Remembering The Ranger: Ranger Valley Ranch by Lia Rae

Author:Lia Rae [Rae, Lia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-08-07T16:00:00+00:00

Cash hummed his agreement. He couldn’t take his eyes off Josie. If anything could be called beautiful, it was the woman he was watching. She’d been at the ranch over two weeks. He had a comparison from her picture as a teenager, her arrival at the ranch, and today. The change was remarkable. He hadn’t even realized how much sadness her eyes held. Just a couple weeks with friends and a place to call home had worked wonders.

He followed her to a table where they sat in silence as she gazed around. “Have you ever thought of having a garden?” Cash asked. He’d made a point not to ask too many questions, but her love of the flowers was obvious. Even if he hadn’t known that she desperately wanted a garden as a child, it would be easy to see. He knew so much about this woman, but she was smart. If he prodded too much, Cash knew he could make her uncomfortable again.

And more than anything, he wanted her to feel safe. Over the past two weeks, he’d read through her letters with care. Josie’s letters all contained an undertone of fear. Even if he never got his chance with her, he hoped that living in Ranger Valley would give her some security.

Being her friend would have to be enough for him.

“Oh, I’d love to have a garden,” she said with a sigh.

The barista bustled out the door with their orders, plopping them on the table with a grin before hurrying back inside. Cash took a sip of his coffee before speaking again. “Would you want to grow just flowers, or vegetables too?”

Lifting her scone, Josie took a bite, her face thoughtful. “I think it would be really cool to grow my own food,” she said once she finished chewing, “but that seems like a lot of work. Maybe someday. Flowers are just so…so…” Her face fell.

Cash stifled the urge to reach across the table to take her hand. She hadn’t said anything about the flower farm or their movie night. He wanted to know how she felt about both, but he didn’t know how to bring it up.

“It’s right there. I don’t know why. I just love flowers. They give me…maybe hope?”

Cash nodded. “That makes sense.”

“No, it doesn’t,” she said with a smirk. “But thank you for trying to make me feel better.”

“Of course, it does. Flowers require light, water, air, and care to thrive. Having the time to give those things to something inanimate is a luxury. One not everyone has. The hope that you might have the time and resources to make something grow makes perfect sense.”

Josie gaped at him before she nodded. “Exactly.”

Cash placed his hand on the table, palm up. He couldn’t resist, but he’d let her decide if she wanted his reassurance through touch. “Please don’t dismiss things that are meaningful to you. Whatever you feel, it’s important.”

She stared at his hand for a beat before placing her own in it while she blinked too fast.

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