Page 71 of The Cowboy's Christmas
“I understand.”
He didn’t. But he would. Maybe everything she said was the flat-out truth and he wasn’t ready to hear it. Maybe it was a case of too much, too soon.
Maybe his old life was never going to feel the same.
“Right.” He swallowed dryly. “I’ll leave first thing tomorrow.”
“Thank you.”
His gaze locked with Savannah’s across the dimly lit space that separated them. Neither of them moved.
“You’re sure about this?”
She hesitated, then nodded, her mouth tightening in a way that told him she was worried about her voice giving her away. She did need for him to go. That part was certain. But was she happy about it? It sure as hell didn’t seem so.
He let out a low breath.
“Come here.” He opened his arms and Savannah walked into them, pressing her cheek against his chest as a small shudder went through her. Was this goodbye forever?
He closed his eyes, drew in the flowery scent of her shampoo.
He wanted to tell her he loved her. That he was willing to wait while she figured things out. That everything he’d said the night of the light festival had been bullshit. That he was just now figuring things out. They just needed to be patient. They just needed…
Time.
Damn it.
Time it was. And he took his time holding her, stroking her hair, memorizing the feel of her.
“Tell me one thing,” he said as he finally eased back, breaking the spell. “Do I know my replacement?” Because he had a bad feeling about the convenient timing of finding a guy who’d work for a couple of weeks.
She let out a soft breath and leaned back to look him in the eye. “Jeff Barnett starts work tomorrow. You can take the flatbed to town and leave it at the garage.”
“You’re killing me here, Savannah.”
She dropped her head back to his chest. “It’ll work out.”
He held her tightly, before letting her go. She took a step back and allowed cold air to move between them.
“I don’t know if I’ll see you off tomorrow.”
“You’ll see me.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I’m not leaving this ranch tomorrow until Jeff Barnett finishes chores.”
“Not your call,” she said.
“Maybe not.” He bit the inside of his mouth thoughtfully. “But I think Deke will back me on this one.”
