Serious Cowboy (Cowboys of Duncan Ranch #2)

Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE

Was it true that Callie had purposely motored along to the same country lane she knew Zeke would be driving on his way home? Yes. And was it true that she’d considered faking a breakdown to garner his attention? Sadly, yes. Again, making her own opportunities to run into him had been on her mind.

Yet, that wasn’t what had happened.

What had happened was actually worse. And better, technically.

She should seriously learn to keep up with the weather forecast because she hadn’t had a clue that a massive winter storm front was barreling toward her until it was too late to avoid it. Then, when she’d skidded right off the road, briefly losing control, she’d actually screamed from behind the wheel.

Sure, no one had been there to hear her, but it’d been scary.

It almost felt like karma, even though she didn’t even believe in karma. She shouldn’t be willing to go to such lengths for any man, no matter who he was or how intriguing she considered him to be. Yes, he’d been standoffish with her. And yes, it had bugged her. So very much. But Callie knew she’d taken things too far.

One, because her accident could’ve become even more of a nightmare than it already was. What if the Miata had flipped? Or what if she’d smashed headlong into a tree or boulder? Two, because only after she’d made the mistake did it occur to her that she could be in legitimate trouble. What if someone hadn’t seen her and squashed her Mazda like a bug?

What if the blizzard had buried her overnight?

The cell signal out there hadn’t been reliable, and her car had been DOA. So, even if she’d been able to walk through that blustery gale, she could’ve become totally lost. Callie had only been in the area for a few months, and never on that specific road. And while Vancouver could get frigid and snowy, the weather didn’t turn on a dime like this. Not usually.

It proved to Callie just how ill prepared she’d been.

She knew she couldn’t have kept her heater running for hours on end, either. Not only because she’d run out of gas, but also because the exhaust could’ve suffocated her from the accumulating inches of wintry precipitation blocking her tailpipe. What she’d done had ultimately been dangerous. Dangerous and dumb.

She’d been incredibly lucky that it had indeed been Zeke who’d discovered her there.

It’d been even more fortuitous that he’d agreed to go out to lunch with her. It was almost a miracle, in fact. Callie didn’t plan to let such good fortune go by the wayside. For whatever random reason, she’d received a gift, and she would be certain to appreciate that gift to its fullest.

It was the least she could do.

With the opportunity she’d been blessed with, she decided to consider it a goal to make him smile. She’d never seen him do so. Not once. It was odd. Even the most taciturn and ornery people in the world smiled on occasion. But even at an event like his best friend’s wedding—or wedding renewal—he’d been not just stone-faced but wretched looking.

What in his life could possibly be so horrible? And if things were that horrible, she wanted to find some way to relieve his burdens. To lighten his load. There had to be something she could do to help him.

She felt emboldened when he upheld his offer to give her a tour. Or really, her insistence that he give her a tour. But she knew she could talk anyone into nearly anything. It was her superpower. She’d promised herself to only use that power for good, anyway, and pulling Zeke out of his shell seemed an admirable goal.

Their luncheon at the Bookish Bistro opened up an aspect of Zeke that she’d never glimpsed before, and it only served to make her more fascinated by him. There was still so much about him that she didn’t know. One thing she did know was how compassionate and generous he could be. Mostly due to his call offering to go get her car that morning.

Zeke hadn’t had to do that. Callie wasn’t his responsibility. Yet, he’d gone out of his way to do it. It warmed the depths of her heart to be the beneficiary of his kindness.

It just went to prove that a man being a loner didn’t preclude him from being wonderful.

The week meandered by as if it had all the time on Earth, and it made Callie half crazy. She felt so anxious to reach Saturday, to spend more time with Zeke on this tour of Rocky Ridge, that she had to distract herself every single day. When there was downtime at the pediatric office—rare as that might be—she doodled all over her calendar blotter.

Once Friday afternoon had finally approached, every blank space had been occupied by swirling patterns of ink.

Yet all that anticipation backfired a little, so that when Zeke showed up at her doorstep, butterflies fluttered in her belly.

“Zeke, hi,” she welcomed him inside, but he hesitated.

“You’re not ready?”

“No, I’m ready. I just thought you might like some coffee or something.”

“None for me, thanks,” he said, grimacing. She didn’t even know why. But she figured maybe leaving would alleviate it.

Climbing inside his vintage International pickup cured any rough moments, though.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been in a truck this old.”

Zeke pursed his lips. “I don’t like to think of finely tuned machines like this as old. They’re more like well-kept antiques. Or at least retro. Classics, if you will.”

She could tell by the tone of his voice that this was meaningful to him. “Well, I’ve never been in a finely tuned retro vehicle like this. It is very nice.”

“You sound surprised.”

“I am surprised. I don’t even know the year model.”

“It’s a sixty-seven.”

“Wow. That’s—” She almost said ancient but caught herself. She doubted he’d like the term ancient any more than he did the term old. “That was a long time ago.”

His pursed lips loosened which she took as a win.

Zeke took her around all the different parts of town, and while she did know a handful of the businesses, she didn’t know them all. She’d known about The Steer House and the Sweet Everything bakery since they were right there on the square with the Bookish Bistro. They’d both become favorites in a short period of time.

She’d heard of The Aviary inside the Overlook Grand Mountain Lodge. Tim and Amanda had been there on their anniversary not too long ago and she’d kept the kids that night for them to celebrate. She’d continued her run as favorite aunt by taking them to the Cowboy’s Toy Box, a local children’s toy store. They’d each gotten to pick a toy, so this had been a huge hit.

But she’d never been by Horseshoe Antiques. She truly was interested in seeing what was inside. It looked like her kind of place to browse and wander around. She was enjoying spending time with him, there was no denying that, but the antique store was calling out to her in a big way. She didn’t want to wait to check it out. She wanted to experience it with someone else. With Zeke.

“The antique shop is pretty legendary in this area,” Zeke narrated at her side. “They have a big section of antique books.”

“Oh, I really want to go in there.”

“Now?”

She refrained from huffing at his huff. “Yes, now.”

So, he took her inside. That was how it began. Callie would request—convince him—to take her into the various businesses for a firsthand look. Though he resisted at first, eventually, he simply gave in and if it was a place where customers were known to frequent, automatically ushered her through the doors. He actually didn’t put up much of a fight and she got the idea he was enjoying being with her. She was feeling good about the day. Very good, in fact.

They browsed the antique saddles and horse blankets. Callie was taken in by the large selection of old newspapers. She’d never paid much attention to these before, but seeing them in this shop drew her in. Reading some of the articles made her chuckle and be surprised. Journalism had changed remarkably in a hundred years.

She could tell that Zeke wasn’t having a bad time looking at all the antique store had to offer. She was immensely happy to see his demeanor lighten up a bit.

There was one exception to his willingness to indulge her curiosity about all things Rocky Ridge, however.

“It’s where I work,” he argued, when she’d mentioned the Duncan Ranch. “There’s nothing to see there, anyway.”

“What? They don’t allow tours?”

“It’s not that kind of ranch. It’s not… touristy. It’s a working ranch.”

“So there’s no baby animal petting tent?”

“Um, no.”

“Hmm. A gift shop? Surely they sell ranch-y stuff. I’m always interested in seasonings and cooking stuff. I actually have a salt and pepper set collection.” Callie couldn’t seem to figure this out, even though Zeke’s declaration that it’s not a touristy place should have been all the explanation she needed. She was baffled.

“Look, I don’t mean to be rude, but I don’t know how to explain it any differently. A ranch isn’t a tourist gimmick.”

“Well, you could show me and then I’d get it.” She smiled up at him sweetly, but he didn’t look like he was going to be swayed.

“It’s really not all that interesting and I don’t really want to go over there when I’m not on the clock.” His frown got through to her. She couldn’t push him further no matter how much she wanted to get to know him better.

Here she was again, pushing for something that could easily come naturally if she was willing to wait. She took a moment to calm herself down and give her mind a boost.

“That makes sense. I didn’t mean to push. I’ve just never been around this western lifestyle thing. As much as I’ve traveled, this is all new to me. And I’m finding it very interesting.” She shrugged trying to feign indifference and understanding that she wanted to feel but didn’t. “Forgive me for being pushy. I’ll try to watch that. I guess that’s what makes me good at herding kids in the pediatrician’s office.”

He nodded and gave her a weak smile.

Their day together ended with him dropping her off at home with only small talk between them on the drive from town. She managed to not lapse back into an interrogation she knew would put him off and make her feel like she’d lost control again.

She watched out her front window as he drove away, crossing her fingers he’d warm up a little more. She’d truly enjoyed his company.

Wondering about his quiet nature, she figured Zeke must just be bashful about sharing the innermost parts of himself, the parts she was so desperate to get to know. And with these thoughts she started thinking of more ways she could find out more about this man she couldn’t get out of her mind.