Goodbye Girl (Hidden Lane Ranch)

Goodbye Girl

By

Scarlett Metal

Goodbye
Girl

(A
Hidden Lane Ranch Novel)

By Scarlett Metal

Copyright © 2013
by Scarlett Metal

All Rights Reserved. This book may not be
reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without
permission from the author. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of
copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. All characters and
storylines are the property of the author and your support and respect is
appreciated. The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any
similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by
the author.

The following story contains mature
themes, strong language, and sexual situations. It is intended for adult readers.

Edited by Tabitha Willbanks

Cover design by Ari at Cover It! Designs

Dedication

For my family – One day we will be living out our
dreams at our own Hidden Lane Ranch. I love you!

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 – Rachel

Chapter 2 – Clint

Chapter 3 – Rachel

Chapter 4 – Clint

Chapter 5 – Rachel

Chapter 6 – Clint

Chapter 7 – Rachel

Chapter 8 – Clint

Chapter 9 – Rachel

Chapter 10 – Clint

Chapter 11 –
Rachel

Chapter 12 – Clint

Chapter 13 –
Rachel

Chapter 14 – Clint

Chapter 15 – Rachel

Chapter 16 – Clint

Chapter 17 –
Rachel

Chapter 18 – Clint

Chapter 19 –
Rachel

Chapter 20 – Clint

Chapter 21 –
Rachel

Chapter 22 – Clint

Chapter 23 –
Rachel

Chapter 24 – Clint

Chapter 25 – Wyatt

Goodbye
Girl

By

Scarlett
Metal

Just a few
more miles…Just a few more miles between him and I and it’ll be ok.

My hand was
shaking as I took the last sip of my Red Bull. I hadn’t slept in three days and
I’d been living on Red Bulls and candy. If I didn’t stop soon for a rest, my
body was going to shut down.

I’d just made
it through South Dakota. I thought about stopping to see Mount Rushmore, but I
couldn’t. The more distance I could put between Buffalo and me, the better off
I would be.

I crossed the
state line into Wyoming, watching the sun set into the mountains. It was around
nine at night and the highway was fairly empty. I saw a sign for Sheridan,
Wyoming and decided to find a small hotel there for a night or two. I would
probably be safe there; he’d never think to look for me way up here. We’d
always talked about moving south to Florida, so hopefully he’d check down there
first.

I exited the
highway and turned into the parking lot of a small hotel with a diner attached.
A shower and a home cooked meal sounded perfect right now. I grabbed my purse
and headed inside to the front desk where an elderly woman greeted me. She
looked more like a librarian than someone who would work behind the front desk
of a hotel.

“Hey hun, what
can I do for you?” She smiled at me so wide I couldn’t help but smile back. Her
eyes darted to the bruise on my cheek and I self-consciously touched my face. Never
again! Never again would I be embarrassed to be out in public because of
something a man did to me.

“Do you have a
room for a night or two?” I asked softly, my hands suddenly trembling. I shoved
them in the pockets of my jean shorts so she wouldn’t notice.

“Just a
second,” she said and looked at the screen next to her. After a few quick keystrokes,
she turned back to me. “Yep, we have a room with a king-sized bed available on
the second floor for two nights. Would you like it?”

I nodded,
setting my purse on the counter and reaching inside for my wallet. I pulled out
a few hundreds, hoping she didn’t notice the wad of cash I had in my purse. I
didn’t want to draw any more attention to myself.

I paid for the
room and she gave me my key. “The diner is attached and it’s open twenty-four
hours a day. They have the best food there, breakfast especially.”

I took my key
and thanked her before heading back out to my car. I grabbed a few bags,
looking around to make sure I was alone before heading back inside to my room. Fuck
him for making me so paranoid. I found it easily and threw my stuff on the bed.
I looked at the bed longingly. I really wanted to lie down and pass out cold,
but I needed a shower and food.

I opened one
of my suitcases and found a change of clothes and my bathroom stuff. I turned
the water on almost as hot as it would go before stripping off my shorts and
t-shirt. I glanced at myself in the mirror, wincing at the bruises he left on
my arm. I pressed my fingers gently on my face and bit my lip, fighting back
the tears. He didn’t matter anymore; I was never going to see him again.

I climbed into
the shower, the hot water feeling almost like needles on my skin. I closed my
eyes and leaned back, letting the water wash the grime of his touch and the
road off of me. As I stood there, all the emotions I’d kept at bay the past few
days came crashing over me. I started to sob, my tears mixing with the water
running down my face. I reached an arm out and leaned against the shower wall,
my body shaking.

When I finally
had no more tears left in me, I squared my shoulders, determined not to let him
break me again. I quickly finished in the shower and got dressed, my stomach
rumbling. I took my room key and some cash and headed out of my room. It was
already eleven o’clock, but the lady at the front desk said they were open
twenty-four hours, so I figured I’d check it out. I’d thought about just ordering
a pizza and having it delivered, but after being locked in my car essentially
for the past three days, I needed to get out.

I walked out
of the front door of the hotel and turned the corner to the diner. As I opened
the door, I was surprised to find the place busier than I’d expected at this
time a night in small town Wyoming. My stomach made a noise I was sure the
whole place heard and I quickly made my way to a booth in the corner.

I sat down and
grabbed a menu. I was so hungry that everything on the menu sounded good. I
finally decided on an omelet and toast before the waitress even made her way
over to me.

“All set to
order?” she smiled at me, her black hair back in a high ponytail.

“Yes, I’ll
take a ham and cheese omelet, wheat toast, and some milk please.” My mouth was
watering at the thought of eating real food. Living off of fast food gets
really old really quick.

She finished
writing down my order and tucked her pencil back behind her ear. “Sounds good. I’ll
get that in right away and bring you some water, hun.”

She turned and
I smiled. I’d been called ‘hun’ twice in one night. Where
was
I? People back home weren’t this friendly. Maybe I could get
used to this.

I glanced
around the restaurant, checking out the other patrons. There was a group of
older men sitting at the counter, their clothes dirty, looking like they’d just
come from work. A few booths away from me sat a young couple sitting on the
same side. I rolled my eyes when they kissed, but a part of me felt a twinge of
jealousy.

There were a
few others scattered about but my breath caught in my throat when I noticed
him
.
He was at a table nearby and I have no idea how I didn’t notice him earlier. He
was busy reading the paper and drinking his coffee, but I could see his
chocolate brown eyes, lashes so long most women would kill for them. He was
wearing cowboy boots and a baseball hat, so I couldn’t see what color his hair
was for sure. He was wearing jeans and I briefly wondered if they were Wrangler
jeans and if they fit him like they did the guys in the commercials. A tight
white t-shirt showed off his muscular arms and clung to his chest in all the
right places.

He glanced up
and nodded at me with a wink and a smile and I turned away quickly, feeling my
face on fire at being caught staring. The waitress came over with my food just
then, having seen the whole thing.

“He’s hot,
isn’t he?” she teased as she set my food in front of me. I laughed and nodded. “His
name is Clint. He comes in here all the time. He owns a big ranch nearby where
he lives with his mom, sister, and brother. He’s one of the youngest ranch
owners in Wyoming.”

I turned and
stole another glance back at him. He’d folded up his paper and was getting
ready to get up. As he stood up, my eyes moved down his body. Yep, he wore the
jeans just like in the commercial. I swallowed hard and felt a stirring deep in
my womb when he looked over at me again. It was like his eyes were looking into
my soul. Sexy as he was, it was a little bit unnerving.

The waitress
leaned down and whispered, “He’s single too.”

“I’m not - I
didn’t,” I stammered, totally embarrassed again. Was I that obvious?

“Just thought
you’d want to know the way you two are checking each other out,” she winked and
turned around to head back to the kitchen. Wait – he was checking me out
too? I didn’t see that.

I shook my
head. I just left an asshole; I didn’t need another man right away. It didn’t
matter that he was sex on a stick; I wasn’t interested.

I couldn’t
help but watch him as I ate. He seemed to know almost everyone in the diner and
stopped to talk to everyone on his way out. He shook hands with the guys
sitting at the counter, laughing with them before turning my way. Shit, he was
going to come right past me. I wanted to slide under the table so bad right
now. I cursed myself that I didn’t bring a book or something to read so I could
look totally busy when he walked by.

“Hey there,”
he greeted me, his voice deep and smooth, like whiskey going down your throat. He
tipped his hat at me and I thought I was going to swoon. I’d never met a real
cowboy before. Growing up in Buffalo, NY, there was nothing but punk ass men
who thought they were all that.

“Hi,” I said,
setting down my fork and taking a drink of my milk.

“New around
here?” he asked. I swore his eyes darkened when he noticed the bruise on my
cheek and I suddenly wished I’d taken the time to hide it better with make up;
I’d just swiped on some foundation, not even bothering with concealer.

“Just passing
through,” I replied. Should I offer him a seat? But I didn’t know him. My heart
was pounding so hard I was sure he could hear it.

He nodded. “Where
ya headed?”

I shrugged. “Not
sure. My plan was to just drive until I found a good place to stay.” Why was I being
so open with him? I rarely shared with people I knew and here I was telling a
total stranger my travel plans.

“Hmm…Well,
this is a good place to stay and if you need work, I can always use help on my
ranch,” he grinned at me and my stomach did a flip-flop.

He put his
hand out to shake mine. “I’m Clint. I own Hidden Lane Ranch just up the way.”

“Rachel,” I
responded, taking his hand in mine. It was different than
his
hand -
rough, like he knew how to actually do real work. He griped my hand tight and
shook it. For a second I thought about what his hands would feel like on my soft
skin and desire pooled between my thighs. Sweet baby Jesus, what was I
thinking?

“Nice to meet
you.” He released my hand. “I gotta get back to the ranch, but if you’re
interested, talk to the ladies here. They’ll point you in the right direction.”
He tipped his hat to me again. “Have a good night, Rachel.”

“Goodnight,” I
managed to mutter. God the way he said my name made me tremble. What would it
sound like if he whispered it in my ear while in the throes of passion?

I watched him
leave the diner shamelessly checking out his ass in those jeans. I kept my eyes
on him until I couldn’t see him in the dark night before turning back to my
omelet that was now cold. I was finished with it anyway and paid before heading
back to my room. I didn’t think I could keep my eyes open much longer.

I stripped off
my clothes and climbed into bed naked. As I’m about to drift off to sleep, I
thought about Clint’s job offer. Maybe he was right; maybe this was a good
place to stay. Then I could be around his sexiness all day. I sighed and rolled
over to my side, clutching a pillow against me. I just left a man, would it
really be smart to have another in my life so soon?

The last thing I saw before I drifted off
was Clint’s smile. I might have to check out his ranch in the morning.