Page 47 of Knot what I want for Christmas
“Because it’s true. I know you. I sometimes think I know you better than you know yourself. You would have been home sick. You would have been lonely. You were made to be a rancher like your dad – not some big rodeo hotshot star.” He stares at me sulkily. I don’t blame him. The truth can be hard to hear. “Know what else I know?”
“No. But I have a feeling you’re going to tell me.”
“That girl was made for you. She was made for us.”
Chapter Sixteen
Nash
I’m grooming the horses at the end of the day when I catch a whiff of that honey scent.
Hollie.
“Hey,” she says, walking into the barn. “Mrs. J said you were out here seeing to the horses, and I thought I’d come give you a hand, if that’s okay.”
“Always appreciate any offer of help,” I tell her.
She smiles and goes to fetch a set of brushes, returning into the store and helping me with Bonnie.
“I don’t think I could ever get tired of this,” she says.
“No, me neither. I like it, especially at the end of the day. Kind of puts me at peace.”
“It’s mindful,” Hollie says.
“Yes, that’s it. Mindful,” I say, nodding my head.
“Is the job hard then – running a ranch?” she asks. “Is it stressful?”
“No. It’s freaking hard work, but most of the time it’s enjoyable. Obviously there are times when it’s tough – when welose a calf, when one of the horses is injured – but the good times definitely outnumber the bad. And sometimes you have to go down through the lows to appreciate the highs.”
“I think you’re right,” Hollie says, dragging the brush over Bonnie’s rump and then stroking her hand over the smooth fur in a way that has me captivated. “Annie says you’re gonna be building a house.”
“Yeah. As soon as the spring comes, when the frost breaks and the snow melts. As soon as the ground is soft enough, we’re going to start.”
“Whereabouts are you going to build it?” she asks me.
“Next to our cabin. It’s the perfect spot. Best views of the mountains from there.”
“It sounds amazing,” she says.
And then I hear her shuffle on her feet. She wants to say something, but she’s nervous, and this causes me to look up at her face.
“Annie says you’re going to start a family.”
“In an ideal world,” I say, watching her expression. “Of course, we have to find the right woman first.”
She’s not meeting my eye.
“Oh,” she says breezily. “There isn’t a special girl at the moment then?”
“No.” I stop what I’m doing. I wait for her to flick her gaze to mine. “But I think there could be.”
“Clay kissed me,” she blurts out, which is not what I expected her to say.
My gaze automatically falls to her lips. Pink, plush, soft-looking.
“I don’t blame him. I’d love to kiss you too, Hollie.”
