Chapter 14
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Tate was still grumbling to himself when he pulled up to Rylee’s home. It had nothing to do with Rylee and everything to do with the pointed stare Jason gave him when he said he had to duck out a little early from their training session with a new client.
He refused to accept that Jason had a point about Rylee turning into a higher priority than his own business. Because that wasn’t what this was.
No, it wasn’t.
Rylee was planning on leaving after the summer unless something changed her mind. That was why Tate had brought chickens and goats to her farm. He wanted to show her what she’d be missing if she left.
Just the simple prospect of Rylee leaving put a knot under his ribs and he couldn’t for the life of him figure out why it bothered him so much. She’d been gone fifteen years and he hadn’t been bothered by it.
Things were different now.
He wanted her to stay.
It was more than simply wanting to ensure her property didn’t get into the hands of the developer.
While he wasn’t prepared to discuss his feelings with anyone—not even Jason—he was finally coming to terms with the fact that he felt something for Rylee.
So, as he strode up the stairs to her home, he told himself to play it cool.
He couldn’t scare her off. He wouldn’t push her too far.
He’d make sure she had all the facts at her fingertips before she made her final decision.
Because he didn’t believe for one second that she was entirely convinced about moving back to the city.
He lifted his hand to knock on the familiar wooden door. The one with the little window in the shape of a sunrise at the top. Footsteps thudded through the house along the hardwood floor. Then the door swung open to reveal the woman he couldn’t get out of his head.
Her eyes widened then she blinked and looked at her phone in her hand. “You’re early.”
Tate rubbed the back of his neck and offered her a chagrined smile. No way would he tell her he’d been impatient to see her again. That would definitely scare her away. “Got done with work a little early.” It was a harmless lie and one Jason would have outed him for if he’d been here.
“Oh,” she said quietly. “Well, I’m just about to put dinner in the oven. Then we can take a look at that door.”
He nodded, stepping inside as she moved to grant him access. “Something sure smells good,” Tate said, taking his hat off and turning it over in his hands.
“Lasagna.” She was behind him, and he turned in time to see her press the door shut with her back.
She was wearing another adorable pair of overalls with a white tank top.
Her hair was pushed back off her face with a red bandana.
There were dark smudges on her cheek and her chin, and he squinted to get a better look.
“Is that…”
Rylee’s hand shot to her face. “What? Do I have something…”
Without thinking, he swiped his tongue on his thumb then attempted to clean the smudge free. She startled and then let loose the most musical giggle he’d ever heard.
“Did you just clean me with your spit, Tate?”
He stared down at his hand with disgust. Why had he just done that?
She laughed again, shaking her head. “You’re totally fine. Come on.”
He stayed frozen a while, staring after her. Then, because he didn’t have anything better to do, he wandered after her. A smile toyed at his lips the more he thought about what had happened. It had felt natural to touch her like that, and she hadn’t minded.
Was it possible she might have feelings for him as well?
He didn’t want to hope and yet that was exactly what he was doing.
Tate entered the kitchen just as Rylee tossed a pair of oven mitts on the counter.
She turned, flashed him a smile, then asked, “Well, you ready to get this show on the road?” Without waiting for his response, she led him toward the stairs and to the second level.
“The door is stuck. I think at one point someone tried to get inside and broke the string that was attached.”
When he reached her side, she was staring at the ceiling, hands on her hips, and brows furrowed. He glanced up and sure enough, there was an attic door without the string that would allow them entry.
He nodded to himself a moment then turned to head for the stairs again.
“Where are you going?” she demanded.
“I’m going to get my tool belt and the ladder. We’ll get it open, don’t worry.” Tate returned shortly after with everything he knew they might need. Before long they had the door open.
Rylee stared up at the hole in the ceiling, that adorable line between her brows. Tate pressed his thumb to the indentation and just like the last time he’d touched her, she startled.
“You don’t look so sure that you want to go up there,” Tate murmured.
She grimaced. “You know how when you’re a kid you make places scarier than they should be? Well, the attic is that for me.”
He fought a smile. Then he slipped his hand into hers and squeezed. “Don’t worry, I’ll protect you.”
Her eyes found his once again and that smile she wore nearly blinded him. “My own little knight in shining armor, huh?”
“Something like that.” He turned to the pull-down ladder then jerked his chin upward. “I’ll go first. How about that.”
“Thanks,” she whispered.
After a little more coaxing, Tate and Rylee were both in the attic with boxes surrounding them. There was a little natural light, but they worked mostly by the single bulb still swinging from the pull of its string.
Rylee was immersed in an ancient-looking photo album while Tate wandered through the attic to explore the other things her father had put in storage. He snickered when he found an old dress, then held it up for Rylee to see when she glanced at him with curiosity.
She wrinkled her nose. “That looks like it needed to stay in the late 1800s.”
“What? You don’t like it? I could totally see you rocking a dress that covers you from your neck all the way down to your ankles.”
Her snort had him smiling wider. He returned the dress to its box and moved closer to her. “What are we looking for?” His eyes snagged on the picture that Rylee was so engrossed in. “Who’s that?”
Rylee’s finger traced over the face of the woman. “My mother.”
That put a chill clean through him. “Your… mom?”
She nodded.
“Didn’t she leave when you were a kid?”
“Four.” Rylee continued to stare at the picture, the sadness and longing tearing his heart in half.
“I barely remember her. Just flashes, you know?” She tossed him a flicker of a smile.
“But when she left, she took a piece of me with her. It left a hole in my heart and… honestly… it makes me wonder if I’ll ever be… ”
He kneeled beside her. He didn’t like seeing this side of her. She’d gone from being happy and teasing to—this. Tate let the quiet sit a moment before he nudged her. “If you’ll ever be…”
It was dim, but not so much that he didn’t see the flush of embarrassment written all over her face. “Nothing,” she whispered.
This time he shook his head and caught her chin. “None of that, sweetheart. What were you going to say.”
Rylee pulled her face away from him if only to wipe at a stray tear that skidded down her cheek.
“Enough. I never thought I was enough. My mom was the first person to walk away because she didn’t want me.
It makes me wonder if I’m even cut out to be a mother with what I have to look up to.
” She barked out a laugh. “Childhood trauma is awful, isn’t it?
Now I feel like I can’t trust myself… with anyone. ”
Boy, that hurt more than it should have. She didn’t mean him, did she?
“But it’s more than that. After I moved in with my aunt, things were just…
different.” She blew out a breath. “I know it doesn’t make sense, but honestly, I don’t know where I fit anymore.
I don’t fit in with high society. And here?
” She gestured with a wave of her hand. “I’m not sure I belong here, either. ”
He shook his head at that. “You belong here, Rylee. You always have. This is where you were always meant to be.”
She met his hard stare with one of her own. “I don’t know what I’m doing, Tate.”
“That’s okay.”
Rylee laughed again. “Hardly. I can’t—”
“I’ll help you. And as far as everything else goes?”
She seemed to hold her breath while he hunted for what to say.
He couldn’t tell her she’d be an amazing mother.
He already knew she’d brush him off. These were fears so deeply rooted in her very soul that it would take time to work through them.
All he could do was assure her that she wasn’t alone. But would that be enough?
“Rylee…” he whispered. He searched her eyes as he moved closer, then his focus dipped to her mouth.
He wondered for a moment if she’d push him away if he tried to kiss her.
Then he chastised himself. She didn’t need the complication of knowing how he felt just yet.
What she needed right now were reassurances that everything would turn out right. “You—”
A loud banging sound came from the front door and both of them jumped. Rylee’s face was an adorable shade of red as she pushed the album off her lap and darted for the hole in the floor. She didn’t even look back to see if he was following her.
With a resigned sigh, Tate gathered up the items she’d pulled from the box and placed them neatly inside. He didn’t bother closing up the attic, not even after his feet touched the floor. He heard the women before he turned the hallway corner. One in particular was all too familiar.
“And this basket is filled with things from town,” Faith gushed, pushing an oversized basket filled with everything from produce to books to a few knick-knacks.
Rylee accepted the basket, surprise plastered on her face. “This is…”
Faith’s eyes collided with Tate the second he came into view. But so did the eyes of five other women. Sammie, Lacey, Jane, Wendy, and Hallie. Each of them had married into the Sagebrush family right along with his sister. Faith’s mouth popped open. “Tate? What are you doing here?”
Rylee glanced from Faith to Tate and back.
“Oh, where are my manners?” Faith laughed. “Tate’s my older brother.”
“And this is Rylee. You remember her, right?” Tate interjected before Rylee had the chance. “She lived here until she was about ten.”
At that, Faith gasped. “Oh! I do remember a little girl who used to hang around our place when I was younger. That was you?”
Tate folded his arms and leaned against the wall as all seven women chattered in the doorway. It struck him how much Rylee fit in with these women. She had such an easygoing demeanor, it made him wonder if this was how she was around the people in her aunt’s social circles.
She caught his stare and her cheeks pinked all over again. Was she thinking about their quiet moment in the attic? Because he couldn’t get his mind off it. He’d been so close to just going for it and kissing her. He’d wanted to show her just how much she belonged.
Not just in Rocky Ridge, but with him.
A lump formed in his throat as he allowed himself to pretend they had a shot at becoming more. Then someone’s elbow dug into his side and he yelped.
Faith had separated herself from her little welcoming party and she was giving him a strange look.
“What?” he muttered, rubbing at the tender spot in his side.
She rolled her eyes. “Don’t give me that. What are you doing here? Jason had mentioned you were helping with a barn that burned down, but…” she spread her arms out and made a show of looking around. “This doesn’t look like a barn to me.”
“The barn is just about done. Rylee needed help getting into her attic. That was all I was doing.”
Faith arched a brow. “Uh huh. Sure. It’s not like you’ve suddenly developed an attraction to someone out of nowhere, right? Because Jason said—”
He cut her a sharp look, one he hoped told her to stay quiet. “It’s… complicated.”
A slow, measured grin spread across her face. At least it seemed like she was making an effort not to squeal out loud. “Complicated? Does that mean what I think it means? Are you two—”
“Nothing has happened. And I’m not sure it will. Did she tell you she plans to leave by the end of the summer?”
Faith frowned. “Oh.”
“Yeah. Oh.”
His sister waved a hand through the air. “Well, plans change.”
He huffed out a laugh. He very much doubted Rylee would agree.
“We’ll just have to make sure those plans change,” Faith amended. “Oh, Rylee…” she sang, moving across the room toward her. “I think what you need is a girls’ night out. What do you say? Come hang with us and get to know the people in Rocky Ridge better.”
Rylee cut a look at Tate. “I’m actually cooking lasagna right now.”
“Even better!” Wendy insisted. “We’ll get Serenity and Kat out here with some salad and garlic bread and make a night of it.”
Tate offered Rylee a reassuring smile. She hadn’t exactly invited him for dinner. This would be good for her no matter how much he wanted to stay. “I’ll catch you later.”
She opened her mouth as if to protest but he shook his head and mouthed, tomorrow. Rylee nodded and lifted her pinky. He chuckled and she laughed as the women dragged her toward the kitchen.