Page 16 of The Spice Is Nice

He nodded in response. What a ham.

“He seems to like you, too,” I observed.

“What’s not to like about me? I have excellent taste in boots, can balance a business, town activities, and my life, and not make it all seem too crazy. And, bonus, I make the county’s best horse treats. Won the blue ribbon at the state fair with these when I was ten. Same year I won Little Miss Rancher.”

“Whoa. Didn’t realize I was among royalty.” I winked. She held up the container, lid off. Peppermint and apple and other things wafted up. “What’s the recipe?”

“Oh no, Calhoun. I don’t divulge my secret winning recipe to just anyone. You’ll have to earn the right to know it.”

Gladly… I’d probably do just about anything for her. Grins smoldered between us. Something natural had developed between her and me from the very first week I landed at the ranch. If this was back in Holly Creek, on my home turf, I’d have probably gotten her into bed with me long before now. But this was her hometown, and my temporary location.

Only temporary…

“He definitely looks very majestic with his gray coat and dark mane.” She continued to admire him. Silver’s ears swiveled forward, studying her.

“He’s a bona fide hero.” Noise filtered in from truck tires on the gravel driveway.

“I heard what he did. He’ll fit in well here, with all of you military heroesaround.”

I tore my gaze away from her. Me? Hero? Hardly. The sharp reminder of the accident on the ship flicked past.

“Ivy! You’re here.” Ro came bursting into the stable with Eli and Dusty right behind her. The vet had picked them both up from school today.

Willow’s daughter had bragged to everyone on the ranch how Ivy would take her riding after school.

“How’s Silver doing?” Dusty asked, moving into the stall. I gave him the update since his last visit.

“Dad, ask her, please?” Eli begged at the door.

“Ivy, would you mind if Eli tagged along on the ride? I’ll be checking the horses for a while,” Dusty asked and reached into his bag for his stethoscope.

Ro added to the request, jumping up and chanting ‘please’ in a drawn-out way, her hands laced together in prayer under her chin.

“Of course. We’d love to have him, right Ro?”

“Can Colt come, too?”

“Oh. I mean, he can, if he’s not busy. Which he probably is.” Ivy quirked a brow and reopened the container. Ro and Dusty each dug one out to give their horses — after sneaking a bite themselves.

“Go on. Silver will be in good hands while I’m here.” Dusty encouraged me.

“Okay then. I wouldn’t mind a ride on this fall day. See you soon, hero.” I waved at Silver, and he whinnied in protest at my leaving.

Twenty minutes later,we had saddled two ponies and two horses and took off. The trail to the pond cut west through the lower pasture, making for about a half-hour ride. The pines started coming in thick for the last half, the scent of cold sap and fallen needles sharp in the back of the throat — the smell of upstate New York autumns, close enough to this that it made my chest do something complicated.

Ro and Eli rode ahead. Marshmallow behaved for Ro the way it always did — putting in just enough effort to be respectable, not one step more. Eli was on Loki, one of the gentler ponies, the fishing pole strapped across his back at an angle.

I rode Reece at an easy pace, a gelding who needed more exercise than the others. Ivy rode beside me on Juniper, her ponytail catching the light through the pines. For a stretch, neither of us said anything. The kids were far enough ahead to be out of earshot.

“So,” I started. “Give any thought to those rules.”

She glanced at me sideways. “You want to discuss this now?”

“When else?” I adjusted my grip on the reins. “Don’t break my heart and tell me you haven’t given any thought to our fake relationship since I left your shop two days ago.”

She shifted in her seat and tipped her chin up, like shewasn’t going to admit it’d been on her mind. “When Seth is around, we show?—”

“That won’t work. Our friends or your sisters are bound to be around too, and if they see us kissing only when Seth appears, or only on Cowboy Nights, that’ll look suspicious. And you know how people love to talk. Could get back to Seth that this is an act.”