4. Aspen

Four

Aspen

“Did you want to walk? Or we can go on horseback? Maybe ATV? I got it all.” Boone smiled as we strode towards the barn. The barn was huge and painted in a faded red color, the paint chipping away from being exposed to the elements. It was clear the structure had been here a while and thoroughly maintained by his family over the years.

“How far is it?” I asked, attempting to look over the pastures to see if I could catch a glimpse.

“It’s out by the cabins, right off the main road. The cabins and store have a gravel driveway made for them. It’s easier to ride an ATV from here.” I wasn’t wearing the right clothes to hop on the back. Luckily, I decided to wear Converse instead of sandals tonight.

“The dress may be an issue, but…” I trailed off.

Boone’s eyes traveled along my body from head to toe. He took his time admiring everything, from my hair down to my shoes. His inspection made me nervous, I tucked a piece of fallen hair behind my ear in response.

Deciding my outfit was good enough, he nodded slightly. “Hang here. I’ll back out, and you can hop on.” Boone disappeared into the barn, and the engine of the machine roared to life before he backed it out of the open doors. “Get on the back. Make sure to hold on tight.”

I’ve never been on the back of a quad before. Where was I supposed to “hold on tight?” I swung one leg over and straddled the back half of the seat. Boone scooted up, closer to the handlebar to make room for me. I placed both my hands on my thighs, waiting for him to get going.

Boone shot me a look over his shoulder. “Arms around my waist, Darling.”

Darling. That made me melt. My insides felt like warm honey. For the second time tonight, my cheeks flushed, and I swore the temperature climbed ten degrees. I did as he asked, wrapping my arms around his middle.

“Like this?” I leaned, trying to speak in his ear over the roar of the engine. It came out more seductive than intended, nearly a whisper. I would’ve sworn I felt Boone shiver under my chest pressed against his back.

“Yeah, just like that,” he whispered back, low enough I could barely hear over the rumble of the engine.

Without another word, he took off at a steady pace. With the engine noise, it didn’t leave much room for conversation; however, it did leave enough time to get lost in my thoughts. Focusing on the feeling of his warm back pressed tight against my breasts, seeping through my dress, I felt his muscles tense with every turn and bump. I held on for dear life. My face was so close to him that I could smell his scent. Sweat lingered on his skin. There was also a hint of “man” – was it teakwood? It was the default masculine scent I attributed to every man in a romance book.

When we pulled up to the farm stand, I was stunned by the sight before me. The storefront was adorable, surpassing all the variations I had imagined.

Boone hopped off first and held his hand out to help me off. I took it, wrapping my hand in his. The callouses I knew were there scraped against my tender palms. There was such a difference in texture: My hands were practically new and unused, while his hands had seen hard work and manual labor.

“This is unbelievable,” I whispered. The structure before me was an oversized shed with double doors on the front, able to swing open. A little porch was attached with an overhang to protect it from the rain.

I let go of Boone’s hand and walked towards the front doors. The latch wasn’t locked, so I pulled the doors open in different directions. Inside, Edison bulb string lights hung from the beams. There were tables on each side, skinny to hold a few products. Most of them were empty except for one with buckets filled with wildflowers. The display was beautiful, begging for customers to make their own bouquets. In the back was a counter attached to a deli-style display case where I imagined the meats were held during operating hours. I didn’t need to see anymore; I had my answer.

“Yes,” I sighed. “I accept.”

Boone’s laugh came from behind me. When I spun around, he was leaning against the door frame. His arms were crossed over his chest as he smirked in my direction. A classic sign of a real smile, faint wrinkles touched the corner of his eyes.

“You haven’t seen the cabin. What if it’s infested with bugs? Or the roof caved in?”

“I don’t care. I’ll put up a tarp and call the exterminator.” He pushed off the frame and strode towards me, his hands in his front pockets.

“Ellie did a great job, didn’t she?” Boone looked around, taking it in. There was something like sadness in his eyes; his expression changed slightly. “This was her dream. Her project.”

“I’m sorry to hear about her and Buck.” The words came out before I could run them through my filter. It wasn’t my position to share my feelings about his sister’s situation. Nor was it my place to even bring it up.

“Yeah,” he whispered. “She ain’t the same since. If she’s willing to take a step back from this, you know she’s struggling.” His eyes finally met mine; a sad smile appeared on his lips, lacking those fine lines from before. “I know you can take care of it. Make it what she wanted, if or when she comes back.”

“If?” I asked, but Boone didn’t respond. I felt uncomfortable. I needed to get away from the conversation, so I changed the subject in typical Aspen fashion. “You have a lot of confidence in me.”

Boone took a minute; silence filled the space. “I watched you handle that coffee shop like a pro.”

He must’ve been able to tell by the look on my face I was confused, questioning his last sentence. He was only there once for a total of five minutes max. Confidence doesn’t build in such a short period of time.

Boone interjected before I could express my confusion. “I went by every day after the first visit. I watched from the window, and I knew you’d be perfect.” He didn’t let me comment before turning and walking out the front door. “Come on, let’s check out your piece of paradise.” I took one last glance at the space before following him out.

Side by side, we walked to the cabins, which were a short distance away from the stand. He wasn’t joking when he said my “piece of paradise,” because wow . Two cabins sat together, enough apart that you couldn’t pass sugar to your neighbor through the window. They had a gravel stone path that led to both, making it an easy walk. The cabin on the left was decorated minimally. You could tell someone had been living there. The one on the right was clearly vacant. Curtains were closed, lights off, and the weeds overgrown in the flower beds outside. I nearly gasped when I laid eyes on my favorite part, a porch swing. The cabin was quaint, but enough. Maybe a one bedroom one bathroom? I wouldn’t know until I stepped foot inside.

“The one on the right would be yours. The left one is mine.” Boone’s voice pulled me from my daydream.

“Yours?” I choked on the word. My head snapped in his direction, making sure I heard him correctly.

“Yes, Darling, mine.” There that word was again, Darling . I liked it, maybe a little too much. “We’ll be neighbors. So, I have to warn you. I sometimes have friends over and often get up early. I also haven’t had a neighbor out this way. Sometimes, I drink coffee in my underwear on the porch. I hope you don’t mind.” Boone grinned and winked, a deadly combination coming from him.

Boone being my neighbor was not something I predicted. I expected to see him occasionally, maybe in passing since this was his family ranch. Now, I’ll be seeing a whole lot of him. Is that really a bad thing?

Boone was first to take a step towards what would be my cabin. I followed a few steps behind, taking a look at the willow trees that framed the space. He opened the door and allowed me in first. I slipped past him into the dark space.

At first glance, I noticed there was no furniture, which wouldn’t be a problem. I loved the stuff in my apartment and it would fit perfectly in here. My initial impressions were right, one bedroom and one bathroom. I took time to wander around. There was a short hallway which brought me to the bedroom. There were two windows, one of which seemed to face Boone’s place. The bathroom was connected to the bedroom meaning easy access. Coming back to the main area, there was a living room with a fireplace, and the kitchen had a small dining area that was all set in an open floor plan. The space was cute and perfect for me. Mentally, I began to lay out everything.

In the corner, I would put my reading chair. Along the same wall, I could put a desk, maybe for writing? For the first time in a while, I felt real hope. I felt like everything was happening for a reason. Me, losing my job at The Coffee Cup, getting the writing bug back, and taking a leap of faith, it was all starting to make sense.

The optimism didn’t last long. One thought doused my happiness with a dark gray rain cloud. How long would this even last? Ellie was coming back; it could be a few weeks, a couple of months, maybe a year, no one knew. I didn’t dwell on that long; I shoved it to the back of my mind and let myself return to being happy.

“No hole in the roof. Bugs are still to be determined.” Boone’s voice took over the space. He stepped further inside.

“I can manage.” I turned towards him, smiling from ear to ear. “Thank you, Boone. You have no idea the stress this took off my shoulders. I don’t know how even to begin to show my thanks.”

His eyes met mine, blueish green staring right through me. “No need. You’re the one doing us a favor.” We both had a lot to gain and a lot to lose if this didn’t work out. It was my priority to make this the best damn business investment the Cassidy’s ever made.

***

Boone and I didn’t hang around long after that. We made our way back to the main house, where his parents sat on the porch.

Jill sat in one rocking chair while Dan sat in the other. “What did you think?” Jill asked.

“I’m speechless. I’d love to accept the offer, as long as you didn’t change your mind when we were gone.” I tried to joke and Jill gave me a sympathetic laugh as she stood up to approach me with open arms.

“We would love to have you! You can start as soon as you’re ready.” I accepted her warm embrace, wrapping my arms tightly around her small frame.

“Thank you again,” I whispered in her ear while she held me in the hug. We exchanged phone numbers so I could contact her when I was ready to start working and move in.

Boone walked me to my car, which was quite gentlemanly of him. “Give me your phone,” Boone said, and I paused before opening my car door.

I reached into my purse, fishing out the device. Without hesitating, I handed it to him, and he began tapping on the screen.

When he finished, he said, “I added my phone number. Let me know if you need help moving.”

Grabbing my phone back, I smiled at what was on my screen. His contact read, “Hot Neighbor,” which he was totally right about. Hiding how true I thought that was, I sent a quick message to him so he would have mine as well. I felt like I was living in a movie; my high school self would be envious.

On my way home, I made a phone call to Wilders to tell them I’d be moving out sooner than planned. I didn’t need to live in the apartment past the shop’s closing. With Boone’s help, I would start moving into the cabin on Cassidy Ranch as soon as possible. The beginning of this new chapter in my life needed to start while I still felt on top of the world.