to learn after my mom died.”
The sadness that flitted across the girl’s face was like a wisp of fog, gone before it could fully form, but still there. Saedra’s throat sprouted a lump. Poor thing. She should really cut Cabe some slack. He’d been through a lot.
“Is there a phone book I can use?”
Rana stared at her as if she was speaking a foreign language. “Phone book?”
“Yeah. You know. The yellow book with newspaper pages with numbers on them.” She sent the girl a teasing smile.
“No, but there’s Google.”
“Do you have internet?”
“Of course.” Rana gave her a look that clearly said the Jensens weren’t complete rednecks. “But I think you should go into town with my dad. You know, see what you can find. Maybe one of the Lions Club halls would work if it’s not being used.”
Not on her life—at least as far as going anywhere with her dad.
“That’s okay.” She tried for a sunny smile, although she wasn’t entirely certain if she succeeded. “I think I’ll wing it on my own. How far is town from here?”
A perplexed frown filled the girl’s face. “You passed it on your way here.”
That was town? Oh, dear. She’d thought for sure she’d missed a turnoff and that there was a big shopping mall and a residential area somewhere off in the distance. This might be more difficult than she imagined.
“What’s the next biggest town?”
“Maybe Susanville.” Rana swept a lock of brown hair off her face. “Or Reno.”
Reno. That might be an option. She’d driven through there on her way to New Horizons Ranch.
“Okay, great. I’m off, then.”
“Not without my dad.”
Saedra tucked her chair in, the legs screeching on the hardwood floors. “I don’t need your dad.”
“What if you get lost?”
“How can I get lost? There’s only one road.”
“There’s other businesses tucked off side streets.” The girl jumped off her stool. “Dad!” She turned toward the front of the house. “Saedra needs to go into town.”
“No,” Saedra cried, holding out her hands. “That’s okay. I can explore on my own.”
“Da-ad!” Rana called again.
“It’s okay, Rana. Really. No need to bother—”
“What’s all the yelling about?”
Crud. He must have been right around the corner.
“Saedra needs you to take her into town,” the girl announced.
The man filled the doorway, and without his cowboy hat, his brown wavy hair made him appear more boyish. Not at all what she would have expected.
“Actually, I’ll be fine on my own.”
“But you don’t know where anything is.” Rana met her father’s gaze. “She needs to visit the florist and maybe stop off at someplace that rents tents.”
“No, no.” Saedra pulled out her cell phone. “I’ll be fine on my own.” She shot him a smile. “Have Google, will travel.”
Cabe’s lips lifted, but not into a smile. No. More of a grimace. She could tell he searched for a graceful way out of his daughter’s request, but couldn’t think of anything.
“What time did you want to leave?”
She released a sigh of disappointment. “Really, Cabe. It’s okay. I’m sure you have a million things to do, what with guests arriving tomorrow—”
“Don’t listen to her, Dad. She’s trying to be polite, but we don’t have time for that. Trent and Alana’s wedding is in two weeks.”
And somewhere in there was Christmas, as Rana had mentioned. Come to think of it, where were all the Christmas decorations? Not so much as a jingle bell in sight.
“I can take you to town in an hour.”
“Perfect!” Rana couldn’t contain her excitement. “I’ll stay here and research outdoor weddings. Maybe someone can rent us a portable building or something.”
Saedra spun to face the little girl. “You’re not going with us?” She was certain her panic showed on her face.
“Nah. I have some homework to do. But I stay here alone all the time. No need to look so worried.”
Worried was not the word. Dismayed. Maybe even nauseous.
“In fact, I think I’ll get started on that homework now.” Rana reached for a bowl of apples sitting on a rose-colored countertop. “I’ll see you after.”
Only if Saedra didn’t run screaming for the hills.
* * *
NOT EVEN AN hour had passed and already she’d interfered with his life.
Relax, Cabe, it’s not like she doesn’t have a good reason.
Cabe tried to remind himself of that fact as he pulled up in front of his home. His daughter had had a point earlier. The sooner they got the major details of Alana’s wedding done, the sooner Saedra would be out of his hair. He was certain the woman could manage the minor details on her own.
He hoped.
She came bounding down the steps of his house like a teenager and looking younger than her years in her off-white jacket and a matching knit hat that hugged the contours of her face. The sun had already started to set, golden rays of light catching the twin edges of her pigtails and setting them afire. Pigtails. It should look stupid on someone her age, but on Saedra Robbins, it only made her look sexy. Just the sight of her sent a jolt through his insides, one that left him feeling flushed and edgy and out of sorts.
She jerked on the door handle, the loss in cabin pressure popping his ears, the smell of her assaulting his senses an instant later. Vanilla and cinnamon.
She didn’t even bother to greet him. “You don’t have to do this.”
It must have been his own internal grumpiness that made him say, “I wouldn’t if I didn’t want to.”
She’d slipped into the interior of the ranch’s black truck easily, the cabin pressure lowering once again as she slammed the door closed, that space between them suddenly smelling entirely too good for his peace of mind.
“You’re just saying that to be kind.”
Yes, he was, but she didn’t need to know that.
“Rana
