by Juanita Kees
“Hey, Zoe.” He captured the little fist waving about and felt the baby-soft skin against his calloused fingers. She looked up at him, wide-eyed. “You ready for a ride out to the ranch? I’ve strapped your seat in and we’re ready to roll.” He looked at Charlie. “Ready to go?”
She nodded. “I guess.”
“Right. Let’s hit the road then.” Doubt edged into his mind.
Was he doing the right thing? Should he have talked Mrs. Thomas into taking her in instead? No, that would drop her right in a pool of gossip at the next quilting club meet.
“Chase?” Charlie’s hand settled on his arm, sending little shock waves roaring through his bloodstream. “Thank you.”
He rubbed a hand across the back of his neck to stop himself from covering her fingers with his. Damn it, he’d have to be careful around Charlie or he could find himself in a lot of trouble. Eager to keep his hands busy and away from temptation, he moved to pick up his laptop and her suitcase. “Let’s get you and Zoe home.”
Home. That sounded too comfortable. Too personal. He cursed inwardly. This girl had his tongue tied in knots in a way he didn’t remember it being twisted before. Chase led the way out to his pickup and dropped her suitcase in the tray beside his grocery purchases. He opened the passenger door and then the rear door for her to put Zoe into the infant seat and, while she secured the baby, he drew the tarp back over the rear of the pickup.
Slipping in behind the steering wheel, he twisted around and leaned over to place his laptop on the back seat. He caught Charlie watching him, chewing the full bottom lip he shouldn’t be noticing. She smiled, the tip to her lips hesitant, unsure. It had the same effect on him he imagined a bolt of lightning would. Electric, paralyzing, invigorating, hot. And if he didn’t stop staring, she’d soon need reassurance he wasn’t some weirdo.
“Ready to go?” He smiled back in a way he hoped would ease her nerves. “It’s about a half hour drive south on the way to Salmon Prairie. The ranch is called the Triple C.”
She closed the rear door and climbed into the seat beside him. Tugging on her seat belt, she blew out a breath. “Okay, tell me more about it.”
Chase turned in the direction of the ranch. Beside him, Charlie twisted her hands. He wanted to still the movement with a touch, but he kept his hands on the wheel instead. A touch like that in a space so small reeked of intimacy. Not a road he wanted to head down while his instincts scrambled for solid ground.
“You have nothing to worry about. You’ll be perfectly safe, and you won’t be alone. The ranch accommodates up to fifty guests. We’re booked up right through until Christmas. My family can be gruff and overbearing at times, but they don’t bite. Carter is the cowboy in the family. He loves the ranch.”
And shit, he was closer to her in age too. He didn’t want to think about his brother stealing this green-eyed girl out from under his nose. He hadn’t even touched on Mason yet. The town’s bad boy whose reputation stemmed from hiding the pain and guilt that resulted from their youngest brother, Mitch’s death. Yet another reason Chase had earned his reputation of mothering, because he’d damn well do anything to protect his siblings from being hurt.
“I feel like an intruder.” Her words whispered into the space between them, over the music playing softly on the radio.
An intruder who’d found it necessary to hide in the garage attic. He wanted to know what that was about. “It’s a guest ranch. You’re my guest.”
She smiled, and he’d be lost if he didn’t keep reminding himself about the baby and her absent daddy. Hard facts to remember when Charlie’s smile made him forget to breathe.
“I feel like I’m getting deeper and deeper in your debt. How do you know I won’t walk away with the family heirlooms?”
Excellent question. Telling her he trusted his gut instinct would be a lie. Because his gut instinct screamed trouble in capital letters. Only it wasn’t the family heirlooms he was worried about.
*
Darkness covered most of the road on the way out of town. Lights glittered along the shores of Bigfork Bay. Charlie imagined the warm glow of hearth fires inside the log cabins that lined the shore. Happy families snuggled down for the night with not an ounce of discord in sight. So unlike her own family where power and success drove them forward, where affection was quarantined to occasions like podium wins and sponsorship deals, delivered in handshakes and back-pats rather than hugs and cheek kisses.
Beside her, Chase’s capable hands controlled the wheel at a steady pace, in no hurry to get where he wanted to be, the ribbon of road disappearing steadily beneath them through the twin beams of the headlights.
The ticking noise of the turn signal sounded loud in the silence as Chase turned the pickup onto the gravel road that led through the wrought-iron gates of the Triple C. Warm, welcoming light flickered from old-fashioned lanterns on either side of the stone arch that decorated the entrance.
“Nice place.” In the center of a circle of tents to her left, a bonfire glowed against a star-studded, black velvet sky. A sky that changed as easily as the moods of a Montana fall.
“Carter runs the guest ranch. He stays in the main house with Dad. Mason and I each have our own cabins, as do Grace and Trinity. But since the girls aren’t home much, we rent those out to people who don’t want to camp in the tents.”
“It must be nice living so close to your family.” If only her family had encouraged a tighter-knit relationship, but with the focus on Ronan and his career, she’d been pretty much invisible.
“We’re tight, except for Grace. She’s the rebel child.” He grinned in the dim light of the cab. “She and Carter are twins, but she sees herself as the middle child.”
Charlie shrugged. She wouldn’t have a clue with only one sibling, but she’d learned how to survive being ignored.
Chase drove past the main ranch house and pulled up outside a smaller log cabin, the porch light burning brightly. He turned off the motor. Silence filled the space between them for a moment. He dropped his hand to his thigh and Charlie followed the movement to where strong muscles stretched the denim tight over his legs. She pushed down the swell of attraction. Why did he have to be so darn nice? She’d fallen for charming before and look where it landed her.
From her infant seat in the back, Zoe made little noises as she woke from her motion-induced slumber. The smell of wood smoke drifted into the truck through the air vents. Charlie looked out at the small group gathered near a bonfire a few yards away, the sound of laughter rippling through the night.
“If you’re uncomfortable sharing my cabin, I can stay up at the main house. I’d put you in one of the other cabins, but they’re booked up for the season. And I’d hate for you to stay in one of the tents with a baby, even though they have heating.”
“I’m not afraid of you.” I’m afraid of myself.
Six-feet-three of hard-to-resist hunk with arms of corded muscle and a smile that flipped her insides. Chase Calhoun was easy on the eyes. And a true, all round Mr. Nice Guy.
It would be so easy to fall for someone like him, to project all the dreams she’d almost given up on believing in, into the hope for a future with someone to love. Someone who would love her back for who she really was rather than the rebel she was always portrayed as. He pushed open the door of the pickup, the interior light filling the cabin. “Good. Let’s get you settled inside. It’s cold out here.”
Charlie shivered as night air drifted inside the pickup. Sitting out here wouldn’t do either of them any good. “Okay.” She cast a look at Zoe. At least they’d have a soft, warm bed to sleep in tonight.
Chase walked around the hood of the pickup to open her door. He held out his hand to her, the touch sending tingles of pleasure through her. Over his shoulder, she saw a man walking toward them who could only be his brother. Just as tall with the same shape face and nose, but with his hair hidden under a wide-brimmed hat. Jeans and a western-style shirt under a warm jacket, zipped halfway up, and leather
boots that suited his cowboy swagger. His face, as he came into the light, was a picture of surprise and his grin as wide and almost as heart-stopping as his brother’s. The Calhouns had been blessed by great genes.
“I thought you went back into town to pick up your laptop?”
“I did. It’s in the back.” Chase smiled as Charlie’s feet hit the dirt. He steadied her with a hand at her back. “Right next to the baby. Carter, meet Charlie.”
“Ma’am.” Carter touched the brim of his hat, tipping it down a little to cover the hint of laughter in bright blue eyes. “Baby, huh? God knows what you’d come home with if we sent you into town for milk.”
Chase chuckled, the sound sending shock waves through Charlie’s blood, warming it until it settled somewhere below the tie-string waistband of her track pants. “Charlie’s the one who ate my chicken salad sandwich and drank all the milk.”
“Ah, the refrigerator thief. I’d heard about that. My money was on Mason. So where did he find you hiding?” He winked at Charlie and the tension between her shoulder blades eased.
“In the attic,” Chase answered as he opened the back door of the pickup, so Charlie could unclip Zoe from her seat.
Carter stiffened for a moment before he blew out a long whistle and assessed Charlie from head to toe. “The attic, huh? Whoa, I need to go up there more often. I don’t suppose there are any more of you hiding up there?”
Charlie laughed, the cowboy’s teasing far too charming to take offense to. Besides, it had been a long time since someone had paid her a compliment. “No, only me and a baby.” She lifted Zoe out of the pickup.
Chase tucked a blanket around Zoe. “Carter, make yourself useful and bring me one of the portable cribs from the stock room. Zoe’s been sleeping in the laundry basket. I think she deserves something a little more comfortable.”
Carter shook his head. “Yes, Mother. I’m on it.”
Chase’s eyes flashed, and he gave his brother a little shove. “Smart-ass.”
Carter placed a gentle hand on Charlie’s arm. “Don’t let him mother you too, okay?”
Charlie cast an uncertain look at Chase.
He removed his brother’s hand from her sleeve. “Ignore him. Carter’s like an untrained puppy.” The smile he delivered turned her knees weak. “This is what happens when we let him off his leash.”
Carter laughed, the sound echoing through the night making Zoe whimper. Charlie soothed her as Chase led her into the cabin and closed the door behind them. Warmth surrounded her, seeping into her bones. So much better than the attic. But she couldn’t allow herself to get too used to this—the warmth, the banter, the family environment. How long could she hide before reality found her?
Chapter Four
Chase cursed Carter’s teasing. Charlie had retreated into silence, responding only with nods or murmurs. He led her into the living room.
“The guest bedroom is to the right of the stairs leading to the loft. You’ve got a bathroom down there too. I’d offer you the loft, given your penchant for attics, but it’s a little messy up there.” He grinned. “Besides, I think you’d prefer to be closer to the kitchen. Great room left and center at the big windows, dining room to the right and kitchen next to it in the corner.” He waved a hand at the three living spaces of the open plan cabin. “The porch in the front gives you a great sunrise. The porch out the back gives you a beautiful sunset. Make yourself at home while I bring in your bags and the groceries.”
Chase stepped back out the door, off the front porch, and took the short walk to the pickup, only to find his brothers leaning against it. Mason with a foot on the rear bumper and his ass on the tailgate, and Carter leaning on the hood. He ignored them as he reached for the carryall, his laptop, and the groceries from Molly’s.
“Nice bag. Pink suits you.” Mason pushed off the back of the pickup and fingered the weave of the bag. “Macy’s? Or Walmart?”
“Haven’t you kids got anything better to do?” Chase scowled.
“Is this the same girl you rescued at Molly’s today?” Carter chipped in, his teasing grin gone. “Is the baby yours?”
Irritation skittered along Chase’s nerve ends. “No, the baby isn’t mine. Why don’t you mind your own business? Haven’t you got guests to entertain?”
“Dad’s telling them about the possibility of a television series contract for Calhoun Customs.” Mason lifted a brown bag of groceries from his arms. “I’ll take that. Who’s the girl, Mother? Might go inside and introduce myself.”
“You boys need to stop calling me that.”
“Can’t stop it if it’s true.” Carter nodded in the direction of the cabin. “How do you know she’s not a scam artist?”
“Because she had the opportunity to steal a whole lot more than just a chicken sandwich and she didn’t. She’s in trouble.”
“What’s her name?” Mason rifled through the contents of the grocery bag.
“Charlie.”
“Charlie who?” This from Carter who lifted the laptop from under Chase’s arm.
Darn it. Chase raked a hand through his hair. “Just Charlie.”
Mason’s hand froze halfway to his mouth with a grape between his fingers. “You don’t even know her whole name?”
“No. Carter, where are you going with that laptop?” he called as Carter stepped onto the front porch and headed for the front door.
“We’re going to Skype-call Trinity. She’ll love this. It might make her come home sooner.” Carter nodded at the folded portable crib. “And bring that inside with you.”
Damn it, it was going to be a long night. Mason pushed past him and followed Carter through the door. Chase slammed the pickup door shut and followed them. He didn’t need his brothers gawking, seeing what he’d seen and taking a liking to her in a way that wouldn’t be okay with him.
Charlie sat on the floor, legs crossed, with Zoe in her lap, talking quietly to the baby. In the soft lighting, her skin glowed and the smile she shared with Zoe was nothing short of beautiful. Her long, blonde braid hung over her shoulder, just out of reach of the tiny little fist trying to take hold of it. Chase brushed off the ache in his chest and blamed it on hunger. He hadn’t even had a meal yet. And beans wouldn’t be enough for Charlie either.
She looked up, the relaxed smile fleeing. He could only imagine what she saw. Three grown men, all over six foot with varying degrees of muscle, standing with their big boots planted just the other side of the doorframe.
“The boys helped with the load, but they’re leaving now.” Chase sent his brothers a stern get-lost look.
Carter walked across the room and squatted beside Charlie, giving Zoe a little wave. “Hey, there.”
Zoe pursed her lips and blew him a raspberry which he returned with enthusiasm.
Mason rolled his eyes. “Get over it.” He placed the grocery bag on the kitchen counter and stole another grape. “Hi Charlie, I’m Mason. The good-looking one. The fun one. Not like Chase here. How old’s the baby?”
“Mason.” Chase kept his voice low but stern, afraid to shout as he normally would in case it made Zoe cry. “Back off.”
Charlie sighed. “It’s okay. She’s three months old.”
Carter did the calculations. “Not yours then, Chase. You were in Vegas for SEMA, tied up with that showgirl.”
“I was not tied up with anyone other than SEMA officials.” Suddenly it felt very important that he stress that fact. “And the showgirl photo-bombed the Instagram post.”
“Sure she did.” Mason turned to Charlie. “You’ve got to watch Chase. He’s a bit of a player.”
Oh, good God, would they ever grow up? “Ignore them, Charlie.” He put the porta-crib down with a thump and dropped her carryall a little more gently on the floor next to her. “Are you hungry?”
She looked up at him, her eyes a pool of green, uncertainty clear in their depths.
“A little. But I’d kill for a decent shower first. All I’ve managed so far were short, quick
washes. Would that be okay?”
Chase caught the look Mason sent Carter and lip-read his words. Bunny boiler. He shot Mason his final warning look before saying, “Of course. Would you like us to take care of Zoe for you?”
She looked at Zoe who was making noises at Carter. Then she looked back at Chase, fear in her eyes, a tremor in her voice. “No. I’ll take her with me.”
Chase studied her thoughtfully. “She’ll be safe here. I’ll make sure of it.” Had someone threatened her or the baby? Was that why she was on the run? The panic in her eyes was too real.
She shook her head. “No, I’ll be quick.”
“Charlie, let me take care of her. I won’t let her out of my sight, I promise.” He put all the power of that promise into his eyes as he searched hers for the root of her fear.
Mason cleared his throat, drawing Chase’s attention. Ah, shit. He looked at his brothers who eyed him back with keen interest. He wished he could wipe the smirks off their faces.
“No problem for you, isn’t that right, Chase? Mother here didn’t earn his nickname for nothing. He’s done it lots of times before,” Mason offered.
“Practically raised us all himself. Hope he remembers how to change a diaper though. Trinity’s almost twenty-five. And Mitch—” Carter’s words cut to silence as he eased up off his haunches. “How about I go get us some meat off that spit roast and bring it over?”
The teasing light died in Mason’s eyes. “I’ll go too. Bring some bread. And stuff.” He brushed past Carter, shoulder-bumping him hard.
As he walked past, Chase gripped his shoulder and squeezed. He hated the weight of guilt his brother carried for something that wasn’t his fault. Mason would never let Mitch’s ghost rest. “Good idea, guys.”