Good Together
Page 13
Wes swore. “You’re low-balling me.” He named a higher figure.
Nat held firm. “You won’t get a better offer.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure about that.” Wes hesitated, then added, “I have another interested party. I’ll check in with him and get back to you.”
“Fair enough.” As he disconnected the call, Nat worried that he may have been foolish to gamble. His instincts told him Wes was bluffing. But what if he wasn’t? What if he really did have a second prospective buyer interested in Bishop Stables?
Nat decided he had to talk to Mattie about this. Did she even know how close Wes was to closing a deal on the property? He dialed her home number, and when there was no answer, he felt a pinprick of worry.
He knew she’d driven the girls to the airport that morning. Even if she’d done some shopping in Missoula, she would have been home hours ago. It was late for chores, but maybe she was still out in the barn?
Her cell phone rang through to messages.
He thought for a minute, and then called Jake.
“She isn’t home? That’s odd,” Jake said, when Nat asked if he knew where Mattie was. “She mentioned something about going for dinner at the Smoke House. But I had some business to attend to. I wouldn’t think she’d go alone.” He thought a moment, then added. “I hope she hasn’t had a fall or some kind of accident at the ranch.”
“I’ll swing by her place and check,” Nat offered.
“Thanks. Keep me posted.”
“Will do.”
As he talked, Nat was already walking to the mudroom, where he found his coat, boots, and car keys. He fed Buffy, and turned on the radio to keep her company, then went out to his truck.
Only the light above the door was on at Mattie’s house. And her SUV was missing. He slipped his vehicle into park with the headlights aimed into her driveway. He could see what looked like fresh tire tracks in the snow.
Maybe she’d gone to the Smoke House, after all.
If so, she was probably fine. But he needed to talk to her about Wes’s phone call. So he decided to keep driving into town.
Twenty minutes later he was at the Smoke House, pushing open the door of the Montana styled log building and finding himself being greeted by a cute young woman in dark jeans and a button-up black shirt with a discreet Smoke House logo.
“Here for dinner? Or the bar?” she asked, looking behind him, to see if there was anyone with him.
Nat’s gaze scanned over the diners on the left hand side of the building. No one sitting alone there. Then he checked out the bar. And the dance floor.
And there she was, dancing with Ryan Garry, looking about as pretty as a woman could be. But not very happy. She was pushing Ryan away, and Ryan, in turn, was scowling back at her.
Nat didn’t think about what he was going to do, he just did it. Brushing past the hostess, he strode to the dance floor where he put a hand on Mattie’s shoulder, insinuating himself between her and Ryan. “Hey Mattie. My turn now?”
No denying the relief on her face as she smiled at him and said, “Why not?”
Ryan backed off, with a modicum of grace and Nat placed his other hand at Mattie’s waist. The song was slow and romantic, and the temptation was to pull her petite, curvy body up close to his. She was always a lovely woman, but he had to admit, even more so with her hair styled and a little color on her lush, kissable mouth.
Carefully he held her at arm’s length, none of his actions betraying his inner yearnings.
“You and Ryan on a date or something?”
“Hardly. I needed to get out of the house. And ran into him here.”
Her words came out a little slurred. He noticed then that she was leaning on him, to keep her balance. In all the years he’d known her, he’d rarely seen her take a drink. And never more than one. “Have you been drinking?”
“Just two.”
“You do know they serve doubles on Monday evenings?”
Her eyes widened. “So I’ve really had four?” She looked shocked. Then giggled. “No wonder I feel so... strange. I forgot to have dinner, also. That was silly, huh?”
“For you, I’d say this classifies as a full-on bender.” And if anyone deserved to let loose a little, it was her. When the song ended, he walked her back to the bar. Ryan Gerry had left, and Mattie looked a little concerned about that.
“I hope he isn’t upset. I’m afraid he might think I was leading him on.” She frowned. “But as far as he’s concerned, I’m a married woman, right?”
“Legally, that’s true.” Nat signaled to the bartender, one of the Coffey kids, he couldn’t remember his name. “Could we get a plate of nachos here? And some water?” He was fine with Mattie letting off some steam. But he was pretty sure she didn’t want to get totally plastered.
“You think people around town know Wes and I are... separated?” She leaned forward on her stool to whisper that last word into his ear, and almost slid to the floor.
He put an arm over her shoulders to steady her. “Yeah. Judging by how fast Gerry moved in on you, I’d say they know.”
“Oh.” She sounded deflated. But she perked up when the plate of food was set in front of her. She ate a few nachos, took a sip of water “He sold our horses today. Fourteen of them, gone, like that.” She tried to snap her fingers, not quite pulling it off.
He’d noticed the big trailer driving down the road around three o’clock. No wonder Mattie was drinking. She loved her horses, and loosing fourteen in one day. “I’m sorry.”
She popped another chip in her mouth, then wiped her mouth delicately with one of the small paper napkins stacked on the bar. “He didn’t even warn me first. This truck just shows up out of the blue...”
Tears welled in her eyes, and she dabbed them with the same napkin.
“That reminds me. The driver was supposed to send me a message...” She fumbled for her purse, and he leaned over to snag it off the back rest, then held it steady while she fished inside.
Finally she found her phone, and turned it on to check her messages. “Some stupid reality TV star bought the horses for his ranch. I wanted to know whether the people working for him know what they’re doing.”
“Looks like I have a message...” She fumbled with the touch screen, then handed it to him. “Could you read it, please?”
“Sure.” He studied the screen. “The one from Guy Medley?”
“Yes. He was the truck driver.”
“Okay, he says, Checks out OK. Don’t worry.”
“Well, thank the lord for that, at least.” Mattie carefully extracted a chip loaded with melted cheese and guacamole. “These are tasty. Thanks, Nat. I’m starting to feel more like myself.” She smiled, rather sadly. “Though it was nice to sort of forget all my problems there for a while.”
“Does that mean you’ve had enough of Polson’s exciting night scene for now?”
She smiled faintly. “Yeah. I suddenly feel absolutely beat. Do you think you could give me a lift home?”
“That was my plan,” Nat pulled out some bills to settle the tab, then helped Mattie off her stool. “If you pass me your keys, I’ll have a couple of my hands drive into town in the morning to fetch your vehicle.”
“Thanks, Nat. What did I ever do to deserve a good neighbor like you?” She was leaning on him as he walked her toward the door and he didn’t mind a bit.
“Yeah, I’m quite the guy.”
She giggled, which sounded cute, though he preferred her normal throaty laugh.
Outside the cold night air sobered her a bit more, and she sucked in a breath. “Darn it’s frigid.”
“Yeah, that storm’s coming in.”
Already it was snowing lightly. The delicate flakes looked pretty now, but soon they’d be dealing with a full-on blizzard. Mattie’s high heels were useless on the slick surface of the parking lot and he wrapped his arm around her waist to hold her up as they made their way to his truck. He buckled her in, then got behind the wheel and headed
for home. They hadn’t been on the road for five minutes before she slumped against the door, head tipped against the window, and fell asleep. When her yard light came into view, he slowed.
He didn’t feel right about leaving her at home, alone, in this condition.
“Mattie, how about we pick up Tuff and the two of you sleep over in my guest room tonight?”
He had to repeat his offer a few times before he got an answer from her.
“Tuff...” a few mumbles he couldn’t decipher, then, “... barn.”
“Okay. Hang on a sec while I get her.” He left the truck running and jogged through the fresh layer of snow to the main barn. The radio was playing, set to the local country music station. He walked up and down the central aisle, noting all the empty stalls. The place was deserted. Finally he located Tuff, sleeping soundly in a cordoned-off area in the feed room, a plump tabby cat curled up next to her.
Damn, they were cute. He lifted the little border collie gently and Tuff immediately perked up. He let the pup outside to pee and chased her through the snow a few minutes, playing the little thing out before picking her up again and carrying her to the truck.
Mattie was back asleep. Or maybe she’d never even woken up.
At his place, Nat helped Mattie to the guest room, while Tuff and her sister celebrated their reunion with a little tussle.
“Nat?” Mattie was sitting on the bed, her posture slumped, her eyes closed.
He’d already pulled off her heels and removed her jacket. He had no plans to touch that dress. She’d have to sleep in it and deal with the damage tomorrow.
“Yes, darlin’?” He pulled down the covers for her, quite certain that she’d remember none of this in the morning.
“Stay with me?” she mumbled, as she fell back to the pillow.
Had he heard that correctly? Nat couldn’t be sure. But did he want to curl into that bed beside her? Hell, yes.
Instead, he pulled the quilt up to her chin, hesitated, then kissed her forehead. “Sleep well, Mat.”
He sure wouldn’t.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Mattie hadn’t had much experience with hangovers. A fact she was profoundly grateful for the next morning when she woke up staring at the wood plank ceiling in Nat’s guest bedroom. She felt like she had the flu, but at least she remembered where she was, and how she got here.
She shifted up and studied the room. It was decorated in upscale western style, with a log-framed poster bed and an original oil painting above the polished oak bureau. Color scheme was gold and blue. Nice. She swung her feet out to the floor, wincing at the throbbing in her head. Her stomach felt pretty crappy too.
In the ensuite bathroom, folded on the counter, was one of Nat’s oversized flannel shirts and a thick pair of woolen socks. She put the shirt over her wrinkled dress, doing the buttons up to her neck. For a finishing touch she slipped on the socks. Quite the ensemble.
She avoided her reflection as she made her way sheepishly out of the room.
Down the hall and to the right, she found the kitchen. Nat was helping himself to a cup of coffee. He looked up. Smiled.
She felt self-conscious about her bare legs—somehow her stockings had gotten several ghastly runs last night, she didn’t recall how it happened, but she’d had to toss them in the trash this morning.
“Morning Mattie.”
Suddenly she remembered how it had felt to have his arms around her when they were dancing. He’d held her so properly, but his touch had still created a heat in her body quite unlike her reaction to having Ryan Gerry pull her close.
She shuddered, remembering. Boy, she hadn’t handled that very well.
“Sleep okay?” Nat asked.
“Better than I deserved.” She slipped onto a stool at the butcher block island, about three times the size of her own at Bishop Stables.
Everything at the Double D was bigger. And more beautiful. Nat’s house could have been the lodge for an upscale mountain resort, and yet he rarely entertained, so she’d only been inside a handful of times in the past nineteen years.
Two pain pills were on the counter, along with a glass of water. When Nat nodded at them, she said, “Thanks,” and swallowed them down. Glancing at the microwave, she winced at the time. It was almost nine o’clock. She’d slept through his morning chores and her own. Not that there was much in the way of chores for her anymore. There was plenty of hay in the shelters for the eight horses that were left. When she got home, she’d check and make sure the water troughs weren’t frozen. But since Jake had just repaired all the pumps in October, the chances of that happening were slight.
“Where’s Tuff?” Her voice came out hoarse. She took another drink of water.
“In the mudroom with Buffy. Probably flaked out. They exhausted themselves playing in the new snow this morning.”
“Mind if I go say hello?”
“Be my guest.” He pointed the way.
She vaguely remembered coming into the house through the side entrance that led in from the garage last night. Just beyond the kitchen was a rather forlorn-looking dining room—she’d bet it hadn’t been used since Julia left—and then the hallway opened up to a large gracious foyer. Straight ahead was the main entrance, and to the left a corridor that led to a bathroom and the mudroom. Here she found Tuff and her sister curled up together. So adorable, she wanted to scoop them up, but puppies were like babies. When they were sleeping, only a fool disturbed them.
Quietly she backed out of the hall and from this vantage point noticed that the door to Nat’s study, on the other side of the entry, was open.
Feeling a little snoopy, she couldn’t resist a peek.
The room was masculine, but cozy, decorated in navy blue and chocolate browns. Dominating the space was a massive, walnut desk. On top of the desk were blueprints, curling up at the edges.
“Everything okay?” Nat had come to check on her. His gaze went from where she was standing, to where she was looking.
“Have you got a new construction project in the works?” she asked.
Nat closed the door to his office. “Just some minor renovations to the house.”
While Nat had been married, Julia had done a complete update of the place. Fortunately, while she had no interest in living in a ranch house, she’d had excellent taste in decorating one. “Really? It looks perfect just the way it is.”
“Oh, you know, just a few changes here and there,” he said vaguely. “Hungry?”
“Honestly? No.”
But she followed him back to the kitchen and watched as he sliced some cantaloupe, then arranged it on a plate with two slices of toast. He slid the plate across the gleaming wooden surface to her.
“I’m bit foggy on some of the details from last night.” She picked up the buttered rye toast and took a nibble. “How did you happen to be at the Smoke House? Was it a coincidence?”
“No. I was looking for you. When you didn’t answer your phone, I called Jake and he said you’d mentioned going to the Smoke House.”
He must have wanted to speak to her urgently, if he hadn’t been willing to wait for the morning. “Is there a problem?”
Nat’s forthright gaze slipped a little to the left. “Wes called here last night after supper. He sounded pretty serious about finding a buyer for your ranch.”
Mattie gasped, then choked on the piece of toast she’d just swallowed. She gulped down more water. “That bastard. He phoned me around five o’clock yesterday to tell me he’d sold the horses—fat lot of good that was, since I’d already seen Guy Medley drive off with them thirty minutes earlier. I told Wes he’d better not pull the same stunt with the ranch.”
A request he’d obviously point-blank ignored.
Nat refilled his coffee cup, then took a seat to her right. Leaning forward, he turned his head in her direction. “And what did he say to that?”
She hesitated. “He told me to hire a lawyer.”
“You’re right. He is a bastard.”
“But he won’t,” Nat predicted. “That would require him to admit that he’s the bad guy here.”
“Well, maybe I shouldn’t give him a choice. He’s been calling the shots for too long. It’s my turn.” Mattie straightened her shoulders. Finished off the water. “Could you give me a lift home, Nat?”
“I could. But what’s your plan? You’re cooking something up. I can see it in your eyes.”
“If he won’t come to me, then I’m going to find him.”
“In a few days, you mean?”
“Now.”
“Have you looked out a window today?”
She had, briefly, but now she turned to the large picture window behind her. The view was almost entirely white. The predicted blizzard was in full onslaught.
“I’ve driven in storms before. I’ve got good tires. I’ll be fine.”
“Do you even know where to find him?”
“A month ago Wes told me he was staying with some old friends of his, Peter and Marg Wilkinson. They have an acreage up near Billings. I’ll start there.”
Nat processed this. Then looked deeply into her eyes. “You’re really determined to do this?”
“I am.”
“You know... I wouldn’t mind having a few words with Wes myself.”
This was interesting. She narrowed her eyes as she studied him. “About buying Bishop Stables?”
Nat nodded. “Finish your breakfast Mattie. We need to get on the road.”
“You sure?”
“Yup. Even if I didn’t have my own reasons for this trip, I sure as hell wouldn’t let you drive to Billings alone.”
Maybe she should have been insulted by his alpha male attitude. But she liked the idea. Nat would be a good person to have along if anything went wrong.
And even if it didn’t.
* * *
At home Mattie took a quick shower, then threw some jeans, sweaters, underwear and her toiletry bag into a duffel. Nat had made arrangements for Eadie to take care of Tuff and for one of his men to check on her horses and the barn cats. Mattie didn’t know what would happen when the buyers Wes had lined up to purchase Whiskey Chaser and the rest of the families’ horses came by. There’d be no one here to sign any paperwork, so they could hardly just drive off with them, even if they had already forked over their money.