Chapter 15
The reassuring sound of his boots scuffing against the concrete barn floor set Marshall’s spirits at ease.
Feeding the animals, cleaning, and keeping the ranch running on schedule helped him center himself.
He planned on a nice, long ride. His mind would be fully occupied as they moved the cattle to graze in a fresh pasture, giving the shorn grass a chance to recover and maintain its overall health.
Rotating fields was part of maintaining a stable environment and thriving ecosystem.
It was important to the King family that the ranch benefit the land, not just take from it.
They had implemented some practices that Marshall was proud of, and he had so many more ideas to improve the ranch in the future.
His ears perked up at the sound of voices intruding on his thoughts.
“Wow, do I detect coconut? So delicious,” he heard his cousin Lachlan’s voice saying.
“And oats? So nutritious,” a deep voice he recognized as Chip’s added. “It’s divine.”
What were those goofs talking about? Oats? Maybe they were feeding the horses or something. Running his palm through his beard, he stopped dead in his tracks as he watched Chip, Lachlan, Buzz, and Ernie stuffing their faces and standing around his desk.
Colette had mentioned he needed to be more careful about who had access to his office, but this was ridiculous.
“Did I miss a memo about a meeting this morning?” Marshall asked, his mouth turning up into a half-smile. All four men turned at his question.
“You will not believe it,” Ernie, another farm hand, gushed. “Our new accountant brought us cookies. Can you believe it? Cookies!”
“She’s so nice,” Lachlan continued. “Agnes never made us cookies.”
Marshall’s brows gathered together as his eyes rested on the vintage floral tin, lined with parchment paper and filled with the same cookies he had been drooling over the night before.
She had brought them for the guys, even after he had suggested she shouldn’t.
Glancing back up at the men picking up the treats and laughing as they gorged themselves on Colette’s cookies, his vision clouded with red.
“Marshall? Are you okay?” Chip asked, his easy-going smile gleaming against his black beard as he bit into his treat.
Of course Chip was perfectly charmed by Colette and her cookies—why would Marshall have any cause to be upset?
His eyes narrowed on the cookie Chip was holding.
The guy was huge and would definitely beat him in a fight, so Marshall let him have it.
“I’m…fine. But you guys should get back to work.” Stepping in between the men, he slammed the cover on the tin and clutched it to his chest, daring anyone to object.
“Dude. She said we could eat the cookies. Why are you taking them away?” Lachlan asked, frowning.
“I’m tired of people being in my office all the time. This is a private area for me only. And maybe Colette. You guys are getting way too distracted. I’ll take care of these and meet you guys out in the fields.” The men’s eyes widened as they took in Marshall’s completely unwarranted scowl.
Raising his hands in submission, Lachlan nodded for them to file out of the office.
“No problem, Marshall,” he said, his voice trailing as he spoke. “We’ll meet you outside, then, I guess.”
With a resolute nod, Marshall watched the men leave, his furrowed brow refusing to ease until he was alone in the office with the tin.
Wow. People were just using his office for socializing now.
Things had gotten way out of hand, and he was glad to put an end to it, as Colette had wanted him to.
Glancing around to make sure no one was watching, he closed his office door and leaned against it.
The metal pop of the tin lid made him worry people would hear, but Marshall didn’t care.
He pulled out one of her cookies and bit into the soft, perfect treat.
His eyes rolled back in his head, and he groaned as he savored the combination of flavors hitting his tongue.
If the guys wanted desserts, Betsy made plenty. Cookies, brownies, blondies, muffins, cupcakes, you name it. They could gorge themselves on what the ranch cook made for them.
No one. Absolutely no one was going to eat Colette’s cookies but him.
Marshall knew the move made him selfish, and yes, it was a tad irrational.
But it was the only way to clear the fog of rage that was rising in his chest when he saw his ranch hands stuffing their faces with desserts that should only have been for him.
Maybe Colette didn’t get it yet.
To be completely honest, neither did he.
Releasing a relieved breath, Marshall walked with the tin under his arm, glancing across the fields as Lachlan led Chip, Buzz, and Ernie across the fields on horseback, well away from him.
He would grab Vinny and join them shortly; he just had to return the tin to Colette.
It was the right thing to do, now that he had eaten every last one.
Did his stomach hurt a little?
Sure.
But he had done the right thing.
Marshall had no idea who he could trust on the ranch right now. Only the people worthy of Colette’s cookies should be eating them. He didn’t dare show his face inside the main house, in case the tin raised suspicions as to his gluttonous behavior.
When he knocked on Colette’s door, she gasped as she saw the tin was empty.
“They ate them so fast! I’ll have to make more,” she said, her voice tinged with pride.
“Don’t worry about it, the guys will be more than fine with all the delicious food Betsy makes for us every day. You’ve got enough on your plate here.”
“Do you think the guys liked them at least? I left before I could ask.”
“I’m sure they did. They were grinning from ear to ear when I interrupted them,” Marshall explained. He left out the part where he chased them out of his office and ordered them back to work so that he could keep the cookies all to himself.
With a gruff wave, he went off to finish his work and move on to tasks that would help distract him from his current problem.
How had Colette unsettled him so easily?
Was he so preoccupied with his work that he ignored how lonely he was becoming?
His musings only brought him to one conclusion.
It was time to let loose. He’d been too focused on the ranch and the finances.
Now that he had help on that front, he was going to take advantage and give himself a night off.
When his workday ended, Marshall called the only person suited to the job of distracting him and helping him with his predicament.
Evan Thomson was part of the family that owned the neighboring ranch.
Lost Creek Ranch bordered the King lands.
A creek ran between the two properties, and a bridge had been constructed to help the families travel between ranches.
The Kings and the Thomsons had always looked out for each other and lent a helping hand when it was needed.
Ranching was a tough business, but good relationships with the neighbors made it easier.
The King and Thomson kids grew up playing in the creek in the summers, with other town kids from all around meeting up with them to pass the hot summer days while they were out of school.
Though Marshall had grown up in the city, he had known Evan almost all his life, and they connected right away.
Evan could be goofy, but he was great at helping Marshall lighten up and have fun.
He hoped Evan would pick up, given that Marshall had sent him a warning text. It was basically an emergency.
“Hey, Marshall, what’s up?” Evan asked when he picked up on the third ring.
Clearing his throat, Marshall tried to think of the best way to say what he needed.
“I think I need to get laid.”
The long silence on the other end was unsettling. “You? I thought you like…took a vow of chastity when you came to the ranch or something?”
“That’s not true,” Marshall said, trying not to sound as offended as he was. “There was Lucy for a little while there.”
“Okay, who did you have in mind? Like are we talking a specific lady here, or a rando. Some kind of exciting passing ships thing?”
Marshall rolled his eyes. Didn’t Evan get it? He needed to be distracted from a certain curvy brunette. There was no way Marshall would get into specifics like that, but maybe the passing ships thing would make sense then?
“Uh, passing ships, yeah. That sounds good. Maybe just a one-off. I don’t know. It’s been a while, and I’d like to meet a nice woman and have a good time. Surely you can help wingman me into something?”
Evan hummed. “Okay, so we want to meet someone who’s just passing through, nothing too serious. I get it.”
“No, wait. I actually hate the sound of that.” That was the opposite of what Marshall wanted, but maybe that was what he needed to get through this time of having Colette living on the ranch. Someone to occupy his thoughts instead of her. Anyone but her.
“Dude. I hate to sound serious, because you know that’s not my vibe, but you’re not making any sense.”
Inhaling sharply, Marshall rubbed his chin. “Let’s just go for a drink. I need my head screwed on straight.”
“That I can do.”
They arranged to meet in an hour, after Marshall had time to take a shower.
The air at The Dusty Spur had a sweet hoppy tang, and the moment Marshall entered the bar, he was comforted by the warm atmosphere and the familiar faces that surrounded him. Taking a seat at the bar, he scanned the room for…prospects?
He sighed.
Maybe a few beers would help it make sense. Ever since he saw Colette’s cookie tin on the desk in his office, he’d been completely out of sorts. She was on his mind more than was appropriate, and it had to stop now.
Startled by a familiar pat on the back, Marshall turned to Evan, who sat on the stool next to him. Evan had messy curly brown hair and a short brown mustache. His warm brown eyes sparkled with mischief, and he used them to his full advantage to charm the ladies.
“Hey, man. What’s the emergency? The fact that you called got me all worried.”
Marshall shook his head. “I know. I’m just realizing I haven’t gone out in a while. I need to have some fun.”
“You said you needed to get laid,” Evan added.
The bartender, who was pouring a beer from the tap, eyed Marshall curiously.
Marshall flushed, knowing everyone in town would be talking about how he’s looking to get laid if they weren’t careful.
“Keep your voice down,” Marshall warned. “What I meant was, it’s been a while… You know?”
Evan nodded. “You’ve come to the right place. Okay, so I’ve heard that Jessica’s cousins are in town.
“From Brantford?”
“You know it. Anyway, they’re twins.” Evan winked and waggled his brows, making Marshall scowl.
With a huff, Marshall suppressed whatever resistance was simmering inside his body and decided he needed to do this. Something. Anything that would distract him from his co-worker. Ultimately, she was off-limits for him. And Brantford wasn’t that far if he hit it off with one of the twins.
“Why do you look so…pained?” Evan asked, his brow furrowed in concern.
Marshall shook his head. “It’s nothing. It’s stupid.”
“I love stupid. Sometimes, the stupidest things are the most fun,” Evan said. “Hit me with it.”
Growling in frustration, Marshall decided this was it. He had to come clean. Who could he be honest with, if not with his best friend?
“We hired a new accountant,” he began. “She’s living in the guest house.”
Evan winced. “You lost me.”
“She’s…” Marshall rolled his eyes. “She’s hot.”
A grin spread over his friend’s face. “You want to bang the accountant.”
Marshall shook his head. “No, it’s not like that. She’s only here temporarily and we’re co-workers. Anything between us would be a bad idea. That’s why I need…a distraction.”
Playing with the end of his mustache as he hummed. Evan looked like he was thinking of a solution for Marshall. Perhaps coming to his friend was the right idea.
“Here’s what I’m thinking. You and I hook up with these twins here, because why not? And if that helps you forget the hottie staying on the ranch, great. If not, you bang the accountant. It’s a win-win.”
Marshall’s stomach sank. Evan made it sound so slimy.
He placed his hands on the smooth wood bar. “I’m not into sleeping around. I’ve done that enough in my life.”
“Okay, got it. Let’s just buy these ladies a drink and see where the night takes us,” Evan suggested, his eyes catching on Jessica Lansbury and her cousins sitting in a booth opposite the bar. Yeah, Jessica was pretty. She had long dark hair that reminded him of Colette’s…
Marshall stopped himself. No more thoughts of Colette. Anything he did with her would be a fling, which was exactly what he didn’t want. Finishing the last of his pint, he signaled to Evan to follow him. He straightened his spine, walking up to the booth where Jessica sat with her cousins.
“Hey, Jess. Good to see you. Mind if we join you?”
“Sure, Marshall,” she answered with an enthusiastic tone. Sliding over in the booth, Marshall placed an arm above Jessica’s shoulders on the bench and waved to the bartender to bring them another round.
“So, who are your lovely guests?” Evan said smoothly, squeezing in next to the two stunning blondes.
“I’m Avery, and this is Hallie. What are your names?”
“I’m Evan, and this handsome devil is Marshall. You ladies like dancing?”
Avery and Hallie glanced at each other and answered “Yes!” at the same time.
Though he knew he was doing the right thing in forgetting about Colette, his stomach sank.
Jessica sidled up to him, closing the distance between them on the deep burgundy vinyl bench.
Grateful for the interruption of the bartender coming to deliver their drinks, Marshall clutched his beer in desperation, seeking something to busy his hands.
Normally, he might wrap an arm around Jessica and see where the night went.
Tonight, even sitting this close to her felt wrong.
But Marshall was here to be distracted. He needed to forget about the large cornflower blue eyes that haunted his fantasies. Erase them from his memory in order to move on. Somehow, he thought it was going to be easy.
As he gazed into Jessica’s warm amber eyes, Marshall realized that perhaps his interest in Colette was bordering on something more dangerous than just lust. He was grateful for Evan taking over the conversation and regaling the women with one of his entertaining stories, because Marshall realized he had made a huge mistake.
The booth creaked as he sank deeper in the seat, making himself comfortable.
He took a long swig of his beer and slid away from Jessica, just enough so that their thighs were no longer touching. If there was a solution, he was going to chase it at the bottom of his pint of beer. Or maybe, he would need a few. He had a major problem.
How was he going to deal with his crush on Colette Slip?