Karen Smith - The Cowboy's Secret Baby

Raintree Winery was about a mile out of town toward the hills. There was a rumor there was even a hot spring on the property. Hot springs. Marissa. A kiss. A touch. He shook the thoughts out of his head.

“I’ll be there in less than ten minutes,” he said.

And he was.

Driving down the lane into the winery, he passed scenery more manicured than the Cozy C’s. There were rows and rows of trellises covered with grape vines as well as purple, white and yellow chrysanthemums blooming everywhere. He’d heard the vineyard was coming to be known for its gardens as much as for its grapes and wines. Visitors who stopped to taste Raintree wines also toured the beds of roses and native flowers and shrubs. The vineyard’s property line on the western edge touched the Cozy C’s north pasture.

Ty followed the visitors sign that led to the winery offices. There was another driveway leading to the wine tasting center. He passed a guest cottage on the left and the main house on the right. That house was huge, more like a mansion compared to the ranch house on the Cozy C. Right past it he found the Raintree office complex, pulled into the designated parking area and switched off his ignition.

This was some place.

Ty walked up the path to the office, pulled open the heavy glass door and stepped inside. He didn’t know what he expected, maybe to see Marissa sitting at a desk, welcoming any visitors who might come in.

But that wasn’t the way it was. He spotted her through a glass partition. She was standing by a huge mahogany desk focused on a state-of-the-art computer monitor. He could tell by its size and sleek design. She wore tailored russet-brown slacks and a crisp pale peach blouse. She’d clipped her hair away from her face, but that didn’t keep the curls from tumbling forward.

He felt the old attraction, and he attempted to ignore it.

She wasn’t alone in her office. A man about as tall as Ty stood there with her, handing her some kind of printout. He was well built with black hair. He wore a white oxford dress shirt and navy suit trousers. Ty recognized him. Jase Cramer’s photo had appeared online and in newspapers with his articles about children in African refugee camps.

Ty hadn’t been oblivious to the world outside the rodeo circuit. After all, a Pulitzer Prize winner made headlines.

He strode toward the office. Marissa glanced up, and the glass walls seemed to drop away. It was just the two of them, staring at each other, wondering what the future was going to bring.

She had stopped midsentence apparently and Jase looked from her to Ty and then back again.

“This is the man you were expecting?” he heard Jase ask her through the open door.

She motioned him in. “Jase Cramer, meet Ty Conroy. Ty, this is my boss.”

As Ty shook Jase Cramer’s hand, he was sizing him up, and Jase was doing the same thing to Ty.

Jase turned to Marissa. “Would you like to go someplace more private than this?”

Marissa’s cheeks pinkened. “No, this is fine. Thanks.”

“We’re almost there, Marissa. You’ve done a terrific job planning the Christmas-week celebration. You’ve managed to get great vendors on board, and the publicity you generated is acquiring lots of interest. We’re good. Don’t let the odds and ends tie you up in knots, okay?”

She nodded.

After a last smile for Marissa and a nod to Ty, Cramer left the office. Just outside the door, he said, “I’ll be in the wine tasting room if you need me for anything.”

Again Marissa nodded and then she laid the papers on her desk.

“The Christmas celebration,” Ty mused aloud. “That’s a big event at Raintree. A big event in the area. Visitors go hopping from one winery to the next. You have to plan it?”

“I planned it,” she said proudly, “consulting with Jase and Sara, of course, and the other wineries in the area. That’s one of the things I do here, Ty. I plan the events.”

He must have made a sound of surprise or looked surprised because Marissa’s shoulders went back and she stood a little straighter. “Did you think I’d stay a waitress in a diner all my life?”

He realized he’d underestimated Marissa. Apparently becoming pregnant and having a baby had made a huge difference in her life.

“Girls in Fawn Grove who start out as waitresses usually end up as waitresses. I really didn’t know what your life goals were. We didn’t talk about that.”

She seemed to relax a bit. “No, we didn’t. The ironic thing is I took this job for the insurance benefits. And when I started, I was basically Jase’s secretary.” She motioned to the office beyond hers. “That’s where he works. But as the months went on, I handled more and more responsibility, and he saw that I really seemed suited for everything that goes on here, from setting up the wine tasting schedule to incorporating holiday themes in the gardens, to planning everything from an ice-cream festival to a music fair. I quickly moved up. I like the work I do here, and even more than that, I like the people I work with.”

Ty nodded. “That’s important. One of my friends from the rodeo circuit who wants to retire is going to hire on with us at the Cozy C. Clint and I have known each other since my first rodeo. He’s good with horses and anything else that needs to be done.”

“I guess you have a lot on your plate right now, too,” she said, “getting ready for the opening.”

“It’s coming together. Uncle Eli wasn’t 100 percent on board at the beginning, but I think that’s changing. I sure hope it is.”

“So your uncle doesn’t want to turn the Cozy C into a dude ranch?” she asked with an amused smile.

“We’re calling it a vacation ranch,” Ty corrected her with a wink.

“I see.” She was still looking a bit amused and her eyes were twinkling.

She was so darn pretty. But he wasn’t here to talk about the ranch, and he wasn’t here to flirt. “I won’t hold you up. I know you’re busy.”

Now that twinkle was gone from her eyes. In fact, he thought he could see fear there. What was she afraid of?

“Uncle Eli wants to meet Jordan, and I want to spend some time with him. How about coming to the ranch for dinner tonight?”

* * *

As Marissa drove her six-year-old small sedan down the winding road that led to the Cozy C, she noticed the fresh-laid stones crunching under her tires. She also spotted new fence posts along the fence line that ran by the side of the road.

Jordan rattled the plastic play keys that were attached to his car seat.

“We’re almost there, buddy.”

Those butterflies in her stomach seemed to be doing the salsa the closer she got to the ranch. She’d known she had to attend this dinner tonight. It was only fair. But what was going to happen next? That’s what those butterflies were all about.

Ty had said he wanted to spend time with his son. Did he mean just tonight? Or was he talking more long-term than that? Just the thought of seeing him again made her palms sweat. She took a couple of deep breaths warning herself to calm down. She wouldn’t want to hyperventilate in front of his uncle—or in front of Ty for that matter.

The lodgepole pines, fir trees and aspens gave the ranch a look similar to Raintree Winery. She’d never had wide-open spaces around when she was a kid. She’d been unaware of what gardens could do for a property or how wildflowers just made one want to sigh and relax. She was fortunate to work at Raintree, and she realized how fortunate Ty was that he could renovate the Cozy C with his uncle. He had family that mattered and a place that mattered. Did he realize how important that was?

Spotting a truckload of lumber covered loosely by a tarp, she realized some construction was still going on here. Just when would the Cozy C open for guests?