Page 81 of The Cowgirl's Chosen Love
Ollie immediately took possession. She settled herself right smack-dab in the middle, grinning happily as only a dog could.
Lisa laughed. “That backfired.”
“It worked perfectly,” he corrected. “Stay where you are. I have one more thing to do.”
There was another chunk of fabric in the bag and he shook it out, metallic sounds ringing as oversized hooks hit the floor. A third time he reached into the bag, pulling out ropes, but before she could make some kind of smart remark, he was peering up and tossing the ends over the open beams directly overhead.
In a few minutes, he had a hammock suspended directly in front of the window that faced the mountains.
“That’s a neat trick,” she said.
“Thanks. Your chariot awaits, my lady.”
He held the edge for her to climb in, discarding her shoes to the floor. It was a double-sized or bigger hammock, and when he grabbed a pole from the corner of the room and inserted it into a hidden sleeve at one end, there was suddenly a space being held wide open.
He brought the grocery bags closer and attached them to straps she hadn’t noticed before.
“You’ve got the most luxurious hammock of anyone I’ve ever met,” Lisa noted.
“I’ve slept in this,” he admitted. “Basically lived in it one summer. The bunkhouse I was assigned to had a few too many snorers and earplugs didn’t cut it. So I hung this in a quiet spot in the barn and roughed it out a whole lot more restfully than the other guys. I keep it in the truck as an emergency backup”
He’d leaned back, lying somewhat crosswise over the fabric. His legs were stretched out comfortably with his feet hanging over the edge. When she matched his position, facing the other way, she found it was like having a built-in backrest, bottom support and everything else.
He pointed beside her elbow. “There’s a cup holder there for you.” He reached into the first bag and pulled out one bottle of wine, twisting open the top and handing it to her. “Welcome, Mademoiselle, to Chez Heart Falls Granary. I hope you enjoy your visit.”
He was a goofball, but he was a darling.
“Thank you. I hope I do as well.”
She raised the bottle in the air before taking a drink. She passed it to him and Josiah took a sip before popping it into the cup holder beside him.
Then he brought out a collection of meats, cheeses, dips, and an already sliced French loaf, spreading all of it over a large cardboard plate.
They took turns stealing slices of food from each other and talking easily while the sun sank behind the mountains.
Lisa pointed toward the south ridge. “Is that your green flash pass?”
Josiah paused. “Could be.”
“I have to come back and try to see it from your house again.”
“You’re always welcome.” He paused, gaze drifting over her face. “You’ve got a lot of neat ideas written down in your book. Could keep you busy for a long time.”
“Yeah.”
He spoke softly. “Are you excited to start exploring?”
There was more he was asking than the simple question. So much more, and she knew it. Things were changing, slowly. Her family, her needs…
Her dreams.
Even though the time they’d had together had passed in fits and starts, being with Josiah had become important. It meant not tossing out some glib answer. It meant being truthful in a way that she’d rarely been with anyone.
Lisa spoke quietly. “It’s funny. When I started thinking about all the places I could go and all the things I wanted to do, it seemed like such an incredible and important goal. But with Tyler’s arrival and Julia being here, I’m not sure I want to go away. Plus, Finn showing up— I don’t think Karen knows he’s here, by the way. I haven’t told her. Totally got distracted.”
She didn’t mentionhimspecifically as one of her distractions, but her gaze was glued to his face. On his almost too pretty jawline and those blue eyes that held the captured joy of a summer sky.
Josiah let her get away with it. “You’ve had a lot of big things happening at once.”
