Her Montana Christmas Groom

“Really?” Rose kicked herself. The single word would signal encouragement to continue, which was the last thing she wanted. He was probably black and blue from patting himself on the back. If she heard one more party-of-the-first-part, fiduciary duty or jurisprudence, she’d scream. Or choke him.

“They were forced to finally settle out of court. I was making it too expensive for them to continue defending against it. Although, just between you and me, there was no merit to my client’s lawsuit.”

Rose stared at him. It was lawyers like him who gave every attorney who’d passed the bar a bad reputation. Time to change the subject to something neutral. Like her new hometown. The weather.

“Thunder Canyon is a great place to live,” she said. No “I” anywhere in that sentence.

“I’ve lived here all my life. Did I mention I played football?”

By her count he’d mentioned it four times. She remembered because she’d responded the same way three times and this made number four. “In Texas we take our football seriously.”

“So you said.” Harvey sipped his whiskey and soda.

Color her surprised that he’d noticed. She’d hoped that bringing up Thunder Canyon would segue into his asking why she’d moved. How she liked Montana. Did the cold bother her? Was it true that the best way to ride out a snowstorm was in front of a fire? She remembered Austin offering to help her build one and just the memory had her sizzling.

Rose flashed back to how handsome he’d looked in his traditional black tux at the wedding. She remembered delivering dinners with him on Thanksgiving and his joking about boring her into a coma. No danger of that happening. He was fun. Unlike the buffoon sitting across from her.

The buffoon continued, “In high school, I was quarterback of the football team when we won our division and went on to state.”

“Is this a colder winter than usual in Montana?” she asked.

“No, I remember football practice and games in the snow. Although our season went longer because we were always in playoffs when I was the quarterback.” The ice in his empty glass clinked when he swirled it. “It was good training for practicing law. Everyone tries to knock you down, but you dig in and don’t let them.”

“Words to live by.” That was as close to neutral as she could get.

She studied him. Good-looking. Smart enough to become a lawyer. From a nice family. On paper he was everything she wanted in a man if you left out the boring and self-centered part. He hadn’t asked her anything and apparently didn’t care how she was adjusting to her new life in town. Call her perverse, but she let the awkward silence drag on because everything that popped into her mind to say would only lead him into another topic about himself.

“I’m pretty good on a pair of skis,” he said. “But there’s nothing like the adrenaline rush of snowboarding.”

“Oh?” She couldn’t resist. “I bet that’s good practice for a career as a lawyer, too. Fall down, get back up.”

“Smart girl. I decided on a career as an attorney because knowing the law gives you power. And the money’s good, too.” He grinned and winked.

Dear God, did he really just wink at her? She barely held back a shudder. “So I’ve heard.”

“I’ve got the mayor’s ear.” He lowered his voice as if he was sharing a national security secret and all the families eating ribs in booths and wooden tables around the room were spies. “If your brother Ethan needs local legal counsel for Traub Oil, I’m his guy. Or if he’s looking to merge the legal departments of Texas and Montana under one roof, I could help with that, too.”

The “aha” light came on and all became clear to Rose. This blowhard wasn’t attracted to her any more than she was to him. He had an ulterior motive for asking her out. If Harvey hadn’t picked her up at her apartment, she’d have walked out right that second. But her place was a long hike in the cold and she was wearing heels.

She stood up suddenly. “Excuse me, Harvey. I’m going to the ladies’ room.”

Before he could answer, she turned and hurried through the place. She passed waitresses wearing short, tight blue shorts and a big red lip imprint on their T-shirts feeling as exploited as they probably did. Following the back wall, she finally found the alcove with doors that said “Men” and “Women” staring at each other. She pushed open the female door and blew out a long breath, grateful that it was quiet and she was alone.

“That pompous windbag. Conniving, underhanded, self-absorbed jerk. How dare he use me to get Ethan’s legal business?”

There must be a way to cut this abomination of an experience short. It wasn’t practical to simply walk out and she couldn’t insist he take her home immediately. Working with him could get awkward if he wasn’t exaggerating the truth and really did have access to the mayor.

Bo Clifton had probably known Harvey a long time. There could be press releases with critical wording that might require legal tweaking, to keep the mayor out of hot water because of unfortunate phrasing. How could she gracefully end this horrid encounter before committing justifiable homicide? It would be self-defense because if it lasted any longer, Harvey French would bore her to death. But if she choked him, there could be jail time involved. That would upset her family and she didn’t think she’d do well in jail.

Although she was sick of Harvey, pretending to come down with an illness was problematic. Her acting skills weren’t that good. There was only one thing to do, what she always did when she was in trouble.

She pulled her cell phone out of her purse and brought up her contact list, then hit Jackson’s number. The last thing he said to her at the wedding was that if she needed him he would be there. Time to put up or shut up.

Rose worried her lip as the phone rang three, four, five times. Darn it. He wasn’t answering. Just when she was afraid the call was going straight to his voice mail, Jackson finally picked up.

“What?” He sounded crabby and breathless, as if he’d been running, or…

Oh, no. Shoot, shoot, shoot, she said to herself. With caller ID, he already knew who was calling, so she had to say something. “It’s Rose.”

“Are you okay?” The words were laced with alarm.

“Fine, physically. I have a date, but—”

“You called to tell me you have a date? What am I? Your BFF? That’s not breaking news. It’s business as usual for you.”

“No, Jackson, listen. I’m with him right now—”

“Why is your voice echoing?”

Rose leaned her shoulder against a tile wall. The mirror and sink were beside her. She stared at her reflection, the desperation on her face, and hoped it was as clear in her voice. “I’m hiding in the restroom, so technically he’s not here now. He’s waiting for me at the table.”

“I don’t need a play by play—”

“Stop yelling at me and listen. You have to get me out of here.”

“Are your legs painted on? Just walk out.”

“He picked me up, I don’t have a car. The thing is, I met him at work. There’s no graceful way for me to handle this and it could get awkward at the office.”

“Rose—” Annoyance grated in his voice.

“Please, Jackson. I wouldn’t have bothered you if there was any other way. I’m begging you to get me out of here. Think of something so he won’t be offended. He’s got an ego on him.” She added the final argument. “I’m at Lipsmackin’ Ribs.”

“Traitor.”

“It wasn’t my idea,” she protested. “He surprised me. But do you see what I’m up against?”

There was a long silence before he finally said, “Give me fifteen minutes.”

“Thanks, Jackson.”

Rose reapplied her lipstick, then went back to the table. “All freshened up.”

He looked a little miffed. “The waitress was here to take our order, but I didn’t know what you wanted.”

That surprised her from the man who thought he knew everything. On the other hand, she didn’t want him to be on the hook for food she had no intention of eating.

“We’ve been so busy blathering away that I haven’t had a chance to look at the menu.” She gave Harvey a bright smile, something it was possible to do now that help was on the way.

It was actually closer to twenty-five minutes before Jackson finally showed up. He stopped beside the booth and scowled. “I’ve been looking for you.”

“Jackson?” She put as much surprise as possible into her voice. “I’m on a date here. Harvey French, this is my brother Jackson Traub.”

“Nice to meet you.” Harvey put out his hand and they shook.

“What are you doing here, Jackson?” Her performance wouldn’t win any awards, but it was the best she could do.

“Your cell phone is off. There’s urgent family business and I’m here to get you.”

“Can’t it wait until Harvey and I have dinner?”

“No.” There was a dangerous glint in her brother’s dark eyes and she wondered if she’d pushed it just a little too far.

“Jackson wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t important.” She pretended regret when she looked at Harvey. “I’m so sorry, but it looks like I have to cut our evening short.”

“Only if I get a rain check,” Harvey said.

“Only if…” That wasn’t an outright lie. She stood and grabbed her coat and purse. “Thanks for the drink.”

She lifted her hand in a wave, then turned and followed her brother outside. His new luxury SUV was parked at the curb, proof that he was settling down. Rose opened the door and got in. “You’re a lifesaver.”

“Yeah.” He turned the key in the ignition and the dashboard came to life, highlighting his angry expression.

“I’ll make it up to you.”

“Good, because you owe me big time. Laila and I were just about to have a—romantic moment.”

That’s what she’d been afraid of. His hair was uncombed and looked as if Laila had been running her fingers through it. Beneath his sheepskin-lined jacket his shirttail was hanging out, as if he’d dressed in a hurry and didn’t take the time to tuck it in. There wasn’t much she could say, but she had to try.

“I’m so sorry. I feel terrible about that, but I was desperate.”

“That’s what you get for going out with someone from work.”

“How else am I supposed to meet men?” she asked.

Jackson’s only response was an angry look. In the silence that followed, she realized he was driving in the opposite direction from where her apartment was located.

“Where are we going?”

“You’ll see.”

A few minutes later her brother pulled up in front of The Hitching Post and turned off the car. “I didn’t make up the part about urgent family business.”

Rose narrowed her gaze on him. “What’s going on?”

“Come with me.”

“Do I have a choice?”

“No.” He came around the car and met her on the sidewalk. The streetlight illuminated his features and there was a very real possibility that the glare on his face was permanent. Without another word, she followed him into The Hitching Post.

Unlike Lipsmackin’ Ribs on Tuesday night, this place was quiet. Divided by a half wall, there was a restaurant on one side and a bar on the other. Rose was pretty sure they were going to the other.

Her suspicion was confirmed when she saw her brothers Dillon, Ethan and Corey at a table with the best view of the painting behind the old west-style bar. In the picture, a scantily clad and scandalous Lily Divine stared down at the men with a “come hither” challenge in her eyes.

“Bet she didn’t have any trouble getting a man,” Rose grumbled.

And that’s when she saw Austin Anderson on the restaurant side sitting at a table with his sister Angie. Family night at The Hitching Post, just her luck. They saw her and waved and she lifted a hand in response. For a second she thought about breaking rank and joining them because it was clear Jackson had mobilized Traub reinforcements for some reason.

All her brothers were there except Jason who was still in Midland, Texas. Whatever the four in Thunder Canyon had to say was probably not something she wanted to hear. And she really would rather Austin didn’t have a front row seat. He’d already seen her get carded and a stern talking to by the Traub tribe was not another humiliation she wanted him to witness.

“You know, Jackson, I think I’m going to skip this family reunion,” she said.

“If you take one step toward that door, I will put you over my shoulder.” It didn’t seem possible that his fierce look could intensify, but the angry stare got angrier and stopped her cold.

“Okay, let’s get this over with.”

“My sentiments exactly. Laila’s waiting.”

Rose moved around him and with head held high, walked to the table where her brothers waited. All of them were at least six feet tall, broad-shouldered and dark-haired. She’d told Austin they were the best-looking men at the wedding, but right this minute she would take back those words and substitute annoying.

She took the last open seat at the table for four. The three of them had beers and there was a fourth that Jackson picked up. Nothing for her.

Dillon, the oldest, rested his forearms on the table. “Jackson called me after you sounded the alarm, Rose. I decided a family meeting was in order.”

“Why?” This wasn’t unprecedented, but it didn’t happen very often.

“Consider this an intervention,” he said, a very doctor-like thing to say. Because he was a doctor, the word choice made perfect sense.

The meaning? Not so much. “What for? I don’t smoke, do drugs or drink too much.”

“You’re addicted to dating,” Corey said.

“You’re not serious,” she scoffed.

“Yeah, we are.” Jackson pulled over a chair from the adjacent table. “You date too much.”

“Define too much.” Her chin lifted a notch.

“So many men, so little time.” Dillon took a pull on his beer. “Off the top of my head there’s Nick, Dean and Cade Pritchett.”

“Okay, so—”

“John Kelly,” Corey added. “The mortgage banker.”

“Yeah.” Rose struggled to put a face with the name. “He was very banker-ish.”

“You don’t remember him, do you?” Ethan looked thoughtful. “Zach Evans. He’s a rancher.”

“Rob Lewis, chamber of commerce president.” Corey turned his beer bottle.

They continued to add names to a list that became pretty impressive. She was amazed that her macho brothers had paid so much attention to her love life. Or, to put a finer point on it, her lack of love life.

“They don’t even know about Harvey French.” Jackson’s eyes narrowed.

“Then I’ll tell them,” she said. “He’s a lawyer and asked me out because he wants to get Traub Oil Montana’s legal business. And possibly the Texas stuff, too.”

“Jerk,” Ethan muttered.

“My sentiments exactly. That’s why I called Jackson,” she defended. “So if we’re done here—”

“Not so fast,” they all said.

Ethan nailed her with a look. “You’ve got to stop, Rosie. Take a break.”

“I can’t do that.” She folded her arms over her chest and looked at each of them defiantly.

“Yeah, you can. Get your head on straight,” Corey suggested. “Decide what you’re looking for. Separate the wheat from the chaff.”

“What does that even mean?”

If this was a job, they’d be telling her to work it, put in the hours, make herself indispensable. This was even more important. It was her life, her happiness. Why should finding love require any less dedication than her career?

Jackson leaned forward, rested his elbows on his knees. “Some soul searching couldn’t hurt, Rose. You need to figure out why no guy is generating sparks.”

That wasn’t completely true, she thought. There were enough sparks with Austin to start a fairly frightening forest fire. She glanced over at him and saw he was looking at her. The expression in his eyes set off a fireball in her belly, proving her point. She grabbed Ethan’s beer and took a drink to put out the blaze. This thing with Austin was nothing. It couldn’t be.

“Jackson’s right,” Corey agreed. “Time-out.”

“Since when are you guys the dating police?”

“Since always.” Dillon met her gaze. “It’s what big brothers do.”

They were also men and didn’t get it.

“I’m a grown woman. You can’t ground me,” she protested. “Don’t think I don’t appreciate all you do, but—”

“No excuses. Cold turkey.” Jackson took a sip from his bottle. “I bet you can’t go a month without a date.”

That touched a nerve, but she pushed down the competitive streak. “A woman of my advancing years can’t afford to sit on the sidelines that long.”

“Don’t talk to me about piling up the years.” Dillon, the oldest sibling, shook his head. “You’re just a baby.”

“Hardly,” she said. “And you don’t understand. You all found love without even trying.”

The four of them stared at her, then started laughing.

“What’s so funny?” she demanded.

“It’s never as easy as it looks.” Amusement still lurked in Corey’s light brown eyes. “Jason is the last unattached Traub brother and he’s still in Texas. Maybe it’s something about Thunder Canyon.”

“That’s what I’m trying to tell you,” she said. “And I’ve got to keep myself out there—”

“No.” Jackson shook his head. “That’s what we’re trying to tell you. Time-out, for Pete’s sake. I double dare you to put the brakes on the dating wagon for thirty days.”

Double dare? Rose gritted her teeth. He knew her too well. She never turned down a double dare, darn him.

“You’re going straight to hell, Jackson Traub.” She glared at him and figured the expression was just as fearsome as his.

He looked completely unimpressed. “A brother’s gotta do what a brother’s gotta do.”

Frustration knotted inside her when they all nodded in agreement.

“And if any one of us catches you on a date before time is up, it’s back to day one, plus two weeks,” Jackson warned.

“A month and a half?” she cried.

“Double dare,” he reminded her. “Technically I could double the stakes, but I’m cutting you some slack.”

She blew out a breath. “Done.”

“And remember, this isn’t Midland.” Jackson pointed a finger at her. “Thunder Canyon is a small town and word spreads real fast, so don’t be trying to pull anything. We’ve got eyes and ears everywhere.”

“I’ll get even with you. Every last one of you,” she warned, treating each of them to the Rose Traub double dare stare. “You won’t know where or when, but payback is coming.”

“Yeah, we’re scared.” Dillon stood and the others followed suit.

He patted her head. Ethan tapped her nose. Corey ruffled her hair. Then the three walked away, leaving her with Jackson. As Rose watched their backs, her gaze drifted to Austin. He was frowning at his sister and it reminded her that her brother was supposed to get her information about him.

Rose watched Jackson shrug into his jacket. “So,” she said, “what did Laila say about Austin? Did you get details about why his love life has nowhere to go but up?”

“You’re not dating for a month.” Jackson stared at her as if she had two heads. “What do you care?”

“I don’t.”

That was a big, fat lie.

Even worse than lying to her brother, she couldn’t stop thinking about Austin Anderson.

Chapter Four

Austin supervised a group of teenagers who were putting lights on the Christmas tree at ROOTS. He could have helped, made suggestions about spacing and symmetry, but it was their tree and they didn’t need adults butting in. That was part of the philosophy here. Supervise for safety, advise only when asked. Watching the kids joking and laughing, talking and teasing, he wished there’d been a hangout like this when he was growing up. It had been Haley’s dream and she’d pulled rabbits out of a hat to make it happen.

The mural she’d painted of teens playing sports, using computers and texting on cell phones filled the wall that faced Main Street. She’d found an old couch, a recliner that no longer reclined, ugly lamps and scratched tables that the kids could use without worrying about messing anything up. They came to talk, vent, do homework and have fun. Thanks to a long list of volunteers, there was always an adult on the premises.

Tonight he was that adult.

If only Rose Traub saw him that way. Somehow he was going to change her mind about him, although so far he didn’t have much of a plan about how to make it happen. Last night he’d seen her at The Hitching Post with her brothers who appeared to be pulling rank. He recognized the big brother body language and remembered how young and defiant she’d looked. Austin recognized that body language. He’d gotten an advanced degree in young and defiant.

Angry voices in the corner around the tree got his attention and he moved to defuse the situation. Three girls watched the two boys as arguing turned to shoving. Understanding from personal experience how a flood of testosterone could drown a guy’s common sense, Austin quickly moved in to separate them.

He pushed his way between the teenagers who were both skinny and shorter than he was. But a stray punch thrown was always a concern.

“Break it up, guys,” he said. “Use words.”

“He already did that.” The shaggy-haired blond had fire in his blue eyes. “He was talkin’ trash about my sister.”

“No, dude—I said she was fine.” Black hair and eyes along with low-slung jeans screamed bad boy.

The image attracted girls for some reason and Austin should know. Growing up, he’d excelled at that phase and never lacked for attention from the opposite sex. Then his luck with girls ran out. About the time he’d graduated from college, he’d thought he was grown up enough to have his own family, but the girl he’d asked had easily resisted him.

The bell over the front door dinged, but before he could see who came in, the two combatants lunged at each other again. Austin put his hands out to keep them apart.

“Knock it off, Evan,” he said to the blond. “Looking out for your sister is a good thing, but I guarantee she won’t thank you for punching out the dude who’s giving her a compliment.” He gave the tough guy a hard stare. “It was a compliment right, Cal?”

Rebellion crackled in the dark eyes, then backed off a notch, signaling a truce. Full surrender would take time. And maturity.

“Yeah,” the kid finally said. “I didn’t mean anything.”

“Didn’t think so.” Austin dropped his hands. “Take five, guys, and grab a soda. Cool off.”

In the back room there was a refrigerator with fruit, cold drinks and water. A pantry was full of crunchy snacks. Not only could teenage boys consume unbelievable quantities of food under normal circumstances, sometimes kids also weren’t getting enough to eat at home. There were families in financial need because of job loss in the recent recession. Austin hoped the green engineering process he was working on would create employment opportunities for some of them.

“Is it always this exciting around here?”

Austin knew that voice belonged to the redhead on his mind. There was a wide grin on his face when he turned.

“Rose.”

She lifted a mitten-covered hand. “Hi.”

“It’s usually pretty quiet in here,” he said, glancing at the doorway where the teens disappeared. Their voices drifted in from the back room.

“I know it’s wrong to condone fighting, but—” She smiled. “A brother protecting his sister’s honor.”

“It’s what we do.” He’d stepped in to defend Angie when Haley had brought home a teen in trouble. Although it turned out he’d misinterpreted the situation. But Rose wasn’t talking about him. “This is a pleasant surprise.”

Not his smoothest dialogue. Maybe he should pull out his bad boy alter ego and see if it still worked magic.

“How are you?” she asked.

“Good. You?”

“Fine.” She was bundled up in a puffy jacket, navy cashmere scarf, matching hat and mittens. Black slacks and boots completed her winter look. “How’s Angie?”

“Busy. Between college classes and work, she’s got a lot on her plate.”

“Sounds like it.” She pulled off her jacket and mittens which meant she wasn’t in too big a hurry to leave. “I saw you with her last night.”