by Seton, Cora
Colt’s fingers tightened on the steering wheel. “Back where?” As if he didn’t know.
“To Afghanistan.”
“Richard—”
“You just cause trouble. You’re no good to anyone here.”
Stung, Colt shot a glance his way. “That’s not true.”
“Sure it is. You keep hurting Mom. You’ve screwed everything up.”
“Look, it’s complicated—”
“How hard is it? You either want her or you don’t. You either want me, or—” Richard broke off when his voice cracked. Colt took a hard right turn into the long driveway that led to the Hall.
“Is that what this is about? You think I don’t want you?” He waited until he’d pulled to a halt in front of the house and shut off the engine to continue. “I want you. You got that? I want your mom, too. No matter what happens.”
“Well, I don’t want you. Not like this.” Richard opened the door and scrambled out.
Colt’s temper flared. “All right, let’s settle this once and for all.” He pushed his own door open and climbed out, too. He slammed it shut behind him and strode around the truck. “Let’s go.”
“Where?” Richard crossed his arms and didn’t budge.
“To the obstacle course.”
At first he thought Richard might refuse, but with a shake of his head, the youth stalked right on by him toward the woods. “I’m going to kick your ass.”
Big words, Colt thought, but he knew Richard’s bravado was the only thing keeping him together right now. He was angry, and more than that, he was hurt. He needed to challenge Colt’s authority, but ultimately he needed Colt to win to prove to him that he was loved.
“Here’s the deal,” he said as they approached the start of the obstacle course. “If you beat me, I’ll go back to Afghanistan. If I win, you’ll stick out the next few crazy months while I marry Melanie and get us this ranch. You’ll wait until Heloise signs over the deed and Melanie leaves again, and then you’ll be my best man when I marry your mother.”
“I’m not going to be your best man.” But already Richard was moving toward the starting line.
“If I win you will be, and you won’t complain about it, either. We’re making a deal and a man doesn’t go back on his word. Got it?”
“Got it. You want me to watch you marry someone else, wait around for you to divorce her, then be your stupid best man.” Richard glared at him.
“That’s exactly what I want.” He stuck his hand out. “Shake on it.”
After a moment Richard placed his gloved hand in Colt’s. It was nearly as big as his own, and his grip was firm, but his fingers were thin and childlike. Colt needed to remember that his son was just thirteen. When he beat Richard—and he would beat Richard—he would have to give his son room to vent his anger at the outcome.
“You call the start,” Colt told him.
“On your mark, get set, go!” Richard rattled off the words and lunged off the starting line toward the monkey bars with a confidence that told Colt his son had been practicing—a lot.
Colt jumped too with the ease of long practice. He crossed the monkey bars quickly, jumped down and tackled the climbing wall next, feeling a rush of pride when Richard hoisted himself up and over the wall almost as fast as he did. He kept his objective foremost in his mind, however, and put on a burst of speed as he dashed to the next obstacle. A minute or two later he was well in the lead.
With one part of his awareness on Richard’s progress, he found this race through the course harder than any other he’d run before. He’d never cared about the progress of his opponent the way he cared about Richard’s and this split in his concentration caught up with him when he nearly tripped in the tire course.
Refocusing, he sped up again, but Richard had gained ground in the meantime. Colt increased his pace and put some distance between them. As he approached the high balance beam made out of large, rough-hewn logs, Colt knew he couldn’t be distracted again no matter what Richard did. Thankfully the beam was free of snow and ice and he was able to run right up the inclined log that led to it. He was five feet along the obstacle when he heard Richard scramble up onto the other balance beam. Colt frowned. How had Richard caught up all of a sudden? Had he skipped an obstacle or two? Maybe he’d underestimated how much his son wanted him gone.
Colt sped up again and practically ran across the beam, something he did easily in lighter footgear in the summer. It was far more difficult in his heavy winter boots. He let his momentum carry him forward, trusting his balance to keep him atop the beam, but when a loud crack sounded above him, he nearly slipped, and flailed his arms to stay on the log.
Richard cried out, “Dad!” Before Colt could react, a heavy branch crashed down onto the beam in front of him. Running too fast to stop, he jumped up and over it to land skidding and wheeling on the other side. He slipped and slid along the remaining few feet of balance beam, tipped over the edge and crashed to the ground, somersaulting through the snow to land on his back.
“Dad!” Richard reached him a few seconds later and dropped to his knees by Colt’s side. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I think so.” Colt sat up slowly, taking stock of the aches and pains throughout his body. It occurred to him Richard could take this opportunity to race ahead and actually win. Richard looked over his shoulder at the course, then back again and Colt knew his son was weighing his options.
“Can you stand up?” Richard said. He climbed to his feet and held out a hand.
Colt took it, hoping the boy couldn’t see how much the offer pleased him. He stood up, knowing he’d pay for that fall later.
“That branch could have crushed you.”
“Nah.” It was true, though. The branch was big and would have packed a lethal punch. He’d felt its impact throughout the length of the beam.
“Yeah, it would. You’d be toast!”
“Don’t sound so happy about it.”
“I don’t sound happy.” Richard was indignant. “Bet I could beat you now, though.”
“Bet you could.” Colt peered up at the trees that ringed them, wondering if more branches were ready to fall. He and his brothers would have to walk the course and look for deadfalls that might pose a danger.
He realized Richard hadn’t moved. “Well, why aren’t you running?”
“Doesn’t seem fair.” The boy shoved his hands in his pockets.
“That’s honorable of you.”
Richard squirmed under his scrutiny. “Plus, I still can’t do the salmon ladder very well.”
Colt stifled a grin. “Yeah, that one’s a bear. You’re allowed to do chin-ups instead, though.” He wondered what Richard’s strategy would have been if the race had continued. Would he have done the requisite chin-ups, which took much longer, or would he have hung back until Colt was out of sight and skipped the obstacle altogether, like he had probably skipped one or two others?
“How old were you when you did the ladder the first time?” Richard asked casually.
“A little older than you, I think. Give it a year or so; you’ll get it.”
“Yeah.”
“Maybe we better call it a day. What do you say we go see what Regan’s got cooking in the kitchen?”
Richard brightened. “Sounds good! Race you there!”
He took off like a shot. Colt followed more slowly. He’d be sore tomorrow, but it was worth it to make a connection with Richard.
Inside, Regan was stirring a pot on the stove. She smiled at him and nodded toward the kitchen table where Richard sat, a plate full of cookies in front of him.
“Are you going to eat all of those?” Colt asked him and braced himself for a scornful answer, but Richard pushed the plate his way.
“Not all of them.”
“I don’t think I know any Buckleys,” Heloise said sourly as Zane helped her to a seat at the long dining room table that night. She’d sailed into the Hall like a queen five minutes before but when Heather prese
nted Eric as George, she’d lost some of her momentum.
Regan and Ella had outdone themselves, Heather thought. The food they were bringing to the table smelled heavenly, but she wasn’t sure she’d be able to eat a bite of it. Eric, sitting beside her, patted her knee comfortingly and left his hand resting there. Colt, sitting across from them beside Melanie, narrowed his eyes.
“My folks are from Idaho originally,” Eric said smoothly, sticking to the story they’d agreed upon. “I’m still something of a newcomer to Montana.”
“What’s your line of business?”
“Outdoor gear.”
Heather was glad they’d been so thorough in concocting their back story, because she could tell Heloise was taking mental notes and meant to check up on them later. As Heloise continued to grill Eric, Heather scanned the rest of the group, thankful that Richard had gotten a last-minute invitation and was spending the evening at a friend’s house. Colt had filled her in on their competition on the obstacle course, and the conclusion. She hoped that Richard would be able to hang in there long enough for this insanity to pass. The others listened attentively, tense with the need to keep from making any mistakes.
“About that wedding,” Heloise said to Melanie. “You’re taking a lackadaisical attitude toward it, seems to me. Where are your folks?”
“Both have passed away, I’m afraid. I’m on my own.”
Heloise pursed her lips and Heather had a feeling she was about to challenge Melanie. She spoke up to cut her off. “Melanie fits in really well here, though. We’re her family now.”
Heloise raised an eyebrow. Heather hoped she hadn’t overdone it.
“What about you?” Heloise asked. “When are you two tying the knot?”
Eric took Heather’s hand and pressed a kiss into her palm. “As much as I can’t wait to marry Heather, we’ll have to put it off until I’m back from Georgia. I leave soon for a two month training program.”
“How soon?”
Heather squeezed his hand, sensing a trap. He needed to answer this carefully.
“In a couple of weeks.”
Heather closed her eyes. Shit. He’d left them wide open.
“So you’ll be here for Colt’s wedding.”
“Um…” He looked to Heather.
What could she say? “Of course. We wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
“I should say not, the way you all are so close.” Heloise drummed her arthritic fingers on the table. “If you’re going to be gone for two whole months, it seems to me you’d want to marry before your trip. You never know what you’ll come home to if you don’t.”
Damn it. Just as Heather thought, Heloise was laying another trap. “He doesn’t have to worry. I’ll wait for him,” Heather assured her. Eric smiled at her and bent to kiss her cheek. Colt frowned.
“Nonsense!” Heloise exclaimed. “None of us are getting any younger. You all are such good friends now—family, even, didn’t you say? Why not throw a double wedding?” Her eyes gleamed with diabolical satisfaction. With a pang Heather realized Heloise wasn’t going to back down. Once again she was determined to force their hands and try to prove they were lying. Did Heloise think Colt would get so upset about the idea of her marrying another man that he’d blow his cover to stop her? If so, she was dead wrong. Colt was determined to do anything it took to secure the ranch for his brothers.
Heather thought fast. She could make an excuse and put off her wedding to George, but then Heloise would think she had proof she needed. What would she do then?
Raise the stakes, of course. Just like she’d been doing since the day of Melanie’s arrival. First there’d been the matter of the rings. Then there’d been this dinner. Now the double wedding. Who knew what Heloise would come up with next?
Heather had to cut her off at the pass before it got completely out of hand.
And she thought she knew how.
“Oh, I don’t want to rush things—” Eric began.
“That’s a great idea!” Heather blurted. “Heloise, you’re a genius. George, honey, don’t you think she’s a genius?”
Heloise’s eyebrows shot skyward. Eric blinked at Heather. This definitely wasn’t in the script. Under the table, she pinched him with her free hand. She couldn’t let Heloise get the better of them all now.
“Hey! Uh… I mean, hey, that’s a terrific idea. Why didn’t we think of it?” he sputtered.
“If it’s all right with Colt and Melanie, of course.” She turned to them and communicated desperately with her eyes that they had to say yes.
“Absolutely n—” Colt started.
“Absolutely!” Melanie said. She gave a little bounce, as if the idea excited her beyond words. “Absolutely! A double wedding sounds fantastic. Doesn’t it, Colt?”
“It sounds like—”
“We’d be glad to share our big day with you two. I can’t wait!” Melanie interrupted again. “We’ll have to call…” She stuttered to a stop and Heather leaped to the rescue.
“Mia. We’ll call Mia tomorrow and get it all in hand.”
“But—”
Heather cut Colt off before he ruined everything. “Mia is fantastic at sorting out things like this. You and I will meet with her together, okay, Melanie? We’ll figure this whole thing out.”
“Sounds like I better come along for that meeting,” Eric said.
“Me, too.” There was no mistaking the anger in Colt’s voice.
“Oh, don’t worry, we won’t spend too much,” Heather chirped in attempt to lure Heloise’s attention away from that anger.
“You’d better meet with Ellie Donaldson at the bridal shop while you’re at it,” Heloise said sweetly. “Two brides need two dresses and there isn’t time to spare. I expect you’ll want to place your orders tomorrow afternoon. And then there are the flowers…”
She was having a fine old time, wasn’t she? Heather thought bitterly. Someday Heloise’s chickens would come home to roost, though, and then she’d find herself all alone.
Was that it? she wondered. Did Heloise play games in order to get people to pay attention to her? If so, she’d lose her power when she signed away the ranch. She’d be hard pressed to get her nephews’ attention then.
It was hard to feel pity for the woman who’d just backed her into marrying a man she didn’t want—and who didn’t want her, either, judging by the longing looks Eric kept exchanging with Melanie—but somehow she did anyway. Could all of this have been avoided if Colt and his brothers had simply visited Heloise once in a while?
“I know how busy you all are,” Heloise said, “so I’ll make the appointment at Ellie’s myself. Two o’clock tomorrow afternoon.”
“If she has an opening,” Storm cautioned.
“She’ll have an opening,” Heloise said darkly and Heather figured Ellie would.
Chapter Seventeen
‡
He was going to kill Heloise. If he didn’t kill Eric first. Colt appreciated his friend’s dedication to pulling off the trick, but if Eric nuzzled Heather’s neck one more time, he was going to launch himself across the table and strangle the man.
And then his aunt for good measure.
Heloise smiled at him triumphantly. “Aren’t Heather and George just the sweetest couple you ever saw?”
“Yeah, sweet,” he ground out.
Melanie placed a hand on his arm and it was all he could do not to shrug it off. “I think they’ll be very happy together,” she said.
“Exactly,” Colt said. “Very happy.”
He saw a flash of alarm in Eric’s eyes. His friend edged away from Heather. Colt relaxed—a bit.
“Regan and Ella, you two outdid yourselves with dinner,” Heather said suddenly.
She could try to turn the conversation all she wanted. That didn’t change the fact she’d declared her intention to marry Eric. Just how did she think they were going to pull that off? Setting aside for the moment there was no way in hell he’d let her go through with it, there w
ere all sorts of legal implications.
Everyone else chimed in with compliments. Colt was sure the meal was delicious but he couldn’t taste it. It was all he could do not to bang a fist on the table and cancel the whole charade right then. But the sharp glances Mason and Austin kept sending his way reminded him exactly why he couldn’t do that. Three months, he told himself. He could survive anything for three months.
The meal took forever, and afterwards Heloise sat in the living room for another hour like a queen surrounded by her subjects. Finally, just when he thought he couldn’t take it anymore, she rose to leave. “Zane, drive me home. I don’t want to call a taxi so late at night. Why you all thought it prudent to keep me out so long past dark, I don’t know.”
Colt stifled a groan. At least she hadn’t asked him to drive her home.
“George? You can walk us out to the car. I have a few more questions for you,” Heloise added. “Give that beautiful bride of yours a kiss and come along.”
Colt gritted his teeth at the thought of Eric kissing Heather—again. His friend shot him a look and leaned in close to peck Heather’s cheek.
“That’s not a kiss,” Heloise said. “That’s barely a how-do-you-do. In my time, men knew how to get a girl all stirred up.”
Eric sent Colt another helpless look, and if Colt wasn’t mistaken, flashed an unspoken message to Melanie as well. He stepped close to Heather, pulled her into an embrace and kissed her passionately.
Colt’s hands balled into fists. When Heather wrapped her arms around Eric’s neck and kissed him back, he stepped toward the couple.
“All right, show’s over.” Zane rushed Heloise from the room in alarm. A moment later they heard the front door open and close. Eric released Heather. “Sorry,” he said. “Colt, you know there’s no way I—”
“Don’t do that again.”
“I had to. You heard Heloise.”
“I said—”
“Stop it! Just stop it!” Melanie pushed her way between them.
Colt shook off his frustration and held out his hands. “Fine. I’m done here.”