by Jaci Burton
He knew what it was like to grow up without a mother's influence. But he was a guy, so he had managed it just fine. A girl needed her mother. At least Sam had had her grandmother. And from what he was hearing, a damn good mother, too.
"It's why you're so close to your grandmother."
"Yes. She's been like a mother to me. I don't know what I would have done without her and my grandfather."
"It's good to have people in your life who love and support you."
"Yes. You know what that's like. I know you had issues with your mom, but you had your dad while he was alive."
"Yeah. He was the rock of the family for sure. And we had Martha managing the ranch house. After our mother took a hike and divorced our dad, Martha and her husband Ben stepped up in a big way. They filled the gap my mom left."
She smiled at that. "Martha's amazing. We all love her."
He laughed. "Everyone does."
And this was venturing into way personal territory, when he'd meant for the night to be light and easy. He stood. "Well, tomorrow's an early day for me. Probably for you, too."
Sam got up as well. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have kept you here so late."
"Not a big deal. I enjoyed it. Thanks for the invite."
He gathered up the blueprints and headed to the door, then turned to her. "Thanks for dinner, Sam."
"You're welcome. Thanks for giving me a peek at the blueprints. I'm looking forward to seeing what you do with the mercantile."
She leaned against the doorway, the two of them close. Closer than he'd been to a woman in a while.
God, she was pretty. And she smelled really good, and he really needed to get out the damn door before he did something stupid like haul her into his arms and kiss her.
"Night, Sam."
"Good night, Reid."
He walked to his truck and got in, shutting the door firmly behind him. He stared down the street. It was a nice street. An older, established neighborhood with a lot of tall, well-filled-in trees. The kind of neighborhood where you knew people had lived there a lot of years and everyone knew each other. He could imagine Sam really liked living there.
He'd had a good time tonight. He hadn't expected to fall so easily into conversation with Sam. To like talking to her, to enjoy spending time with her.
His last relationship had ended in disaster, and he'd sworn then he wasn't going to do another one. He'd gone out with women--one-or-two-date-only kinds of things, and that was it. No emotional attachments, no feelings involved.
Tonight he'd felt energized and excited and, for the first time in a long time--attracted.
That wasn't going to do. First, because he didn't live here, and second, because he swore he was never going to have those kinds of feelings again. Not after what had happened with Britt. Even though two years had passed, he still wore the scars of that relationship and didn't intend to ever let a woman stomp all over his heart again.
He started up the truck and drove away.
Chapter 5
TWO DAYS LATER, Reid was up well before dawn, figuring no one would be awake on the ranch.
He was wrong. When he came downstairs, Logan, Ben, and Martha were already in the kitchen. There was a full pot of coffee, and Martha was already cooking breakfast.
"I thought I'd be alone when I came down," he said as he headed over to grab a cup of coffee.
Logan shot him a look. "Man, you have been gone a long time if you've forgotten what time everybody gets up around here."
Ben looked up from where he sat at the table with a cup of coffee. "Ranchin' doesn't start at noon, boy."
Reid pulled up a spot at the table and laughed. "Yes. It's all coming back to me now. Dad rousing us when it was still dark outside to go out to the barn and saddle the horses. I was barely tall enough to get up on a horse back then."
"Gotta start 'em young, kid," Ben said. "Best time to learn that ranchin' work ethic."
"So I was told. More than once." Reid took a couple long swallows of the strong brew and winced. Ranch coffee wasn't anything like what you got at the downtown coffee shops in Boston. But he'd be damn well awake by the time he got to Hope.
"Got your crew ready for teardown today?" Logan asked.
"Yeah. Deacon and his men will meet me there."
"You plannin' on digging in and helping, or are you gonna play supervisor?" Martha asked as she laid a plate of eggs and bacon in front of him.
"Thanks, Martha. Normally I supervise a project, but this one I'm intending to dig into."
"Can't say as I blame you," Logan said. "Lots to do there, plus the sooner you get finished, the sooner you can get back to your fancy Boston digs."
Reid laughed. "It's more about what's underneath the layers of dust and debris and old fixings than getting back to Boston. And yeah, I do have a company to get back to."
"But you have someone you trust taking care of business on the Boston end, don't you?" Martha asked.
"Yes. My vice president is someone I trust completely, and he's got things well in hand during my absence."
After serving everyone their food, Martha grabbed her plate and took a seat next to him. "That has to offer you some sense of comfort."
Reid scooped eggs onto his fork. "It does. At least I know my business won't fold while I'm gone. Tim and I will be on the phone and text and e-mail frequently so I can stay on top of what's going on there."
"Peace of mind's important," Logan said. "You can't be gone from work without knowing what's going on. Otherwise it'll drive you crazy."
"Says the man who called once a day from Paris when you were supposed to be on vacation with your wife." Ben shot Logan a look.
Logan shrugged. "Like I said, peace of mind is important."
Reid laughed. He knew how important the ranch was to Logan. Though Reid and Luke were part owners in the ranch, it was Logan who had stayed and worked the ranch after their father died. Logan's life was ranching. He loved it like it was part of his soul. Ranching had never been something Reid had wanted to do. He was glad their family ranching business had been in Logan's blood. At least it would be passed on to future McCormack generations through Logan. And maybe even Luke and his wife, Emma, would someday have kids and those kids would want in on the family ranching business.
Reid, though? No way. He didn't intend to ever get married. He'd gotten close once, and that had cost him emotionally.
They all finished breakfast around the same time, so he grabbed his bag and walked out with Logan.
"Thanks for letting me stay here," he said. "I'm sorry it coincided with Des coming home. I don't mean to infringe on your reunion with your wife."
Logan frowned. "First, you're family and you're not infringing. This is your home and it always will be. Des and I have plenty of time to be by ourselves. Second, we have a bedroom with a door that locks if we want to be alone."
Reid shook his head. "And that's all the conversation I want to have about that."
"Me, too."
Several of the dogs trotted over for their morning scratches. Reid knew all the dogs. Some had been on the ranch for several years. But there was a new one that came up and pushed against him, a fine-looking brown and white mix. He bent to pet it.
"Who's this?" he asked Logan.
"No idea. He showed up here a few weeks back. He typically hangs back and doesn't let anyone pet him, but we've been feeding him. You're the first one he's allowed to get near him. I'm kind of surprised."
Reid looked down at the dog. "Aren't you just the finest damn dog I've ever seen?" He looked young, not more than a year old or so.
"Someone probably dumped him on the side of the road and he made his way here to the ranch," Logan said. "You know how it goes."
Reid nodded. "Yeah, I know how it goes."
A lot of people got dogs, then either decided they didn't want them or the dog didn't have the right temperament, so instead of trying to find a new home for them, they dumped them. It made Reid's blood pressure ris
e. He was glad Logan and Des took this one in.
He stood. "I'm headed out."
"Okay," Logan said. "See you later."
He headed toward the truck. The dog followed. "Sorry, dude. You have to stay here."
He opened the truck door and the dog jumped in.
"I don't think so, buddy. Out."
The dog settled in on the passenger seat and laid down.
"Oh, no. This isn't happening." He went over to the passenger side of the truck and opened the door. "Out."
The dog closed his eyes and went to sleep.
"Goddammit."
Logan laughed. "Looks like you have a traveling partner for the day."
Reid rolled his eyes. "Great."
Logan went over to the front porch and grabbed a leash from the hook, tossing it at Reid. With a grin, he said, "You two have fun today."
"Yeah, thanks."
He put his bag on the floor of the truck, shut the passenger door, and glared at the dog.
"Okay, buddy, let's get one thing straight. You are not my dog."
The dog snored at him.
With a sigh, Reid climbed into the truck, started it up, and drove off toward Hope.
SAM WAS THREE-QUARTERS of the way through a very complex floral arrangement when her cell phone beeped. It was on the counter, she had her fingers twisted in wire, and the phone was just going to have to wait.
When she finished, she stood back and admired her work. Coral roses woven with white gardenias and just enough greenery to touch the arrangement off.
"Mark, your girlfriend is going to die of happiness," she said out loud. He'd told her what Annaleigh's favorite flowers were, so she'd managed to make a bouquet for Annaleigh's surprise birthday party centerpiece. It was huge and spectacular, and Mark would be there in a half hour to pick it up for the party tonight.
She had a spare minute to check her phone. It was a text from Megan.
Have you been over to the mercantile yet today? Dying to know what's going on there.
She typed back. No. Busy doing flower stuff. Might walk over later to check things out. Wanna come?
Megan texted back. Can't. Cakes in the oven. Report back!
She replied that she would, then hurriedly finished another order before Mark showed up. She had just finished the planter basket when Mark came in. He was super happy with the flowers and told her Annaleigh would love them. After he paid and left, she finished the planter basket and loaded it into her van for delivery, along with several other orders. It took her about a half hour to make her deliveries. By the time she came back, she was hungry for lunch, so she closed the shop and walked down the street toward the mercantile.
Busy place. Several trucks were parked outside, and a giant Dumpster had been delivered at the back entrance. And tethered to one of the outside poles on the porch was the cutest dog she'd ever seen. He looked like some kind of mix of several breeds that she couldn't make out. He was mostly brown, with white between his eyes, on his muzzle, and on his chest. He was lying down, clearly surveying people as they walked by. She approached cautiously, wanting to make sure he wasn't a guard dog. He didn't get up, didn't bark, just watched her come closer. He lifted his head and wagged his tail as she sat next to him and ran her hand over his head and scratched his ears.
"Aren't you the cutest thing? Do you belong to one of Deacon's guys?"
The dog laid his head against her hand as she petted him. It was instant love for Sam, who could have spent the remainder of the day parked right there with that adorable dog.
But just then she heard footsteps on the porch. She turned around and tried to keep her tongue from falling out of her mouth.
As an architect, she had always thought of Reid in business suits.
Right now he wore low-slung jeans, a dark brown T-shirt stained with dirt and sweat. He was sweaty. How could sweaty be so darn sexy? He also had a tool belt strapped to his hips. She'd never seen anyone look hotter.
"Hey, Sam."
She stood and swiped her damp palms on her hands.
Trying to find her suddenly absent vocal cords, she managed to clear her throat. "Hey yourself. I was just petting . . . Uh, is this your dog?"
"No. Not my dog. According to Logan, he wandered onto the ranch a few weeks ago and stayed. This morning he jumped into my truck and refused to get out. So I guess he's my assistant for the day. As you can see, he's pretty useless so far."
She laughed. "Well, he's pretty."
"Come on, don't tell him that. He'll get an ego."
She looked over at the dog, who barely raised his head to drink sloppily out of the nearby water bowl.
"I was just about to take him for a walk so he could stretch his legs," Reid said. "What are you up to?"
"Lunch break. I could walk with you, if you don't mind."
"I don't mind."
He unhooked the dog's leash, and they stepped off the porch. "I'm actually kind of hungry myself."
"Okay. How about a sandwich from Louis's sandwich shop around the corner? I could run in and get them and we could eat outside since it's a nice day."
"Sure."
They walked side by side, and Samantha tried not to notice Reid's long strides, or the way he and the dog seemed so compatible. The dog might not be his, but that dog stayed right next to him as if they'd been best pals for a lifetime.
"What's the dog's name?"
"No idea. As far as I know he doesn't have one."
"Poor thing. Was he abandoned?"
"I think so."
She grimaced. "I hate people who do that."
"So do I."
Larry Hubble, the owner of the hardware store, stuck his head out as they walked by. "Hey, Sam. Hi, Reid. How goes the teardown at the mercantile?"
They stopped. "Hi, Larry," Reid said. "Going well so far, thanks."
"Nice dog, Reid."
"Thanks. It's not my dog."
Larry looked down at the dog and grinned. "He's pretty great."
"See you later, Larry," Sam said.
They passed several people on the way to the sandwich shop. As was typical for downtown Hope, a lot of people were out at lunchtime. Though Reid had been gone since college, no one had forgotten him. People never forgot those who'd grown up and gone to school in Hope. Once you belonged, you always belonged. Plus, word had gotten out that the McCormack brothers had bought the mercantile. Everyone knew Reid was going to be working there, so they expected to see him in town.
Sam ran in to the sandwich shop and ordered them two turkey sandwiches while Reid took the dog over to the park for a quick walk around. While she was inside, Walter and Daisy Louis, the owners, asked her questions about the mercantile and about Reid. She told them she knew nothing; that she had stopped by to get a peek inside at the progress but hadn't seen anything yet.
Walter and Daisy were just as interested and excited about the mercantile as she was.
Once she got the sandwiches, she and Reid ate outside at one of the tables. The dog sat next to Reid's feet, perfectly calm and content to watch people walk by.
"He's well trained," she said as she kept her eye on the dog. "Walks great on the leash, and is very obedient."
"Yeah. Someone had a pretty damn good dog on their hands and let him go. Some people are morons."
"Yes, they are."
She opened the fruit salad she'd ordered with her sandwich. "How's everything going this morning?"
"It's . . . dusty."
She laughed. "I can imagine. Are you making progress?"
He swallowed and nodded. "We started at the back of the first floor. It's moving along well. So far, no surprises, which is a good thing."
She reached across and swiped at his jaw with her thumb. "You had a streak of dirt."
His gaze made contact with hers, and it was like she'd been struck by an electric shock so hard it made her toes curl and all the parts in her middle clench with desire. There was plenty of moisture in the air thanks to the recent rain, so s
he couldn't chalk it up to static electricity.
But it was definitely electric, as was the way Reid looked at her.
Finally, he grinned. "Yeah, plenty of dirt on me today, and probably will be for a while."
"It suits you."
He arched a brow. "Dirt suits me?"
"Yes. It's sexy."
He laughed. "First time I've heard that. I'm sexy dirty, huh?"
More like dirty and sexy. She took a bite of her sandwich and decided she should shut up before her mouth got her into trouble.
"I'd like to take a look at the building after we eat, if that's okay," she said.
"Nothing much to see. If possible, it's even dirtier than me, and there's more junk, wood, nails, and debris scattered around than there was before. Plus, it's not really safe."
He looked down at her slip-on pink Chucks, capris, and white polo shirt. "Trust me. You're not dressed for demolition."
"Darn. I didn't get the memo about the dress code or I'd have worn my boots today."
His lips curved. "They don't go with your outfit."
"They do go with my favorite short skirt, though."
"Now that I'd like to see," he said.
He cocked his head to the side, sliding her a look she could only describe as pure heat. Her insides nearly melted from his gaze.
The way he looked at her made her really want to wear that short skirt with her boots. She could already imagine . . .
Well. She could imagine a lot of things that had her feeling all melty.
After lunch, he walked her back to the flower shop.
"Back to work for both of us, I guess," she said.
"Yeah. Thanks for taking time out of your day to have lunch with me."
"Hey, anytime. Next time I'll bring my boots with me, so I can take a look at the inside of the mercantile."
"You do that. See you later, Sam."
"Sure. Later, Reid."
REID WATCHED SAM walk inside her shop, then exhaled, trying not to lean into her, to breathe in the smell of violets or whatever flower scent that seemed to cling to her.
While he smelled like dirt and sweat and God only knew what. Some lunch companion he was.
Though he probably smelled better than the dog, and Sam had been hugging all over him when he walked outside. He looked down at the dog, who stared up at him expectantly.