Curves and the Rancher (3 page)

“
I
’
m
sure Betty won
’
t mind.
”
He grinned and her heart flip-flopped.
“
And
if she does, I
’
ll tell her it was all
my fault.
”

Cassie paused. Her feet
were starting to ache and her break was due in another ten minutes.
Hesitantly sliding into the booth, she clutched the tray in front of
her.
“
If a customer comes in, I
’
ll
have to go.
”

“
I
understand.
”
Luke
’
s
eyes crinkled at the corners and he gestured to the piece of pie in
front of him.
“
Have you tried
Betty
’
s cherry pie yet?
”

“
Mm-hm.
”
She smiled shyly. Why did he have to be so tall, so muscular,
so...so...yummy? She just didn
’
t
know what to say to him.

He
’
s
just being nice, she warned herself. He couldn
’
t
possibly be interested in her. After all, what did she have to offer
him? A generous figure that she thought she
’
d
accepted until she met Phillip, a temporary waitress job and a
broken-down car. And not even knowing if she would still be here two
months from now.

“
Do
you like working here?
”
His eyes
never left her face as he waited for her answer.

A flush ran through her.
She was so bad at reading signals. Libby
’
s
remark about her and Luke making a cute couple flashed in her mind.
“
Yes,
”
she said softly.
Say something else!
“
It
’
s
different from my previous job, though.
”

“
And
what was that?
”

She appreciated Luke
’
s
gentle effort to part her curtain of shyness. As she debated whether
to tell him what she had done in her previous life, she noticed that
he
’
d barely touched his coffee and
pie. Instead, all his focus seemed to be on her.

Cassie swallowed.
“
I
used to be a CPA.
”

“
That
’
s
impressive.
”
He smiled.
“
I
hate doing the ranch accounts.
”

“
Do
you--
”

“
Are
you--
”

They both spoke at once.
Luke laughed easily.
“
You first.
”

“
I
was going to ask--
”

“
Cassie,
”
Arnold called.
“
Order up.
”

She scrambled out of the
booth.
“
Got to go.
”
Picking up the tray, she hurried over to the counter. Not knowing
whether to be glad or sorry she and Luke had been interrupted, she
picked up the blue plate special.

“
End
booth.
”
Arnold pointed his spatula.
All she could see was the back of what looked like a man
’
s
blond head.

Cassie walked down to the
booth. As she got closer, the blond head seemed familiar. Her
footsteps faltered when she almost reached the booth. No.
It
couldn
’
t be!
There
were plenty of men with blond hair, she told herself. She took
another step. Her feet glued themselves to the floor.

I can
’
t.

It
’
s
not him.

But what if it is?

Cassie
’
s
heart rate accelerated and tears pricked her eyelids. Her chest
tightened, the iron band around her heart making it almost impossible
to breathe. Swiveling around, her shaking hands dumped the tray on a
vacant table
.

Tearing out of the diner,
she raced down the street, heading towards the relative safety of the
motel - before realizing she didn
’
t
live there anymore.

“
Cassie!
”

No! She wasn
’
t
ready to see him. Didn
’
t know if she
ever wanted to see him again.

“
Cassie!
”

Puffing, she lessened her
pace a little. It didn
’
t sound like
Phillip. But who else would it be?

“
Cassie!
”

Slowing down to a jog,
she turned her head. Relief flooded through her. Luke. Halting,
she placed a hand on her chest, trying to control her breathing. A
couple of passersby glanced curiously her way.

“
Are you okay?
”
He reached her and placed his hands on her shoulders, drawing her to
him.

She looked up at him,
swiping at the strands of hair in her face.
“
Is...is
he still there?
”

“
Who?
”
His concerned gaze swept over her.

Although she barely knew
Luke, she felt safe and protected in his loose embrace.
“
Th-the
man in the end booth.
”

Luke frowned.
“
Did
he do something?
”

“
No,
”
she admitted.
“
But...
”

“
But
what?
”
he asked gently.
“
What
’
s
going on, Cassie?
”

“
I
thought he might be my...my ex.
”
She
closed her eyes as the truth rushed out.

Luke
’
s
hands tightened on her shoulders.
“
What
did he do to you?
”

She reluctantly opened
her eyes.
“
Nothing, really.
”
Her pale cheeks burned under his scrutiny. Maybe she
’
d
made too much of the whole thing. That
’
s
what Phillip would say. But in her heart, she knew she
’
d
done the right thing by leaving him.

“
Then
why would you run from him?
”
Luke
looked deep into her eyes.
“
Tell me,
Cassie. Please.
”

Her heart thudded. Could
she tell him? Would he understand?
“
I
thought he was going to hit me,
”
she
whispered.

He swore under his breath
and drew her to him. For a second, she allowed herself to snuggle in
his embrace. Somehow, it felt so right to have Luke
’
s
arms around her. Cassie inhaled and forced herself to straighten up,
taking a step back.
“
I have to see
if he
’
s followed me here.
”

“
I
’
ll
be with you the whole time,
”
Luke
vowed. His face grim, he clasped her hand and matched his stride to
hers as they walked back to the diner. Cassie couldn
’
t
help thinking how wonderful it would be if they were holding hands
because they were a couple and not just because Luke felt sorry for
her.

Her steps lagged as they
neared the diner. Luke turned to her.
“
You
don
’
t have to do this if you don
’
t
want to.
”

She drew in a deep
breath.
“
Yes, I do.
”
She
’
d left Seattle two weeks ago and
she was already tired of looking over her shoulder. She had to face
her fears.

His large, calloused hand
tightened briefly on hers and a warm glow
radiated through
her.

Luke pushed open the door
of the diner. She peeked around his shoulder. A glimpse of blond
hair at the back of the room taunted her.
“
He
’
s
still there,
”
she murmured, hating
the wobble in her voice.

“
Are
you sure you want to confront him?
”
He placed a reassuring hand on her arm

Cassie nodded.
“
Yes.
”
Straightening her shoulders, she stepped ahead of Luke, never
letting go of his hand. Nobody else in the diner existed except Luke
and the man with the blond hair at the end of the room.

Is it him?
The
thought echoed in her mind, growing louder with each dragging step
she took. She clutched Luke
’
s
hand tighter as she reached the end booth. Any second now, she would
be able to see his face. Her heart hammered as she looked at the
blond haired man.

Her knees sagged with
relief.
“
It
’
s
not him,
”
she whispered. Turning to
Luke she repeated,
“
It
’
s
not him.
”

###

Five minutes later, she
sat at the wooden table in the small employees
’
room, sipping a large mug of coffee. Luke had barked an order of
coffee and cherry pie and then hustled her into the break room.

Cassie forked up a sliver
of pie, aware of Luke watching her as he sat opposite.
“
I
want you to tell me all about it, Cassie.
”

The luscious cherry
filling burst on her tongue. She took a moment to savor the
delicious flavor of the pie, before answering Luke.
“
There
’
s
not much to tell, really.
”
She
gripped the coffee mug, staring into its black depths as if it could
divine her future.

“
Then
why is a CPA working as a waitress in Coldwater?
”

She lifted her head to
meet his gaze. His eyes gleamed with interest and she wondered if he
was merely interested in her plight or if he was interested in
her...as a woman.

She bit her lip.
“
I
left him.
”

“
Why?
”
His gentle enquiry almost undid her.

“
I
thought he was going to hit me.
”

“
Had
he hit you before?
”
His fists
clenched as he waited for her answer.

“
No
.
That
’
s
why I packed up and left
.
I
didn
’
t want to wait and see if there
was going to be a next time.
”
She
toyed with the pie, her fork making circles around the rim of the
plate.

“
Perhaps
you should start at the beginning,
”
he suggested.

Cassie nodded and sighed.
“
I met Phillip five months ago. We
dated, and then he suggested I move in with him.
”
She grimaced.
“
I thought it might
have been too soon, but he persuaded me that moving in with him was
in both our best interests.
”

She sipped her coffee.
How could she have been such an idiot?
“
As
soon as I moved in, he started to change. He criticized my clothes
and...
”
she hesitated,
“w
hat
I ate.
”

A muscle twitched in
Luke
’
s jaw.

“
He
used to employ a cleaning service, but once I moved in, he expected
me to do all the cooking and cleaning. And if I didn
’
t
do it the way he specified, he got cranky. It was the longest six
weeks of my life.
”

“
And
then?
”
Luke finally prompted her.

Cassie raised her mug and
took a sip.
“
And then one night
Phillip almost hit me. He stopped in time,
”
she added, when she saw Luke
’
s face
darken.
“
But I knew that the next
time I might n
o
t be so lucky.
Before
I’d moved in with him I’d wanted to fall in love with
him, but I realized in that moment I could never love a man who
treated me like that.
I
told him that it was over but he wouldn
’
t
accept it.
”
Cassie shook her head.
“I
n fact, he said he would destroy my
career if I left him. We both worked at the same accounting firm but
in different departments. I didn
’
t
think anyone would believe me if I told them about Phillip. He
’
s
on the fast track to success. So the next morning I went to work
with him, then snuck back, packed up as much as I could, and left
Seattle.
”