Page 5 of For Always
With a slight nod, Tyler ended the conversation and turned to walk away once more. She didn’t try to stop him this time, but Tyler knew it wasn’t the last he would hear from her. Hannah did not give up easily, not when she set her mind to something. And whether he liked it or not, Tyler sensed that she’d definitely set her mind on something where he was concerned.
Gabriella stepped up onto the front porch of the main house at Westwind Ranch & Resort feeling as if she’d somehow been morphed from the 2017 Volkswagen Passat rental car into a 1950’s John Wayne western movie. Her first impression was—there was an abundance of wood. An overabundance would be more like it. The wedge heel of her camel colored ankle boots, made a clunking sound as she walked toward one end of the wrap around porch. She’d changed into jeans and a white shirt for what she figured would be a casual business dinner. Now, considering the worn planks of this floor and the dust circulating from the dried dirt landscape, she wondered if she might still be a little overdressed.
She reminded herself that she wasn’t in her hometown of Greenwich, CT or even in Manhattan where she visited her older brother Alex and his fiancé, Monica Lakefield, from time to time. This was Hobbs Creek, Texas, a small town in what was known as the Texas Panhandle region. And she was at Westwind Ranch & Resort, one of the most successful cattle and horse ranches in the area. The resort branch of Westwind was fairly new, being added on three years ago as a new business venture. It was the previous owners, George and Verna West’s, step into tourism which was intended to become an economy booster in the area. According to Dessie Gwynn, the woman who’d hired Gabriella, it was slow going, but progressing.
“I’ve got dinner started around back.”
The deep, but smooth, voice jolted her and Gabriella turned to see him standing near the front doors of the house.
Tyler West, oldest son to George and Verna. Fitness guru, model and in a few months designer of a new fitness clothing line. His Google bio said nothing about six feet plus of fineness personified. That may have been a bit much, she thought as she walked toward him. But then, when she stood only a few feet away she realized, no, it was actually an understatement. Blue eyes, that in the right light could look green, dark brown hair, close cut beard and naturally thick eyebrows that a woman would kill to possess. And he spoke French, which for Gabriella, wasthesexiest language. Dressed in dark jeans, a dark blue chambray shirt, and chestnut colored cowboy boots, he was one tall glass of western deliciousness. If she were inclined to look at him that way. Which she was not because this trip was about work. Besides, neither her mind nor her body were ready for anything other than ogling good looking men.
“Great,” she said and tapped a hand over the bag she’d just remembered she was carrying. “I have my notes and some preliminary design ideas we can discuss.”
He didn’t frown, but he didn’t smile welcomingly either.
“Food first,” he said and extended an arm toward the door.
Since he was the client, Gabriella nodded and followed. The entrance was two massive heavy oak doors with polished bronze door handles. Formidable, dominating, and like her host for the evening, not very welcoming. Inside was only a little better. Dark hardwood floors, western fabric vaulted ceilings, and, thick wood beam framed doorways, invited her in with soft golden lighting and plush cushioned chairs. The animal skin rug in the center of the foyer wasn’t gorgeous, but the natural light she could see pouring into the room ahead filled her with optimism.
“We can go this way,” he said from behind.
Gabriella turned to see that he was leading her to the left through another doorway. This room had dark paneled walls and heavy leather upholstered furniture. There was a fully-stocked bar with four stools that stretched along one wall, shelves loaded with books along another. The large fireplace fought with the bar as the room’s focal point and the gigantic stuffed moose head hanging over the fireplace could go right into the same “must go” category as the animal skin rug in the foyer.
They passed through another room, with a little more light due to the wall of windows. Unfortunately, those windows were mostly covered by heavy plaid patterned curtains. The final room they moved through was more like a covered porch with screen in walls and dark wicker furniture.
Tyler pushed open a screen door and stepped out to the cemented deck area. Gabriella followed him, looking around at the new surroundings. More dirt packed landscape, outdoor lounge furniture that was a big step up from all the wicker she’d just seen, an open fire pit at the center of the chairs and a large stone grill built into the side wall of the house.
“This is a great space,” she said before stopping at one of the chairs and setting her bag down. “We could open this up a bit. A pergola would look great down that way, with nice thin curtains in a cheerful color. Maybe an archway there, instead of the screen door, to soften the space a bit and alert guests that they’re entering into a new space.”
“Do you eat steak?”
His question shocked her into silence and Gabriella once again looked at her host for the evening. He stood near the grill and did not appear to be the least bit interested in what she had been saying. She took a quick breath and fixed her professional smile in place.
“Ah, yes. I do. Red meat is my favorite, much to my mother’s chagrin. She insists I need to cut back or at the very least go for the leanest cuts of red meat I can find.”
“We breed our own cattle here, in case you didn’t know,” he said. “And we don’t use any antibiotics. We have mostly grain-fed beef, but a few years ago my dad started experimenting with the grass-fed method.”
“I don’t know the difference,” she told him as she walked over to the grill.
He looked so natural standing there, holding the long handled fork. Next to him smoke billowed up from the grill, the delectable scent of cooking meat wafting into the air. He also had vegetables on one side of the grill—zucchini and red peppers. Wrapped in foil she suspected were baked potatoes.
“Most cattle spend the majority of their lives eating grass and other feed such as alfalfa out in pastures. Then they move on to a feedlot for grain finishing. These are called grain-fed. Grass-finished cattle stay on a pasture and alfalfa diet for their entire lives. There are few regions in North America that grow grass all year long, so the majority of grass-finished cattle are shipped from Australia and New Zealand. American organic farmers shelter their cattle in the winter and feed them hay and silage so they’ll be grass-finished all year long. Grass-finished beef is leaner.”
“Then why don’t you raise your cattle that way here?” she asked.
He turned the vegetables over and then went to a table near the grill to pick up a plate.
“Beef cattle typically go to market weighing between 1,000 and 1,250 pounds. Grain-fed cattle put on weight more quickly than grass-fed, so they’re ready for market sooner. Much of that weight is in the form of fat. So while leaner is good, grass-fed cattle won’t have the marbling that makes the finer cuts of beef more tender and juicy.”
“Oh,” she said and watched him move the vegetables and potatoes to a plate.
He had a lean frame, but Gabriella knew that beneath those clothes were rippling muscles. She’d seen them during her Google search of him. Sculpted muscles that had made her reach out and touch her screen because her fingers had tingled with the urge to feel the cuts and bulges personally.
“How do you like your steak?”
She swallowed hard and gave a slight shake of her head to clear those silly, but enticing, thoughts from her mind.
“Well done, please.”
