Page 28 of Midnight Roots

I sip my beer and look out at the ranch. I wonder where all the cattle are. He comes back outside with the butter, a butter knife, and a bread knife. He cuts the hamburger buns and starts to butter them on both sides.

He turns and flips the burgers and sips on his own beer. "So, how was your day?"

"Nerve-wracking, to be honest," I say. I sip my beer again, and maybe some liquidcourage will loosen our tongues. "I wasn't sure what to expect tonight."

"Just a tour, some talking, maybe more." He wiggles his eyebrows at me, and I smile.

"That sounds lovely," I say. "So when you're not breeding cattle, what do you do for fun around here?"

He glances at me and smiles. "Nothing much. I work a lot of the time. Sleep the rest. I go into town every day, but you know that."

I nod. "I do know that. Tell me something I don't know. What did you do before you worked here?"

"I was in the navy," he says, but a darkness shadows his eyes. I nod and try to brush it off.

"I used to work in retail, but that ended dismally." I try to change the topic. "Retailattracts the worst kind of people. I worked in a clothing store."

"You ever work with cattle?" he asks. "Just out of curiosity."

I smile. "Why? Are you hiring?"

"Maybe," he jokes. At least, I think he's joking.

He flips the burgers again and goes back inside—this time, he reemerges with some paper plates. "I didn't want to make too many dishes. Do enough chores around here."

"I can do the dishes," I offer.

"No, no. You relax." He laughs, and I smile.

"A girl could get used to being treated like this," I point out.

"As you should," he responds.

He compiles the burgers. "Relish?" He asks.

"Please."

He puts some on and hands me a plate with my burger. He sits opposite me with his burger. "There's more if you're hungry after that one."

"One is enough," I say, biting into it. It's good. It's not quite as good as the Catch + Candle burgers, but it would do for dinner.

We eat in silence. The sounds of nature surround us. The silence is only broken by the distance moos of cows.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Heston

The burgers go down well, and we finish our beers. The sun is starting to set when I turn to Dillon. "Coffee?"

"Yes," she says. "Shall we move inside?"

"Yes, we can sit in the kitchen."

I lead her into the kitchen and pull out a chair for her. "Sit, I'll make us coffee. You want cream and sugar?"

"Yes, and yes," she says. "Two sugars, please."

I nod and put the kettle on. "I don't have a fancy coffee machine, so I hope instant coffee is fine."