Page 20 of Spark
After that, they rode side-by-side in comfortable silence for a while, heading out towards the hills that rose on the eastern side of the ranch.
Matt kept sneaking glances at her, admiring her rounded, lightly-tanned shoulders and the play of sunlight on her shoulder-length hair.
He couldn’t help fantasizing about what her locks might look like, spread over his pillow.
Finally, she said, “So, you know whatI’vebeen doing for the past year. What about you? What have you been up to?”
He shrugged, suddenly worried that he was going to sound way too boring for a woman who had just spent a year living and working in a foreign country.
“Same old,” he said. “Helping Dad and my uncles run the ranch and wrangling visitors. Dad’s starting to talk about retiring in a few years, so that he can spend more time with Mom and maybe do some traveling. He thinks I might be ready to take over as ranch manager by then.”
“Well, we both know that Grandma Elle is never going to retire. She lives for this place,” Sophie said, dryly. “How about your Mom? Cinnamon + Sugar has been her life for a long time. Is shereallyready to give up her business?” She shook her head. “Not to mention, there are going to be a lot of really upset people in town if she takes away their cinnamon roll fix.”
Matt laughed, but Sophie was right. People lined up in front of the bakery nearly every morning, even on the coldest winter days, to try and get one of his mom’s famous cinnamon rolls, warm out of the oven.
“Mom said that if she sold the bakery, it would only be to someone who would keep things going the way they are now,” he replied. “And then she immediately started talking about if shedidsell it, maybe she'd continue to work there a few days a week as a cake decorator. I think Dad’s going to have to keep working on her for a while to get her to take an actual retired-people vacation, not just a week off.”
Enough about me and my parents, he thought.Time to figure out whether she’s open to being courted.
“So, you’re really planning to leave Bearpaw Ridge again? To go to medical school?”
She nodded, and his heart sank.
“If I get accepted anywhere, that is,” she added. “I should find out if I’ve made it to the next round by October at the latest. The schools I applied to are sending out admissions interview requests starting next month.”
“I’m sure you’ll have lots of acceptances,” he said, stubbornly ignoring his bear’s pleas to make her stay here, with them.
He knew he was going to be miserable when she left, but he wasn’t about to try and talk her out of her dream of becoming a doctor. He only hoped that maybe she’d come home for good once she was a doctor.
Maybe she could even work at the Bearpaw Ridge Medical Center, despite being an Ordinary.
Now, for the hard question, he thought, and gathered up his courage. Funny how the only things that ever made him nervous all had to do with her.
“So, um, are you dating anyone right now? Seriously, I mean.”
Her body language changed immediately. She went rigid in the saddle and looked away. “Everyone keeps asking me that!”
Cream Puff, sensitive to her rider’s moods, tossed her head and sidestepped uneasily.
“Really?” Matt’s interest was piqued by her reaction. He could swear that she was trying to hide something. “Like who? Your parents?” Then a bad thought struck him. “Chris?”
“All of the above.” She made a face. “I don’t understand why everyone’s suddenly so interested in my love life—or lack of it.”
So, she's interested in Chris, after all?Matt bit his tongue before he actually asked the question. He’d learned early on not to ask questions if he didn’t think he’d like the answers.
“So, that’s a ‘no?’” he confirmed, hoping that was what she'd meant by referring to a lack of a love life.
Sophie shot him an exasperated look. “It’s most definitely a 'no.'”
She sounded unhappy about that, but Matt’s spirits soared. Especially when she followed it up with, “What about you? Are you dating anyone? Or did you finally get a girlfriend?”
She’s asking whether I’m available! That’s got to be a good sign, right?He grinned at her. “Nope, no girlfriend and I’m not dating anyone right now.”
“Huh.” Sophie looked thoughtful. “Why not?”
Well, that sure put him on the spot. He sighed. “I’ve got my reasons.”
Time to change the subject, he decided. “So, whatreallyhappened at your birthday dinner? We didn’t really have a chance to talk about it yesterday, and I’ve heard about six different versions of the story so far.”
