”
“You sure?”
“Ro, this is ours. You’re first when it comes to consideration of running the ranch. Even if he had a problem with it, I wouldn’t fucking care, but he won’t. I need you with me, and if this is what it looks like, we’ll make it work.”
“Aight then. I’ll fly out after the holidays so we can map it out.”
“You bringing her?”
I smirked. “Yeah, she’ll be with me.”
“Good, I owe her a personal thank you for bringing you home.”
“I’m not home, Keron.”
“You are and that doesn’t have a damn thing to do with location.”
He was right about that…
“I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“Make sure you do.”
I ended the call and went to wake Reece, feeling lighter now that I had that off my chest. When I made it to the bedroom, the space where I’d left her was empty, so I crossed the room and checked the bathroom where I found her with a toothbrush hanging out of her mouth.
She smiled big as hell when her eyes met mine through the mirror.
“Good morning.”
“Good morning.”
“You let me sleep.”
“You were up late. Come join me in the kitchen when you’re done.”
She nodded and pushed hair out of her face. “Give me a minute.”
I left her there and headed to the kitchen where I removed our breakfast from the oven. Reece was with me not long after, smiling when she walked up behind and hugged me from the back.
“You made me breakfast.”
“It’s food. I don’t know if eggs and bacon classifies as a full breakfast.” She eased around me, lifted onto her toes, and kissed me.
“It does and domesticated you is very sexy.” I chuckled, stealing another kiss before she broke away and began collecting plates and utensils.
“Sit. I’ll make our plates.”
I did as I was told and watched her fixing our plates, also noticing she was in one of my insulated jean shirts. I loved seeing her in my clothes because it further confirmed that she was mine. Reece served me before making her own coffee and joining me at the table.
“Thank you for this.” She motioned to the plate and I nodded.
“You’re welcome.”
She reached into the front pocket of my shirt and removed something, sliding it across the table. When I realized what it was, I smiled.
“You made this for me?”
“Yep. Do you like it?”
I lifted the buckle and brushed my fingers over the surface. My initials were engraved in the center in simple block letters with a textured finish. She kept the design square with rounded edges and it wasn’t too big but had enough size to be seen.
“Yeah, I like it.” I reached for the base of her chair and dragged it near me so I had access. I stole a kiss then moved her plate closer, needing her to stay put.
“Look at the back,” she said, then fidgeted, which had me frowning as I turned it over. The circle and M centered had me lifting my eyes to her.
“I found it online. Is that okay?” she explained, without me having to ask how she knew about the logo to my family’s ranch.
I nodded and she further explained, “You’re not home but I think sometimes you want to be. That allows you to keep them with you. I know it’s not the same but…”
“Nah, it’s cool. I appreciate that, and according to my brother, I’m home.”
Her brows pinched.
“I talked to him this morning and told him I was staying here but was ready to help out with the ranch.”
“So you’re not staying?” She looked panicked as hell, which made me smile.
“I’m staying, Reece. I’ll be in charge of buying and selling cattle. It means a good bit of travel but I can do that from anywhere. As long as you’re good with me being on the road then—”
She launched out of her chair and her mouth crashed into mine. I dropped my arms around her to keep us balanced and kissed her back, arching a brow when she pulled back and worked her way into my lap.
“I guess that means you’re good with me traveling.”
She nodded, smiling big as shit. “Travel means you’ll come home…to me.”
“That’s the plan.”
“Then yes.”
“Aight, then eat so we can get out of here. You said you had orders to get to people.”
“I do.” She reached across the table and pulled her plate closer, shifting on my lap so she was more comfortable, blessing her food before she started eating. I chuckled and said a quick prayer then did the same. If this was where she wanted to be, there would always be an open invitation.
Being outside for hours in temperatures this cold damn sure wasn’t what I would consider a good time.
Regardless of how I was freezing my damn ass off, I was still going to see this through.
There were outdoor heaters set up, so that helped, but there was only so much one could do this time of year.
Watching Reece do her thing was worth it. When we pulled up this morning, I made peace with this being a long day. The entire area was blocked off and there were booths and tents set up everywhere like a marketplace. It was cool but would have been much better if it wasn’t the heart of winter.
Reece made her rounds, delivering orders to the vendors she allowed to sell her buckles and jewelry, making sure to spend time talking with them because she wanted their experience to be personal.
She appreciated their business and needed them to know as much.
I fell back unless she personally brought me into the conversation.
She made a point of introducing me to pretty much everyone she came in contact with.
After the first introduction as her man, I let it ride.
I assumed because I didn’t object when she claimed me publicly that I was cool with it. I was…