Chapter Sixteen #2
Natalie joined Sam again Thursday afternoon, enjoying time with him and getting to see behind the scenes of a cowboy’s work life.
Or a rancher’s work life, to be more accurate.
She admired the passion and dedication he displayed and had zero doubt that he was truly doing what he loved.
But the work he did was physical, the terrain and temperatures surely difficult to navigate at times.
So, while he seemed to hate the office side of things, eventually she had to think he would come to see it as a reprieve from the manual work.
“You could always move to Indiana when ranching gets too hard on your body,” she teased Thursday as they sat on his porch swing after dinner—her favorite place on the ranch. They’d watched another gorgeous sunset together, the last of the brilliant orange and yellows now faded to twilight.
He looked at her like she’d suggested he walk across hot coals barefoot. “Indiana? Why would I do that?”
“You know, to come take an easier job. And our winters aren’t nearly as bad as it sounds like yours can be.
I heard Madison mention Purdue was an option she is considering for her veterinary studies.
If she goes there, she may find she likes the Midwest. Then you’ll want to move to be closer to her, and Jaxon and Norah can run the ranch. ”
He’d been making subtle hints all week about how much she might enjoy moving to Montana, and turnabout seemed like fair play. Not that she could ever picture him anywhere but here. Still, it was fun to imagine what it might be like to have Sam visit her instead of the other way around.
“Madison won’t go that far away to school when she can get a full ride in-state with her grades,” he said. “Besides, I’d be mighty lonely out there, leaving my family and friends.”
“I’d be there.” She shrugged.
He snorted softly. “Like you’d wait that long for me.”
She heard the hurt in his voice and wanted to argue the point. But Natalie didn’t want to make promises she couldn’t keep; he deserved better than that. Though, her leaving didn’t have to be the end of all this if they didn’t want it to be.
“Just because I have to go back soon doesn’t mean we have to stop talking, Sam. Or visiting.”
His chin came to rest on the top of her head with a sigh. “I don’t do planes, so we’ll have to take turns buying you tickets to come visit.”
Did that mean he was willing to give them a chance? Natalie hoped so—she wasn’t ready for this all to end. Afraid to say too much and send him running, she turned and pressed a hand to his scruffy cheek. “I’d love that.”
“Me, too.”
The smile he offered didn’t quite reach his eyes. Natalie hated to end the night on a low note, especially after having another wonderful day together.
“Come back into town with me,” she whispered.
His gaze shifted to the house. “Neil arrives tomorrow.”
“Yes.”
On a nod, he eased from the swing and went inside. When he returned, he had a backpack thrown over one shoulder and his truck keys in hand.
“I’ll drive. Norah’s on her way; she’s staying with Madison tonight.”
“Oh, Sam, I didn’t mean to make you think you had to go to all that trouble.”
“Trouble?” He threw her a cocky grin. “Woman, I need to know if you snore or not before I agree to buy you any plane tickets.”
She rose on a laugh. “Well played, Mr. Miles. Well played.”
As it turned out, neither of them snored that night.
At least, neither heard any snoring. Though, from all the lovemaking they’d done before they both collapsed into a deep, blissful sleep, Natalie wasn’t sure either of them would have heard a Mack truck drive straight through her room.
What she was sure of was that waking up tucked gently into Sam’s side was something she could definitely get used to.
Sam admitted over breakfast that he’d decided to take Friday off. A rarity for him, but it would allow them a leisurely start to the day. It would also mean less scrambling to pick up Neil.
“If we leave before lunch, we’ll have time to stop and check out Bozeman before heading on north to the airport. It’s a cool little city. Norah and Madison love to visit there.”
“You know I’m not going to turn down more Montana sightseeing,” Natalie admitted. “Especially if there’s no getting on horseback involved.”
Sam winked. “I’ll break you of that fear eventually.”
“We’ll see.” Which, in Hoosier terms, meant wasn’t gonna happen .
Bozeman turned out to be a really neat city, the downtown chic with all sorts of wonderful shops and bars.
Sam was an absolute gentleman, opening doors and following her into shops that caught her eye.
Friday afternoon was truly magical, and she was almost sad when they had to climb into his truck and head up to the Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport.
But one look at Neil as he stepped out of the terminal, and joy replaced her melancholy.
“Neil!”
“Nattie!” He rushed to her, picked her up, and swung her around before planting a kiss on her cheek. “It’s been far too long. Heavens, woman, you look beautiful as ever.”
“And you look handsome as ever, my friend.” She stepped back and came to stand beside Sam once more. “Neil, I’d like you to meet Sam Miles. Sam, meet Neil Frey.”
*
It was all Sam could do not to slug Natalie’s friend.
Who the hell did he think he was, walking in here and kissing her like that?
But starting a fight in the airport wouldn’t be good for any of them.
Besides, Natalie wouldn’t take too kindly to him making introductions to her old friend with his fists.
So, Sam played nice. For now. He stepped forward, right hand extended.
“Pleasure to meet you, Neil.”
Neil sized him up, his smile widening. “The pleasure’s all mine, cowboy.” He clasped Sam’s hand and pulled him closer, adding in a lower voice, “And don’t worry, I’m not here to steal your girl.”
Damn right, you’re not.
Sam gave his hand an extra squeeze then released it to place that same hand on Natalie’s slender shoulder.
Neil chuckled as he flexed his freed digits. “You’ve got yourself a feisty one, Nattie. He’s a keeper.”
She blushed, oblivious to the male posturing going on, but let the comment slide.
The trio turned toward the baggage claim area, Sam maintaining contact with Natalie as they walked.
She and Neil chatted away, catching up on families and careers.
It wasn’t until Neil excused himself to hit the men’s room that Sam discovered Natalie wasn’t as oblivious as he’d believed.
She dragged him to a corner then spun to face him, brows furrowed.
“What is your problem?” she whispered.
“I don’t know what you—”
“Don’t you give me that, Samuel Miles. I saw that extra squeeze you gave poor Neil’s hand back there. You do realize that if you’d broken his hand, he wouldn’t have been able to take your damned pictures, right?”
“Poor Neil? The guy would have been making out with you right in front of me if you hadn’t turned your cheek at the last minute.”
“Wha—” She pinched the bridge of her nose. “What part of Neil is happily married did you not catch the other day?”
He frowned. “So, what, happily married people never cheat?”
“Not when they’re married to a Thomas.”
Sam snorted. Like he cared what Neil’s spouse’s maiden name was.
Natalie leaned closer. “His husband , Thomas.”
“His hus— Oh. His husband.” Sam hung his head.
If there’s been a boulder in the room, he would have crawled under it.
“Exactly. Now stop being such a damned Neanderthal and start making my friend feel welcome before he changes his mind and hops on the next plane home.”
He conceded with a nod. Natalie was in no mood to hear his weak apology. Especially when she was right. He had been acting like a caveman. Neil returned a few moments later, pulling two rolling bags behind him. One looked like luggage, the other like his camera equipment.
“We good?” he asked, his gaze locking with Sam’s.
There was no malice there, for which Sam was thankful. He gave the newcomer a subtle nod. “Sure are. We’ve got about a two-hour drive ahead of us. Did you want to grab a bite to eat here in Bozeman or wait until we get back to the lodge?”
“I’m actually starved, now that you mention it. If we’ve got the time, I say we stop at the Whistle Pig.”
“The what ?” Natalie asked.
Sam chuckled. “It’s a Korean place. We took my daughter, Madison, there last summer for her birthday. She wanted to go just to say she’d been there, but the food was actually really good.”
“Okay, I’m game,” she said.
“Excellent,” Neil said, offering Sam a wink. “Lead the way, Mr. Cowboy.”