Hearts Crossing Ranch Anthology by Tanya Hanson

Author:Tanya Hanson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: christian Fiction
Publisher: Pelican Book Group
Published: 2017-08-26T04:00:00+00:00

2

Kelley groaned as she plunked up the stairs, Bryce the Golden Retriever hard on her heels. Ned had given her the pup long ago, and she’d never held it against the dog. Truth was, she longed for the dog every day. Hearts Crossing was the best place for him, though. Her tiny apartment above the restaurant and twenty-three hour days would be downright animal cruelty. Right now, she bent to hug the dog close but didn’t feel a whole lot better.

It was the faux-est of pas, falling asleep in a man’s company, a man you were interested in, that is. But the long nights of worry, of troubleshooting, of trying to invent new marketing techniques and concoct new recipes had taken their toll. Adding in the long days of food prep and Kelley wondered how she was surviving at all.

“I fell asleep!” She wailed to Chelsea as her baby sister lugged her bag into the bedroom they shared. Not long ago, Ma had converted Kelley’s childhood domain into a guest room for the ranch tourists. “And he’s the hottest thing I’ve seen for months!”

Chelsea snorted. “Glad you’ve gotten over Ned. I’d think Sunset Hills was chock full of cute cowpokes.”

Kelley rolled her eyes, unwilling to admit she did get lonely although leaving Ned behind had been good all round. Four and a half years with a man who couldn’t stick around, who couldn’t commit, who couldn’t propose had been long enough. ”That’s probably true. But none of them bother to set foot in my restaurant. I just don’t have time for any sort of a social life anyway.” Jacking her boots, she curled onto a twin bed in a weary clump, entwined with the furry Golden. “Why didn’t you tell me Jason was such a hunk?”

Chelsea shrugged. “I guess because he’s more like a big brother. He’s thirty-two, at least.

With a sniff, Kelley ran her hands through her hair, weariness clamping her shoulders in tight fingers. At nineteen, of course Chelsea would think so. But even at almost thirty with visions of Jason pounding in her head, Kelley herself felt like a child and ached for Ma’s big, strong hands to knead away her aches and troubles. Right now Ma would see right through her and besides, her mother was off, dusting pews and getting the sanctuary ready for services.

“Yeah, of course. An old man.” Kelley blew out. No way could she escape church tomorrow.

Without asking, Chelsea opened the duffel and began to unload clothes into the closet, drawers, and laundry hamper. “So business is that bad, huh?”

“What do you mean?” Kelley shot upright among the pillows like somebody had just yelled “fire.” The words were absolutely true, but hearing them was like a sticking your hand into a flame even though you knew it would blister your skin.

Chelsea kicked the empty bag under a bed, then tossed Kelley a wise glance from beneath her mop of long red curls. “You look like you’ve been tied to the back of a truck going sixty miles an hour.

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