One Night with a Cowboy - Sara Richardson Page 0,10
the ranch! There it is! I see it!” Ryan hung his head out the window as Thea turned onto the winding driveway. It looked like they’d gotten a new fancy gate. She carefully navigated the dirt road—which looked and felt more like a washboard with all the bumps—and passed beneath a new stone-and-wood welcome sign. “Wow, the place looks great.”
The main lodge had always been quite a sight—a large log-and-rock structure sitting atop a small hill—but the rest of the cabins dotted around the lake had been showing their age last year when Thea came for the wedding. That was before. It seemed Jane and her husband, Toby, had made a few upgrades.
“I can smell the fish in that lake,” Ryan declared, releasing himself from his seat belt and the car the second Thea parked.
“You can’t smell fish,” his sister insisted.
Thea got out of the car, too, inhaling deeply. “Oh, I can. Smells to me like that lake is full of big huge rainbow trout.”
Her son’s grin revealed his I’m-too-cute-for-my-own-good dimples. “And I’m gonna catch ’em all.”
“Hold your horses there, tiger.” Thea waved for Liv to get out of the car. “We need to find Jane so we know where we should unload our stuff.” And so she could give her friend a big hug while she checked out the baby bump. “Come on.” She led the way to the main lodge’s entrance, feeling an extra bounce in her step. This might be her favorite building on the whole property. In addition to housing the office and a few guest rooms upstairs, the lodge had a jaw-dropping great room, complete with a floor-to-ceiling rock fireplace and a wall of windows that looked out onto the lake. The families they brought every year had spent a lot of time within these walls—sharing meals and playing games. Thea climbed the few steps up to the porch, a sense of home enveloping her.
The large wooden door creaked when she pushed it open. “Hello?” she called. “Jane? We’re here.” Originally, they’d planned to break up the drive into two days and arrive tomorrow morning, but Jane had told her they were welcome to come as soon as they could, and they’d made good time getting the heck out of Texas. Thea hadn’t wanted to be stuck in the car for another day, so they’d pressed on. She figured that would be the perfect opportunity to catch up with her friend.
“Doesn’t seem like anyone’s here.” Ryan pushed past her and walked fully into the entryway. Thea followed, with Liv tagging behind. Though the place had been updated with what looked to be new slate tiles and dark crown molding, it still had that wonderful woodsy scent. Beyond the foyer, they wandered into the great room, and Thea could almost hear the laughter they’d shared here.
“Heeellllooooo!” Ryan’s shout echoed.
“Maybe she’s outside,” Liv suggested, moving closer to the window. “Oh, wow.” She stopped.
Thea moved around the fireplace so she could see what her daughter was gaping at. Shirtless men and suntanned, bikini-clad women were playing a rowdy game of volleyball along the lakeside.
“I thought we got this whole place to ourselves.” Ryan seemed put out that a crowd had dared to gather at his lake.
“We were supposed to.” Thea scanned the group for any sign of Jane. “Maybe there’s another event here tonight. We are a little early,” she reminded her son. “Let’s go out and ask if they’ve seen Jane.”
“That’s a great idea.” Her daughter took the lead, obviously eager to ogle the muscular men who were currently putting more than their volleyball skills on display.
Thea followed behind, trying to straighten her rumpled Bermuda shorts and the wrinkled short-sleeved button-up that had seemed like a good idea at four o’clock this morning. The closer they got to the shore, the slower she moved. She hadn’t worn a bikini since long before she’d given birth.
The group didn’t even seem to notice her and the children. Most of them had a can of beer in one hand while they managed to smack the ball with the other. Play continued on while the three of them watched. Liv’s jaw was hinged open, but Ryan shook his head and stubbed the toe of his shoe into the ground like he did every time he got irritated.
Finally, Thea cleared her throat. “Excuse me,” she called, feeling about sixty years old compared to these people. “We’re looking for Jane. Does she happen to be around?”