“I don’t think so. I’m sure some people think she’s still in the hospital.”
“Okay, so we put Melanie Burns’s wanted poster all over Charming, and if she pops up here we’ll take care of it.”
“Slow down there, Tex. We don’t need to do all of that yet, but I just wanted you and Jesse to know.”
“We need to tell Evie.”
“Give me a few days. I’m keeping my eye on Melanie either way, and I’m reaching out to her team. There are plenty of people that don’t like Evie, but Melanie isn’t some rando on the internet. They are colleagues.”
“Has she gotten messages like this before, like from strangers?”
“Uh, yes. She’s a successful Black female chef. Her nickname is Princess. Just think about how many people would hate that?”
“Yeah, okay.”
“Like I said. Give me a few days.”
Zach didn’t like it, but he knew Nicole was right. They had no proof of anything, and Evie had no memory. Hopefully, Nicole could get some answers and they could fill Evie in. If Melanie wasn’t involved, at the very least Nicole could get her off Evie’s back and out of her DMs.
Zach set down his phone and turned off his light. It would take a few minutes for the alertness caused by his loud-as-fuck ringer and his call from Nicole to fade. He made a new plan. Talk to Jesse and Evie. Talk to Miss Leona. Then carry on with the rest of his day as planned. But first he needed at least another hour of sleep. Which he would have gotten if his phone hadn’t started ringing again.
He looked at the screen. It was the ranch.
* * *
Evie tossed and turned all night, waking herself up every time she rolled too hard to her right and agitated her stitches. Each time she’d fall back asleep she’d find herself in the midst of a different, but equally horrible, vivid dream. She couldn’t remember them all, just bits and pieces. So many faces she didn’t recognize and more strange places, miles and miles of desert and burning fields. And just like before, right by her side or just out of her reach, there was that cowboy with his devastating smile, only this time she knew his name and it only made it more frustrating when her mind had her running through a vine maze, trying to seek him out.
The other bits and pieces of the night that still left her raw? She didn’t know what to make of them. Her mind, her memory were still in chaos, and clearly whatever part Melanie Burns had to play in her life wasn’t helping with any sort of clarity.
When Vega came in to check on her, waking her just before noon, she realized she’d overslept. She tried to be polite as Vega took her blood pressure, but the weight of her dreams felt like it was still crushing her. She knew if she said anything she might cry, so she waited quietly until Vega was done.
She gave Evie’s arm a light squeeze. “You’re all set. Miss Leona is waiting for you in the kitchen.”
“Oh, crap. She was probably thinking I’d be up in time to make breakfast. I’ll get dressed.”
“I’m going to take a walk to the end of that seven-mile-long driveway and back,” Vega said as she put away her stethoscope. “Then I think I might sit in the garden for a while. I’m sorry, but I love this place.”
Evie smiled. “Me too.”
When she was alone again, she checked her phone. She had a few text alerts. She braved a look at her conversation with Blaire and Raquelle and saw the messages Vega had sent the night before, politely relaying that Evie was turning in for the night and that she’d talk to them soon. She considered texting them herself, but decided against it. She didn’t have the energy to handle Raquelle’s well-intentioned apologies. The rest of the texts were from Zach. Early morning fire to put out over at the ranch. Raincheck on that good morning kiss.
The text was sent hours earlier, probably in the middle of Evie’s tenth bizarre dream of the night. There’s no way she would have been in any condition for a pre-dawn smooch session, but still Evie’s heart sank. Her growing feelings for Zach seemed so simple. She was drawn to him, and even with Jesse’s warnings something deep down told her that Zach was a man she absolutely wanted in her life. That good-morning kiss would have done a lot to lift her funk. She sat back in her bed and responded to his text. Hope everything’s okay. My schedule is very full though. Please check with my assistant to reschedule some kissing.
She reread the message to herself before she hit Send. She wondered if other women put this much effort into texting guys. She’d ask Blaire. She got as far as undressing for a quick shower when her phone vibrated on her sheets. Another text from Zach.
Zach: Just a broken industrial freezer during a very busy weekend. We got it under control. I’ll draft a formal request to your assistant. Shortly.
Evie: Please do. I am a very busy woman.
Zach: I’m busy over here thinking about how I’d much rather be spending my day with you.
She knew she was playing with fire, but she drafted one more risky text, just to see how far this could go. A whole day of not doing reverse cowgirl? I told you, I’m all about the face-to-face.
Zach immediately responded with a GIF of a man passionately kissing a woman all along her throat. The expression on the woman’s face was so over-the-top, Evie tried to hold in her snort of laughter and failed miserably. But the longer she stared at the GIF the more she thought about the possibilities. Her dreams had ruined her night. Her dreams and some extremely unnerving direct messages from Melanie Burns, but just talking with Zach turned things around. It wasn’t as good as a kiss, but flirty texts from Zach Pleasant were something she could get used to. If this was what it was like to be with him all the time, this light buzzy feeling, she might be in trouble, the kind of trouble Nicole had warned her about. She’d worry about that another time. She sent one more text. Yes, just like that. That’s what I want. *winky emoji*
* * *
Evie found Miss Leona waiting for her at the kitchen island. She had the framed pictures Evie had set aside, lined up on the counter. Evie’s other boxes were stacked near the door.