Colorado Cabin in the Pines (Peakview series Book 3)

by Jill Haymaker

  ***

  At exactly 5:00 p.m., Penny hugged her mom goodbye. “Don’t wait up,” she said before crossing the yard to the barn. She climbed on Ginger and called Bandit to follow her as she headed out the gate and across the field that led to the Walker Ranch. She’d stressed about what to wear, which was ridiculous. It was just a horseback ride, still…she wanted to look her best. She’d curled her long, blond hair and left it down, putting on some nice, clean jeans, her good boots, and a white tank top. She tied a flannel shirt around her waist, since even on these hot, Indian summer days, the air cooled as the sun went down. She rode out of the trees and the cabin came into view. Luke stood on the porch, and she heard the welcome “woof” as Brutus came charging down to greet Bandit. Luke waved and walked down to greet her, catching her by the waist as she slid from the saddle.

  “I missed you,” he breathed in a husky voice as his lips found hers, kissing her gently at first and then deepening the kiss, pulling her body close until they molded together as one. She wound her arms around his muscular neck and tangled her fingers in the hair. A moan escaped her throat as she pressed against his warm, hard body. She could easily skip the ride and dinner and start making love to him right now.

  Too soon, Luke pulled back and gazed into her eyes, his voice still husky. “We should take that ride, before the sun goes down. There’ll be plenty of time for other activities later tonight. I don’t plan on letting you leave until morning.”

  Her body quivered at the thought of a whole night together, but he was right. It would be a shame to miss out on such a gorgeous evening. Cold weather would be here soon. She did love riding with him. She reached up and touched the peeling skin on tip of his nose. “You’re sunburned. Is all the hay in?”

  “Yep.” He grinned, that charming boyish grin. “I’m all yours.”

  He’d saddled Geronimo before she arrived and tied him to the hitching rail in front of his cabin. The saddlebag on the back held the small velvet box, along with a bottle of champagne and two glasses. If all went well, he’d slip a ring on her finger before the sun slipped behind the western mountains. After they’d mounted their horses and called the dogs to follow, Luke led the way down the hill to the main ranch and through the gates into the vast meadow west of the barns. As they entered the field, Penny rode up beside him and he reached over and took her hand in his. Her skin was soft. He remembered the first time he’d reached over and entwined his fingers with hers while on a ride. It must have been almost ten years ago. They were in Junior High, and it was the first time he’d ever held hands with a girl. He remembered the tingling sensation that had cursed through his body. Not much different than the sensation it gave him today. Fortunately for them, Ginger and Geronimo had grown up together. Just as they had. The horses were content to walk side by side. As they rode slowly through the grass, he asked her about her week, and enjoyed her stories about her plans for the camp.

  “I saw Marissa when Mom and I were in Denver.”

  “How’s she doing?”

  “Okay, I guess. I promised to get her up to camp soon. She wants to come visit you and Brutus.” He looked over at her, a sadness showing in her eyes.

  He rubbed his thumb against her palm. “I’d love to see her. Maybe she can come for dinner sometime or spend the day riding with us.”

  “She’d love that. I’m glad I’m going to be around to keep an eye on her situation. Her grandma, the only real family she has, is sick and in a nursing home. She seems to feel all alone in the world. The foster home doesn’t give her much love. I’m so happy right now, I want to share some of my happiness with her.” Her voice trailed off. “Oh, and we seem to be the main topic of Peakview gossip right now.”

  He laughed. “I could have guessed that one. That’s life in a small town. I wouldn’t trade it though.”

  “Me either.” She looked back over at him. “Although when Violet started to get into her sex life, I changed the subject fast.”

  They both laughed. He recounted some humorous stories from the week’s harvest. In the cooling air, Luke breathed in the sweet scent of new mown hay. There was nothing in the world that compared to that fragrance. Home—it smelled like home. He hoped their kids would grow up with the same appreciation for the land.

  They had reached the far end of the meadow, and he turned Geronimo toward the small path leading up the hill. “Let’s watch the sun set from the ridge.”

  “Sounds nice.” She reined Ginger in behind him and they wound up the narrow, rocky path to the top. They fell into a comfortable silence, surrounded by sounds of the wind in the aspen leaves, the water falling gently down the creek bed, and the occasional rustling of the dogs forging their own paths through the brush. When they emerged from the trees near his mother’s memorial, he reined to a stop. This was it. The biggest event in his life since the day they had spread Mom’s ashes here among the rocks. Only this time, his heart was full of hope and happiness. His mother deserved to be a part of this moment, and he felt her presence surround him.

  Penny dismounted and after tying her reins to a nearby tree, and followed Luke over to the small bench which had been placed on the edge of the hillside in remembrance of his mother. She sat down beside him and took his hand in hers. Gazing out at the orange and purple sky outlining the setting sun, she knew how much this place meant to him. She felt honored that he was willing to share it with her. It was windier up here out of the protection of the trees. She shivered and untied the shirt from around her waist.

  Luke reached over and took it, helping her thread her arms into the sleeves. He grabbed the front edges and pulled her to him, placing a light kiss on her lips. “I love you Penny Anderson.”

  “I love you, too, Luke Walker.” She pressed her lips to his.

  “I’ll be right back.” Luke stood up and walked over to Geronimo and opened his saddlebag. Had he brought a blanket for them?

  Instead, he pulled out a small box, a bottle and two glasses. Her heart began to race like a stallion running from a storm. She could feel it pounding against her chest. Luke walked back and got down on one knee in front of the bench. She felt her left hand tremble as he grabbed it in his own strong hand.

  “Penny, would you do me the great honor of becoming my wife.” His eyes filled with tears—tears of joy.

  “Yes, yes, yes! A thousand times, yes.” She shouted into the wind as he slipped the ring onto her finger. She looked down. It was simple, yet beautiful.

  “Do you like it? It was my mother’s ring. It has a special place in my heart. I know she would be thrilled for you to wear it.” He looked at her hopefully.

  “I love it. It’s perfect. And I’m honored to wear her ring.” She blinked back the tears that filled her own eyes as he rejoined her on the bench, and his mouth found hers. The kiss lasted a long time, she wanted it to last forever. Suddenly she felt large paws on her lap and opened her eyes to a warm tongue licking her cheek, as if to say, “hey, don’t forget about us dogs.”

  Luke started to scold the puppy, but she stopped him. “Hey, its fine. I guess I’m going to have two furry kids now. They’ll be good training for the real thing. You still want to have kids, don’t you?”

  “As many as you want. I built our cabin to be filled with children. Any time you want to start practicing…” He smiled that devilish smile that had won her heart for a second time.

  “One step at a time. Let’s plan a wedding first.”

  Luke picked up the bottle of champagne and shot the cork over the edge of the cliff. He filled the glasses and handed her one. “A toast to us and our future here on Walker Ranch.”

  She clinked glasses with him, and took a sip. “To our future.”

  The sun had completely disappeared behind the mountain by the time they saddled up and headed down the steep trail. Fortunately, the horses knew the trail and the way home. Luke led the way, shining a large flashlight in front of them on the path. She smiled—he came prepared. As they neared the edge of the mea
dow that led to the cabin—her cabin, Luke reined in Geronimo and let her ride up alongside him. A full moon was just rising in the East illuminating the landscape like daylight. Luke returned the flashlight to his bag and looked over at her with mischief in his eyes.

  “Last one home cooks breakfast.”

  “You’re on.”

  Luke spurred Geronimo who took off at a full out run across the meadow. Laughing she slapped Ginger’s rump with her reins and galloped into her future.

  Peakview, Colorado-Where everyone has a chance at love. Go back to where it all began and pick up a copy of COLORADO SUNSET, and BREAKFAST FOR TWO available at Amazon.com.

  Melanie Gentry came to Peakview, Colorado to find a father she never knew existed. In this small mountain town, along with her fourteen year old daughter, Sophie, she’s establishing a new life. But will her new life include romance? Read on for a sneak peak of chapter one of COLORADO WRANGLER coming in the summer of 2016:

  CHAPTER ONE

  Melanie pulled open the blinds on the picture window of her book store, Sophie’s Choice. Really? It was snowing? But it was only the first week of September. When people said they had bipolar weather here in the mountains of Central Colorado, they were right.

  She looked down at her feet. At least, she had chosen boots for today. Although they were far from snow boots, at least they should keep her feet dry. She had saved all her change from tips at her previous waitress job in Columbus, Ohio for many months to splurge on these boots. Their soft tan leather and three inch spiked heels, accented her not so long legs. At thirty-one, she prided herself on her still thin frame and her long blonde hair. She shrugged into her daughter’s jean jacket hanging by the front door and prepared to dash across the street to Violet’s café for her morning coffee.

  As she stepped outside into the large falling flakes, it didn’t look too bad, not much more than an inch of the fluffy stuff was covering the ground. She pulled the jacket around her neck, and hurried to cross the deserted highway that ran through the center of the small town of Peakview. About half way to her destination, one of her heels hit a patch of ice hidden by the new snow, and she went down hard. As she struggled to right herself, she could feel the icy, wet snow seeping through her jeans. Gosh, she hoped no one was looking out of the windows at Violet’s to observe her klutzy move. She wiggled her right ankle and winced in pain.

  “Are you okay? Here let me help you.” The familiar strong, masculine voice rang out from behind her back. Great, the one person in all of Peakview County that she cared about impressing had seen her fall like a flatlander.

  “I think I’m fine,” she managed to say as the tall, sexy cowboy stepped into her view. From her embarrassing vantage point in the middle of a snow covered street, she looked up into his big brown eyes. His large tanned hands reached down and grabbed hers pulling her to her feet. She winced again as she put weight on her ankle.

  “You sure you’re okay?” He looked at her with concern in his eyes.

  “Yep. I must have twisted my ankle when I fell.”

  “He looked down at her boots and frowned. “No wonder you slipped on the ice. What are you doing wearing those heels in the snow?”

  She glared up at him. “What is it doing snowing the first week of September?”

  His handsome face crinkled in a smile. “Darlin’ you’re not in Kansas anymore. You best invest in some snow boots before winter really sets in.” He reached around her and brushed the snow off the back on her jacket, then lowered his hand to brush off the back of her designer jeans. His fingers paused and lingered on her butt. Suddenly the chill she was feeling from the wet denim was replaced by a burst of warmth that ran all the way up her body. Quickly he stepped back, his cheeks turning as bright a shade of crimson as the bandana he wore around his neck. Had he felt it, too?

  “Grab ahold of my arm and let me get you safely inside.”

  “Sounds wonderful.” She clutched on to his elbow and leaned against him for support. She didn’t need a man to support her, but right now she wasn’t complaining.

  A warm blast of air assaulted them as they walked through the door of the café.

  “Mornin’ Violet.” Hank removed his Stetson as they entered.

  Seeing Violet’s grin, Melanie quickly let go of his strong, muscular arm. Although she loved her new stepmom more than she could describe, everyone knew that all local rumors started here in the café. She had no idea what was going on between the two of them, and the last thing she needed was the whole town gossiping about them before she’d had the chance to figure it out. Ever since her dad and Violet found marital bliss last spring, Violet was determined to find it for everyone else in the small town, too.

  “My goodness. What happened to you?” Violet gave her a concerned look.

  “Nothing really. I slipped on the ice outside, and Hank was kind enough to give me a hand up. I’m fine.”

  “You need some better boots for this weather.” Violet glanced down at her feet.

  Why did everyone keep repeating the obvious? She wasn’t a total idiot. And who prepared for snow when summer wasn’t technically over yet? “I’ll work on that. She plopped down on a stool at the counter next to her rescuer.

  “Two strong cups of coffee and a couple of orders of your fresh biscuits.” Hank looked at her and smiled. “Saving damsels in distress is hard work.”

  A collective chuckle rose from the other local ranchers who filled the café.

  “Funny.” She punched him in the ribs with her elbow and grabbed the hot mug that Violet set in front of her and cupped it to warm her cold fingers. Time to change the subject. “I want to thank you for all the time and energy you’ve put into teaching Sophie to ride. Horses are all she talks about these days. She wants to get one and keep it in our small backyard.”

  “My pleasure. She’s a great kid. And she’s becoming a great horsewoman, too.”

  The way his eyes crinkled when he smiled. Did he have any idea how much sex appeal he exuded? “I know you’re busy. Just let her know if she gets in your way.”

  “Speaking of riding, when are you going to come up to Peaktop Ranch for a lesson of your own? Sophie keeps talking about how much she wants you to ride with her. Now that our prime dude season has come to an end and the local kids are back in school, I have plenty of time during the week. We’re only busy on weekends.”

  As much as she liked the idea of spending more time with this cowboy, she wasn’t sure about the horse thing. She’d never been much of an animal person, and horses were huge. She was still nervous about her fourteen-year-old being on one. Falling off into the dust would be even more embarrassing than slipping in the street.

  “I…I don’t want to impose. I’m sure you have better things to do with your time.”

  “Can’t think of one. Come on out any time this week, and we’ll get you mounted up. You’ll love it. I promise. Of course, you’ll need some better boots.”

  There was that smile again. And those dimples on each side of his face. “Well, I think I should wait a few days until the snow goes away at least.”

  “You really need to learn about Colorado weather, darlin’. Look outside, with that sun peeking through the clouds, it’ll all be gone before noon. Could be 80 degrees tomorrow.”

  With that he stood up and threw some bills on the counter. “The young lady’s breakfast is on me, Violet.”

  She started to protest, to tell him that her parents didn’t charge her for her meals, but thought better of it and stopped herself. Chivalry was attractive on him. “Thanks.”

  “No problem.” He placed the Stetson back on his head and tipped the brim as he headed for the door. “You be careful walking back across the street.” Her eyes followed his ass as he walked across the room. Then he was gone, and she let out an unconscious sigh.

  “A woman could do a lot worse than that cowboy.” Violet’s voice made her jump as she refilled her coffee.

  “Not in the market.” Melanie hugged
the older lady before heading to the door, herself. “Have a nice day.”

  ***

  Hank cranked the key several times before the old ranch pickup sputtered to a start. He made a mental note to buy a new battery before winter set in. As he pulled out of the sleepy little town, he smiled as his thoughts returned to the events of his morning so far. What was it about that little blonde that got to him?

  He didn’t have much use for women in his life. In the eight years that he’d been the head wrangler for the Peytons who owned Peaktop Dude Ranch, he’d successfully managed to avoid any entanglements with members of the fairer sex. He liked it that way. He’d always related better to horses than females. Not that there hadn’t been plenty of opportunities. Many lady guests from back east seemed to want a quick affair with a real, live cowboy. Even some of the married ones had made him sly offers. He knew better than to mix business with pleasure though and politely declined all requests. None of them really wanted him, just the idea of him. Living the cowboy life as he did in the small room above the saddle barn, offered little to a woman in the long run. Of course, he’d had a few one night stands years ago when he’d been on the rodeo circuit and was young and foolish. But now that he was about to turn forty, he had closed the door on that part of his life—forever.

  Still, as he parked the truck behind the barn, he hoped that Melanie would take him up on his offer for riding lessons. It wouldn’t be awful to spend a little more time with her.

  ***

  Melanie was extra careful as she made her way back across the icy street. She pushed open the unlocked door and turned the sign to OPEN. Not that she thought many people were likely to come in today, but any sales helped out. She was surprised with how well the little shop did since opening last May. The summer tourists had kept her busy, but now that her daughter was back in school and most of out-of-state tourists had returned home, she had some extra time on her hands. She could sit there all day and daydream about Hank’s chocolate eyes, but she had work to do. Time to order some more books. She wanted to replace some of the wildflower and hiking guides, which had been her best sellers during the summer, with some about skiing and snowshoeing for the winter.