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“Yes,” he said. “Sorry that took so long.”
She waved off the apology and asked, “Where to next?”
“Connor and I need some clothes,” he said. “And toiletries. And groceries.” He cut a look at her out of the corner of his eye. “Can you take me somewhere to do all of that at once?”
“Let’s try the department store over on Wall,” she said. “It has a grocer right next door.”
“Great.”
She drove, and Nate rode along. He wasn’t a particularly chatty man, and the silence was driving Ginger insane. But all the questions she wanted to ask seemed inappropriate, so she kept her mouth shut too.
By the time he finished shopping for everything, lunchtime had come and gone. Her stomach growled as he loaded bags of cereal and granola bars and eggs into the back of her truck.
“I heard that,” he said, grinning at her. “Do you have time for lunch?”
No, Ginger really didn’t have time for lunch. She supposed no one had called or texted her with an emergency yet, and she might as well enjoy her time off the ranch. “Okay,” she said, looking around. They were right downtown in Sweet Water Falls, and they had their pick of at least a dozen places. “What do you like?”
“Ginger,” he said, his voice made of magic and warm honey. “I’ve been eating prison food for almost five years. Everything here has to be better than that.”
She turned toward him and met his eye. He smiled, and his whole countenance transformed with that simple gesture. Ginger felt like someone had poured cement in her veins, because she couldn’t move.
Her mind raced, though, and all she could think about was being this man’s girlfriend.
“I would like some amazing pizza,” he said, glancing around, his gaze coming back to hers a moment later. “Do you think that’s possible?”
“Yes,” she said dumbly. She gave herself a mental shake and blinked her way out of the heated trance she’d fallen into. “There’s a great place just around the corner called Papa Bear’s.”
“Oh, wow.” He chuckled and gestured for him to lead the way. “Close enough for us to walk?”
“Yes,” she said, already moving. Maybe a walk would clear her head, though Papa Bear’s was literally five minutes away.
“So tell me,” Nate said after he’d matched her stride with his. “Are there other rules around the ranch I need to know about?”
“Other rules?”
“Yeah, you know, like where I can put my groceries in the house. Those shelves were all labeled.”
“Oh, well, that’s because Jack’s crazy.” She giggled, actually mortified at the sound. She tried to suck it back in and ended up choking. As she coughed, Nate just grinned, almost like he knew the effect he held over women.
He hadn’t lost everything in prison, that was for dang sure.
“Who’s Jack?”
“He lives downstairs,” she said. “He’s an amazing cowboy, but he has a little bit of an issue with OCD. Likes things a certain way. He’ll have some shelves labeled for you by the time we get back, or I’ll treat you to lunch again.”
“I don’t need you to treat me this time,” he said.
“No?” She looked at him. “I suppose Ward did leave you everything.”
“That’s still being worked out with the lawyers,” he said. “I have money from…before.”
“Oh.” Surprise darted through Ginger, and she nearly fell down when Nate put his hand softly on the small of her back and said, “I think it’s down there.”
She’d been preparing to cross the street, but he was right. Papa Bear’s was to their left, just beyond the grocery store where he’d seemingly bought everything he wanted. Ginger’s skin sparked, sending electricity up her back, across her shoulders, and down her arms.
“Anything else I need to know?” he asked. “You know, cowboys to avoid. How to make sure I’m safe when I go out on the ranch. That kind of thing.”
“Nate,” she said, coming back to the present, though she still felt like shivering from his touch. “You’re not in prison anymore. You’re safe at Hope Eternal Ranch.”
