That made her smile in a wistful sort of way. It had been a long time since anyone had been so concerned about her. Then there was all the work he’d done in her cellar. She’d gone down to look for the sealant she’d used on the floor and noticed that the crack she’d been meaning to fix had been all patched up.
“Speaking of Mateo.” The deputy’s gaze suddenly fell to the pile of leaves. “You think anything ever happened between him and Charity?”
Everly almost dropped her rake. Oh God. Charity would die if she heard him say that. “No. Nothing has happened between them.” Other than the occasional bar fight, maybe. She took in the bashful flush on his face. “Why do you ask?”
“Just curious,” he muttered, still focused on the ground as he raked. “She’s pretty. Seems nice.”
Nice? That wasn’t on the list of adjectives she’d use to describe her friend. Strong. Independent. Willful. Generous. Determined. Those all fit. But nice? “I wasn’t aware you two knew each other well.”
“We don’t. I mean…she doesn’t. Know me.” He moved swiftly past Everly and went to work on the other side of the fence. “We’d better get moving on this raking business. It’ll be dark soon.”
Tempering her smile, Everly raked her way across the pen to him. She couldn’t get over it. Charity had an admirer. Who would’ve thought? “Maybe you should ask her out,” Everly suggested innocently.
Dev fumbled with the handle of the rake and ended up dropping it in the pile of leaves. “I don’t think so.” He snatched the handle, but dropped it again. The redness on his face had spread to his neck.
“Why not? As far I as I know, she’s not dating anyone.” Had Charity ever dated anyone? Not that Everly could remember hearing about, but the woman had called Dev sexy just the other day. What would it hurt to tell him that? “She’s mentioned you to me.”
“Really?” He froze. “When? What’d she say?”
“Can’t remember exactly,” Everly lied. “But it was something about how good-looking you are.” Maybe if she didn’t give him specifics, Charity wouldn’t hunt her down.
“Good-looking, huh?” From the way his mouth mumbled the words, it was obvious he was trying not to smile.
They raked in silence, but she could see the wheels in his head spinning fast. He worked the rake double time. At that rate, he’d have the whole yard done in twenty minutes.
They didn’t need to do the whole yard, though. And Dev had nothing to be nervous about. He’d be a catch for the right woman. Everly leaned her rake against the fence. “She’d be lucky to go out with you, Dev.” From everything she’d heard and seen about him, he was a true gentleman. Of course, Charity’s language and manner sometimes reminded her of the trucker who often delivered her farm supplies, but she supposed stranger matches had been made. “I can talk to her, if you want—”
“Uh-oh.” Dev hadn’t heard her. He was looking down at the ground. Everly walked over to see what had him so concerned.
“Prints. Mountain lion.” He pointed to the soft dirt at the edge of the chicken yard.
Unease rippled through her stomach. “Maybe it was just a dog.”
“Too big to be a dog.” Dev knelt and inspected the print. “And it’s not the right shape.” He stood back up. “This is definitely a mountain lion. Fresh, too. Probably made when the grass still had dew on it this morning.”
“This morning?” Everly scanned the scrub oak on the hill. A shiver skittered across her shoulders. “But you were out on the rounds with me this morning. We didn’t see anything.”
“We wouldn’t. He probably came around before we were even up. That’s the thing with mountain lions. They’re good at hiding.” Dev wore that grim cop expression again. “Mateo’s back in town tonight, right?”
“Um, I think so.” At least she knew Charity would be back from their rodeo event tonight, and they were likely traveling together. “But he’s not staying here anymore.”
“How come?”
Because he’s too attractive, okay? That, combined with her inability to keep her heart out of things. Not that she needed to get Dev’s perspective on her and Mateo. “He’s staying with Levi.” That seemed like the simplest answer.
“I’d feel better if he stayed with you,” Dev said. “Just in case. This print is awfully close to the house.” The deputy pulled out his phone. “I can call him and let him know.”
Before she could argue, he had the phone against his ear. “Hey, Mateo. Everly and I found a print near the chicken coop. Looks like the cat made an appearance sometime today.” He paused. “Yeah. I was here this morning, but we didn’t see anything. Since it’s still around, I think it’d be best if you stayed here for the next few nights.”
Everly leaned closer, but couldn’t hear Mateo’s response.
“Of course she’s fine with it.” Dev shot her a questioning look.
She shrugged as though she had no idea why Mateo would be concerned. She was not about to explain their situation to Dev.
“Sounds good. I’ll tell her.” The deputy pocketed his phone. “He’s only about an hour away. Says he’ll come straight over.”
“Great.” That was just great.
Chapter Eighteen
Less than a month ago, when Mateo had driven up to this same little farmhouse, it had looked so different. Small and decrepit, a landlord’s worst nightmare.
It was still the same house, with the shabby siding and the worn roof, but Mateo saw it differently now. Everly had treated the place with the same care she treated her customers, her friends, and him. She had this restorative touch, nurturing and steadfast.
He parked behind Everly’s truck and stared at the little house, which glowed with the soft lights on inside. The whole trip home, he’d thought about Gunner’s take on his situation. The man was right. When you took away his riding career he didn’t have much of an identity, no roots, nothing to ground him. He’d left all of that behind. Or at least he thought he had. Maybe it wasn’t possible to deny who you were and where you came from. Maybe that would always be part of you no matter how hard you tried to reinvent yourself. Everly had a completely different life than she’d had back in San Francisco, but she didn’t hide from her past. Maybe he could learn her secret.
Nerves rolled through his gut. He’d almost dropped his phone when Dev had told him Everly didn’t mind if he stayed at her house. Of course, she likely had no other option but to agree, and now he had no other option but to go in there and face her disappointment with him.
When he pushed out of the truck, nerves simmered into anticipation at seeing her again. Maybe he would tell her more about Andres, about his childhood. Maybe that would help him figure out who he wanted to be, what he should take with him from the past and what he should leave behind. He took the porch steps two at a time, knocked, and waited.
Everly didn’t answer the door. “Hello?” He tried again, straining to hear noise inside, but only silence answered. “Everly?” The door wasn’t locked. He pushed it open and stepped inside. The kitchen and living room sat empty, but all of the lights were on. “Anyone home?” For a brief moment, he wondered if she was in the shower. Maybe she would come out in a towel and greet him with that soft smile of hers. Not very likely after she’d run out on him the other morning, but that didn’t stop him from hoping.
Mateo listened carefully and made his way down the hall. No water running. The bathroom was empty and dark. He rapped his fist against her bedroom door. “Everly?”
No answer. “Hello?” He pushed it open. A look at the bed they’d shared tortured him with a surge of want. God, he wanted to feel her skin against his again, wanted to hear her quick breaths and sexy little moans as he slid into her, bringing their bodies together.
Mateo backed out of the empty room, an urgency pounding through him. Where was she? Why wasn’t she in the house?
The café. Maybe she had some work to finish up. Though he didn’t like the thought of her walking back and forth from the hous
e to the café alone at night with a mountain lion on the loose. He left the house and followed the path she would’ve taken, shining the light from his phone around to look for any sign of her.
Up ahead, the café sat dark. He peered in the windows, worry settling heavily in his chest. Where was she? “Everly?” he yelled, taking off for the house again. When he reached the porch he tried her cell, but it went right to voicemail. “Damn it.” Helplessness washed over him. He had no idea where she would go, why the door would be unlocked and all of the lights left lights on. Unless she’d stepped outside for something…
The possibility ignited the worry into panic. It was a known fact that mountain lions would drag away their prey after a kill. Sweat broke out on his forehead. His hand shook as he dialed Dev.
“Hey, Mateo, what’s—”
“Where’d Everly go?” His body felt like it was on fire.
“I thought she was with you.”
“I just got here, and I can’t find her anywhere.” Mateo lifted his head and surveyed all of those acres stretching into the dark night.
“Maybe she went out with friends,” Dev suggested with a yawn.
Mateo wanted to throttle him through the phone. “Her truck’s here. The door was unlocked and all of the lights are on.”
“Well, shit.” The deputy finally sounded concerned. “That’s not good.”
Tell him something he didn’t know. Mateo stepped back inside the house. “Did she say anything before you left? Did she have more work to do outside?”
“Not that she told me about.” Dev was out of breath. “I stayed until she finished raking up the leaves, but then she went inside. I thought she’d be there for the night.”
“Well, she’s not.” Bracing the phone against his shoulder, Mateo started to search the kitchen drawers for a flashlight. “I’m going out to look for her.” He moved his search to the front coat closet and finally found a flashlight big enough to make a dent in the moonless night.
“I’ll be there in a few minutes,” Dev said. “Hang tight.”
Not a chance. Mateo hung up and ducked back outside. He couldn’t wait around for help. Everly was out there somewhere, and he had to find her.
“I have a surprise for you.” The glimmer in Darla’s eyes struck fear into Everly’s heart.
“Can we just agree to no more surprises?” She sipped her spiked mocha cocktail and gave Kate, Jessa, and Naomi a look. “I’m still recovering from her last surprise,” she informed them. “AKA the double date to Kate’s engagement party.” Otherwise known as the night she’d climbed onto the Mateo Torres roller coaster.
Well, technically, she hadn’t climbed onto him until last week, but still. It had all started with the date. Since the party, Everly had pretty much experienced the full gamut of emotions—she’d been elated, disappointed, excited, sad, and scared out of her mind that she’d never find a way off the ride. Seriously. She’d slept with the man who was kicking her out of her house, and now she couldn’t seem to get her mind or her heart off of him.
That’s why she’d texted her friends to ask for an impromptu book club meeting at the Chocolate Therapist. Hiding in Darla’s comfy back room had sounded like a much smarter choice than sitting around in her living room with him all evening.
“I still can’t believe you set her up like that,” Kate said to Darla.
“Especially with Mateo Torres,” Jessa added. “Geez, talk about throwing her to the wolves.”
“This surprise is different,” Darla insisted, waving them off. “I promise. You’ll love it.”
“You will,” Kate agreed.
“It’s a good one.” Naomi shot a conspiratorial grin to the others. If they were all in on it, it must not be too terrible.
“All right. What is it? Lay it on me.” Everly was feeling especially open to anything after finishing one of Darla’s specialty cocktails. It had been warm and chocolaty and calming. Mmmm. She sighed and let her back sink against the couch cushions.
“Well…” Darla drew out the word excitedly. She hopped out of her chair and zipped over to a row of filing cabinets along the wall. “The girls and I were talking about the farm.”
“About how we can’t stand to see it go,” Jessa clarified.
“Right.” Darla opened a drawer and pulled out a jar. “So we took up a collection.” She brought the jar over and handed it to Everly. It was stuffed full of cash and checks…
“Oh my God.” Everly sat up straighter, holding it in her hands, staring wide-eyed at a whole bunch of money.
“That’s just over two thousand dollars,” Naomi said, beaming. “Darla kept the jar here and we spread the word around town.”
“You guys…” She sniffled but couldn’t hold back the steady flow of tears. “I can’t believe this.”
“We know it’s not enough to pay off Mateo and save the farm,” Kate said. “But we’re hoping it’ll start the fund for a new farm. Somewhere nearby. Eventually.”
Everly couldn’t speak. She could only nod. And blubber. No one had ever done something like this for her before. Something so generous and unexpected.
“That’s not all,” Darla said, starting to sound like a game show host.
Everly dried her eyes. “But it’s enough.” She didn’t care if it was only $20; the gesture alone was enough.
Naomi dug in her messenger bag and pulled out a flyer. “We’ve also planned a Farewell to the Farm fund-raiser. For next week.”
Everly took the flyer and did her best to read it through bleary eyes. “Come and celebrate everything the farm and café has meant to the community. There will be food, drinks—”
“Provided courtesy of the Chocolate Therapist,” Kate interjected.
“Music and activities for the whole family,” Everly continued.
“Including some entertainment that Charity is working on with some of the rodeo stars in town.” Darla looked quite pleased with herself. “It’ll be an epic party with donations strongly encouraged.”
“This is amazing.” Everly looked at each of her friends, hoping they could see the gratitude that welled up in her. “I don’t think you understand how much this means to me.” With their acts of kindness, her friends were helping keep her dream alive.
“You’ve done so much for the town, Everly.” Jessa gave her hand a squeeze. “People were practically begging to contribute.”
“And you don’t have to worry about a thing,” Naomi assured her. “We’re taking care of all the details for the event. All you have to do is show up and enjoy it.”
“I will.” Everly finally got a handle on the tears. “I’ll enjoy every minute of it.”
There was more talk about the details, and Darla gave them a quick overview of the refreshments, but after a few minutes Jessa stood. “Sorry, girls. I have to get home.” She yawned. “I’ve been so tired lately.”
Everly shared a smiley, hopeful look with Darla. They’d regularly discussed how their friend had seemed a little plumper lately. In a good way.
“I should go, too.” Naomi gathered up her bag. “The inn has been so crazy lately that Lucas has had to be on toddler duty a lot.” Naomi and Lucas’s daughter Charlotte was just over a year old and one of the cutest little sweethearts Everly had ever seen.
“Thank you.” She rose and gave each of her friends a hug, which wasn’t nearly enough. “I’ve been so depressed about moving, but this helps.” She would still grieve over the farm—her sanctuary, her place of healing. She’d likely never be able to drive past it without a wrench in her heart, but she was also learning that life was about new beginnings. When one thing was taken away, something else was given in its place.
“Come on, girl.” Darla slung an arm around her. “Let’s get you home.”
Everly sighed. “I suppose it’s time.” She did her best to appear calm. She’d neglected to mention to her friends that Mateo was moving back in for a while. Mainly because she hadn’t even wanted to think about it.
Whi
le Kate stayed behind to catch up on paperwork, the rest of them paraded out to the street. Everly said good-bye to Jessa and Naomi and then crawled into Darla’s sleek little Mercedes.
“We need some tunes.” Darla dug around in her purse and pulled out her phone. “Oh. Wait. That’s weird. I have three missed calls from Mateo.”
“Really?” That couldn’t be good. Since Darla had offered to pick her up, she’d neglected to bring her phone. “Maybe he wondered where I was,” she muttered. “He’s staying at my house again because Dev spotted another mountain lion print nearby.”
“Ooohhh.” Darla’s eyes lit as she sped away from the curb. “Then I guess I don’t need to call him back. I’m surprised you didn’t want to go home earlier. If I had Mateo Torres as my houseguest, I’d never leave.”
And that was the difference between them. With Mateo there, she never wanted to go home. “Maybe we should switch places. You can stay at my house until they find the lion and I’ll stay at yours.” Darla and Mateo would probably have all kinds of great, unattached sex.
“Nah, he’s too hung up on you.” Her friend sped down the side streets, probably hoping for an opportunity to bait Dev into pulling her over so she could flirt.
“He’s not hung up on me. Mateo doesn’t get hung up on any—” The sentence ended in a gasp. There were three cop cars parked in front of the farmhouse, their lights flashing.
“Holy shit.” Darla turned the car onto the driveway. “What’s going on?”
“I have no idea.” Everly fumbled to get her seat belt off and had the door open before the car had even stopped.
“Everly?” Dev stood by his cruiser holding a flashlight and a radio.
“Did you find the mountain lion?” she asked, running over to him. “Where’s Mateo?” God, he hadn’t been hurt, had he?
“No mountain lion.” The deputy almost looked amused. “And Mateo is out searching for you.”
“Wait. What?”
“He couldn’t find you when he got here, so he called out a search party.” Wearing a huge grin, Dev brought his phone to his ear. “Hey, Torres, she just came back.”
True-Blue Cowboy--Includes a bonus novella Page 19