Page 23 of Long Hard Road

“I can see why everyone around here drives a truck.” The snowdrifts on either side of us were a couple of feet tall. “Do you like living somewhere with such brutal winters?”

“You get used to it.”

“That’s not an answer to my question.”

He laughed. “Damn. I was hoping you wouldn’t notice.”

“So?”

“No, I don’t like the winters in Crestwood. I love being outdoors– riding horses and working on the ranch. I like feeling the sun on my skin and taking long drives down the country roads with my windows down. But if I want to have those days, I’ve got to put up with these days.” He gestured to the cloudy sky and salt-worn road in front of us. “It’s days like these that remind me of those other days and how lucky I am to call this place home.”

He spoke about Crestwood so poetically that I started to see it through his eyes. I could almost picture the trees surrounding us covered in green leaves. I could almost believe the warm air coming from the vents in the dashboard was actually a summer breeze rushing through open windows.

“I might need to come back to Crestwood in the summer. You’ve made it sound pretty amazing.”

“You’re welcome anytime. If the cabin is booked, you can borrow my guest room on the ranch. My house should be finished by summer.” He made the offer so easily that I almost missed what he had just said. He had invited me to stay in his home.

“You’re building a house on the ranch?” I asked and he nodded. “Could I see it?”

“Right now?” He looked at me with a little bit of panic in his eyes.

I laughed and slapped his arm. “No, not right now. I’m starving.”

“Yeah, me too,” he muttered. This time when he glanced at me there was an unmistakable heat in his eyes.

“I, um, are we almost there?” The warm air I’d been enjoying earlier was now making it hard for me to breathe. Sweat collected on the back of my neck.

“See that wooden arch up there?” he said, pointing to the right of the highway.

“Yeah.”

“That’s the entrance to the Sullivan Ranch. That’s where I usually live and work.”

I leaned forward. “Really? Will you show me?”

“Later. We’ve got another stop first.” This time he pointed to the left, to another arch across the highway. “This is the guest ranch that my brother Chase runs.” He turned on his left signal.

“This is where we are going?” I asked excitedly. I had never been to a ranch and I was excited to see part of Nate’s life.

“They have a restaurant in the welcome lodge and their chef is fantastic. I called ahead to make sure we’d have a table.” He turned onto the dirt road.

“Lucky Charm Ranch?” I said, reading the engraving carved into the arch that was shaped like a giant horseshoe.

“My mom started this ranch. Her name was Penny, but my dad always called her Lucky. They were one of those ridiculously in love couples that makes everyone around them roll their eyes.” The wistful smile on his face was the first one I’d seen like that.

“Were one of those couples?” I asked softly.

“Mom died about twenty years ago. She had cancer and it was already far along when they found it.”

“I’m so sorry, Nate.”

He nodded. “Me too. Mom was incredible and I miss her every day. We all do.”

“This was her place?” I took in the large building in front of us that had been built to look like a giant log cabin. It had a rustic deck that spanned the length of it and large glass windows that reflected the trees surrounding us.

“It was a lot different back then, but this was one of the structures she had built. She would’ve loved everything that Chase and Lily have been doing to the ranch.” Nate pulled into a parking spot and turned off the engine. “Stay put.”

Before I could ask why, he was out of the truck and circling toward my side. I should’ve known that Nate Sullivan was a man who opened car doors for women.