Chapter Twenty-Two
Josie jolted awake, her breath coming out in fast and crazy bursts. Her body was drenched in a cold sweat. The dream she just had was far too vivid. Too real.
Cash.
His touch still lingered, warm and steady. Just the thought of it sent a quiet flutter through her chest. His voice, whispering in her ear, sending a shiver that rolled down her entire spine. And when their eyes met, something unspoken passed between them—intense, raw—yet somehow gentle.
It wasn’t the first time she’d dreamed about him, but this… this had been different. It was intense. Far more than anything she had ever experienced.
Quickly, she sat up, running a hand through her tangled hair, trying to shake off the lingering sensations fluttering across her entire body. Her heart still raced, and she pressed a hand to her chest as if she could physically calm it down.
This is getting out of control.
She couldn’t deny it any longer. She had feelings for Cash Montgomery, whether she liked it or not.
With a heavy sigh, she pushed herself out of bed and dressed quickly. Samuel was stirring in his bed, whining a bit, clearly needing a change.
She welcomed the distraction. “Good morning, little man,” she said, moving quickly to his crib. The beautiful wooden crib Cash had likely spent hours making. He hadn’t just built it. He’d carved it. Beautiful little swirling details that he must have spent a long time whittling.
The scent of coffee and bacon drifted down the hall and pulled her out of her room as soon as she changed Samuel. It was wafting through the entire house, and it led her with Samuel in tow all the way to the kitchen.
She opened the door and saw Beau already at the table, his attention on a stack of papers in front of him. His tin coffee cup sat untouched beside him, steam curling up from the rim.
“Morning,” she greeted him, going to the stovetop to pour herself a cup of coffee.
Beau nodded slightly but didn’t look up. “Morning.”
The two of them hadn’t spoken much since she’d come to stay at the Montgomery ranch. Beau was the serious brother of the three. Caring, just as much as the others, it seemed, but he also seemed to have a bit of a chip on his shoulder, like he was too deep in thought to care about making small talk.
That was fine with Josie. She wasn’t much for small talk herself.
“Thanks for making coffee,” she said to him, setting Samuel down on the floor and handing him a rolling pin to play with.
“Figured you might need a little extra rest,” Beau chuckled, bringing his mug to his lips. He took a sip and added, “Looked like y’all stayed up a little late.”
Josie flushed hot, remembering the night before—the almost-kiss—the dream she’d had. Luckily, it seemed that Beau didn’t notice. She turned quickly to the egg basket by the door—it was full; he must have collected them—and taking out several.
“Are Cash and Luke working already?” she asked, changing the subject, hoping he wouldn’t detect the embarrassment in her tone.
“Just gathering up the last few eggs. These were mine. We had a lot of them this morning.”
She nodded and glanced over her shoulder at him. “What’s all that?” she asked, gesturing to the papers as Samuel tugged at the hem of her dress.
He shrugged. “Just some of the finances for the ranch. We need a couple things, and I’m not sure the money’s there.”
“The ranch not doing well?” Josie asked, her brows twisting in concern.
She had never asked anything like that. It wasn’t really her place.
She knew that. But she had always just assumed that men with a ranch this big, especially a ranch that had been in the family for years and done this well for so long, had few financial issues.
Particularly when they were turning down offers from wealthy men like Remington.
But Beau’s face was lined. He was still turning pages, and he hadn’t made a sound yet.
Nervously, she grabbed the skillet that Beau had used for bacon and set it back on the lit oven, cracking a few eggs into it.
Maybe I shouldn’t have asked anything.
Finally, he took a deep breath. “It’s not doin’ too good.”
“Oh.”
The sizzle of eggs was filling the air, and Josie almost didn’t catch his next words. “In all honesty,” he added in a much lower voice, “if this place didn’t mean everything to us, we would have sold a long time ago.”
She turned around in alarm. “You mean… family is the only reason?”
It wasn’t necessarily surprising. She had been on the move for what felt like forever now. Having a home was nice. Maybe a few months ago, she wouldn’t have understood their stubbornness, but now, it made sense to her that the brothers didn’t want to leave.
“Either that, or we’re just a bunch of stubborn mules,” Beau replied with a dry chuckle. “Don’t mind me; I’m a bit of a stick in the mud when it comes to these things.”
Josie glanced at him, sympathetic. “You all have built something incredible here,” she said, forking the eggs off the pan onto a plate and setting the plate in front of him. “It’s something to be proud of. This family. This ranch. Everything.”
Beau nodded, the faintest hint of a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. That was probably the best reaction she could hope to get out of him. “We do what we can. Just hope it lasts,” he said gruffly before tossing the papers to the side and grabbing his fork.
Josie hesitated before speaking again as she watched him fork a whole fried egg into his mouth.
“It will,” she reassured him, wiping her hand on a nearby flour-sack towel. “You’ve all been so good to me and Samuel. I just know things will work out for you all.”
Beau studied her for a moment before nodding. “I appreciate that. And it’s gonna work out for you, too.”
Josie nodded, smiling uncertainly.
Me… too? Did he mean she was part of it all? That idea was strange to her. She’d never really belonged much of anywhere. She wondered for a moment if they could actually make this work. If she could actually stay.
Yet despite her uncertainty, her smile widened anyway.
These men deserve for their ranch to succeed. They’ve been good to me.
She went back to the stove, cooking more eggs for herself, then came back to the table to sit with him.
A comfortable silence settled between them as they ate. For all Beau’s seriousness, she found she liked him. He was genuine, just like his brothers, and just as dependable as them. He was solid, too. Maybe even more solid than she had given him credit for.
She’d always gotten the impression that Cash was the brother running the show. Now she wondered if Beau had always done just as much for the ranch as Cash. Maybe Beau just did it in a different way.
***
Josie was putting Samuel down for his mid-morning nap with more relish than usual. He would sleep for an hour or two, and that would give her some time to get outside, away from the stuffy house to do her outside chores alone. At least long enough to get some fresh air.
As soon as she got Samuel settled in his crib, she slipped out the front door and made her way toward the barn.
It almost felt like a vacation to not have a baby on her hip.
Even if she was only doing a few chores.
She loved Samuel, but sometimes, carting him around all day every day was tiring, especially now that he was so big.
She enjoyed the moments she was able to sneak away.
That gave her a moment to herself to think, even if she was still working.
She strode into the barn, already rolling up the long grey sleeves of her dress. The men would have already moved all the horses out to the corral, so the barn was hers to take care of.
The work was familiar, and very comforting. There was a rhythm to it. Feeding, forking haybales, cleaning out the stalls. A rhythm that was perfect for calming her mind, since it took little thought. It gave her plenty of time to think about other things.
…Things like cowboys with blue eyes and rough hands. Which seemed to be near invading her mind recently. Time to herself wasn’t nearly so peaceful anymore…
But just as she was becoming too flustered to concentrate, a voice called out behind her, almost breathless. “There you are!”
It was Clara’s voice. Josie looked up, surprised to see Clara peeing around the corner. She flashed Clara a quick smile, brushing some hay from her dress. Her sleeves were already damp with sweat.
“I’ve been looking for you,” Clara announced with a smile.
Josie smiled as she wiped sweat from her brow. “Well, you found me,” she laughed lightly as she turned away from the last pile of hay she’d shoveled out. She put her pitchfork down and walked over near the barn door where Clara stood.
Clara held a basket out, filled with fresh herbs. “I brought you all these. It was a little extra that Mr. Green had thought you all might like,” she explained, handing the basket over.
Josie could smell them. Rosemary, thyme, sage—all of it tickled her nostrils. She grinned. “How sweet. Please tell him thank you from us.” She set the basket safely aside and turned back to Clara. “How are you doing?”
Brows twisting, Clara looked down at the ground, fiddling her fingers as she bit her lip.
Something is definitely on her mind.
“Would you want to put these in the kitchen with me and take a walk?” Clara finally asked. “I could use the company.”
Josie nodded, grateful for the invitation. She was becoming strongly curious about what was going on with Clara. “That sounds wonderful,” she said, flashing another smile at her. “I’ll take the basket in and be right back.”
She was starting to truly enjoy Clara’s friendship. In fact, Clara was probably the best friend Josie had ever had, outside of her sister. The fact that Clara seemed worried was also worrying to her.
Quickly, she jogged inside, made a beeline for the kitchen, and set down the basket. After listening a moment to be sure Samuel wasn’t crying—he wasn’t—she dashed back outside again and rejoined Clara. Together, they walked all the way to the garden out behind the house.
“Looks like you have plenty of herbs and vegetables yourselves,” Clara mused with a chuckle.
Josie shook her head. “We can always use extra here,” she laughed. “These men can really put their food away.” She bent down to begin pulling a few ripe peppers and tomatoes from their plants. Clara joined in, still looking troubled.
Josie was burning to ask what was wrong, but she wanted to let Clara talk at her own pace.
But Clara said nothing.
They worked in silence for several minutes. Josie began to feel Clara’s eyes on her. Finally, she decided she ought to break the silence. She turned to Clara, summoning up a playful smile. “You’re awfully quiet.”
“It’s… nothing,” Clara answered, glancing aside. “Just… small troubles. Nothing important.” She managed a smile, but Josie had the feeling that it was slightly forced.
“Are you sure—?”
“I’m more interested in hearing about you,” Clara interrupted quickly, turning fully to face her. “How have you been? You seemed like you had something on your mind when I came into the barn.”
Josie flushed, immediately recalling the thoughts that had distracted her as she’d been cleaning out the stall. The truth was that she’d been thinking about her dream the night before… but she’d rather die than describe that to Clara.
Instead, she plucked at the edge of her sleeve, feeling the heat of the sun on her back. “Just thinking,” she replied quietly.
“About what? A certain cowboy, maybe?”
Shocked, Josie glanced at Clara sharply, but all Clara gave in response was a laugh.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Josie muttered, defensively, shaking her head.
Clara nudged her playfully. “Oh, please. I see the way you look at Cash. And don’t even try to tell me you don’t notice the way he looks at you.”
Josie felt heat rise to her cheeks as the memory of the near-kiss came sharply to mind. “Even if that were true,” she sputtered, “it doesn’t mean anything. I don’t even know what I want. It doesn’t matter, either. What’s important is Samuel and his safety.”
Clara gave her a knowing look. “Well, you might want to figure out sooner rather than later what is good for Samuel, then. Feelings have a way of making themselves known, whether you’re ready or not.”
Josie sighed, tilting her face toward the sky.
Clara was right.
But what can I possibly do about it?
Just then, pounding hooves grew loud behind them, and both girls spun around to see none other than Luke Montgomery riding past the garden.
As he passed them, he slowed his horse and stood up in his stirrups, pulling off his hat and waving it in the air. “Howdy, ladies!”
Clara’s cheeks reddened.
Josie waited until Luke was well out of earshot before turning on Clara. “What about you?” she asked pointedly, hiding a grin. “You’ve been awfully quiet and have something on your mind. Maybe a certain cowboy?”
“Oh, please don’t,” Clara grumbled, but her face became even pinker, and Josie laughed.
Clara sighed. “I wish he would just get the courage to talk to me.”
“Don’t you talk all the time?” Josie asked.
Clara rolled her eyes. “About little things. The shop, my ma and pa, but nothing about a future…”
“Why can’t you talk to him?” Josie asked. “And why worry? These things can take time.”
Clara’s frown deepened. “I’m not getting any younger. And neither is he! Everyone else we grew up with is already married, but he’s taking his precious time.”
“Montgomery men aren’t really good at talking about their emotions… that’s for sure,” Josie muttered.
But who was she to judge? She herself wasn’t sure what she was feeling for Cash Montgomery.
And we’re already married…
How could she possibly give advice to Clara when she wasn’t sure what to do with her own heart?