Christmas on the Ranch--A Clean Romance

by Julianna Morris

  “Of course. Making up for lost time, remember?”

  “Then how about that one?” Gideon asked, pointing to a tree on display. “It’s tall, but doesn’t spread out as much at the bottom, so it wouldn’t take as much floor space.”

  Alaina regarded the tree, picturing it in the cabin. “Perfect,” she pronounced, then gestured to a shorter version. “And I’ll get that one for the porch.” She didn’t want to confess she had already gotten a tree for the loft. As a kid she’d loved falling asleep in the light of a Christmas tree and hoped to recreate the magical feeling it had once given her.

  Gideon loaded the various boxes, including evergreen-style swag on a flatbed dolly, and they managed to direct it, along with their shopping carts, to the checkout. Creativity was required to fit everything into the truck, but they managed, securely tying everything down with the tarp and ropes so nothing would be lost on the return trip home.

  “This didn’t take very long. If you aren’t in a hurry, maybe we could run over and see Libby’s new apartment before heading back,” Gideon suggested as he drove onto the street.

  “I’m sure she’d prefer to get everything unpacked before family visits,” Alaina advised. She could imagine Libby’s annoyed expression if her brother showed up in the middle of her friends helping her move.

  “You mean she’d think I was checking up on her.”

  “As if you didn’t already call the police department to see if there are any law enforcement concerns around the apartment she rented.”

  Red crept up Gideon’s throat. “How do you know I did that?”

  “Because it’s what my father and brothers did when I moved out of the dorms and into my own place. Did you think you were inventing the wheel?” Alaina teased.

  “Do you think she guessed?”

  “Probably. Look, it’ll soon be lunchtime and Libby said she was going to get pizza for the crew. If it makes you feel better, we could order food to be delivered. Even if they’ve already eaten, they’ll be hungry again soon enough.”

  Gideon’s face brightened. “That’s a great idea.”

  They stopped at a restaurant near the college where he ordered ten large pizzas to be delivered. It seemed excessive, but he shrugged and said the students could split the leftovers between them.

  “How about adding some family-sized Greek salads?” she suggested.

  Gideon agreed and wrote, Hope the move is going well, Alaina and Gideon on the delivery ticket. Then he refused to let her contribute.

  “You shouldn’t have added my name if you weren’t going to let me help pay,” she scolded as they drove out of town.

  “The idea was worth a million bucks and you kept me from upsetting Libby by going over there in person.”

  Alaina shook her head. It was educational to see the struggle for autonomy from a brother’s perspective. She unwrapped one of the calzones they’d gotten for their own lunch and handed it to him.

  Gideon’s phone buzzed when they were halfway home. He pulled it from his pocket and handed it to her. “That’s an incoming text message. Would you read it for me? Just swipe upward to unlock the screen. But please don’t tell Libby there’s no password or she’ll question which century I’m living in.”

  Alaina chuckled and accessed the message. “It’s Libby, so at least she believes you’re technical enough to retrieve texts. If I’m deciphering her abbreviations correctly, she says thanks for the food and that she’s coming up Tuesday afternoon. She and Deke are going to ride to the hot springs on Wednesday to check for artifacts. He’ll be off duty and she doesn’t have any classes that day.”

  “But we were going up there next week.”

  “She knows what I found in Jonah’s journals and I’m sure she’d prefer locating a potential site on her own.”

  Gideon still didn’t look happy and Alaina grinned. “Don’t be grumpy. They aren’t eloping, just going for a horseback ride.”

  “Life was easier when she was four and looked up to me as her hero,” he grumbled.

  “You top her by eight inches. She still looks up to you.”

  He glared. “That isn’t funny. Libby just got out of a bad relationship. What if this is one of those ugly rebound things that hurts both her and Deke?”

  Alaina sobered instantly. She understood Gideon’s concern and tried to think of a way to reassure him without revealing something Libby had told her in confidence. Basically Libby’s only unresolved emotion toward her old boyfriend was irritation that he’d attempted to sabotage her internship. It was natural, even though everything had turned out for the best.

  “Um, I wouldn’t be too concerned about the rebound thing,” Alaina said finally. “It’s just a guess, but I don’t think her ex-boyfriend was ever that important to her.”

  * * *

  GIDEON CAST A glance at Alaina, realizing he trusted her judgment about the situation. It didn’t mean Libby or Deke couldn’t get hurt, but it was less likely if his sister didn’t have lingering feelings for someone else.

  “I’m glad to hear it. What do you think about the age difference?”

  Alaina smiled faintly. “The same thing I always think when you bring it up. They have to figure out where they’re going. You can’t do it for them. Deke is a good man. You wouldn’t be friends with him otherwise.”

  Gideon nodded. He enjoyed having his sister around so much. And while his mom hadn’t made a decision about moving to the Double Branch, she was talking about staying until next spring, which was promising. Life was falling into a pattern that felt more normal than it had in the bleak period after Stewart’s death.

  A new normal.

  They’d never forget Dad, but at least the happy memories were coming before the memory of loss. For his part, he gave a lot of the credit to Alaina. Despite her husband’s tragic death, she was moving forward, refusing to let sorrow have too much power over her life.

  “I should have asked before, but did you find everything you needed at the sporting goods store?” Gideon asked. “We could go back and look somewhere else.”

  “It’s fine. I wasn’t sure if I should keep bringing Danger with me once it starts snowing, so I also picked up a few things for him, just in case.”

  “You’d have trouble keeping him from going,” Gideon assured quickly. “He isn’t amenable to dog boots, but I put an ointment on his feet to help protect them from the ice.”

  “Oh, good, I got some of that.”

  While the trees hadn’t started changing color yet, Gideon’s instincts said it would be an early, shorter autumn than usual. There was a feel to the air, a sense that winter could arrive at any minute. And now that Alaina had talked about going out in the snow, his concern for her had instantly exploded again. Bears wouldn’t be an issue once they were in hibernation, but the weather would be a greater threat than wolves or bears put together.

  “The food and gear we cached at your different observation points hasn’t been disturbed, right?” he asked.

  “It’s all fine, and I’ll still carry enough to get by whenever I go out,” she assured.

  In some aspects a rancher’s work was lighter during the winter, but Gideon knew he wouldn’t always have the time to go with her. It was an idea he’d be reluctant to propose, regardless. She was so stubborn it might make her push even harder to prove herself.

  Honesty forced him to acknowledge, if only to himself, that she’d never needed to prove anything. He felt better when Alaina had Danger with her or he was there as well, but that was his issue, not hers. It was something he also needed to keep in mind with Libby.

  “By the way, do you remember that last entry in Jonah Westcott’s journals?” he asked to change the discussion.

  “Yes, the one where he says he’s finally beginning to understand Theodore. I’ve compared the letters from President Roosevelt and the journals, nothing s
eems to relate.”

  “That’s because it’s the date that Jonah’s wife passed away.”

  Alaina was silent for a long while and Gideon was concerned that he’d upset her. She sighed finally. “Theodore Roosevelt’s mother and first wife died within hours of each other and he wrote in his journal that the light had gone out of his life. If only he’d known what an extraordinary future of love and adventure was ahead of him.”

  An odd sensation caught Gideon by surprise.

  He wasn’t entirely sure what it meant, but it felt a little like hope.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  THAT THURSDAY ALAINA took picture after picture around the Dragon’s Tooth hot spring, which Libby had temporarily designated as Site A in hopes it would be one of many.

  Gideon assisted by holding branches and undergrowth to one side when needed, sometimes at an extreme arm’s length to keep from blocking natural light. But they’d yet to locate the artifact Libby had left intact where she’d spotted it, so her student team could do proper documentation. She was anxious to ensure that no one could claim they hadn’t followed the most rigorous archeological methodology.

  “You aren’t Libby’s personal photographer,” he commented. “She shouldn’t treat you that way.”

  Alaina flashed him a grin. “I don’t mind. I’m honored she trusts me to take pictures without grabbing a souvenir at the same time.”

  “She’d better trust you. She wouldn’t have even started looking for artifacts on the ranch except for something you said.”

  “I’m still honored. And the photographs are a onetime thing. They’ll take their own pictures during the excavation.”

  Though Alaina had been camping away from the ranch for several days, she’d come home early on Wednesday in anticipation of hearing good news. When Libby had returned from her ride with Deke, she’d been ecstatic, convinced the area around one of the Double Branch hot springs showed promise as a Paleo-Indian settlement.

  Yet she’d also been on edge, the tension so thick between her and Deke it was palpable.

  Men, she’d mouthed at Alaina, rolling her eyes in the deputy’s direction. But aside from a request that Alaina do an initial photo survey of the area, they hadn’t found time to talk.

  “Here’s the artifact Libby told us about,” Gideon called.

  Alaina went over to photograph the stone, partially exposed by eroded earth. Enough was visible to see where the edges and point had been knapped. An echo of Libby’s excitement charged through Alaina’s body. She might not be an archeologist, but she was awed by the history and age of the artifact.

  “That’s much larger than the arrowheads in the Bannister Museum,” she said.

  Gideon nodded. “It’s promising. No wonder Libby is so pleased.”

  “You’re happy, too. If this area turns out to be a Paleo-Indian settlement, she’ll be working close to home for years to come.” Alaina grinned again.

  “Sue me, I enjoy having her around.”

  After Alaina was satisfied she’d shot enough pictures, they continued their ride. Gideon was taking her above the tree line and they needed to be especially watchful; this was the time of year when bears climbed to high elevations to forage for army cutworm moths in the loose rocks.

  So far she’d found little opportunity to work that high, but she had packed extra supplies, hoping to stay and hike back to the ranch in a few days, while Gideon rode back sooner with the horses.

  But when she made the suggestion during their late lunch, Gideon refused. “There’s no way I’m just leaving you.”

  “I want to photograph some of the smaller mammals and they might be easier to spot up here. It’ll take time and you have work back at the ranch.”

  “Do you know how far we are from the Double Branch?”

  Alaina sighed. “It’s mostly downhill.”

  “Is that supposed to make me feel better? I’ll leave Nikko with you. It’s the least I can do.”

  It was still a generous offer, but Alaina was uncomfortable about taking sole responsibility for Nikko. Danger was one thing, he could handle himself in the wild, a horse was another story.

  Perhaps that was how Gideon saw things with her. He had a vast amount of experience in the wild, while hers was much more limited. Yet understanding his position didn’t mean she was going to completely capitulate.

  “Nikko would hate being by himself while I’m working. You know how social he is.”

  Gideon frowned and patted Danger, who’d sensed they were disagreeing once more. The German shepherd preferred the human members of his pack to be in accord.

  “Then I’ll stay,” he grumbled. “However long it takes.”

  Alaina gritted her teeth. She couldn’t keep Gideon from his responsibilities to the Double Branch, which meant she’d have to go back with him as planned, then go out again. It would be a full day’s return hike just to reach the location where she wanted to work.

  Compromise, she reminded herself.

  “Fine. Then we won’t ride any higher. Instead I’ll look for a good observation area,” Alaina said. “A place where we can also camp for the one night we planned. We’ll stay until midafternoon tomorrow, and then ride back.”

  It was more capitulation than compromise on her part, but while he couldn’t force her to return with him, she also couldn’t make him leave alone. He was a man accustomed to action and would quickly grow weary of sitting for hours and hours, doing nothing while she worked.

  “You’re just going to hike right back up here, aren’t you?” Gideon asked suspiciously.

  “We’ve already established that I’m going to go exactly where I want on my own time.”

  Though he muttered something under his breath, they began scouting for an observation post. A spot was quickly located and she settled down with her camera to watch for movement while Gideon tethered the horses on a hitch line below them. Soon he was sitting nearby with his binoculars and a can of bear spray set conspicuously on a nearby rock. Danger sat between them, ears and nose up, equally attentive. He knew his job was to watch for threats.

  Alaina gave him a hug and returned to her camera.

  One thing she hadn’t anticipated about her year in Montana was falling in love with a dog and two horses. Leaving the Double Branch next May was going to be even harder than she’d thought. The animals wouldn’t understand if she stopped giving them attention...but maybe she should consider putting some distance between her and Gideon.

  He might not give her another thought after she’d moved out of the foreman’s cabin—aside from a sigh of relief—but she doubted it would be as easy for her. Something about Gideon turned her inside out, whether she liked it or not.

  “I think it’s time to stop doing our tours,” she said, keeping her focus on the terrain beyond their vantage point. “You’re going into another exceptionally busy season and I’ve seen enough of the ranch and surrounding area that I’m pretty well set.”

  From the corner of her eye, she saw Gideon put his binoculars down. “There’s more to show you.”

  “But I’ve seen a good deal, and I won’t be hiking as far during the winter months, regardless. I doubt I can move as fast on snowshoes and pulling a sled.”

  “We’ll talk about it.”

  “We just did.”

  “I mean when you aren’t annoyed because I won’t leave you here to hike down by yourself.”

  Alaina made a scoffing sound. “That has nothing to do with it. Your attention should be on the ranch.”

  “Don’t you need pictures of us moving the herds and separating the cows to be sold?” Gideon asked. “I signed the release, so you can go ahead with the book.”

  She continued gazing through her camera. She’d shown Gideon the pictures she’d taken so far of ranch operations, including the ones of him carrying the calf. He hadn’t objected t
o them being used, probably because he’d simply seen them as a rancher doing whatever was needed, no more, no less. There was a gritty, authentic realism to all the photos she’d taken of him, but his masculine appeal couldn’t be denied.

  “My agent is finalizing the details with the publisher,” Alaina murmured.

  “That’s great.”

  “I’ll also be doing the captions and other text because they want the book to be an outsider’s view of ranching. I cowrote two books with my husband, so I have publishing credentials. A mix of my wildlife photos will be included to show how close many Montana ranchers live to the wilderness.”

  “Any of the Wind Singer pack?”

  “No way. I don’t want anybody to know where they are.”

  A movement at the edge of the lens caught her attention, so she shifted and refocused. It was an American pika harvesting plants for the winter. She took a burst of photos, following the small animal as it darted here and there through the low growth, diving into a group of rocks to deposit its collection for drying, then reappearing to get more. At one point it stopped and opened its mouth to make a series of calls. They were too far away to hear its squeaky “eek, eek,” but she’d heard it often enough in the past that the sound echoed in her memory.

  “Busy little guy,” Gideon said as he gazed through his binoculars. “It won’t be long before snow covers his home again.”

  Alaina looked at Gideon. “He has a precarious life up here. Some might say the same about the Double Branch, at least in the early days.”

  “We still have our challenges, but it’s nothing compared to what Grandpa Jonah faced. His father made a fortune mining gold, but Jonah was interested in cattle. He was in the Dakotas working as a ranch hand the winter of 1886 to 1887, when thousands of cows froze to death. That winter was a nightmare.”

  Alaina shivered. “Jonah talks about it in his journals. He learned his father was dying, but couldn’t get back. It was just too dangerous.”

  “He returned in the late spring of 1887 and got his brothers together, convincing them to settle up here. Despite what had happened, he still saw ranching as the future. They bought existing ranches with their inheritance and homesteaded what they could. The ranchers around Bannister had lost everything and were eager to sell. But Jonah was the one who kept buying more and more property as the years passed, leasing what he couldn’t buy outright. His son and grandson did the same.”