Read Online True Love's Fire: A Red Hot Valentine Story (Hell Yeah!) by Sable Hunter - Free Book Online Page B

sub-conscious response to Renee’s expectations of what his life should be like. His ex would never see it, but in some ways, he was still trying to prove himself to her. “And this is my office.” He thumbed another picture over.
    She leaned near him while the hamburgers fried. Some photos he went by quickly and Lia couldn’t help but notice how many of them contained beautiful women—elegant, fashionable women. All of the things Lia was not. “You seem to have a wonderful life.”
    “I do,” he spoke slowly. “I love my work, it’s a calling really.”
    “From what you told me earlier, I agree. I admire you greatly.”
    Her compliment made him a tad uncomfortable, which was odd. “Sometimes I feel like I’m just going through the motions.” With the women. With his friends.
    “I can’t imagine living where you do.” She was trying to be honest. “I don’t think I could breathe there. I’m so used to all of this. Open spaces, fresh air, and a view that goes on forever.” She pointed out at the window behind them. The sun was shining, and even though the temperature was well below freezing, the fog had lifted and the vista was magnificent. Scott turned and looked with her. Just across the short drive, there was a drop off and one series of rolling, wooded hills flowed into another. In the distance he could see dozens of mountain peaks, all snow covered—it looked like a Norman Rockwell painting.
    “I can see why you would feel that way.” When the patties were done, he helped her lay out the cheese, buns, lettuce and tomato. “Let’s make our burger and I’ll tell you about my other world. Mustard or mayo?”
    “Both.” Now, she was intrigued. “What do you mean?” He sat across from her, and swear to God, his shoulders were wider than the window behind him. She wouldn’t tell him this, but she’d rather look at him any day than the view.
    “Jordan, my brother, and I grew up on a beautiful ranch called WestStar. It sits about an hour and a half west of Austin. The house isn’t grand like the one I live in now, but there’s nothing wrong with it. Mother designed it to be comfortable, to blend in with the surroundings. So it’s made of natural rock and oak logs. There are natural springs nearby and we have our own mountain, it’s not nearly as big as yours.” He gestured toward the outside. “But I spent many happy days climbing and exploring it. We have white tail deer, coyotes, and wild cats.”
    “It does sound like some place I’d enjoy.” Lia could tell he had a great love for the place. “Does your brother live there?”
    “No, he insists the ranch belongs to me. I’m the eldest.” He ate a few bites. “There’s one place I would love to show you. About a quarter mile from the house, there’s a spring-fed swimming hole which seems to emerge from the side of the mountain and a flat face of rock makes an incredible backdrop for the pool. When I was younger, I used to carve my name there in a heart, along with the name of whatever girlfriend I was claiming at the time.”
    Lia laughed. “I can see a problem forming. How many hearts did you end up with?”
    “Well, they were small and I’d only lead the current girl to the spot where her name was located, although I did get caught a few times.” He smiled, remembering the day Lucy Harbison found the heart with Connie Smith’s name on it. “Once I got Dad’s sledge hammer and tried to remove one of them when I thought I was really in love.”
    “How old were you?”
    “Oh, fourteen or fifteen at the most.”
    “I bet you were cute out there carving those romantic tributes.” She could just picture him, tongue to one side, with his hammer and chisel. “Do you have any photos of you at that age?”
    “No.” His expression changed. “I lost most of our family history in the fire.”
    “Fire?” 
    He shook his head and sipped some coffee. “We lost our folks in a fire at Christmas, my Senior year in