Claire’s jaw twitched.
Her friend better not quit on her. It would take more than twice as long if Tyrell had to help score the cells as well as decap, and he wouldn’t let her forget it. Tyrell was nothing if not efficient. He’d hired a crew to extract the honey from his hundreds of hives, but Sierra couldn’t afford to do the same. She could manage the twenty Green Acres owned with a little help from her friends.
Claire held up the frame for inspection. “Better?”
Sierra looked it over carefully “Yes.”
“Good.” Claire plunked it into the extractor and reached for the bottle of water hanging from the belt loop of her jeans.
Sierra didn’t glance at Tyrell. He’d expect them to get the last few frames in and grab a water break while the extractor spun. Although there was no shortage of frames on the rack to scrape for the next go ’round.
When she’d participated in extraction days last year, it hadn’t seemed so daunting. The eight people in her class had worked together over two days under the watchful eye of Tyrell’s dad, who’d taught the course.
This year she was lucky Tyrell could take the time to help her and Claire at all. Of course they’d had to wait until his own honey had been processed, but that was only fair as it was his building and equipment, and he derived his sole income from beekeeping. He’d already shipped numerous barrels to bulk buyers.
A few minutes later Tyrell adjusted a few of the frames, then gave the extractor a tentative spin. Evidently satisfied, he started the motor before rounding the machine to pull Sierra to his side. “How’s it going, doll?”
Did he have to call her that in front of Claire? Sierra pulled away from his hug. “Doing great. How many more stacks of supers?”
“We’re about half done.” Tyrell grimaced as he took in the row of frames the girls had yet to score. “Or at least I’m half-done decapping.” He gave her another squeeze then peered into the whirling extractor.
The breeze from the extractor wafted a sweet scent over Sierra. She inhaled deeply. Was there anything sweeter than honey? Could be she’d eaten a little too much of it in the past year, but it was a hard habit to break. Honey had become a staple in or on everything from homemade mocha to baked goods to toast.
“Where do I put them now?”
She looked across at Claire, who held up another scored frame. Sierra pushed the row of frames back a little on the rack to create space. She picked up another frame herself. Enough daydreaming. This was no time to lose momentum.
Chapter 4
Tyrell folded Sierra’s hand inside his massive one as they strode from the parking garage at Spokane International Airport to the terminal. She glanced up at him and found appreciative eyes peering out from under his black cowboy hat.
“You’re a doll, Sierra. All the men in the terminal will be jealous when they see such a pretty girl kissing me goodbye at the gate.”
A little tug to free herself from his grip did nothing but cause him to chuckle. “Aw, come on. You like it. Why else did you wear that dress I told you I liked a few weeks ago?”
Sierra’s cheeked flamed. She’d forgotten his appreciative whistle in the church parking lot. This was a dress she felt confident in. She knew she looked good, and she needed every ounce of poise she could muster for three hours with Gabe in her car. She’d never dreamed Tyrell would take it personally.
Tyrell slid his arm around her as they stepped into the pedestrian crosswalk. She shifted slightly, but he didn’t seem to notice. What was happening here?
Sure, she liked Tyrell, but that wasn’t the same thing as wanting to marry him. She’d be twenty-eight in a few short weeks and didn’t have time to date someone she wasn’t serious about. She constantly felt like a fifth wheel — not that Jo, Claire, or their guys made a deal of it. It’s just that, well, she was the fifth wheel.
The terminal doors swished open and they headed for the nearest overhead display. “Flight’s on time. Good.” Tyrell snapped his carry-on handle into the closed position. “Shall we grab a coffee before I have to go through security? We’ve got a few minutes.”
She didn’t want Gabe to come up on them together, and he’d be here anytime. She needed a break between to gather her poise and prepare for the return journey. This was crazy. How had she gotten herself in this predicament with both men in her passenger seat today?
Sierra smiled up at Tyrell. “You know they have better coffee and more options up in the hub. Besides, I’m meeting Gabe any minute.”
His brown eyes darkened as he turned her toward him and clasped his hands behind her back.
Her hands braced against his forearms as she tried to keep some distance.
“Sierra, be careful with him. I know he was a local guy, but he’s been gone for years. Your heart is in Galena Landing, and he’ll probably want to keep moving on.” He leaned closer.
The mint on his breath caressed her forehead. She pushed back, needing air.
“I’ll be back in a few days, doll. I’ll miss you every moment in between.”
How could she answer? She hadn’t dreamed his thoughts had progressed this far.
“Sierra?”
She looked up just in time to see his mouth coming for hers, too quickly to avoid. His lips pressed against hers more gently than he’d seemed capable of. She couldn’t respond, but did she even want to?
Tyrell pulled back, his brown eyes deep pools.
No, she wasn’t ready, biological clock or not. Sierra managed a sort of smile. “Have a good flight, Tyrell. If you learn something new about beekeeping, let me know.”
“I will. See you Monday.” He dropped a kiss on her forehead and released her then pulled his carry-on handle up and strode toward security without a backward glance.
Sierra stared after him as he turned the corner, out of sight. What had just happened? Had she agreed to something?
Someone cleared his throat behind her, and Sierra whirled.
From less than six feet away, Gabe raised his eyebrows. “Ready whenever you are.”
The flush she’d felt a few minutes ago had nothing on the raging inferno that engulfed her throat and face now. This would be a good time for one of those sinkholes they had in Florida. Something — anything — to swallow her up.
But no. The tiled floor of the airport stayed solid beneath her feet. Gabe was still just a few feet away from her, arms crossed over his button-up shirt.
Sierra gathered her hair in one hand and tossed it over her shoulder. “You’ve turned in your rental?”
He nodded.
“Well, then, let’s get going. My car is out in the parking garage.” She tucked her thumb behind her purse strap and headed for the automatic doors.
Silence followed her. Was Gabe there or falling behind? She glanced back and nearly stumbled. Right there.
Gabe caught her and held on until she regained her balance then let go immediately.
Her arm chilled. “Sorry about that. I’m not usually so clumsy.” She definitely didn’t want to give him any hints about what his presence did to her.
“No problem.” He stepped up beside her as they crossed the pedestrian walkway.
A few minutes later they were both buckled into the old VW hatchback. Sierra stuck the key in the ignition. “Any other stops you need to make?”
Gabe shook his head. “You?”
“No one needed anything. Guess it’s a straight road back to Galena Landing.”
“Let me buy you lunch,” Gabe said. “Know anywhere good?”
Now that he mentioned it, she was hungry. “There’s a good diner just across the state line.” She stopped the car to pay the parking attendant.
“Sounds good.”
She pulled the car into traffic heading away from the airport. “Yep, it’s a fun spot where they try to do as much local as they can. By local, in this case, they mean regional. Their beef comes from a ranch in Oregon.”
He shook his head. “You guys really eat, sleep, and brea
the this local food stuff, don’t you.”
Didn’t sound like a question to her. “We do.”
“I don’t get it. I’m after quality. I’m after organic, if I can afford it. Local just seems to limit it too much.”
“A lot of small farms use organic practices but aren’t certified. And a lot of the big ones like Jo’s stepdad’s business, Jimmiesin Farms, are just in it to see how much money they can make by walking the line as close as they can.”
“I suppose.”
It was going to be hard returning control of Nature’s Pantry to him if he didn’t get with the program she and Doreen had been building. Sierra glanced over her shoulder and merged onto I-90 as an eighteen-wheeler shifted over into the other lane.
A sharp intake of breath from the passenger seat caused her to look at Gabe’s white face. “There was plenty of room.”
He flexed his fingers but didn’t look at her.
Probably thinking of the crash that took Bethany in completely different circumstances. She’d built up fantasies of this man that had nothing to do with reality.
Time to get him out of her head.
* * *
Seeing Tyrell Burke had flung Gabe straight back to high school when jocks ruled the corridors. Thankfully Burke had been a few years ahead of him and his bunch. They’d managed to avoid him and his kind for the most part.
What might Sierra see in a guy like that? Could Burke actually have grown up a little? Oh, he’d matured all right, but he still looked the same, only with broader shoulders and even more swagger.
Gabe got out of the car and followed Sierra to the Side Street Place entry. How come he’d never noticed this café before? Sierra was right. Traffic whizzed by on I-90 behind him, within clear view. Maybe it was new since he’d left for Romania.
Sierra reached for the door handle. Man, he was forgetting to be a gentleman. He strode the few steps and pulled the diner door the rest of the way open.
She smiled at him over her shoulder. “Thanks.” Sparkling blue eyes. Really, she was rather pretty in her own way. Blond hair curled where it hung below her shoulders. A bit of makeup, but not a lot.
Pink lipstick. Was it smudged where that guy had kissed her?
He jerked his gaze toward the diner’s interior. Better to examine the decor of the building than the woman. He followed Sierra to a booth beside an oval window and slid onto the padded green vinyl seat. “So, what’s good?”
Sierra opened her menu. “Everything.”
Gabe glanced over the options. Burger on sourdough? Onion rings stacked inside? Sold.
A few minutes later they dug into their meal.
Sierra wiped her mouth with her napkin. “I don’t imagine you’ve had time to go over things at the store yet with Doreen.”
He shook his head. “We’re meeting Monday evening. She didn’t want to do it during store hours.”
“Too busy.” She laughed. “I know she’ll want to go through everything point by point and not get too distracted by customers.”
The word “really?” was on the tip of his tongue, but he bit off a bite of his Frisco-style burger instead. Amazing food. “I had no idea.” He should have read Doreen’s emails in greater detail. Inspiration struck. “Why don’t you tell me what you think made the difference? It was easy for one person to do everything the store needed a few years ago.”
“You started it with the organic seeds rack.” Her blue eyes met his. “That got some people starting to think. Doreen asked the Burkes for local honey, and Jean Donaldson asked if we could handle her egg orders for convenience. Someone else started up a home business making pickles and relish.” She shrugged and stabbed French fries with her fork. “It kind of grew from there.”
His mouth soured. Now what was he supposed to do? It would be easier to sell a thriving business. Hmm. He tried to keep the words light. “Doesn’t sound like you ladies need me around at all.”
Sierra stared at her plate and bit her lip.
What in the world was that supposed to mean? “You’re obviously doing a fine job.”
“It’s been hard for Doreen with her RA. I’m sure she’s relieved you’re back to take the helm.”
Gabe set the burger back on the plate and forked an onion ring out. “Yeah. I didn’t realize how bad it’d gotten.” He hadn’t wanted to.
“I’ll have my clinic moved out by the weekend so you can have your space back.”
“About that…”
“No, it’s fine. I haven’t gotten as much clientele as I’d hoped, so a part-time office at home will be better. Then I’ll be around to do my share of work at the farm. You’ll be in charge at the store, and Doreen and I can phase out.”
“But I’m not sure what I want to do.”
She paused, coffee cup halfway to her lips. “What do you mean?”
He shook his head and stared out the window. Traffic on the interstate zoomed by. “It’s been a tough few years.”
Sierra’s gaze softened slightly. “I know, but…” She hesitated, searching his face.
What clues was he giving her? Could she read his mind? He kept his expression as blank as he could.
“Forgive me if I’m too personal,” she said at last. “But it’s been more than three years since Bethany died.”
Gabe winced. Even now, the words sounded harsh. Cruel.
“For everyone else, life goes on, Gabe. You can’t stay in a time warp forever.”
He shoved at his cup, sloshing coffee over the edge. “You think that’s what Romania was for me?”
Sierra sopped up the coffee with a wad of napkins. “I didn’t say that.”
Then what had she meant? “I’ll have you know there’s more need in places like Romania than here. I could make a real difference there. Orphanages are full of unwanted kids who crave someone to love them and care about them. It’s not a time warp. It’s a whole different world with its own set of real actual problems.”
Her voice took on an edge. “I didn’t say it wasn’t real or that your presence served no purpose.”
“Sure sounded like it.”
“Look, like it or not, you’ve got responsibilities in Galena Landing. You own a building and the business within it. Your mother-in-law—”
Gabe leaned in. “I don’t have a mother-in-law. Don’t you get it? Doreen is…” What?
“You’re wrong, Gabe. She’s still part of your world. You knew it even then, because you asked her to run the store.”
“I bought it from her. There was no one else qualified to take over.”
“Oh, come on. You’d bought it five years before. You think she could just step in? It wasn’t that easy. You had a whole new way of doing things she struggled to figure out.”
If he let himself think, his conscience would bite him.
Thankfully, Sierra kept right on going. “You may not feel like you have ties to her, but you do. No matter what you do with your life, she’ll always be your first mother-in-law.”
Heat shot up his neck and across his face. “My first mother-in-law? Who said anything about remarrying?”
Those pink lips had looked almost alluring half an hour ago. Now they pressed in a tight angry line across her face while her blue eyes hardened. “How old are you, Gabe?”
“It’s none of your business.”
She shrugged. “You graduated with Zach, and he turned thirty in August. I’m assuming you’re the same or will be soon.”
“Your point?” He crossed his arms.
“My point is that you’ve probably got another fifty or sixty years ahead of you. You don’t have to get married next week, but can you really close off that part of you forever?”
The words stabbed. Pain oozed out of the wound. Alone for that many years without Bethany by his side? But who could ever take her place? No one. It was disloyal even to consider it for an instant.
Chapter 5
Sierra shouldn’t have to apologize to Gabe, should she? They’d finished their meal w
ith only the bare minimum conversation. Gabe had insisted on paying, saying he’d called it in advance. Which he had, but only because he’d beat her to it.
She shot him a sidelong glance in the car.
He sat with arms crossed across his pinstriped button-up, both feet planted on the floorboards, staring straight ahead, chiseled jaw clamped. A little mousse in his hair created loft that hadn’t been there the other day.
Okay, so she had some thinking to do. Re-evaluating. Somehow she’d built ideas up in her head about Gabe. Three years of her life wasted when she could have been married by now. Not that Galena Landing boasted that many eligible bachelors.
Tyrell Burke. He was fun. Nice enough. Could she marry a guy like Ty? How would she know? She’d never given him much chance. She’d subconsciously compared him to a guy on a pedestal.
The pedestal was empty.
She sighed. “Look, I’m sorry for being so blunt with you in the diner. It’s none of my business what you do with the rest of your life.”
“You’re right.”
Well, that had gone over well. Still two hours on the road to Galena Landing though. She could crank some music or a Deconstructing Dinner podcast and ignore him, but…
“Talk to me, Gabe. Tell me about Bethany. Tell me about Romania.”
“Why?”
“Why not? Seems like you might need to get things off your chest.”
“And you’re some kind of psychologist?”
She grinned. “Not so much. Just someone who’s known you for a while. Someone who cares.” She shouldn’t have added that last bit.
“No reason you should care.”
Something snapped. “Gabriel Rubachuk, give it up already. You can close yourself off all you want, but you can’t stop people from caring about you. I knew you and Bethany before. Not long, perhaps, but enough to have had a glimpse into your relationship. You had a good thing going from what it looked like.”
“We did.”
“A person can’t live in the past, Gabe.”
A Farm Fresh Romance Series 1-3 (A Farm Fresh Romance Box Set) Page 55