in the swing. There’s work to do.”
She grinned at Trey and stood up. “Yes, sir,” she said. “Where do you want us?”
16
Blaine pulled into the next jewelry store, peering up through the windshield at the sign. It seemed to have been knocked askew, and the fact that it was located in a strip mall next to a chicken restaurant didn’t ease his mind.
He couldn’t believe he’d told Tam they should go ring shopping. His heart hopped around in his chest, almost like it was trying to flee.
She’d been extraordinarily busy the past couple of weeks, because fall seemed to be the time that cowboys wanted new gear. Harvests were getting pulled in; pregnant mares were well into their gestation periods; fields were prepared or almost prepared for winter.
Late autumn was when the cowboys around Bluegrass Ranch made sure all the fences were ready for possible snow too. All the roofs on all the buildings serviced. Tack got inspected and thrown away if it was worn out, new items purchased, and everything cleaned.
If a cowboy or a cowgirl wanted a new custom saddle, they ordered from Tam. If they wanted new saddlebags, they ordered from Tam. If they had a significant other who would like anything made out of leather for the upcoming holidays, they ordered from Tam.
She was always slammed from September to February, her workload actually easing after Valentine’s Day and through the summer.
She hadn’t brought up ring shopping again, as she’d been working seven days a week. Blaine often went to her shop and sat with her while she sculpted and sanded, threaded and sewed, carved and created.
He was plenty busy around the ranch, as their annual yearling sale approached. Stands were getting rebuilt and refinished, buyers were being invited, and the horses were getting prepped.
Spur, Blaine, and Cayden had plans to start going through their stock and deciding what to sell and what to keep. They made a lot in sales every year, but they also kept horses, trained them, and entered them in the big races too. Plenty of money there as well.
He’d finished her porch project, but he hadn’t shown it to her yet. Neither of them had spoken about diamond rings or engagements or a wedding.
Today, he’d told her he needed to pick up some lumber for one of the barns on the ranch, which was one hundred percent true. He’d also collected a load of lumber for her front porch, and he’d decided to scope out the top three jewelers in Dreamsville. They could go to Lexington if she didn’t see anything in town she liked, and while Blaine didn’t know what kind of ring Tam would like, he hadn’t been able to determine which store was best besides his overall impressions from the outside.
This one was definitely at the bottom of his list.
His stomach growled though, so he got out of the truck and approached the store. He’d see what the customer service was like, and then he’d get a chicken sandwich. Perhaps this place did have all the details right.
A chime rang on the door when he opened it, and that set Blaine’s nerves on fire. A fairly typical jewelry store spread before him, with glass cases, watch stands, and glinting gems everywhere he looked.
No one came out from the back, and no one waited in the front. Blaine looked around, thinking he could’ve brought in a decently-sized rock, smashed the first case, and grabbed whatever he could get his hands on by now.
Ten more seconds, and he could be back in his truck.
Those ten seconds passed, and still no one appeared. “Definitely not this place,” he said, turning around to walk right back out.
He was probably being a little bit of a diva, but he wanted to be taken care of from the moment he stepped inside a jewelry store to the moment he left. He knew what wedding rings cost, and for that amount of money, there could be someone standing next to the door simply to greet him.
His stomach shook as he walked back to his truck. He couldn’t believe he was even thinking of doing this again. He suddenly understood Spur’s anxiety and bad temper the month before he’d gotten married.
Blaine had never made it that far, and he didn’t want a long engagement. He should probably talk to Tam about that soon. That was one of the main reasons he hadn’t asked her to marry him yet.
Well, that, and he wasn’t entirely sure he’d decided how