by Jeannie Watt
“Is everything okay?”
“It’s fine. Why?”
“You’re acting weird lately.”
Will let out a snort. “I am not. I just wanted to know if you had help today.” He turned and walked out of the barn, then stopped next to a pile of metal odds and ends. “You’ll need it.”
Travis picked up a chain saw chain that looked as if it had been used to cut through a steel beam and tossed it into the scrap-metal trailer, parked next to the wood trailer. Some stuff would be saved for recycling, but the stuff that didn’t qualify would go the landfill. “I have lots of help.” And he was certain his grandfather was aware of it.
“Things are going pretty good with you and Cassie now.”
Travis slowly raised his gaze. “For the last time, Cassie and I will not upset Rosalie at family functions. We will not have a knock-down-drag-out at the wedding. Put your mind at ease.”
“All right.”
If Travis didn’t know better, he would have thought his grandfather was flushing guiltily. Then a thought struck him. “Are you nervous about the wedding?”
Will shot a sharp look his way. “Getting married at my age is intimidating. I don’t want to mess this up. I want Rosalie to be happy.”
“I understand.” Yet he still had a strong feeling that there was something else at play.
“Lester will be here soon. I’m going to see if I can get the swather started.”
“You do that.” And since Will had had the swather purring yesterday, he wondered why that was a concern.
Before Will got to the swather, Cassie, Katie and Rosalie arrived. Will met the car, then escorted the women past Travis and the junk piles and into the barn, where the ideas started flying.
“Now, that area over there,” Will said, “will have stuff stored against the wall. Things that have to be out of the weather.”
“How big of an area?” Rosalie asked.
“Let me pace it off for you...”
Travis stayed outside, focusing on sorting trash from treasures, until Will called his name five or six minutes later.
“Yeah. Coming.” He dropped a peavey with a broken handle into the “keep” pile, hoping he could find a new handle to fit it, and then continued into the barn.
Will made a gesture toward the area where they would be storing the essentials. “We’re thinking that we’ll rope off the area, but it might be nice to have some barriers of some kind—”
“Screens or dividers to hide things,” Rosalie said. “Rustic, of course.”
Just as Cassie had suggested to him earlier.
“Katie thinks she might have her wedding here, too, so if we could come up with something kind of permanent and picturesque,” Rosalie added.
“Won’t it be kind of cold?” Because last he’d heard, Katie planned to have a Christmas wedding.
“We’ll rent propane heaters,” Katie said. “The kind they use on restaurant patios.”
“Ah.”
His grandfather stepped forward, rubbing the back of his neck thoughtfully before saying, “I thought maybe you could run up to the line shack and harvest that nice weathered wood and we could build dividers from it.”
Travis shrugged. “Sure. Um...when?”
“Tomorrow?”
“They thought I might like to come with you,” Cassie interjected with a lift of her eyebrows, clearly indicating that a lot had gone on while he was sorting.
“Are you coming with me?” he asked point-blank.
“Of course.”
Will’s face broke into a triumphant grin, which abruptly disappeared when Travis looked his way.
No way.
Travis let out long, low breath. Just what he needed. A matchmaking grandfather.
* * *
CASSIE WAS BEGINNING to wonder if she would ever cross the McGuire ranch cattle guard on her way home without being dusty or wet. Despite washing her hands at the standpipe and dusting off her clothes, there was still barn grime clinging to her shirt and jeans, only this time it came from sorting the stuff sitting in the driveway into “keep” and “toss” piles, rather than from packing it out.
“I feel gross,” she muttered to her sister.
“We made some major headway.” Katie used her look-on-the-bright-side voice. “And frankly, you’re looking pretty good today. A couple of times you came home looking like you’d rolled on the floor.”
“Thanks.” But it was true.
“Hey, I totally appreciate the effort,” Katie said. “I feel bad not helping to haul stuff out since I’m going to use the barn for my own wedding.”
Cassie was glad her sister hadn’t been there to help. If she had been, then she and Travis wouldn’t have made so much headway getting to know and understand one another.
Maybe you’ve made too much headway...
She shoved the thought aside. That was a matter she would mull over later, when she was alone. “I don’t think you would have had time with the herbs and Kendra and Bailey.”
“Probably not. If I’d brought the girls, one of us would have had to watch them.”
“To keep them from getting into the same kind of trouble we did?” Cassie asked with a smile.
“To keep them from getting into the same kind of trouble you and Nick got into. I was the homebody, remember?”
It was no secret that Katie had preferred staying with Rosalie and tending to more domestic matters, but if push came to shove, she could cowboy with the best of them. She just didn’t like it as much.
“Brady really likes the idea of using the McGuire barn for our wedding,” Katie said as they drove across the bridge over the Ambrose River. “Especially since Will kind of brought us together.”
Cassie frowned over at her sister, who made an eyes-on-the-road gesture before saying, “It’s true. When Brady was headed off to Las Vegas to work at a bucking school there, Will talked sense into him and sent him back to me. There was a rabbit involved, too.”
“Why didn’t I know about this?”
“We don’t tell a lot of people about the rabbit.”
“I mean why didn’t I know that Will had a hand in bringing you guys together?”
Katie gave her a look. “Because when you call, you talk about your job, ask about everyone, then hang up. Of course you’re going to get superficial information.”
“We used to tell each other stuff.”
“Right up until you went to college. Then it was eye on the prize.”
Cassie wanted to contradict her, but thinking back, she couldn’t. She’d always assumed there’d be time for deep conversations later, after she’d achieved the next big goal.
Katie gave a small sigh. “I’m in no position to talk. I was the same way.”
And now she seemed very happy that she wasn’t that way.
“When I go back to work, I’m going to try for greater balance between my personal life and private. That’s why I bought the horse.”
“How’s that going?” Katie asked.
“Time will tell,” Cassie answered noncommittally. Right now it didn’t look good, and she was beginning to wonder if she and Travis should go into a partnership with McHenry’s Gold and raise a couple of babies. Cassie could trade the babies for the mare. Or maybe she’d trade one baby for the mare if Travis trained the baby.
Something to think about, talk about. They’d have time to do just that when they traveled to the far end of the sprawling ranch to collect boards.
Those “special” boards.
She gave her sister a quick sidelong look. “Did it seem to you that Will and Grandma seemed inordinately interested in getting a very particular kind of board for the paneling when we have a lot of pretty weathered boards in the boneyard?”
“Apparently these are goldish instead of silver gray and pretty coo
l-looking.”
“All the same...”
“If they’re pretty, I want them for my wedding,” Katie said with mock sternness as they drove into the ranch. “Don’t go ruining my chances to get cool wedding boards.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it. And it seemed important to Will,” she said as she pulled to a stop.
“It’s Will’s wedding, too.” Katie undid her seat belt after Cassie parked, but didn’t reach for the door handle. Instead she half turned toward Cassie. “Do you think something is going on?”
“No,” Cassie said a little too quickly. “Of course not. These must be some boards, that’s all.”
Katie gave a satisfied nod and opened her door while Cassie did the same.
There was definitely something going on.
* * *
ROSALIE STOOD ALONE in the barn with her eyes closed, trying to envision it as a wedding venue. It smelled of damp wood, but that would fade and soon she and her crew would start decorating.
She’d always loved the juxtaposition of the rustic and the elegant, and while she wouldn’t have called herself elegant, she possessed a certain grace and Will was rustic to the bone, so the venue and the theme made perfect sense. Having the wedding on the ranch was special to Will, and Katie was all about having her own wedding there, too, so it worked out. Plus, cleaning the barn had brought Cassie and Travis together, but not in a way she’d expected when they first began.
Two grandchildren had forged happy relationships under her watch, but she wasn’t certain what was going to happen with her eldest, most headstrong grandchild. Was Cassie going to head back to that pressure-cooker job of hers? If she did, that was her choice, and so far, Cassie had made the right choices in her career path—for her professional health anyway.
Rosalie would like to see Cassie take a job that wasn’t as all-consuming, but she did her best not to butt into her children’s and grandchildren’s lives. Will didn’t have the same standards of conduct, but she was beginning to be swayed to his way of thinking. What was wrong with her and him shooing the grandkids in a certain direction? Headstrong as they both were, they were fully capable of fighting back—if they cared to.
When her son, Pete, had called from Australia to discuss travel details the night before, Rosalie had mentioned that Cassie was working with Travis clearing out the barn and that she suspected that Will was trying to bring them together as friends.
Pete had laughed and said if Will could manage that, then he deserved to win a peace price.
After watching Travis and Cassie watch one another, however, Rosalie wondered if Will might get that prize. If so, then her Cassie had some choices ahead of her.
She turned as she heard Will’s footsteps behind her.
“What do you think, Rosalie?”
“I think this barn is a perfect blank canvas,” she said, spreading her arms out and doing a turn as if to embrace the emptiness.
“Yeah. It is,” Will agreed gruffly. “And as a bonus, I’m getting rid of a lot of stuff that should have gone by the wayside a long time ago. I’ll probably make some money on the scrap, too.”
“Win-win,” she said as she stepped closer and he settled an arm over her shoulders.
“You know,” he said, “I think this thing with the kids is working out.”
She thought he’d been a little too obvious when he’d set things up for Cassie and Travis to collect the line-shack boards, but neither of them had balked at the task, so perhaps they wanted to spend time together. “You old romantic,” she murmured.
His cheeks started to go red, but he didn’t deny it. “Who are you calling old?”
Rosalie leaned her head against his solid shoulder. “That would be us, my love.”
Old and in love was as good as young and in love and, in some ways, a lot less complicated.
* * *
“NOW?” KENDRA ASKED as she leaned closer to the mixing bowl where Cassie was whipping the butter and sugar. She and Bailey stood on kitchen chairs on either side of Cassie, each holding an egg.
“I think we’re almost there. Do you have your little bowls?” Which helped ensure that the cookies didn’t have extra calcium from shell fragments.
“Mine’s ready,” Kendra said importantly.
“Me, too,” Bailey added with a happy smile, pulling the bowl a little closer.
“I’m ready for eggs,” Cassie said, taking a step back.
The girls tapped their eggs on the counter, then split open the shells, carefully dropping the contents into small glass bowls.
“Any shell pieces?” Katie asked.
“I don’t see any,” Bailey said, frowning down at the contents of her bowl. “But my yolk is broken.”
“That’s fine, sweetie.” Cassie moved closer to make certain there were no shells as her phone rang. She glanced to where it sat on the counter, then her heart skipped. Anna Lee.
“I’ll take care of the eggs,” Katie said, reading her sister’s expression.
Cassie mouthed a thank-you, then stepped into the living room to take the call.
“There’s definitely something happening out of the ordinary,” Anna Lee said as Cassie said hello. “School board members are meeting with Rhonda. They look grim going into her office and even grimmer coming out. I caught a glimpse of the district lawyer once, but he might have been here for that accessibility issue.”
Cassie almost asked how the accessibility matter was progressing, but didn’t. One issue at a time. “Only Rhonda’s office?”
“Doug is in Hawaii, using his vacation days before they expire. Rhonda is probably keeping him posted, but he left the day before things started to get strange, so he hasn’t been personally involved. I hope this doesn’t ruin his vacation.”
“Me, too.” Dr. Doug Everett had done an incredible job of keeping the school district running smoothly during difficult times. He was Cassie’s mentor and role model and she owed him for all the support he’d given her.
“The board retreat is tonight. I’m sure some information will break loose then. I’ll call you afterward,” Anna Lee promised. “It should be around nine your time. Is that too late?”
“Not at all.”
“Good.” Anna Lee hesitated, as if not yet ready to end the call. “So how are things out West?” she asked brightly.
“I’m enjoying time with my family.” A safe enough answer. She couldn’t really say she was torn between her need to follow her original plans and a primal urge to head back to work and deal with whatever was brewing. She didn’t have that option.
“Family will keep you sane.” Anna Lee gave a small laugh. “Unless they’re the kind of family that keeps you insane.”
“Right,” Cassie laughed. “Thanks for the call. I have little girls waiting for me in the kitchen, but if anything else goes down—”
“I’ll let you know.”
Anna Lee said goodbye and Cassie slowly lowered her phone. Something was happening, but there was nothing she could do.
At least Anna Lee hadn’t said anything more about Rhonda hinting that she might not retire, and in the name of being able to sleep at night, Cassie had decided not to ask.
“Is everything okay at work?” Katie asked in a voice that belied her pleasant expression when Cassie came back into the kitchen. The girls were watching the beaters blending flour into the butter, sugar and eggs, but they both looked up at Katie’s question.
“I don’t know,” Cassie said honestly. “But given the circumstances, it has to play out without me, so I’m not going to worry about it.”
Katie shot her a suspicious look, then her brow cleared. “Good attitude.”
“Was that Grandma on the phone?” Kendra asked.
“No, honey. It was someone I work with.”
Kendra made an O with her mouth, then scrambled down off her chair. �
�I’ll get the plastic wrap to cover the cookies.”
“Great idea,” Katie said, then in what appeared to be a sisterly show of support, she changed the subject. “Brady got a second job offer today.”
“No kidding.” Cassie tilted her head. “Were you keeping it a secret?”
“Nope. Got a text while you were dealing with your call.”
“That is great news.” Cassie took the plastic wrap from Kendra and set it on the counter next to the churning mixer.
“Yep. The guy who had no training now holds his advanced welding certificate and two places in Gavin have offered him a job. Now all he has to do is choose.”
“Fantastic. He’s worked hard and he deserves this. You deserve this, too.”
Katie shot her a smile. “Behind every good man, yada yada.”
“Uh-huh.”
“The only thing is that we are going to need another ranch hand if Brady takes the town job and Nick’s contracting business continues to snowball.”
This year hadn’t been a problem because it had been a great spring and every cow they owned was on pasture. The fences were in good shape and Nick had cleared his calendar during haying, so with Katie’s help, they could get the job done. But contracting brought in a lot of money, and since Nick was also leaning toward marrying Alex...
“Yes. We might need another hand.”
“Do you care to fill the job?” Katie asked in an overly casual voice.
Cassie gave a sputtering laugh. “As much as I love all things ranch, no.”
“Just checking.”
“You’ve checked. I’ve answered.” Cassie moved her eyes sideways, indicating their nieces, who were watching their aunts with the same interest they’d given to the whirling beaters of the mixer. Adult stuff could be fascinating.
“Yes, indeed,” Katie said briskly as the last of the flour was worked into the dough. “We’ll let these chill while we eat dinner, then we’ll roll them out and you guys will have cookies to take to Aunt Gloria tomorrow.”
“And for us to eat,” Bailey announced.