Vivian Arend - Rocky Mountain Angel

Gabe laughed. “Your body’s still complaining about you mistreating it the past couple days. Eat—there’s plenty.”

It felt like only a few minutes later before she was licking the sauce off her spoon to get at the final drops. “My compliments to the chef.”

“High praise from someone who knows food. Thank you. I don’t starve.” His pleased expression faded rapidly into something unreadable.

“What’s the extra seasoning you put in there? Can’t be fresh thyme, not yet. Savoury? Basil?”

“Not completely sure—my ma makes these ice-cube things with the herbs when they’re fresh. Mixes them in the blender with a little oil, then she shoves a Ziploc bag of them into my freezer. You’ll have to ask her the secret ingredients. All I know is I toss one in the crock, or the soup pot, and suddenly I’ve got all my cousins clamouring for me to bring over my leftovers.”

The setting and the conversation were comfortable and inconsequential. They both knew they were holding off the real discussion that needed to take place. Allison gathered her courage before it could escape again.

“Gabe?”

“Yeah?”

She stared at his face, gazing into his dark eyes, searching his expression for a hint of what his answer would be. “I’ve had a nap. I’ve thought it through some more. It might be the stupidest thing I’ve ever suggested, but I can’t for the life of me see another way to do this.”

Gabe sighed. “Then I won’t try to convince you otherwise. Nothing I’d hate more than for you to carry regrets regarding your mom’s final days.”

Something inside her chest jerked, or maybe it was in her stomach. “You’ll do it?”

He took her hand in his, strong fingers twisting around hers and holding on tight. “ We’ll do it. This entire crazy idea’s got to be you and me together for it to work. Don’t think for a minute that this is you alone, because that’s not what I’m signing up for.”

“You’re signing up for the help I can give the ranch…”

The increased pressure on her fingers made the words trickle away. “I’ll admit I’m damn hopeful your information can make a difference. But the ranch will be here for a long time. Your mom takes priority, you understand?”

The part of her that had worried how she would juggle everything eased a tiny bit. “Making sure my mom doesn’t know it’s a sham comes first. I swear I’ll try not to drag this out any longer than we have to, but—”

His thumb rubbed over her knuckles soothingly. “You’re getting yourself back into a flap. Slow down, we’ll deal with that issue in a minute. There are a few big-picture things we need to discuss first.”

She could have sworn he swallowed hard, but that wasn’t the in-control and steady man she knew.

“Where you planning on staying?”

Finally something she had an answer for. “I’ll move back in with the family.”

“Like hell.”

She stiffened even though he’d said it softly. “Gabe?”

He shook his head. “No one is going to buy we’re getting hitched if you do that. If you’re all fired up about moving back to Rocky to be with me, tell me why you’d stay anywhere but in my place?”

Allison flushed. “Old-fashioned?”

He raised a brow but didn’t say anything.

“I don’t want to put you out more than necessary.”

“And I’m saying if you want this to work you’re moving in here. You’ll spend your days at the restaurant, and we’ll make sure you see as much of your mom and family as possible, but you sleep nights here. You and me need to keep in touch and…” Gabe sighed, reaching across the table to stroke her cheek softly. “And you’re going to need a place to hide out. This is it. What about when you have tough moments and need to cry, or scream, or to beat the hell out of something? You can’t do that at your mom’s house.”

The sheer magnitude of what they were undertaking started to register. “Do you think I’m wrong for doing this?”

Gabe shrugged. “That’s the kicker. I don’t know, which is why I ain’t trying to talk you out of it.”

They stared at each other, silent for a moment.

“So…what now? Do we go right away and talk to my mom?”

Gabe rubbed the back of his neck. “Unfortunately, I’ve already got plans I can’t cancel. I think we should give it one more evening before making any announcements. Once the word gets out, it’s going to spread like wildfire.”

Oh goodie. Part of Rocky that she really hadn’t missed. “You think they’ll use megaphones on Main Street or something?”

“Don’t go giving anybody ideas, because you know someone will do it. If not from town, one of my cousins, just to be a pain in the ass.”

His wide grin reassured her more than anything else. “Hey, Gabe?”

“Yeah?”

She let out a little of the tension she’d been holding inside, relaxing back into her chair. “Thanks for not throwing me out and telling me I’m crazy.”

He raised his brows. “Fact is, I think we’re both a trifle mad, but yeah—you’re welcome.”

Gabe rose to his feet, clearing his plate and hers to the counter. She helped by putting away what she could while he dealt with the dishes.

Outside the sky was changing to the most spectacular colours. Allison stared out the window. “There’s going to be a beautiful sunset tonight, with the way the clouds are hanging on the horizon.”

“I’ll take you to a real pretty spot to watch from sometime. There’s a comfy tree to lean on and everything.” He tilted his head toward a side door. “I’ll show you where you can put your stuff. I cleared out some space in the second bedroom while you were asleep. Rafe sleeps over occasionally, but I’ve kind of let the office stuff take it over. I’ll bring in your bags and you can get settled while I’m out.”

He pulled open the door to reveal a single bed shoved up against a wall, a small desk tucked beside it. A box on its surface overflowed with papers.

“I cleaned out a few drawers in the bathroom for you as well.”

Suddenly her tongue wasn’t working again. Finding the extra bed was a relief—she wouldn’t have to sleep on the couch for the next however long. But there was only one bathroom.

She’d buy a robe tomorrow. Or give up showering, or something.

It took three trips for them to bring in her stuff. She put some of her things straight into the small shed off the back door. Extra lamps, rugs. She’d had a furnished apartment in Red Deer so she had less bits and pieces than usual, but an embarrassing amount still crowded the entranceway of his porch when her car was empty.

Gabe cleared his throat before tossing her that familiar Angel Boy grin she’d seen so often back in high school. The one that said mischief all over it. “Once you get settled, maybe you want to come up with the story of how we fell in love. If you figure it out, I’ll play along. Easier if one of us does the setup.”

Her pick for a helper couldn’t have been better. This was beyond incredible. “You want to go over it in the morning?”

He nodded, seemingly lost in thought. “I’ll rearrange my schedule so we can have some extra time. If we’re ready, we can stop in at your mom’s tomorrow night. However you feel works best.”

Gabe pulled on a well-worn jean jacket and shoved his keys in the pocket. He opened the door, paused, then shut it with him still standing there, his back toward her.

Allison put down the suitcase she’d been ready to carry to the other room. “Gabe? What’s wrong?”

He twisted gradually. “Just realized something.”

One step forward brought him close enough to touch. One more, and she was ready to edge against the wall to get out of his way. That was her plan until he reached out and caught her, one hand snaking around the back of her neck, the other around her body so he could pull them tight together. He lowered his mouth over hers deliberately, slow enough she could have retreated if she’d wanted to.