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“How long do you think it’ll take the fill the pond?” Jeff asked as the three of us started to walk along the creek bed, following the water.
“Roughly a week, give or take. It should drain directly into the ravine once it hits the six-foot mark. If it rains between now and then, well, it could be a matter of days.” I shielded my eyes from the unforgiving summer sun and peered into the distance where the tops of the heavy equipment were just visible. The water had a long way to go, and even longer still until it reached the ravine and eventually drained down into the valley to meet up with a large creek system running along the outskirts of Hot Springs.
There was still work to be done along the ravine, and now that the creek was running, we were on borrowed time.
As if reading the concerned expression on my face as I did the math in my head, Jeff said, “We should wrap up our work on the ravine in two days.”
“That’s great. That’s plenty of time,” I breathed, smiling at Jeff. “You’ve done some great work here.”
“I’ve never built a creek before,” he admitted with a shrug before looking down at the goddamn masterpiece he created. “I have to say it’s a lot more rewarding than building barns and clearing acreage.”
“Grant will be keeping you on the books for a while, yet,” I replied. Archie walked on, leaving Jeff and me alone. “Next spring is going to be the real test. We’ll have to watch the area closely once the snow starts to melt and the creek rises.”
“Will you be here for that?” he asked, the two of us continuing our walk along the creek bed.
“I believe so,” I said under my breath, a soft smile touching my lips as Day’s voice lifted over the soft breeze rustling the grass.
Jeff’s phone rang and he stopped mid-step to answer it, but I walked on.
Day was running back and forth with a stick in his hands while Jenny leapt at him. Day’s hair was lighter than it used to be, streaks of gold weaving through the usual dark, chocolate brown curls I was so accustomed to. He’d been spending most of his time at the ranch outside, and now his skin was tanned to a deep golden, his freckles more pronounced. I was sure he’d grown at least two inches since our arrival, and it probably had to do with the fact that Grant had been feeding him steak for every meal.
Speaking of Grant. The man barreled up to Day on horseback, picking him up by the collar of his shirt and dropping him in front of him on the saddle. Dust and grass settled in the horse’s wake as it came to stop in enough time for Grant to settle Day on the horse before they took off again, Day screeching with delight.
I’d been watching them do this for weeks. Grant, the gruff cowboy, and Day, my once shy, quiet son, now were best buds and spent most of the day together while we were all out in the pasture.
Me, on the other hand?
I was still keeping my distance from Grant. We’d had dinner a few times, but Day had been there, too, and he was proving to be a buffer between us that we obviously needed. After Grant had caged me against the counter in the kitchen with a promise that sex was most definitely on the table, he was really all I could think about… and not just physically.
I liked him… a lot. And I hadn’t fallen for anyone as hard as I was falling for Grant in at least eight years… maybe not ever.
But I had my kid to protect. Day loved Grant as much as I did, and the idea of something happening between Grant and I and not working out rocked me to my core.
I couldn’t do that to Day. Right now, he had a father figure for the first time since my dad died when he was a toddler. If I kept things strictly platonic and professional between Grant and me, there was a good chance Day would have Grant in his life for years.
It didn’t stop me from wanting Grant, though.
The day sped by in a blur of activity, followed by an insane storm that took everyone by surprise.
Jeff called off any more work for the day, and he and his crew ran for cover back to their trucks as rain and lightning pummeled overhead, thunderheads rolling in and casting the pasture in a nearly black shadow.
I knew Grant would have taken Day back up to his house with Jenny, so I decided to be the last one inside. I spent roughly ten minutes checking on the creek, which was running high now, and keeping an eye on the rapidly filling pond.
“What the fuck are you still doing out here?” Grant called out through the storm. I turned around, soaking wet, and saw him approaching on horseback, his face lined with fury and concern.
“Working—”
He extended a hand, and when I didn’t take it, he grabbed my wrist and pulled me off my feet like I weighed nothing. I wrapped my arms around his stomach as he took off toward the house, the horse running for all it was worth through the downpour and flashes of lightning that lit up the shadows with an electric blue hue.
Grant didn’t say a word until we were inside his house. He gave me a shirt and a towel, wordlessly motioning for me to go change. I did, without argument, and came back into the kitchen in nothing but his shirt and my hair wrapped in the towel.
I willed my body not to react as his gaze lingered on the exposed skin of my thighs where his shirt brushed just above my knees.
“That was really stupid, staying out there alone,” he almost growled, taking two beers out of his fridge. The TV in the living room was humming away just out of sight, and I knew without a shadow of a doubt that Day was snuggled up on the couch with Jenny, safe and sound.
“There was nothing about this in the weather report. Someone had to monitor the creek—”
“You could’ve been struck by lightning,” he growled, popping open a beer and handing it to me. “Although I don’t think it would’ve done much to you, given you have a skull thicker than concrete.”
