Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

Zach

I stood out on the deck, staring out into the backyard that was like a giant pasture that had been fenced in years ago. The tree fort my dad had built when Lennix was little was still there, as was the swing set and slide they'd gotten for her fifth birthday. Neither had been used in years, but they refused to get rid of either of them, stating that it was only a matter of time before we started having kids of our own, and they wanted their grandbabies to be able to enjoy those as much as my sister and I had.

I'd been too old for a fort and a swing set by the time Lennix came around, but my enjoyment came from spending time with her, reading her stories up in our special place, and pushing her on the swing. I'd been her favorite person when she was a kid, a role I'd never taken lightly.

"I was starting to worry." At the sound of my mother's voice, I lifted my beer and drank, waiting for her to join me at the deck railing. Lennix had nailed it again, bringing a dark, rick stout tonight specifically for me. "Glad to see it wasn't necessary."

"It won't stop you. You'll find somethin' else to worry about eventually," I teased.

She bumped my shoulder on a quiet chuckle then brought her wine glass to her lips. Rory might have run the Tap Room for decades, happily carrying on yet another one of our family's legacies, but if she had to choose between beer and wine, it would be wine every time. "It's called being a parent. I'm hoping you'll get to experience it yourself one day."

I let out a snort, giving my head a shake. "I wouldn't hold my breath on that if I were you. I'm perfectly content just as I am."

Mom leaned against me, lowering her head onto my shoulder. "There's a big difference between content and happy, honey."

And just like that, her worry was back. I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her against me. There hadn't been much time before I outgrew her, but I could still recall when the roles were reversed and she was the one to hold me reassuringly for that short amount of time.

"I'm happy, Mom. I swear." I waved my arm out in front of me. "I've got everything I could possibly need or want right here. I have you and Dad, Pop and Grandma, Lennix when she isn't being a gigantic pain in my ass."

She let out a long, deep breath. "We're not always going to be here, you know," she said, her words like a knife straight to my heart.

"Christ, don't remind me. Talk about a downer."

She pulled back so she could look up at me, her ebony brows furrowed. "I'm serious, sweetheart. What's going to happen to this place when you're too old to run it? Who's it going to go to if you never have a family of your own?"

My heart sank into the pit of my stomach. This really wasn't the kind of shit I wanted to be thinking about. "I'm sure Lennix will pop out a whole mess of kids eventually. She's still got plenty of time. You don't need to worry about the ranch. It'll stay in the family."

She shook her head. "That's not what I'm talking about." Her hand came up and rested against my cheek, twisting my face so I was looking down at her. "This ranch is yours , Zach. Forget about the Hightower name that came before. Or Paulson. It's not that anymore, it's Safe Haven. Your safe haven, son. It should be that very thing for the next person, and I know you'd raise your kids to look at this place like that."

I heaved out a breath and tried to look away, but she wouldn't let me.

"If you really and truly don't want kids, that's fine. I'll respect that decision. But if you're dragging your feet and settling for content instead of happy because you're scared or because you think you don't deserve it, well... that would break my heart."

Christ, talk about a kill shot.

"When the hell did you get so good at mom-guilt, huh?" I asked, desperately needing to lighten the mood. "You been takin' classes from Grandma when no one was lookin'?"

She pulled back and batted at my arm playfully. "I see what you're doing, and I'll let you get away with it this time."

"Oh really? What am I doing?"

"Changing the subject," she stated, hitting the nail on the head. "But I wouldn't be doing my job as your mother if I didn't point out that you got jealous in there when your sister mentioned Rae dating the ranch hands."

My fingers around my beer bottle tightened dangerously, but I fought not to let anything show on my face. "You're way off-base, Mom. I wasn' t jealous. I was annoyed. Last thing I need to deal with is fraternization between my crew." Maybe I should write up a new rule, forbidding any of them from hooking up. The more I ran that idea through my head, the more I liked it. It was what was best for the ranch, after all. We didn't need the drama.

"Whatever you say." Mom didn't bother hiding her eyeroll.

"What about the fact that she's barely legal, huh? There's, what... a twelve-year gap between us? She's too damn young. Or I'm too damn old, not sure which one's worse."

She waved me off. "Oh, please. No one is thinking about that but you. She's a fully grown, capable adult. Aside from the little bit of trouble she got herself into back in Los Angeles, she's been living on her own for years. I'd say she's more than old enough."

I stared at her in wide-eyed bewilderment. "Christ, when did you become a matchmaker? Fine, how about this? Did you forget the little fact that she's not from here? That when all of this is over, she'll be going back home? To Los Angeles ?"

Mom's shoulder came up in a shrug. "This place has a habit of growing on people." She downed the last sip of her wine before adding, "Lennix was right, you know. She's very beautiful. Only a matter of time before someone comes in and sweeps her off her feet. Just remember that."

She gave me a pat on my back before turning and heading back into the house, leaving me to stew at the thought of Rae getting close to any of my guys. But it wasn't jealousy, damn it.

I quickly finished my beer and called it a night, saying goodbye to my family before jumping in my truck and getting the hell out of there before my mom got any other crazy ideas in her head. The empty ranch house loomed ahead of me, its solid shape a dark mass against the star-speckled sky. I still wasn't used to seeing it so dark. Until my grandparents moved out, it was always so full of life. It was where everyone gathered. Family gatherings were always in the big house. There was no shortage of friends swinging by for a quick visit that usually turned long.

I understood that it had become too much house for my grandparents, but I missed it. I just couldn't bring myself to move in there.

As I passed, my attention caught on the barn beyond. All the lights inside were on. It wasn't like Hal or one of the crew to forget to shut the place down at night. We kept a few on for the horses, but the place was currently glowing and the doors were still open. With a muttered curse, I turned the wheel, guiding my truck toward the barn instead of home. I climbed out of my truck and stomped to the barn, thinking over what I was going to say when I ripped my crew a new one in the morning for forgetting to shut the place down. Only, my boots skidded to a stop right as I entered and spotted the last person I would have expected standing at the stall of that red roan mare.

The horse's head was hanging over the stall door, her nose twitching as she sniffed around Rae's waist. The woman in question giggled as she ran her hands over the temperamental horse's mane.

"I told you to hang on," she told the horse, her voice coming out soft and sweet. "Man, you're impatient, aren't you?"

My heart lodged in my throat when the horse's head came up, her lips pulled back from her teeth like she was prepared to take a chunk out of the woman standing in front of her. I took a step forward, my mouth dropping open to shout at her to step back before she got hurt, but before I could get a word out, Rae reached into her pocket and pulled out a peppermint, holding it just out of the horse's reach.

"Ah-ah. We've talked about that, haven't we? No treats for you if you can't be nice."

The horse tossed her head, shaking her mane like she understood everything Rae was saying .

"If you want the peppermint, you have to behave. We agreed." My heart skipped two solid beats before flipping over and taking off like a rocket as she extended her hand slowly, palm up, offering the piece of candy.

The horse took it far more gently than I thought her capable of, causing Rae's entire face to break out in a beaming grin. "There you are. See? I knew you were a sweetie under all that sass," she cooed as she stroked lovingly between the animal's eyes. "You just need someone who gets you, huh?"

To my shock, the horsed extended its head, hooking its chin over her shoulder and pulling her in, as if to hug her. Rae laughed again and wrapped her arms around the horse's neck.

"There's my sassy, beautiful girl." I caught her pull back, her eyes darting to either side of the stall door like she was looking for something. "What's your name, huh? All the other horses have their names on their stall doors. A pretty girl like you should have an awesome name."

"She doesn't have one yet." My mouth opened and the words came spilling out without any input from my brain.

Rae startled at the unexpected sound of my voice, whipping around and taking two huge steps back from the stall. "I-I'm sorry. I know it's late. I probably shouldn't be in here?— "

Damn, I felt like shit, knowing I'd been such a prick that she felt she should apologize for being nice to the animals. I held up a hand to stop her rapid-fire apologies. "It's fine, really. I was on my way back from dinner with my family, and I saw the lights on. Figured I'd come and see what was up, that's all." Her shoulders drooped on a breath of relief. "You can be in here as late or as early as you want, just as long as you close up."

She bobbed her head vehemently. "Oh, I will. I promise. I just..." She trailed off, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth and twisting her fingers together in front of her. "I'd never been around horses before I came here." Her gaze returned to me, a shy smile pulling at her lips. "They really are amazing. So big and intimidating. But so sweet underneath all that."

I moved closer slowly, feeling drawn to her in a way I couldn't ignore but also not wanting to spook her and send her running off. "That's a pretty accurate description. Well, for most of them anyway." I jerked my chin toward the horse she'd just been loving on. "I think you're the only one on the ranch who would call that one sweet."

Rae's face fell, a deep frown marring her beautiful features as she reached out to caress the mare's cheek. "What? She's a big old teddy bear! She's just misunderstood. "

Something about the way she stared at the horse while saying that led me to believe that was something they shared, a connection that bonded them. It would definitely explain why the damn animal seemed more than happy to stand there with her chin resting on Rae's shoulder.

"Tell that to all the cowboys she's sent airborne any time they try to ride her."

She looked back at the animal with a thoughtful hum, absentmindedly stroking her. "Huh. Maybe she's just not ready?" she offered hesitantly, like she was afraid of sounding ridiculous. But she might be on to something.

"How do you mean?" I asked curiously.

"Well, Hal told me she's new here, right? You guys only just got her? Maybe she's not comfortable with her surroundings yet." It sounded as though she was speaking from experience. And I hadn't done a damn thing to make her transition here any easier. "Maybe all she needs is a little more time."

And the right person, I thought to myself. "You know what? I think you may be right."

Her eyes lit up in a way I'd never seen before, her smile so fucking brilliant it nearly blinded me. "You think so?"

I nodded, something in my chest feeling heavy and warm at the same damn time. I was hit with the realization that I would do anything to keep that smile on her face. "Yeah. She seems to like you, so maybe you should be the one working with her for now."

Her mouth fell open. "Oh, no. I can't. I don't know the first thing about horses."

"I'll teach you." The offer spilled out before I could think it through. There was a huge difference in making things right by helping Rae feel welcome and throwing myself in front of her every chance I got. But I was in it now. There was no going back. "Look, I know I haven't exactly been the most welcoming?—"

I knew she didn't mean to let out a snort when my eyes jerked up at the same time she slapped a hand over her mouth and bugged her eyes out. "Oh my God. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to make that noise."

One corner of my mouth hooked up in a smirk I couldn't hold back. "Yes, you did."

She slowly grinned, giving me a nod. "Yeah, I did. But still. You're my boss, and I should be more respectful."

I waved a hand. "Don't worry about it. How about this? How about we start over?"

She beamed again and I thought I might go blind from the sight of that incredible smile. "Okay. Yeah. I'd really like that. "

I moved closer, extending my hand. "Welcome to Safe Haven. I'm Zach, and I run this ranch."

She bit down on her lips like she was trying to mask her smile as she lifted her hand and placed it in mine. "I'm Rae. It's really nice to meet you."

Her hand felt soft in mine, small and delicate, and I had to work to ignore the tingling sensation that touching her shot up my arm. "Nice to meet you, Rae. You like horses? 'Cause we have this one that's full of attitude. Doesn't seem to like anybody, but I think she just may like you."

"I love horses," she exclaimed on a giggle. "I'd be happy to help you out, but I'm working the lodge tomorrow. How about the next day?"

I told myself the sinking sensation in my stomach had to have been a reaction to something I ate. It had nothing to do with the fact that I wouldn't be seeing her around the ranch tomorrow. "Sounds perfect. It's late. You should probably get some sleep."

Her features softened as she released my hand and stuffed both of hers in the front pocket of her jeans. "Okay, Zach. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Hollywood."

She shot me a grin over her shoulder. "Grumpy Cowboy," she said with a nod before stopping like a thought just occurred to her. "Hey, Zach? Why doesn't she have a name?"

"Because I hadn't been able to think of one that fit her. But I think you landed on it."

She cocked her head to the side. "Me?"

"Yeah. When you called her sassy. Feels like the perfect name to me. What do you say?"

She nodded happily. "Yep. It's perfect."

"Then I'll get her nameplate ordered tomorrow. Get some sleep."

I watched as she left the barn, only pulling my gaze from where she disappeared when Sassy let out a short whinny as if you say: you really are a sucker for that girl.

"Don't look at me like that," I grumbled at the animal's judgmental stare. "I'm thirty-five years old, for Christ's sake. I can exercise self-restraint. Besides, she works for me."

But why the hell did that make it seem even hotter?