The Rancher's Second Chance Read Online Free Page A

foot entered the kitchen.
    “Mornin’. I hope you had a nice evening, too. I know hustling up and down those stairs must be tiring,” he said, pouring a cup of fresh coffee as he settled himself at the table. He watched with satisfaction as Mrs. Harris’s full cheeks turned bright pink.
    “I’m just fine, just fine. But I wasn’t going up and down the stairs. Just stayed in my room, minding my own business.” She spooned some scrambled eggs onto his plate and placed a few pieces of crispy bacon right beside.
    “Uh-huh,” he said, leaning back in his chair as she moved around the room.
    “I do hope Melanie was able to sleep well,” she said, her eye still on him in what he assumed was supposed to be an inconspicuous glance. She didn’t pull it off.
    “If she didn’t freeze to death in that skimpy outfit you gave her.” His teasing was to his own detriment, because even though Mrs. H was choking on her coffee, he was now plagued with the image of Melanie in the hallway. He’d had the worst sleep in a long time. This morning he’d woken up vowing to put aside his thoughts of Melanie. He’d let his friend make whatever play he wanted, and then Cole would just go back to living his life. Besides, after Cori got married, he and Mel would rarely run into each other.
    “Well, it was all I could find on the spur of the moment,” she said, placing a jug of freshly squeezed orange juice on the table.
    “Sure it was.” He chewed the bacon, his eyes narrowing when Mrs. H sat down in front of him. She never sat down for breakfast; she was usually bustling around saying she had too much to do.
    “I just love that Melanie,” Mrs. Harris said with a sigh.
    Cole groaned inwardly. He knew exactly where this conversation was headed. One-way ticket to hell for him. “Well, I better get out there.”
    “Nonsense; it’s Saturday and you can take a few minutes to sit and chat. I have half a mind to serve you some more bacon with a hefty side of love advice, young man,” she said, refilling his mug. He leaned back in his chair and took a long sip of coffee.
    “Don’t need any.”
    “These mornings sure are lonely just you and I,” she said, smoothing the already perfectly pressed place mats. “It will be so nice having Mel join us today.”
    He shoved a forkful of eggs in his mouth, deciding he’d better ignore the comment.
    She wasn’t having any of it. She leaned forward, curly gray hair even more tightly wound. “You have to find yourself a woman. You can’t be hanging out with an old lady every night.”
    Cole put down his mug. “Had a woman. Don’t want another one.”
    “You’re too young to think like that.”
    “It doesn’t matter how old I am; I know what I want and I know what I need. I needed and wanted Sarah. And now she’s gone. So I have no interest in finding something I can never have again.”
    “How do you know if you haven’t tried?”
    Cole sighed harshly. Mrs. Harris was like a mother to him. She’d been at the ranch for as long as he could remember. She’d coddled him and his sister when their parents died, even though he’d been an adult. She’d force-fed him and seen him at his worst when Sarah died. They were family in every way that mattered. They ate together; they even drank together. But there were certain topics he didn’t want to discuss. Sarah was one of them.
    “I don’t want to try—”
    “You should. You are a young man, and young men have…” Her voice trailed off and her eyes shifted to the left. “Certain urges .”
    Holy hell. He couldn’t believe where this conversation was going. It was way too early in the morning for this. There was no time of day that would be appropriate for this. He hurried up, his fork scraping against the plate as he piled up the remaining eggs. “I have no problem getting my ‘urges’ taken care of. It doesn’t mean I need to find love.”
    “Cole William Forrester, your mama would not have approved of you paying for