by R. C. Ryan
Reed’s grin was as wide as her son’s. “It may be a toy to you, but think of the possibilities for a rancher using a drone.”
“You mean to scare the cows?”
He got to his feet. “You ought to see the look on your face. I know they’re marketed as toys, but what a way for a rancher to keep an eye on his property, his herds, even his wranglers. Right now we have to take up our plane every few weeks to get a bird’s-eye view of our ranch. With a drone, we could cover thousands of acres in half the time.”
She was shaking her head. “Boys and their toys.”
Reed nudged an elbow in Kyle’s ribs. “My grandfather likes to say the only difference between men and boys is the price of their toys.”
Though he was certain Kyle didn’t have any idea what that meant, he was rewarded by the boy’s wide grin.
“Reed said he’d share his milk shake with me if you’d go with us to the diner. Can we, Mama?”
She looked from her son to Reed. “Are you bribing a little boy?”
“Yeah.” He winked. “I figured he’d be easier than his mother.”
“Can you two wait until I check out my register and make out a bank deposit? I don’t want to leave all this money lying around overnight.”
“And then we’ll go to the diner?” Kyle turned pleading eyes toward Ally.
“Yes. Then we’ll go to the diner. And you can have some more of that really healthy milk shake.”
She was laughing as she made her way across the room and began sorting through the receipts, all the while making notations on a legal pad.
Within the hour she’d written up a bank receipt and added it to the bag containing cash and credit card slips, all neatly tallied in her ledger.
On the way to D & B’s Diner, she deposited it in the overnight drop box at the bank.
Her heart was light. She’d made a profit on her first day. She’d gotten to know two neighbors who’d stepped in to lend a hand when she’d felt overwhelmed. And she’d already found a girl eager to work.
Maybe, just maybe, her dreams weren’t so foolish after all.
Chapter Five
That was good.” Kyle walked between his mother and Reed as they stepped out of the diner.
“What did you like better?” Reed tucked his hands in his back pockets. “The fried chicken and mashed potatoes or the chocolate milk shake?”
“They were all good. But I liked the chocolate milk shake best.”
“No surprise.” Reed looked over the boy’s head to Ally. “And you?”
“The food was great. But the comments from so many of the customers about Ally’s Attic just made my day.” Her voice lowered with feeling. “Hearing them say how much they like my shop was food for the soul.”
“Yeah. I’d say your grand opening was a huge success.”
Ally looked up at the streetlights glowing softly in the gathering dusk. “You’ll never know how scared I was that nobody would show up.”
Kyle tugged on his mother’s hand. “I’m tired. Can you carry me?”
Before she could respond, Reed dropped to his knees. “Here, little buddy. Climb on my back. I’ll give you a ride home.”
“Oh, boy, Mama. Just like you always do.” The little boy was grinning from ear to ear as he settled himself on Reed’s broad back and wrapped his arms around Reed’s neck.
As they walked past the now-darkened businesses of the town, Ally sighed. “This is what I like best about being in Glacier Ridge.”
“Saturday nights?”
She shook her head. “Walking home. I never did that in the city. I drove everywhere. To the store. To day care.”
“Did you drive here from Virginia?”
She shook her head, her voice lowering. “I sold my car and my house. Along with everything I could live without.” She gave a shaky laugh to cover what she’d just revealed. “I decided I was making a clean break from the past. Besides, it made flying here easier if I lightened our load.”
Reed looked at her with interest. “I guess we can all afford to simplify.” He paused a moment before saying, “We can’t do much walking on the ranch. Most of it requires a lot of driving. Of course, some of it is on all-terrain vehicles or on horseback. Or in my brother, Luke’s, case, on his Harley. There are a lot of wide-open spaces between home and our herds.”
She looked over at him. “It must have been fun growing up on a ranch.”
“If you consider mucking stalls, branding bawling calves, and babysitting ornery cows fun.”
She laughed. “You should hear your voice, Reed. Even while you’re trying to complain, there’s just something in your tone that tells me you love it.”
He winked. “I do. I wouldn’t trade places with anyone in the world.”
“You’re so lucky.” She caught sight of her son, his head bobbing slightly before lowering his face to Reed’s shoulder. “My poor, brave baby. He put in such a long day. I could see him trying to fight sleep while he was slurping that milk shake, but now he just can’t fight it anymore.”
Reed chuckled. “I thought he’d gone awfully quiet. Is he out completely?”
Ally nodded. “I could take him if he’s getting heavy.”
“Are you kidding? He doesn’t even weigh as much as a sack of grain.” He gave Ally a lingering look that had the color flooding her cheeks. “Neither does his mother.”
“Don’t be fooled by my size. I’m stronger than I look.”
“You don’t have to remind me. I saw the way you handled that mob of people today.” He held her gaze. “It was pretty impressive.”
Again she flushed, and this time she managed to look away, avoiding Reed’s eyes, until they started up the walk to her uncle’s house.
They paused on the front porch, and Ally dug into her pocket for the key.
Before she could use it, the door was flung open, and Archer Stone stood in the doorway. He reeked of smoke and whiskey.
When he caught sight of Reed, his mouth turned into a scowl. “Malloy. What are you doing here?”
“Giving your nephew a ride home.”
“He can’t walk?”
“He’s just a little kid who’s put in a long day.” Reed smiled at Ally while directing his words at Archer. “You missed the big event in town. You should have been at your niece’s grand opening.”
“Some of us have to work for a living.”
Reed chose to ignore the underlying anger in Archer’s tone. “Speaking of work, Ally’s business is going to be a smashing success, if the crowds today were any indication.”
“And if those crowds fade away?” Archer glared at Ally. “I hope you have more staying power than your mother did. The minute life got too tough around these parts, she turned tail and ran as far and as fast as she could, grabbing on to the first guy who offered her a ride out. And she never looked back.”
Ally recoiled as though she’d been slapped before trying to cover it by reaching for Kyle. “I’ll take him up to bed now.”
Reed stepped back a pace. “You’re as tired as he is. You lead the way and I’ll carry him to his bed.”
Archer barred the way. “In case you’ve forgotten, Malloy, this is my house. I don’t want you here.”
Reed met his narrowed gaze. “And your reason is…?”
“I don’t need a reason to bar someone from my own house. But how about this? My niece is a single mother. Being a lawman, I happen to know that makes her a target for certain types of men. And I don’t want you sniffing around.”
Seeing Ally’s cheeks redden as her eyes registered her shock at his vicious words, Reed stepped closer, causing Archer to step back. “I’ll remember that. But right now, I’m more concerned with getting this little guy to his bed.” He turned to allow Ally to precede him. “Lead the way and I’ll follow.”
Ally walked past her uncle and started up the stairs with Reed trailing behind. When they reached the bedroom, Ally opened the door, revealing two twin beds. Pausing beside one, Ally reac
hed up and took Kyle from Reed’s shoulders.
The boy was so sound asleep he barely stirred.
She slipped off his glasses and set them on the night table. After removing his shoes and socks, she shrugged him out of his jeans and shirt and tucked him under the blankets wearing only his underwear.
She pressed a kiss to his cheek and wiped strands of russet hair from his forehead before straightening.
“Thank you, Reed. For dinner, and for carrying Kyle home.” She held out her hand.
When he took it in his big palm, she added softly, “I’m sorry about that scene downstairs.”
“You have nothing to apologize for. Archer has always been prickly. And especially around my family. He’s made it clear he resents my family’s success, even though it came with a lot of hard work that continues every day.”
“Prickly.” Ally latched on to the single word. “That’s a good term. He’s…prickly around us, too. But I think there are a lot of reasons. He disapproved of my mother, and he disapproves of me, as well. That goes without saying. But he also resents having us intrude on his privacy. I’m hoping once we’re on our own, my uncle will be willing to put aside his anger and accept us as family. That’s why I’m determined to turn the upper rooms of my business into our own apartment as soon as I can get them cleaned and find enough furniture to set up housekeeping.”
“I know a lot of ranchers looking for extra work. I could make a few phone calls and have at least the cleaning done in a day or two.”
“You could?” For a moment an eager, hopeful light came into her eyes. Then she shook her head. “Thanks for the offer. But I don’t want to pay for work I can do myself.”
“I understand.” He recognized her need to feel independent and admired her sense of pride. “But if you hit any snags, just let me know.”
Her smile was quick. “Thank you. I’ll walk you to the door.”
“No need.” He put a hand on her arm, absorbing a quick sizzle of heat. “You’ve put in a long day. The last thing you need is another scene downstairs.”
Ally looked up just as he looked down. For the space of a heartbeat their gazes met and held.
Reed lowered his head.
Ally froze.
Just then Kyle sighed in his sleep and turned on his side.
They gave a guilty start and moved apart, the moment shattered.
Reluctantly Reed turned away and stepped through the doorway before turning toward her. “Good night, Ally. I’ll see myself out.”
He descended the stairs and glanced around, expecting to find Archer waiting for him.
Through the open door he caught a whiff of smoke. As he stepped out onto the front porch, he saw Archer leaning against the porch rail, the gleaming red tip of a cigar in his hand.
“You took your sweet time upstairs.”
“Helping Ally get Kyle to bed.”
“That better be all you were doing. As for Ally, she doesn’t need your help. She’s been doing it all on her own since the kid was born.” A sly look came into his eyes. “Or maybe she hasn’t told you yet. His father was military. Never around. Too busy to even bother making it legal, if you know what I mean.” His eyes narrowed on Reed. “And don’t try to tell me you give a rat’s…a care in the world about that kid. I know what you’re up to, Malloy. From what I know about you Malloys, you’ve got every woman in this town fawning over you. But that’s not enough for you, is it? I guess you’re more like your old man than I realized. He thought he was better’n the rest of us and could have any woman he set his sights on. Even some other guy’s woman.”
The mention of his father had Reed’s eyes flashing fire before he carefully banked his temper.
As Reed started down the steps, Archer called after him, “Just remember what I said. I won’t have you sniffing around my niece, Malloy. She’s off-limits to the likes of you.”
The thought of a satisfying, knock-down, drag-out fight had Reed’s blood heating. But just as quickly he swallowed his anger, knowing that a mean-tempered bully like Archer could easily retaliate by hurting the two upstairs, who would have no way of protecting themselves.
It took all his willpower to simply walk away.
Reed drove through the darkened town, past Clay’s Pig Sty, past D & B’s Diner, the barbershop and spa, the medical clinic, before turning onto the interstate.
His mind wasn’t on his driving. He kept turning over and over the anger in Archer Stone.
Through the years Archer had made no secret of his jealousy over the Malloys’ success, without ever once conceding the fact that it took the entire Malloy family working twenty-four hours every day just to keep a ranch of that size operating. But it was easier for some men to hate the success of others in order to overlook their own failures.
Archer’s painful childhood was well known around Glacier Ridge. His mother died after a lingering illness in a distant hospital in Helena, leaving a sixteen-year-old daughter and a four-year-old son. Their father, forced to work on ranches around the area to pay his enormous medical debts, left the two alone for long stretches of time to fend for themselves. The girl left town as soon as she was able, latching on to a cowboy who was just passing through and leaving Archer behind. After that, Archer was forced to accompany his father, drifting from ranch to ranch, before landing a solid job in law enforcement.
Archer seemed to relish his position as deputy to the chief. It got him a pass if he happened to drink too much at the Pig Sty or bullied an opponent in a poker game. With that badge pinned to his shirt, Archer Stone was a man to be reckoned with. Sheriff Eugene Graystoke was a fair and honorable man and had probably never heard as much as a whisper about his deputy’s off-duty behavior over the years. Especially since it didn’t seem to impact Archer’s work.
Grandpop Frank used to say he wouldn’t judge another man’s behavior unless he first walked in his shoes.
Remembering those words, Reed struggled to put aside his anger at Archer Stone by concentrating on Archer’s niece.
Just thinking about Ally Shaw had the smile returning to Reed’s face. She was almost too pretty to believe, with that spill of red hair, that porcelain skin, and the parade of freckles across her nose.
Maybe that’s what had first caught his attention. But it was her determination to make a life for herself and her little boy that had him looking beyond her beauty.
What made a young woman sell her car and furniture and buy a building in a town she’d never seen? The answer came immediately. She’d left a good job, a comfortable, familiar part of the country to risk everything for the sake of her son’s future.
There was just something about little Kyle. Those big, oversize glasses that gave him the look of a wise, old owl. The red hair and freckled face. That big, easy grin that melted the heart. For a four-year-old he was pretty fearless. And the kid was smart. At an age when most children couldn’t even read, he’d listened to the directions in the drone’s manual and was able to put his finger on the exact spot where the camera would go, if the camera hadn’t been missing. Unless Reed was badly mistaken, the kid would probably be able to master flying that drone in half the time it would take most grown-ups.
As his ranch came into view in the distance, Reed was deep in thought.
There was no doubt that Archer had attempted to sully his niece’s reputation by deliberately spilling the secret that she and Kyle’s father hadn’t married.
That fact meant nothing to Reed. What he saw when he looked at her was a heroic mother who was determined to make a fresh start and build a better way of life for herself and her son.
Each little fact he learned simply added another layer of admiration.
As taken as he was by the freckle-faced super kid in the owlish glasses, he was, if possible, even more taken with the super kid’s mother.
Chapter Six
Frank Malloy looked up from the far side of the kitchen, where he and Grace were enjoying their morning coffee with Great One. He grinned a
t his grandson, Reed, just stepping in from the mudroom, accompanied by Burke. “You’re up early, sonny boy. You already finished with the barn chores?”
“Yeah.” Reed helped himself to a frosty glass of freshly squeezed orange juice from a tray on the counter, gulping down half before crossing the room.
Burke chose coffee, hot and strong, and stood aside, cupping his hands around the mug.
Reed smiled at Grace. “Did you buy anything at the grand opening yesterday?”
Frank stared pointedly at his wife. “Your grandmother bought out half the store.”
Reed arched a brow. “You bought other people’s hand-me-downs?”
She merely smiled. “That just shows how little you know about things. I prefer to think of them as treasures.”
Frank nodded toward a piece of pottery on the counter. “You call that thing a treasure?”
Gracie’s smile grew. “That thing happens to be a hundred-year-old gravy boat that perfectly matches the set of dishes I inherited from my grandmother.”
“And what about that ugly piece of furniture you badgered me into hauling home in the truck?”
“It’s a hope chest. I had one like it as a girl. Somewhere between Connecticut and Hollywood and here in Montana”—she sent a knowing look at her father—“someone or something caused it to go missing.”
Great One shrugged. “I couldn’t imagine what you’d want with a hope chest in the middle of the wilderness.”
“And so you took it upon yourself to sell it along with all the furnishings in one of our homes.”
A slow smile spread across the old man’s features. “Hope chests are for those still hoping, Gracie girl. If you recall, you boldly told your mother and me you’d found the man of your dreams, and you were never coming back to us.”
Frank draped an arm around Grace’s shoulder and drew her close to press a kiss to her cheek. “And I thank heaven for it every day.”
Reed chuckled. There was no doubt his grandparents were still very much in love. “What else did you buy, Gram Gracie?”
“Well, let me see. There’s that silver bowl that Nessa admired. I believe I’ll surprise her with it on her birthday. And the four little miniatures depicting the four seasons; that caught Ingrid’s eye. And—”
