Page 22 of The Cowboy's Unshakeable Love

“I do my best.” He surprised her when he leaned in and brushed his lips over hers again. It was only a brief touch, but it sent shivers down her spine. “But come on, we’ve said our bit, we don’t need to talk it to death. You still want to come for dinner?”

“I do.”

“Awesome. I don’t know what I’m going to feed you – I’m not much of a cook, but …”

“We’ll figure something out. I can help. And as soon as I’m back on my feet, I’ll cook for you – it’s one of my favorite things to do.”

He grinned. “I’m not going to say no to that. Especially because it makes it sound like you really do plan to stick around when you’re back on your feet.”

“I do. It might seem as though I just made the decision suddenly, but the possibility has been floating around my head for a while. You just helped me to get clear about it.”

~ ~ ~

Travis didn’t know what to do with himself on Friday morning. He sat on the front deck, drinking his coffee and watching the mountain change color as the sun slowly rose into the sky. He loved this time of day, and until this week, he’d made the most of his mornings out here like this. He hadn’t sat out like this for the last few mornings because he’d been going to Callie’s to pick Retta up. She’d spent every day with him since that first time she’d come over – and he’d loved every minute of it. Today was the first time that he wasn’t heading over there, and he felt a bit lost.

He deliberately hadn’t asked her to come today. She was going to the bakery with Libby this afternoon, so he knew that he’d see her there. But other than that, he wanted her to have some time to herself – to have a break from him.

She’d surprised the hell out of him when she’d agreed so readily that she should move here. Part of him wondered if shewas just swept up in the flow of things. From the little she’d said about her life, it sounded kind of lonely. Yes, she worked at the school, and was surrounded by people every day – kids and teachers. But it didn’t sound like she had many friends. She said she loved the beach and went when she could – but she went by herself. She’d told him about a restaurant that she loved, but again – she went by herself.

It seemed to Travis that it’d be all too easy for her to get caught up in what she had going on here. And of course,hewasn’t the only thing she had going on. Libby was bringing her to the bakery this afternoon. Candy and Ari had already been in touch and were talking about taking her out for a girls’ night. The main point of her being here was to be around her daughter. And then there was Kolby. As her son-in-law, he’d make sure that Retta was included as one of the MacFarland clan.

It was probably dumb of him to step back a little, but it felt like the right thing to do. He couldn’t explain the why even to himself. He just knew that he didn’t want to feel like he’d been the one to convince her to stay. Maybe that was all it was – if she decided at some point that it had been a bad move, he didn’t want it to be his fault.

He got to his feet and took his mug back inside. As he rinsed it in the sink, he wondered if his motivation for not inviting her over today was to give himself a break. He chuckled. Nope. It wasn’t that. He might need to check in with himself about how he was starting to feel about her, but he didn’t need a break to do it.

He jogged down the front steps and out to his truck. He’d had a few long-term relationships in his life, but nothing that he’d ever wanted to make permanent. He was in no rush to lock Retta down, but he knew without a doubt that was the direction he wanted to go in.

He decided to take a tour of the cabins. He and Retta had spent the last few days going through them. He’d described the kind of feeling he wanted the guys who stayed there to get from the place, and Retta had made notes in a big legal pad while he talked.

When he was done, she’d tell him the kind of furnishings she thought the place needed, right down to the kind of artwork, and knick-knacks she thought would work. He’d been less than enthusiastic about the knick-knacks at first, but when they got back to the house on the first evening, she’d asked to use his computer and shown him the kind of things she was talking about. And she was right.

After that, they’d gotten into the habit of sitting on the sofa together after dinner. She searched on his laptop and found things that she thought would add to the character of each of the cabins. He wasn’t good at imagining what she meant when she talked him through it, but when she showed him pictures, he totally got it.

When he reached the first cabin, he wandered around, trying to imagine the throw on the back of the sofa, and the painting on the wall behind it. He smiled when he could see it in his mind’s eye. She was right. He didn’t know if it was a difference between men and women – or if that was too much of a generalization, and it was just that he and Retta were different people – but she definitely had a knack for knowing what little details would make a place feel like a home.

He dug his phone out of his pocket when it rang.

“Ace! What’s up, bud?”

“Just checking in. We’re going to the bakery this afternoon. Will you be there, or are you busy?”

“I’ll be there.”

“Oh.”

“Why do you sound surprised?”

Ace laughed. “Because Ari talked to Libby, and she said that she’s bringing Retta. That made me think that you must be busy, or you’d be the one bringing her.”

“Nah. I thought she’d be better off getting to know the girls.”

“Hm. Has the appeal worn off now that she’s here, then? From what I hear, she’s been spending every day at your place with you. You had enough already?”

“No. I can see why you’d think that but no. I just … She thinks she might want to move here, so I want her to make sure that it’s really what she wants.”

Ace laughed. “You mean you don’t want her to be so caught up in you that she moves here because of you?”

“No. It’s not that – well, maybe a little bit, but damn, that’d be pretty arrogant of me, don’t you think?”

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