Okay, settle down, Tanner. It’s not like she’s the first pretty...no, beautiful woman, who has ever smiled at you.
“I’m not going to be throwing any parties,” she said. “But good to know.” She stopped in front of the closed door and opened it slowly, as if expecting something to jump out and scare her. When the door fully opened, she gasped and walked into the room.
“There’s a reason I’m sure Kaylee wanted you to stay here. There’s a lot more room and privacy,” I said as I sat her suitcase down near the king-size bed.
Timberlynn spun around and giggled. “This room is huge! Oh my gosh, look at this reading nook.” She made her way over to the bench that sat under a large window.
“Open the curtains if you really want to see something,” I said, making my way over to stand next to her.
As she pushed them back, I watched her face. Her smile faded and a look of utter wonderment moved across her face. “Oh, my goodness. Wow. That is…I’ve never…wow.”
“Those are the Bitterroot Mountains. Wait until you see the sun set over them. It’s left me speechless on more than one occasion.”
Timberlynn turned and looked at me, a curious expression etched on her face.
“What?” I asked.
“A sunset left you speechless?”
With a half shrug, I replied, “I’m not afraid to admit to something that moves me. This…” I said as I motioned to the view, “always leaves me in awe.”
She smiled slightly, and without looking back at the view said, “I can see why it would. It’s breathtakingly beautiful.”
For a moment I didn’t know if she was talking about the view, or something entirely different.
“I’m not sure how much you got to see of the ranch when you were here for the wedding, but if you didn’t see Crystal Lake and the Sapphire Mountains from the second floor of the main barn, you’ll have to check it out. I mean, you’ve got a good view of it from the ground, but the view from the loft balcony is pretty amazing.”
Her eyes searched my face before she quickly looked back out the window. “I didn’t get to stay for long last time I was here. Just long enough to visit with Kaylee. I had a new job waiting back in Atlanta.”
“Nursing, right?” I asked as I slipped my hands into the front pocket of my jeans.
“Yes, you remembered!” she said, her voice practically giddy. She faced me, and for a moment something flashed in those beautiful eyes of hers. Today they looked almost gray. With specs of gold and green sprinkled in them.
“Your eyes?”
Her teeth dug into her lip. “What about them?”
I shook away the trance. “I thought they were more green.”
She smiled and looked down at the floor. “They change colors. Sometimes they look more green, especially if I’m wearing certain colors. Other times they look almost…”
“Gray,” I whispered.
Timberlynn nodded. “They’re weird.”
“They’re beautiful.”
Her eyes widened in shock, and she shyly looked away before she focused back on me. “No one has ever really noticed they change colors.”
“No one?” I asked in disbelief. “Not even a boyfriend?”
Her smile faltered for the quickest moment before it was back. “No, not even a boyfriend.” Her eyes moved up to where my cowboy hat should be. “Your hat. Where is it?”
I chuckled. “My mother hates it when we wear them in the house.”
Her gaze seemed to be burning the image into her mind. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you without it on.”
I lifted my hand and ran my fingers through my short brown hair. “It’s not often I don’t have it on. I think the only time you’ll see my father, Brock, or Ty without our hats on is here in the house. Mom’s rule.”
Her gaze jerked back down to mine and we stood there in silence for a few moments before she looked away from me. “Well, thank you so much for showing me the room, Tanner.”
With a step back and away from her, I nodded. “Sure. I’ll, um, let you get settled, I’m sure you want to visit with Kaylee.”
Timberlynn nodded and followed me toward the door. “Are you home for long, or will you be heading back out on the circuit?”
I walked out into the hall and faced her once more. Fucking hell, the woman was beautiful. Her eyes looked directly into mine, and I had a hell of a time focusing on speaking when she gave me her full attention. “H-home?” I stammered.
She nodded. “Are you only home for Christmas?”
I shook my head to clear my thoughts. “No. My roping partner, Chance, wanted to take some time off, and truth be told, I did as well. I’ll be home for a month, maybe longer.”
The corner of her mouth twitched with a hidden smile. “Oh, that’s nice. I’m sure your folks will be glad to have you here for the holidays.”
“My father is—he’s ready to put me to work on the ranch.”
She laughed lightly. I was instantly hyper-aware of my entire body and how it reacted to this woman. What in the living hell is happening to me? I found myself absently rubbing my chest to make the crazy sensation go away.
Timberlynn looked away for a moment, her cheeks slightly pink. “Do you, um…stay here at the main house while you’re home?” she asked, turning her attention back on me.
For the briefest moment I almost said no. Maybe the safest place I needed to be was as far as possible from this woman. She was a temptation I wasn’t sure I could ignore, and I really didn’t want to ignore her. “Yeah, my bedroom is on the other side of the house here upstairs.”
She gifted me with another one of her amazing smiles. “Then I guess we’ll probably be seeing each other often. Maybe. I guess. I’m not sure.” She laughed and pushed a piece of her blonde hair behind her
