Chapter Nineteen Savannah
Chapter Nineteen
Savannah
It’s been almost a week since that kiss in the Hartman barn, and pretending to be able to focus on anything other than Blaze’s lips on mine is pretty much futile.
Since I need to make money, I force myself to listen to what Mikey, Randy, and Nash tell me we need to do to get Red Rock rental ready. Only one of my prospects, Stillwell, followed up after I sent my pricing. But we have to start somewhere.
“Fences are the priority,” Mikey says, pointing at the pasture map. “There are a few cracks in the far corner of the north pasture that need to be reinforced.”
“We should be good with water now,” I say. “The underground-well system was repaired.” I leave out the person who did the repairs because I think Nash’s head might explode if he finds out. My fingers fly over the laptop keyboard as I take notes. “What else?”
“Basic supplies for the cattle. Additional feeding areas.” Nash doesn’t look up from where he’s leaning against the counter, eating a scone. “And you’re gonna wanna verify the cattle vet certificates. Otherwise it’ll be your liability if the renter’s cattle brings disease here.”
“Okay. And how long do you think we need to get things ready to go?” I ask.
“Three weeks,” Mikey says. “If we’re lucky.”
“Stillwell wants them here in four.” I close the lid of my laptop. “Let’s get started.”
Mikey and Randy head out to the barn while Nash grabs another scone.
I made another batch yesterday . . . and I hate to admit this . . . but it’s because they remind me of Blaze. Maybe deep down I baked them, hoping they’d be like some kind of homing beacon and he’d sniff them out. Maybe come back to me.
Stupid, I know.
“Hey, where’d you find the repair service for the well system?” he asks mid-chew.
“Oh, um,” I stammer. “You know, just some local company outside of town. New, I think. But they took care of it fast.”
My phone rings before he can ask another question. “Hello?”
“Savannah, dear. It’s Eloise Murray. I was hoping you’d answer.”
“Oh, hi, Ms. Eloise.” I furrow my brow at Nash. “Everything okay?”
“Well, no, not really. Today is the town’s annual summer celebration, and we always have a kids’ Bake-Off competition. Ruthie Gibbons was going to judge, but she came down with the croup, and we need someone to stand in for her. Would you do it?”
“Of course, I’d love to.” My heart lurches. Town celebration.
Maybe Blaze will—
No. Stop. It. Right. Now!
“Perfect. Just come by the town square at one o’clock.”
“What was that all about?” Nash asks when I hang up the phone.
A wide smile stretches across my face. “I was invited to judge a Bake-Off this afternoon in town. And you’re coming with me.”
A hint of a smirk lifts my brother’s lips. “Only if I can sample the entries.”
A half smile. Hell yes, I’ll take it. I give him a playful nudge. “I’ll see what I can do.”
We head into town a little early to walk around and check out the different tents set up in the square.
“Nash, look.” I point at one of the tents on the side of the square. “Rusty McCabe’s habanero jerky. You used to love that, remember?”
He doesn’t answer right away. When I look over at him, his jaw tenses, and he glares at something in the distance. Air abandons my lungs at the sight of Blaze’s truck.
“Nash?” I manage to choke out his name even as an onslaught of delicious chills assaults my skin. Even from across the square, my body sizzles with the knowledge that his eyes are sweeping over me.
But my brother stares at the truck like he’s willing it to spontaneously combust.
After a long minute, he snaps out of his murderous trance and stalks over to the jerky tent. “Yeah, sounds good.”
I force a smile at Rusty. “Extraspicy, please.”
He winks and fills a plate for me. “Sure thing, Savannah. How ’bout a water too?”
“Are you implying I can’t handle my spice?” I say in a teasing voice. “They have spicy food up in Denver. My taste buds can take it.”
Nash grabs a piece of jerky and attacks it with his teeth like a rabid animal. I almost expect him to start snarling at any second. I take my plate, tuck my water under my arm, and give Rusty a wave before following Nash over to a table. He sits down, his green eyes fixed on the bandstand.
I pick up a piece of jerky and take a bite. The sweet and savory flavors dance on my tongue . . . until the flash of heat explodes in my mouth. “Oh!” My eyes tear up, heat flooding my cheeks. I grab my bottle, screw off the cap, and gulp half of the water in seconds.
That gets a smile from Nash. “Nobody does spicy like Rusty. Denver ain’t got nothin’ on his jerky.”
I fan my mouth, my skin pebbling with sweat. “Holy cow, that was intense. But so freaking good.”
Nash finishes his plate of jerky before I can even choke down one strip. He doesn’t speak, just watches the band set up.
“What’s wrong?” I finally ask when I can speak without hurtling into a coughing fit. “Something changed when you saw Blaze’s truck.”
“What’s it to you?” he snaps.
I shrug. “I don’t want to see you upset. Did something happen?”
Nash balls up a napkin, crushing it against his palm. “Too much has happened. That’s the problem.”
“You mean something besides us seeing each other?” I nearly choke on my words when I realize what actually slipped out. “Back in the day, I mean!”
“Yeah.” He slowly turns toward me, the pained look in his eyes making my heart throttle. “Things you’re better off not knowing about.”
My jaw drops, but before my mouth can react, he pushes away from the table and adjusts his hat. “I’ll catch ya later. Save some cake for me.”
I gather the plates together and toss out our trash, so many questions peppering my mind. Mindy Travers sees me and waves. She rushes over, her voice dropping. “So how’s it going with Dr. Burgess? You had your date, right? And I heard he was at your ranch too.”
“Yeah, we went to dinner. He’s really nice and funny, and we had a great time. I’m just superbusy right now. I need to focus on Red Rock.” I toss a quick glance over my shoulder at where Blaze’s truck was parked. It’s empty.
He’s here. Somewhere.
A shiver slips down my spine.
Looking for me?
“Come on, honey. You should still give him a ride. He’s a stallion, for sure.” She slants me a knowing look, nudging me. “Oh, and speaking of stallions, would you look who just showed up?”
As I turn, Blaze strides past me without a glance.
Nothing. Zero acknowledgment.
What the hell?
Mindy practically drools as he walks to the other side of the square. “Oh my Lord, would you look at that man? He is just sex on a stick, don’t you think? So delicious. I could just lick him up and down and—”
“Mindy,” I hiss, waving my hand at the Bake-Off contestants. “There are kids around.”
Music fills the air, but it does nothing to muffle the rush of blood pounding between my ears. That asshole. He practically devours me in his family’s barn and then walks past me like he doesn’t even recognize me.
I grit my teeth, fighting the urge to stomp over to Blaze and smack that smug-ass look off his face when Ms. Eloise rushes over. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
“I’m really happy you called to invite me. I can’t wait to see what the kids have prepared,” I say.
Ms. Eloise gives me a conspiratorial look. “Oh, and Dr. Burgess is judging too!”
I bite back a laugh. Ms. Eloise is one cunning lady. I guess the whole town is pulling for Tyvannah. Except one person. “Good thing we were both free.”
Mindy leans in close when Ms. Eloise turns away. “You get a second chance! Can’t wait to hear how it goes with Dr. Burgess,” she whispers before running off.
I walk over to the judges’ table.
“Hey, Savannah.” Tyler greets me with a wide smile. He pops out of his chair and pulls mine out for me. “It’s great to see you.”
“Likewise.” I flash him a smile wide enough that anyone looking could see.
The kids run around, doing finishing touches on their culinary creations before time runs out. The big clock says there are sixty seconds left. Their aprons are stained with chocolate, jam, and powdered sugar, but they laugh and talk excitedly as the clock counts down.
“Okay, chefs, ten seconds to go. Nine, eight, seven . . .”
Tyler starts counting down along with the announcer. I join in.
“Four, three, two, one. Time!”
The next twenty minutes go by in a blur of sugary sweetness. We taste everything from cherry-chocolate-fudge cake, Funfetti cheesecake, deconstructed caramel-apple nachos, volcano cake, and cookie-dough pizza.
“Lyra Hayes! You are our new Whiskey Creek kids’ baking champion,” the announcer says once we’ve finished voting.
“Oh my God.” I moan, sitting back in the plastic chair and holding a hand over my stomach. “I’m about to pop like a tick.”
Tyler laughs. “I’m glad I didn’t have time to grab lunch before heading over here.”
“Ugh, don’t talk about food.” I look around for Nash. “I think I might need my brother to roll me out of here.”
“Or, you know, I could.” His eyes widen. “Um, not roll you out, of course. But take you home?”
“I’d love to, but things between my brother and me were really tense when I first got back. And they’ve been really good lately. I’d hate to leave him when I dragged him here in the first place. I hope you understand.”
“Absolutely. I wouldn’t want to come between you guys. And I’m glad you’re working things out. More reason for you to stay here in Whiskey Creek,” he says with a wink.
“The reasons just keep piling up,” I say with a giggle as he waves goodbye.
I watch him walk to his truck, then wander over to the rose garden across the square. Mom and I used to sit in the garden for hours, sipping iced tea and talking about anything and everything.
Except Blaze. He was my only secret, the only thing she never knew about me.
My nose tingles, eyes stinging with unshed tears as I dip my head toward the blooms.
“I miss you so much, Mom,” I whisper.
I settle onto the bench, my eyes focused on the rainbow of roses surrounding me. The sweet floral scent fills the air, but it doesn’t comfort me the way I thought it might.
It just makes me feel sad and so very alone.
I bite down on my lower lip, my throat tightening.
“Hey.”
My head snaps up. I squint up at Blaze, holding up a hand to shield my eyes from the bright sun. “Oh, so now you want me to acknowledge you?”
“I didn’t think you’d want Nash to see us talking. He pretty much hates me. Us being seen together would cause too much trouble.”
“And now is different because . . . ?”
“Well, his truck is gone.” He nods toward where Nash had parked, and I’ll be damned. He’s right. “So he can’t see us.”
“He just left me by myself?” I throw up my hands. “Jesus, every time I think I’m turning a corner with him, I end up taking ten steps backward.”
“He’s going through a rough time. He’ll come around.”
“I thought we were connecting,” I say. “It hasn’t been easy, but he’s been stopping by and helping me out.
Probably a good thing that he’s got his own apartment.
It might make things strained if we were forced to live under the same roof.
But believe it or not, we’ve had actual conversations. And he smiled today.”
Blaze grins, and my heart does backflips. “Progress, yeah?”
“I’m trying really hard here. He’s the only family I have left.”
The longing in his gaze melts my insides. “It’s good you have him. He’ll watch out for you.”
“I thought you said you were going to do that.” My pulse throbs against my throat. “Right?”
“Yeah,” he says, his deep voice low and gruff. “Always.” He pauses. “You know, I can drive you home if you need a ride.”
“I don’t think that’s a great idea.” Even though my entire body screams it is exactly the right idea.
His gaze darkens. “I saw you with the vet before. You gonna get a ride with him?”
I lift an eyebrow. “If I am, how does that concern you?”
“Because I don’t want him anywhere near you.”
I jump up from the bench, seething. “You don’t fucking own me. How dare you say that. Not that it matters because I think I’m going to let him fuck me later tonight!”
Blaze looks at me like I just slit his dog’s throat and laughed about it. I’ve never seen him look so horrified. “Is that what you want?”
“You made it clear you don’t care what I want. And I’m tired of your mind games.”
“You think I’m playing games?”
“Yep. I do. I think you want to keep your claws in me because it makes you feel all powerful. But you don’t want me. Not really. So find someone else to control and let me live my life.”
“You have no idea what you’re talking about.” He takes me by the arms, and my heart pounds so hard, it makes me dizzy. “I haven’t slept in days, not since that last kiss. You think it didn’t mean anything to me, but you’re wrong. I can’t get you out of my head, Savvie.”
“Then why did you stay away? Why didn’t you tell me any of that before now?”
His shoulders slump. “I stayed away because seeing you makes me want things I know I can’t have. But watching Tyler with you today . . .” He shakes his head. “I’m not strong enough to stay away. And you’re not strong enough to make me.”
I grab the side of the bench, my legs wobbly. I’ve driven down this road, and the aftermath of the crash hurts like hell.
He drops his hands and backs away, nodding toward something behind me. “Looks like Nash is back. Guess I’m gonna take off.”
I peek over my shoulder just in time to see Nash step out of the truck, firing a white-hot glare at Blaze that I can feel from here.
“Go home, Savvie.” His jaw tightens. “And when you’re thinking about me tonight . . . because I know you will be . . . just remember I told you to walk away.”
He turns and stalks over to his truck. I sit back down on the bench, covering my face with my hands.
He told me to walk away. But all I want to do is chase him down and force him to give me answers I know he won’t.
Because I never fucking learn.