Ryder gazed at her smiling face and for the life of him he couldn’t think of a single thing he’d like to do more than stay.
“Now’s your chance to get away from me,” she said, then jerked her chin toward the door. “Go on. Git, before I change my mind and hogtie you for real.”
Ryder didn’t answer. Then he shook his head. “No, I kind of like it here. I want to stay on a while longer…if you’ll have me.”
When he saw Blake’s eyes widen in surprise, a hint of pleasure in their depths, he smiled. It looked like he wasn’t the only one who liked the idea of him sticking around.
***
If you’ll have me? Why did Ryder have to go and ask a question like that? The question wasn’t if she wanted to have him, but how…
As Blake lay in bed that night, her arms folded behind her head as she stared blankly at the ceiling, all she could think about was Ryder, her ‘out-of-the-blue’ assistant, the man who’d walked off the street and into her life.
He might be a virtual stranger and a man might be the last thing she should have on her mind right now but from the moment she’d met Ryder she’d felt something. Immediately, she’d suppressed it. How stupid could you get, jumping out of one fire and hopping right into another? She’d known that whatever spark of attraction she’d felt was best ignored and it would pass soon enough.
But it didn’t. The more she saw of Ryder the more he grew on her. And the more she wanted to feel his lips on hers.
And from the way his lips relaxed into a smooth curve when he smiled she could tell he was an awesome kisser. He had a mobile mouth that promised both strength and tenderness. Ryder had looked like the serious kind but he also looked like he had another side to him, a softer, sensual side that she would love to know first-hand.
Blake smiled to herself then unlocked the arms she’d folded behind her head. She turned onto her side and settled her cheek into the softness of her pillow. It was all wishful thinking, she knew, just a fantasy she would enjoy in the privacy of her mind.
But by the next day Blake’s fantasy world disintegrated and she was whipped back to reality when Carl, Pequoia’s postmaster of over fifty years, came by and dropped off a telegram. It was from her mother in Dallas and it sounded urgent. “Trouble with Jerome,” it said. “Come home.”
***
Blake didn’t let the evening pass before she packed up her truck and was on her way to Dallas. “Don’t worry about the restaurant,” she’d told Ryder. “Just post a notice that we’re temporarily closed.” He’d looked skeptical. “Just like that? I can handle things till you get back.”
She shook her head. “No. Impossible. There’s no way you can handle the breakfast crowd by yourself. If the guys still want to come in for drinks in the evening you can take care of that.”
He cocked an eyebrow at her. “Whatever you say, boss.” And then he gave her a crooked grin that made him look so sinfully sexy that her heart gave an involuntary jerk.
As she drove along the highway she drew her breath in then let it out on a sigh. Ryder Kent was a seriously sexy distraction but it was one she couldn’t afford to dwell on, especially not right now. If she’d read her mother’s telegram right she would have her hands full when she got back home. And, where Jerome was concerned, it was not going to be pretty.
By the time Blake pulled into the driveway of her family home the sun had set and had thrown a shroud of darkness over the land. Still, the shadows didn’t hide the rustic charm of the little white bungalow where she’d grown up. Rosie Beaumont loved flowers and, like always, the garden was overflowing with blooms of all sizes and colors. Not even the dark veil of night could hide their stunning beauty.
She’d just switched off the engine and was reaching over to the passenger side to grab her shoulder bag when the front door burst open and a gangly teenage girl in cut-off jeans and sandals raced down the steps and toward the truck. “Blake,” she yelled. “What took you so long?”
Blake barely had time to get out of the truck and throw her arms wide before her little sister was jumping forward to throw her thin arms around her neck.
“I missed you,” the young girl whispered and buried her face in her big sister’s neck.
“I missed you, too, Becky,” Blake whispered back. “I thought about you every single day.”
Then she released Rebecca, clasped her by the upper arms and stepped back. She couldn’t help but smile as she stared down at her grinning sibling. “Hey, Squirt. When did you grow so tall? You look like you’ve put on six inches in the last six weeks.”
Becky laughed. “I’m fourteen. You didn’t expect me to stay short forever, did you? And anyway, I only grew half an inch since April. I checked.”
That made Blake laugh out loud. “You can check all you want. It’s going to take a long while before you catch up to me.”
“Grr.” Becky gave her a punch on the arm in response to the reminder.
Blake let her go for a second so she could grab her bag from the front seat. “Here. Carry this in for me, will you?” She gave the bag to her sister. “Make use of those strong arms.”
“With pleasure,” Becky said, her green eyes sparkling in the distant light. “As long as it's got stuff for me.”
Blake chuckled. “Of course. If I didn’t bring you something you’d probably lock me out of the house.”
“You know it,” the cheeky girl responded.
Blake only grinned and threw her arms around her sister’s shoulders and so they walked into the house together. When they got inside Rosie was busy setting the dining table, as Blake knew she would be. Her mother would have had a meal waiting in the oven and had probably hurried to prepare the table as soon as she heard the truck rumble onto the driveway. In appropriate tribute to her name, Rosie loved flowers but she had another love that came a close second. That was cooking. She was the kind of mother who would never expect the arrival of her daughter and not have a hearty meal ready.
“Mom.”
At the sound of Blake’s voice Rosie turned and her brown eyes lit up as she smiled. “Blake.” Just like she’d done with her sister, her mother now spread her arms wide and Blake let go of Becky and walked right into the warm embrace. Their hug was tight and strong, a testament to the depth of their love.
“It feels like I haven’t seen you in months,” her mother said softly.