Chapter Nine
“We have to do something,” Lil muttered as she drove down the county road toward Jordan’s home ranch.
She was glad he’d come with her, even though she kept catching his scent, which in turn distracted her from the task at hand. A distraction she could handle. It was the sense of inertia that was getting to her.
“What do you have in mind?”
“I don’t know. Talk to people. Show whoever is doing this that we are being proactive in the off chance that the shooting has nothing to do with Connery.”
There was something about his silence that made her wonder if he’d been thinking that way.
“Turn to the right just after that no passing sign.”
Lil slowed, made the turn.
The ranch was located almost three miles down the road, well out of sight of the county roads. Like the driveway of the Willow Creek, the road passed through a grove of aspen before the ranch proper came into view.
It was a classic. Not a fancy spread like one would see in a movie, but instead, a generations-long Montana classic that had been built over decades.
With the exception of a couple of new-looking sheds, it appeared that the ranch had seen its last construction phase mid-century, just like her family’s old ranch.
A wide gravel driveway divided the buildings, with a medium-sized two-story house, an older house, which was probably the original dwelling, and a detached garage on one side, then the barn and outbuildings on the other.
Pole corrals mixed with paneled cow-working areas and there was a decent round pen behind the grain silo.
“Home,” Jordan said simply after she’d parked near the corral he’d pointed out.
“Nice,” she said, tamping down the pang of regret at losing her own family ranch. “Newly painted.”
“It was time. Wade used to make us paint all the time to keep us busy and out of trouble, but after we left, home maintenance kind of slowed down.”
“Did it work?”
“Did painting keep us out of trouble?” He flashed a smile that brought to mind Aubrey’s assertion that he accidentally broke hearts. “What do you think?”
“I think we better unload the horses.” While she could still breathe normally.
He frowned bemusedly, and then a blond woman stepped out from in between the tractors parked near the fuel tanks and approached the truck. Jordan and Lil got out of opposite sides and met her at the front of the vehicle.
“Hey, I’m Bailey,” she said, extending a hand to Lil. “Really sorry to hear about your troubles.”
Lil liked her vibe. Open and genuine. “Nice to meet you.”
“Bailey is one of my future sisters-in-law,” Jordan said as he joined them on the driver’s side of the truck. “No date yet for the festivities.” He ginned at Bailey. “Wade is hoping for a double wedding.”
“Probably triple,” Bailey replied, gesturing at the horse trailer with her chin.
Lil sensed an inside joke, which Jordan acknowledged by saying gruffly, “I’ll explain later.”
“I’d like to hear that,” Bailey said on a laugh before asking, “are you guys staying for lunch?”
“I think we’ll head back after we get the horses settled,” Jordan said. “I don’t want to leave the place empty for too long.”
“I understand.” Bailey met Lil’s gaze in a friendly way, then headed back toward the tractors.
A herd of about a dozen horses grazed in the pastures beyond the corrals, and their heads came up as Lil and Jordan led her horses to the corrals.
Of course, Fancy called out and minutes later a herd of gorgeous animals were crowded at the pasture gate, trying to get closer to the newcomers as Lil and Jordan released them into individual pens.
“You have an excellent setup,” Lil said.
“Which you can use for as long as you like,” he said.
The barn door opened as they returned to the truck and Wade emerged.
Lil’s impression of the man during their brief meeting the night before had been one of stoic concern. The concern was still evident as he gave her a nod of greeting, but there was also an edge of steel, similar to that of his son.
“You’ll be coming here to train for a while, I understand.”
“I appreciate you letting me do that.”
Wade made a dismissive gesture. “Glad to help out. You just go ahead and keep your horses here as long as you need to.”
“I’ll bring my own hay when I come tomorrow. Hopefully, this is only temporary.”
“Best not to take chances,” he said. He turned to Jordan. “There’s a couple of things—”
“Sure.” Jordan turned to Lil. “Be right back.”
*
The couple of things turned out to be Wade worried about Jordan and the cow shooting.
After filling Wade in on everything the deputy and brand inspector had revealed, he said, “I told Connery the sale is off. I’m keeping the place.”
“You are?” It was hard to miss Wade’s glance toward the Reed property on the far side of the fields.
“I’m not getting strong-armed or scared into doing something that’s not right. I’m going to mortgage the Willow Creek. I have another bank meeting this coming Monday.”
“You sure about this?” Wade said gruffly.
He was a lot like Lil in that he had a hard time accepting help, even from his sons.
“We can’t risk a mortgage on the Tree Fork; we want the land, so yes. I can still sell the Willow Creek later. Right now, I want it known that I’m keeping it.” In fact, he’d planned to tell Burke to spread the word.
“How serious do you think this situation is?”
“I’m hoping things cool down once word gets out that I’m not looking to sell.”
“Who in the hell would want the place so badly that they’d shoot a cow?”
It was more than shooting the cow. Lil was right that once word of the incident got out, people might be hesitant to hire her to take on their horses.
Of course, with Meg working at the school, things might not be as tight, but for all he knew, they’d already factored that into their budget.
Things like fences and culverts added up.
“I think the idea was to make the sisters so jumpy and uncomfortable that they’d reconsider leaving. I’m kind of wondering if Connery might not have produced a perfect lease property for them a few days after the shooting.”
“Asshole.” Wade twisted his mouth sideways. “What if it wasn’t Connery? What if it was just some jerk who shot a cow, either by accident or on purpose?”
Jordan blew out a breath. “Yeah. I’m going to talk with Tom Baxter as soon as I run him down.”
“Why Tom?”
“Closest neighbor. Least likely to shoot a cow. Maybe someone approached him about his land the same as they approached me. Maybe he could give me a name if they did. Or maybe he’s aware of trespassers. Anyway, he’s the only neighbor, so I’ll start with him.”
Wade rubbed his chin. “Good thought. And I’ll see what I can find out from the coffee guys.” The coffee guys being the rancher coffee klatch that Wade took part in a couple times a week.
“Don’t go giving them any theories, okay? Just see if they’ve heard anything about the shooting.”
“I’ll be smooth.”
Jordan managed to keep a straight face. So what if he peppered the gossip community with rumors? Maybe, like Lil had pointed out, it was a way to get whoever shot the cow to know that they were on the lookout and they’d better not try it again.
Wade glanced to where Estelle was shaking a rug off the porch. “I need to get back to the house. I’m helping roll the living room rugs.”
Wade was becoming quite the domestic under Estelle’s tutelage.
“Things going okay for her? Has she found a new place to live?”
“She’s looking,” Wade said in a tone that indicated this was not a welcome topic of conversation.
“Obviously I don’t need my bedroom anytime soon, so she should stay as long as she needs to.” Jordan glanced over to where Lil was waiting near the corrals. “We should get back to the Willow Creek.”
“You guys be careful there.”
The concern was obvious on Wade’s rugged face, and Jordan had a sudden desire to hug his old man. He didn’t, because it wasn’t an emotional emergency, but he did clap Wade’s shoulder. “We will.”
*
“The place feels empty.” Lil’s words broke the stillness after they’d parked near her barn.
Jordan had to agree that the ranch had a different, lonelier feel. Most of the cattle were bedded down in the corral, having eaten their fill. The big dog lumbered out of the barn and a goat bleated, but without the horses, yeah, there was an emptiness.
Lil’s phone chimed and she pulled it out to read the text. “Meg is on her way home.” She walked to the fence. “The hay’s almost ripe. I wonder if we can bale without being shot at.”
Jordan came to stand beside her, and it seemed perfectly natural to stand so close that their shoulders touched. Equally natural for her to lean into the pressure.
“I know someone with a flak vest.”
Her shoulders shook and he hoped it was with laughter.
“If nothing else happens … I wonder how long until I feel safe here again.” She turned her face to his.
He started searching for words, even though there wasn’t a true answer to her question, when he realized that maybe it wasn’t the time for words. Her chin tipped up. Definitely not time for words.
The kiss was gentle. Unexpected. Sweet.
It ended sooner than he liked.
Her mouth curved into a half-smile that made him want to kiss her again. “I guess that’s been coming for a while.”
“Has it?” he asked with mock innocence.
She raised her eyebrow with equal innocence. “And here I thought you had a read on things.”
He gave a soft laugh. He read things well enough to know that Lil was about to back off, head to safety.
But Lil turned that theory on its head by putting a palm to his cheek and easing his mouth back to hers for a kiss that left out the sweet part.
His hands settled at her waist as the kiss deepened, and he pulled her toward him until their belt buckles touched.
When she raised her head, she asked, “How much does this complicate things?”
“Depends on where it’s going.”
“Nowhere,” she said honestly. “I …” The hesitation was the first sign of a break in her confidence. “I’m not in a place for that.”
He wondered if she ever had been in that place. Now was not the time to ask, so he gave her the escape hatch he sensed she needed.
“Everyone needs a little comfort now and again.”
“Is that what this is?”
He wasn’t fool enough not to know there was more involved. Right now, this was whatever Lil needed it to be. He was a big believer in things sorting themselves out.
She flattened her palm against his chest. “I’m going with comfort.”
“You got it.”
But her rueful smile told him that, like him, she didn’t believe her own words.
They broke apart at the distant sound of an engine.
“Hopefully, that’s Meg.” Lil resumed her position at the fence, her forearms resting on the rails.
Jordan did the same, but he frowned at the ground. He decided to take advantage of this moment when their guards were down.
“This does change things,” he said honestly.
Even though she didn’t look at him, he’d caught the small lift of her chin.
“But not for the worse,” he added. “I see it as honesty.”
Her lips pressed together as her gaze remained stubbornly fixed in the distance.
“I can get behind honesty.” The engine grew louder.
“I appreciate you being here. I appreciate a lot of things about you.” She paused.
“I’m closer to thirty than twenty. I’ve been alone for most of that time, you know, dealing with things. ”
He nodded and she surprised him again by touching her palm to his cheek.
“I enjoy your company.”
His eyebrows lifted. “My company?”
She nodded. “But I don’t have enough bandwidth for anything more than what I’m dealing with now.”
He covered her hand with his, then lowered their linked fingers to his chest. He knew what she was getting at. She wanted him around. She didn’t want him getting ideas about what a future might hold.
“Message received.” Even if it wasn’t directly in line with what he’d wanted to hear.
She let her forehead come to rest against his chest just above their hands for all of a heartbeat. “Thank you,” she whispered.