Page 55 of The Unbuttoned Ranger
Chapter Twenty-Two
CaDee saw the changes in her body. She felt and looked healthier than she had in a long time.
It also helped that she and Sharp snuck away to be with each other as often as possible.
Although he’d found the tracker on her car, there had been no sign of Dante in Fin’s Creek.
She sat underneath the shade of an oak tree and looked at her hands. They were dry, cracked and her nails were broken, but she didn’t care. She was at peace.
Every evening after she’d put Carsen down to sleep, she’d come here to her sacred spot to jot her thoughts in a journal. Writing seemed to help her, ease the tension. Ursula had joked one evening that CaDee should write an inspirational book to help other women who’d been in a tough spot with a partner.
Opening to a blank page, she paused her pen, but nothing came to mind. Usually, she had so much to write that she couldn’t keep up.
She leaned her head back against the rough bark of the tree and stared up into the full branches. When she turned her head, she spotted Sharp. He was working late finishing up the last bit of painting. He lifted the brush high on the wall and the muscles in his back flexed, embellished by his slick, sweatsoaked skin. His worn and faded jeans tightened across his firm bottom.
He gave her creative juices a tweak.
She wrote on the page…
A stranger.
A good looking stranger.
She stretched her gaze to him again, admiring his body. They’d explored each other in every way since they started their…what? Neither had used the term relationship.
He squatted to wet his brush from the can and her mouth salivated. Only in her dreams had she imagined it possible for a man to have such a broad chest.
Sexy,she wrote.
I wonder what it would be like to marry Sharp.
She caught herself laughing and quickly covered her mouth, not wanting her muse to see her there. There was some distance between them, but she had a feeling he had a dog’s ears.
Watching him paint relaxed her. Imaging those hands on her body made her want to go to him and sneak off to one of the barns.
Instead, she sat there and ogled him like a toasted cheese sandwich. Her favorite snack.
Turning the page in her journal, she started a list. A bucket list.
Entry One.
Have sex again with Sharp.
She’d lost count how many times they had in the last month. Each time it got better.
Entry Two.
Let go of the past to focus on the future.
She wouldn’t allow Dante to ooze into her presence any longer. There came a time for every woman to expect respect.Sharp showed her every day how much she meant to him. Although they hadn’t told anyone about their relationship, he brought her flowers, her favorite candy, made sure she ate dinner, and always made sure she was okay.
Dante had done those things at first, but it fizzled quickly.
Entry Three.
Come into the open about her feelings for Sharp.
She scratched out the entry.
