A Home with the Rancher

by April Arrington

  Mac smoothed his hands over her forearms. “What would it take?”

  “A new vision.” She thought of the plans she’d drawn up during her first weeks on the ranch. “One I can put together quickly that would involve renovations and enhancements. It’d take a couple weeks of hard work around the clock, all hands on deck. And a small investment. Enough to impress one large group of clients. A powerful group that I can pull strings to get here.”

  Mac frowned. “I have very little money left, Dani. Just some savings I tucked away for when the time came for us to move on.”

  “Only give me what you can spare. I’ll take care of the rest.”

  “How?”

  “I can call in a few favors.”

  His frown deepened. “From who?”

  She wrapped her arms around him and hid her face against his throat. She couldn’t tell him the whole truth. Not yet. Otherwise, he’d never agree and he’d end up losing everything.

  “You just have to trust me,” she said. “I can’t make the decision for you, Mac. You can still leave, pack up and start over like you said. Or you can give this land one last shot at thriving. It has to be your choice. I just wanted to let you know you had one.”

  His chest lifted on a strong breath as he hugged her close. After a few minutes, he said, “I’ll call Nate in the morning. Ask him to come out as soon as he can. If he shows, he can help with the renovations.”

  Dani nuzzled the smooth skin at the base of his throat, trying to focus on the task at hand and not dwell on the repercussions. She’d do everything she could to save his land and make sure he and the children kept their home. Then afterward, once he knew the truth...there was a very real chance she’d lose him.

  “I won’t let you down.” Fresh tears burned her eyes. “I swear I won’t.”

  He kissed the top of her head. “I trust you, Dani.”

  Chapter Eight

  “I need a boost.”

  Dani looked up, her fingers pausing over her cell phone, just as Maddie started climbing up onto the window ledge. “Maddie, wait. I’ll wipe the top windows.”

  “But I can do it if I can reach them,” she said, holding her rag in one hand and pulling on the ledge with her other.

  Dani tossed her cell phone on the bed and walked across the guest room, edging by Nadine as she put sheets on the mattress and Jaxon as he vacuumed the carpet.

  She smiled. The children had worked hard for hours. For the past three days since they’d returned from camping, actually. They’d helped Dani clean all the guest rooms on the first floor of the lodge, were finishing up the last one on the second floor and had agreed to tackle the ones on the third floor with Dani first thing tomorrow.

  Mac, Cal and Tim had stripped then polished the hard wood floors in the foyer yesterday, were completing repairs to the staircases and decks today and planned to refresh several of the cabins tomorrow. Everyone had hit the ground running and would continue to work hard until their first group of guests arrived next Friday, which left them roughly one more week to finish renovations, train the small staff on new policies and procedures and put together the most relaxing corporate retreat imaginable.

  Dani cringed, her stomach churning. That was, if Scott came through on what he’d promised two days ago and Elk Valley Ranch actually had guests next week. Mac had given her a hefty portion of his savings for renovations and the only chance he had at turning a profit was a successful corporate retreat with clients willing to pay top dollar.

  Oh, please, please let this work out. For Mac and the children’s sake.

  “Will you please let me do it?” Maddie asked, raising her voice over the noise of the vacuum and blinking up at her.

  “Yes.” Dani knelt and braced one hand on the window ledge. “If you climb onto my shoulders, I think you’ll be able to reach the top corners.”

  Maddie smiled and clamored up Dani’s back, her small hands and feet digging into Dani’s sides.

  Dani flinched and gripped the ledge tighter as Maddie straddled her shoulders. “All set up there?”

  “Yep.” Maddie giggled then bounced. “Beam me up, Ms. Dani.”

  “Oh, honey, please don’t bounce. That hurts.” Dani laughed then shoved to her feet, wobbling slightly as she balanced Maddie’s weight in line with her own. “Okay, have at it. Just be careful and don’t lean too far to the side. Let me know if you need me to move to the right or left, all right?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Dani’s upper body swayed back and forth as Maddie started wiping the windows and humming.

  The vacuum stopped. “I’m done,” Jaxon said.

  Nadine patted the pillows on the bed. “Me, too. What’s next?”

  “I think a break is in order,” Dani said. “Thank you for working so hard. You’ve both done a great job.”

  “I’m not tired.” Jaxon wound up the vacuum cleaner cord. “Want me to put some towels and soap in the bathrooms? We don’t have any on this floor yet.”

  “I can help him,” Nadine added.

  “Did I just hear two of my children offer to help clean more than what they’d already agreed to?” Mac’s sexy drawl filled the room as he stood in the doorway. His wide shoulders and lean hips looked even more impressive in the narrow opening. “Good Lord. This occasion calls for a calendar so I can record this for posterity.”

  Jaxon rolled his eyes and the girls laughed.

  “Don’t tease them too much,” Dani said, peering around Maddie’s leg and smiling at Mac. “We might lose them and we need all the help we can get.”

  Mac grinned, watching Maddie scrub the top edges of the window. “Things going okay in here?”

  “Excellent, actually.” Dani grabbed Maddie’s thighs as she tottered to the side and regained her balance. “The bedrooms on the first two floors are clean and the electrician is scheduled to be here within the hour to take care of the dead outlets. I finished setting up a new router and I was just checking the signal to make sure the Wi-Fi is reaching—”

  “Wi-Fi?” Mac frowned. “Internet access is set up in the great room.”

  “I know,” Dani said calmly. “But that’s a problem because guests—especially corporate ones—have grown accustomed to having access whenever and wherever they need it.”

  “Maybe elsewhere but not here. One of the biggest advantages of this ranch has always been the escapism it provides.”

  “Yes, but for some guests, it’s also the ranch’s biggest disadvantage. Some people don’t want to work or revisit their regular lives while on vacation but some do. We need to provide the choice.”

  “But all this new furniture, team-building exercises and policy changes are altering everything. This isn’t how we’ve always done it and it’s a big risk.”

  “I understand, Mac. But we’re only adding modern amenities and offering extra services. The cabins are still available for private, more rustic getaways. Only the lodge will be used to offer corporate retreats. This gets you the most return on all the ranch’s potential. If we want this to be a success, we have to attract more guests. And more guests mean varied interests. So either way, we have to make the changes.”

  “You said some changes.” Mac walked toward her. “Not a complete overhaul.”

  “Yes, and I meant it. These changes are just enhancements. Elk Valley itself will essentially remain the same.”

  “Like the s’mores?” Jaxon asked. “It’s still our roasted marshmallow, you’re just adding to it?”

  Dani snapped her fingers and grinned. “That’s it exactly.”

  Maddie lifted her leg, her knee bumping Dani’s chin. “I’m ready to get down.”

  Dani rubbed her jaw. “All right. Hold on for a sec, please.”

  She backed away from the window and reached up but Mac’s broad hands got there first, lifting Maddie from her shoul
ders and setting her down.

  Dani blew a strand of hair out of her face and eyed Mac. “Look, I’d love to argue some more but this isn’t a good time. The electrician will be here any minute and I need to help the kids finish restocking the bathrooms.” She grabbed his hand and squeezed. “We’re in this together, okay? I told you I wouldn’t let you down and I meant it.”

  “I know. I trust you.” He rubbed his forehead. “It’s just that these changes are making me nervou—”

  A muffled ringing started.

  Mac pulled his cell phone from his pocket. “Not mine.”

  “It’s yours, Ms. Dani.” Jaxon grabbed her cell phone from the bed and glanced at the screen. “Who’s Scott?”

  She hesitated, feeling Mac’s eyes on her, then held her hand out. “Someone from New York.”

  Jaxon handed her the phone.

  Mac stared at the phone, a muscle ticking in his jaw. “Someone?”

  Dani’s finger hovered over the screen. The low tone of his voice sent flutters through her. “My brother. He’s one of the people I called for a favor.”

  Relief flickered across his face. Catching her eyes on him, he adopted a bland expression then shrugged. “Good to know.”

  Dani smiled.

  His lips twitched then he smiled back. “I’ll go stain the front deck.”

  “Thank you.”

  He hovered, staring at her mouth, then smiled wider and left with the kids.

  Shivers of pleasure chased over her skin. Good grief, he was gorgeous.

  Dani took the call and pressed the phone to her ear. “Scott, please tell me you have good news.”

  “I have good news.” She could almost hear the smile in his voice. “A group of twenty from Austin and Mills are booked next Friday for one week.”

  “Lawyers?” she asked.

  “Every one of them.” Scott laughed. “And not just any lawyers—the best ones in New York. They’re fresh off an eight-month case that just wrapped up. Even the president, Jack Austin, is coming. Turns out, he’s done business with Dad and said he’d be happy to do us a favor. He said his team is so wrung-out it’d take a miracle to breathe life into them.”

  Dani bit the inside of her cheek. “Then I guess Mac and I will have to produce a miracle.”

  “Dani, have you really thought this through? Dad’s been asking about you and the property a lot lately. If you pull this off, he’s going to lose a hell of a lot of money—”

  “You haven’t told him my plans, have you?”

  “All I told him was that you really liked the place and had decided to stay and work on the deal for a while longer. But when he finds out what you’re doing, you could lose your promotion—”

  “It’s not my promotion.” She stood still, waiting for the familiar burn of disappointment and failure. But surprisingly, it didn’t come. “It’s yours. You’ve worked hard and you’ve earned it.”

  “So have you.”

  “Maybe,” she whispered. “But I didn’t want it for the right reasons and I don’t think working in that office ever made me happy. Not really.”

  Dani moved to the window. The sun was out, shining brightly through the mountain mist onto the horses grazing in the green fields. She shifted onto her toes and stretched her calves, remembering the invigorating burn that had energized her muscles hiking the mountain trail. She flexed her biceps, recalling the weight of the ax in her hands as she’d swung it, feeling stronger than ever.

  “What are you saying, Dani?”

  She smiled. “I quit.”

  “What?” Scott’s voice tightened. “Now, hold on a minute. You’ve been out there way too long and you’re not seeing the big picture. When you come back, you’ll feel differently.”

  “I’m not coming back. I’m happy here. I feel more like myself here than I have anywhere else.”

  Muffled voices sounded below and she looked down, watching as Mac walked out onto the front porch. He put a tray of paintbrushes on the rail and a bucket of stain on the floor then stepped back, surveying the deck.

  “I’m starting over,” she said firmly. She thought of Mac’s reaction when she eventually told him the truth and a wave of panic turned her stomach. “Whether it’s here...or somewhere else like it. I don’t want to be stuck in an office pushing paper and selling property. I’d rather be outside, working the grounds. Can you imagine what that would be like? Breathing fresh air and bringing out the best in the land around you? Not answering to a board or feeling like you had to prove yourself to anyone? Just living and being accepted for who you are, flaws and all?”

  Silence descended on the line then Scott said, “I imagine it would be the closest you could get to paradise.”

  “That’s exactly what Elk Valley is,” she said. “Paradise.”

  Mac walked back inside and Dani glanced at the staining materials then the winding driveway. No need to stand here running her mouth when she could be helping Mac and have a clear view for when the electrician arrived. It’d be a perfect opportunity to start her apology, however small that start might be. And a chance to tell him how she really felt about him so he’d understand why Elk Valley Ranch’s success was as important to her as it was to him.

  “I need to go, Scott.” She headed for the door. “There’s a lot of work to do. Thank you for your help.”

  She disconnected the call, shoved her phone in her pocket and went downstairs, stopping briefly to check on the kids. After helping Jaxon and the girls carry a load of towels and soap to the second floor for disbursement, she went to the front porch.

  The grounds were full and busy. Several ranch hands hammered new fencing in place while others painted the stable or pressure-washed the stones in the long walkway leading to the lodge. Mac had returned to the deck and stood by the first set of steps, sweeping a paintbrush over the handrail.

  Squaring her shoulders, she walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his middle. “I’m sorry for arguing with you earlier. I don’t want you to think I’m trying to change everything or that I don’t love what you have here. And we do need to talk at some point. There are things I need to tell you. You see, I... I lied to you when I first met you. I’m not exactly the person I said I was and I didn’t come here for the same reasons that I’m staying.” He stiffened and she lifted to her toes, her heart pounding painfully as she whispered in his ear, “But the truth is, I do love it here—love you, actually.” She swallowed hard, rushing out, “And I want others to see Elk Valley the way we see it. Like the overlook or Sugar Falls. Even with that broken deck, that waterfall was one of the most beautiful things I’d ever seen.” She laughed softly. “I don’t know. Maybe it was only because I was in your arms but it was magic. Don’t you remember how that felt?”

  “Nope.” He swiveled in her arms and faced her, a crooked grin appearing. “Remind me. What’d we do up on that deck all by ourselves?”

  Dani stilled, her hands pressed to his wide chest. He felt different. And she felt different around him. He was still as handsome as ever but something was...off. Enough so, that it overcame the clamoring nerves that had assaulted her when she’d said she loved him.

  She studied his smile, which tipped at a new angle and there was a mischievous gleam in his eyes that hadn’t been there before. Her focus dropped to his shirt—a buttoned Western-style, one he hadn’t been wearing earlier.

  “Did you change your clothes?” she asked.

  “Today?” At her nod, he said, “Yep. As I do every day.”

  “And your hair.” She reached up and sifted her fingers through the tousled strands, which stood out at odd—but attractive—angles. “It looks...”

  “More modern? Stylish?” He cut his eyes to the left, grinning wider. “I’m a great guy but in case you haven’t noticed, I can be pretty uptight and predictable. Thought it was time I loosened up a bit. Got a litt
le more spontaneous—”

  “What the hell, Nate?”

  Dani started and looked over her shoulder. Mac—another one?—stood at the other end of the deck. Except this Mac, even angry, had the ability to warm her insides and melt her heart. Scowling, he stared at her hands, one of which rested on the man’s chest in front of her and the other, still lingering in his hair.

  “Hold up there, bro. I didn’t do a thing but play along.” Smiling, Nate spread his arms and nodded toward a bulky overnight bag on the porch steps. “I got your voice mail, came on out and was simply helping fix up the place when a beautiful woman showed up and accosted me.” He shrugged. “Not that I’m complaining or anything—”

  “Oh, God.” Dani snatched her hands from his chest and stumbled back, pressing her palms to her scorching cheeks. This was Nate. Mac’s brother. And she’d told him she’d lied to Mac. That she loved him. “Oh, G—”

  “Don’t worry,” Nate said, grin returning. “Your secrets are safe with me.” He winked. “For now.”

  Mac stalked toward them. “What secrets?”

  “Nothing. Just some commentary she thought she was sharing with you before I had a chance to tell her who I was.” Nate cocked an eyebrow, expression serious. “Although, I’m gonna tell you both right now that you’ll just have to find some other deck to canoodle on. Sugar Falls has the best fishing hole on the ranch and I plan to spend my off-hours up there catching trout.”

  Dani pried her dry tongue from the roof of her mouth and turned to Mac. “Why didn’t you tell me you had an identical twin?”

  Mac gripped her hip and tugged her to his side. “It didn’t seem important at the time and I didn’t expect him to pop up out of nowhere.”

  “You said you needed help so I came as quickly as I could.” Nate narrowed his eyes. “Didn’t think I had to call and ask permission before I came home.”

  “You don’t,” Mac said, voice heavy. “It just would’ve been nice to know you were on the way so you didn’t take anyone by surprise.”