Alpha of the Ranch

The Conversation

Victoria had fallen asleep while trying to sort her thoughts. Well, that might not be entirely true, she admitted to herself as she began sitting up. She had started off sorting her thoughts for sure. Started thinking about the burning question Oliver had asked her. “Don’t you feel it?” he’d asked.

When he said it, she had been quick to deny him. There was nothing to feel, she believed, besides joy at the clientele and money. But, lying in bed before her heavy eyes dropped closed, she did admit she felt something. It wasn’t the burning hot love she had with Micah, but it was something strong. And it scared her.

Victoria began dressing as she followed this train of thought. If she admitted to feeling *something* for Oliver, where did she go now? Was it really date worthy? Was she really date worthy?

That thought stopped her in her tracks. Her eyes moved over to the mirror on the wall. Her curly mane was a bit flattened on one side where she’d fallen asleep, but it was still thick and luxurious on top of her head. Her body was curvy and she couldn’t take herself in without thinking about Micah and how appreciative he’d always been about her wide hips and ample bottom. Sure, she could probably do more squats or something, but who had time for that? She shook her head. Of course she was date worthy. But she still felt like she and Oliver were so different even though they’d had such a good time when they hung out. There was something about him that alluded to power. It wasn’t just that he was a young owner of a very successful business either. Something about him was strong, forceful with authority. It wasn’t ever directed at her, but she noticed how people were around him when they went out for ice cream. The looks. His presence was thoroughly felt.

Speaking of ice cream….

Trudging out of her bedroom, Victoria headed to the kitchen for some ice cream. It was easier to think with a sweet treat. As she neared the kitchen, her skin prickled and it felt like electric sparks danced their way across her arm. She ignored it, focused on the task at hand. Round the corner with rocky road and jade green on her mind, she let out a startled shriek of surprise when she saw someone standing there. Pushed into action, she reached over to a long, thick pole that was near the doorway, grabbed it with both hands and turned, her body already in a perfect swing her dad would be proud of. She put her whole body into it, ready to keep swinging until the intruder went down. The solid *thwack* of the pole hitting flesh only encouraged her, and she pulled back for a second swing.

For his part, Oliver managed to stay standing after that hell of a swing. Admittedly, it was difficult, as she’d caught him right in his ribs when he went to hold his hands up in surrender. He was fairly certain she’d cracked something, if not outright broken. While his wolf recognized his mate, the pain made him want to growl and force her to stand down. Oliver remained rational enough to push the urge aside and just managed to quickly side step the second swing, Victoria following the same arch.

Unable to stop her momentum, Victoria’s body turned with her swing and she was suddenly captured, the intruder stepping behind her, forcing her to drop the bat, and wrap her arms around herself. A warm feeling began to spread through her from the point of contact and she unknowingly replaced her foot that was poised to strike. Her breathing was still ragged, but she found herself taking deeper breaths. The fight was slowly seeping out of her, which left her with just one feeling: confusion. Who was this? And why was she not more freaked out now than a moment ago?

“Promise you won’t attack me again when I let you go?” She knew that voice. Victoria’s eyes widened.

“Oliver?” she whispered. “Oh my god! Oliver, I am so sorry!” her hands flew to her mouth as he let her go to hold his side. She turned to examine him. “I hit you so hard! Oh my god. Are you okay?” her eyes moved to his side. “Should we take you to the hospital?”

Oliver shook his head, even though his teeth were gritted in pain. “Can I sit on your couch though?”

“Yes! Please sit!” Victoria walked him into her living room and sat him down. “I’ll be right back!” She dashed back into the kitchen and returned holding a towel wrapped around a baggie of ice. “Here. At least take this.” she offered.

He took the pack from her and placed it against his side. This was honestly more to pacify her than him truly needing it. While it definitely hurt (the woman had an incredible swing), he would heal fairly quickly. It seemed to settle her a little though, so he was willing to do it.

“Oliver. What are you doing here? In my house? I could have killed you, you i***t!”

He snorted at that. “While I do acknowledge that you are very fierce with a bat, I don’t think you could have killed me.” He chuckled a little, but quickly stopped.

Victoria folded her arms across her chest. “Okay Mr. Sure of himself. Do you plan to tell me what you’re doing here, breaking and entering?”

He opened an eye that he had closed. “Is it breaking and entering if the door is unlocked?”

She rolled her eyes at him. She didn’t often lock her door on the ranch. It never seemed necessary as any stray animals that might get in couldn’t turn doorknobs. “Yes, actually it is.”

He closed his eye again, readjusting the ice pack. “You said we could discuss my earlier question later. It is distinctly ‘later’.” he concluded, tipping his head towards a window.

She looked up and saw the sun was definitely lower in the sky now. It was probably around mid afternoon. “Well, yeah.” she began. “But I figured we’d discuss it over the phone.” she turned back to look at him.

He opened his eyes and sat up, removing the ice pack. “Well, I figured we’d discuss it in person. My original thought was over some food, but I’m not feeling as hungry anymore”

She quirked an eyebrow. “Are you asking me out again? After breaking into my house?”

Oliver rolled his eyes. “Again, the door was unlocked. And I knocked. You just didn’t answer, so I walked in. I wasn’t expecting to be greeted with a bat.” He stood up and removed the ice pack. Victoria glimpsed the skin underneath and noticed that it had already started to turn purple. Weird. “Also I’m not asking you out anymore, obviously.” He continued, holding out the ice pack.

She looked back up at him, taking the ice pack and moving towards the kitchen to dump it out. “But you are still insisting on having this conversation. Now?” she responded over her shoulder.

Oliver followed her. “Yes,” he said, pausing so long she turned to look at him. He seemed to be having some internal dialogue to find just the right words. She found herself admiring his thoughtfulness. “I just think that in person conversations go better. There’s no misunderstanding of words because we can see each other’s faces and gauge things better.” He didn’t add that he also just needed to be near her and her scent. That was a minor detail.

Victoria leaned against the counter. She admitted to herself that he did have a legitimate point. A conversation in person just went better. But she didn’t have to like that he was right. “I suppose you’re right.” She moved over to the fridge, pulled out a pint of ice cream, before settling down at her breakfast nook and the small table there. She flipped the lid off and dug her spoon in, taking the large bite into her mouth and relishing it.

Oliver watched her silently, him and his wolf both enjoying how blissful she looked as she ate. He hadn’t had time to fully take her in earlier, but her smooth skin felt as soft as it had looked and he couldn’t stop admiring her rich skin tone. Her thick hair was just as soft and he had taken a stolen moment to press his face into her fro.

Victoria opened her eyes and caught him staring at her. Once again, his eyes seemed more forest green than jade, darkened just a small amount. She swallowed the remains of the ice cream. “So. Let’s talk?” She wasn’t sure where to start and she honestly didn’t have intentions of doing so. If Oliver wanted to force his discussion she wasn’t going to help him along.

He cleared his throat. Where to start? His wolf gave him a nudge. “Well. I guess it would first be a good idea to bring up the question I asked earlier. I know I feel something for you, even though we haven’t known each other that long. Do you feel it too?”

She regarded him, taking in that he was alternating between looking at her and avoiding her gaze. She could tell he was nervous and she was too. God, what was she even doing right now? She didn’t think she could date him or anyone for that matter. But she wasn’t going to insult him by lying.

“I do feel something,” she finally admitted. His eyes zoomed back to her and she could see the excitement there. “I’m not even sure what it is, but I can’t deny that it’s there.” She gave him a small smile. “I feel warm with you, which is such a weird thing to say, but it’s true. And I think you are an adventure waiting to happen; something wild and fun is lurking just there. But Oliver…” she trailed off and Oliver mentally swore. Her and these damn “buts”.

“Please,” he broke in. “Don’t immediately discount this. Can we just give it a chance?”

She shook her head and looked down. When she looked up at him, she had tears in her eyes and Oliver didn’t know what to do, but he wasn’t okay. He moved towards her and sat down in the chair beside her, taking her hand. “Please tell me what’s wrong. If you feel something like I do, why are you so upset? I don’t understand.”

The tears slipped from Victoria’s eyes and she didn’t bother hiding it. “It’s Micah.” she gasped, failing at all to calm herself. Oliver also failed to calm himself. “Micah?” he growled out. He recognized that she was clearly upset, but he couldn’t imagine what a man had to do with it. If he had hurt her or was threatening her, Oliver planned to take care of him shortly.

Victoria nodded before standing up and walking to the living room. She returned quickly, holding a small photo album and sitting back down. Laying the album on the table, Oliver could now see the black cover had the word “Memories” at the top with a photo in the middle of Victoria, dressed in a lovely, simple white dress that flowed to her feet, a slit on the left side. He didn’t know what it was called, but the top was off her shoulders and it dipped tastefully down in front of her cleavage. She looked stunning and Oliver spent a long moment just taking her in before looking at the rest of the photo. A man stood next to her, in black slacks and a buttoned down shirt. He had a smile on his face as he looked down at Victoria with cake on his nose and love in his eyes. Oliver’s eyes roamed the rest of the photo; the cupcake stand on the table to the side, the few bubbles that floated behind them, the lighting. Gears were turning, but Oliver was finding it hard to understand it all. Even “The Monroe Family” etched below the photo seemed to only confuse him more. He looked up at Victoria, her eyes still misty even though her tears had stopped.

“Is this your…your husband?” he whispered. She nodded at him, but he didn’t understand. Why did the moon goddess pair them together if she had a husband? Was he being punished?

She cleared her throat. “Micah…was my husband.” She started, taking in his confused look. God why was this so hard? She wanted to reassure Oliver because he just looked so broken, but she also couldn’t let go of Micah. Even using past tense hurt her. When would this get better? Wasn’t time supposed to help?

“He died two years ago.” She started, unable to look away from Oliver. At some point, their hands had gravitated towards each other and she took solace in his strong fingers gripping her. “It was a heart attack. Random. The doctors were even shocked. He was here, then suddenly he wasn’t.” The tears had returned and Oliver gently wiped a few away with his other hand. “He was the love of my life, Oliver. I knew it from the moment we met that we were destined for each other forever. We got married after only a year and those six years together flew by so fast. We thought we’d have more time. We thought we’d have forever.” she gave a soft sob and Oliver’s heart broke for his mate. He couldn’t make this pain go away. He couldn’t fight anything to help this. f**k, he realized. He couldn’t even love her enough to make it go away. He had only just met her and couldn’t picture life without her. She had been with this man, Micah, for six years. Six years of loving someone couldn’t just be forgotten. And she had felt he was destined for her. How was he supposed to tell her that *he* was hand chosen for her by a Goddess she hadn't even heard of?

Victoria stood up and walked to the sink. Gathering a small kitchen towel, she wet it and then cleaned her face, trying to compose herself. How did she fall apart twice in one day? And in front of Oliver? She was certain he thought she was a nutcase now. She finished cleaning her face and turned back to him. He looked thoughtful again, his eyes lighter and misty. What a sweet man, she thought. “So,” she muttered. “That was a bit much, probably.” She gave a sad smile. “But it was necessary and now you can understand better why this can’t happen. I don’t know if these…feelings…are just here to torture me or if I’m completely misunderstanding all of this. But I’m not ready to pursue it. I can’t. Micah and I made a promise to be with each other forever. We started this ranch together. I can’t just forget it all.”

Oliver stood up and moved to be in front of her. He had to blink away the tears that had formed at his mate's words. His wolf was quietly whimpering as well. This was so unexpected. “I’m not asking you to forget it all. Or Micah.” Where was he going to go with this? He had no idea, but he just kept talking. “Clearly, your life with him was wonderful. It’s an important part of who you are right now. I would never dream of pretending it didn’t happen, but we also can’t pretend this isn’t happening. We’ve been brought together for a reason. Maybe, just maybe, your time with Micah wasn’t the only point in your life to be filled with such joy and happiness. I’m just asking for us to give this a chance since we both acknowledge there is something there.”

Victoria took in this man that had come into her carefully crafted life and was asking her to remold it. Part of her was uncertain, but another small part of her was excited by the idea. Her life was good, true. But Oliver was presenting something different. Something that felt truly thrilling for the first time in years. She took a deep breath. “Fine. I’m not promising you anything, but one date. Just to say we at least acknowledge ‘it’.” she did air quotes.

Oliver almost yipped with joy at that. He honestly couldn’t believe it. He was certain she was about to shoot him down, but she hadn’t. She hadn’t! She was giving him a chance and that was all he needed. “Okay.” he said, keeping his joy together a bit. “Just one date.” he smiled at her, wide and excited and she couldn’t help but smile back. What were they getting themselves into?