Chapter 13
The bitter wind cut through James’s coat as he guided his horse down the slope toward the ranch house, his jaw clenched against more than just the cold.
Snow had been falling since last night, blanketing the Montana peaks in pristine white that would have been beautiful if it didn’t spell a hard few days or weeks for their stock.
He, Enoch, and Robert had been working with the horses in the meadow pasture all morning, until Robert had gone back to the barn to fetch the ax over an hour ago—a simple task that should have taken fifteen minutes at most. The ice on the creek in the north pasture would be thick by now, and cattle couldn’t survive long without water, no matter how much hay they had stored.
As he rode into the barn, Robert’s horse stood in its stall, still saddled but sleeping, as though it had stood there a while. The ax hung exactly where it always did, untouched on its wooden pegs.
He couldn’t help but growl as he strode toward the house, irritation building with each step.
Four days. Four days since Thomas had ridden out for Virginia City to retrieve Rose’s contract, and the waiting had stretched everyone’s nerves thin. The least Robert could do was handle the simple tasks he’d been asked to do instead of—
As he crossed the porch, he forced himself to slow down before easing open the front door.
The sight before him made his gut twist.
Rose sat curled on the leather sofa in the great room, her auburn hair catching the lamplight as she bent over what looked like a book.
Robert sat beside her—close beside her—their heads nearly touching as they studied whatever lay open between them.
Her green eyes were bright with interest as she pointed to something on the page, and Robert’s expression held that same patient attention he’d always given to his books.
The jealousy hit James hard, sharp and immediate beneath his ribs. His hands clenched at his sides as he watched them, so absorbed in their conversation they hadn’t even noticed him enter.
Rose’s relaxed posture, the way she leaned toward Robert without any of the careful distance she maintained with everyone else, made his chest burn with something ugly and possessive.
The ax. The cattle. His brother had abandoned his responsibilities to sit here playing scholar with Rose while James and Enoch worked in the bitter cold and while cattle stood thirsty in the north pasture.
He was probably trying to impress her with his knowledge of legal precedents or some other intellectual pursuit that made James feel like a rough-handed rancher by comparison.
The worst part was how natural they looked together—two minds bent over a shared interest, Rose’s delicate features animated with the kind of engagement she never showed when James tried to talk with her.
When he attempted conversation, she gave him polite responses and careful smiles.
But here she was, leaning into Robert’s space as though she belonged there.
The rational part of his mind knew he was being unreasonable—Robert was probably just answering a question she’d asked from one of his law books. But rationality had nothing to do with the jealousy that clawed through his chest like a living thing.
“Robert.” The name came out harsher than he’d meant, cutting through their quiet discussion like a blade.
Both heads snapped up. Rose straightened immediately, that familiar wariness sliding back into her expression like a mask. Robert blinked, looking genuinely surprised to see him standing there.
But before his brother could defend himself, the sound of hoofbeats in the yard made James spin.
Thomas was back.
And if God was merciful, he’d have Rose’s contract with him.
James stepped back onto the porch as his youngest brother reined in amidst the still-falling snow.
Thomas swung from his saddle, his movements stiff from the long ride. Snow clung to his coat and hat, and his face flushed red from the cold.
But his eyes held a gleam of satisfaction that made James’s pulse quicken.
“Did you get it?” James called out, stepping to the edge of the porch.
Thomas patted the front of his coat. “Got it.” His grin was sharp with triumph. “Vincent Dunhill is very organized.”
Relief flooded through James’s chest, washing away some of the bitter jealousy that had just been eating through him. Rose’s contract—the key to her freedom—was finally within their reach.
“Thomas!” Robert’s voice came from behind him, and James turned to see his brother emerging from the house, Rose close behind him. Her face had gone pale, her green eyes wide with a mixture of hope and fear that twisted inside him.
Thomas pulled a folded paper from inside his coat, holding it up like a prize. “Miss Rose, I believe this belongs to you.”
She pressed her hand to her mouth, staring at the document as though it might disappear if she looked away. “You really did it. You got my contract.”
Thomas’s grin widened despite the exhaustion etched in the lines around his eyes. “Vincent keeps meticulous records. I’ll give him that. Your contract was right where you said it would be—filed alphabetically in a leather case marked ‘Rose.’”
She reached for the paper. Her fingers shook as she unfolded it, and he had to resist the urge to step closer, to offer her the steadiness she so clearly needed.
But Robert was already there beside her, easily slipping into the role of her confidant and advisor. Rose even tipped the paper for him to better see.
The jealousy twisted in James’s gut again, sharp and unwelcome. Here was the moment Rose had been waiting for—the key to her freedom—and she was sharing it with Robert while James stood on the periphery like a stranger.
“Let’s get inside.” His voice came out a bit too rough. “Thomas looks half-frozen, and we need to read through that document properly.”
James pushed open the front door, stepping back to let Thomas pass, but his attention remained fixed on Rose. She clutched the contract against her chest like a lifeline.
The warmth of the great room felt almost shocking after the bitter cold outside, but it did nothing to ease the tension coiled in his chest.
Thomas shrugged out of his snow-dusted coat and moved toward the fire, holding his hands out to the flames. “That’s better. I thought I might freeze to the saddle on that last stretch.”
Rose sank onto the sofa where she’d been sitting with Robert moments before, the contract spread across her lap. Robert immediately settled beside her again, leaning in to read over her shoulder with that same focused attention.
He should be grateful Robert was helping her, that his brother’s legal knowledge might be the key to her freedom. Instead, all he could think about was how easily she turned to Robert, how she never looked at James with that same trust and reliance.
He remained standing, though restless energy coursed through his limbs. He turned to Thomas. “Tell us what happened. How did you get in?”
Thomas rubbed his hands together, working warmth back into his fingers. “Waited until the saloon was busy—around ten o’clock that night. Slipped in through the front door with a group of miners who’d had a few drinks. No one pays attention to another face in a crowd like that.”
He paused to accept the cup of coffee Mrs. Wang pressed into his hands, nodding his thanks before continuing. “Found the hallway Rose described easily enough. The office door was locked tight, but the lock wasn’t anything special. Took me maybe two minutes to get it open.”
The casual way Thomas described breaking into Vincent’s office made James’s stomach clench—as though he were discussing the antics of one of the horses in training rather than risking his neck in enemy territory.
“What about Vincent? Did you see him?”
Thomas shook his head, taking a long sip of the hot coffee. “Heard him though. He was in the main saloon most of the evening, holding court at one of the poker tables. Loud voice—you can hear him from halfway across the room.”
Rose looked up from the contract, her face pale. “What else did you see? Was anyone there who might have recognized you?”
Thomas shook his head, settling into a chair by the fire.
“Just the usual crowd. Miners, a few gamblers, some working girls. Murphy was behind the bar most of the night, but he never looked twice at me.” He paused, studying Rose’s expression.
“Vincent seemed to be having a good evening—winning at cards, buying drinks for half the saloon. He had no idea anything was happening.”
The relief in Rose’s eyes made the tension in his chest ease, but only until she turned immediately to Robert, holding the contract toward him.
“What do you think?” Rose’s voice was quiet, but there was a catch in it, a note of urgency she couldn’t quite hold back. “Can you tell if—it’s as bad as I remember?”
Robert took the paper from her, carefully, as if it might crumble in his hands. His brow furrowed while he read, and James, despite himself, edged closer, drawn in by the need to see for himself what had kept Rose bound to that man for so long.
The silence grew thick, broken only by the faint crackle of the fire where Thomas stood, warming himself, glancing over now and then. Rose watched Robert, her attention fixed and fierce, as if waiting for a verdict she’d been dreading for years.
At last, Robert let out a breath and lowered the paper, his gaze moving around their group.
“It’s much as Rose said. A good solicitor could likely prove it invalid, on account of her age and the state she was in.
” He looked at Rose then, sympathy plain in his face.
“I’m sorry that cad forced this on you.”
“Is there anything we can do now?” Everything in James needed to take action.
“I’d like to review it more carefully. Study the exact wording and compare it to other published cases.” Robert frowned at the paper. “I’ll have my notes ready when we hear back from Father’s contacts.”
James’s chest clenched. It sounded like Robert needed time to focus on the work.
And there were still cattle in the north pasture needing water.
The weight of responsibility pressed down on his shoulders like the snow accumulating on the roof above them. He was supposed to be learning to run this ranch—Enoch would be leaving for England with Mandie next year, and the day-to-day operations would fall to him.
The thought should fill him with purpose, with the satisfaction of stepping into his role as the ranch’s future owner.
Instead, all he could think about was how Robert got to be the hero—the one with the knowledge Rose needed, the one she turned to with trust shining in her green eyes.
While James would be out in the bitter wind, breaking ice and tending cattle, Robert would be here in the warm house, poring over legal documents with Rose hanging on his every word.
The injustice of it burned in his chest like coals.
He forced himself to focus on what mattered most. Rose’s freedom. The cattle’s survival. His own petty jealousies had no place in either equation.
“I’m going out to break the ice in the north pasture.
” He turned to the door, leaving the press of thick silence behind.
He didn’t let himself look back to see Robert’s reaction to the reminder of the task he’d been assigned.
Maybe he had his nose so deep in the contract, he hadn’t even heard James.
As he closed the door behind him, the cold air hit his face, sharp and clean after the suffocating atmosphere inside. He stood on the porch a moment, breathing deeply, letting the wind carry away some of the bitter frustration building in his chest.
Rose. She was supposed to be his particular friend. They’d always had a special connection. Even when he first brought her home from Butte, there had been an awareness between the two of them. A tension she’d seemed to be fighting.
But now…how had Robert stepped in and stolen her attention completely? Sure, she was focused on the contract and how she could be free from that lecher, Vincent Dunhill. But they were all working to help her with that, James included.
Maybe he just needed to find a way to spend extra time with her. A way to remind her of what they’d always had.
Rose was the only woman he’d ever loved, and maybe if she finally allowed herself the chance, she would realize she loved him too.
He simply had to find ways to show her. To win her heart.
The thought crystallized in his mind as he strode to the barn, his boots crunching through the fresh snow.
He’d been too passive, too willing to step back and let his brother take the lead simply because Robert had the legal knowledge Rose needed.
But there were other ways to help her, other ways to prove his worth.
And more importantly, there were other ways to remind her of what they’d once meant to each other.
The barn felt warm after the bitter wind outside, the scents of hay and horses steadying him. He grabbed the ax from its pegs, hefting its familiar weight in his hands. The tool felt solid, honest—unlike the tangled mess of emotions churning in his chest.
As he headed back to his horse, who stood waiting patiently, a plan began forming in his mind. If he took Rose to some of the places they’d loved as kids, she would remember their bond. They could even create new memories in those familiar spots.
Where had they spent most of their time in the winters?
The old swimming hole. They’d devoted countless winter afternoons there when the creek froze solid enough to skate on.
Rose had been fearless on the ice, laughing as she glided across the frozen surface while he’d shown off, attempting jumps and spins that usually ended with him flat on his back.
She’d always helped him up, her green eyes bright, her mittened hands surprisingly strong as she pulled him to his feet.
The memory warmed something in his chest that had nothing to do with the bitter wind. They still had a box full of skates of all sizes. Surely he could make some of them work.
Yes, that would be perfect. Once this storm passed and the ice was safe, he could take her skating again. Show her that he remembered everything about their friendship, that he valued those memories as much as she did.
And the cave they’d discovered halfway up the ridge behind the house—not really a cave, just a deep depression in the rock face, but it had felt like their own secret kingdom when they were children.
They’d spent hours there on winter afternoons, telling stories and sharing the cookies Mrs. Wang had smuggled to them.
His grip tightened on the ax handle as he swung into the saddle.
He would take Rose to those places. Remind her of who they’d been together before the world had gotten so complicated, before Vincent Dunhill stole her childhood and turned her into this wary, guarded woman who pulled back when anyone drew near.
He’d bring her back to herself. Back to him.