She frowns and hesitates. “Uh, we can just meet here.”
I’m about to agree. It doesn’t matter to me, I’ll pick up dinner on the way to meet her wherever she wants to meet, but her dad interrupts. “He’s working all day, honey, and he can’t make it here until dinner time. But if you don’t feel comfortable doing it, I can just stay late tomorrow and go over it all with him.”
Rusty leans heavily against the cabinet, and I almost laugh. The man is good, and before I can even fathom that he’s pulling a quick one over his daughter, I can tell she knows what he’s up to. She looks at me accusingly, but I just shrug and smile. The ball is in her court, but I have a feeling she’s not going to tell her dad no.
“Sure, Dad. I’ll take care of it.”
Rusty straightens up and puts a hand on my shoulder. “Great, thanks, Millie. C’mon, Austin, you can walk me out and you can tell me some more about what all you need.” He looks at Millie. “I’ll fill you in on everything in the morning.”
Before he can hustle me out the door, I glance at Millie. “I’ll see you tomorrow night. Be safe, honey.”
Her eyes flash at the endearment, making me wish we were alone and I could just watch her face as I call her other sweet names to figure out which one she likes the best.
“Bye, Austin,” she says softly.
Already, I’m looking forward to tomorrow night.
3
Millie
It’s not too late. My dad may have already left for the day, but I can still have Mike come down and meet Austin at Red’s. He’d probably love it. He’s pestered me all day about the Yates Ranch and if he’s going to get the commission for acquiring the new business. I told him to talk to Dad.
I slow my pace as I walk down the block. My dad filled me in on some of the things Austin needs, but I’m sure he missed some of it since he didn’t write any of it down. I grip the folder in my hand and swing open the door. Violet has already left for the day, and I find a booth in the corner and sit down. It’s probably good Violet is not here. I was on the phone with her all of last night because she wanted the details of what happened when Austin brought me the cake. She gave me the lecture on how I shouldn’t judge all men. They’re not all like Mike, she said. But luckily once she got on the subject of Mike, she couldn’t stop. She really doesn’t like that man. Probably as little as I do.
I order a water from the server and let her know I’m waiting on someone else. The restaurant is getting crowded with the dinner rush, which makes me cringe a little knowing that there’s a possibility I’m going to be the talk of the town... again.
I go through the file in my hand, making sure I know the ins and outs of what we’re going to discuss. I people watch and when I get tired of that, I pick up my phone. It’s six-fifteen, and I look outside just in time to see Austin jogging up the sidewalk. He opens the door and stands there as he looks around the restaurant. He looked good yesterday, but if possible, he looks even better today. He’s got his cowboy hat on and tight blue jeans on. His thighs are thick, and goodness, I couldn’t take my eyes off him even if I wanted to. As soon as he spots me, his lips widen, and his white teeth look even whiter since he seems like he’s covered in a film of dirt. He strides across the restaurant, and almost every head, especially the women, turn and watch him. He slides into the booth across from me, and it’s then I remember that I have my mouth hanging open, and I slam it shut.
“I’m sorry I’m late. It’s been one of those days.”
I tilt my head to the side and really look at him. Up close, he looks tired and worn out, but he’s still smiling. “You look like you had a rough day.”
“Yeah, things didn’t go as planned.”
“We can reschedule,” I tell him. And even though I doubted going through with this meeting the whole day, I would admittedly be upset if he took me up on the offer to cancel it.
“No way. Unless you’re embarrassed to be sitting across from me right now.” He looks down at himself and slaps at his shirt as dust goes flying. He coughs and laughs. “Actually, I wouldn’t blame you if you were.”
I’m almost offended until I realize he doesn’t know anything about me. “I’m not embarrassed. There is nothing embarrassing about ranching. I was raised on a ranch, and I know the work that goes into it.”
He smiles and leans toward me. “That’s good, sweetheart. Because I’ve been looking forward to this all day.”
Another nickname. Honey yesterday, sweetheart today. But I still smile because just hearing it causes goosebumps on my arms. I clasp my hands together. “You were looking forward to going over numbers all day?”
He shakes his head. “No, I was looking forward to seeing you all day.” He reaches into his front pocket and takes out a piece of paper. He unfolds it and hands it to me. “It’s everything I need for the ranch. It has the amounts we normally pay, how much we need and how often. Can you match those prices?”
I scan the paper, and because I have
