We get around the cow and head her back toward the chute. Once we get her in, Carson stops his horse next to mine.
“Stay up late reading again?” He rolls his eyes at me under his black cowboy hat. One time, he found out what Jessie and I read, and he gagged. Now, he uses that information to mock us.
“No, for your information, I went out last night.”
“What? Where? With who?”
I realize my mistake too late. “Uh, it looks like Chet needs help.” I spur Hooch and leave Carson with a scowl on his face.
I don’t even get through the door at Gran’s before Jessie is on me.
“I’ve been waiting all day. Spill it!”
I sigh and move through the kitchen to greet Gran. I love Jessie’s Grandma Dorothy. All my grandparents have been gone a long time, so she’s the only grandma I have. After Jessie moved in with her, we started having what we called “epic sleepovers” where Gran let us eat junk food and watch scary movies.
She’s lived in the same little house on Columbine Street in Cottonwood Valley my whole life. The kitchen and dining area is an open space with pale yellow walls and a daisy wallpaper border. I remember when she let Jessie pick it out when we were nine. She’s never changed it.
“Hi, Gran,” I say as I give her a hug. Her tiny but strong frame squeezes me tight as her signature scent of vanilla and mothballs hit me. She has her long, white hair braided down her back and a flower-printed dress on.
“Hi, sweetie. Go on and sit down. I’m making chicken and noodles. It’ll be ready soon.”
Oh, bless her heart.I love Gran’s chicken and noodles.
“Helloooo? My update! I’m on the edge of my seat here,” Jessie calls from the table, still in her scrubs. She must have picked up an extra shift. I frown, concerned by the hours my friend has been working.
Now Gran is the one who sighs. “Jessie, honey, please just let her come in and sit down. What is this update you’re wanting about, anyhow?”
Jessie smiles like the cheshire cat. “It’s about Kacey’s new man. He’s the world’s hottest bull rider.”
“Oh, you don’t say? Good for you, sweetie.” And with that, she returns to the stove.
I sit down at the table and glare at Jessie. “He isn’t my man. He’s just a friend, and he’s only in town for a few weeks.”
Gran turns from the stove and looks at me like she’s waiting for me to say more. When I don’t, she says, “I noticed you didn’t dispute the ‘hot’ part.”
Jessie busts out laughing. This is where she gets it from; Gran might be pushing eighty, but she’s sharp as a tack and has no filter.
I smirk at her. “When I was a kid, you told me not to lie. You said liars go to hell.”
She lets out a cackle. “That’s my girl. Now, tell us what happened last night with the hot man who isn’t your man.”
I drop my head into my hands and groan. I knew this was how tonight would go.
Gran sets out plates and utensils, unfazed by my obvious annoyance. “Dinner is ready. Make your plate and we can chat at the table, girls.”
We make our plates and sit down. I fill Gran in on who Knox is and why he’s in town. Jessie gives averydetailed physical description before finally looking up his Instagram and showing her a photo.
Gran releases a low whistle. “I have to agree with Jessie, he isverygood looking. There’s just something about cowboys.”
I finally give Jessie her long-awaited recap of last night. I tell them about our conversation at dinner and the drive back to the ranch. However, I fail to mention the way his touch sent heat through me or how I found myself leaning into it.
“Then he walked me to my door, and I went to bed,” I finish as I blow on my fork full of noodles to cover up the fact that my face is turning red just thinking about what he said last night. And the way his fingers felt running down my arm . . . .
Jessie looks up from her plate. “That’s it? No kiss? No ‘can we go out again?’” She frowns at me.
“No, it wasn’t a date. He just walked me to the door.”
I chance a glance at Gran but quickly look away. Her eyes are narrowed at me from her seat to my left. As a child, I swore she could read minds. As an adult . . . well, I still think she can. I can feel my face is red, so I look down at my plate.
