Horrified that she’d dropped her handbag in her moment of terror, Caitlin snatched it up, flinging more drops of mud on her coat. “Does this town have a police force, or a sheriff?”
“Sheriff Carter,” he answered automatically. “But why would you need him?”
“Because you tried to mow me into a snow bank? Because I almost got embedded into the glass doors of the store? Because my brand new expensive coat is ruined, and because you’re lucky I’m not dead, or lying in blood with broken limbs!”
Her rant fell on deaf ears. “Nobody wears that kind of thing around here,” he said with a shrug. “You’re better off with a fleece jacket and a pair of long johns underneath those ineffective designer jeans.”
“Your truck running me over has nothing to do with seeking advice from a Snow Valley clothing consultant.”
“What’s a shopping consultant?” he asked.
“Exactly what the name implies,” Caitlin said shortly. “Does this rinky-dink backwoods place have a dry cleaner?”
“Hey, we might be small, but we aren’t some rinky-dink backwoods holler like West Virginia.”
“Pardon me for not knowing the geography better.”
“Apology accepted.”
“Why—” Caitlin was speechless again. “You are—that was—rude. You must be incapable of recognizing sarcasm when you hear it.”
“I recognize it, but I didn’t appreciate it, ma’am.”
“I’m not a ma’am.”
“I apologize, miss, I didn’t mean to offend. My mama tried to teach me manners, but sometimes they fly out of my head. But here’s a warning. If you continue to run around in fancy jeans and high heels, tomorrow or the next day I’ll be finding you frozen solid as a Popsicle in the fields.”
Was this guy for real? “I haven’t scheduled walking into empty fields on my calendar yet,” she told him stiffly.
He had the nerve to grin at her. “You’ll be missing out. Snow Valley’s finest scenery is in our hills. Pretty as a picture.”
“I’ll wait for spring, thank you very much.”
“Suit yourself,” the man said, shrugging again. He nodded and then proceeded to brush a foot of snow off the hood of his vehicle. When he finally reached in to switch off the engine, Caitlin could feel his eyes boring into the back of her head as she strode into the store.
Quickly, she found the right aisle for the few sundry items she hadn’t been able to fit into her suitcases, and paid for the purchases. The sooner she was out of here, the better.
Caitlin tried to salvage her dignity when she spotted the man headed toward the cash register by ignoring him. She spun on her heel and hauled herself out the door, tossing her purchases into the seat next to her and squealing her own tires as she peeled onto Main Street again.
4
Caitlin’s anger cooled when she finally left the town center. Passing side streets with neighborhood homes, she tried to get her heart rate to return to normal. She dearly hoped her coat wasn’t ruined.
After more ranchland and thickets of snow-frosted evergreens, she kept driving and checking her phone map. A mile later, Caitlin saw the sign for the B&B at last.
Starry Skies Bed & Breakfast
Try our Big Sky Breakfast—You won’t go hungry the rest of the day!
Rooms available.
Ski lifts only thirty minutes away.
Giving her Altima more gas, she hauled up the slope of the final hill and parked in an empty space close to the front door.
“I made it.” She took her hands off the steering wheel, not realizing how tight she’d been holding on, and stared up at the house.
The hotel was a Victorian-era house remodeled into a charming Bed & Breakfast.
The kind of place she saw in magazines. The property was quaint and inviting with lawns covered in drifted snow. The walkways had been shoveled and an enchanting white porch ran the length of the house. Rocking chairs and rugs and hanging flower pots—minus the flowers in January, of course.
A lot of money had been poured into this place, including a loving hand with a streak of finesse. How had Rayna financed it so many years ago? Caitlin racked her brain trying to remember what her mother’s aunt and uncle did for a living, but she couldn’t remember. Still, this was Montana. Either they were wealthy ranchers, or they had oil fields.
Caitlin popped open the trunk and hauled her luggage out, finding a dry spot on the stone paving. Just ahead was a double front door with glass insets.
At the same moment she swung her backpack over one shoulder and rolled the largest suitcase toward the porch staircase, the sound of an approaching vehicle made her turn.
On the entrance road to the Bed & Breakfast, a monstrous red truck gunned it up the final slope of the hill, its engine ear-splittingly loud.
Caitlin’s jaw dropped as the obnoxious red truck from Dove’s pulled in to park right behind her own rented vehicle.
When the driver jumped out of his truck and saw her, they stood stock still, staring at each other. How in the world did this maniac driver know she was headed to the Starry Skies?
“You again? Are you following me?” Caitlin demanded over the noise of the engine.
He stuck his hands on his hips and a slow grin spread across his face. Amused was the best word to describe his cocky expression. “You might be the prettiest girl I’ve seen in a long time, but why would I be following you?”
“How did you know I was coming here?”
“I didn’t. How did you know I was coming here?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I got here first.”
“You coming or going?”
“Obviously, I’ve just arrived.” Caitlin’s voice rose. “I was trying to get my luggage inside when you decided to run me off the property again.”
He laughed. “Why would I do that?”
“Can you please turn off your engine?” she snapped.
“Sorry.” He jogged around the hood of the truck and then reached inside the cab. The sudden silence was a welcome relief.
“Guess you’re staying at the Starry Skies, then?” he asked, brushing snow from his gloves and sending a plume of flakes into the air. “Where you from?”
“San Francisco. That’s my rental car parked in a clearly marked spot bumper-to-bumper with your monster truck. I’m assuming Rayna is here?”
“Did you make your reservation through her or Wade?”
She squared her shoulders. “I don’t have a reservation. I’m Rayna’s cousin.”
Understanding dawned on his face. “Right. I should have caught that when you said Frisco.”
Caitlin prickled at the ignorant reference to her hometown. “Only outsiders call it Frisco. It’s San Francisco. Or The City.”
He stifled another grin as he lifted both of her large suitcases at the same time, one in each arm, and hauled them up the front porch stairs. Her jaw dropped. She’d paid extra at the airport because her luggage was over the weight limit but he’d picked them up as though they weighed nothing.
Caitlin’s breath came like clouds of smoke in the frigid air. She swore he was laughing at her. Maybe she had sounded a bit snobbish telling him off about her hometown’s proper name.
“You coming?” he said, glancing back at her. “Your feet will soon be glued to those pavings and then we’re going to have to get a chisel to un-stick your toes. Believe me, you don’t want frostbite. Your skin turns black. Toes start breaking off . . .”
Caitlin heard the laughter in his voice and wanted to punch him.
He opened the front door and carried her luggage inside. Somehow, he’d even grabbed her backpack. Caitlin had no idea it had slipped off her shoulder.
When she crossed the threshold into the Starry Skies beautifully trimmed foyer, Caitlin glanced back at the truck that had nearly run her over and stuck her tongue out. Then she slammed the door and shook off the snow from her coat, livid at the mud stains splashed straight down the front of it.
“Hey, I saw
that,” the man said.
Caitlin played dumb. “Saw what?”
“Do you go around sticking your tongue out at big red trucks on a regular basis?”
“Only when they’re inhabited by smirking Montana drivers.”
“Good comeback.” At the front desk, the man rang the bell and swiped off his knit hat. A shock of thick auburn hair was on display and he ran a hand through to smooth out its unruly mess.
Caitlin sucked in her breath. His hair was wavy and beautiful. She knew girls who would kill for that color hair. And paid plenty for it at the hairdresser.
The truck driver gave a small bow, sweeping his cap in a mocking gesture. Still grinning like a wild cat. Caitlin finally realized he was having fun at her expense, teasing the city girl.
When he lifted his head again, he was standing closer than she’d thought. The most devastatingly sapphire blue eyes stared back at her. His jaw line was strong and chiseled, but a boyish spray of freckles crossed his nose and cheeks.
So this was how God created Montana men.
“Allow me to introduce myself, Miss San Francisco. I’m Quentin Hudson.”
Caitlin held out her hand to shake his, and then realized her glove was covered in globs of mud. Feeling scatter-brained, she pulled off the glove and it fell to the floor. With sudden horror, she wondered if she had mud splattered across her face, too.
“Clean up’s easy around here,” he said, taking her cold hand in his warm one to give her a firm welcome shake.
“I’m Caitlin Webster.”
“Pleased to meet you, Miss Caitlin.”
She gave him a strained smile. “Just Caitlin.”
Quentin Hudson helped her out of her muddy coat and Caitlin felt heat rising up her cheeks. This man was nothing short of annoying, but darn if he wasn’t the most gorgeous man she’d met since Stefan Rivas.
5
“Rayna’s upstairs,” Quentin said. “Let me find out which room she wants you in.”
Caitlin was puzzled by the man’s familiarity. “Soooo,” she said. “Who are you exactly? I mean, why would you be showing me around the inn, and how do you know Rayna’s upstairs?”
Understanding lit up those sparkling sapphires of his. His eyes were so compelling Caitlin had to glance away periodically so she didn’t just stare at him like a fool.
“Right. I can see how you’d be confused. I’m a carpenter. Well, a general contractor with a specialty in carpentry. I’m doing a small remodel for the Starry Skies.”
“Rayna and Wade are remodeling the B&B?”
He shook his head. “Not exactly. We did a major one several years ago when they bought the old place. Right now we’re in the middle of adding a nursery.”
“Ah, I get it now. For the baby.”
“You’re quick, Miss Caitlin.”
“Just Caitlin.”
“Got it, Just Caitlin.”
Caitlin’s eyes narrowed. “Very funny.”
He quirked his lips into another grin. “I try to entertain.”
“When you’re not running over women with your truck?”
“Only special visitors to Snow Valley.”
Caitlin eyed him and lifted her chin. “Are you trying to flirt with me?”
“Only if you want me to.”
“I’ll take the 5th on that.”
Jerking her gaze away from his, Caitlin eyed her white coat. Bits of mud continued to fall on the floor. “I hope my coat isn’t ruined,” she said, trying to suppress the peculiar, fizzy feeling going on in her stomach. She was not going to flirt with this heathen Montana man—but it was disconcerting to see how easily they had fallen into the odd conversation just now.
Quentin Hudson cleared his throat. “Miss Webster, honestly, I apologize about the mud spray. If you’re coat isn’t salvageable, I insist on replacing it.”
Caitlin gave a small nod, which was followed by a moment of uncomfortable silence.
“Meanwhile, I’ll show you where the cleaning and laundry supplies are,” he added.
She gave him a tight smile. “Guess I need to give myself a tour of the place if I’m going to be living here for a couple of months.”
“Dive in anywhere, Just Caitlin. Rayna needs a lot of help.”
Caitlin glanced at the ceiling. She didn’t want to be stingy with her generosity, but she hadn’t thought she was in Snow Valley to take the role of housekeeper.
Quentin seemed to read her mind. “When Doc Taggart put Rayna on bed rest, Wade hired Mrs. Davies to take care of the hotel. She’s here Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. And every other weekend when Wade’s on call.”
“Everybody seems to be on a first name basis here.”
“This is Snow Valley. Most of us go way back.”
“Who’s doing the cooking?”
“That would also be Mrs. Davies. She prepares and freezes what she can on her days off. I think Rayna’s hoping you can pitch in with that, though there aren’t as many guests during the winter months, especially with the holidays over. Only one couple at the moment. Captain Wade helps out as much as he can, but he’s Fire Chief, so he’s gone quite a bit.”
“I understand, and I don’t mind helping. That’s what I’m here for.” Caitlin shook out her damp hair, exhaustion from the travel coming over her suddenly. She hated to think about her appearance. Tired eyes, pale skin, no lipstick.
“Good luck, Just Caitlin,” Quentin said. “I’m dropping off some pricing paperwork for the nursery. Do you mind taking them upstairs to Rayna for me?”
“Um, sure.”
He handed a folder over and, despite Caitlin’s trying to avoid skin contact, their fingers touched. Those eyes were making her drown. How could that happen when the man had just tried to run her over? To keep her head, she decided to stay coolly angry with him.
“Thanks. See you later, Just Caitlin.”
Her mouth opened to ask him why she’d be seeing him later, then realized that Quentin Hudson would be here every single day doing the construction.
She gave a small, limp wave as he headed out the door, stamping his boots on the porch before striding back to his big red, obnoxious truck.
Caitlin swore silently in her head. Seriously, she had to see him every day? Well, she’d just have to avoid him as much as possible. Hopefully, he wouldn’t be like other men—namely Stefan—who liked to be waited on while he was practicing the piano or watching TV. She’d be royally ticked off if this construction guy expected her to make him lunch every day. Or bring him cold drinks. She wasn’t a waitress!
Giving a self-deprecating laugh, Caitlin realized that she was beginning to think in small town lingo. As if a spell had come over her when she entered the city limits of Snow Valley.
Maybe it was the curse. After all, Madame Tallulah had said she was cursed.
Caitlin took a deep breath when she shut the front door. She’d help Rayna deliver a healthy baby, make sure Rayna’s own health and postpartum symptoms were taken care of, and then she was out of here on the next plane.
But Caitlin still had one nagging question. How could she break a curse when she didn’t even know what it was? What a come-on, Madame Tallulah had given her. Present the idea to a customer and then leave them scratching their head afterward.
“And why am I standing here puzzling over a curse that was totally made up by a woman who calls herself a fortune teller?” she said out loud to the empty foyer.
6
“Is somebody there?” a woman’s voice called down the staircase.
“Rayna, is that you?” Caitlin called back, taking the stairs two at a time.
At the landing, Rayna Kinsella stood, one hand on the railing, wearing purple flannel pajamas and fluffy slippers. Well, not exactly pajamas. More like comfy sweats and a men’s flannel shirt. Probably Wade’s. Her seven month swollen belly was obvious. Her long black hair streaked with purple had been tied up into a messy knot. Tendrils of curls floated along her wan cheeks.
“I’m so glad y
ou’re here, Caitlin!” Rayna said, grabbing her into a big hug. “And you are so adorable, too! I don’t think I’ve seen you since you were in sixth grade or thereabouts.”
“Probably. My memories are a little vague.”
“It was a big, noisy family reunion and you were off playing on the beach in San Diego with the other cousins. I think I had recently graduated college and was getting my California tan to show off when I came back to Snow Valley. I have to admit, I was also surreptitiously eyeing the extremely well-built officers running along the shoreline from the Navy Academy just down the beach.” Rayna wiggled her eyebrows and laughed.
“Eye candy, huh?”
“I’m lucky. I got to marry the best eye candy in Montana.”
“I hear he’s a firefighter, too. Ooh, lala!”
“I like a girl who appreciates my accomplishment at snagging a man younger than me.”
“You’re terrible, Rayna,” Caitlin told her, remembering the spitfire in her mother’s younger cousin from so long ago. “Now what are you doing out of bed?”
“Going stark raving mad with boredom. Did you know how truly awful daytime television is? Game shows and soap operas.”
“Agreed times ten. But I’m usually asleep during the day.”
“You must work nights, you sly creature. Or else you’re the laziest woman alive. I’ve also read every book in the library, too. Well, maybe I exaggerate,” Rayna added with a smile. “So what do you think of our adorable Snow Valley so far?”
“I’m having a bit of a Twilight Zone experience. It’s surreal driving out here. I’ve never seen so much empty space. And your contractors like to drive big red trucks right through the front yard—as well as take up entire parking lots.”
Rayna laughed. “I take it you met Quentin Hudson.”
“I’d like to spit nails at him. You should see my muddy new coat.”
“Mrs. Davies will get it cleaned up perfectly, she’s a wonder. And don’t buy anything new for your wardrobe. You’re in the country now. And it’s winter. The mud will last until May.”
UnBreak My Heart_A Snow Valley Romance Page 4