I rushed to the end table closest to the door. My guitar was propped on the wall by it. I scribbled the ideas that had gathered in my head. “Okay. Done.”
“The muse was in action?”
“The muse got a lot of action.” I sauntered toward him. “Stress baking?”
He tossed a muffin at me. “That’s not the only reason I bake. I threw them in and put the coffee on and ran outside to get some work done.”
“I have a coffeepot here.” I tore a piece off the muffin and popped it in my mouth. Sweetness burst over my tongue. Damn, these were good.
“Do you have the locally roasted beans sold at Mountain Perks?” When I shook my head and smirked, he shrugged. “You’re picky about bourbon; I’m picky about coffee.”
I swallowed and inspected the berries in my muffin. “Are these huckleberries?” Mama would make huckleberry muffins every year, but I’d been traveling so much I never got them fresh. She kept a batch frozen for me, but they weren’t as good as straight out of the oven.
“Autumn let her class pick them on her land last year. There was a bumper crop.”
I took another bite, chomping off half a muffin. “Then they’ll probably be sparse this year. I miss going to pick them.”
He handed me another muffin and took one forhimself. We ate and drank coffee admittedly better than mine.
“How was Kirstin?” I set my cup down.Quit prodding, June!
But if his ex put her foot down about my presence in their kids’ lives, I would be ousted. I would respect her wishes around her kids, but I had no wish to learn that Rhys would side with her. He’d be right to do so, but also...
Didn’t he see that he was letting all the responsibility for his ex’s happiness fall on him? He’d done the same for Wren. The ranch had stressed his stepmom out, so he’d acquiesced and sold without even discussing alternate plans first.
Just like he’d left me sleeping on the cabin floor with only a note to show for five years together.
“She was still sleeping,” he said. “It’s one reason why I went so early.” He put his Stanley next to mine.
“What if she doesn’t—” I took a fortifying inhale. “What if she doesn’t want you and me to be a thing, even if it’s only for two weeks?”
“She doesn’t run this part of my life.” His resolute tone helped ease my tension. “Thisisn’t affecting the kids, so she has no say.”
Were the kids the excuse he hid behind?
It wasn’t my business. Time for a subject change. I lifted my chin toward the coffee mugs. “I didn’t picture you as a Stanley guy.”
“The girls begged for them for Christmas but Wren got them each one before Thanksgiving. They used them for two weeks and then forgot all about them.” He shrugged. “They keep my coffee hot as fuck all day.” Hecrowded me against the island. “I’ve gotta get back to work.”
“No rest for the rancher?” I twined my arms around his neck. The echoes of the hurt from when I was eighteen faded away. I had him in this moment. We had two weeks to wake up together.
“I’ve got a couple more minutes.”
I batted my eyelashes. “Whatever are we going to do with them?”
He tugged my shorts down. “I have some ideas.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
June
I pulled up to Autumn’s house. She and Gideon lived in town, but they were cleaning out her place now that renovations had started on the house that was on Gideon’s land. Now their land.
She opened the front door and waved to me. Her red hair was piled on top of her head. Like me, she wore linen shorts and a loose, short-sleeved shirt. Where I wore pinks and white, she preferred browns and more neutral tones.
I gave her a quick hug after I stepped inside. “Have you started sorting yet?”
“Yeah, but then Gideon stopped home on the way to another auction with his dad. I didn’t get that much boxed.”
