Country Strong--A Novel

by Linda Lael Miller

  Which meant the wind was sharper and more stinging than ever, and from the moment April Reed left the warmth of her car’s heated interior, it furiously whipped her hair straight into her eyes as she squinted up at the mountain.

  Up at the odd-angled, wood-sided house.

  It had to be constructed of sterner stuff than it appeared, or it would have blown off Rambling Mountain long, long ago. Either that or it was a testament to the sheer stubbornness of the house’s occupant.

  Her grandfather, Squire Clay, had always said that nobody was more stubborn than Otis Lambert. Not even Squire, himself.

  Which was saying something.

  She pulled the collar of her leather coat against her throat and reached inside the car for her briefcase. When she straightened, the wind slammed the car door shut for her. She yanked the edge of her jacket free where it had caught and squinted into the wind as she moved past a dusty blue pickup and stepped around the wooden barricade blocking the road leading up to the weather-beaten house. Even without the barricade, she wouldn’t have been able to drive the last half mile up to the house. Not with the rockslide. The boulders weren’t enough to block passage entirely, but they were definitely enough to block a vehicle.

  She chewed the inside of her cheek as she weaved her way around a four-wheeler parked on the other side of the blockage and glanced back down the road. Developing the road would be costly. When she was finished meeting with Lambert, she’d take some photos of the damage and email them to her boss. Gage Stanton wasn’t likely to let a few boulders stand in his way, but he’d still want a general sense of what they’d be facing. Ultimately, her boss had in mind a sumptuous resort catering to outdoor enthusiasts, because Rambling Mountain could offer it all. Rock climbing. Hunting. Fishing. Whatever. The only road on the mountain was this one. It would need to be passable even if Gage chose another location on the mountain for the resort.

  The wind whistled and she pulled her collar close again, turning to head up the road. It was steep. Treacherously narrow. She instinctively moved away from the side that overlooked the sheer drop-off. Hundreds of feet below glistened a pristine lake fed by natural underground springs. A lake that would provide endless recreational opportunities. If a person could reach it.

  It might seem strange for one person to own an entire mountain, but one did.

  Otis Lambert.

  Technically, water was the property of the state, but Lambert and his ancestors had always exercised their water rights when it came to the lake. It wasn’t that they’d unreasonably withheld the natural stream water that flowed from it. Down the mountain, that water helped irrigate the region, including the town of Weaver and a whole lot of ranch land. But the only accessible point to the lake from a recreational standpoint lay entirely within Otis Lambert’s property. Thousands and thousands of acres of it.

  And one week ago, Otis had contacted her boss, Gage Stanton. Founder of Stanton Development. A Colorado-based company known for everything from award-winning, master-planned communities to hospitals to amusement parks.

  The very fact that Otis had requested a meeting with a developer would seem to imply that he was softening when it came to sharing his mountain.

  “Won’t happen, girl.”

  Her grandfather’s words from just that morning swam in her mind. They’d been sitting at the round oak table in the middle of the kitchen at the big house. The stack of golden waffles that her grandmother, Gloria, had set on the table had been quickly decimated by Squire and her uncle Matthew. He was Squire’s son and had run the Double-C for as long as April could remember.

  And all four of them—Squire and Gloria, Matthew and his wife, Jaimie—lived together in the sprawling old house everyone referred to as the “big house.” As one of the largest cattle operations in the state of Wyoming as well as several states beyond, the Double-C commanded considerable influence and wealth. Considering that, the big house was actually somewhat modest in size. And even though Squire was supposedly retired as the head of the ranch, he could still ride and rope as well as any one of his progeny and he’d never stopped looking for an opportunity to add to their holdings.

  “Won’t happen, girl,” he’d said, his icy blue eyes squinting at her as he sipped his steaming coffee from a china cup. “I’ve spent more ’n half my life trying to negotiate a deal with Lambert to connect those two sections o’ land we own down on the southwest corner. Old hermit isn’t even willin’ to discuss leasing a couple hunnert acres that he’d never miss. The man’s sitting on millions but he lives like a pauper ’cause that’s the way he likes it. Waste of time goin’ up the mountain to see him. Be better off tryin’ to sell ice to a glacier.”

  “Stop trying to discourage her,” Gloria had chided as she gave April a quick wink. “Not everyone is as stubborn as you. Maybe Otis’ll have a soft spot for a red-haired girl.”

  Squire had grunted at that, a faint smile on his lips. “Well, I guess that worked for me back when you were a nurse poking me with needles ’n’ naggin’ me about drinking my coffee.”

  “Keeping you alive,” Matthew had reminded his father as he pushed away from the table and dropped a kiss on Jaimie’s head. “Everyone’s heard that Lambert’s sick. Really sick. You’re just aggravated that your granddaughter’s beating you to the punch getting a meeting with him.”

  Squire had made a face, but his eyes, which could look cold as winter, had been warm and kind as he’d eyed her. “Do your best, girl. But be prepared for disappointment. Lambert’s never shared an inch of land. Sick or not, can’t see him changing now.”

  Loose gravel slid under April’s boot and she barely caught herself from landing on her knee. Cussing under her breath, she stopped still and hauled in a deep breath. If she’d known she’d be having this hike ahead of her, she would have worn more suitable boots.

  She looked back down again toward her red car, then up toward the house. She’d only gone halfway. Even though she was accustomed to living with elevation—Denver wasn’t called the Mile High City for nothing—the air was even thinner up here and the ramshackle house wasn’t situated anywhere near the summit.

  She knew why Gage had sent her to take the appointment with Lambert. She may have grown up mostly in Arizona, but she’d still spent plenty of time in Wyoming. Visiting her grandparents for holidays, spending summers there. Her boss had sent her, ostensibly, because she had an edge, being “sort of” a local girl.

  She knew it was more than that, though. If Lambert’s health were really as bad as it was rumored, there’d be a lot of interested parties where his land was concerned. And first in line would be her grandfather, Squire Clay. The only thing more important than that land was his family. If April could successfully negotiate a deal with Lambert now, it was guaranteed that Squire wouldn’t try to get in the way.

  There was good reason Gage was so successful.

  She swiped her hair away again, took another deep breath and set off once more.

  She hadn’t gone twenty yards before a figure appeared from behind the house. He was too far away to make out his features, but his stride wasn’t slowed at all as he kicked through a mound of snow, aiming her way.

  It wasn’t the sight of the man that was alarming, particularly. She’d never met Otis Lambert. Never seen him before, even. But this man’s head was bare and she doubted Otis—who, like Squire, was somewhere in his nineties—had a full head of dark hair.

  Which meant he was the ranch hand. Jed Dalloway.

  Otis had taken him on several years back, according to Squire. And he was almost as reclusive as Otis.

  No, the man didn’t alarm her. But the fierce dog at the man’s side, curling back its lips to expose wickedly sharp teeth, was another matter.

  She was used to dogs. Liked them. The only reason she didn’t have one herself was that she lived in a loft apartment in downtown Denver and spent more hours at the off
ice than she did at home. She couldn’t give a dog the attention it deserved.

  But this shaggy gray growling beast looked more wolf than dog.

  A wolf had once come down from the mountains at the Double-C, picking off cattle along the way until Matthew and his brothers had gone out with a rifle to take care of it. She’d been sixteen at the time and full of outrage toward them.

  Now she felt more like the poor cow must have felt, finding itself in a wolf’s stare.

  She lifted her chin, swiping the hair away from her eyes yet again. “Does he bite?” She’d raised her voice, but the wind nearly tore it away.

  The man was coming toward her, the dog keeping pace. “What’d you say?”

  The closer man and dog drew, the faster her heart beat. He was a good thirty feet away when he stopped. The denim shirt he wore open over a white T-shirt strained at his wide shoulders and yanked in the wind. The dog leaned against the side of his muddy jeans, teeth still bared. The growl was no longer imagined, but perfectly, nerve-rackingly audible.

  It took every speck of willpower she had not to take a step back. “I asked if he bites.”

  “When he needs to.”

  She swiped at her hair again. Dragged her focus from the fearsome canine to the man. His eyes were narrowed. Unwelcoming.

  But she had a reason to be there and wasn’t going to be cowed just because a man gave her a narrow-eyed look. “That’s not exactly a comforting answer.”

  “Wasn’t intending it to be.” But he lowered a raw-knuckled hand and touched the dog’s head. The animal promptly sank down on its haunches. The growl ceased, though the teeth remained visible. “You’re trespassing. Signs are posted on the road. The private road. You ignored them.”

  She tightened her grip on the leather strap of her briefcase. She’d never been a ninny and she wasn’t starting now. She stepped toward him. “I’m not trespassing. I was invited. I’m April Reed with Stanton Development. I have an appointment with Mr. Lambert.”

  His eyes narrowed even more. If it weren’t for the frown lines creasing his forehead and drawing down his lips, he might have been a nice-looking man in a rustic sort of way. “Otis isn’t available.”

  She stopped. “Are you his guard dog like this one—” she waved her fingers toward the dog “—seems to be yours?”

  His frown seemed to lighten a little, which didn’t explain why her heart pounded even more nervously.

  Nevertheless, he stayed hostile. “You’ve wasted a trip.” He turned on his heel and the dog followed suit.

  She gaped as he started walking back toward the house. She set off after him. “Wait! Hold on!”

  She read impatience in the way his wide shoulders moved. The way he stopped, yet took a moment before turning toward her. When he did, his frown was firmly in place. She was close enough now to see his eyes were dark, though she couldn’t tell what color of dark.

  “You’re Jed, right? Jed Dalloway?”

  He didn’t answer. Just kept looking at her with those dark, soulless eyes as she continued walking toward him, finally drawing even with him. With the chunky high heels of her leather boots, she stood close to six feet tall. He was still taller.

  “I assure you, Mr. Dalloway, that your boss is expecting me.” Projecting assurance had never felt quite as challenging as it did just then. She forced a small smile as she stepped past him, angling toward the weathered deck lining the front side of the house, as yet still several hundred feet away.

  The deck was cantilevered over the cliff side. And looked to her pretty much like a death trap.

  “Guess you’re the reason he left, then.”

  She looked back at him. “He’s not here?”

  Jed gave a brief shrug.

  She eyed him suspiciously. Tried to ferret some hint of anything from his expression. “I understood that Mr. Lambert rarely leaves the mountain.”

  “Didn’t say he wasn’t on the mountain, Miss Reed.”

  Her gaze flicked away from him to their surroundings. The jagged rocks sloped gently here and there with stretches of somewhat level ground—much of it still covered in snow. In addition to the house, there was a small shed with a window, and an even smaller shed without one. A horse with a heavy coat was standing in the shelter of it. The cattle that were supposedly being run on the ranch were nowhere in sight. Not unusual. Reportedly, there were less than a hundred head. On thousands and thousands of acres. “You’re saying he just, what?” She waved her hand. “Went out for a stroll?”

  “I’m saying he’s not available.” He gestured toward the deck. “You want to check it out for yourself, be my guest. Meanwhile, I have things to do.” He angled away from her, heading toward the back of the property from where he’d appeared in the first place. The dog lingered behind, his lip curled up again to deliver his last thoughts before finally trotting off.

  She waited until both beasts had disappeared from sight, and deliberately relaxed her jaw. “Pleasant,” she muttered under her breath, and closed the distance to the deck. She chewed the inside of her lip, looking underneath it, and then straightened again.

  She hoped it was sounder than it looked as she gingerly went up the creaking steps. She stepped her way around the missing boards, then stopped in front of the door, knocking several times. Loudly.

  There was no answer.

  She exhaled and walked to the far end of the deck, where it wasn’t projecting off the edge of the cliff. She looked off to the side of the house. There was no sign of man—young or old. No sign of the dog.

  She tried knocking on the front door again, to no avail.

  She still wasn’t inclined to believe that Lambert had forgotten the appointment.

  She returned to the steps and sat down on the top one, feeling relatively secure since there was at least solid earth beneath the wood, in case her rear end went through it. She dragged her briefcase onto her lap and delved inside. She pulled out her cell phone and checked it for a signal, not surprised there was none. There were still many places around Weaver where cell signals didn’t yet reach. At times, like now, it was entirely frustrating. At others, when a person wanted to get entirely away from the outside world, it was an absolute delight. Remained to be seen what Gage would do about that fact.

  She shook her hair out of her eyes as she slid the phone back in its pocket and took out a business card and a pen instead.

  * * *

  “What’s she doing out there now?”

  Jed frowned, looking out one of the square, high-set windows. “Still sitting on the step.” She’d been there a solid thirty minutes now. As if she were waiting for Otis to drive up the broken road. He glanced at his boss. “Next time you think twice about keeping a meeting you arranged, cancel it yourself.”

  Otis sucked at his teeth as he rocked in his wood-slatted rocker. For anyone else, the rocker would sit on a front porch. For Otis, it sat in front of the woodstove. No cushion for comfort. The ancient knitted blanket on his knees was a recent addition. Along with the hacking cough that was never going to go away. “I didn’t expect a girl.”

  Jed looked out the window once more. From his angle, he could see the back of her copper-colored head and a bit of shoulder outlined in sleek black leather. If she sat there five more minutes, he was going back out there, no matter how pissed off Otis got.

  “Man. Woman.” Which April Reed definitely was. “Does it make any difference, Otis? We both know you’re not gonna sell. Particularly to a developer.” God knew they’d had enough arguments about it, especially in the last few years.

  The only sound that came from Otis’s direction was the rhythmic creak of wood runners on the wood floor.

  Jed grimaced. “Stubborn old man.”

  The creaking didn’t hesitate. “Keeps me alive, boy.”

  For how much longer?

  Jed didn’t ask the questio
n. He didn’t want to hear the answer. Ornery or not, Otis was the last thing left in the world that Jed cared about and he was dying. Dying because he wouldn’t seek the medical care that he’d probably needed since before Jed had met him five years ago.

  But he didn’t have to test Otis’s temper, because the redhead was moving finally. Standing.

  She walked back to the door and he expected to hear a knock, but none came. Instead, after a moment she headed back to the steps, avoiding the rotten boards that Jed needed to repair once the weather finally improved. Then he caught a glimpse of her again, walking toward the road.

  Tall. Slender. Dressed in a trim jacket and sexy-as-hell boots.

  She looked like she belonged on a magazine cover. Or in an office cracking out orders to her minions.

  Instead, she was being snubbed by a cantankerous old man.

  As he watched, she slung her briefcase strap across her chest like a messenger bag and pulled something from it.

  A cell phone, he realized, watching her hold it out in front of her. She was obviously taking pictures. Maybe recording video. Her arm panned around until she was aiming it toward the cabin. He didn’t worry about her seeing him from his vantage point inside.

  Eventually, she panned the other direction and started making her way down the road again. When she was out of sight entirely, he went to the front door and pulled it open.

  The business card she’d tucked in the doorjamb slid free and landed on the floor near his boot.

  He picked it up and read the embossed black printing. It told him little more than what she’d told him outside. April Reed. Stanton Development. Denver, Colorado.

  On the reverse, she’d written a telephone number and a brief note.

  “She’s going to be back,” he told Otis. He wasn’t sure if he was glad about that or not.

  “How do you know?”

  He flicked the business card onto Otis’s lap. “She told you so.”