The Rancher's Second Chance (6 page)

“Well, you should consider it,” she called out, keeping pace. “They are very relaxing. You know after a long day ranching, you could light some scented candles and have a nice, long bubble—”

This time he did turn around. And stop. She swallowed the laugh that was threatening to overflow from her throat as she looked into his glittering brown eyes.

“I don’t take bubble baths. You’re going to have to cut some of this chitchat or we’re never going to get to the chapel and then back home before the snow.”

She gave her best, most contrite nod. He stared at her a moment, said something under his breath, and then started walking again. After what she assumed was an acceptable amount of time, she decided to speak again. She couldn’t stand silence. Never could. “And who built the chapel?”

She wasn’t sure if she heard him sigh, or if it was the wind. “Our great-grandfather.”

“And they were married there?”

“Yup.”

She knew Cole and Sarah had been married at Sarah’s family’s church in Passion Creek, not the chapel. In fact, Cori’s wedding would be the first since their parents. Their great-grandfather had built it when his wife died. Family rumor had it that he never got over the loss of his wife and built it as a tribute for her. They were both buried there. Melanie thought it was a beautiful story and said a lot about the kind of people they were. “I can’t wait to see it. I’ve been dying to come up here.”

Silence. Melanie had no choice but to be quiet now; the wind had picked up and her ears were throbbing in rhythm with her footsteps.

They trudged on until finally a small white chapel appeared in the distance. It stood out, surrounded by pines and a clearing of pasture. It was breathtaking. Small, with a peaked roof, it was rustic and charming. It would be perfect for Cori’s wedding. The guests would be in for a real treat, especially arriving in a horse-drawn sleigh. Just perfect.

“This is stunning,” Melanie said as she walked up the wide, wooden steps. Cole was already unlocking the door. A moment later he swung it open. The inside of the chapel was sparkling clean, the smell of lemon and pine greeting them as they entered. Daylight filtered through the tall windows, providing just enough light that Melanie could get a sense of the space. She rested her bags on the ground and walked toward the altar, the heels of her boots echoing on the worn floor.

There were only three pews on either side, but that would be fine since the wedding would be small. She traced her finger over the smooth edges of the polished pews. She took in the altar, which was basically a large, dark pine table. She was planning on covering the table with a crisp white linen cloth. The flower arrangements were white roses with sprigs of evergreen placed in silver buckets. She would have three on the table and then three in front, along with a larger, taller bucket at each pew.

Her friend Piper was providing silvered seashell tea-light holders; Melanie was planning on scattering a few of them along the altar amidst the three silver candelabra as well as at the reception. She took a deep breath and turned around to face the chapel from the view at the altar. It would no doubt be the smallest wedding she planned this year, but the most stunning. She glanced over at the window to where Cole was standing. The windows would each have a wreath made out of white roses and a pink satin bow at the bottom of each one.

Melanie walked over to her bag and pulled out the silver lantern, a thrill of excitement coursing over her at seeing how perfect this went with the space. Cori was going to be so excited when she filled her in on all these details. She placed a lantern on the altar and then stepped back, trying to decide if she should use a chunky white candle or pink inside.

Cole’s deep voice startled her and she turned around to look at him, still standing next to the window. She couldn’t see his eyes, shadowed by his hat. “You’re going to have to hurry up. I don’t like the look of the sky. And the wind is picking up.”

Melanie glanced out the window, soft flakes of snow falling. “I’m sure it’s fine. But I’ll be fast.” She spent the next few minutes measuring the distance between the pews to make sure there would be enough room for the buckets of flowers as well as Cori and Cole when he walked her down the aisle. Then she measured the width of the windows to double-check that the custom-made rose wreaths would hang nicely.

“Okay, we’re done,” Cole said, his deep voice in the silent room jarring.

Melanie looked up, and he’d already started collecting her lanterns. “Wait, just one more—”

“No. We’re never going to make it back if we don’t go now,” he said, shoving a lantern into her bag.

“Be
careful
,” Melanie said rushing over to grab it from him. “These silver lanterns were special order. If one breaks, there won’t be enough time to order another one.” She proceeded to gather her belongings. The wind was whistling and every now and then one of the windows would rattle. Cole was busy closing up the shutters on the windows and Melanie was very aware at how dark it was getting. “It looks pretty gloomy out there,” she said.

His mouth was pulled into a grim line. “I think we’re in for a major storm. Blizzard maybe.”

“What?”

He nodded. “I should have trusted my instincts. We never should have walked up here. Pull up your collar; bundle up as best you can. When we get out there, stay close to me because visibility might get bad. If we can walk fast, we’ll make it down to the main house in time. I hope.”

“You hope?”

“Stop talking; let’s move,” he said and whipped open the door.

A blast of wind tore through the chapel and they both looked at each other before stepping out. “We’ll be lucky if we don’t get caught in a damn storm. Time to haul ass, sweetheart.”

…

Cole cursed softly under his breath as they stood on the top steps of the porch. He glanced over at Melanie, who already looked as though she was going to blow away. There was definitely a blizzard coming. He’d lived here too many winters to not know the signs. The sky had darkened prematurely for this hour of the day, the winds were almost violent, and the snow was coming down harder. He had about five seconds to make the call of whether or not they were going to make it back to the ranch. He looked Melanie up and down. There was no way she’d make it back.

“I thought you said we needed to hurry. Standing here isn’t going to get us home faster,” she said, hopping from one foot to the other in those useless boots.

He sighed roughly. “We’re not going home. No way will you be able to.”

She stopped hopping. “Me? I can assure you—”

“No, you can’t.”

“This is about me being short again, isn’t it?”

He opened his mouth, about to say something, and then shut it. “Follow me.”

“Where are we going?”

“I have a small cabin not that far from here. But listen, this storm is picking up fast. You need to cut all the chitchat if we’re going to make it there. No needless rambling, no questions, no wandering off.”

“Where would I wander? I’m not a child.”

“Because if you get lost, it will be next to impossible for me to find you.”

She nodded. He noted that she was already shivering and they’d only been outside for a minute. “Come on,” he called out, going down the steps. He looked over his shoulder to make sure she was following before he took the trail that was already covered with snow. He glanced over his shoulder every minute or so to make sure she was behind him. He could barely concentrate on the fact that his little sister had just put him in the awkward position of being a babysitter to her friend. He couldn’t deliberate on that because the wind kept slapping snow onto his face. He glanced over at Melanie, who was visibly shaking, but not complaining. He paused for a moment and then stopped. She looked up. Somehow, even though it was dark and gray, her green eyes were vivid.

“Why are we stopping?”

“I’ll take your bag,” he said, already pulling the strap over her shoulder. He eyed the shiny purse warily.

“Thanks. I can handle the purse.”

He gave her a nod and then kept walking. On a normal day the cabin would be a fifteen-minute walk from the chapel. Right now, it would probably take them another thirty minutes if they were lucky. They walked in silence for a few minutes.

“You
do
know where we’re going, right?”

He stopped abruptly, and then she walked into his back. He sighed and turned around and frowned when he saw how badly she was shaking. That stupid jacket she was wearing wasn’t for winter. They needed to hurry up.

“Of course. Remember I said no chitchat? It slows us down.” He grabbed her hand , not bothering to question why a sudden jolt of something other than cold washed through him at the feel of her small hand in his. Or that she didn’t attempt to pull it out. “If we move quickly, we should get to the cabin in less than twenty minutes,” he said. The damn wind roared in his ears and he was preoccupied by the thought that she’d get frostbite with her fashionable, stupid attire.

“Cole!”

Now what? She was tugging on his arm. He didn’t want to stop, so he just slowed down and nodded, indicating he’d heard.

“A thought just occurred to me.”

He kept walking, ignoring the tugging.

“Are there any wild animals out here?”

God.
“What are you talking about?”

“Wild animals! You know, the kind that might attack us? Your sister told me about a coyote…”

“Honey, we’re the only ones stupid enough to be out here right now.” His sister and her crazy stories. He tugged on Melanie’s hand, hopefully indicating how important it was to keep moving and stop thinking about nonsense. Wind tore at them, sending a mix of snow and ice that made it impossible to walk straight. He knew the cabin would enter his sight line soon, but he also knew that if he didn’t focus, they could easily miss it. Blizzards could send even the finest outdoorsman in the wrong direction. He wasn’t about to let Melanie in on the fact that he was getting a little worried. He knew this area like the back of his hand, but now that it was almost pitch-black, and the snow had reduced visibility screwing up was a very real possibility.

“You do know where we’re going, don’t you?” she called out. He didn’t stop walking to answer her.

“Of course.” He hoped to God he was right.

After a few more minutes of walking he glanced over at Melanie. Her head was bent, the chatter long gone, and she kept pace, which he knew was difficult with the storm. He almost swore out loud with relief when he caught site of the smattering of pines he knew led to his cabin. Just a few more dozen yards or so and they’d be inside.

“Almost there,” he yelled over the roaring wind. He wasn’t about to analyze why the sight of her, small and shivering, affected him. It had nothing to do with the fact that Melanie was gorgeous. Or that he suspected she deliberately tried to get him riled up with her chitchat. Or the cute way she looked at him when she thought he had no idea that she was purposely baiting him. Or the fact that he had detected something else. A vulnerable side to her when her voice had caught that last time he’d ordered her to get on the horse. No, he wasn’t reacting to any of that.

He cursed as his foot almost caught on a fallen branch. Idiot.
Stop thinking of Hot Mel and find the damn cabin.

“Cole!”

Melanie’s hand slipped from his and before he could grab onto her, she was nose-diving into the snow. Shit. The branch. He dropped the bag and crouched down beside her. “Melanie, are you okay?” The only thing he could hear above the wind was the sound of her cursing. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart.”

“It’s not your fault,” she grumbled, trying to wipe snow off her face.

He reached out to brush some of the snow off her hair. “No, it is. I should have warned you about that branch.”

She glared at him as he helped her stand. “Oh, you saw it?”

He grimaced, nodding. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

She held up her chin. “Aren’t you experienced outdoorsmen supposed to shout out a warning or something?”

“You’re right. I’m sorry.” He noticed she was favoring one leg. “Did you hurt yourself?”

“Nope.”

“Are you sure you can make it the rest of the way? I can carry you.”

“No, you can’t. No need for that. I’m perfectly fine.”

He was going to have to get over his guilt and make it up to her later. Right now they needed to get to the cabin. “Okay, well we’ve got to move now. Why don’t you just follow behind me? We’ll get there faster and at least if there’s something dangerous, I’ll be able to find it first. Let me know if you change your mind and need help.”

“I’ll be fine. I’m used to hiking.” He frowned as she reached down to pick up her purse, teetering slightly.

He knew there was only one way to redemption for him. He held out his hand. “I’ll carry the purse.”

Chapter Five

It seemed like hours since Cole had said they were almost there, but finally they were standing in front of a tiny log cabin. Melanie clenched her teeth, trying not to look like she was ready to collapse. Her ankle was throbbing, and her face was burning from the icy wind. Seconds later Cole swung open the door and waited for her to go inside. She walked in as quickly as she could, trying not to wince with each step. He shut the door immediately and she stood still, the space almost completely encased in darkness. It was obviously a place very familiar to Cole as he moved stealthily through the cold room without any lights.

“I’ll have a fire going in less than five minutes. This place is small, so it’ll heat up really fast,” he called out, his voice gruff.

Melanie nodded, even though he probably didn’t see her. She rubbed her hands together and leaned against the wall, favoring her uninjured side. The only good thing about being half-frozen and having a throbbing ankle was that she couldn’t dwell on the fact that she’d fallen flat on her face in the snow in front of Cole.

“What’s that noise?” he asked from across the room and the flick of a match igniting caught her attention. “Is that your teeth chattering?”

“I guess it is,” she said, forcing her jaw to stop moving. She rubbed her arms together.