The Rancher's Redemption

“Hey.”

Adam regarded her steadily and her cheeks heated.

“What’s up?” Lizzie asked.

“I was in town, dropping Leanne off at the hotel. I thought I’d check in on you.”

“Come on up.” Lizzie waved him through the door. “We can have that coffee.” She immediately wished she hadn’t referenced their last embarrassing meeting.

“Thanks.” He paused at the top of the stairs and looked down at her. “Is everything okay?”

“Well—”

Adam kept talking, his voice low. “You looked kind of apprehensive when you opened the door. I want to reassure you that if I did anything you didn’t like last time I was here then just tell me.”

She stared down at his boots. “I liked what happened. I’m just embarrassed.”

“There’s no reason to be. We all have needs.” He cleared his throat. “I suppose we should talk.”

“No!” Even the thought of that sent Lizzie into a panic. “How about we don’t?”

“I thought all women liked to talk things through.” Adam frowned.

“Not this one.” Lizzie looked up at him. “And the reason I looked weird when I opened the door is because there was some guy at the café today who was a creeper. I was worried that he’d found out where I live.”

Adam went still. “Who was it?”

“Nobody you know.” She patted his rigid arm. “It’s okay; it happens. Yvonne gets it worse because of her French accent.”

“What did he do?”

“He just asked me out, and wasn’t too happy when I turned him down.” She tried to make Adam move into the apartment, but he stood his ground. “Come on, it’s all good. Nothing happened.”

“Some men suck,” Adam muttered as he reluctantly yielded to the pressure and came inside. “You call me if he shows up again, okay?”

“I can defend myself, you know. I took BB Morgan’s women’s defense class twice,” Lizzie pointed out.

“I’m sure you can, but—”

She put her hand flat on his chest. “But nothing. Everything is fine. Now come and say hi to Roman, and I’ll get you that coffee.”

Roman had already spotted Adam, and was making a beeline for him, his expression full of excitement.

“Adam! Come and see!” He grabbed Adam’s hand and dragged him over to the refrigerator. “Spot!”

“Yeah?” Lizzie’s lips twitched as Adam leaned in close to look at Roman’s drawing, which was pinned to the refrigerator door with a magnet. “That looks just like him. Good job, buddy.”

“It’s for you!” Roman jumped up and down. “Isn’t it, Mom?”

“Yup.” Lizzie nodded at her son. “You can carefully take it down, and give it to Adam, okay?”

Adam lifted the little boy up and accepted the drawing with suitable gravity, studying it once more before setting it on the countertop beside his keys.

“Thanks. I’ll show Spot when I get home.”

Roman nodded. “He’ll like it.”

“I’m sure he will. I’ll pin it up in his stall.” Adam pointed at the three stick figures under the large spiky sun who were all holding hands. “Is that you and your mom?”

“Yes.” Roman nodded vigorously. “And you.” He peered at the drawing and jabbed it with his finger. “The big fat one.”

Lizzie made the coffee and brought it over to the couch where Adam had settled himself as Roman went back to the table to continue drawing.

“How did it go with Leanne?” Lizzie asked as he took an appreciative sip of his coffee.

“It went okay.” He stared into space for quite a while. “She was very pleasant to me.”

“You sound surprised.”

He half smiled. “When she lived at the ranch, she was so full of energy, quick to anger, and quicker to laugh—you just never knew which it would be—and now she’s so serene.”

“She’s over twenty years older.”

“Yeah, I get that, but she just seems like a completely different person altogether.” He drank more coffee. “She said she wrote to me after Louisa died.”