Kathie DeNosky: Rich, Rugged Ranchers

She closed her hands around the keys. “I didn’t want to start out like this, Logan.”

He opened the car door for her and spoke with as much civility as he could muster. “Half a mile down the road. I’m sure you remember how to get there.”

“Yes, I do remember,” she said. As she squeezed past him to get into the car, her knockout breasts brushed his chest and the firm contact, along with the stirring scent of her erotic perfume, assaulted him like a blow to the gut.

He closed the car door, and watched her Camry vanish into the horizon as half a dozen curses slipped out of his mouth.

The second Logan was out of sight in her rearview mirror, Sophia slumped her shoulders and loosened the tight grip she had on the steering wheel. She eased her foot off the pedal a little and let the car amble along the road that led to Sunset Lodge. She simply would not think of Logan Slade again. He angered her, but he also thrilled her, and it was an emotion she didn’t welcome—and one she tried to will away. Her mother had once told her that matters of the heart could not be explained or understood. They just were. Sophia would not be a fool in regard to Logan Slade. He’d offered her a small fortune just to be rid of her. How could she feel anything for him but disdain?

Certainly, she could avoid him while living here. Nestled between the grand Sierra Nevadas and Carson City, Sunset Ranch was vast, spanning miles in a diamond-shaped perimeter. Tomorrow, when Luke arrived home, she’d renew their friendship and she’d deal with him on matters involving her lodge duties. At least she had one friend on Sunset Ranch she could count on.

“Don’t you worry about a thing, darlin’,” he’d said. “I’ll make sure you get a proper welcome home.”

Snow from winter storms capped the tallest peaks of the mountain range, reminding her of vanilla ice cream on a waffle cone. The image made her smile. She’d almost forgotten how peaceful and beautiful the landscape was on Sunset Ranch in the spring, the indigo skies dotted with white marshmallow clouds. It was so different from the crowded marquee-laden noisy streets of Las Vegas.

The lodge stables came into view first, and her heart squeezed tight that her mother couldn’t be here to see the grounds once again. Louisa had loved caring for the horses in her spare time. “So sorry, Mama.”

Sophia blinked away a tear, taking a deep breath.

As she drove a little farther, the lodge filled her vision. It wasn’t what one would expect to see on a Nevada ranch. The lodge was grand, made of natural, rounded gray stone mingled with cedar sidings in a glorious combination that spoke of elegance and grace. The surrounding land was fertile and filled with wispy wildflowers in bloom. And the immediate grounds were groomed impeccably.

It was considered a privilege by the employees to tend the property and work the stables. Not too many workers came and went at Sunset Lodge. The Slades had always maintained long-standing relationships with those on staff.

Sophia felt queasy about having to release Mrs. Polanski, and any thought she had of stopping in to see the lodge vanished in an instant. She couldn’t face that hurdle right now. She would settle into the cottage first and get organized. She would wait until tomorrow to speak to Luke about the woman.

The cottage was tucked behind and out of view of the lodge. It afforded a good amount of privacy, which Sophia wanted now above all else. The media splash her secret marriage had created, along with watching her mother lose her struggle with cancer, had taken a giant toll on her. She needed to regroup and dive into work she would enjoy. More than anything else, Sophia had to prove something to herself.

All her life, she had gotten by on her looks. She’d never had the chance to go to college, but she’d never regretted the time she’d spent with her mother, helping her manage small motels and inns on the outskirts of Las Vegas. When her mother became ill, Sophia had honed her natural dance abilities to land ensemble roles for big-time casinos in Las Vegas. She’d made enough money to support the two of them as a showgirl, not so much because of her brains or talent, but because she looked the way she did.

Now was her chance to dig in, to give it her all and to shine doing something she loved.

“Ms. Montrose, hello!”

A rider on a gorgeous bay mare sidled up next to the car. She didn’t realize how slowly she was actually driving. She rolled the window the rest of the way down.

“It’s Ward Halliday. Remember me?”

She glanced at the Slade’s head horse wrangler. “Oh, Mr. Halliday. Yes, I do recognize you. How have you been?”

He grinned crookedly. “Getting old and grouchy,” he said as he rode along beside her car. “But seeing you here sure brightened my day.”

“Well, thank you. It’s good be ho—here. I’ve missed it.”

His grin faded and he gave her a solemn nod. “Sure am sorry to hear about your mama, girl.”

She put her foot on the brake and the car rolled to a stop. “Thank you. It was a hard time.”

“Yeah, I’m sure that it was,” he said, pulling up on the mare’s reins. “She was a nice woman. She made cookies a time or two for my boy, Hunter. Gosh, he was a little cuss then.”

“I remember. I helped her, Mr. Ward.”

A sweet smile wrinkled his face. “Heck, you’re not fifteen anymore. You can call me Ward. Here comes Hunter now.”

He turned in his saddle just as a younger man approached on a horse. “He was just a kid when you left the ranch. He’s working here with me now and planning on going to Texas A & M in the fall.”

Sophia turned off the engine, and stepped out of the car. The sun beamed down with early afternoon intensity and she shielded her eyes as she gazed up to greet the young man. “So you’re little Hunter. It’s good to see you again.”

He took no offense yet straightened her out good-naturedly. “Not so little anymore, miss.”

No, he wasn’t. Hunter Halliday was taller than his dad and broader in the shoulders. “I can see that.”

“Are you fixin’ on moving in right now?” he asked.

“Yes, I was just on my way to the cottage.”

Ward looked at the boxes in the backseat of her car. “You need help? Hunter will help you unload.”

“Oh, well … I could use a hand, but if you’re busy—”

“I’m not busy at all,” Hunter said. “Mr. Slade sent me out to see if I can help.”

He did? Logan hadn’t seemed to care one bit that Sophia had to move all of her things into the cottage by herself. He hadn’t offered to help, the way a gentleman would, but then she really hadn’t expected much from him. “Then yes. I would appreciate your help.”

Ward tipped his hat. “Welcome home, Ms. Montrose.”

“Call me Sophia,” she said just before he turned his horse around.

“Will do,” he called over his shoulder.

Sophia smiled and got back into her car. “I’ll meet you at the cottage,” she said to Hunter.

Hunter took off and somehow managed to beat her there. He ground-tethered his horse and came forward to open the car door for her.

“You got here fast.”

He grinned. “I know a shortcut, miss.”

“Of course.” She was reminded of all the shortcuts she’d taken on horseback when she lived here. The paved roads weren’t always the quickest way from point A to point B. “And please, call me Sophia, too.”

He was already reaching into her backseat for a box.

“Sure thing.”

He came up with three boxes, stacking them and managing to keep them balanced as he walked to the door. Sophia put the key into the lock. Her heart hammered against her chest, and Hunter beat her to the words that were just forming on her lips.