All Chapters of Redheads & Ranchers: Chapter 81 - Chapter 90

Chapter 81: Housekeeping DetailsWhen Jenny's alarm sounded at 6:00 the following morning, she was already awake. It was the day she'd finally get to see Cole, a day she'd been anticipating since she'd first come to Mountain Haven. She felt equal parts excited and nervous as she quietly made her bed, pulling up the purple comforter he'd sent in his first care package to her. Since that first box, he'd sent a half dozen books and magazines, a framed photo of Dahlia and another of the one they'd taken together by the Sequoia sign on her birthday, and a couple cases of Dr. Pepper, which she'd shared with her roommate Jan, who currently remained curled up and asleep in her own bed.Having drawn breakfast duty for her final full day, Jenny tiptoed out of the room and made her way to the small industrial kitchen in the heart of the facility's complex. Mountain Haven was a small treatment center whose clientele was very specific. Every one of the twenty or so patients currently in resid

Chapter 83: I Always Want to Be There For YouFor the next hour, the woman led the group through the facility, explaining each room and introducing pertinent staff members. Occasionally, Jenny quietly added her own comments for Cole's benefit.The tour ended on the wide back deck overlooking the lake. "Family therapy sessions have been arranged for each client. Please adhere to the schedule. Beyond that, feel free to enjoy the grounds and the main building. Lunch will be served in the dining room at noon."With that, she left through the door leading inside. Some family groups wandered down the steps and out toward the lake. Another few followed Dr. Hobbs inside. Jenny and Cole remained on the deck."Would you like to sit down?" she asked him.Cole glanced at the half-dozen wooden rocking chairs scattered the length of the terrace. "Sure," he nodded.The walked to the far end of the deck and selected the last two chairs. "It's pretty here," Cole observed.Jenny nodded. "It i

Chapter 85: Dear ColeSmiling, Dr. Hobbs laced her fingers together and leaned back in her chair. "Okay, then. Cole, Jenny has some things she'd like you to know about her time here at Mountain Haven. Jenny?"Heart pounding, Jenny exhaled heavily and reached into her pocket, extracting a rumpled sheet of notebook paper. Carefully she unfolded it, aware of Cole's keen eyes watching her carefully. She glanced down at the paper and softly cleared her throat."Dear Cole," she began."We thought it would be good for her to write her thoughts as a letter to you. That way she could remember everything she wanted to say," the therapist explained.Jenny nodded shakily. "Yeah, I wrote a letter." Avoiding Cole's eyes, she started over. "Dear Cole, I want to tell you about my time here at Mountain Haven. These six weeks have been hard and emotional and scary and fun and lonely and happy and sad." She glanced up quickly. "I know that's not a proper sentence, but I just wrote what I was

Chapter 87: EpilogueA handful of dry brown leaves scuttled across the nearly empty parking lot as Cole pulled his silver pickup into a space in the small shopping plaza. Tulare County didn't really have fall like places back east did, but the gentle October breeze still picked up a few loose leaves when it could.He shifted the truck into park and buzzed down the windows before shutting off the engine. He knew he was early, but he'd waited at home for as long as he could. A dozen pink roses rested on the passenger seat. Jenny preferred wildflowers, generally speaking, but this was a special occasion.Gazing at the building across the lot, he watched the purple and white polka-dotted canvas awning ruffle with the breeze. Jenny's Cakes was emblazoned across the fabric in the white script logo she'd designed herself. Through the front glass, he briefly glimpsed her red head as she popped up from behind the huge display case. No doubt she was making sure everything was clean before

Chapter 89: An Intriguing Distraction From the OrdinaryAt the door, the lawyer stopped, allowing him to open it and usher her inside. Just inside the door, he paused to hang his black felt hat on a rack beside the door. His mother had always been firm: "No hats in the house." He supposed that extended to the office as well.Hunter imagined he could see the large room from his guest's point of view as he inhaled the familiar scent of leather and wood. Behind the huge reclaimed wood desk, antique branding irons hung in a row from an old board suspended on the wall above a barn wood credenza. Opposite the desk were a pair of red leather wingback chairs. The chairs matched twin oxblood leather chesterfield couches that flanked an antique trunk-turned-coffee table in the center of the office.On the opposite end of the room from his desk sat a long wood conference table surrounded by club chairs upholstered in the same leather as the couches. Western art from his grandfather's colle