Convincing the Rancher

“Yeah. It makes sense if we spin it right.” Jack jabbed his shovel into the loose dirt left by Slaid’s efforts. “First Southern California steals the water out of the Owens River and just about destroys the Eastern Sierra towns and ranches. Now they’re back, threatening to destroy our last untainted resource—the natural beauty that supports our tourist industry. Just so they can have more power down south.”

“How do we prove the power is going to Southern California?” Slaid asked, wiping sweat off his forehead with his sleeve.

“Because I bet when we get a good look at what this project entails, there’s gonna be a lot more power generated than they can sell around here. Trust me, most of it will be going down to LA.”

“But Renewable Reliance will just say that’s all speculation.”

Jack’s brows drew together as he considered Slaid’s point. “Well. They’ll have to answer our questions, at any rate. We’ll just hope they’ll answer them somewhat honestly.”

“Seem as if you’re saying our success might be rooted in how well we tell the story. We’ve got to get the media interested.” Slaid slammed his pickax back into the dirt. “But what if it backfires? I mean, this country needs clean energy. So how do we avoid looking like a bunch of ignorant, backward-looking people who don’t want to do our part?”

“I’m not sure.” Jack tried to wedge his shovel under the old post. “The thing is, I want wind power—in theory. I want my energy coming from a cleaner source. But do I want those windmills here in Benson? Nope.”

“I feel the same.”

“Samantha and I had an idea the other night. I don’t know if it would work for everyone, but we’re thinking of installing solar panels on our roof. Maybe this is a crazy idea, but what if everyone in town did it? We could prove that we’re not just saying no to wind power because we’re selfish. We’d be saying no because we already have our own source of clean energy.”

“Not a bad idea. It would add to that story you’re talking about spinning. A solar-powered town, threatened by windmills.” Slaid felt more hopeful than he had since Tess had shown up in his office. “What if we worked with the state for some rebates, or even a solar company for a bulk price on panels and installation?”

“It’s worth looking into,” Jack agreed.

“I really think it could be a good strategy.” Already Slaid’s thoughts were sifting through memories of everyone he’d met over the years, trying to remember if he knew anyone involved in the solar industry.

“And it might get us a win.” Jack grinned at him. “If that’s what you want.”

“It’s what I want. I can’t let this wind project happen on my watch.” Slaid set his ax down and reached into the truck bed for a shovel, using his boot to push it deep into the soil. “I think we should bring it up tonight at the city council meeting. You going?”

“Yeah, I’ll be there. Can’t shirk my duties as an elected official. Even if I only got a council seat because no one else wanted it.”

“Hey, plenty of people wanted that seat!” Slaid assured him. “I just wanted you around to save my ass with good ideas like this solar-power plan. I think it could work, though I’m not looking forward to going head-to-head with Tess.”

“Neither are we.” Jack leaned on his shovel. “I’m sure this whole situation is really awkward for Samantha and Tess. They’ve been such close friends, and for the first time they’re on opposite sides of something.”

Slaid nodded. “Yeah, well, if it makes you feel any better, awkward is a hell of a lot better than how I handled things yesterday. I made it personal. I can’t make that mistake again.”

“I guess we can’t help it being kind of personal,” Jack said. “But if the council likes our idea, I think someone should tell Tess about the plan. It’s best to be up front.”

“That someone being me, I guess,” Slaid said. “The dirty work goes along with being the mayor. But I doubt that’ll be an enjoyable conversation.”

Jack jabbed his shovel under the post again, managing to tip it partway over. Slaid reached for it and wrestled the old wood out of the ground. “You know, Samantha mentioned that you and Tess...”

“Yep.” No way was Slaid talking about sex, even with a guy as easygoing as Jack. He grabbed his pickax and walked over to the next post, putting his full attention on loosening the dirt around it. “I’d appreciate if you and Samantha don’t pass that along to anyone else. It’s not a night I’m proud of.”

“Hell, Slaid, we’ve all done things we’re not proud of.”

“But you’re not the mayor.”

“Or the son and grandson of previous mayors,” Jack added. He dug his shovel into the dusty soil. “I get that you’ve got a heavy legacy to carry around, but that doesn’t mean you have to be perfect every moment of your life. That’s impossible.”

Slaid’s laugh came out more like a humorless bark. “I’ve got a divorce to prove that I’m not perfect every moment.”

Jack grinned. “I’ve got one, too, so I guess that means we both have our flaws.”

They worked in silence for a few minutes, deepening the hole around the post. Slaid didn’t want to ask, but something inside him wouldn’t let the opportunity slide. “So since the cat’s out of the bag, what do you know about Tess?”

Jack scooped up a couple more shovelfuls before he answered, “I can understand why you had that night a couple years ago, but I hope for your sake you’re not interested in dating her.”

“I honestly don’t know what I’m interested in.” But the truth was, he hadn’t stopped thinking about her since she’d walked into his office.

Jack sighed. “Well, she’s pretty, obviously, and funny and smart and a great friend to my wife—loyal as anything. But you’d be half-crazy to get involved with her. She’s got a wall a mile thick between her and the world. Samantha’s known her since college and says she barely knows anything about her.”

Slaid paused. “Really? I just figured it was me she was skittish around.”

“Next time you’re with her, watch how she does it. The minute the conversation gets personal about her, she’ll ask about you. Or make a joke. Or find a new topic. Or leave. Anything but talk about herself.”

There was a clank as Jack’s shovel hit what must be a pretty big rock. Slaid dropped the ax and picked up his shovel, driving it into the hard soil with his boot, trying to get under it. “Maybe she just hasn’t met the right guy.” He got the shovel under the rock and started prying. The wooden handle snapped like a twig, sending him staggering backward, broken stub in hand.

Jack just stood there, his shoulders shaking in laughter. “Oh, man, if that’s not an omen for your future with Tess, I don’t know what is. I give you my condolences.”

Slaid picked up the broken pieces and threw them in the truck. He grabbed another shovel out of the back. “You never know. Why don’t you hold off on those condolences for a few more weeks?”

Jack had the pickax now, crouching down to loosen the soil under the rock. When he looked at Slaid, he was still grinning. “Will do. And good luck. You’ll surely need it if you’re going to try to get anywhere with Tess Cole.”

* * *

USUALLY SLAID WAS restless during meetings. He was a big, active guy and sitting around talking didn’t suit him that well. But this evening he was so tired after setting posts with Jack all day that it actually felt good to be sedentary. At least, it felt good while the city council members brainstormed fund-raising ideas for new holiday decorations. This part was easy. It was the windmill discussion, next on the agenda, that could be tricky. Looking around at the weathered faces of the older ranchers and respected Benson citizens who made up the council, Slaid realized he had no idea what they’d think of Jack’s ideas. Most of these folks were fairly traditional. But regardless of how they felt about any kind of alternative energy, the future of power had showed up uninvited at their doorstep. They would have to deal with it.

Gus Jackson, owner of the largest market in town, was chairing the meeting. “Next on the agenda is windmills,” he said. “Slaid, you want to talk about this?”

Slaid cleared his throat and jumped in. “Some of you may have heard that there’s a company looking to put a wind farm on the grazing land I lease east of town.”

About half the folks on his council nodded, while the other half looked stunned. Apparently the Benson gossip mill hadn’t had quite enough time to work its magic. “Now, I don’t know how you all feel about that, but I think we’ll have to come together and take a stand on it, one way or the other.”

“I don’t want to look at them all day, that’s for sure,” Sue Emory said, tapping her pencil anxiously. She ran Jeep tours in the summer and snowshoe hikes in winter. “And the tourists won’t like it much, either.”

“I don’t get it. A private company can just come out here and do that? How?” Gus asked.

“They can get a lease from the Bureau of Land Management, just like we do for grazing,” Jack answered. And it’s easy for them to do it, because the federal government is all about developing domestic sources of energy right now,”

“But here? It’s going to mess with this whole area,” Bob Allen said worriedly. “It’ll change everything.”

“Well, I’m new at this,” Slaid told him. “But it seems to me that if the feds are allowing fracking all over BLM land, a wind-energy project must be a no-brainer for them. It’s a lot less invasive and damaging.”

Jed Watkins leaned forward. “I just don’t get it. We’re a small town. We don’t need that much energy. Why us?”

“We’ve got the wind,” Slaid answered. “And it’s a straight shot down Highway 395 to Southern California.”

“We’re pretty sure they’ll just sell the extra power to LA,” Jack explained. “Or run it across the desert to Las Vegas or some other big city.”

The quaver in Gus’s voice betrayed his distress, “What do we do? No way can we let this happen.”

“Well, we’ve got to run a campaign.” Jack glanced around the table. “Try to get some outside support for our cause. Involve the media and environmental groups.”

“Jack thinks we’ll get a lot of public sympathy on this,” Slaid added. “Especially if we remind people of the struggles folks in this area have endured since LA got its hands on our water.”

“Sounds like a good idea overall,” Sue said.

“Well, there’s another part to this idea,” Slaid’s nervousness was gone now. So far not one person had protested, or extolled the economic benefits of windmills. “Jack and I were talking earlier.” Slaid nodded in his friend’s direction. “He had this idea about using solar energy to fight this thing. If we got solar panels installed all over town, we’d be making most of our own power. Then we can prove that we have no need for a wind farm.”

“But how will we afford all these solar panels?” Jed asked. “Those things are pricey.”

“Well, there are rebates from the federal government, and we’ll try to work with the state for a grant, too. Plus, I was thinking we could try to find a big solar installation company that might consider a group discount.”

The ideas started flying. One of the benefits of a small town was that the council knew every homeowner in it. They made a list of who would be on board, who might get on board with some convincing and the few people who probably never would. Then they made a list of people who might need a little financial assistance.

The council members got so fired up about the solar-power idea that they decided to forego the new holiday decorations this year, and instead use the income from the fund-raisers they’d just planned for “solar scholarships” to help people get their panels installed. Slaid felt a rush of pride. An issue that he’d feared might divide his town was actually going to bring its citizens closer than ever.

His worry about Tess nagged at him, though. If the town came together, they would hand her a big defeat on this thing. And even though he knew that this wasn’t her project, and it wasn’t her defeat, as the project spokesperson, this would be a blow to her career. It might even jeopardize her job.

He’d promised Jack he’d let Tess know their plans and give her a chance to come up with a counterstrategy. But he’d done a little researching on the internet these past few days and learned that Tess was considered one of the best in her field. With a heads-up she might still find a way to kick his butt.

“Slaid, are you on board with all these fund-raisers?” Gus asked.

He looked around the table, embarrassed that he’d been caught with his mind wandering. Luckily his assistant, Erica, had made a chart with all additional fund-raising plans on it, and he was a fast reader. He nodded. They were going to be busy, but it would be worth it. “We’ll need to schedule a few extra meetings, folks, if you want to make all this happen. And I would call in all the favors you can with friends and family, because we will have to form some new committees. Fund-raising, outreach, technology... It’s gonna take the expertise of everyone we know to make this plan a reality.”

An hour later, they all stumbled down the steps of the town hall and out into the dusk. The sun set early these days, earlier still because it went behind the mountains so quickly. Waving goodbye to the council members, Slaid relished a sense of accomplishment. This was why he was mayor—for moments like this. When people worked together to make something happen that was way beyond what any one individual could do.

And now it was just a matter of getting it done. They had their plans in place, meetings on the calendar, and if everyone did their part, they could win this fight.

If they did, he might even end up grateful to Renewable Reliance. Earlier today he and Jack had spoken about his legacy—all that inherited family expectation that sometimes felt like a burden. Well, right now it felt like an opportunity. He had the chance to turn Benson into America’s first solar-powered town. That could be his own legacy—one he could be proud of.

CHAPTER SEVEN

WALKING TO HIS TRUCK, Slaid’s mind went straight back to Tess. He needed to apologize for the way he’d treated her out by his pasture yesterday. He figured he’d bring some flowers. At least they might keep her from slamming the door in his face. Maybe they’d also soften the blow he was about to deliver—that Benson was trying to go solar powered.

Late fall wasn’t the ideal time to find fresh flowers, but he headed to the grocery store and managed to grab a few of the least-wilted bunches. The hardware store was just closing but he begged his way in and, though they didn’t have a vase, he found a large mason jar—it would have to do. Once he’d wrestled the flowers into some kind of decent-looking arrangement, he drove to Tess’s cottage, wondering what kind of reception he would get. Part of him couldn’t wait to see her again. The naive, optimistic part that was still excited that the woman he’d dreamed about was right here in Benson. Another part of him kind of hoped she wasn’t home. He wasn’t looking forward to their conversation. If she was gone, he’d simply write a note of apology, leave the flowers on her doorstep and make his escape. He could deal with delivering the news about the solar panels another day.

When she answered his knock, he knew the easy way out wasn’t an option. But suddenly it didn’t matter, because she took his breath away. Without makeup, her face had a softness he’d never imagined. Her wide blue eyes were rimmed with soft gold lashes that he realized now were usually covered in black mascara. A smattering of freckles decorated her translucent skin. Her hair hung past her shoulders in soft waves. Dressed in a plum-colored sweater and black knit pants, she looked relaxed, much younger and way more beautiful than ever.

Her eyes widened at the sight of him. “Slaid, what are you doing here?”

“Apologizing,” he said softly. “May I come in for a moment?”

Her expression was guarded, and she glanced down with evident regret at her casual clothing, pushing a lock of hair behind her ear in a self-conscious gesture that was out of sync with the Tess he knew. “Okay.”

She opened the door wider for him and he stepped into the entry, feeling like a fool standing there with flowers in his hands. But after the way he’d acted, he knew he deserved to feel like a fool. And worse.

“These are for you.” He handed her the bouquet.

“Why?” she asked sharply, taking the jar.

“Because I was an idiot. I took that whole windmill thing out on you when I know it’s not your fault. Hell. You wouldn’t even still be here if I hadn’t put pressure on you to stay. I had no right to act like that, Tess. And I’m sorry.”

He waited for her smile, wanting to see the corners of her lush mouth tilt up. But it didn’t come. Instead she looked troubled.

“I don’t need flowers. We’re professionals, Slaid. You were just reacting to some bad news. I’m a big girl. I can take it. I definitely don’t need an apology.”

Her words and tone jarred him out of his thoughts, which had been stuck on her mouth and the realization that he wanted to kiss her. He yanked his eyes away.

“Maybe you don’t need to hear it, but I need to give it. I messed up and I know better.”

“You really are a Boy Scout, aren’t you?” She set the flowers down on an end table next to a white armchair.

“Eagle,” he said automatically before realizing how stupid that sounded.

“Right. Well, Scout, apologies are for personal relationships, and we’re not personal. We’re business. So you do what you need to do, and I’ll do what I need to do, and we’ll just try our best to keep it civil. How’s that?”

Scout. Her nickname had him feeling like a little kid. It didn’t help that she sounded as if she was explaining the ways of the world to a child. He’d come here with flowers, stood on her doorstep struck speechless by her beauty, and that was how she saw him. Some Boy Scout country boy who needed her to school him in being professional. Irritation ran up his spine and he stiffened. “That’s fine. And since we’re being civil, I think I owe you a heads-up.”

“About?”

“The city council just voted to pursue a plan to make Benson the first one-hundred-percent solar town in the country.” He waited for her reaction, but if she was worried, he couldn’t tell—she was that good. She just stood a little straighter, tipped her chin up a little more proudly.

“Well, I appreciate you telling me. I’ll need to let my client know, as well... You understand?”

Hell, he hadn’t thought of that and neither had Jack. Renewable Reliance might be able to pull strings and put obstacles in their way that Tess on her own could not. “Of course,” he said, trying to play it as cool as she did.

“Is there anything else?”

“Um. A thank-you? For the flowers?”

“I didn’t realize I had to say thank you for an apology.”

Damn. If there had ever been anything between them after their night in Phoenix, she was making sure it was buried under about a mile of ice...and he was slipping and sliding like a fool without skates. He tried one last time. “Look, if you want to go back to San Francisco and get someone else to take your place in Benson, I’ll be okay with it. I should never have tried to make you stay.”

“I can see why you’d rather I was gone now, but I don’t back away from a fight, Slaid.”

“I don’t want you gone.” There, he’d said it, and the shock on her face might well be worth the embarrassment of putting his feelings right out there. “That’s not my intention. Tess, I’m apologizing—for forcing you to stay in the first place and for my behavior since. I’m trying to correct my wrongs.”

She stared at him warily. “That’s nice of you. But like I said before, I don’t need apologies. We’re on opposite sides of this issue—that’s just the way it is. We have to agree to do our work and not take anything personally.”

He’d have to remember those last few words next time he was distracted by her beauty or memories of what they’d shared. None of this was personal. Even the sex hadn’t been personal for her. “I’ll just say good-night, then.”

“Good night,” she said calmly, and went to the door, opening it for him, signaling that their conversation was over.

Slaid clapped his hat on his head and walked out, the shreds of his dignity trailing behind him. He thought back to Jack’s warning earlier today. His friend had cautioned that Tess was hard to get to know, but he hadn’t mentioned that she was a cat, with sharp claws hidden beneath her sleek form. Claws that could softly and easily slice a man’s confidence into bits.

* * *

TESS CLOSED THE door behind Slaid and leaned against it, letting out the breath she’d been holding. She prided herself on anticipating all obstacles, but she couldn’t have predicted this one. An entire town going solar? It was brilliant. She had no idea if they’d be able to pull it off, but it was a truly inspired move.

Unfortunately, she was on the receiving end of their inspiration. She would call Ed tomorrow and tell him about this new development, and then wait to hear what Renewable Reliance wanted to do about it. And in the meantime, she would have to come up with something good, something fabulous, to convince the people of Benson that solar wasn’t the way to go.

I don’t want you gone. His words were pulsing neon in her brain, emanating fear and desire that sent a shiver up her spine. He made her crazy, angry and frustrated. He was her enemy in what was going to be a very tough fight. But in those few moments since she’d arrived when they hadn’t been arguing, when they’d shared a spark of humor or a smile, she hadn’t wanted to be gone, either. And those moments troubled her.

She wandered over to the flowers Slaid had brought—white roses, some pink carnations and a whole bunch of baby’s breath. A standard supermarket offering. She trailed her fingers over the soft rose petals anyway. No guy had ever brought her flowers before. Probably because she rarely told them her name or where she lived. And because women like her, who were so clearly out for just a one-night stand, didn’t inspire the traditional thank-you bouquet after a night of sex, no matter how good.

It was kind of sweet that he’d brought them. Totally inappropriate, of course, but sweet. And yet she’d been hard on him—she’d had to be. Seeing him at her door, totally gorgeous and all hopeful, flowers in one hand, his leather cowboy hat in the other, had just about taken her legs out from under her. And there was no way she could let that happen. She needed them strong and steady and completely reliable if she hoped to win this fight.

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