Chapter 4

"I stayed here last night and that was long enough. There's no way I"m going to stay here in the middle of nowhere. I was supposed to be at a quiet place right now. You know, alone, to plan upcoming action tasks for work, Mother."

"Darling, just stay and refresh your mind by the different scenery. I'm sure it's handsome… I mean, beautiful out in the Texas hill country. Plus, it's way too early to be making changes. Why don't you go find some coffee, wake up a little? Better yet, let me get some coffee and wake up, then I'll call you back," she suggests.

"There's even a dog here."

"Oh, what kind of dog?" she counters.

"It looks like a golden retriever. You know I'm afraid of dogs."

"And it's about time you grew out of that. Nothing bad has ever happened to you from any dog. I told you not to watch that horror show with all those dogs. Yet, you didn't listen to me, and you've been on edge with dogs ever since."

"No, Mom…" I start, but I'm cut off.

"Bye, Julia. I'll talk to you after a while. Love you." With those parting words, the call disconnects.

Well, fuck. If she worked for me, I would fire her on the spot. She knows that too, and that"s why she would never work for me, even if I offered to pay her more than she could imagine. I toss my phone on the bed and take a chance to go explore to find caffeine.

With the light shining brightly in the room through the sheer curtains that hang on the large window, I get a good look at my surroundings. It's nicely decorated with what looks like handcrafted furniture made from wooden logs, and a multicolored patchwork quilt covers the bed. So, I take a few steps to the window and pull the fabric back to peek outside. It takes my breath away at how green it is.

At home, smack in the middle of downtown Houston, is all concrete, metal, and glass that I look at on a daily basis. Here, there's lush grass that a few horses munch on behind a long wooden fence, full trees roll down a line to border the flat landscape, and a white barn sits only about fifty yards away with the sliding doors open at the end of the structure.

Excited for the explorer inside of me that's been dormant for so long, my need for caffeine is forgotten. I quickly dress and venture outside to scope out the area.

I open the back door. The air here is so crisp and clean and easy to breathe in versus the smog of the city. It's quiet too. All I hear is crickets communicating amongst themselves and a few birds chirping between the trees.

Through the open barn doors, it's just what I expected. A few horse stalls sit, one on each side, and there's a corner of hay piled high with a tack room on the opposite side. However, there's more to this barn than just an animal stable. It's bigger than that, and the other set of sliding doors proves it.

At first glance, I know just where the furniture came from in the room I slept in last night. There are rows of logs lined up along one wall, a variety of saw tables arranged neatly around, and the sweet smell of fresh cut wood makes me smile. Creativity and artistry lie around this room in unfinished pieces, waiting on their master to complete and make them into their fullest glory.

Looking beyond the equipment, I see a tall, fit man, with arm muscles that are defined by the work he does in this very room. Ryan, with his head down in obvious concentration on a large work of art before him, doesn"t notice me. So, I take a moment to admire his work. And him.

He's only the most handsome man I've ever laid my eyes on. That circular wood carving, of what looks like it's going to be an owl with intricate designed feathers, is stunning. It's amazing. This man has so much talent. It blows me away and pulls me in to walk towards it for a closer look.

I take only a few steps inside the workroom when Ryan takes notice and raises his head to see who"s invading his personal space.

"Good morning, ma'am," he greets with a half-smile. I don't know how he feels about my intrusion on him, and I don't know how to take this little arrangement my mother had a hand in.

"Good morning. This is beautiful." I point to the piece in front of him.

"Thank you. There's coffee in that office right there if you want some." He points just like he did last night to show me the way.

"Yes, coffee would be great. Thank you." I move to go to the office, but the rapid pace of paws approaching me has me frozen in place.

"Whoa there, Rusty," Ryan says, and I turn to see what's going to happen. He's clipping a leash onto his collar and hooking it to a bench that's sitting just outside. His gesture makes me feel safe and comfortable in this stranger"s home. Even though, last night I weirdly felt at ease and got the best night of sleep I've had in a very long time.

Everything is easy to find, and it's quick to fix my coffee. When I return to the larger room, Ryan is sitting on one side of the bench. So, I go join him. Although, as soon as I reach the empty side, Rusty makes a sudden change in position from laying down next to Ryan to apparently trying to greet me. All this does is complicate my feet by wrapping the leash around one of my ankles and sending me flying through the air. My coffee goes in one direction, and my body falls fast towards the hard ground at Ryan's feet.

Like a hero, those big strong arms snatch me out of the air, and we're face to face. Chest to chest. Eye to eye. Lips to lips. Wait. What? I just planted my lips on his!