Page 7 of The Cowboy's Temporary Solution

"Well, let's get you two back to the ranch and settled in, shall we?"

Either Mom sees the look on Bernie's face, or she just has good timing.

"Serenity looks like she's had a long day." Mom hits the key to open the back hatch on the SUV and I jump to load up our luggage before holding the back door open for Seri to slide in behind the passenger seat.

"Have you talked to your brothers, yet, Ranger?" Bernie shoots over her shoulder from up front as Ma pulls away from the curb and heads toward town. "Gunner was just telling me how much he's looking forward to you being back on the ranch again."

She knows where to strike, that's for damn sure.

Tightening my jaw in order to keep my tongue in check, I bend my neck to one side and crack the joints that have stiffened up in it.

From the corner of my eye, I see Seri watching me with a combination of curiosity and compassion, but this isn't the time or place to fill her in on those details.

Without a word, she reaches across the back seat and slips her dainty little hand into mine. Her touch makes it easy to relax the fingers that have balled into a fist against the top of my thigh. It feels so good to have my hand wrapped around hers that I don't let go all the way back to the Delta O.

4

SERENITY

Of course, Kimberly wasn't expecting Ranger to show up with anyone when she picked us up from the airport. She also thinks Ranger and I have been dating for several weeks already-- it's as reasonable for her to only have had one guest room prepared as it was for her to assume we wouldn't need two.

You'd think I'd have slept like shit even after it was me that insisted there was room for both of us in the king size bed.

I should have been tossing and turning and feeling awkward with Ranger's long form stretched out beside me.

I slept like a rock.

Maybe it was just exhaustion from a long day of flights, the fact that it's three hours later back home, or the long, hot bath I took after enjoying a delicious, home-cooked meal in Kimberly's massive farmhouse kitchen while letting Ranger field the questions his younger brothers fired off in rapid succession.

Maybe I liked the feeling of Ranger's weight pressing into the mattress, the heat of his body sharing space with mine, and the comforting sounds of his breathing in the dark.

Even if the man did stay a frustrating distance from me all night. Far enough that there was no way I could "accidentally" end up touching him in my sleep. No matter how hard I might have tried.

"What did Singer say?" Ranger's deep voice sounds gruffer today, the bags under his eyes not hidden by the brim of the black Stetson he wore for the funeral. He's been withdrawn, but that's to be expected since we're at his father's funeral and all.

"She's going to text me tomorrow so we can schedule a time to get together." I reply, feeling entirely too comfortable when Ranger's arm drops over my shoulder.

"Good," he says more to himself than to me. "Sing's about your age now, I reckon. You two will likely get on pretty well."

He's right, Singer Kelly is the youngest sibling of the Kelly family and the last one left in Slow River to run her family's ranch. She's a year younger than me at twenty-five, and has managed to pull the historic Walking Y out of bankruptcy by converting it to a bed and breakfast and trading the traditional cattle for Pygora goats and a small herd of alpacas that she raises for wool.

Ranger introduced her to me after the chapel services, when people begin filing into the small reception area in search of snacks and levity.

We instantly hit it off. If I were to move to Slow River for some reason-- I swear, I donotlean into Ranger's side a bit as that thought wafts through my head-- I'm sure we'd be besties.

Ranger has also introduced me to a handful of other people in the crowded space, but he seems to be looking for someone in particular as he guides me out an open side door, toward the sound of male voices laughing loudly between volleys of language not suitable for the occasion.

"Let me introduce you to the Lazy P." Ranger steers toward the colorful language toward a group of men leaning against a tree and passing a flask between them.

This is where we find Ranger's two younger brothers, Archer Dean and Lance, and another man that's introduced as Lynx Savage and I'm wondering if he's connected to the Savage family that owns the U&U.

Before I get to ask, though, Ranger's pointing between four men while he rattles off their names, giving faces to what have been just random words on birth and property records for the last several months.

"Flint, Beryl, Jasper, Slate."

A hat brim gets tipped or touched with the mention of each name, and the second in the line-up-- Beryl, I think-- hands me the flask.

"Ma'am," he says by way of greeting.

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