“Shut up,” Kellen said, punching Jace in the arm.
“Hey! That hurt.” Jace rubbed his upper arm. “I’m serious, dude. The girl might not have a ring, but she’s basically engaged. And you’re going to an awful a lot of trouble to fulfill some of her fantasies. That means something, Kell. And she’ll think so too.”
“It might not even be her list.”
One of Jace’s eyebrows rose up. “Doesn’t matter. You’ve got some pretty romantic things planned, and if the chemistry between the two of you is as strong as you say then there’s a really good chance of falling in love with each other.”
“She’s only here for a few weeks. I won’t fall in love.”
“You keep telling yourself that, bro, but look at what happened to me. I didn’t want to admit it but I fell for Caytie the first time I saw her.”
So had Kellen. Caytie was gorgeous. He thought about the crush he’d had on her for a few days before he realized there wasn’t an ounce of chemistry between them, and she was like an annoying older sister. Then he thought about his feelings for Ivy. He swallowed hard against the golf-ball sized lump that formed in this throat.
His feelings for Ivy were nothing like he’d ever experienced before.
“Shoot. I think I’m in trouble.”
Jace started to laugh again. “Go ahead and man-cry.” He patted Kellen on the shoulder. “I won’t judge.”
“You’re a real pain in the… butt.” Kellen amended the last word. His grandma had a swear jar in the kitchen, and Kellen had contributed more money than either George or Jace the past six months, mainly due to homework.
“That’s what brothers are for.” Jace flicked the brim of Kellen’s hat.
“Whatever.” But Kellen was grateful for the family he had. He and Jace had been through a lot together. “So you’re okay if I saddle Magnolia for Ivy to ride?”
The sun disappeared behind a dark cloud and the sky rumbled again. “Yeah, but I think you’re gonna have to go riding another day.” Jace pointed the tip of the paper Kellen had stuck in his shirt pocket. “You might have to find something else on her list to do tonight.”
Kellen tried to think of how he could utilize this evening’s rainstorm. Then he remembered the rose gardens on the outskirts of town at the Bennett’s tree farm. The only time he’d been there was during the winter to cut down their Christmas tree, but his grandma had talked about having the lemonade party in the large gazebo next to the Bennett’s rose gardens.
“I think I have an idea.” He told Jace his plans, and instead of laughing at him, Jace sobered a little.
“Hey, in all seriousness, make sure you give this thing with Ivy a real chance, Kell.” Jace paused and then said, “Marriage to the right woman is pretty amazing and comes with some great benefits, and I’m not just talking about sex. Caytie is my best friend, and makes me want to be a better man.”
“Thanks for talking to me.” Kellen was touched by the sincerity in Jace’s voice, and felt a lot better. He decided he’d ask Jace for advice about his other concerns. Just not today.
“Any time.” Jace took off his hat and ran a hand through his hair. “Am I okay to tell Caytie? I don’t like keeping things from her.”
“I just assumed you would.”
“We’ll try not to give you too hard of a time,” Jace said, putting his hat back on.
“Yeah, right. I know you’ve been dying to get me back for all the razzing I gave you when you and Caytie were still in denial.”
“Yep,” Jace said with a laugh.
Kellen pointed a finger at Jace. “Admit it. I was helpful, though.”
“Sure you were.” Jace grabbed a pair of work gloves off the bench and turned to leave. “That’s why I’m so happy to help you if I can.”
“I can’t wait,” Kellen muttered under his breath. He wasn’t really worried about Jace or Caytie. What worried him were his feelings for Ivy. He did like her, and he got the feeling she liked him too.
He finished up work in time to eat dinner with his grandma. Since both Jace and Caytie knew about Ivy, he figured he better tell her too. After they blessed the food, Kellen admitted where he’d been the night before.
“I was wondering when you were going to tell me.”
“You already knew?”
Laughing, she stood up to clear the table. “Sweetie, I’ve known something was up since the day you dropped off those books at the library.” She winked at him. “Tillie Cooper confirmed it when she called me this morning and said you two were cookin’ up more than just cookies last night.”
Kellen cleared his plate, and mumbled something under his breath that cost him a dollar in the swear jar.
Before he could go upstairs to shower, his grandma said, “By the way, who won the cookie contest?”
Since his grandma knew about that too he might was well be honest. “Sorry, but Ivy’s cookies were incredible.”
“Really?” She took off her apron. “I wish I could’ve tasted one. When I asked Caytie which cookie she liked best she said they tasted all the same to her.”
“That’s because I didn’t give her any of Ivy’s cookies. I ate them all.”
“Kellen Thomas,” his grandma said with mock seriousness. “You deprived a pregnant woman of chocolate chip cookies?”
“I did Caytie a favor by not giving them to her.”
“Don’t tell her that.”
He snorted a laugh. “I’m not stupid.” He leaned down and kissed his grandma on the cheek. “Thank you for dinner.”
“You’re welcome.” She eyed him speculatively. “By the way, when do I get to meet this girl?”
“Well, I don’t think we’re going riding tonight, but hopefully the weather cooperates and we can go tomorrow. I promise I’ll bring her by the house then.”
“All right, but do me a favor and get me her cookie recipe.”
He laughed. “I will.”
Before taking a shower, Kellen sent Ivy a text message about doing something else tonight since it was raining.
He stared at his phone, and saw the three little dots appear that meant Ivy was typing in a reply. What he didn’t know was if she still wanted to go out with him tonight.
When the message came through, Kellen smiled.
Sure. What did you have in mind?
Kellen couldn’t tell her he was trying to fulfill one of the things on her kissing bucket list. And he’d sound like a dork if he said they were going to take a walk in the rain to look at roses.
Do you like frozen custard?
He figured he could introduce her to Big C’s and hopefully by then he’d hatched a plan to get them out to the Bennett’s.
Her reply finally came through and made him laugh out loud.
Do you like your horse?
She added a smiley face emoji Caytie was fond of using, only the smiley face was sticking out its tongue and winking.
Ha ha. I’ll pick you up at five-thirty.
After taking a hot shower, Kellen dressed in a pair of comfortable jeans and a blue, crew-neck waffle shirt. It took him a minute to find the matching cowboy boot to the one on his prosthesis. The custom boots made by Tate Johnson were incredible and had been one of the keys to getting him out of a wheelchair and back into life.
As he slipped on the boot, he realized he’d have to talk to Ivy about his injury sooner than later. From past experience he’d know right away if she were repulsed or not, and it would be better to get her reaction before he got in too deep.
His grandma was in the living room working on her latest quilt while talking on the phone. The television was on with what looked like one of the many Hallmark movies she had saved on her digital recorder, but she had the volume turned down low.
Kellen waited a moment so he could get his grandma’s attention to say goodbye. An idea about the gazebo formed in his mind as he listened to her side of the conversation.
He grabbed his keys and favorite cowboy hat, which made his grandma glance up
and wave goodbye to him. Before heading out to the truck, he grabbed his denim jacket out of the coat closet, along with an oversized umbrella.
He walked quickly to his truck without getting too wet. Once inside, he did a quick inspection of the cab to make sure it was clean enough for a date. He tossed an empty water bottle behind the seat and stuffed an empty chip bag into the panel on the side door.
The drive to Mrs. Cooper’s didn’t take long enough. Kellen shouldn’t be nervous, but plotting out ways to kiss a girl put a lot of pressure on a guy. Before he knew it he was knocking on the front door.
Ivy was the one to open the door, and she looked incredible. No wonder he was so nervous.
Chapter 9
Ivy felt like her stomach was tied in knots when she heard the knock on the door. She had to keep reminding herself that this wasn’t a date. It was just two friends hanging out on a rainy evening.
“I’ll get it,” she hollered to her aunt who was sitting by the fire in the family room reading from her new digital book that had been delivered today.
When she opened the door and saw Kellen, all the moisture in her mouth evaporated, making her feel like she’d just eaten a handful of cotton balls. She’d grown up with cowboy’s her entire life, but none of them had ever looked as sexy as the one standing in front of her.
“Hi,” she finally managed to croak out.
“Hey.” He visibly swallowed as his eyes swept over her. “You look great.”
She felt a little better when she realized Kellen might be as nervous as she was. “Thank you.”
She’d changed shirts three times and finally settled on a turquoise button-down shirt and a new pair of boot-cut jeans Aunt Tillie had purchased for her. She wasn’t used to wearing clothes that fit so snug, but the sales clerk had assured her that just because it accentuated her curves didn’t mean the shirt was too tight.
“Do I need a jacket?” she asked. The rain wasn’t coming down as hard as it had been an hour ago.
“You might want to grab one.” Kellen popped open the umbrella. “It’ll probably cool down quite a bit once the sun goes down.”
Ivy reached for the jacket she’d tossed onto the couch, and told her aunt she was leaving.
“Have fun,” her aunt replied as Ivy stepped out onto the porch.
She ducked under the umbrella, and didn’t have any choice but to huddle in close to Kellen if they both wanted to stay dry. His body was warm, and he smelled so good. If they walked around like this she doubted she’d need to wear her coat.
“Is Mrs. Cooper feeling any better?” Kellen asked as they walked toward the passenger side of his truck.
“She’s about the same. Her doctor is out of town until Tuesday, and she didn’t want to see the on-call doctor.”
“Yeah, Dr. Taggart is at some convention in Salt Lake City.” He glanced over at Ivy, and she couldn’t believe how blue his eyes looked with the shirt he had on. “By the way, the party at Caytie and Jace’s has been postponed.”
“Is everything okay?”
He laughed, and Ivy was close enough to catch the scent of his minty breath. “The baby didn’t cooperate, and the doctor couldn’t tell them if it’s a girl or a boy. He’s going to do another ultrasound when he gets back.”
Kellen opened the door, and Ivy climbed up into the truck. While he rounded the front of the vehicle she tried to figure out a way to find out if Kellen still wanted her to go to the party with him once it was back on.
She wasn’t that brave, and asked about his day once he was behind the wheel. He told her about the horses he and Jace were training, and she realized how different a quarter horse ranch was from the sprawling cattle ranch she’d grown up on.
They didn’t have to go very far to make it to Big C’s. It wasn’t very crowded, but then it was a rainy Thursday evening.
“Umbrella or make a run for it?” Kellen asked.
“I’m no wimpy city girl so no umbrella.”
He laughed and got out of the truck. “Sit tight. I’ll be right there.”
She watched him come around to her side, noticing once again the slight limp. She had no right to ask about it, but wondered if the explosion from the IED was responsible for it.
They didn’t run but walked quickly to the door. Kellen held it open for her, and came in behind her. Ivy immediately wished she could get an order of fries to go with her ice cream. The tantalizing scent wafting from the kitchen permeated the air.
Kellen came alongside her so their shoulders touched. “You’ve probably already eaten dinner, haven’t you?”
Ivy decided to be honest. “Yes, but I’m not gonna lie. I really want an order of fries.”
“I’ll get a large so we can share,” Kellen said before she could offer to pay for hers. “What flavor of custard do you want?”
Ivy was having a hard time focusing with him so near. It was like the wires in her brain shorted out each time he touched her. “What do you usually get?” she asked, scanning the menu board until she found the list of flavors.
“I’m kind of boring. I always get strawberry.”
“That’s not boring.” She looked at him sidelong and got a little distracted with him so close. He had a nice profile, and she loved the shadow of whiskers darkening his jawline. She’d never understood in romance books why the heroine’s were often so intrigued by a man’s beard, but here she was fighting the urge to run her hand along his jaw.
The corner of his mouth tilted up as he turned to catch her staring at him. “So do you want strawberry too?”
“No.” She held up her thumb and pointer finger and pinched them together. “I guess it is a tiny bit boring.”
She loved the sound of his laugh. Lately there hadn’t been a lot of laughter at home. After their father suddenly passed away, the stress of taking over the ranch had burdened her brothers so much that they rarely smiled anymore.
Standing so close to Kellen she noted the faint laugh lines around his eyes, and knew that he liked to laugh.
“I want caramel peach.”
He lifted a questioning brow. “Seriously?”
“Hey, it’s good. I’ll let you try a little and you may never get strawberry again.” Too late, she realized her offer to give him a taste of her custard might be a little too intimate for “just friends” hanging out together, especially since they’d only recently met.
The skin around his eyes crinkled. “All right, but to prove to you I’m not boring I’m going to get strawberry banana.”
“Wow, that is daring.”
He chuckled, and pressed his palm to her lower back to urge her forward so they could order. Ivy was acutely aware of his touch, and instantly missed it when he pulled his hand away.
The cashier got all flustered when Kellen gave her their order. Kellen seemed oblivious. He probably had no idea what happened to a girl when they peered into his baby blues.
The girl handed Kellen a plastic number. “Just put this table on your number… I mean the number on the table and I’ll bring out your order when it’s done.”
Poor girl. Her cheeks had gone bright red.
“Thank you.” He winked at the girl before once again placing his palm to Ivy’s lower back to guide her to a quiet table in the corner.
“You should come with a warning label,” Ivy said without meaning to say it out loud.
“Excuse me?” Kellen asked.
“Never mind.” She picked up the stand with the menu on it and studied it intently.
Kellen took it away so she had to look at him instead. “No way, you can’t say something like that and then not tell me what it means.”
Ivy felt her own cheeks go hot. She wasn’t prone to blushing, but Kellen seemed to have that effect on women. “You can’t just let it go? I really didn’t mean to say it out loud.”
A totally sexy grin spread across his face. “Nope. Talk.”
This was going to be so awkward. Unable to look him directly in the eyes, she focused on his
hat. “Don’t let this go to your head, but you’re kind of an attractive guy, and it makes women flustered.”
When he didn’t say anything, she lowered her gaze. Instead of looking cocky, he looked dumbfounded, almost like he didn’t believe her.
“I feel stupid I said anything,” Ivy said. “Now I’ve made it all weird, and you probably won’t want to share the fries.”
Her joke eased the tension, and he grinned. “I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone quite like you, Ivy Baker.”
“I’m not sure how to take that,” she said truthfully.
“It’s a good thing, trust me.” He gazed into her eyes. “I find you very intriguing.”
The flustered cashier interrupted them by delivering a large basket of delicious looking French fries. Then she placed a huge cup of frozen custard in front of Ivy. “Let me know if you need anything else.”
“Thank you,” Kellen said. “It looks perfect.”
“What size did you order me?” Ivy said, unrolling the napkin that contained a spoon. “I’m not sure I can eat all of this.”
“I don’t think I specified.” He unrolled his napkin and picked up the spoon when it dropped to the table. “But don’t worry about it if you can’t finish it.”
Ivy took a spoonful of her custard and nearly moaned when she tasted it. “That is so good. No wonder Caytie’s baby was craving a custard from here.”
Kellen tasted his frozen treat. “This isn’t bad.”
Ivy slid her cup across the table. “You have to try this.”
Kellen looked at his spoon then back up at her. “Let me grab another spoon.”
“You really don’t have to do that.” She shrugged. “I’m not weird like that, unless you are. Not that I’m calling you weird, but you could be a germaphobe.” She cringed. “Just taste it.”
Laughing, Kellen dug his spoon in and then put it in his mouth. Ivy giggled when he did moan. “I will never get any form of strawberry ever again.”
After that they shared her custard, as well as the fries. Kellen was fun to be around, and made her frequently laugh. By the time they were ready to leave, Ivy felt like she’d known him forever.
Spring in Snow Valley Page 7