Courting Katarina (16 page)

Katarina sucked in a breath. She hoped that coming here wasn’t a huge mistake.

Ricky started to tag along, but Adam caught his attention. “Why don’t Grandma and I show you our horses?”

“Real horses?” The three headed straight across the pasture, and Alex led her to the right.

Katarina looked accusingly at Alex. “Why, the little traitor. Bought off by a measly horse.”

Alex laughed, and Katarina joined him.

“Let’s grab your bags. I trust you packed warmer clothes this trip.”

“Yours were so cozy, I thought I’d just use them. I was sure you wouldn’t mind,” she retorted.

“I’ll have to remember that in the future, in case any of my clothes come up missing.” A smile teased his lips and he took her overloaded suitcase from the back of the Suburban and groaned. “I see you didn’t want to take any chances this time.”

“Nope.”

Alex motioned toward the gate and followed her through. “Third tent on the right. You’ll notice I’ve gone to great lengths to make sure your first camping experience is a pleasant one.”

For an instant she forgot the embarrassment of the other night. “It was…quite memorable. And in case you’ve forgotten, this is my second camp-out.”

“Then I hope I can make your second just as memorable as the first.” Katarina noticed the warm
smile hiding behind his tense jaw. “I believe I agreed to show you what camping is supposed to be like.” He stopped by a blue-and-maroon tent, unzipped the opening and set her bag inside. “The finest tent available, just for you.”

Katarina looked at him suspiciously as she stepped into the domed shelter. “There’s only one problem, Mr. Bellhop.” Katarina placed her hands on her hips and spun around to face him.

Alex quirked his eyebrows. “Yes?”

“We’re
not
sharing a tent.”

“But we share a house,” he countered.

Katarina stepped back and pointed at the two sleeping bags. “A house. A
huge
house, not a…tiny room,” she said, lowering her voice to a grumble.

Alex shrugged. “I didn’t make the sleeping assignments, sorry.” His lip twitched. “Katarina…”

She took another step backward and tumbled over her suitcase and onto the tent floor. “Ouch!” Katarina paused. “You can get out, and take your sleeping bag with you.” She picked up the pillow and threw it at him.

Alex hopped out of the way, caught the pillow and peeked his head back inside. “Have it your way, Kat, but it’s not my sleeping bag.”

“Then whose is it?”

“Alex, is there a problem?” Mrs. MacIntyre’s shadow rounded the tent before she did.

“No problem, Mother. Just trying to settle your roomie’s nerves.”

Katarina felt the blush crawl clear to her neck. She covered her face with her hands.

“Oh,” Alex said, leaning back inside, “here.”

Katarina looked up just as the pillow smacked her in the face.
His mother? How many more ways can I make a fool of myself in front of this family?
She collapsed back onto the sleeping bag and covered her face with the pillow.

Mrs. MacIntyre stepped inside. “Are you okay, Katarina?”

“Fine, I’m just fine.”

“You’ll have to excuse the boys, dear. They’ve had such fun setting things up for this party. We’ve so enjoyed having Alex here the past few days.”

Katarina groaned quietly, hoping the pillow muffled the sound from Mrs. MacIntyre’s ears.

“I do hope you don’t mind me sharing your tent. The boys thought I should stay in the house, but they seem to have forgotten who taught them how to camp.”

Kat pulled the pillow from her face and sat up. “I don’t mind at all, Mrs. Mac…”

“Call me Millie, please.”

Alex popped his head back into the tent. The smoldering flame she saw in his gaze startled her. “You ready for a riding lesson?”

Katarina looked at Millie, then Alex. “Riding what?”

“Horses.”

“Really? You’re not teasing me again, are you?”

“Cross my heart.”

She smiled. “Okay. As long as I get dear, sweet old Gertrude.”

He offered Katarina a hand and led her past his mother. “You want to join us, Mom?”

“I’ll stay with Ricky and wait for the others to arrive.” The three walked toward the barn.

“Adam’s taking him. We’ll fix the burgers later.” Alex glanced at his watch. “The others won’t be here for at least an hour. Why don’t you go ahead and put your feet up for a while?”

Millie nodded and headed toward the house as Ricky, Kevin, Emily and Adam came around the corner of the barn.

“Daddy, can I ride with you?”

Kevin lifted his son to his shoulders. “Sure, but your uncle Adam is a better horseman than I am. Why don’t you ride with him?” They disappeared inside the barn.

Alex took hold of Katarina’s hand momentarily and slowed his pace as they headed for the corrals. “I’m glad you decided to come, Katarina. I wasn’t so sure you would after what I said the other night. I thought sure you and Ron would have plans for the weekend.”

“He didn’t want to make the drive again so soon.” Before she could stop, the bitter words slipped out.

Alex looked up the hill, his profile strong and rigid. “What is wrong with the man?” he muttered.

Katarina cocked her ear toward him. “Did you say something?”

Alex tugged her closer and whispered into her ear. “Yeah, that man is a total fool.”

She lifted her chin and looked into his blue eyes, surprised to find his intense gaze fixed on hers.
Who’s the fool here, God? What is stopping me from ending this farce of a relationship with Ron? Why can’t I let myself follow my heart?

Alex’s lips brushed her forehead. He gently turned her, pulling her into the circle of his arms as he did so.

“C’mon, Uncle Alex and Auntie Kat! We’ll race ya.” Adam and Ricky’s horse stepped out from around the barn just before Alex’s lips could brush hers. Katarina jumped, surprised that Alex’s hand was locked against her spine, holding her close.

Alex exhaled.

Adam guided the horse past Alex and Katarina. “Busted,” Adam needled the couple, and laughed. “Think you can handle Gertrude
and
Star, Alex?”

“Not a problem.” He let Katarina loose and led the way into the barn. Alex saddled the two mares and offered Katarina a hand up.

They trotted through the pasture, waiting impatiently for Gertrude to realize it wasn’t time to graze. Adam stepped his horse up next to Katarina and showed her how to keep Gertrude’s attention off the grass.

“I’m not going anywhere. Why don’t you two give them a run?” Adam said to his brothers.

“You all right, Katarina?” The warmth of Alex’s smile echoed in his voice.

She couldn’t deny the confidence he’d just handed her. “I’m fine—you go ahead.”

Katarina watched Alex and Star race Kevin and his mount, Cody, across the pasture then disappear into the trees. She felt the awareness spread through her body just watching Alex ride. He looked like a natural, not someone who hadn’t ridden in ten years.

Suddenly Gertrude, feeling left out, took off at a gallop up the hill after them. “
Whoa!
”

Gertrude ignored her and ran right under a ponderosa.

Katarina lowered her voice, pulled the reins and lay back trying to duck under the prickly branch. “
Whoa!
” She came to a sudden stop.

Adam rode up beside her. “Are you all right?”

Katarina took a deep breath as she pulled herself upright. “I think so. I don’t think sweet old Gertrude likes me much.”

“That was
neat
, Katarina. Can you do it again?” Ricky’s eyes were opened wide, as if he thought she’d done it on purpose.

Adam chuckled. “You did great, Katarina. I can’t imagine what Gert thought she was doing. She hasn’t run like that in a year.” He guided them back to the barn and helped Katarina dismount.

Despite “sweet old” Gertrude’s antics, Adam proclaimed Katarina a fine rider when the family gathered around the campfire that night.

The next evening was celebrated with an ornately decorated birthday cake and a horse-drawn hayride
up the hill to watch the fireworks from the surrounding towns.

Everyone “oohed” and “aahed” except Alex. He was on edge, watching the land, not the sky. “What’s wrong?” Katarina whispered.

“It’s that time of year, I guess. Fireworks are trouble waiting to happen. The whole area is like a tinderbox waiting to ignite. Over that hill is a campground. Hear the fireworks?”

She looked around in silence as the rest of the family continued to enjoy the display. A while later, they were ready to head back when Katarina noticed an orange glow on the horizon. “Alex, look.”

“We’ve got a fire west of Carter Lake. Get us home, Adam. I have my gear in my truck.”

The wagon jolted forward, and they had a very bouncy ride back to the ranch. Emily looked as if she was going to be sick, while the others tried to determine exactly where the fire was located.

Adam pulled into the yard and Alex jumped off the wagon. “Call the fire department. I’m heading out.”

Kevin and the twins’ husbands followed. “Wait a minute, we’ll come with you. Let me get a few more shovels.”

“I’ll be there in a bit,” Adam added. After he put the team and wagon away, he jumped in his own four-wheel-drive truck and headed up the hill to help.

Millie ran inside to make the call, and sirens soon wailed in the distance. She started a campfire in the
pit as soon as she hung up the phone, and the women and children roasted marshmallows. Two hours later, the men returned black with soot from head to toe. She watched Adam walk to the campfire, sit down and stretch out his long legs on the grass next to her. Four different variations of the same story were told, one from each firefighter. All gave credit to Alex for his leadership and instruction to the rookies.

Alex and his brothers took turns cleaning up before turning in for the night. She felt like a coward slipping into her bed while he showered. She wasn’t ready to make the kind of decision he seemed to want from her.

Katarina felt a chill and realized it had nothing to do with the cool mountain air. As they’d watched the orange glow on the horizon, she’d realized how dangerous fire fighting could be. And this blaze was nothing compared to the fires Alex usually battled. Fires had been his life. His passion. Could he ever really give that up?

Katarina pushed harder, putting in longer hours getting ready for a doll show at the end of July; yet even her fatigue was pushed aside by another electrical storm one night. She couldn’t erase that image of a lightning strike starting another fire, forcing Alex to return to smoke jumping.

Alex had stayed at Adam’s ranch for a couple of extra days after the camp-out to oversee the digging and pouring of the foundation. He and Adam had
given everyone a guided tour of the blueprints. Alex’s excitement over the log structure was second only to his youngest brother’s. Katarina had had a wonderful weekend, in spite of the fears the fire sparked inside.

Trying to put Alex out of her mind, Katarina dug through her latest shipment of Christmas fabrics and matched fabrics with designs for Sylvia to work on. She yawned.

“Aren’t you feeling well, Katarina? You don’t look like yourself.”

Katarina tried to ignore the soreness when she swallowed. “Probably just tired.”

The plump mother of three teenagers felt Katarina’s head. “You have a fever. Why don’t you go back to bed? I see what you’re wanting on these dresses. I’ll be fine. If I finish early, I’ll start stuffing bodies for you.”

“Thanks, Syl. Maybe a nap will help.”

Chapter Sixteen

A
lex stayed at the ranch until the end of the week, then returned to catch up on paperwork and gather supplies he’d need to take back after the weekend.

“How’s Kat feeling?” Kevin asked.

Alex pushed the button on the copier. “Feeling? What’s wrong with her?”

His younger brother chuckled. “You’re living with her. I’d assume you knew.”

“Correction, we share a house—temporarily. That doesn’t mean we keep tabs on each other. I’ve been at Adam’s all week getting things under way. I just came back to pick up a few things.” He gathered the bids and stacked them. “The house didn’t look like she was even home when I dropped by this morning. So what am I supposed to know?”

Kevin moved to the desk. “I don’t know. She called Emily last night. I didn’t hang around to see
if it was a personal or professional call, to be honest.”

Maybe that was why it didn’t look as if she’d been out of her room. And all this time he’d assumed she was avoiding him. “Maybe I’d better go check on her.”

“I thought there’s nothing going on between you two?” Kevin gibed.

“I’m concerned. Is there something wrong with that?”

Kevin raised his hands in front of him. “Don’t get testy. Take the day off if you’ll feel better. And tell Kat hi for me, too.”

Alex backtracked out of the tiny trailer his brother now called an office. Why couldn’t Kevin just accept that he and Katarina were friends? From the looks of things, that’s all they would ever be. It had been a week and his ego was still bruised from her asking him to leave the gazebo.

He turned into the cul-de-sac and pulled into the driveway. He simply thought Katarina was drawing her boundaries. He’d decided it was for the best. He didn’t want to make more of their relationship than there was. She was still committed to Ron.

So where was Ron when Katarina needed help? Why wasn’t Ron the one running up the stairs looking like a lovesick fool? Alex stopped. Why was he doing this? She was spoken for. There was no hope of anything between them.

He walked into the foyer and went to her bedroom
door. It remained closed, just as it had been when he left a week ago and when he’d arrived this morning. He lifted his fist to knock, then stopped. Maybe she was drawing the line, just as he’d asked her to.

He checked the garage. Nothing was out of place. He ran to the basement and into her painting “studio.” Brushes were dry. No trace of turpentine odor. She hadn’t painted in a while.

Alex returned to the main floor. Was Kevin goading him on? Had Katarina really called to consult with Dr. Emily? Maybe she’d simply been asking for sisterly advice. He tapped his knuckles on her door. If he made a fool of himself, at least it was for a benevolent reason. She didn’t answer. He hesitantly reached for the knob, then stopped.