by SJ McCoy
He went and popped his head around the laundry room door while the coffee brewed. The kittens were nursing. He left them to it. He was happy to have been able to help, but he didn’t want to interfere. He didn’t think momma would want to stick around for long and he didn’t want her or the little ones becoming dependent on him if they were going to go back out in the world and have to fend for themselves. He shook his head as he pulled the door to. He did know that if she wanted to stick around, he’d gladly let her. Buster and his buddies had made the shed their home, but that had been their choice. Carter would have let them in the house if that’s what they’d wanted.
He cocked his head to one side at the sound of movements upstairs. Summer was up and about then. He poured himself a coffee and set a mug out ready for her. He’d already decided that he was going to take the morning off—maybe the whole day. He was almost finished over at Cassidy’s place. He’d told the guys they could take off early for the weekend. It wasn’t like him to skip work. But then it wasn’t like him to be wanting to spend time with a woman either.
He smiled when she came into the kitchen. She was so damned beautiful. What kind of crazy was he that he kept refusing to sleep with her?
“Good morning,” she said with a smile. “How’s our new momma and the little ones?”
He loved that Hero and her kittens were Summer’s first concern. That said a lot about her in his book.
“They’re doing great. Do you want to come see?”
She nodded and followed him to peek around the laundry room door. “Aww. Aren’t they adorable?”
He nodded. They really were. “Do you want coffee?”
“I’d love some, please.”
Once she had her mug, they sat at the table in the breakfast nook.
Summer checked her watch. “I’m sorry. Am I making you late? Do you need me to get going?”
“No. I wondered if you want to go out for breakfast?”
Her smile lit up her face. “I’d love to. Don’t you need to go to work though?”
“No. It’s fine.” He was going to make an excuse, say it was a quiet day or something, but he thought better of it, deciding instead to be honest. “I probably should, but I don’t want to. I’d rather spend the time with you.”
His honesty was rewarded with the biggest smile he’d seen on her face yet. “Thank you!”
He shook his head—she was thanking him? Surely that should be the other way around? “I thought we could go to Pine Creek. They do a great breakfast.”
“That sounds wonderful.”
Half an hour later, Carter pulled up in the parking lot at Pine Creek. Despite having told Summer that they did a great breakfast, he hadn’t actually been here in years. He knew his parents liked to eat here on Sunday mornings when they could, so it must be good—he hoped.
He came around and opened Summer’s door for her. She slid down and smiled up at him. “Who’d have thought our first real date would turn out to be breakfast?”
He smiled back, wondering who would ever believe him that he was taking her out for breakfast, after she’d spent the night at his place, and he still hadn’t slept with her?
Inside, the hostess greeted them with a smile. “Carter! It’s good to see you in here. And…” She did a double take as she looked at Summer and obviously recognized her. “Oh! It’s good to see you, too. Welcome. Will it be a table for two?”
Carter nodded. Grateful that she didn’t seem to be about to make a fuss.
“How about a corner table?”
“That’d be great, thanks.”
They followed her. The place was quiet, just a few tables were occupied and she led them to the very far corner away from the others. She turned to them with a conspiratorial smile. “Is this okay?”
“Thank you. This is wonderful. We do appreciate it,” said Summer.
Carter smiled. It was perfect. He’d been a little nervous on the drive over here as to whether they would get to eat in peace, or whether Summer would be recognized.
Once they were settled, Jean—he remembered her name now—brought them coffee and menus. “The special is the eggs benedict.” She smiled at Summer. “But if there’s anything you want that isn’t on the menu, you just say so. We’ll be glad to make whatever you’d like.” She looked over her shoulder, as if to check no one was listening. “We’re thrilled to have you here. Anything you want, you just let me know.”
Summer smiled back at her. “Thank you. I’d love the eggs benedict, please.”
“Coming right up,” said Jean. “And you, Carter? Do you need a minute?”
“I’ll do the same.”
Once she’d gone, he smiled at Summer. “Is it like this everywhere you go?”
“Not at all. This is wonderful. She’s so nice.” She shrugged. “Sometimes people make a big fuss and I wish I’d stayed at home. Other times people make a big deal of not saying anything, but they nudge each other and whisper, and that gets pretty uncomfortable too. This is just perfect.”
Carter was glad. He’d hate for her to feel uncomfortable.
She sipped on her coffee and smiled at him. He wanted to pinch himself. Was he really sitting here having breakfast with Summer Breese?
“Do you have any plans this weekend?” she asked. “I was thinking I’d like to go down to the park and have a look around.”
His heart sank. He’d promised Mason that he’d help him with the horses. Family came first, without question, but right now, he was wishing he hadn’t said yes.
Summer’s smile faded. He must have been quiet too long.
He didn’t want her getting the idea that he didn’t want to spend time with her. “I’d love to go with you, but I need to help Mason at the ranch.”
“I see.”
He had the feeling that she really didn’t see. “You could come with me if you like? We’re working in some of the horses. You could watch? Though I don’t know how much fun that’ll be. We could head on down to the park when we’re done.”
Her smile returned. “I’d love to watch.”
He nodded. He hoped Mason wouldn’t mind.
Jean returned with their food, making Carter smile. Although his parents liked to eat here, his mom always complained about how slow the service was. He should tell her to come with Summer if she wanted to speed things up.
“Can I get you anything else?”
“This is great, thank you,” said Summer with a smile. “It looks wonderful!”
Jean was obviously pleased with the compliment. Carter loved that Summer wanted to make her feel good. She definitely wasn’t one of those celebrities who was difficult or demanding.
While they were eating, a couple came in and Jean led them to the other side of the restaurant, seating them as far away from Carter and Summer as she could. He noticed that it didn’t stop them from glancing over every now and then. He hoped they weren’t going to come over. He was enjoying this and didn’t want any intrusions.
Summer grinned at him as she finished her food. “That was wonderful!”
He grinned back. “It doesn’t look like there’s anything wrong with your appetite.”
She shrugged. “I enjoy my food. I always have. Though I must admit I’m used to at least getting on the treadmill every day to work it off.” She raised an eyebrow at him. “I don’t suppose you feel like taking me to your gym, do you?”
He nodded slowly, uncertain as to what kind of reception she might receive there.
She looked a little disappointed and he realized that this might look like the second time in ten minutes that she was asking to do something with him and he was being less than enthusiastic in his response.
He smiled. “Hey, don’t get me wrong. I’d love to. I just don’t know if the guys in there would know how to behave themselves around you.”
She smiled back. “That’s okay. I’m sure you can protect me. I’m just glad it’s the guys you’re worried about and not the girls.”
He gave her
a puzzled look.
She laughed. “For a minute there I had visions of you not wanting to upset all your female admirers by taking me in with you.”
He had to laugh at that. “I don’t have any female admirers.”
“I don’t believe you for a minute! I’ll bet you do really, don’t you? You’re not trying to tell me that there isn’t a woman in there who follows you around begging you to go out with her, are you?”
His smile faded as he remembered Melanie.
~ ~ ~
Summer’s smile faded too. “Oh!”
“No! It’s not like that. I’ve been working out in there for years. I’ve never been interested in the ladies and they’ve never been interested in me.”
She gave him a skeptical look.
“It’s true! They know I’m not in the market, so they don’t bother.” He sighed. “Well, they didn’t. Until you. They realized that I might be back in the market, so there’s one girl who wants me to take her out, but I’m not going to.”
Summer felt bad. She’d felt a momentary jealousy and had only intended to tease him. She was pretty much convinced there were quite a few women who were interested in Carter. How could there not be? He was gorgeous looking and a genuinely good guy. She hadn’t meant to make him uncomfortable, and she certainly hadn’t intended to make herself feel uncomfortable about some nameless girl at the gym who might be her competition for Carter’s affection. She couldn’t help wondering now, if she might be the reason that Carter didn’t want to sleep with her? Maybe he was keeping his options open?
He held her gaze. “What are you thinking?”
She shook her head. “That I wish I’d kept my mouth shut. I was only teasing, but now I feel jealous.”
Carter laughed. “Do you realize how ridiculous that sounds?”
She sighed. “Probably. But that just makes me feel stupid.”
“Oh, darlin’, I’m sorry.” He reached across the table and took hold of her hand.
She couldn’t help but smile at the way his huge hand engulfed hers. She met his gaze and squeezed. “Please don’t be. It’s just me being silly. I like you. I know lots of other women must like you, too. I’m just a visitor, I’m an oddity. I know that…”
He held her gaze. “You’re special is what you are. You’ll have to forgive me. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad. It’s just the thought of you being jealous over me seems a little far-fetched. You know? You’re the big country star. I’m just the yard guy. The guy at the gym.”
She shook her head firmly. “No. Look at it from my perspective for a minute, would you. I am the country singer, I’ll give you that, and that might seem great from the outside. But from where I sit, it’s not so great at all. It means I don’t get to be me. I don’t get to ever have anyone care about me just because I’m me. I get guys who want to date the country singer, but who never know or care who I really am or what I want…”
“But I…” Carter started to interrupt, but she held a hand up to stop him.
“Exactly. I know! You’re not like that. You like me, you care about me, you couldn’t care less that I sing or that people know me. That’s why it matters so much to me. You’re amazing, and part of me thinks that you’re too amazing to want to get caught up in the circus that is my life. You’re genuine and you’re real and that makes you more likely to want a girl who works out at the gym with you, than to want me. And that’s what makes me jealous!” Her voice was raspy by the time she’d finished. That was a lot to say in one go, but she’d needed to say it—for her own sake as well as Carter’s. She was getting clear about how she felt. He thought that she was the prize, just because she had some silly singing career, and all the money and fame that went with it. She knew that, in fact, he was the prize, and not just because he didn’t care about any of that!
He stared at her for a long moment.
“Sorry,” she said. “Sorry, I ranted at you, and sorry that I got jealous.”
His slow smile spread across his face and he relaxed. “No, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you jealous.” He pursed his lips and looked away for a moment.
“What?”
He looked back at her with a smile. “I kind of like it though.”
She laughed, relieved.
He was looking away again. She followed his gaze. The couple who had just come in kept looking over at them. She sighed. She shouldn’t expect to escape from prying eyes completely.
“Do you want to leave?” asked Carter.
“I don’t. I want to sit here with you and enjoy the rest of my coffee. They don’t mean any harm, I’m sure they’re just curious.”
“Okay. Whatever you want. But we can go if they make you uncomfortable.”
“I’m fine.” She had a feeling Carter was more uncomfortable than she was.
“What do you want to do next?” he asked.
“Do I get you for the whole day?”
He nodded. “If you want me.”
She couldn’t help laughing. “You know I do. But apparently we’re not allowed to go there—yet!”
He laughed with her. “You know what I mean.”
“And you know what I mean, too. Do you think we should go back and check on momma and her kittens before we do anything else?”
“Yeah. I’d like to.”
“Let’s do that then.”
“Okay, and then how about I take you out to the ranch? If we go have a quick look around now, you’ll be better able to decide if you want to spend any time there this weekend. I’d hate for you to feel you’re stuck there for hours if you don’t like it.”
She smiled. He was so sweet. “I’d love to go see, but I’m not worried about not liking it. I’m sure I’ll love it. I used to ride growing up. I love horses and being around them.”
He smiled at that. “Okay then, let’s get out of here.” He caught Jean’s attention, which wasn’t hard to do, since she seemed to have been hovering unobtrusively the whole time. Once he’d paid they made their way to the door. Summer was acutely aware of the couple seated by the windows watching them. She nodded and gave a friendly smile as they passed. They smiled back and that was it. What a relief!
Chapter Nine
Carter brought the truck to a stop outside the barn. He’d called ahead to let Mason know that he was bringing Summer down for a look around.
She jumped out before he had chance to go around and get her door for her. He crammed his hat on his head and went around to stand beside her.
“Oh, Carter, I love it! This place is amazing.”
“I’m glad you think so. I’m kind of partial to it myself.”
“I can see why. How lucky were you that you got to grow up here!”
He nodded. He did consider himself lucky. He looked around, trying to see the place through new eyes. Through Summer’s eyes. How must it look? He had to admit the ranch was pretty impressive. They’d come down the long driveway from the road, past the big house, which stood on a little rise. It was a two story with a wraparound porch. He was pretty sure his mom had popped out onto the porch for a second when they’d passed, too. They’d stopped here in front of the barn which was pretty impressive in its own right. On the other side of the driveway was the entrance to Shane’s guest ranch. The lodge was hidden from sight, but the first few cabins were in view. As he looked over at them, Carter realized that for the first time, he felt no pain. He’d lived in the end cabin—it had been the only cabin in those days—with Trisha when they got married. He’d come home to that cabin to find her in bed with one of the hands. Every time he’d seen the place in the years since that day, he’d felt a mixture of pain and shame. He was ashamed that he hadn’t been enough for her. Ashamed that he’d been too stupid to know what was going on. Ashamed that his heartbreak had been so public. It was odd to him that today, for the first time, he felt nothing.
Summer put a hand on his arm and smiled up at him.
Was she the reason? And was she going to be the cause of even m
ore pain?
“Are you going to show me around?” she asked.
“Yeah. Come on. Let’s start in the barn.”
Mason met them at the doors. He slapped Carter’s shoulder. “Good to see you.” He tipped his hat to Summer. “And you. How are you settling back in?”
Summer smiled. “Wonderfully, thank you.” She shot a look at Carter. “Though that’s mostly to do with your brother, here.”
Carter felt the color in his cheeks. Damn. He wished he could somehow make himself stop doing that. He didn’t feel too bad though. It made him happy that Summer was open about liking him. It made him happy that she was interested in seeing his life. He wasn’t going to let himself worry about how he’d feel when she’d gone. If he was smart, he might not want to let her into every part of his life—but then no one had ever accused him of being smart.
Mason grinned at them both. “Well, if you guys are busy this weekend, don’t worry about me, Carter. I can take care of the McClellan horses no problem.”
Carter was tempted to say, great. But he couldn’t bring himself to leave Mason in the lurch. Summer took the decision away from him, anyway.
“I’m excited to come watch,” she said. “If I’m not going to be in the way.”
“Not at all,” said Mason. He looked up and grinned when he saw their mom approaching. Carter pursed his lips. Would it be too much to ask that he should be able to take Summer to meet her when he was ready? Apparently it would. His mom reached them and smiled at Summer.