One of the many reasons she liked him.
Warning bells clanged in her head and her stomach tightened at the thought of Logan.
They’d only had two nights together, and it wasn’t like he communicated with her regularly—or at all—when they were apart. She knew the score with him and what their relationship was—and wasn’t. But still, she liked spending time with him. He was honest with her, never gave her any bullshit, and that was refreshing.
She finished drying her hair just as Colt showed up at her trailer.
“Ready?” he asked.
She gave him the once-over. He wore jeans, a tight T-shirt, and boots, his hair combed back and his skin tanned from being in the sun, which showcased his gorgeous steely blue eyes. “Is Tony flying in tomorrow?”
“Tonight. Along with Sarah and Callie.”
“It’ll be great to see them all. And Tony’s going to die when he sees you dressed like that. You might not ever leave the trailer.”
“Wouldn’t that leave the gossips talking.”
She looped her arm in his. “Well, we’ll have to see about finding time for the two of you to be alone. I know how much you miss him.”
“I do, Des. But you know how it is and has to be—for now.”
She laid her head on his shoulder. “I want you to be able to live an honest life, Colt. And a happy one.”
She heard Colt’s sigh, knew how very unhappy he was with living the lie. But she also knew how important his career was and how afraid he was to risk it all by coming out.
Though she still didn’t feel it was that much of a risk. His millions of female fans adored him and would love him no matter what. She was certain of it.
Then again, this was a monumental decision—both a career and a life decision, and not hers to make, so she’d just butt out.
They climbed into one of the available SUVs and drove over to the ranch. On the way over, she spotted several men on horseback leading cattle from one of the pastures. It was easy to pinpoint which of them was Logan.
“Colt, slow down,” she said.
She rolled down the window and gaped as Logan and several of the other hands maneuvered the cattle across the rise. There had to be a couple hundred head of cattle, and five hands working them, expertly keeping them from straying. Logan was closest to her, easily maneuvering his horse as he moved the cattle in the direction he wanted them to go.
They disappeared over the rise in a cloud of dust, heading toward the ranch.
“You’ve got it so bad for him,” Colt said.
She turned to him. “Shut up. I do not. I just find the whole cattle operation fascinating.”
He put the car back in gear with a grin. “It wasn’t the cattle you were looking at.”
No, it hadn’t been. But she’d be damned if she’d admit that to Colt.
They pulled up in front of the house. A couple of the dogs were hanging out nearby, so Des stopped to pet them.
“Hi, kids. How’s it going today?”
She lingered for a few minutes to play with the dogs, then they went to the front door and rang the bell. Martha came to the door, surprise lighting her face when she saw them.
“Des. Colt. What are you two doing here?”
“We thought you could use some help with prepping stuff for tomorrow,” Des said as Martha let them in.
“Oh, that’s so sweet of both of you. But don’t you have to work today?”
“Finished up for the day,” Colt said, laying a kiss on her cheek.
Martha blushed and led them into the kitchen.
There was a lot going on in there. Several pies had already been baked, and Martha had food cooking on all the burners at the stove. Plus, there was something in the oven, and she was prepping fruit at the counter.
“I’d like to say I have it all under control, but it’s crazy here.”
“That’s why we’re here to help,” Des said. “We’d be bored in our trailers, and this looks like a lot more fun.”
She and Colt went to the sink to wash their hands, then dove in, and, with Martha’s instructions, got to work. Colt peeled bags and bags of potatoes, and Des sliced enough fruit to feed the entire town of Hope. They went from one task to another.
“Just how many people are coming tomorrow, Martha?” Colt asked as he dropped the ten pounds of potatoes he’d sliced into a giant pot of boiling water.
“I’d say we usually end up with about a hundred people. Plus your movie crew. And you said you had some friends showing up, too?”
“Just a few, I promise,” Des said. “But if it’s too much—”
She waved her hand. “It’s no problem. Trust me, I’m not the only one doing the food. I’m just making a few side dishes. Everyone from town and the neighboring ranches also bring food. And we provide all the meat.”
“That’s very generous, considering it’s quite a lot of people.” Des couldn’t imagine feeding that many.
“Well, we’re a big ranch, and we like to give back to our community. It’s like we’re one big family. We have a huge area out to the side yard where we set up picnic tables for people to eat at. Logan and the crew will finish work early today and they’ll start cleaning up the area and set up the tables.”
Just as she said that, the back door swung open and a very dusty Logan stepped in.
Des’s heart skipped a beat. If she thought he’d looked sexy right after a shower the other night, seeing him covered in trail dust from head to toe did something to her libido.
His gaze zeroed in on her. “I didn’t know we had company.”
“We popped over to help Martha,” Colt said with a grin.
Logan nodded. “Nice to see both of you. Thanks for helping out.”
“It’s our pleasure.”
“Are you hungry?” Martha asked.
“Yeah.”
“Get washed up and I’ll fix you something to eat. Then you and the guys can get started on the picnic area.”
“Okay.”
Des loved to watch the interplay between Logan and Martha. It was obvious the two of them had developed a mother-and-son type of relationship because he followed her commands so easily. And he treated her with respect, as if she were a parent, not a ranch employee. It made Des happy to know he had that type of parental love in his life, especially in light of what had happened with his mother.