Back From Hell (Marine For You Book 2) (Contemporary Military Veteran Romance) (8 page)

“According to what information I have, it still is. There’s also a cabin a little farther behind that the ranch manager and his family live in. He’s been with the Clines for years and now handles a lot of the stuff Mr. Cline used to do before his wife got sick. He was the main horse trainer before he took this current position. His son now works as trainer.”

“Not Clifford. He can’t still be here.”

“Yeah, I think that’s his name.” He pulled the car in front of the main house and put it in park. “Do you know him?”

She nodded. “His son was just a kid last time I saw them. He can’t be older than sixteen now.”

“I’m not sure but I know he’s being homeschooled.” He nodded toward the house. “Ready?”

She glanced at the log home and nodded. “I still can’t believe this is really happening.”

“Believe it, sugar. In three short weeks, this will be our home and the ranch you’ve always dreamed of owning will be yours.”

“Ours…” She leaned toward him and pressed her lips to his. They were on this journey together. Business partners and so much more.

T
heir tour
of the ranch had some high and low points as it also brought to life what work needed to be done. Staci was excited to get her hands back into it, but going around the place had given her an idea she hadn’t fully considered before. A way to make both her degree and the ranch work for her. This seemed like more of a possibility now since Clifford was the ranch manager. If they kept him on in the same role, he could handle some of the things to give her more time to spread her focus.

“Are you planning to tell your mother that we’ll be a little over two hours from her?”

“Do I have to?” she grumbled and looked up from the notebook where she had been working on a business plan for the last several hours.

“I think so.” He sat one of the income logs aside and adjusted on the bed so he could look at her. “She’s going to press as to why you didn’t visit her today. It would be best to just come out and tell her that we’re purchasing the ranch.”

“Before then, I want to work out the details with you. Then I’ll tell her and I’ll make sure Colin is there too because I have a few choice words for him about his deceitful plan.” She leaned back in the chair and watched him. “I received the official word that they will make exceptions due to the circumstances and I can take my final exams when we return. I’ll graduate just as planned.”

“I figured they’d allow for that.”

“I love the ranch and I’m so grateful for what you’ve done.” She paused because she wasn’t sure how to phrase what was running through her mind.

“I hear
but
coming.”

“I have an idea on how to make two of my loves come together as one and to continue work like I do at the hospital.”

“That would be?”

She pushed back from the table and went to sit next to him on the bed. “Mr. Cline downsized some of what he was doing since his wife got sick. There are still the stables for boarding, horse training, the riding lesson areas, and the important parts. But that other large building on the far side used to be additional living quarters. The rooms upstairs were small suites sometimes used for out of town guests. As you saw, the structure is still there but could use some work. I have the perfect idea for it.”

“Well, do tell,” he pressed when she paused.

“I want to set up a wellness retreat. I’ll do physical therapy and Heather’s a psychotherapist. I’d like to bring her on. You have taken great strides in the last several months, even spending time with some injured military personnel. You could offer great support for an amputee who came to the program. I think the three of us could make it a success.”

“How does this tie into the ranch?”

“Neither one of us are going to put Clifford out of work. Which means a good majority of running the ranch won’t be our daily responsibility.” She was still working through all the thoughts that were jumbled up in her mind but it seemed like her plan could work. “This is what I went to school for and, while I always had the end game of owning the ranch, I thought I’d use my degree before owning this place. Now I see I can do both. The land surrounding the ranch is beautiful, amazing views, and trails that could be explored. It could be a place of feeling. With the three of us, we can do things the hospitals can’t.”

“What about a doctor? Medical staff? Those are important aspects as well.”

“There’s a doctor in town and maybe we can work something out with him that he’d come to the ranch. I just started outlining a business plan but, what do you think?”

“What you’re putting together here is something that will be a great benefit to people like me when they come back from overseas.”

“What
we’re
doing,” she corrected. “You really think I can get military service members to come to the ranch.”

“Why not? Horses are great therapy animals, only beat out by dogs. This ranch will be beneficial to everyone. With the PT on site, you can do physical injuries, and with Heather, you open yourself up to more by being able to treat those with PTSD and other combat trauma.”

“Then I want it to be veteran focused in honor of you, my dad, Weber, and all of those who didn’t make it home.”

“Not me but for the others. I’m no hero.”

“You’re my hero.” She scooted closer and kissed him, not just to stop his protests but also because she wanted to. “We’ll keep it small and intimate. Make it more about a place of healing than about being an amputee, or even needing PT. What do you think? Am I just dreaming?”

“I think what you want to do is ambitious, and if anyone can do it, I know you can.” He took her hand and pulled her up next to him. “I was looking over this log book and it seems as though breeding should be something that is brought back to the ranch as well. There are still good breeding horses there. We discussed that briefly on the drive back.”

“I think breeding would be good for the ranch. I know there are some horses there but we’ll have to breed or purchase additional ones if it’s something we’re seriously considering. To bring that back like it was when Dad was alive, we’ll need more than what Mr. Cline has now. He sold his best breeding mare.”

“We can do that. The question is, can we handle both? If not, which one first?” He held her close to him, his fingers teasing down her bare arm. “I’d say breeding because even though we’d have to add to the stock, it would start bringing income in right away. We’ll need to work on the buildings, add your PT area, and things like that. It’s going to take a little time to get it up and running.”

“Then let’s start breeding immediately and work on the area. We’ll make them both work but at first, we’ll be a little more focused on the breeding aspect. Should I start looking for another breeding mare?”

“I’d offer but I don’t know much about that. You and Clifford will have to teach me.”

“Don’t worry.” She wriggled her head against his chest trying to find the perfect spot. “I still can’t believe this. It’s like a dream.”

“I know what you mean.” He pressed his cheek against the top of her head. “I keep waiting to wake up and find you gone. That you finally realized you can do better.”

“I’ve got all I want with you.” She let her heavy eyelids drift shut and just enjoyed the moment. Hers was a perfect and true admission. It didn’t matter that he bought the ranch; he was everything she wanted. Getting the ranch represented just an added benefit.

If she had to choose between her dream of owning the ranch and being with him, she’d have chosen him hands down. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with this man, to wake up every morning in his embrace and to feel his warm lips against hers. This was living.

S
taci sat
by her mother’s bedside, waiting for the right moment. It had been two days since they went to Kentucky. Two days of her mother’s constant nagging to know the reason why Staci hadn’t been at the hospital that day. Now she was ready to tell her; all she needed was for Colin to return from his dinner break. She’d tell them both at once and after she got that off her chest, she’d slip away with Kyle and they’d go for a late dinner. They wouldn’t return to the hospital until late the next day. She needed time to recuperate after the fight she was undoubtedly about to have with her mother.

“I don’t know why you come and visit me if you won’t even tell me where you disappeared to.”

“Mom…” She let out a deep sigh. “I don’t see how the two are interchangeable. I’m here because you’re my mother and you’re in the hospital. I love you and want to see you better.”

“Well you won’t have to worry about that any longer. The doctors said as long as I can keep solid food down I can go home tomorrow. So your obligations will be over. You and
he
can go back to doing whatever it is you did the other day.”

She had grown tired of how her mother had referred to Kyle and how she would say his name with such disgust. She had said so over the last few days but he had told her to just leave it be. It wasn’t something to get all upset about. To him, the way she thought less of him was just another example of how much his life had changed since he had returned from overseas. She wanted to address this, but her mother had always been set in her ways. Instead of fighting with both of them, she had taken to showing him just how much he meant to her.

He gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze, as if reminding her it was fine. That no matter what comments her mother made about him, he wasn’t going anywhere. They had more than a business arrangement. She loved him.

Before she decided what to say to her, Colin strolled back into the room carrying a dozen roses. The baby’s breath made the red roses stand out in a sharp contrast. Since she had set things straight with Colin, he had taken to bringing her flowers every day. The hospital room was beginning to look like a florist. Did he think he’d win her mother over with flowers? That it was the way to make her agree to marry him?

She shoved those thoughts away. It wasn’t her battle and she had enough to be concerned with. Now that he was back, the time had come to tell them about the ranch. Wanting reassurance, she reached up and laid her hand on Kyle’s.

“Mom…”

“Just go. I can’t even stand to see you sitting there acting like you care, when I know you’re just counting down the minutes until you can get out of here and back to the hotel with him.” She took the flowers Colin held out and brought them to her nose. “They smell beautiful. Thank you, darling.”

“If I’m counting down the minutes until I can get away from you it’s because of your attitude. The way you treat both of us. Kyle has done nothing to you; he’s accompanied me because he cares about me. It’s why he stands here and says nothing when you lie there and degrade him. Well, I’m tired of it. You might have treated me like this all my life but I won’t stand by while you do it to him.”

“Staci, it’s okay.”

She stood so she could look at him. “No, it isn’t.”

“I won’t have you upsetting…”

She spun toward Colin, stopping him midsentence, and for a brief moment, she wondered what he saw in her eyes that made him step back. For the first time since the fight with her mother over her college major, she’d reached her boiling point. A person could only take so much before they stopped sitting there and allowing someone to continue to nitpick at them. Well, that time had finally arrived. It might have taken longer than normal but she’d had enough of the disrespectful comments directed at Kyle.

“Don’t worry, Colin. I’ve only one thing to say and then we’re leaving.” She stepped back into Kyle’s embrace and kept them both in view.

“Young lady, after that outburst, I think you better just go back to your hotel room and remember what I taught you as a child. You treat your elders with respect. Until you can respect me and Colin, you are not welcome here.”

“You were so anxious to know where we went the other day, coming up with all those scandalous tales of what we could have been up to. Now you want me to leave, fine.” She snatched her bag from beside the chair and slipped it over her shoulder, completely aware of what she was doing. Her mother wouldn’t let her just stroll from the hospital room, when she was finally ready to dish the truth, but it would have taught her a lesson if they simply walked out on her.

“Tell me.” The hospital bed creaked up until her mother was sitting a little higher. “You’ve kept your secret for days. Now tell me.”

“Sure, but when we return I expect you to treat Kyle with that same respect you were just demanding. The nasty comments about his burns or his injures are over. He got them while fighting for his country, a job he volunteered for to keep us all safe. He has asked me not to create waves and just ignore the nasty remarks but no longer. You can say what you want about me, but you will leave him out of this. He deserves your respect. Maybe you should remember that little thing you taught me. If you have nothing nice to say, then don’t say anything at all.”

“Fine.” She practically spit out the word as if it left a nasty taste in her mouth.

“We went to see Mr. Cline.” She tipped her head back to look at Kyle and smiled. “You are now looking at the soon-to-be proud owners of the ranch. We close on it in a few weeks.”

“Impossible. We made sure he was selling it to someone else. I want better for my daughter than that ranch.”

She took a deep breath as her suspicions that her mother played a part in Colin’s actions were confirmed.
What an underhanded, nasty…
“Oh, mother dearest, I know you and Colin did your best to talk Mr. Cline into selling without informing me but it didn’t work.”

“I’ve worked to make a better life for you. To get you away from that ranch.”

“Your dreams, not mine.” She slipped her arm around Kyle’s waist. “It’s time I start living mine.”

“What about your degree?”

“I’ll take my last exams when we go home. We’ll pack and come back to
our
ranch.”

“There will be some changes made to the place.” Kyle rubbed his hand down her arm. “Besides it being a working ranch, we’re going to offer more. Staci’s going to be able to combine her degree and her love for the ranch.”

“How are you going to do that?” Colin pulled out the chair on the other side of the bed, sat down, and took her mother’s hand into his.

“We’re going to have a healing retreat. There’s a lot of land and we’re going to put it to good use. Heather has agreed to come and work for us once we have things up and running. She’s going to be an in-house therapist. I’ll be able to do physical therapy.”

“Who’s going to run the ranch?” Colin’s dislike thickened his voice. “Horses need a lot of care and taking care of a ranch that size takes work.”

“Clifford is the ranch manager and his son the lead horse trainer,” she answered.

“I’ll be heading up that part with them working directly with me,” Kyle added.

“A naive child and an invalid running a ranch. Who’d have thought?” Her mother shook her head. “Mr. Cline’s legacy will go down the drain within a year.”

“That’s enough!” Her voice rose as she fought back the tears and anger rising within. “We’re leaving tomorrow, and I won’t be stopping back before we go to the airport. You can give me a call when you’ve changed your attitude. You’ll know where to find me.”