Free The Rancher's Second Chance by Victoria James Page A

said in a voice she’d never heard. He stretched his long legs, propping them on the small coffee table. She held her breath, waiting for him to continue. He didn’t. He motioned for the bottle and she poured him another glass. They both drank in silence, and Melanie watched Cole from the corner of her eye.
    She wondered if he was going to speak at all anymore, or if she was irritating him. The last thing he wanted to do was have chitchat with his little sister’s friend, but she didn’t do silence well. Silence was the precursor to yelling. Silence was always expected at the dinner table. Silence was what her father demanded of her. Silence was the obvious gauge that she should make herself scarce.
    Melanie drew a long breath and stood. She was going to make herself scarce. But Cole’s deep voice broke the silence and she sat down, relieved for so many different reasons, the most prominent being that he was not dismissing her. “Sarah and I met in high school and just clicked. First we were just friends. Our families knew each other; both of us came from hard-working ranching families. She practically grew up in the saddle, just like me and Cori. Then after high school, we’d spend most our weekends riding, hanging out. Neither of us thought twice about getting married. It was obvious for both of us.”
    Cole took a long drink, finishing the contents of his glass before continuing. “As you already know, my parents died shortly after we were married, and Sarah helped me and Cori through it. She was a rock for both of us. We moved into the ranch and spent the best years of my life. I ran the ranch and she was out there every day by my side. Weekends we’d camp out under the stars, both of us hooked on the outdoors. She was amazing, one of those people that had boundless energy. Most mornings she woke even before I did, cooking or planning out the day.” He glanced over at her, a slight smile on his lips as he spoke of Sarah.
    “She sounds like she was the perfect woman for you,” she said, meeting his eyes for a moment and then looking down at the bottle of whiskey.
    “She was,” he said with a small shrug. “We always assumed we would have decades in front of us. Kids, everything. When she got sick, it came out of left field.” He rose abruptly from his sofa and walked to the only kitchen cupboard that had anything in it.
    “More jerky?” he asked his back still to her.
    “Uh, no thanks. “ It felt odd having him talk to her and open up to her. She couldn’t believe he was telling her this. About Sarah. Cori had told her he never spoke of Sarah. Come to think of it, Cole didn’t really speak. One-liners here and there. Maybe it was the whiskey.
    He didn’t sit back down again; instead, he stood by the fire. She took a rather large gulp of whiskey, since his back was to her, desperate for something to numb the ache that was weighing her heart. Her eyes roamed him freely, knowing he couldn’t see her. She took in the dark, mussed-up hair, the wide breadth of his shoulders that tapered to the narrow waist and lean frame in the low-slung jeans. She scrambled for something to say. She needed to break the silence again. “May I have a glass of water? I’m kind of thinking all this whiskey on an empty stomach might be a bad idea.”
    He glanced over his shoulder at her. “Yeah, except this is the only glass I have.”
    “Oh. Right.” She chewed her lower lip while she deliberated how to offer advice without offending him. “Maybe Mrs. H will let you bring some extra glasses and dinnerware.”
    He gave a brief chuckle. “I did it on purpose. If I only had one of everything, it would be a quick way for me to remember Sarah was gone. It was just me up here. Only needed one glass, one plate, one fork and knife,” he said with a shrug, looking into the fire.
    Melanie rubbed her arms, the goose bumps pricking the palms of her hands. Cole had always been sweet to Cori, and she knew he and Sarah had been in