He couldn’t help wondering about Brooke. Did she awake during the night scared? He suspected the Las Vegas desert had its fair share of storms, but in Colorado, at a higher elevation, the thunderclaps were a lot louder.
Okay, he was getting far too drawn to this woman. That could be bad news, especially if Brooke developed a relationship with the Quinns. Worse, if she didn’t. And there was Rory and his past association with Coralee Harper. From what he sensed by the anger in Rory’s voice the last time they talked on the phone, it hadn’t been a good one. How would that affect Brooke? Would Rory resent her, too?
Trent shook his head. He still couldn’t get his head around the fact Laurel wasn’t Diane’s biological daughter. Now Laurel had a sister, too, but would she welcome Brooke?
He wasn’t sure about any of this. He didn’t want to choose sides, either. How could he go against his friend, if Rory didn’t want Brooke around?
He shut his eyes. Three days ago, he didn’t know Brooke Harper. Now, she was stirring up things he hadn’t let himself feel in a long time. He couldn’t let it matter, because she’d be gone by the end of the week.
He only hoped she would at least be able to make a connection with Laurel. Everyone needed a family. He absently rubbed his chest, feeling the familiar tightness. It wasn’t fair that the sisters had to suffer for their mother’s sins.
Suddenly his phone rang and he reached for it on the counter. It was Brooke. He pressed the button and said, “Good morning.”
“Good morning to you, too,” she said, then there was a pause before she added, “Sorry for falling asleep last night.”
“Not a problem. You were tired.”
“But you carried me to bed.”
“So you remembered,” he challenged, knowing he hadn’t forgotten cradling her slight body in his arms.
“Not exactly... I mean not everything, but since you were the only person here, I’m pretty sure you were the one. I hope I didn’t embarrass myself.”
“Not at all. Besides I’m the one who wore you out, getting you up at dawn and putting you on a horse all day.”
“Oh, my, it was so terrible,” she dramatized. “You forced me at gunpoint and threatened me.”
He was grinning like a stupid teenager. “Well, you get today off. So relax, you’ve earned it.”
“Are you going out with the herd?”
“No, I’m meeting with some of the construction crew a little later.”
“How about right now?” she asked. “Are you busy now?”
“No. Why?”
“Why don’t you answer your door and find out.”
He walked across the room, finding he was getting excited about seeing her. He pulled open the door to find her standing there with two covered plates. “Special delivery.”
“Hello, sunshine.”
She blushed as she walked inside. “You’ve been feeding me so often, I thought I would return the favor.”
He inhaled the wonderful aroma of bacon and eggs. “There’s no need, but I’m not going to turn you away.”
She smiled shyly. “I wasn’t sure what you liked, but I only had a few things in the cabin refrigerator. So I made scrambled eggs with bacon and some home fries.”
Mouth watering, he took the plates from her and walked to the counter since it was the only table in the cabin.
She hadn’t followed him. “Oh, Trent. You have no furniture.” She glanced around the empty room. “What are you sleeping on?” She took off down the hall before he could stop her. When she returned, she was frowning. “You can’t sleep on a blow-up mattress.”
He took her hand and felt a strange zing shoot up his arm. “First of all, you aren’t letting me do anything. I made the decision to stay here.”
She raised those big green eyes to meet his. “But...”
“Listen, this place is a five-star hotel compared to some of the accommodations I had while deployed. If I got any sleep at all. That bed in there is pretty comfortable.”
She released a sigh. “I still don’t like it. I’m fine staying out here by myself. You can go back to your ranch and sleep in your own bed.”
“I know, but for now, this is fine.” He grinned. “Although, I love having someone make me breakfast.” He took the foil off the plates and his mouth began to water at the pile of scrambled eggs with diced bacon and fried potatoes. “Woman, if you cook like this, you’re never going to get rid of me.”
Brooke felt the heat climb up her cheeks. She hadn’t been sure if Trent would appreciate her just barging in this morning. He had a lot more things to do than babysit her. And she would make sure she stayed out of his hair today. Maybe she could go into town and look around, or read a book, or go catch up with her emails. Call the Dream Chaser Hotel to see if there was any news. None of those things interested her as much as making breakfast for Trent.
She was in big trouble.
Trent reached behind the counter and grabbed a bottle of water. “I don’t have anything to drink beside water and coffee,” he told her.
She nodded. “Coffee is fine.”
He had an extra mug and poured the aromatic brew. “Sorry, no cream or sugar.”
“That’s fine, I take it black. And the stronger the better.”
“A woman after my own heart.”
“I spent a lot of time studying. I needed something to help keep me awake.”
He carried the full mug to the counter. “That’s quite an accomplishment, working full-time and going to college. Your mother has to be proud of you.”
She tensed. Coralee had never understood her need for an education. She’d hated that Brooke was away so much. “Yes, my getting a better job is important for her care.”
He picked up a fork, dug into the eggs and took a bite. “Wow, this is so good.”
She loved watching his expression. “It’s just eggs with some chopped-up bacon in it.”
“And made with loving care, as my mother used to say.”
A pang of envy struck her. “Are you and your mother close?”
He nodded. “We stay in touch mostly with phone calls, but I haven’t made it back to Denver in about a year.” He shrugged. “She’s happy with her life there, and also that I came back to take over the ranch.”
Brooke swallowed her eggs. “Maybe she’ll come here for a visit.”
When she saw a sad look transform Trent’s face, she quickly realized her mistake. “Oh, Trent, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said, I mean... Of course, she wouldn’t want to come back to the home of her ex-husband.”
“No, Brooke, Mom had bad memories before the divorce. They’re of Chris from when he died here.”
She groaned. “Sorry, I wasn’t thinking...”
Trent reached out and took her hand. “It’s okay, Brooke. I know you didn’t mean anything by it. Those memories are hard for all of us.”
She wanted to ask him about the tragedy that took his brother away, but knew he might not want to share with her.
He turned back to his food and began eating again. Brooke did the same, but she couldn’t stop thinking about the man who let her see glimpses of his pain. His parents hadn’t been the only ones who suffered over a young boy’s death.
Once finished, Trent carried his plate to the sink. “Do you have plans for today?”
“Maybe a drive into town. Why, do you need me to bring you back anything?”
He leaned against the sink, and crossed his booted feet. “Now that’s an offer I can’t refuse. I’ve called in an order at the lumberyard, but I can’t get it delivered until tomorrow. And I need to be here to start the crew working. Could you pick it up?”
“Of course, but my compact isn’t very large.”
He frowned. “That’s why you’ll take my truck.” He reached into his pocket, pulled out his keys and tossed them to her.
She grabbed them out of the air. He trusted her with his truck? “Just give me the directions.”
“I have a GPS.”
&nb
sp; “Okay, then, I’ll go, but you’re doing the dishes.”
She heard his laughter as she walked out the door. She may only be here a few days, so why not have a good time?
* * *
THE TOWN OF Hidden Springs had a population of only a little more than nine thousand residents. In the summer, people came from all over to ride the rapids on the Colorado River. In the winter, they came for the ideal skiing conditions.
With the help of the GPS, she found the lumberyard easily. She got a friendly greeting, and the employees were eager to load Trent’s order. One man there looked at her twice, but didn’t say anything. He smiled a lot and gave her a wink as she drove off. Probably thought she was Laurel.
Brooke couldn’t help wondering how nice it would have been to grow up here. To have a permanent home and parents who loved her and supported her.
Windows down, country-and-western music playing on the radio, Brooke drove the oversize truck along the highway and headed back to the ranch. She couldn’t live on fantasies. Her life was back in Las Vegas, with a mother in a nursing home, and she was the only one available to take care of her.
There was no time to dream about a life that would never be hers. She had to live in the real world. But for a little while she was going to enjoy this time. She raised the volume on the radio and sang along to the song.
Ten minutes later, she turned off at her exit, then took the road to the Bucking Q and felt her excitement grow knowing she was going to spend some time with Trent.
She drove by the Quinns’ big home, then past the finished cabins and headed to the construction site. Parking the truck, she killed the engine and climbed out. Immediately, Trent appeared and walked toward her. He’d replaced his cowboy hat for a hard hat.
He smiled. “That was fast,” he said and handed her a hat. “Here, put this on. It’s a rule on job sites.”
She slipped the hard plastic hat on her head. “I would have been waiting longer, but this nice man, Johnny Mattson, hurried over and began filling the order.”
Trent laughed. “Sounds like Johnny. Just send him a pretty woman and he knocks himself out to impress her. He didn’t bother you, did he?”
“No. He was just being friendly. He asked if I was related to Laurel.”
Trent arched an eyebrow. “What did you tell him?”
“I just said maybe.”
Trent laughed again and it made her insides tingle. “Good job.” He walked to the back of the truck and pulled down the tailgate. He waved at two men and they began unloading the lumber.
Feeling that she was in the way, Brooke said, “If you don’t need me to do anything else, I’ll just head back to the cabin.”
“Hey, don’t leave. I want to show you around.” He shrugged. “Unless you don’t want to see what’s going on.”
Her pulse raced with excitement. “I’d love to see what you’re doing.” She nodded at the largest structure. “What is that building going to be?”
“That’s the Q and L Guest Lodge. Come on, I’ll show you inside.”
Surprising her, he took hold of her hand. She let him walk her across the rain-soaked earth for a closer look. Good thing she had on Laurel’s boots.
The two-story building had been framed, log walls had been sealed and the green metal roof was on. She heard the buzz of the saws and the pop of the nail guns in the background.
“It’s starting to take shape, but there’s still a lot to do. There were so many delays even when Aldrich was the contractor. So many things he said he’d done but hadn’t. Now I know why. He’d taken the money for himself and we couldn’t pay the vendors.”
Trent waved his hand, as if he didn’t want to discuss the man any longer. “My expectations are more realistic now. I’m shooting for the outside structure to be completed before next month. We’re nearly in October and we could get snow any time.”
She shivered, aware of the drop in temperature after last night’s storm. She only had on a thin jacket. “Is it possible to get snow now?”
He nodded. “That’s why we need to get the doors and windows we ordered. Maybe I should send you to the window guy. You seem to have a knack for getting things done.”
If he didn’t quit smiling at her like that, she’d melt on the spot. “I’ll help if you want. I’m used to supervising.” She prided herself on handling many situations. She hoped it was enough to get her hired at Dream Chaser.
“I was thinking I might have some suggestions for help on the inside.”
Trent called out instructions to one of the crew, then he came back to her and took her up the steps to a large porch and inside the building. The scent of fresh-cut wood filled her and she inhaled deeply. “Oh, it smells so good in here.”
He grinned at her. “I agree.”
Again she felt the strange tingling. She turned her attention to a great room that took up most of the first floor. There were the beginnings of an open staircase that was against the wall, climbing to the second floor. A stacked-stone fireplace took up most of another wall; the final wall was all windows, facing the glorious view of the mountain. At least, it would be windows when glass got put in. Now, the openings were covered in heavy plastic.
“This will be amazing when it’s finished. How many bedrooms?”
“There’s six,” he told her. “We’re planning to install an industrial, stainless-steel kitchen in back, hoping to rent the place out for big fishing parties, maybe family reunions and business retreats.”
“Wow, you aren’t messing around. I’m jealous. You’ll be able to get up close and personal with your guests. I can’t do that in a large Las Vegas hotel.”
“But we’ll never be able to compete with a name-brand hotel. The only amenities we can offer might be a continental breakfast and some Western barbecue.”
“Great idea. Work out a deal with Joe’s Smoke House to use his barbecue sauce and sell it right here.” She walked to a makeshift table covered in building plans. “At the front desk.”
Trent blinked at her, as if she spoke a foreign language. Okay, maybe she’d gone too far. “Sorry, I get a little carried away sometimes.”
“No, it’s okay. It’s just we hadn’t thought much past the furnished building, and me being the fishing and hunting outfitter. That’s how this idea for the cabins first came into play. The sportsmen wanted to stay closer than in town at a motel.”
“And you’re going to make good money with just renting the cabins to the hunters and fishermen.”
He stood back and gave her that stern look she’d gotten used to, but still wasn’t sure what it meant. “What else do you think we could do with this place?”
She couldn’t keep her excitement contained any longer as she raised her hands in a sweeping motion. “Since you have all this land, you could rent the building out for small weddings. Even team up with caterers and florists from town.”
“You seem to know a lot about this.”
“I might be a card dealer, but while in college I interned at the Dream Chaser Hotel and their main business is weddings.”
“But you’re Las Vegas—we’re small-town.”
“There’s a lot of competition there, too. You have to offer the client something special.”
“Weddings seem to be a lot of work.”
“Then just advertise the building for weddings inside, and land outside, too. Let the couple hire an event planner to do all the work. Just saying that you’re not always in the hunting season, but you’re always in wedding season.”
Suddenly, Trent gave her a teasing wink. “Hell, woman, I’m only trying to build hunting and fishing cabins and now you’ve got me thinking about weddings.”
Chapter Ten
Deep down, Brooke knew Trent was teasing, but darn, it didn’t stop the heat from creeping up her neck and face.
She couldn’t let him get to her. Keep the situation light. “You seem to have an aversion to marriage, Mr. Landry?”
“Damn straight.” He tossed her
a wicked grin. “The only commitment I ever had was to the army, and that came to an end a while back.”
Suddenly she wanted to know more about his personal life. “You’re saying you never had a special girl in your life who made you think about marriage?”
“Maybe in my early years. But being career military, I couldn’t see leaving a woman home while I was off on a mission. Sometimes I was gone for months at a time.” He leaned against the worktable and studied her. “What about you, Miss Harper? Have you ever come close to marriage?”
She shook her head. “When would I have had time?”
His intense gaze combed over her. “Come on, a pretty girl like you, the boys probably flocked to you.”
He thought she was pretty.
“Since Laurel was fifteen, she’s had all kinds of guys sniffing around her. Rory had a rough time. Good thing he had a shotgun ready.”
A pang of envy hit her in the chest. “Were you one of them?” Oh, God, had she just said that?
There was the wicked grin again. “She was like a kid sister to me. But I helped weed out the bad guys.”
How nice it would have been to have someone watch over her.
He continued to study her. “You still haven’t answered my question. Anyone special?”
She shook her head. “I was more the studious type and had a part-time job after school so I couldn’t do social activities.”
Trent’s gaze zeroed in on hers. “I’m kind of glad those boys stayed away.”
Her heart raced off. “Why is that?”
“I used to be one of those teenage boys, so I know what they wanted, and it wasn’t a nice girl.”
“Sounds like you still don’t want a nice girl.”
“I’m well past wanting girls, I want—”
The sound of his cell phone interrupted his thought. “Excuse me,” he told her and answered it. He turned away as he talked. She glanced around the large structure. She would love to see it finished, but that wouldn’t happen.
She should head back to the cabin, but why? She had nothing to do there. Okay, she could go into town again, take her laundry, or play tourist for a while.
Trent said her name and she turned around.
Count on a Cowboy Page 9
