Jo Jo called Jenny’s name, and she jumped back, the moment interrupted. Jenny tried to still her breathing. She looked at Hank’s face, his eyes wild with desire, and stretched on her tiptoes to kiss him softly on the lips once more. “We have to go,” she said. She ran her hand through Hank’s hair, patting the errant strands back into place with a smile.
Hank grabbed her hand and held it to his lips. “I’ll join you guys in a bit. There’s something I have to do.”
Laughter rang out from the dining room. Louis and David’s deep voices were joined by Jo Jo’s. Jenny walked toward the laughter, her mind wandering after Hank. The table was set with bright napkins, a floral tablecloth, and Jo Jo’s favorite china. Jo Jo walked around the table to hug Jenny and said, “Surprise!”
Jenny looked at her grandma. “What is all this?”
Jo Jo’s face beamed. “You didn’t think we’d let your last meal be something boring, did you? We wanted to give you something to remember us by.”
Louis jumped up, pulling out a chair for Jenny to sit down on. “She’s been plotting this all morning.” He winked at Jenny.
Heaviness poured into Jenny’s heart. She was going to miss every little detail of the ranch, especially her grandma’s sweet gestures. She had never been around anyone who spent so much time taking care of everyone else. “It’s perfect. Thank you.”
Jenny sat at the table, painfully aware of Hank’s empty plate. She was frustrated that with only a couple of hours until she had to leave for the airport, he was off on a mysterious errand. Hopefully, it wouldn’t take too long. She was scooping up a large serving of shepherd’s pie when her phone chimed with an alert. She glanced at the phone, and then dropped her fork, the tines clanging down on her plate.
“What is it, sweetheart?” Jo Jo reached for Jenny’s hand.
Jenny stared at her phone a moment longer, trying to make sense of the words that danced across the screen. The blood drained from her face. “It’s the airline. I got the time wrong. My flight leaves in just over an hour.”
David looked up from his plate. “They changed the time of your flight? They can’t do that.”
“No. They just changed the boarding gate. I’m the one who got the time wrong.” Jenny pushed her chair back from the table. “I’m so sorry, but I have to leave right now. Grandma, can you still take me?”
Jo Jo set her napkin down by her steaming plate of food. “Of course, dear. Let me get my keys.”
Chapter 20
After a quick round of hugs, Jenny grabbed her suitcases and backpack and ran down the steps to her grandma’s car. She tossed her things into the back seat, and climbed in, thrumming her fingers on the door handle while she waited. In the moments before Jo Jo appeared, she scanned the ranch for Hank. His truck was in the driveway, but one of the ATVs was missing. Whatever his important task was, he had about thirty seconds to appear before Jenny would be gone.
Jo Jo ran down the stairs, her grey hair being pulled out of its clips by the strong wind. Louis and David stood on the porch, waving goodbye. As Jo Jo started the car, Jenny noticed a cloud of dust in the distance, heading toward the house. Before she could see if it was Hank, they were around the corner and pulling onto the highway. Jenny pressed her head against the doorframe, the cold metal soothing against her head.
“I’m so sorry, Grandma.”
“Don’t be silly. I’ve missed plenty of flights in my days.”
“But you planned such a sweet surprise for me, and I ruined it.”
Jo Jo’s hands gripped the wheel, her attention on the road. “There will be other reasons to celebrate. Do you really think this is the last meal we will ever eat together?” She reached over to squeeze Jenny’s arm, and then put her hand back on the wheel.
The words were a balm to Jenny’s heart. She had forgotten that even if Hank moved on, Grandma Jo Jo would always want to see her granddaughter. “Can I ask you something?” Jenny said.
“Of course, sweetheart.”
Hills and trees flew past as the car picked up speed. “You were a city girl when you were younger, right?” Jenny asked.
“I grew up in San Diego.”
“Why did you give it up?”
“The city life?”
Jenny pointed at the trees passing by. “Yeah. What made you decide to leave the comfort of the city and move . . . here? It’s so remote.”
Jo Jo glanced at Jenny, a sparkle in her eye. “You know why. I met your grandfather.”
Warmth filled Jenny’s heart. “I miss him.”
“So do I, sweetheart. I miss him every day.”
“Was he enough?”
“What do you mean?” Jo Jo asked.
The car hummed along the road, the trees gradually giving way to an occasional driveway that wound through the hills. Jenny shifted in her seat. “I know Grandpa was an incredible guy, but was it enough? Did you ever regret leaving the city?”
Silence filled the car while Jo Jo drove, her eyes fixed on the road ahead of her. “Do you know what my life was like when I lived in the city?”
“Not really.”
“My life was great. I was one of the few women in my day who actually got to go to college. Call it privilege, luck, or whatever you will, but I had a blessed life.”
“So how were you able to give it up? How did you end up on a small ranch in the middle of Montana?”
“It wasn’t easy,” Jo Jo said. “I was studying to be a nurse. I had a career path lined up, one that I really loved. I was almost ready to graduate when I met your grandfather, and he offered a different path to follow.”
“So you put down the syringe and picked up a cow?” Jenny couldn’t keep the smile off her face.
“Yes, Miss Smarty Pants. I left my nursing ambitions behind and followed the man I loved to his ranch.”
“Did you ever regret leaving the city behind?”
Jo Jo glanced over at Jenny, then back to the road. “There were certainly a lot of difficult days learning to adjust, but I would make the same choice over and over again if I could. The ranch let me grow up and become the person I am today.”
Jenny watched the trees outside the window as they began to thin out, and buildings replaced the foliage. More cars joined the road, and the freeway signs began to advertise the airport turn-off. She didn’t trust herself to speak without bursting into tears. Jo Jo had found her happily ever after on the ranch, but Jenny’s chance for happiness was slipping away. Her world was too different from Hank’s. She closed her eyes and tried to picture a life on the ranch, but the vision was blurry.
Jo Jo reached a hand over and gently covered Jenny’s hand. “Sweetheart, if Hank is the right person for you, you’ll know.”
Jenny startled, heat spreading across her cheeks. “I didn’t say anything about Hank.”
“You didn’t have to.”
When Jo Jo pulled into the airport terminal twenty minutes later, weaving between cars until she was parked next to the curb, Jenny didn’t want to get out. “I hate that I have to say goodbye,” she said.
Jo Jo leaned across the seat, enveloping Jenny in a lavender-filled hug. “You will always have a place at the ranch. Now scoot before you miss your flight.”
Jenny climbed out of the car and grabbed her suitcase. Then she walked over to Jo Jo’s door. She pulled it open and hugged her grandma with a final squeeze. Jo Jo smiled and brushed Jenny’s hair off her face.
“Don’t be afraid to follow your heart,” Jo Jo said. Jenny nodded, wiping at a tear that was threatening to fall.
“Thanks, Grandma. I love you.”
“I love you more. Safe travels.”
Jenny kissed Jo Jo on the cheek, and then grabbed the handle of her suitcase and walked into the airport, avoiding the traffic guide who lazily blew his whistle at the cars. She stood in the doorway, watching her grandma drive away, and waved until she couldn’t see the car anymore.
As soon as the car turned the corner, Jenny sprinted through the airport
to the security line, tapping her fingers against her leg while she waited for the people in front of her to inch closer to the checkpoint. When it was her turn, she threw her shoes into a bin, and pushed her belongings through the scanner. A glance at her watch showed that she had fourteen minutes remaining until the flight left. As soon as the suitcase appeared on the other side of the conveyor belt, Jenny grabbed it. She slung her backpack over her shoulder, and with her shoes in one hand, she ran down the long walkway of the airport terminal, arriving breathless at the gate just as the final boarding call was announced.
Jenny handed her boarding pass to the gate attendant, pausing outside the airplane door to slip her shoes on and pat her hair back into place. Then she took a deep breath and walked to her seat. Thankfully, the flight wasn’t full. Jenny shoved her carry-on bag into the overhead compartment and then slid past the elderly gentleman sitting in the aisle seat to reach the window seat. Jenny buckled her seatbelt, looking out the small window with a soft sigh.
She pulled out her phone to send a quick text to her grandma that she made the flight before turning it to airplane mode. Finally, she pulled out earbuds, and with her music playing, she tuned out the security announcements. The airplane was taxiing down the runway when she fell asleep, and she didn’t wake up until the wheels of the plane touched down in San Francisco.
Hank barged into the house. Louis and David were sitting at the table, talking animatedly. Hank went to the kitchen and grabbed a fat vase from the cabinet. With the water running, he yelled over his shoulder to the dining room, “Is it time to eat?” The cascading water muffled Louis’s reply. Hank shut off the tap and arranged the rosecrown flowers he collected in the vase before carrying it to the table. He was setting the flowers down when he noticed the half-eaten plates of food in front of two empty chairs.
“What’s going on? Where are the girls?”
Louis looked up from his casserole. “They just left for the airport. There was a mix-up with Jenny’s flight. Didn’t you see them on your way in?”
The air whooshed out of Hank’s lungs, like someone had punched him in the gut. “I must have just missed them.” He reached for a spoon, mechanically scooping shepherd’s pie onto his plate. Each bite was flavorless as he tried to process the fact that Jenny was heading home, and he didn’t get to say a final goodbye.
Jenny was gone. Even though she had warned him she was going to leave, part of him had been clinging to the hope that she would change her mind. He wanted Jenny to choose him. He wanted her to stay. He rubbed his hands on his jeans, unsure of what to do. Louis and David chatted about something ranch-related, but Hank was worlds away, shoveling food into his mouth and chewing methodically before swallowing. His mind was down the road, where the city girl was headed, his heart telling him to hop in his truck and follow her. Logic overrode the thought. He was committed to responsibilities at the ranch and knew he had to stay.
The fork scraping against Hank’s plate startled him, and he looked down to see that all of his food was gone. He excused himself from the table and went to the kitchen sink, rinsing the plate clean while he listened for Jo Jo’s car to return. Hank grabbed a book and went to sit on the porch swing, pretending to read while he scanned the driveway every few minutes for Jo Jo. When she returned, he set his book down on the swing and walked to the car.
“Need a hand?” Hank called. He helped Jo Jo out of the car, offering her his arm while they walked up the steps.
“Thank you, Hank.”
“How was your drive?” The thought of Jo Jo driving Jenny to the airport hurt his heart. He had imagined being the one to drive her, his face the last one she’d see before she went home.
“She almost missed the flight, but she was able to get on the plane.” Jo Jo waved a hand back and forth, fanning her face.
Hank went to the kitchen and brought back a tall glass of ice water for Jo Jo. “I’d better get back to work,” Hank said. He left the house and headed to his truck, popping the hood to check the oil. When Jo Jo came to check on him later, he blamed the redness in his eyes on the brightness of the sun.
Chapter 21
Settling back into city life was like slipping on a comfortable shoe, except that the shoe now had a small rock in it. She had been commuting to work for years, but now the incessant traffic and honking was jarring. She walked to the ocean, and the sand under her feet grounded her. She closed her eyes and listened to the waves, realizing that she was also listening for the gentle mooing of cattle in the distance. Each familiar spot held memories of the life she loved in California, and yet, she couldn’t shake the ranch from her mind.
Jenny loved the busyness of the city, but during nights in Petaluma, where the stars were hidden from her view because of all the street lights, she ached to breathe in fresh air at the ranch, where she could look for miles and not see another building. Her food consisted of take-out Chinese and pizza, with the closest thing to chicken pot pie coming from the frozen-food aisle.
Her friends tried to make things better for Jenny, but Shawn’s brashness and Kate’s endless enthusiasm were a bit much for her to handle. She caught her mind wandering when they began to talk about other friends, and she had to remind herself why she was back in the city at all.
Work was a strain. True to what Shawn had said, he had angered her client big time. The first day back at work, a liability contract was thrown on her desk. Anita stood beside the desk, her freshly manicured nails gleaming with bright red polish. On the ranch, Jenny had managed to forget that the girl who ruined her life was now running the office. Justin’s betrayal felt like it happened eons ago, and Anita was barely a blip. Now, she was standing in front of Jenny, fishing for answers.
“Welcome back,” Anita said. She smiled; her whitened teeth framed by a mauve lipstick.
“Thanks.” Jenny wasn’t in the mood for any distractions. She had a client to smooth things over with.
“How was your . . . vacation?” The way Anita drew out the word “vacation,” it sounded like an insult. Jenny turned to her computer, pulling up a file. She clicked open a blank sheet and began typing, hoping Anita would take the hint and leave.
“It was great.” Jenny’s heart felt heavy. The so-called vacation was much more than great. It was a break for her sanity that left her wanting more. The ranch had restructured her world down to the core, but she couldn’t explain any of it to the stiff lady standing next to her.
Anita flashed another fake smile at Jenny and leaned forward, pressing into her space. Jenny lifted her hands from the computer and stared at her boss.
“Can I help you with something else?” Jenny asked. Her patience was gone, the beginnings of a headache creeping down the crown of her forehead. Anita placed her hands on the desk.
“I’m just curious to know more about you. You left before we could talk.” Jenny’s stomach recoiled at the thought of getting to know anything about the woman in front of her. She looked at the computer screen, and then back at Anita.
“For sure. Let’s set a date for lunch, and we can catch up.” Mercifully, the phone rang, the shrill sound causing Anita to jump back. “I’d better get that,” Jenny said. She reached for the hand cradle, and turned on her brightest company voice.
“Thank you for calling Gunderson Realty. This is Jenny. How can I help you?” Jenny swiveled her chair toward Anita’s legs, causing her to jump back.
Anita scowled at the phone and then turned to leave, mouthing a goodbye to her. Jenny waved goodbye, watching her walk out of the room before she hung up the phone with a sigh. She looked over a few cubicles to see Shawn, both thumbs up in the air. He mimicked dialing a phone, and looked completely proud of himself when the employees around him began to laugh. “Thank you,” Jenny mouthed toward his direction. Once again, Shawn was saving Jenny from a bad situation. If only he hadn’t been the one to cause her current predicament.
She took an early lunch, leaving the building before the elevators began to fill with people. The s
treets were dotted with tourists, but Jenny didn’t mind. She tucked into her favorite deli and ordered the Street Car, a sandwich piled high with ham, turkey, avocado, and enough veggies to form a precarious landing pad for the top piece of sourdough bread. A few bites later, when her stomach settled to a dull rumble, she pulled out her phone. Sending a text inviting her friends to join her was easy. The next message took much longer to write.
Hi, Hank. How are things on the farm? Jenny stared at the words, scowling at her screen. With a huff, she deleted them.
How is Bacon? It was better, but Jenny’s stomach churned at the thought of sending it. Hank wasn’t a chit-chat sort of guy. He would think she was crazy.
I miss you. The words stared up at Jenny, a mirror to the thoughts that swirled in her head, but she couldn’t push the send button. With a sigh, she erased the words. There was no point reaching out to someone who would have moved on by the time she made it back to the ranch. The sooner she could put Hank and the ranch out of her mind, the better. But why was it so hard to do?
Hank threw hay to the horses, using the rhythmic motion to help slow his pulse. David had been working at the ranch for just over a week, and Hank was ready to explode. The workload was going to be easier, but Hank wasn’t sure that the hit on his sanity was worth it. As he reached for another bale, his heart twisted. Was it really only a week ago that he had been holding the girl he cared about in his arms?
Hank’s mind drifted to the girl with the green eyes and wild hair, wondering what she was doing at that exact moment. She was probably bossing some poor coworker around. She had challenged Hank almost every time they were together, questioning why he did the things he did. Somewhere between the bickering and banter, Jenny had become a rock that Hank had grown used to leaning on. With Jenny gone, he was leaning toward a ghost—a phantom of someone he had given his heart to.
Love at Rosecrown Ranch Page 12