At the Rancher's Request

Her heart went out to him. He definitely knew that first-hand from experience. “I thought I was in love. It’s been a shock that hurt badly.”

“So this just happened?”

“Yes, the first of the year and maybe I should have stayed home and waited to see how I feel six months from now before packing and moving, but I just wanted to get away from him and everyone else.”

“I can see that.”

She appreciated what an attentive listener Mike was. “I’m angry with him and I don’t want to marry him, but it hurts because I was very much in love with him. Or thought I was. It makes me question my own judgment.”

“We all make mistakes. That’s part of life,” Mike said. “I hope it works out for you when you go to California. Your family will miss you, I’ll bet.”

She nodded. “I sent a text to my mom to let her know where I am tonight. She would have been wild with worry if I’d had to text that I was stuck on the highway in a storm and the car had caught on fire.”

He smiled. “That does sound bad. A neonatal nurse. You have to deal with some tough situations.”

“Yes, but we have a lot of wonderful moments that make it all worthwhile. I love taking care of the babies and each one that pulls through is a miracle. That’s as good as it gets.”

“I’m sure it is.” They sat in silence a few minutes while she watched the logs burn and thought about babies she had cared for.

“Sure you’re not hungry for dinner?” he asked. “I’ve got all sorts of things in the freezer and fridge, plus I don’t mind cooking something.”

“Thanks, but I’m really not hungry. I would love a little more hot chocolate, though.”

They stood and headed toward the kitchen, the lights flickering out. “We’ve got generators, but the lights may come back on like they did before,” he said, taking her arm.

Instantly, she was aware of the physical contact with him. His warm, steady hand created a tingling current. It was dark and his deep voice, as he spoke about a previous storm that had knocked out power, drew her as much as his touch, her reaction to him again surprising her.

He stopped and from the sound of his voice, she assumed he had turned to face her. “It’s as dark as a cave in here. Are you all right, Savannah?” he asked. His voice had changed, gaining a husky note.

She pulled away a bit. “I’m fine,” she whispered. “What about Scotty? His monitor won’t work if the power is off.”

“I’ll start the generator and then go check on him, but it hasn’t been a minute since the power went off. Scotty will be fine.”

“It’s all right if you want to go check on him now,” she whispered.

“I don’t want to leave you alone in a strange house in a pitch-black moment,” he replied, his voice even lower and the husky note more noticeable. “Did I make you uncomfortable by taking your arm?” he asked. “A gentlemanly touch to lead you down the hall shouldn’t be a big deal,” he whispered.

Logic said he was right, but her reaction didn’t follow logic. She was intensely aware of the contact, of his closeness, of the dark that enclosed them and transformed the moment. The restrictions that light brought—reminders they were almost strangers, ordinary caution—were gone in the blanket of darkness and made Mike essential.

“Mike, I don’t need another complication in my life.”

“You’re being sensible,” he said after a stretch of silence and she felt as if he had been about to say something else. His words were in agreement, but his husky tone wasn’t and he hadn’t moved.

“I have to be. I don’t need one more tangled crisis tearing my emotions,” she whispered as they remained immobile.

Silence stretched. “Come on,” he said finally. “We’ll get a funny movie or just talk.”

His tone of voice sounded normal again and she felt relieved that he let the moment go, a physical contact with him that had shaken her because mutual attraction once again sprung to life between them. He took both mugs and the bowl from her hands as if to prove he wouldn’t touch her again. Lights flickered and came on again.

“Timed just right,” he said.

“You go check on Scottie and I’ll refill our cocoa,” she suggested, taking the mugs and bowl back from him.

Mike nodded and she watched him walk away. Tall, with that thick, curly black hair, he held a growing appeal and her awareness of him had heightened, something that continued to amaze her.

As she entered the kitchen she thought about the past minutes with Mike. This was a complication she really didn’t want. She didn’t want to risk her heart even in a deep friendship. She didn’t trust her judgment of men—she had failed completely to see the defects in Kirk’s character. The break with home and family had been stressful enough—her future even more uncertain, lonely and difficult. Lost in thoughts, she reheated and stirred the hot chocolate Mike had made earlier.

He came striding into the kitchen and desire stirred again, physical, unwanted, something she intended to quell. It didn’t help that Mike looked virile, energetic and filled with life.

“Scotty is blissfully sleeping. He’s a sound sleeper which is great.”

“That’s wonderful.” She handed him a mug of cocoa, taking a sip of her own. She turned to walk to a nearby hutch, pointing to a picture of a dark-haired woman holding a baby. “Is this a picture of your wife and Scotty?”

“Yes,” Mike said. A muscle worked in his jaw as he gazed at the picture. “That’s Elise.”

“She was beautiful. I’ve noticed her other pictures.”

“Since Scotty lost her when he was too young to really remember I feel better with her pictures around. She loved him beyond measure.”

“I’m sure. A baby is a treasure,” she said. “That’s nice to have a lot of her pictures around for him. It’ll help him. He really looks like you, but maybe that’s because I know you a little and can see a resemblance.”

“People say he looks like me. Right now I don’t see it so much except for his curly hair and brown eyes.”

He led the way back into the family room, to their spot in front of the fire.

“So would you like to tell me how you met Elise?”

“Sure. We were in college and had an elective class in world history together and just gradually did homework together. We both were dating other people. I broke up first and then she did and we got serious fast. As soon as we graduated, we married and moved to the ranch. After a couple of years we had Scotty. She was diagnosed with breast cancer shortly after he was born and she died right after he turned one.” Mike stared into the fire, looking as if his thoughts were far away in another time and place. He turned to face her.

“So what’s your life been, Miss Neonatal Nurse?”

She smiled at him. “College and work. I started dating Kirk and got engaged to him last spring. We’d planned to marry in July.”

“That’s a long engagement.”

“It was a long engagement, but we didn’t talk about the things we should have. Even though I’ve known him for years, I didn’t know about his feelings on a lot of subjects. We never talked about kids.”

“You’re a neonatal nurse and you didn’t talk about kids?”

“No. I didn’t talk about the babies I cared for at the hospital because they all had health issues and that’s personal and confidential, even when the patient is hours old—not something to share with others. I should have at least found out his feelings about babies and wanting kids. Kids just didn’t come up between us until the breakup. I found out he didn’t want to have children. At least not for the next fifteen years while he’s young and the business is growing.”

“Wow. That would be a shock. Seems like he might have mentioned this to you.”

She nodded. “Kids are definitely in my future.”

“They will be unless you get a new career. Sorry.”

“Well, any feelings between us are over, but I’m still eager to leave for a while. If I don’t like living in California, I’ll go back home.”