The Rancher's Rescue

Grace closed her mouth. She’d already assumed that much about the Blackwell Ranch, given Jon’s delay in paying their bill at Brewster’s. She’d extended the due date on the Blackwell account twice already. But she’d never seen Ethan panic, not even when one of their bulls wandered onto the highway and Ethan had to rescue him. Yet Ethan looked panicked now. Would the baby put him into full-scale anxiety mode?

He stepped in front of her. “I can come into town and pick you up when you get off work, if you prefer not to drive those roads at night.”

She would not be touched by his consideration. That looked like dread he was feeling. And any decent guy would’ve made the same offer. “I can drive myself.”

Relief rushed through his words, reaching into his full smile. “Give me your phone?”

Confused, Grace handed him her cell.

“I’m adding myself to the top of your contact list. Call me when you get on the property and I’ll come meet you.” He typed quickly and handed the phone back to her. “I’m mostly there as there’s so much to do and not enough ranch hands to help.”

He scowled, and his voice sounded irritated, like he’d swallowed a handful of prickly burs.

They’d traded secrets during their night together. One secret for another. She’d confessed she’d once had a crush on him back in high school. Ethan had told her how he’d left the Blackwell Ranch, vowing he wouldn’t ever need Big E’s support or assistance again. From the conviction in his voice then, she doubted he’d take pay from the ranch now, even if the family wasn’t facing a financial disaster.

At Brewster’s, Ethan dropped into the rocking chair across from Pops. Grace frowned at Ethan. “With so much to do, I’d think you wouldn’t have time to sit.”

“I have eighteen minutes until the bank opens.” Ethan settled into the rocker and grinned at her. “Besides, Pops and I have an important game to finish.”

“Your mother was already asking about you, Gracie. Better get inside or she’ll start hollering over that intercom. Seems Sarah Ashley got it into her head to update the inventory this morning.” Pops rubbed his hands together and adjusted his chair closer to the chess table.

Inventory? Grace reeled. It had taken her ages to create a database that was a perfect fit for Brewster’s. What had gotten into her sister?

Grace also had a conversation to rehearse.

One that was more overdue than last year’s taxes.

CHAPTER FOUR

ETHAN CLOSED BUTTERSCOTCH’S stall and stretched. Between the chess game with Pops that morning and sitting by the mare for the past hour, his back had begun to protest. He’d spent longer with the pregnant horse than he’d expected, trying to coax her to eat. He should’ve been out in the south pasture, fixing the broken fence Katie discovered yesterday. The cattle had to graze there tomorrow, which meant Ethan had to fix the fence tonight.

He also had to apologize to Grace tonight. He decided to saddle up two of the horses, Faith Blue and Dewey, who were used for trail rides, and bring Grace with him. He’d mend the pasture fence and things between him and Grace at the same time.

A large black head shifted into his view. He strode over to Devil’s Thunder and stroked the feisty stallion’s neck. “Not today, Devil, I’m afraid. I need to concentrate on other things. But you and I are going out for a ride soon.”

Being out in the pasture with Grace, he wouldn’t worry about anyone walking in on their private conversation.

He smiled. His style contrasted with his grandfather’s, who was always oversharing in line at the bank or South Corner Drug & Sundries as if he’d sought the approval of the teller or cashier that day. Big E had never even lied about his schemes, just doled out the truth, no matter the reaction from whoever listened to his latest ploy.

Should they be more worried about Big E’s whereabouts?

Not even Pops had any insight to offer about Big E this morning when they’d played chess. Big E wouldn’t have left town without telling someone where he was going, and why.

Ethan supposed there was a first time for everything. Still, his grandfather hadn’t changed in over seventy-five years. Ethan doubted he’d changed in the last month. Ethan just hadn’t found the one person in town who Big E had confided in.

Ethan heard the rumble of a car coming down the road. He stepped out of the horse barn and crossed the yard toward the main house. He reached the curved driveway the same time Grace climbed out of her car. Her four-door sedan was economical and practical and suited her.

Yet there was nothing practical about his reaction to seeing Grace again. He liked that she looked relaxed and comfortable in her jeans and red flannel shirt with rolled sleeves. He liked her blond hair falling around her shoulders, instead of the confining ponytail, and her welcoming smile a little too much. And that didn’t suit him at all. Suddenly, he was impatient to get on a horse and ride, preferably without Grace.

But they needed to talk. “I have to head out to the south pasture before nightfall.”

Grace pointed at the main house. “I can get to work in Big E’s office while you do that.”

“I thought we could saddle Faith Blue and Dewey, and ride out together.” Ethan tracked the sun in the sky and calculated how much daylight remained. “We can talk on the way.”

“I’m not sure...”

“Katie doesn’t know the exact financial distress the ranch is facing and I’d like to keep it like that. I don’t want to worry her more. Between the new tractor, petting zoo arrivals and my own strained credit cards, it’s looking rather bleak. Not to mention, Big E has another bank account that none of us have authority to use.”

From the flurry of pricey renovations inside the main house, Ethan assumed Zoe had had full access to every penny. Too bad he couldn’t get refunds on the bubble-gum paint and crystal chandeliers she’d hung in every bathroom inside his childhood home. He’d probably have enough cash to run the ranch for a month.

Grace asked, “But Katie knows I’m helping with the books, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then she won’t question my being in Big E’s office.” Grace straightened the cuffs on her flannel sleeves as if she needed to put herself back together. “Besides, I’d rather not ride.”

It was easier to let her escape into the office. Easier to ride out to the south pasture alone. But then he’d spend the rest of the night questioning his own cowardice. The Blackwell men had been raised to be fearless and brave. He was already a coward for not having spoken frankly to Grace about their night together.

The solution was simple. He turned his baseball cap backward and concentrated on Grace like a starting pitcher with a no-hitter at the bottom of the ninth inning and the MVP batter at the plate. “You’ve been cooped up at a desk all day. What do you mean you don’t want to ride? You were practically born in a saddle and barely left it as a kid.”

“That was a long time ago.” Grace stubbed the toe of her boot into the gravel and avoided looking at him.

“But you still ride.” He clamped his teeth together, but too late.

Her head snapped up and her gaze centered on him. “How do you know that?”

He knew because he’d followed her posts on social media. He’d seen the picture of her at the horse show in Bozeman last month. Her wide smile couldn’t contain all her joy in that one picture, and whenever he looked at it, he smiled too. He hadn’t seen that kind of happiness in her since he’d returned home. Not that her happiness was actually due to him in any way.

He shifted his weight and shrugged. “Just guessing. You always had a passion for horses. You spent most of your weekends at shows in high school.”

She eyed him suspiciously. “You were too busy with Sarah Ashley to know where I was in high school.”

Sarah Ashley had spent her weekends with her girlfriends mostly. Ethan had definitely not been with her. When he’d needed a break from the ranch, he’d escaped to Brewster’s. Frank and Pops usually had something they needed hauling or lifting. And Grace’s mother most often had homemade cookies or a pie she’d insist he try. When Grandma Brewster had been alive, she’d fill him up on freshly squeezed lemonade.

The Gardners had always welcomed him, anytime, any day. Someone usually let slip Grace’s success at the weekend’s horse show or commented on her growing award shelf. He wondered if Grace knew how proud her parents and grandparents were of her. He wondered if she knew how lucky she’d been to have all their love for so many years. “As our high school years are firmly in the past, let’s concentrate on the now and take a ride together.”

“The sun is already setting and I’m not as familiar with the terrain out there as you are.” Grace opened her passenger car door and pulled out a jacket. “The ATV would probably be faster. We can get to work in the office sooner.”

Ethan nodded, preferring even the ATV to the house. The ATV put her right beside him. She wouldn’t have to strain to hear him, but he’d be stuck next to her. If he struggled to find the right words, he couldn’t simply gallop ahead and collect himself. Still, he loaded the ATV and motioned for Grace to climb in.

Ethan guided the ATV around several potholes and waited until the trail evened out enough to not rattle his voice. He wanted to get this apology out the first time. Now seemed as good a time as any. But “sorry” never slipped past his lips; instead, he blurted out, “Why did you just leave a note that night?”

Ethan hit a bump. But not a large enough one to knock logic back into his thoughts.

Grace’s shoulder tapped against his. “I didn’t want it to be awkward.”

But it was awkward. Perhaps more so because they hadn’t said goodbye at the time. Worse, he’d never called her afterward.

She rushed on and filled the silence before awkwardness became a third passenger. “We’re both adults. Both knew what that night was.”

He thought he knew. Now he wasn’t so sure. “What was that night?”

“You’re going to make me say it?” Grace’s voice pitched high despite the wind. “Certainly, you’ve had one-night stands before.”

Maybe he had, but his past wasn’t the topic of discussion. The only one-nighter that concerned him now was theirs. He’d doubted Grace had ever had a one-night fling. And if that was true, how could she be so cavalier about their evening together? Hadn’t it meant anything to her?

He rubbed his chest, digging his knuckles into his ribs. He should be celebrating that Grace wasn’t into messy emotions and long-term commitments. “That’s all it was to you?” he asked.

“Was it something more to you?” Her tone was cautious as if she’d hesitated to voice the thought.

He slowed the ATV near the broken fence and twisted to look at her. Her gaze locked on to his, making him want to rub his chest again. She wanted his answer. Yet there was no right answer and he’d paused too long.

Grace zipped her jacket to her chin and yanked her hood over her head. “And now, it’s awkward.”

Ethan ran his hands over his face. “Not how I wanted this conversation to go.”

“How did you want it to go?” She gripped the handrail and moved away from him.

“I wanted to apologize for not calling.”

“I never called you either.”

He touched her arm, pulling her gaze back to his. “Still, I don’t make a habit of nights like those.” Although, a quiet voice inside him whispered that Grace could become a habit. Good thing he was usually surrounded by so much noise, he could rarely hear said voice.

“That’s good to know.” Her chin dipped inside her collar. “I don’t either.”

“Okay.” Ethan relaxed into the seat. Her thinking surprised him. And perhaps rankled a bit. As he’d never been one of those overly sensitive guys, he brushed off the discomfort as stiffness from climbing the ladder too many times to test the batteries in the fire alarms of every guest room in the lodge that afternoon. “What now?”

A pair of hawks screeched, circling above them. One hawk dived into the field and returned to the sky with a long snake thrashing inside its talons. Grace slapped a hand over her mouth and tracked the hawk’s path over the ATV.

Ethan remembered their conversation at the bar when she’d shared her fear of snakes after he’d admitted elevators made him uneasy. “Don’t worry. That hawk won’t drop its dinner.”

Grace kept her gaze on the sky and spoke through her fingers. “But it might drop pieces of the snake. Its talons are sharper than my knives at home. Is that blood dripping to the ground?”

“At least the snake will be dead when it lands on us,” Ethan teased, and reached for the wire cutters inside the tool bag beside Grace’s feet. “Snake can be good eating if it’s breaded and fried.”

“You didn’t really just say that, did you?” Grace curled into her jacket.

He unlatched the safety on the wire cutters, and noticed her voice was unsteady. He paused to study her.

Her skin had paled to a strange gray color. She hadn’t sounded uncomfortable with their conversation. They’d only just released the valve on their past. He was certain there’d be more for them to discuss, but she looked uncomfortable now.

Had the snake bothered her that much? She pressed her lips together, her bottom lip disappearing from the pressure. Bringing up the snake again probably wasn’t the best approach.

He glanced at the setting sun. Dinnertime would be over before he finished his repairs, even if he was quick. Food had always been Big E’s answer to everything. Maybe it would help here. “We’ve got chicken soup at the house. I’ll make us something while you get your bearings in Big E’s office.”

“Soup would be perfect.” She shifted her boots up onto the seat and set her cheek on her knees.

“We can head back now, if you’d rather.”

“I’m fine,” she said.

Nothing about the push she gave him on the shoulder was weak or frail. Still, he hesitated to leave her.

She pushed him again and said, “Go. You’ll have one less thing to do tomorrow.”

Ethan hurried to fix the fence and loaded up the ATV. He peeked at Grace, took in her pinched lips and the circles under her eyes. He hadn’t meant to make her anxious when they’d talked about their night together, or sick, when he’d joked about them eating snake.

That he might’ve hurt her made him twitchy inside. For now, he’d table the conversation and come back to it later. Even better, he’d let her take the lead. If she wanted to dissect more about their evening together, then he’d listen and be there. Until then, he’d keep his mouth closed.

He gripped the steering wheel harder, but his first instinct was to grab her hand as if he wanted to comfort her. As if he had a right to hold her.

She’d asked if their night together had been something more than what it was. He wasn’t sure. The only thing he wanted to do was hold her hand now.

But even if he’d wanted something more with Grace, it wasn’t possible. It was impossible. He had nothing to offer but résumés, an uncertain future and an empty bank account. Grace deserved a lot more than that.

Silence rode between them on the drive back to the ranch. Less than five minutes was needed to introduce Grace to Big E’s accounting system, leaving Ethan to prepare dinner in Zoe’s extravagantly expensive pink wonderland.

Unfortunately, as a kid, he’d been more worried about shoveling food into his mouth before his brothers stole it from his plate than considering how it was made. He’d never wandered into the kitchen to help his mom. He’d only ever wandered into the kitchen to snatch a cookie or bag of chips.

After his parents had died, they all learned meals didn’t just appear on the table. Big E had assigned a night for each one of the boys to prepare dinner for the family. That was when Ethan had figured out a handful of quick recipes that required one pot and little preparation. Chicken soup remained his go-to staple.

Soup reheated and ladled into bowls, Ethan carried dinner into Big E’s office on a tray.

Grace looked up from a pile of receipts that covered every inch of Big E’s oversize oak desk. “It might be easier to eat in the kitchen.”

“In here is fine.” He ate every night in the office, in the same leather chair. This was the only room that suited him. Even his childhood bedroom, which he’d shared with Ben and had once contained a bunk bed fort and countless army men, now resembled a giant box of glitter. He’d spent his first night in the room wondering how much the floor-to-ceiling silver curtains that shimmered like waterfalls had cost. He’d moved into Cabin Six after that and hadn’t returned to his childhood room since.

He placed Grace’s soup and crackers beside her. Setting his soup on top of the receipts, he pulled the leather chair closer to the desk and sat down.

“Is there something wrong with the kitchen?” Grace asked.

Ethan crushed crackers into his soup. “It’s cold.” Too pink. Too frivolous. Too dollhouse happy.

“It’s updated and modern with every convenience sold on the market today.” Her eyebrows pulled together behind her glasses. “A chef’s dream.”

But not his mother’s dream. He couldn’t find his mother in the house anymore and that put a chill inside the walls that couldn’t be driven out with a roaring fire. He scooped up a pile of receipts from beneath his bowl and dropped them on the side table. “We can eat and work. It’ll go faster with the two of us. What are you doing anyway?”

Grace pushed up her glasses and used her spoon to stir her soup. “Putting the receipts into piles by year.”

Soup bowls scraped clean and receipts organized, Ethan eased back in the leather chair and watched Grace’s fingers fly over a circa-1970s calculator complete with a roll of white paper. The pencil in her other hand scribbled across a legal notepad. “You’re good at this.”

“I should be. It’s my profession.” Grace tapped the pencil against her temple. “Certified public accountant with a master’s degree in accounting.”

“Impressive.” Ethan steepled his hands and set them under his chin. He pictured her inside her cramped office with the equally compact metal desk. She’d seemed smaller inside that office. Now she seemed to own Big E’s desk and the entire space. He decided she belonged in an office she could command. “You should have your own business.”

“That’s in the works.” Her fingers paused on the calculator, a look of surprise in her wide eyes. “But that isn’t public knowledge. I’d appreciate you not talking about it.”

“But you’re a staple at the store,” he said. Grace had been working at Brewster’s since they’d been kids. Everyone always knew she would be there. Everyone also knew if they needed something, they only had to find Grace. Always Grace.

Grace’s entire face twisted into a grimace as if he’d called her the unwanted sweet potato hash on his plate. “I have more to offer than inventory spreadsheets and special orders.”

“I agree.” Grace was unexpected, like those over-easy eggs on his sweet potato hash.

Grace fumbled with her pencil and adjusted her glasses as if Ethan had messed with her paperwork.

Ethan let her fall back into her number crunching while he tried not to fall into the surprise of Grace Gardner. He listened to her fingers tapping on the calculator keys and the paper rolling out.

“Staring at her is not helping the ranch out.” Katie stood in the doorway and peered around a stack of folded bedsheets in her arms. “But making beds in the lodge will.”

“I don’t want to make beds.” He wanted to stay right where he was. With Grace.

Katie dumped the stack of linens on Ethan’s lap. “I didn’t want to iron and look how that turned out.”

Ethan ran his hand over the smooth top sheet. “Nice job.”

“They’ll look even better on the beds.” Katie smiled and turned to Grace. “Thanks for the help, Grace. If you need anything, I’ll be in the barn. Ethan will be in the guest lodge.”

“Looks like the team leader has spoken and I have more work to do.” Ethan stood and balanced the sheets so he wouldn’t drop them. “Grace, text me before you leave.”

Grace glanced at him, her gaze distracted, her smile distant. “Sure.”

Katie rushed around Ethan. “Let me get the back door for you.”

“Thanks,” Ethan muttered as he left the study.

“Wouldn’t want you sneaking back into the office for more one-on-one time with Grace,” Katie joked.

“We were working.”

“Grace was working.” Katie swung open the back door, but caught Ethan’s arm before he left. “I don’t know what you were doing, Eth. Pining, maybe?”

“I’ve never pined in my life.” He bumped his shoulder into hers as he stepped outside. “I was half asleep and you ruined my nap.”

“Whatever.” Katie kept pace beside him as he lengthened his stride down the back porch steps. “What’s up with you and Grace? You can tell me. I’m practically your sister.”

“Leave it alone, Katie.” Ethan turned toward the guest lodge and smiled. Hip wasn’t allowed at the lodge and he knew Katie wouldn’t tag along without her dog. “Get back to work or I’ll have to fire you for laziness.”

“You wouldn’t survive a day without me,” she countered.

“An hour.”

“What?”

He faced her and tried to look stern. “I wouldn’t survive an hour out here without you, but don’t let it go to your head.”

“It’s good to have you back, Ethan.” Katie laughed and whistled for Hip to accompany her into the barn.

One king bed and a set of twin beds later, Ethan pounded his fist into a feather pillow. He’d spent the last hour tangled up in sheets and duvets and not in the good kind of way. Who put so many buttons on duvets when a simple zipper would work just fine?

Grace and Katie arrived at the second bedroom of the Big Sky wing and burst out laughing. “We came to see what has been taking you so long,” Grace said.

“Fluffing a pillow.” Ethan smashed the pillow again with his fist.

“That’s a beating.” Grace yanked the pillow away from Ethan and patted the stuffing back into place. Her hands gentle as if she did this every day.

“What does it matter?” Ethan fell face forward across the queen bed. “This is what beds are for. There’s no pretty required.” He could think of a few other things beds were good for, like holding Grace all night.

Fortunately, Grace and Katie chose that moment to pummel his back with pillows, pummeling his wayward thoughts away, and he grunted into the mattress.

Grace put her pillow back against the headboard. “How many more rooms do you have to do?”

“Too many. Who builds a lodge with so many rooms anyway?” Ethan turned his head and grinned at Katie. “Rooms four through seven are haunted and need to be closed indefinitely.”

Katie smacked him with her pillow again. “Not happening.”

“Come on,” Grace said. “We’ll teach you how to do pretty.”

He thought Grace looked pretty with the moonlight streaming in from the window framing her from behind. “I don’t want to learn.”

“This won’t leave a scar. I promise.” She gripped his hand and pulled, trying to tug him off the bed.

Ethan rolled over, but kept his hand inside hers. “Tomorrow I’m doing all manly tasks. Nothing that requires pretty.”

“Fine with me.” Katie tossed her pillow on the bed. “Now get up, so we can get this done and finally call it a night.”

With having called time on the pillow fights, the three of them finished the other guest rooms quickly. As he said good-night to Grace at her car, he thought she looked almost exhausted. Was he asking too much of her to try to make sense of Big E’s accounts?

Ethan stretched out across the queen bed in Cabin Six after a midnight snack, and considered all the repairs that were needed in his cabin alone. The to-do list seemed to double every night. But Grace had offered a reprieve and made the evening less toilsome. Less lonely. And he’d learned to do pretty.

He’d learned more than that too. He now knew Grace’s favorite color: purple, thanks to an argument between Katie and Grace about whether the shower curtain in one of the suites was lavender or lilac.