by Eve Gaddy
“Born and raised, darlin’. Technically the ranch belongs to all of us kids, but my youngest brother, Dylan, is the one who runs it. I’m living there until I find my own place, but I’m not sure exactly where I want to live.”
They stopped at a large craft store and picked up the rest of the supplies Mia thought were necessary. He hoped that meant she’d stay a while. Now that she was here he realized even more clearly just how much he’d missed her. He’d dated some since moving back but falling for Loretta’s lies had made him gun-shy. Besides, there was always something missing.
Maybe that something was Mia.
Back in the truck and on their way home, Mia said, “You’re right, this is a beautiful area.”
“Itching to paint already?”
“Always,” she said with a laugh. “Tell me about Marietta. Do you like working at the hospital there? Do you miss Denver?”
“I don’t miss Denver, but I do miss some people. One in particular.” Mia didn’t answer and she didn’t take the opening. He hadn’t really expected her to.
That would be the problem. He didn’t know how Mia felt about him. Had she considered their night together a mistake? She hadn’t said. In fact, they hadn’t talked about it at all. Yet the more time that passed since that night, and the more Wyatt tried to forget it, the more he thought about it. Yes, he’d been drinking, but not so drunk that he couldn’t remember the details. Far from turning to Mia as a substitute for Loretta, he’d known he was with Mia every moment of that night.
He’d thought about Mia as more than a friend in the past. Wondered what it would be like if they moved from friends to lovers. They never had. One or the other or both had always been involved with someone else. But the night he found out Loretta had lied about everything, that absolutely nothing in their relationship had been genuine, the first person, the only person, he wanted to see was Mia.
Mia was a beautiful woman, even if she did downplay her beauty. Maybe that was the difference. She wasn’t downplaying anything now.
Even though he always liked long hair, he had to admit the new style suited Mia. She wore a fitted green sweater the color of her eyes. She had on new jeans too. Jeans that fit rather than bagged and were, at least for now, paint free.
Mia was a straight shooter. Her friends knew better than to ask her what she thought about something if all they wanted was someone to agree with them. She might agree with them, but if she didn’t, she said what she thought.
“What about you?” Wyatt asked. “Have you been doing anything interesting besides painting since I moved? New man in your life?”
He glanced at her and she was looking at him like he was crazy. “Do you think I’d be here if I had a man in my life?”
He smiled. “Just checking.” That was one problem out of the way.
Wyatt turned off the highway onto a rural road, eventually taking a long narrow lane posted with a sign that said “Gallagher Ranch”. The road had obviously been plowed earlier, but since it had been snowing for a while that morning, there were still a couple of inches covering it. Mia caught a glimpse of a house at the end of a driveway lined with snow covered trees. The yard in front of the house was pristine, untracked white snow. It was a beautiful, serene, winter wonderland picture that Mia instantly loved.
“Wait, I want to look at the house,” she said, when Wyatt started to drive around back. Even to someone accustomed to snow, as Mia was, the setting was almost idyllic.
Obligingly, Wyatt stopped and put the truck in park. “My grandparents built the farmhouse back in the nineteen-fifties. My parents updated parts of it during the eighties, before my mom died. It could use updating again, but with Dylan, and now me, being the only ones living here, that’s not likely to happen any time soon.”
“It’s perfect.” The white wooden farmhouse was framed by the falling snow and snow covered trees. Two-story with a massive wraparound porch, it looked exactly like Mia’s conception of a classic farmhouse, lived in and well loved.
“I have got to paint this. I love it.”
Wyatt looked at the house, then back at her. “I grew up here, so I like it, but it’s not anything special, you know.”
“You’re wrong about that,” Mia said. “It fits its function and surroundings perfectly.” She glanced at Wyatt who was regarding her with a half-smile on his face. “Why do you keep staring at me? You’re giving me a complex.”
He laughed. Turning to face her, he cupped her cheek, then brushed his thumb over her lips. “I really missed you.” And then he leaned over the console and kissed her.
It was surprise that held her still His mouth moved over hers, his tongue parting her lips to sweep inside in a leisurely yet certain rhythm. A touch to her tongue, a retreat, another tangle of tongues, longer this time. While it wasn’t quick, it wasn’t the longest kiss she’d ever had either. But it was effective.
Judging by the grin on his face when he ended the kiss, he knew it too.
Wyatt put the SUV in gear and drove around to the back. Mia didn’t speak for the simple reason that she had no idea how to respond.
“No one uses the front door. Well, maybe when the weather’s nice we’ll sit on the front porch and use the front door then, but almost everyone knows to come around back to the kitchen door. The kitchen and living room and a couple of bedrooms face the mountains. It’s a pretty view.”
The view wasn’t pretty, it was spectacular. The snow covered peaks of the Gallatin mountains rose majestically into the sky. The white against the backdrop of the true blue of the Montana big sky was truly breathtaking. Mia got out of the truck and simply stood and looked. There were a number of horses out in a snowy pasture, grazing around a pile of hay. A horse barn stood in the distance with all sorts of activity from people, dogs and horses. An ancient, red pickup truck was parked beside the barn, covered in snow. She wanted to paint it. All of it.
“You might want this,” Wyatt said, holding her coat so she could put it on.
“Oh, thanks. I was looking—everything is so beautiful. Oh, my, God, Wyatt. How could you stand to live in town when you can live out here? It’s gorgeous.”
“I’m a lot closer to the hospital if I live in town.”
“Does that matter? I mean, how far out is the ranch?”
“Not too far. But Dylan’s the rancher. It’s more his place than anyone else’s. Besides, breaking ice for the horses every morning and getting up before dawn when it’s in the teens outside isn’t my idea of fun.”
“That’s just in winter. I bet it’s wonderful in the summer.”
“Speaking of winter, it’s damn cold out here. Let’s get your stuff and go inside. I’m sure Glory has been staring out the window wondering when I’m going to bring you in and introduce you two to each other.” He slung her backpack over his shoulder and took the two suitcases out of the back.
Mia picked up her tote and followed him to the house. “Who is Glory?”
“She’s our longtime housekeeper. Glory’s been here longer than any of us have.”
The kitchen door opened and a woman said, “Wyatt Gallagher, what is the matter with you? You’ve had that poor girl outside freezing to death.”
“Glory, this is Mia. She lives in Denver. I think she’s used to snow.” He turned to Mia and said, “Mia, this is Glory. She runs the place.”
“Now, Wyatt, you know that’s not true.” A small, slim woman in her early sixties smiled at Mia and said, “Here, let me take your coat, Mia. Wyatt, you take her to the blue room. I got it ready this morning. You’re welcome,” she added pointedly to Wyatt.
“Thanks, Glory. You’re the best.”
“What was that about?” Mia asked as they left the kitchen.
“She’s annoyed at me because I forgot to tell her you were coming until this morning.”
“I hope I didn’t make a lot of extra work for her.” She followed him through a hallway, past what looked like the living room, to a set of wide, wooden stairs.
“You didn’t. She just wants everything to be perfect for you.”
“Why?”
He walked to the second door from the top of the stairs, opened it and stood aside to let her enter. “Glory is like a second mom to us. Anyone who’s important to one of us is important to her.”
“How does she know—never mind.” Better not to go there.
“How does she know you’re important to me?” Mia nodded. “I told her.”
What did that mean? Did he mean she was important to him because she was his good friend? Or did he mean something else? The only other time he’d kissed her like he had in the car was during the night they spent together. What did he want? Casual sex? A relationship? Or was he just fooling around?
And what the hell was she going to do about it? She hadn’t thought this through very well. He’d asked her to come and she’d said, “Sure thing.” Never mind the problems that would ensue. Or the lie standing between them.
She looked around the room. The curtains were drawn back from a big window that faced the mountains. “What a beautiful view.” The view from her apartment window in Denver was totally uninspiring. She could see mountains once she went outside, but her main view was of a busy street.
The bedroom walls were painted a light blue, matching the blue and white quilt covering the queen-sized bed. The headboard and footboard were a simple iron style. There was a writing desk against one wall with a bookshelf beside it and a small sitting area with a comfortable fabric chair, also in blue, a side table and a lamp. The floor was wood, which from what she’d seen so far, ran throughout the house.
“You were right. The view is amazing.”
“Before you go into an artistic frenzy, let’s go eat. Glory will have something waiting for us. She loves to feed people. Lucky for us, she’s a great cook.”
Chapter Three
“Good Lord,” Mia said when they entered the kitchen. “How many people are eating lunch?”
Wyatt looked at the array of bread, cold cuts, cheese, condiments, fruit salad, potato salad, macaroni salad, coffee, iced tea and several kinds of chips spread out on the kitchen table and smiled, seeing it through her eyes. “You, me, Dylan and at least two or three of the ranch hands. Possibly more. Why?”
“There’s so much.”
“This is nothing. Wait until you see the desserts.”
“Does Glory feed you like this every day?”
“No, sometimes there’s more.” He shrugged. “Guys working on a ranch tend to eat a lot. We never know exactly how many will show up, either. Some days Glory makes a hot meal for lunch and we have the leftovers for dinner. Glory worries that we’ll fade away, especially Dylan.”
“Damn, it’s as cold as a well-digger’s ass out there,” his youngest brother said, coming in from the mudroom. He stopped short when he saw Mia. “Hello, you must be Mia.” He held out a hand.
“And you must be Dylan,” she said, shaking hands. “I’m happy to meet you. Wyatt’s told me a lot about you.”
“Don’t believe a word of it,” Dylan said. “Do you ride, Mia?”
“I used to but I haven’t in a long time.”
“I have just the horse for you. I can—”
“No, you can’t,” Wyatt said. “If Mia wants to ride, I’ll take her. Back off, cowboy.”
Unabashed, his brother smiled and told her, “If you get sick of him, I’m always here.” He started putting together his sandwich.
Wyatt knew he was kidding, but it still annoyed the snot out of him. Dylan had a way with women and Wyatt discovered he was feeling a little possessive of Mia. Not that he had a right to, but that could always change. And he meant to do what he could to change it. The more distance he had from it, the more their night together took on a deeper meaning than simply one friend comforting another.
Some of the ranch hands came in and Wyatt introduced Mia to everyone. Watching the guys flirt and laugh with Mia had him feeling that twinge of jealousy again. Damn it. Mia was being her usual friendly self, and the boys were hanging on every word. He couldn’t fault anyone. They were all just having fun, but it occurred to him he might need to explain the situation to the men. Especially Connor, who was fairly new to the ranch and a real ladies’ man from what Wyatt had heard.
As Glory returned to the kitchen, they finished their sandwiches and everyone took their plates over to the sink. Glory wouldn’t let them use paper plates. Wyatt wasn’t ever sure if that was because she was concerned over the environment, or because she had strong ideas of the proper way to serve food in her kitchen and paper plates played no part in that. Glory set out chocolate chip cookies, an apple pie and a chocolate cake on the kitchen counter and told them to dig in.
Wyatt went last, noticing irritably that Connor had taken his place beside Mia and whatever he was saying had her laughing. Damn, she was pretty when she laughed. And Connor was getting on his last nerve.
“Oh, honey, you have it bad, don’t you?” Glory asked him.
“Have what bad?” He settled on pie and put a large slice on his plate.
She laughed. “You have it bad for Mia, of course. Don’t think I haven’t seen you glaring a hole through Connor. Everyone else has too. Especially Connor.”
Wyatt started to argue, then thought better of it and shrugged. “I wasn’t glaring. I just hope he’s not boring Mia.”
Glory gave a whoop of laughter that had everyone staring at them. Wyatt gave her the evil eye, which only made her laugh harder.
“She doesn’t look a bit bored to me.” Glory patted his hand. “Don’t you worry. Connor’s one of those who likes to get under your skin. He doesn’t mean anything by it.”
“He’d better not,” Wyatt muttered as Glory moved away.
After lunch, Wyatt took Mia out to a Christmas tree farm owned by some friends of his. The Scott brothers’ farm was a beautiful place, with acres of Christmas trees planted in the snow, as well as a huge building that held pre-cut trees and trees growing in huge pots.
“I’ve never been to a Christmas tree farm,” Mia said. “Are you really going to cut your own tree?”
“We’re going to cut our own tree,” Wyatt said. “Here’s Lane now.”
A dark-haired, handsome man driving a horse-drawn sleigh pulled up to the sales barn. The two horses were big, beautiful draught horses, not Clydesdales or Percherons, but big sturdy animals similar to them.
“Good to see you, Lane,” Wyatt said, shaking hands. “This is Mia Watson.”
“Welcome to Marietta, Mia. Is this your first time here?” The man gave her a charming smile as she climbed into the front seat with Wyatt following.
“First time to Marietta and first time to a Christmas tree farm,” she said.
“You’ll have fun then. Wyatt, why don’t you go get Mia some hot chocolate.”
Wyatt grinned and got out, heading toward a tent with a hot chocolate and donuts sign out front. Mia started to tell him she was too full to drink it, but it was really cold out and something hot sounded good.
“When did you get in?” Lane asked her.
“This morning.” She wished she’d brought her sketchbook. The place was winter fairyland beautiful. Snow was falling lightly on top of the foot or so already on the ground. “You’re our first stop.”
“You made a good choice,” he said, smiling. “So, city boy, what made you decide you wanted a tree after all?” Lane asked Wyatt when he returned.
“Well, soldier boy, I thought Mia here might like one.” Handing Mia a styrofoam cup, he added, “Lane is a veteran of the war in Afghanistan.”
“Thank you for your service,” Mia said. Lane smiled again, but Mia noticed a flicker of something—sorrow, maybe—in his eyes. “Don’t you usually have a tree, Wyatt?”
“This is the first Christmas I’ve been in Marietta in a long time. Dylan almost always goes to Jack’s house so he doesn’t bother with a tree or decorations.”
“I’m touched but you didn’t need to get one just
for me.”
“Sure he did,” Lane said. “Don’t try to talk him out of a sale, Mia.”
She laughed. “Sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“We’re not very busy,” Lane said. “Want to take a ride around the farm?”
“I’d love to. Are you in a hurry, Wyatt?”
“Not a bit. Let me get a blanket from the back.” He reached behind her to grab a blanket, wrapped it around her, then kept his arm there as he and Lane pointed out wildlife and types of trees and other points of interest.
She wondered again what exactly was going on with Wyatt. He was treating her like a girlfriend, rather than a friend. She thought about that kiss in the truck again. Her stomach fluttered. Where’s your common sense? Where’s your sense of self-protection?
Hell. She’d never had any where Wyatt was concerned.
He’d told his brother to back off when Dylan had offered to find her a horse to ride. And finally, at lunch she’d caught him glaring at Connor at least a couple of times. Wishful thinking. But if he kept it up they were definitely having a talk.
Part of her, the part that was in love with him, would be ecstatic if he wanted more with her. Her cynical part thought he wasn’t over Loretta and she’d be nothing more than an interlude if they did get together. And of course, the biggie, the secret she’d kept from him. Her sin, the lie of omission.
Lane drove back to the area marked for the trees to choose from and dropped them off, promising to come back in half an hour. At first Mia followed Wyatt, but she decided they’d be more likely to find what they wanted if they split up. Sometime later she found the perfect tree.
“Wyatt,” she yelled. “Come see.” She walked around to the back and saw a huge hole where there should have been branches.
Wyatt looked at the front of the tree, then started to go around but Mia stopped him.
“It’s a little sparse in the back, but the front and sides are great.”
“That shouldn’t be a—” Wyatt continued on around, halting when he got to the back. “Sparse? Mia, there’s a hole you could drive a truck through.”