Forever in Love (Montana Brides) (20 page)

“Nathan and Brett. The dynamic duo.”

“I went out with Brett once for coffee. It doesn’t mean we’re dating. And Nathan’s your brother.”

“So I noticed.” Sally grinned. “Just don’t let that stand in the way of whatever’s going on between the two of you.”

“Nothing’s going on,” Amy mumbled. Nothing that she’d talk to Sally about, anyway. She grabbed her keys off the hall table and jammed them in her pocket. “I’ll go and tell Rachel and Darleen that we’re ready to go.”

The kitchen was full of people and animals. She smiled at Rachel and her teenage cousin, Darleen, sitting at the table with Monty, Alby and Boots purring at their feet.
 

“We fed the cats,” Darleen smiled proudly, giving Alby an extra scratch under the chin.
 

Rachel picked an oversized tote bag off the floor and stood up. “I just got a text from Gracie. She’s at the gym.”

Amy ripped open a Granola bar and headed toward a notepad stuck on the fridge. “Here’s the number of the gym and my cell phone, Darleen. There’s milk and bread in the fridge for Catherine’s breakfast and fresh fruit on the counter. We’ll be home in about an hour and a half.”

Darleen glanced at the piece of paper Amy handed her. “I’ve still got these numbers on my phone from last time. Don’t worry about a thing. I’ll make sure Catherine’s ready for daycare and call if anything happens.”
 

Amy smiled at the confident seventeen-year-old. She’d looked after Catherine twice before and each time it got a little easier to leave her sister behind. A little easier to trust someone else to look after her.

“Thanks, Darleen,” Amy said. “I’ll be home soon. Remember to do your homework otherwise your mom won’t let you babysit again.”

Sally opened the back door. “My truck’s parked on the curb so we might as well take that to the gym. There are a pile of library books on the back seat. Just push them across to the other side of the cab.”

Amy glanced inside Sally’s pickup. She hadn’t been joking. Five bright green canvas bags filled the back seat. She moved one of the bags onto the floor and peeked inside. “Large print? I didn’t know you had trouble with your eyes.”

“Not me. They’re for the residents of the Blue Gable Retirement Home. Erin couldn’t deliver them yesterday so I offered to do it after our workout.”

“That’s very...community minded of you.” Amy smiled around a mouthful of Granola bar.
 

Rachel clicked her seatbelt into place. “There’s got to be a man involved in the story somewhere.”Sally pulled away from the curb. “There’s lots, but they’re all over seventy-years-old. Ask Amy about her hot date with Nathan.”

Amy choked on rolled oats.
 

“Hot date?” Rachel twisted in her seat, peering over her shoulder at Amy. “I thought you were going out with Brett.”

“I had coffee with the man. One time,” she spluttered. “How come everyone thinks we’re dating?” Amy glared at the back of Sally’s head.
 

“Small town gossip,” Rachel sighed. “There are some places you should avoid if you don’t want everyone knowing about your business. Doris and Jessie practically live at Tess’s café. They mean well, but sometimes their tongues get the better of them. What happened between you and Nathan?”

“I didn’t go on a date with Nathan. I went back to his place last night and massaged his back.”

A wide smile broke across Rachel’s face. “Really?”

“It’s true.” Even to Amy’s ears her sorry excuse of a reason sounded lame. Almost as lame as a ten ticket therapy program.
 

“Well whatever you call it, I hope you had fun.”

Amy caught Sally’s amused gaze in the rearview mirror and felt herself blushing. Last night had been a lot of things, but she didn’t think fun went anywhere near to describing what had happened. And maybe it never would.

Nathan revved his four-wheeler, leaning sideways as the bike skidded across the ground. Every day for the past week they’d had snow. It plastered itself against the land, making life difficult for everyone except the eagle he’d seen soaring high in the sky.
 

So far the eight foot fence he’d been following looked as sturdy as the day it had been built - unlike last year when half a dozen buffalo had escaped into McKenzie land. A smile worked its way across his face when he remembered bringing them home. If a thousand pounds of prime buffalo looked you in the eye and stomped their hoof, you either backed off real fast or suffered the consequences.
 

None of them had been fools, except his brother who thought he could outmaneuver a bull in his prime. Matthew had been wrong. Dutch, his brother’s dappled Palomino, had more common sense between his ears than his owner. He’d spun them both away from the bull, saving Matthew from a few broken ribs and full-body bruising that would have turned him as black as his horse.

Nathan cut the engine and watched a herd of buffalo forage between drifts of snow. They’d been supplementing their feed, hauling truckloads of alfalfa into the paddocks to keep the mama buffalos happy. Diversifying into bison a few years ago had paid off. Unlike other ranchers around Bozeman he’d been able to keep more money coming in than going out.
 

A horse thundered toward him and Nathan turned in his seat, watching his brother ride hard across the frozen earth. A cloud of snow flicked high in the air, rising behind Matthew like one of his mom’s cotton sheets, flapping in the afternoon breeze.
 

He missed being on a horse. Missed the freedom of knowing he could go anywhere, do anything on the ranch. The four-wheeler got him around, but he felt like a cripple, still too broken to handle Chan, his chestnut Sorrel. Every time he brushed his horse down, Chan stared at him, a soulful reproach glistening in his eyes. Nathan had decided to give himself another week, then to hell with what Doc Johnson said. He was getting back on his horse if it killed him.
 

“I always knew there were perks to being the boss. Are you going to sit there all day or are you going to do some work?” Matthew held Dutch’s reins in one hand, wiping the sweat from his face with the other.
 

Nathan grinned at his brother. “Someone has to keep an eye on what’s going on around here. I thought you’d be inside by now.”

“Sean called. He found a fence down on Pine Ridge so I helped him fix it before it got too dark. What are you doing out here?”

“Thinking.”

“Well don’t think too hard. Are you still on for poker tonight?”

“Wouldn’t miss it.” He’d only been in town twice since the barn fire for poker with the boys. For longer than he could remember they’d met at someone’s house every Friday, filling themselves to the brim with pizza, steak and anything that didn’t involve the color green. As soon as some of his friends started getting married they’d trimmed the boys only night back to every second Friday. They’d alternated babysitting duties with poker, giving the wives a chance to hit downtown Bozeman like a tornado looking for touchdown.
 

“I’m leaving straight after dinner. Trent’s got some news you won’t want to miss.”

Nathan couldn’t imagine anything topping what they’d heard six months earlier. Trent had returned from a Cattle Raisers’ Conference in Las Vegas with a new bride and a barrel full of problems. “He’s not taking Gracie to Las Vegas again is he?”

“Nope.” Matthew turned Dutch toward the homestead. “It’s bigger than Vegas.”

“Gracie’s pregnant?” Nathan couldn’t imagine anything bigger than news of a baby on the way, and it would account for the grin plastered across Trent’s face every time he saw him. But he’d assumed that had to do with married life, and too much of everything that Nathan didn’t have.

“I’ll let Trent tell the story.” Matthew pulled his hat lower, casting a wary glance at the buffalo. “I’ll see you at mom and dad’s place.”

Nathan watched his brother gallop away. He’d seen Trent two weeks ago at the sale yards and he hadn’t mentioned anything about Gracie. In between eyeballing Tim Heinkes’ red angus bulls they’d talked about the ranch vacation business that Trent planned on starting in the spring. But knowing Gracie, anything could have happened since then.
 

A dark cloud moved across what was left of the sinking sun. Nathan watched shadows dance between mountain peaks, turning their breathless beauty into something dark and forbidding.
 

They’d already had enough snow to make some people in town predict a bumper ski season was on its way. In a couple of weeks hordes of tourists would start heading toward Bridger Bowl, skis strapped to the top of their trucks and a head full of plans about what trails they’d be conquering.
 

 
He turned the key in the ignition and spun the bike around, knowing his skis wouldn’t see the light of day this season. He might be going stir crazy, but he wasn’t a fool. One fall on the hard packed ice could seal his fate, and there was no way he was going to end up in the hospital again.

His hands tightened on the handlebars. It was a pity he couldn’t have used the same logic to engage his brain before he’d kissed Amy. More than once, and more than had to be good for either of them. So much for taking things slowly. He never thought she’d take him up on his therapy offer and he still didn’t know what had changed her mind.
 

As he roared across the ranch he knew one thing. He might not know what was going through Amy’s head, but he’d find out.
 

He only hoped it had nothing to do with Brett Forster.

Amy yawned and left the book she’d been reading face-down on the couch. Boots lifted one eye, watching her as she pulled herself upright, stretching muscles that weren’t used to working out in a gym.

After she’d finished her shift at the hospital she’d taken Catherine to the library, stocking up on another week’s worth of picture books about cuddly kittens. Ever since they’d started living with the Andersons’ three cats, Catherine had been fascinated by her furry friends. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out they were going to be looking for a kitten once they found a home of their own. Even though she’d never owned a pet in her life, the Andersons’ cats had managed to work their way into their lives until she couldn’t imagine not having a cat around the house to keep them company.
 

Boots went back to sleep, not even twitching when someone tapped lightly on the front door.

Amy frowned, glancing at the clock on the wall. No one came visiting at ten o’clock at night. Her heart thumped against her ribs when she realized who could be on the other side of the door. It would be just like her to arrive unexpectedly, unwanted and without a care in the world.

She grabbed a log from beside the fireplace, just in case it wasn’t her mom. Amy couldn’t remember locking the front door and she wasn’t taking any chances. Her hands had been full of books, baby and bags when they’d arrived home. As soon as they’d walked in the house, Monty had taken up residence beside Catherine and Amy had made a quick exit out the front door to check the mailbox, rushing back inside before the cold wind froze her solid.
 

Whoever was outside knocked again. Amy moved across the room, pushing back the sheer curtains beside the door. Relief washed through her body. Nathan stood outside, his blonde hair almost white under the bright glare from the security lights. She didn’t know whether the thud of her heart had to do with the thought of a stranger breaking into the house, her mom, or Nathan standing like a Greek God on the Andersons’ front porch.
 

He tapped on the glass in front of her nose and she jumped a mile. She needed to act like an adult, not go googley-eyed over a man she’d known half her life. Last night she’d temporarily forgotten what was important. But the phone conversation she’d had this afternoon had put everything back into perspective.
 

If anyone saw Nathan standing outside they’d put two and two together and come up with five. And she wasn’t going to be the centre of town gossip. Not now when it could hurt her sister the most.
 

She opened the door, grabbed the collar of Nathan’s sheepskin jacket and hauled him into the house. At any other time the surprise on his face would have made her laugh. But not tonight. At ten o’clock. When Mrs. O’Grady, community watchdog and best friend of Jessie Adams happened to be her neighbor. “You shouldn’t be here,” she hissed.

The smile on his face turned to a frown. “What’s wrong with seeing you?” His gaze drifted down her body, stopping when he got to her hand. “Were you going to use that block of wood on me or were expecting someone else?”

She cleared her throat, straightening her shoulders until her bones nearly popped out of their sockets. She glanced down and wished she’d left her jeans and t-shirt on. Pale blue pajamas and pink fluffy slippers might give a certain cowboy the wrong impression of why she’d opened her front door. Gripping the log tighter, she waved it toward his chest. “It’s my insurance against men who come visiting when they should know better. What are you doing here?”

“I was heading home from Greg’s.” He glanced at the wood. “Your lights were on.”

“That’s no excuse. What if someone saw you?”
 

Nathan stepped back as the log whipped in front of his nose. With a muttered oath he took it out of her hand. “You’re going to blind me with that thing.” He walked across to the fireplace and left it on the hearth. “Do you want to tell me why you’re so concerned about everyone else all of a sudden?”

“It’s not all of a sudden.”
 

“You didn’t care if anyone saw us together last night.”

“Last night was different. And we weren’t together...not like that.”

 
Nathan dropped his hat on the sofa and stared at her with a crazy mix of suspicion and worry shadowing his face. “It was a damn sight closer to anything either of us has gotten in the last few years. And if you tell me it meant nothing, I’ll know you’re lying.”

Amy looked away, reaching for a blanket folded on the end of the sofa. Flicking it open, she wrapped it around her shoulders and sent Nathan the same glare that kept every man she’d ever met at arms length. If he knew how much she’d been thinking about last night he wouldn’t be standing there like a bear with a prickle in his paw.