He was as proud as she was to have their first home, because at his young age he knew what it meant not to have a place to call their own. His ambition would help him survive.
“We’re opening a business,” he amended with a wide grin and teasing brow of his own. “Just you and me, kid,” he said with a wink of his beautiful golden eyes.
Instantly a stab of worry cut Rose to the core. Those eyes coupled with that wide grin…She was standing on top of a house of cards that had already begun to buckle.
But not here. Not in this moment when everything was supposed to be so perfect. “We’re full partners,” she said, forcing the conversation forward. “You are welcome to be as involved in this as you want to be. I’m going to rely on you a lot. If you’re sure you want the responsibilities.”
His eyes turned serious in an instant. “I’m in all the way. Remember, I have a ranch to buy. That means I better get to work. It’s torch time.” He took her bag, then sauntered off toward the worktable where his torches waited.
Cleaning off the stickers required singeing the bristles off with the hot flame. Like Pete said, it was a guy thing.
Watching him, panic crowded near. Zane was here. In her town.
She could run, leave all of this behind—but she couldn’t do that to Max. She sucked in a shaky breath, attempting to calm her fears. Deep down she’d feared this day might come. And now that it was here there was only one thing she could do.
Stay put.
No more running.
It was time to make a stand, whether she was ready to or not.
“I still can’t believe we got ourselves a real live Texas Ranger as a deputy in our little town,” Applegate Thornton said, sounding like he was talking through a bullhorn the minute Zane entered Sam’s Diner. Applegate was a reedy, dour elderly man of average height—Zane figured his scarecrow thinness probably made him seem taller to most on first glance. He was a mainstay of Sam’s Diner. With his buddy Stanley Orr, he seemed to have the pulse of the community well in hand. They sat front and center at the window table and were deep into their morning checker tournament. Zane had met them the previous day after his encounter with Rose. The two men and Sam had practically interrogated him for an hour.
It was pretty evident to Zane that though they looked like they were engrossed in their game, their eagle eyes saw everything that happened on the street beyond their window.
Softer, shorter and smiling, Stanley nodded in agreement. “Brady’s a good man, too. I bet he’d a made a good Ranger. Hard ta b’lieve our little town’s been fortunate ta get y’all both.”
“I appreciate the vote of confidence,” Zane said, with a nod their direction. It was true. He’d only been in the small town a couple of days, but he already felt a connection to it. His natural sense of protectiveness had gone on full alert. Not that he was expecting any trouble—but if it came calling he’d meet it head-on. Zane had never taken his job lightly, as a Ranger or now, as a sworn deputy. He’d always prided himself on making choices in the best interests of the people or places entrusted in his care. For the most part, that code had left him with few regrets and enabled him to be proud of looking back. Rose was the exception.
“So, what do the two of you do?” he asked.
Sam hustled from the kitchen with tray of clean coffee cups. He was five feet, if that, with the bow-legged gait of a man who’d been built to sit a horse. Zane saw the craggy-faced proprietor as a small man with a big heart and more than likely a tenacious one. There was something about his eyes and his stout handshake that spoke to Zane. He was a mainstay of the community. Zane had studied people all his life, and then trained for it in his job, but there were some people who wore their character like an open book for all the world to see—that was Sam Green. He was a man who could be counted on. It was the way Zane had always hoped he could be described by those who knew him. It cut deep that Rose couldn’t say that about him.
“Them two,” Sam said, indicating Applegate and Stanley with a nod and talking loud enough for them to hear his every word. “Don’t let ’m fool ya. They kin get into more trouble than two teenagers let loose fer the first time in thar daddy’s pickup.”
Zane chuckled. “That so?”
Applegate scowled from across the room. “No mor’n anybody else. We’re retired and plum tired of it. So now we help out at The Barn Theater on the outskirts of town and that fills some of’r time.”
“That’s right.” Stanley jumped one of his checkers over Applegate’s, winning him a hard look. “You’ll have ta come on out and take in a show. We got ourselves a right smart good program.”
Applegate grinned for the first time and surprised Zane so much by the transformation that he almost spit out the coffee he’d just taken a sip of.
“Got some mighty fine talent out thar. Why we got reviewed in pert near ever newspaper that’s worth its salt. And our Sugar Rae Denton even got invited to be in a movie and on Broadway!”
“I’m impressed,” Zane said.
Sam arched a brow. “We got all kinds of good thangs going on in this little town. One of them thangs is my wife and her two friends. You bein’ a single man, ya ought to be prepared ta draw their special attentions.”
“Why do I get the feeling you’ve had this conversation several times in the past?” He knew resident journalist, Molly Jacobs, wrote a syndicated newspaper column about the goings-on of the town. He had heard it frequently covered matchmaking.
“’Cuz it’s true,” Applegate grunted, then plopped a handful of sunflower seeds into his mouth and grinned. He was more amiable than Zane had first taken him to be. “And it kin be downright entertainin’ fer us old-timers ta see you young bucks get snared up in their good intentions. Ain’t that so, Stanley?”
“Yup. This here spot in front of this window is better seat’n than front row at one of them movie theaters.”
Sam grinned at Zane. “We figure’d ta warn ya and then sit back and watch the show when they start in on ya.”
Their candor caused Zane to laugh, but it faded quickly when the older men all stared at him funny.
“Did I do something wrong?” he asked, feeling suddenly like he was in a lineup.
Stanley pulled at his ear. “When you laugh like that, I seemed ta thank maybe I met you someplace b’fore.”
“Yeah,” Applegate agreed.
Sam nodded. “But I ain’t one ta forget faces, so I know I ain’t met you.”
Zane had had his fair share of so-called twins through the years. He was certain everyone got told several times in their life that they looked just like someone else. “Someone in this area must resemble me,” he offered.
“That must be it,” Sam said, rubbing his chin and continuing to study Zane.
“We know e’vrbody,” Applegate grunted, piercing Zane with his scrutiny. “Who do y’all thank it is?”
“Cain’t put a finger on
