I DO NOT OWN THESE CHARACTERS. THEY BELONG TO THE CW NETWORK. THIS IS A WORK OF FANFICTION BY OMEGABEAST.
The white sheet slid down Vincent's body, exposing bare skin with a supporting cast of muscles. He turned over and groaned at the first light of dawn, peeking through the gray colored drapes. Ranch duties demanded he vacate his comfortable bed, but his body failed to receive the message. Waking up alone every morning left plenty to be desired, starting with the warm body of a woman. His thoughts gravitated to his new cook. She wore the marks of a wounded bird. A beautiful wounded bird. One that needed time to heal. The idea of a beautiful single woman living under his roof and being off limits compounded his growing frustration. He made a mental note to work harder at finding a woman. His capacity for loneliness had been reached. It was time to eliminate the problem and find him a wife. A good southern wife. The plan sounded good, but he knew, before he began his search, the task would be almost insurmountable. Still, he wouldn't be deterred.
His mind traveled a journey a few years earlier. To the last woman he'd loved. The perfect woman for him, or so he thought. His mind opened the sealed mental compartment and released the memories from their last day together. A door he had closed and refused to think about until now. The pain endured had been too great. Her words, unleashed, had wounded his heart and injured his pride. But her actions were something different altogether. The evil look in her eyes, when he refused to meet her demands. To swallow her manufactured lies. He had turned around walked to his car and thereafter, driven away; refusing to look back for one second.
Deciding the past had prolonged the inevitable long enough, he swung his legs around the edge of the bed and stood up. Shuffling barefoot across the floor, he entered the bathroom and prepared to get dressed for the day.
...
At the break of dawn, a unfamiliar noise startled Catherine awake. Sitting straight up in the bed, she heard it again. Soon, the realization hit, a rooster was crowing. Oh, the joy of country life. Jumping out of bed, she padded across the floor to the window, which afforded her a view of the front yard. All her gripes about the noise were soon forgotten, when the beautiful sunrise came into view. A fresh sense of peace washed over her. Life was better than it had been in a long time. And waking up to the beautiful countryside wasn't a hardship either. Deciding she'd take advantage of the view, she threw her clothes on.
Opening the front door, the morning country air seeped into her nose, a reminder of how tranquil the environment was. Feeling adventurous, she strolled toward the barn and stopped short when she spotted a chicken coop. Excitement washed over her and she decided to try her luck at collecting eggs.
She tiptoed closer to the hens, half expecting to hear a clucking sound. Over to the side of the nest boxes, she spotted a basket. Her inexperience had her chuckling to herself. Out of the blue, one of the hens flew down out of the box, causing her to scream and jump back. Her eyes followed the path of the chicken and she froze in place. Mortified wasn't sufficient to describe how she felt, when she saw Vincent leaning against the wall; a creased brow and a half smile on his face. Goosebumps invaded her skin and her cheeks became inflamed. He pushed off the wall and walked over to where she stood, stock-still, as if she were a statute.
He smirked. "It seems a certain city girl needs a crash course in gathering eggs."
She averted her gaze with a bashful look. "I guess you're right."
He walked over to the nesting boxes. "It's safer to collect the eggs when the chickens aren't nesting on the nest box. If not, you run the risk of getting injured." he said, while sliding his hands gingerly under the hens and grabbing the eggs.
"I guess I have a lot to learn about ranching and farming," she muttered
He stopped his task and glanced at her. "It will come in time. We don't do a great deal of farming. This was my grandparent's spread and they ran it as a ranch and farm. I kept the chickens after inheriting the ranch, but we mostly deal with cattle and horses."
She looked up with a big smile. "Do you think you could teach me to ride one day?"
He raised a brow at her. "Feeling adventurous, are we?" he said, chuckling.
She frowned. "You think because I'm from the city, I can't learn to ride."
"No. But, I doubt it if you'll stick around here long enough to learn to ride a horse," he said, giving her a stern look.
She gave him a look of disbelief and placed her hands on her hips. "Like you didn't think I could cook, right? You may want to stop while you're ahead. I may be a lot of things Mr. Keller, but first and foremost, I'm a survivor. And I will prove you wrong," she spat out, before turning around and heading toward the house.
...
Vincent and the hands entered the dining room and stopped short. A small feast awaited them on the table. He scanned the savory looking dishes and his mouth agreed with his assessment by watering.
"Boss, I think I'm going to look forward to breaking my fast every morning," Corey said, taking a seat.
"Corey, you look forward to every meal. But I'm inclined to agree with you. Little lady can burn. Some mighty fine vittles she done prepared for us," JT said.
Vincent stared at the men. He found he didn't like them talking about Catherine. Their appreciative looks and words of praise didn't set right with him. And he didn't care to analyze why. He just knew it irked him to no end. In an attempt to tamp down his anger, he picked his plate up and piled it with food. By the time he finished, he had grits, bacon, eggs, sausage, pancakes, and biscuits on his plate. He looked up as Catherine entered the dining room, meeting her eyes and she looked away. Her first full day on the job and he had already put his foot in his mouth. That's was further proof he needed to keep his distance. He didn't need to lose another cook. The last one had married a ranch hand and started their own ranch. Afterwards the food had been sub-par at best.
"Boss, you're pretty quiet this morning," Devin said.
Vincent shoved some eggs in his mouth and put his fork down. "Just enjoying my breakfast," he said, after swallowing his food.
"I checked on Sable and she's doing fine. She gave you a mighty fine calf," Lee said.
"With winter pushing summer out, hopefully we can get the other two heifers through calving before the weather changes completely," Mark added.
"Speaking of the end of summer, don't forget the barn party is two weeks away. It might be a good idea to let Catherine know, so she can be prepared," JT said, slathering a biscuit with strawberry jam and biting into it.
Vincent groaned. "I think I'd better if I want the guest to have food to eat."
JT leaned over and whispered. "You seem out of sorts this morning. I thought you would be happier with a new cook and all."
"I am. I'm just thinking about how to apologize to her. I done put my foot in my mouth already."
"What did you say?"
"She asked if I would teach her to ride horses. I told her I didn't think she would last long enough to learn how to ride."
"Are you dense or did you make a special effort today?"
Vincent shot JT a warning look. "It just came came out."
JT took a drink of his orange juice and set his glass down. "Right. Do me a favor and keep your mouth closed. I happen to like eating good food."
"Don't worry. I'll be as quiet as a church mouse," Vincent said.
"Sure, you will." JT leaned close again. "There's some sparks flying between you and her. But you're gonna have to be careful. She needs some tender, loving care. Things happen for a reason and she may not be here by chance. And before you disagree, think about it.
"Vincent shook his head and grabbed his fork. He glanced at JT. "I will, but don't go getting your hopes up."
"JT smiled and grabbed another biscuit. "That's all I'm asking."
...
Catherine's first full day passed without any mishaps and soon she had served dinner and cleaned up the kitchen. After cooking and cleaning up, she decided to sit for awhile on the front porch. She stepped out the front door and took a seat in the rocking chair on the porch. The moon cast a faint glow of light across the planks on the floor. Catherine folded her legs under her body and rocked to the sounds of nature in the background.
"I'd better say something before I scare you."
Catherine jerked her head around. Vincent sat in a chair on the opposite end of the porch.
"You seem to to be good at sneaking up on me," she said, looking away and continuing to rock in the chair.
"Technically, I was here first."
"You're right. I can leave if you want some privacy," she offered.
"I think this porch can accommodate the both of us, don't you?'
"Yes, I do," she answered.
"Then it's settled. Enjoy the peace and tranquility only a country night can give."
"I didn't know how much beauty I had been deprived of until I arrived in this town. In the past, I thought country life would be boring. But after experiencing city life and needing to get away from it all, I find I have been ignorant in my assumption. I love the smell of fresh air. Birds singing in the trees. Cows mooing and horses neighing. The rooster will have to grow on me though," she said, chuckling.
"Believe it or not, some days his crowing is the only thing that feels normal around here. It's usually when everything in the world seems wrong, the simple sound of that old rooster, reminds me of a new day. Another chance to be a better me."
"What a wonderful way to look at it? You know, for a country boy, you're not so bad," she said.
He laughed a rich, hearty laugh. "I might be country, but nothing about me is close to being a boy," he stated with confidence.
Catherine appreciated the darkness for concealing her inflamed face. His words took her mind places she didn't want to go. There was no doubt in her mind about him being all man. The way his jeans hugged his body, showcasing strong legs and a faint hint of muscles. And if that wasn't enough, she hadn't missed the prominent bulge in the front of his jeans. One that piqued her interest and led to less than pure thoughts.
"I didn't mean it like that," she replied.
"I know. I'm just teasing," he said, unfolding himself from the chair. "Come with me. I want to show you something."
Catherine stood and followed him to the barn. Laying in one of the stalls was one of the prettiest sights she had ever seen. A female cow lay on a bed of hay with her baby calf beside her.
"Once she passes the placenta, she'll be out of the woods. Until then, we have to monitor her for any problems that could arise," Vincent said, turning around to look at Catherine.
"Thank you for bringing me out here. I don't think I will ever get enough of country life."
Vincent stepped closer with a sober look. "I owe you an apology for this morning. I was out of line for assuming you won't last on the ranch. You deserve a chance and I'm hoping you'll forgive me for putting my foot in my mouth," he said.
"I accept your apology. Thank you."
"We'd better get inside. Your friend will be crowing as soon as our heads hit the pillow," he said, smiling.
She smiled back at him. "You make a valid point."
She turned to head toward the door, unaware of Zeus standing beside her, until she tripped over him. Vincent extended his hand to catch her, but Zeus moved again, causing both of them to fall backwards on a bale of hay. Their eyes met for a moment, before his lips touched hers. Soon the kiss escalated into one of passion and desire. Vincent ended the kiss and searched her eyes to see if she was affected as much as he was. He brought his hand up to her cheek and ran his thumb across it. Catherine knew she was treading dangerous waters and she needed to keep her job. She couldn't go back to New York, and to be honest, she loved living on the ranch, waking up to the beautiful view.
She jumped up. "I can't do this," she muttered, before running off.
...
Vincent watched Catherine run off and reprimanded himself for kissing her. What had happened to taking it slow? No wonder she was skittish as a rabbit. He had practically mauled her. What had come over him? He had no clue. The only thing he was certain of, was his pretty new cook had flipped his world upside down, and it didn't look like it would be right-side up ever again.
Author's Note: Thanks for reading everyone and providing wonderful feedback. I hope this chapter was just as enjoyable. As always, leave me a review. I love hearing from all you. Enjoy your day.