Chapter 4
CHAPTER 4
C olt shoved a stack of manila file folders to the side of his desk, his mind focusing on emerging markets. He’d invested the family holdings heavily in a start-up green science company out of Seattle, and six months ago, he’d been convinced it was a good idea. It had fit his grand plan perfectly.
Now he wasn’t so sure, although the owner was a buddy from college. Had Colton invested too much? He’d been so confident—maybe to the point of cockiness?
Colton had still been overseas studying international markets, although he’d unofficially taken over for his father as CEO of the company long ago. Now his dad took care of the main ranch and enjoyed semi-retirement with Loni.
Colton pressed both hands against the heavy wooden desk. How many times had he played around the desk while his father had worked deals sitting in the very chair Colton now sat in? How many school reports had he finished in the office, always enjoying the dealing and financial aspects?
His dad and Jake and Quinn’s dad had been business partners long ago. In fact, the desk had originally belonged to the boys’ father. He’d died in a snowmobile accident when the boys were young, and after a couple of years, Tom and Loni had fallen in love, gotten married, and had two more kids—Colton and Dawn.
They’d combined the ranches and family business into one. One that now rested on Colton’s shoulders. For now. In a couple of months, Dawn would graduate with yet another degree, this one in business. Right now, she was finishing up her graduate degree at the university, and then she’d head to Europe for six months to study international finance until early December. Then, finally, she’d come on board at home. Their little sister loved school.
A blond head poked inside his door. “Mr. Freeze? Your sisters-in-law are here to see you.”
Colton glanced up at his new administrative assistant. They had to be about the same age, and the formality had to go. “Thanks, Anne. And please…call me Colton. The mister makes me feel old and decrepit.”
Anne smiled. “Fair enough. I’ll send them in.” She disappeared from view.
Sophie, Jake’s wife, was the first through the door, all energy, even in her fifth month of her second pregnancy. “Hey, bro. We were in town shopping, and I thought I’d drag you to lunch since Juliet has to get back to the art gallery.” Her wispy blond hair feathered around a cute, pixie face.
Juliet followed gracefully behind Sophie, her red hair curling around her shoulders. She’d married Quinn last year, and her calm nature made the sheriff relax in a way he hadn’t in eons. She glanced around the stately office. “Are you going to decorate more to your tastes?”
Colton frowned and looked around at the paintings that had adorned the walls for decades. “Probably not. Although…I’m thinking of moving our headquarters to Mineral Lake.”
Sophie clapped her hands together. “Great idea.”
Juliet pursed her lips. “With the internet and so many people working from home, there’s no reason you’d have to drive to the city. When are you considering moving?”
He shrugged. “I wanted to talk to the family first, but hopefully within the year.”
“That’s a great plan.” Sophie bounced up on the balls of her feet. “Now come feed a starving pregnant lady, would you?”
He crossed around the desk. “Melanie should be here in a few moments, so why don’t we wait for her?” Then he could butter Mel up with good food before hitting her with his business proposal.
Sophie’s eyebrows lifted. “Mel’s coming into town?”
“Yes,” Colton said.
“Oh.” Sophie slipped an arm through Juliet’s. “Well, now. In that case, I’ll just grab something on the way home.” She started dragging Juliet from the office. “I wouldn’t want to impose.”
Colton hustled to follow them to the doorway. “You’re not imposing.” Not that Sophie had any problem inserting herself in any situation if she deemed it appropriate. “Mel should be here any minute.”
“No, no, no.” Sophie waved as they reached the outside door.
Juliet halted their progress and looked down several inches at Sophie. “You have a day this week in the town pool, don’t you?”
Sophie snorted. “Of course not.”
Juliet glanced toward Colt, her eyes sparkling. “I think we should accompany them to lunch.”
“Nah.” Sophie tugged harder. “I know you have sometime in next month for their get-together date.”
Juliet’s eyes widened. “I most certainly do not.”
Sophie laughed. “When you lie, you sound like a countess.”
Colton shot them both a hard stare. “Please tell me you’re not in on some Maverick County bet that involves me.”
“Nope,” they said in unison.
Sophie won the struggle and yanked open the door. “The bet only involves the town of Mineral Lake and not the whole county. Bye, Colt. I’ll talk to you later.” The door closed behind them.
He had to find out more about this stupid town pool. Colton cut a look at Anne. “That was interesting.”
Anne smiled, all professional. “Your sister-in-law has a lot of energy.”
Now that was the truth. Scratching his head, Colton turned back toward the stacks of work on his desk. “When Melanie Jacoby gets here, please send her in. Thanks.”
The entire town of Mineral Lake needed to get the heck out of his business.
Melanie wiped damp palms along her faded jeans. She should’ve worn a dress, but jeans were her normal look. Yet as she entered the stately brick building that housed Lodge-Freeze Enterprises, she wished for a different style.
One that fit with a gazillionaire like Colton.
Then she shook her head. Man. They’d been friends since preschool, and he knew everything about her. Well, almost. He didn’t give one hoot how she dressed.
She pushed open the door and stopped short.
“Hi,” said a gorgeous blonde from behind an antique desk.
Yeah. Melanie’s biggest nightmare skirted the desk in a pretty pink suit, green eyes sparkling, hair perfectly styled. Colton’s exact type, right down to the plus-sized boobs.
“You must be Melanie,” the stunning woman said.
“Yes.” She held out a hand to shake. The woman’s manicure matched the smooth suit. “Nice to meet you.”
“You too. I’m Anne, the office manager slash secretary slash receptionist.” The woman gestured Melanie toward a plush chair in a stylish waiting room. “Colt said to send you right in, but he’s on the phone with a broker from Taiwan—something about emerging markets—so how about I give you a heads-up when he’s finished?” The smile was genuine and the tone gentle.
Melanie tried not to leave boot marks in the thick carpet as she crossed to take a seat. “Thanks.” Next to Anne’s style, Mel looked like a cousin from the freakin’ boonies. From that branch of the family tree.
“I love your boots.” Anne leaned over for a better look. “Where did you get them?”
Mel glanced down at the Lucchese hand-tooled boots. “My grandfather gave them to me for my birthday a few years back.”
Anne smiled. “They’re amazing.”
Yeah, they were. Melanie smiled her thanks. What the heck? The perfect blonde who was lucky enough to work with Colt all day needed to be snotty or arrogant, not nice. Melanie wanted to dislike her. A lot. Instead, she was very much afraid she’d just made another friend.
The outer door opened, and a miniature bundle of pure energy ran inside. “Mama!”
Anne stood, her eyes widening. “Tyler. What’s going on?”
A robust woman followed through the doorway, a kid’s backpack over one shoulder, a stack of haphazard papers in the other. “I’m so sorry, Anne, but my daughter was in a car accident, and I need to go to Seattle. Immediately.” The woman dropped the bag on Anne’s desk and turned back to the door. “I’m so sorry.”
Anne gulped. “It’s okay. Let me know how your daughter is doing.”
The woman left.
Anne swallowed, turning pale. Her lips faltered as she smiled. “So it’s you and me today, baby.”
Tyler smiled before zeroing in on Melanie. “I’m Tyler. I’m three.”
Melanie grinned at the little cherub. He had his mom’s green eyes and spiky, crazy blond hair. Pudgy cheeks showed a couple of dimples. “I’m Mel.”
Colton’s door opened, and he stepped outside.
Anne hurried around the desk. “Mr. Freeze, I’m so sorry, but my day care provider had an emergency.” She brushed hair from her face. “I know this isn’t a place for kids?—”
“Tyler,” Colton said with a grin. “Dude. How’s it going?”
Tyler launched himself at Colt, who swung him up in a wide arc. “Good. I ate goldfish.”
“Yum.” Colton tucked the toddler more securely into his side. “Tell your mama to call me Colt, and tell her you can work here any day. Always.”
The moment hit Melanie square in the abdomen. Colton was a natural with kids. In fact, he was a natural with this one.
Anne fluttered her hands. “It’s just that?—”
Colt rolled his eyes and set Tyler on the desk. “Stop sweating the small stuff, Anne. Kids have always run amuck in this office, and I wouldn’t want it any other way.”
The woman nodded, blinking rapidly. She obviously needed the job.
Melanie attempted a reassuring smile. “There’s a spot in Colton’s office where we carved our initials when we were seven. Over by the wooden file cabinet.” Of course, it had been Tom’s office at that time. And he’d decided to leave the initials in place, even through several repaintings of the office.
Anne grinned. “I saw those—there are three sets.”
Hawk had been there, too.
Colton strode forward and slung a friendly arm around Mel’s shoulders. “We’re heading out to lunch. If you need to take a half day and go hang with Tyler, no worries. If you want to stay here and work together, no worries. So…no worries.”
The last was said with a firm note that caused the oddest fluttering in Melanie’s belly. And he wasn’t even talking to her.
“Thank you,” Anne said quietly.
“See ya later, Colt,” Tyler called out.
“Bye, buddy.” Colton propelled Melanie out of the door and through the building. “I’m starving. Besides the latte earlier, I haven’t had a thing to eat. Tell me you’re hungry.”
Melanie lifted a shoulder. “I could eat before we fight.”
“We’re not fighting.” The firm tone returned.
Melanie glanced at his hard face. “Does anybody ever win a negotiation with you?” Those Taiwanese businesspeople didn’t stand a chance.
Colton’s natural grin made him seem even more approachable, if that was possible. “Yeah. You, Hawk, Dawn, Leila…family always wins.” He casually switched their positions on the sidewalk so he walked between her and the street. “Well, unless I’m right. Then I win.”
“Are you ever wrong?” she asked, trying to bite back a smile.
“I’m sure it has happened.” He opened the door to a quiet deli.
Mel chose a table near the window to sit. The quaint restaurant had checkered tablecloths on the tables and movie posters on the walls. “What’s up with your receptionist? Cute kid.” Hopefully Anne was married.
Melanie didn’t want to analyze why that mattered to her. Not now.
“She’s a single mom and is the best organizer I’ve ever seen.” Colton glanced at the specials scrawled across a chalkboard.
“Anne is very pretty.” Melanie studied the hand-printed menu.
“Huh?” Colton focused back on Melanie and shrugged. “I guess, but I need a good assistant, and she’s excellent. I don’t care what she looks like.”
Right. “You’re not blind, Freeze.”
The bubble-gum-popping waitress showed up to take their orders.
Colton smiled, instantly sending the teenager into swoon-mode. “I’ll have the roast beef on sourdough, and the lady will have turkey on whole wheat with extra pickles.”
“Sure thing,” The teenager bopped away.
Melanie kicked Colton under the table. “Turkey isn’t what I wanted.”
He lifted an eyebrow and studied her. The seconds ticked by until she couldn’t stand his gaze any longer. “Okay. Turkey may be what I wanted…this time. But you might’ve been wrong.”
“This is a great sandwich place, and turkey is your favorite sandwich,” he said.
She lifted her chin. “You don’t know me as well as you think.”
“I know you kiss like a goddess.”
She could only stare. Yep. That was Colton. If there was an issue, a problem, he charged head on into it. No coyness, no subtlety, no hidden agenda. “I can’t believe you said that,” she finally choked out.
He took a sip from a sweating water glass. “I figured we should talk about the kiss.”
“Why?” She shook her head, panic heating her lungs. She couldn’t lose Colton as a friend, not now. Definitely not now. “We’re friends. We slipped. It’s over.”
“I know.” He rubbed his rugged chin. “But, well, I liked kissing you. It felt?—”
Right. It felt right. “I know, but we’ve been best friends forever. I mean, forever. ” He and Hawk were the certainties in her life. The limited stability she could claim. Of course she was attracted to Colton—the guy was all hard angles and good nature. He also had gone through women like toothbrushes for a long time…and she didn’t want to be relegated to an old drawer in the bathroom.
Plus, his girlfriends were usually blond, beautiful, and buxom. Melanie didn’t fit into any of those slots. The mere idea of Colton seeing her naked sprang hives over her chest.
The waitress slipped their baskets before them and hustled off to wait on a group of boys who’d just sat down.
Colton eyed his large sandwich. “Is it Milton? Are you serious?”
Melanie reached for a chip. No. She and Brian were more like buddies, but it was nice having somebody as a plus-one. “I don’t know. We’ve been dating for a while, but I’m not sure where we stand.” In fact, she probably would know more later after her doctor’s appointment, but she didn’t want to go into her problems with Colton. Yet.
“Okay.” He took a bite of his food. “Remember when we talked about owning a business together as kids?”
She grinned. The boys had wanted to own a strip club, and she’d wanted a horse farm. “I do remember.”
“Now’s the time,” Colt said.
She shook her head, shoving down hope. “I can’t invest right now.”
“I know. Hawk and I will bankroll the start-up costs, and your third will be in labor—overseeing the construction and the publicity for the first two martial arts gyms. One in Mineral Lake and the other in Billings,” he said.
She tapped her fingers on the table. “I appreciate the vote of confidence, but I don’t need a handout.”
He grinned, and at that point, she empathized with the Taiwanese brokers.
Leaning back, he sighed. “Listen. We need somebody on the front lines, and I’m too busy taking over the business, and Hawk will be overseeing the fighting. It would set his mind at ease to know you were looking after things.”
Fire flushed through her. “Don’t you dare use Hawk as an emotional point.” She hated that he had to leave again for danger so far from home.
Colton shrugged. “I’m just telling you what he said. Plus, we’d have to pay somebody to oversee the construction, so we might as well pay you. We trust you, and now you don’t have to work three jobs. Win-win.”
“No.” She shook her head. “You’re not planning my life. Period.”
He sobered. “Believe me, I’m not planning anybody’s life right now.”
She frowned, concern focusing her. “What’s wrong?”
He shrugged, an odd vulnerability darkening his eyes. “Maybe nothing. I invested heavily in a business, and it may have been a mistake.”
Colton Freeze making a financial mistake? Melanie raised both eyebrows. “Ouch. Can I help?”
“Yes.” His upper lip quirked. “Please come on board to oversee the construction of my baby. I need somebody I can trust so I can concentrate on the other matter.”
He was impossible. Talk about going for the jugular. Or heartstrings. Owning a business with Colt and Hawk had always been one of her dreams, and there had to be a way to make it happen. She would like to help him, and this might be fun. “If I do agree, then that’s my buy-in. No salary.”
“We need the salary because we already included the line item as a cost in the construction loan,” he countered.
Oh, he had an answer for everything, didn’t he? She bit her lip. “I wouldn’t mind burning the outfit from Adam’s bar.”
“Now that would be a pity,” Colton said.
She focused on Colton. “Stop flirting with me.”
“Can’t help it. I know how you kiss.” His tone rumbled guttural low.
She rolled her eyes. “I would love to call your bluff, Freeze.”
“Not bluffing.”
He wasn’t. She knew him, and if she made a move, he’d meet her more than halfway. “Our friendship is the only stable thing I have right now. The only stable thing in Hawk’s life. I’m not going to ruin it,” she said.
“Why haven’t we ever gotten together?” Colt’s brows drew down in the middle.
She kept herself from squirming on the chair. “By not sleeping with you, I remained in your life. Special.” Which was the absolute truth.
He grimaced. “I’m not that bad.”
“No, you’re not.” In fact, he was freakin’ amazing. “You’ve never wanted to get serious or settle down, and usually whoever you were dating did. So when it ended, you avoided them.” If Colton ever avoided her, it would break her heart.
“I’d never avoid you.” His eyes flared.
“I never wanted to take the chance.” Now she winced. “Plus, now we’re too different.”
His cheek creased. “We both own ranches and love it. How are we different?”
“You’re loaded with a ton of degrees. I only took one class in college.” She squirmed in her seat.
“Seriously?” His amusement fled. “Degrees are just degrees and have nothing to do with intelligence, work, money, or anything else.”
She smiled. “Said the guy with a bunch of degrees.” Sure, she was smart. But still.
“That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. If you want a bunch of degrees, go get them. You’re one of the smartest people I’ve ever met, and you thinking that is crazy,” he said.
Warmth flushed through her that he realized she was just as smart as he was…even without diplomas. “Maybe. Even so, I’m staying in the friend arena.”
“Like I said, you’re an intelligent woman.” Even so, regret filled his eyes for the briefest of moments. Then his cell phone buzzed, and he glanced at the face, quickly returning the text. “Hawk’s in town looking for us. He should be here in a minute.”
In less than a minute, Hawk strode in, wearing flak and not cowboy boots.
Melanie’s heart dropped. “You’re heading out.”
“Yes.” Any peace or relaxation Hawk had earned while on leave had fled, leaving his face a hard, cold mask. “Just got my orders. Wanted to say good-bye.”
Mel skirted the table to duck into a hug. “Be careful and come home safely.”
He hugged her back, longer than usual. “I will. You be safe, take care of Colton, and protect my business interests while I’m gone.”
She leaned back to smile. “You planned this.”
“Nope.” A small smile flirted with Hawk’s lips. “But I want everything in place when I return. Please.”
“Okay.” There was no other answer she could give. “I promise if you come home safely, I’ll take care of the construction.”
“Excellent.” He released her and turned as Colton stood.
Never afraid to show emotion, they hugged, and a lump settled in Melanie’s throat.
“Come back.” Colton stepped away.
Hawk yanked an envelope from his back pocket. “Just in case.” Long strides took him from the room.
Concern bracketed Colton’s face as he watched his friend leave. Then, tucking the envelope in his pocket, he sat.
Melanie retook her seat. “What’s in the envelope?”
Colton shrugged. “He leaves one with me every time, and it feels like a bunch of letters. I’m assuming they’re for us, probably my mom, and my sister. I never look and just give it back when he gets home. Like I will this time.”
Melanie stilled. “A letter for your sister Dawn?”
“They’re good friends,” Colton said.
Dawn and Hawk were a lot more than friends, but now wasn’t the time. So Melanie tried to smile. Why did it seem like things were changing? She glanced at the rest of her sandwich, no longer hungry.
She considered asking Colton to accompany her to the doctor’s appointment later but quickly discarded the idea. There had to be some personal distance between them if they were going to remain friends and now business partners. Inviting the man to her appointment required an intimacy they didn’t have and never would.
Something in her wanted that closeness with him.
For the first time, she wondered if their childhood friendship could last into adulthood when deep down, she was beginning to want more.