Chapter Ten
“Ryan Daniel Croft, I should kick your ass.”
Choking on the bite of cheeseburger in his mouth, Ryan shot a glance at the woman who’d just hit him with her purse.
Janine. A very pissed off Janine, who looked an awful lot like his mother when she was mad.
“Wow, Neen! Love what you’ve done with your hair.” Best way to diffuse a ticking time bomb? Compliment her.
“Huh?” His pretty cousin reached up and touched her dark hair. “It’s been like this since— Ugh, you!” Whack! She smacked him again and stomped her foot this time, too.
“What?” he laughed, sliding the rest of his burger toward the half-eaten panini Rosemary had abandoned for an emergency call. Someone was freaking out about getting caught in a precarious situation…in public.
“You know damn well what.” Janine flicked a glance out the window, where Rose sat in his rental car, presumably talking her client off the ledge. “I can’t believe you’ve been in town for three days and you’re already up to no good. She’s not one of your little playthings, Ryan. Jeez.”
What the hell? “You and I haven’t seen each other in four years, so I’m pretty sure you don’t know the first thing about my personal life.”
“I know that you stayed over last night.”
“And? Rose and I are adults.”
Janine grimaced and made a sour face. “Again, you’ve been in town for three days.”
“And she and I dated for three years.” He thought he’d marry the girl, for God’s sake. This was hardly a random hook-up.
“Don’t hurt her.” Janine stabbed a finger across the table, which caught the attention of the older couple seated nearby. “So help me God, Ryan. She’s a good person and she doesn’t deserve to be shit on like that.”
Wow. Just…wow. He sucked in a deep breath and lowered his voice, hoping she’d get the hint. “You think I don’t know that?”
Janine lifted her hands. “You’ve just come back into her life. It’s hard to say.”
Okay, this was ridiculous. He understood her wanting to protect her friend, but this was his Rosemary they were talking about. “What’s her favorite color?”
“What?” Janine scowled again.
“Her favorite color.” He rolled his hand impatiently and she rattled off a rushed pink. “Wrong. It’s light blue. How about her favorite movie?”
“That’s easy—300. It’s full of hot guys.”
“Cinderella. The actual people version. It was the first and last movie she watched with her grandmother before she passed away. What else would you like to know, Janine, huh? Try me.”
His cousin stared for several long beats before shaking her head and glancing outside again. Rose stood beside the car now, smiling.
“I didn’t come here hoping to run into her. Hell, I didn’t even want to come to Sweetgrass in the first place, but my mother was on my ass about seeing you, and Will wanted to help Vaughn with the run-through at Blake’s. Seeing her there? Finding out she was your roommate? Blew my friggin’ mind.”
Janine lifted an eyebrow. “You honestly didn’t know she was here?”
He shook his head. “Nope. Seriously, Janine, shit like this doesn’t just happen.” He hated to admit his mother might have been onto something, but maybe she was.
His cousin pushed a hand through her hair and blew out a breath. “So what are the two of you doing exactly? Enjoying what you can of each other?”
“Yes. I know it’s not the smartest idea, but…” Outside, Rose closed her eyes and lifted her face to the sun. She looked so happy. And beautiful. Like everything that had been missing from his life for the past nine years. “I don’t want to walk away from her.”
“But you have to.”
“I know that, damn it.”
“Or maybe you could change your mind.” Janine lifted her shoulders innocently and he frowned. “You know, change your mind and stay.”
Yeah, right. “My life is in River Bend.”
“Define life,” she challenged.
“My job. My house. My mother.”
“You could get a job here. You could find a place to live here. Not my place though, because I refuse to deal with your man funk. And Aunt Bea…come on, Ryan. She’s the most independent woman I know. She doesn’t need you to stick around and take care of her.”
Where in the hell was this coming from? “Are you not the same woman who just hit me with her purse?”
She made a wrinkled-nose face and waved a hand at him. “Eh, I was just feeling you out.”
Hmm. He stirred the straw around in his soda and sighed. “Can you do me a favor?”
“I can try. Maybe.”
He swallowed hard, wishing he didn’t have to ask. “Keep an eye on her when I’m gone. Don’t let her get screwed over and, by all means, break out that purse if you need it.”
Janine snorted as Rosemary lowered her phone and started toward Sally Ann’s front entrance again. “No problem there.”
***
“Take it easy on him, Mrs. Swan. He’s from Nebraska.” Rosemary winked at Ryan, seated beside frisky Mrs. Swan across the rec room table. The Monopoly board sat between them and, if the tense expression on Ryan’s face was any indication, Mrs. Swan had her hand on his thigh.
“Ohh,” the silver-haired woman cooed. “A country boy, huh? I noticed the muscles. Do you work on a farm, sweetheart?”
“Uh, nope.” He shook his head, his face an adorable shade of hit-on-by-a-cougar pink. “I’m a builder. Houses, commercial buildings, that type of thing.”
“I see.” Mrs. Swan leaned in close—was she sniffing him?—and Rose held back a laugh. He was never going to forgive her for this. “I bet you’re good with a hammer.”
Oh, dear God. Rosemary bit her lips together and took the dice from Mr. Roberts after he’d finished his turn. “John, you used to be a carpenter, right?”
The older man leaned back in his chair, scratching his belly through his argyle sweater vest. “Sure did. Passed the business down to my son, though. Got to be too much for me.”
She smiled softly. “Happens to the best of us.”
“Eh.” He shrugged his thin shoulders and worked on reorganizing his pile of money. “Vaughn’s not doing so hot himself these days either. Had a heart attack awhile back.”
Ah, so Blake’s contractor was John’s son. She’d guessed there was a connection there, but she hadn’t been sure. She nodded toward Ryan, whose head dipped toward Mrs. Swan’s whispering mouth. “Ryan actually knows Vaughn. Don’t you, Ry?”
He held up a finger, the color on his face darkening by the second. “Um, I’m not sure, Mrs. S. I think that any renovations to your room probably have to go through some kind of committee for approval.”
“Oh, but you should at least come by and check it out. I even have a nice loaf of banana bread stashed away for special company.” She winked up at him and Ryan stood up and slid his chair over a few inches.
Mr. Roberts grumbled. “Leave him alone, you old bat. He’s more interested in Rosie’s banana bread than he’ll ever be yours.”
Mrs. Swan picked up her token—the silver car—and threw it at John, hitting him in the chest. “You’re just jealous, Johnny boy. Don’t think I don’t see how you look at me.”
Ryan mouthed a silent help me from across the table and Rose laughed harder, her shoulders shaking. “So, as I was saying, Ryan knows your son.”
“That’s what I hear. Do you work for Sweetgrass Contracting, son?” the older man asked.
“No, no. I’m just visiting the area. I’m actually a friend of Will Snyder’s. He introduced me to Vaughn.”
“Will is from Vaughn’s wife’s side of the family. I’ve heard chatter about him wanting to take over my company. Gotta be honest—I’m not sure what I think about someone other than a Roberts stepping in.”
Ryan nodded. “Understandable, sir. I’m sure you and Vaughn have put a lot of work into building the company. You’ve raised your families on it. Built a legacy.”
John cast his eyes toward the table, fussing with his Monopoly money again. “Couldn’t have said it better myself.”
Rose met Ryan’s sympathetic gaze with one of her own. Poor man. “John, if I recall correctly, you have some amazing photos in your room. Of all the construction projects you’ve worked on over the years.”
The older man lifted his head, his eyes a little brighter. “I’ve got albums full of them.”
“Can I take a look?” Ryan asked eagerly. “I’d love to see your work.”
“Nothing you haven’t done yourself, I’m sure.”
Ryan chuckled. “Doubtful. I rely a lot on computers and heavy machinery to help me get the job done. Your work is all blood, sweat, and tears. Completely different beasts.”
A grin twitched at John’s mouth. “You got that right, kid.”
“So can I see?” Ryan asked again and John pushed slowly to his feet, his age showing in every jerky movement.
“Eh, why not? I’m schooling you all in this game anyway.”