by Janet Dailey
“That’s a great idea,” Cat declared with enthusiasm. “One that’s both romantic and practical.”
“I thought so,” Trey said with a curt nod and turned away, cutting a look at Laredo. “You ready to shove off?”
“I’ve been ready for the last twenty minutes or more.” But there was an indulgent amusement in the light gibe rather than the sting of reproof.
“Sorry.” Trey headed for the steps and the ranch pickup parked a short distance away.
Only Laredo offered any parting words to Chase and Cat, flicking a hand in their direction. “See you later tonight.”
That fact was not lost on Chase as his gaze tracked the two men all the way to the pickup, with most of his attention centering on Trey. “That boy has something heavy on his mind.” Not until he heard the rumble of his own voice did he realize he had spoken the thought. He jerked a quick glance at Cat. She stood motionless, but her expression was alive with the beginnings of some new, exciting idea. “I thought you were going to fetch that list from the house,” he prodded.
“What?” There was a vagueness in the look she gave. “I’m afraid I didn’t hear what you said. I was thinking about something else.”
“That was obvious,” he countered dryly.
Laredo had also noticed the far-off look in Trey’s eyes that indicated his thoughts were elsewhere. And the ridged set of his jaw suggested they weren’t exactly pleasing ones. Withholding comment, Laredo climbed into the cab’s passenger side.
Trey never said a word as he slid behind the wheel and started the truck. In silence he drove out of the ranch yard and turned onto the inner road that led to the South Branch camp.
Dust boiled behind them in a thick cloud. For a long run of minutes, there was only the hum of the pickup’s engine to break the stillness.
“So, what’s the problem?” Laredo finally asked.
“There’s no problem.” The touch of curtness in Trey’s voice suggested otherwise.
“That’s good to hear. I had the impression there was something wrong. Naturally I thought you and Sloan might have disagreed about something.” Laredo maintained a tone of idle interest, careful not to press.
“We didn’t.” Another long stretch of silence followed his statement. Laredo had just about decided that Trey wasn’t going to share his thoughts when Trey spoke, “I guess Sloan inherited a sizable amount of money from her parents.”
“Is that right? So, you’re about to marry an heiress, are you?” He studied Trey with a sidelong glance, not at all sure how this could be a problem.
“I guess you could say that,” Trey admitted, his expression still wearing that troubled and distracted look. “She has a bunch of financial advisors who, more or less, handle it for her. They want her to get a prenuptial agreement drawn up.”
There was a telltale tightening around the corners of Trey’s mouth that had Laredo lifting his head fractionally in new alertness. “Like Laura did, you mean?” It wasn’t so much a question as it was a probe.
“That’s the hell of it, Laredo.” The words came from Trey in a hot rush. “I never thought a thing about it when my sister wanted one signed before she married Sebastian.”
“But it bothers you that Sloan wants one,” Laredo guessed.
“Yes!” Force lent emphasis to the single-word response. An instant later, a sigh gusted from him as his gaze made an agitated search of the empty dirt road in front of them. “To be fair, it wasn’t really her idea. It came from those guys in suits.”
“They’re just doing their job, trying to protect her interests.”
“I know.” Trey shifted both hands to the top of the steering wheel. Tension remained in every line of his body. “I don’t fault them for it. But that doesn’t mean I like it. I guess I’m more old-fashioned than I realized. To me, marriage is a forever thing. This agreement is like planning the divorce before you ever have a wedding. The whole thing smacks of distrust.”
“Did you tell Sloan that?” Laredo suspected he already knew the answer.
“How could I? She talked like it was the natural thing to do. Maybe in some circles it is, but not here in Montana.”
“So, how’d you leave it with her?” Laredo cocked his head at a curious angle.
There was grim resignation in the shrugging lift of Trey’s wide shoulders. “I told her to have her lawyers draw one up so I could have ours review it. What else could I do? I couldn’t very well argue against it when I don’t have anything more than a bad feeling about it. What kind of reason is that?”
“I don’t know of any lawyer who would buy it.”
“That’s what I mean,” Trey acknowledged.
“It could be that you’re looking at the whole thing wrong,” Laredo suggested.
“Look, I know an agreement would protect the ranch,” Trey began, impatient and half-irritated.
But Laredo never let him finish the thought. “That isn’t what I’m talking about.”
“Then what?” For the first time, Trey gave the other man his full attention.
“It doesn’t matter what document you sign, whether it’s a marriage certificate or a prenuptial agreement. The only thing that will keep you together—or push you apart—is what’s in your hearts, not a couple of signatures on paper.”
The troubled light went out of Trey’s eyes, and an easy smile broke across his face. “You’re right. That’s the only way to look at it.”
“I think so.” Laredo tipped his head back and deliberately changed the subject. “So you’re going to honeymoon in Hawaii, are you? That should be fun. Beaches and bikinis, palm trees and hula girls.”
“Good God, now you sound like Tank and Johnny.” There was an undertone of laughter in Trey’s voice.
News of the engagement spread across the Triple C with its usual speed. Those who had observed the couple together had seen the engagement coming, but none had expected it to be this soon. The men just smiled and shook their heads, declaring that Trey had never been the kind to sit on his hands.
The reaction from the women was a bit more mixed. The older ones thought Trey had acted much too rashly and regarded Sloan’s immediate acceptance of the marriage proposal with raised eyebrows, while the very young found the swiftness of the courtship thrilling, like something out of a romance novel. However, the handful of single girls of marriageable age reacted with regret, mourning the loss of the Triple C’s most eligible bachelor. Although most wouldn’t have admitted it, every one of them at one time or another had fantasized about catching his eye. Trey’s engagement—to an outsider, no less—had shattered that dream.
This was true of no one more than Kelly Ramsey. She paused outside The Homestead’s front door and wished for the thousandth time that her mother hadn’t volunteered her services to help with the laundry and house-cleaning. Two weeks ago her stomach would have been fluttering with excitement at the prospect of changing the sheets on Trey’s bed, gathering up his dirty clothes, maybe even having lunch with him. The only thing she felt now was a kind of quiet dread.
A part of her wanted to turn and run, but pride wouldn’t let her act the coward. Squaring her shoulders, she assumed a pleasant expression and opened the front door. The instant she stepped into the entryway, she was greeted by a steady run of conversation coming from the dining room.
Mentally bracing herself for the coming moment in which she would have to meet Trey, Kelly turned in the direction of the conversation. Through the archway, she could see the entire family gathered around the table, empty breakfast plates before them. Without hesitation, she walked directly into the dining room. Her naturally outgoing personality immediately took over. “Good morning. Looks like I arrived just in time to help with the breakfast dishes.” Careful not to give anyone a chance to respond, she looked straight at Trey as she continued smoothly, “Hey, I hear you got yourself engaged. Congratulations.”
“Thanks.” His smile was quick and warm, but it was the way his face lit up, all the hard edges s
oftening at her reference, however indirect, to Sloan that hurt.
Unwilling to let the pair take root and grow into something more, Kelly kept talking. “Did Tank tell you the news?” She addressed the question to Trey, then included everyone at the table with a sweeping glance.
“What news is that?” Trey voiced the question that the others were thinking.
“About Harry’s,” Kelly replied.
Jessy frowned. “You mean the bar in Blue Moon? Sally’s old place?”
“Yup.” Again Kelly addressed Trey. “While you were gone, chauffeuring your fiancée to the airport, a bunch of us went to town Saturday. You aren’t going to believe this, but it looks like Jack has actually found a buyer for the place.”
Chase reared his head back in shock. “You’re kidding. What fool would want to buy that place?”
“Some guy from Wyoming, according to Jack. He didn’t give his name,” she added with a shrug. “I don’t have to tell you the news was a bigger shock to everybody than Trey’s sudden engagement.”
“I should think so,” Cat agreed, a slightly stunned look lingering in her expression. “He’s had that place on the market for what? Two years now?”
“More than that,” Jessy inserted. “It was right after the coal mine closed down.”
The staccato beat of a helicopter’s blades invaded the dining room, its loudness only partially muffled by The Homestead’s thick walls. All eyes shifted their attention to the room’s windows as if expecting to see the craft.
“That sounds like a helicopter. I wonder who that could be,” Cat mused aloud.
Chase released a contemptuous snort. “Why would you even wonder? It’s bound to be Tara. Who else uses a helicopter to get around the way most people use cars?”
Jessy pushed her chair back from the table. “It’s time I got to work, considering we all know Tara hasn’t come to see me.”
Trey rose to his feet as well and slid an amused glance at Cat. “She’s all yours.”
He collected his hat from the seat of the adjacent chair and headed out of the room, nodding to Kelly as he passed her. She found a measure of satisfaction in the knowledge that Trey had no idea how difficult this meeting had been for her.
It mattered little that Kelly had seen it coming. That night at the street dance in Miles City when she had observed him with Sloan, she had sensed right away that he was lost to her. That was why she had partnered up so quickly with Johnny as a means of saving face and preventing others from guessing how much it hurt.
She didn’t pretend to herself that she was heartbroken, aware that her romance with Trey had been one-sided. But Kelly was haunted by the what-might-have-beens.
Cat’s voice broke into her thoughts. “Would you give me a hand clearing away these dishes, Kelly?”
“Sure.” She moved quickly to help.
By the time Tara arrived at The Homestead, Jessy and Trey were long gone, Chase had hobbled off to take refuge in the den, Cat was in the kitchen stowing the last few perishables in the refrigerator, and Kelly was gathering up the tablecloth so it could be laundered.
Tara’s arrival was announced by the sound of brisk, purposeful strides crossing the entryway hall and halting near the dining room’s entrance. Turning, Kelly glanced at the woman standing in the archway’s center. The black slacks and crimson silk blouse she wore could have been casual attire, but Tara had taken them a step beyond that with the addition of a gold necklace and earrings. She scanned the room, as always looking through anyone she deemed not worthy of her notice. And Kelly knew she fit into that category.
“Good morning, Mrs. Calder,” Kelly said and returned to her task, fully aware that the family barely tolerated the woman. Judging from the stories she’d heard, Tara had made considerably more enemies than friends on the ranch during her brief marriage to Trey’s father. Kelly marveled that Tara continued to force her presence on the family. Trey’s twin sister, Laura, had been the only one who actually enjoyed Tara’s company.
“Where is everyone?” Tara demanded.
“Cat just went into the kitchen. She should be out directly. The rest have gone to work.” Kelly bundled the tablecloth into her arms, then paused to catch up a loose corner.
As if on cue, Cat returned to the dining room. “Hi, Tara. I heard the helicopter and assumed it was you. I was surprised, though. I heard you had a houseful of company at Wolf Meadow. I thought you’d be entertaining them.”
“They flew out yesterday,” Tara replied. “I intended to leave later today myself, but then I heard the most amazing rumor that Trey is engaged. Is it true?”
“It is,” Cat confirmed and laughed at startled look on Tara’s face. “Don’t look so surprised.”
“I can’t help it. I talked to Laura on Saturday, and she never said a word about it.”
“That’s because she didn’t know yet. I don’t think Trey called her with the news until Sunday morning. There’s coffee in the kitchen. Would you like a cup?”
As an answer, Tara moved in that direction. “This engagement is a bit sudden, isn’t it? I wasn’t aware that Trey was even seeing anyone on a regular basis.”
“I suppose you could call it sudden, but you only have to see them together to know they are madly in love.” Cat led the way to the kitchen while Kelly trailed behind both.
“Who is she? A local girl?”
“She isn’t from around here. Her name’s Sloan Davis—”
Tara instantly seized on the name. “Don’t tell me she’s part of the Davis family from Phoenix.”
Cat laughed softly. “I don’t think so. In fact you probably won’t find her in any of your social registrars. She’s a professional photographer from Hawaii.”
“A photographer,” Tara repeated with just a trace of disdain.
Cat was quick to challenge it. “Is there something wrong with that?”
“Of course not.” With an elegant shrug of her shoulders, Tara dismissed the suggestion. “It’s simply that I had hoped Trey would marry someone who could further the interests of the Triple C. But as long as Trey is happy with her, that’s all that really matters.”
“I’m glad you see that.” The firmness in Cat’s voice was almost a warning. “Because he’s definitely happy. I swear, Trey has been walking on air ever since Sloan said ‘yes.’”
“Have they set a wedding date yet?”
“No, but it will be soon.” Cat crossed to the kitchen cabinets and removed two cups from the shelf.
“That doesn’t surprise me.” Tara pulled out a chair, inspecting its seat before sitting down. “I’ve never known a Calder yet who believed in long engagements. Certainly if Ty had had his way, we would have eloped.” She sighed rather dramatically. “Now I have to start thinking about what I can get them for a wedding present. Any ideas?”
“Truthfully, I haven’t given it any thought.” Cat placed a steaming cup of coffee on the table in front of Tara and carried her own to another chair, taking a seat.
“Wait a minute.” Tara lifted a hand in sudden thought, an innate liquid grace in the gesture. “By any chance will they be occupying the master suite?”
“Probably. Why?”
“Because, knowing Jessy, nothing in those rooms has been changed for years. What could be a better present for them than to bring in a designer to redo the entire suite? At my expense, of course,” she added. “And I know just who to get.”
“That’s very generous of you,” Cat offered cautiously. “But that might be something Sloan would rather handle herself.”
“Don’t be silly. No woman in her right mind would refuse the chance to have a professional in charge. And naturally I’ll see that Trey and his fiancée have total approval over everything.”
“Still…” Cat began.
There was a bell-like quality to Tara’s soft laugh. “Don’t bother to say it. You simply aren’t going to talk me out of it, not when I know it is absolutely the ideal gift.”
“And I’m sure they w
ill appreciate it,” Cat said dryly, deciding there were worse things Tara might choose to meddle in, like the wedding plans, as she had done with Laura.
Chapter Eleven
Along, hard day spent in the hay field showed on Trey as he climbed the oak staircase to The Homestead’s second floor. His work shirt was streaked with drying sweat, and his skin was gritty with a day’s accumulation of chaff and dust. Each time his boot hit a stair tread, more bits of hay were dislodged from his clothes, leaving a trail behind him.
As he neared the top, his gaze lifted and his steps quickened in anticipation. It mattered little that his marriage to Sloan was less than a month old, time hadn’t lessened his desire for her. It ran as strong and hot as ever. The only difference was the new comfort he felt, knowing that Sloan would be here waiting for him at the end of the day. Her presence had given “home” a fresh meaning for him, one that was full of all the deep, good things.
Trey was smiling long before he reached the door to the master suite. Pushing it open, he walked in, then stopped short when he saw the jumble of boxes stacked about the sitting room, some ripped open, their contents partially disgorged, while others remained taped shut.
Out of habit, Trey swept off his hat and looked for a place to put it. In the end he set it on top of an unopened box. After his initial scan of the room failed to locate Sloan, he started to pick his way through the cardboard maze, finally spotting her half-hidden behind some boxes. She sat cross-legged on the floor with her back to him, studying something with rapt interest. His eyes took in the blue tank top and white shorts she wore before shifting to all the tanned flesh the summery attire exposed.
She seemed completely oblivious to his presence. Trey was briefly curious about the item that held her attention to the exclusion of all else. Then he caught a glimpse of a photo’s glossy surface and realized, with a flash of annoyance, that he should have guessed the cause.
