Page 16 of The Rancher's Fake Fiancée

“Yes, you both are single fathers of daughters. Not an easy task but you both seem to handle it quite well.”

Cole fell silent for a few moments. “You found all that out about him in your brief meeting?”

“I believe he asked about Emmie, and I said something in return, and he volunteered he had a daughter like you…being a single parent and all. I think I mentioned something about the shops here and coming shopping over here possibly with Emmie for school before the summer is done or some such. Then you arrived.”

“I see. Yes, we do have that in common. Maybe I’ll drive you both over for that shopping trip.” He left it at that. No way was he going to see her back in the eligible sheriff’s town…Emmie or no Emmie.

*

Way to go,Parker.She allowed a private piece of information to come into their conversation and it involved someone who was related to her. But she had to hope that it took care of Cole’s interest in the topic. She needed to stay on her A game even though the toughest part was still to come. For a moment, she thought she detected a bit of testosterone one-upmanship when Cole shook hands with the sheriff. Was her intuition and instincts that far off? Had to be. If not, then the rancher was a lot better at pretending to be a fiancé than she first gave him credit for being. He would need those skills and more when his ex-wife arrived with possibly a very deadly link to the subject of their hunt for the last two years. And mindful of Emmie seated in the back now with headphones on and locked into an interesting game on her tablet, she had vowed she would not be harmed no matter what. And those words had somehow come to mean more in the last week or so as she got to be more involved in the child’s life and the people she cared about.

Not for the first time, she found herself wondering what sort of mother could choose to leave her child behind. Her case had not been one of those. She and her siblings had ended up in foster care, not because anyone left them on purpose. Their grandmother, who had taken them in when they lost their parents, had developed cancer but she at least found someone kind who could keep an eye on them and help them through a system that could be cruel to some.

Tori had taken the role of surrogate mother then and she still was that to each of them even as adults. The one thing Jessie knew constantly in her life was that she and her sister and two brothers loved each other and looked out for each other even as adults and scattered throughout the state with their own lives.

Destiny’s River was a beautiful name for the place Tori had decided to stay in when she stepped off a bus many years ago. She described it as their home. Two of them had indeed settled there and they sang its praises. And she had to admit that there was something about it that drew her to it now and then in her mind. But she still had a job that took her far from it. As did her younger brother, who was a U.S. marshal. Maybe one of these days her feet would find their landing place. Maybe it might look a lot like Destiny’s River. Who knew? In the meantime, the pair she shared the vehicle with at the moment were her main concern. Funny…before she would have used the label assignment. Concern…that was different, and its meaning could bring some problems if she weren’t careful. And she had always counted on being careful and being able to move on alone… no looking back. Why would that give her pause at the thought of it now?

Chapter Eight

“There’s my favoritegirl!”

“Hi, Papa Joe…are the fish biting?” Emmie was first out of the truck and running to find a bear hug awaiting her from the older man. Cole and Jessie followed at a more sedate pace.

“They sure are and our fishing poles are ready, and worms are fighting to be the first one on your hook.”

“Are you planning to catch our dinner? If so, I’ll head back to town and get some sandwich fixings just in case,” Cole joked as the two men shared a handshake and slap on back.

“I’ve got a roast in the oven just in case, smarty pants,” the man returned the joke. And then his smile widened as it landed upon Jessie. “Welcome to my humble abode, Miss Jessie. Your presence certainly brightens things up a bit around here. Do you fish by any chance?”

“Afraid I have never tried that before.”

“Well, who knows, you just might want to give it a try sometime. You can come out here and I’ll show you how it’s done. I would say your fiancé could show you, but he hasn’t lifted a fishing pole in years. I keep telling him he’d be a much more contented person if he would, but he doesn’t listen.” He gave a wink along with those words. They were clearly meant to tease his nephew.

“While you two are at your favorite fishing hole, is there anything we can do here towards dinner?” Cole spoke up ignoring the man’s taunts.

“Nothing right now. We’ll need a salad tossed together when the meat is done in an hour or so. You show Jessie around the falls and pool…relax for once. Oh, and when you get down to the shallow pool, best bring the dessert back with you. Little one and I have some fishing to get to today.” He pulled his fishing cap down on his forehead and joined an impatiently waiting Emmie with their fishing poles in hand. She gave a quick wave as they started off.

“Fishing poles? He wasn’t kidding. I remember my brother making long cane poles into simple fishing poles when they were kids.”

“Yes, my uncle prefers them over a good rod and reel. He swears they bring in the bigger fish. And Emmie is a true convert to that theory.” He nodded in the direction of the cabin. “I’ll give you a tour of the place and then show you some of the falls.”

He led the way along the pathway of stone squares towards the low-roofed ‘cabin’ but as they neared the structure, Jessie was aware it was more than her first thought. The decking surrounded the structure on all sides. Stepping through the doorway that Cole held open for her, she had to smile.

“Some fishing cabin,” she said and shook her head. “This is beautiful.” Her gaze took in the large fireplace that encompassed one wall made of natural river stones. The view of the river drew her steps to it. Large sliding glass doors opened onto a wide expanse of deck that ended just over the river’s edge. Deep blue cushioned chairs surrounded a round table in one corner with a bright shade covering part of it. Lounge chairs rested on the other side of the deck. She turned and saw off to the left a long bar separating the modern kitchen from the living room.

There was a hall on the other side of the room. Cole noted her glance.

“There is a large bathroom that separates two bedrooms down a common hallway. Through the door beside the refrigerator in the kitchen you will find stairs that lead down to a basement that Uncle Joe refers to as the rec room…bunkbeds for extra guests along with another bathroom and his pride and joy…his pool table. Don’t let him fool you into playing a game with him. He is a real pool shark.”

“Point taken. Thanks for the warning. This is an amazing place. It is such a beautiful spot and so peaceful. Uncle Joe is a lucky man.”

Cole had looked in on the roast while she had made her comments.

“That smells incredible,” she commented.

He nodded and closed the oven. “Uncle Joe watches the cooking shows. Don’t say anything. It’s his secret except we all found out some time ago. When he lost Aunt Eva, he said he almost starved to death because she was the cook of the family. So, he began watching the shows and then boxes of pots and pans and all sorts of kitchen gadgets began arriving at the ranch’s post office and after some investigating…without him knowing…we found out he was becoming quite a chef.”

“I will say again that you all are lucky to have him in your family.”

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