Finding Love In Big Sky, Montana (Resort to Love--Finding Love line Book 2)

by Angela Ruth Strong

  He stepped to the side and swept one arm in front of him. “After you, Miss Sheridan.”

  Paisley breezed through, completely oblivious to Dot’s exclamation of “Shuckaroonies.”

  Chapter Five

  Josh dragged the logo to the final page of Paisley’s website and hit publish, before rolling the desk chair over to the window and watching her lead a group of overeager preschoolers in taking turns riding around a small arena. The new website would help promote birthday parties and sleigh rides. And it wasn’t like he had anything better to do.

  Was that why Dot and Annabel gossiped so much? Because there was nothing better to do in such a small town? Though they hadn’t been much help on getting background information on Paisley’s fiancé.

  Sam would know. Their graduating class had been close, and Sam had mentioned he kept in touch with her. Josh pulled out his cell phone and waved it around the room to find a signal. Nothing. He picked up the cordless landline.

  Sam answered on the second ring. “Hi, Paze.”

  Josh frowned at the recognition in his little brother’s voice. Josh hadn’t realized they were that close. But girls had always liked Sam. And after serving in the military and volunteering to fight wildfires over the summer, the baby of the family was more of a man than Josh at the moment. Of course, since Josh had been recently dumped by his fiancée and suspended from his job, that really wasn’t saying much.

  “Hey, Sam. This is Josh.”

  “Dude. Good to hear from you. Tracen told me you’re doing some promotional work for Paisley’s new ranch. I love that girl.”

  Love? Josh eyed the phone as if a bad connection had garbled the words. If Sammy loved anything, it was his freedom.

  “I went to the shooting range with her when I returned from Afghanistan, and man, she could have been a sniper.”

  Oh . . . Josh’s heart settled back down in his chest. Not that it had anything to get worked up about in the first place. Paisley deserved a good guy, and she couldn’t do any better than Sam. But he still felt relief in knowing Sam’s affection was that of a foxhole buddy.

  “Yeah?” Josh kept the sentence short so as not to reveal any misplaced emotion.

  “Yeah.” Sam quieted like he was listening for the words Josh hadn’t spoken. “I bet Bree didn’t know how to handle a gun.”

  Josh sank deeper into the leather chair. He didn’t need a lecture about what an idiot he’d been. Yes, Bree was a mistake, but it wasn’t fair of Sam to judge her for not being a sharpshooter. Chicago had some of the strictest gun laws in the nation. And from what he’d learned about city girls, most of them didn’t hunt. “I didn’t call to talk about my ex, bro.”

  He could almost hear Sam’s smile. “You want to talk about Paisley some more?”

  Sam was onto him. Josh scratched at the unfamiliar growth of stubble on his jaw. He couldn’t ask his questions now. But maybe if he mentioned helping Paisley on the ranch, Sam would reference the man who should have been helping her. “I wanted to let you know I might not make it home for Christmas. It depends on what Paisley needs here.”

  “Huh.”

  Not exactly the wealth of information Josh had hoped for.

  “What’s she doing right now?” Sam asked.

  Josh looked back down the hill toward the barn to watch Paisley place a plastic crown on top of a little girl’s head. It must have been a princess party. Josh had been to a princess party before. When his niece Daisy turned four. He’d worn a suit of armor and clashed swords with the little knights in attendance. Seemed like forever ago. “She’s leading a group of kids around and around on ponies.”

  “Cool . . .” Sam paused. “And what are you doing?”

  “Well, I’m finishing up the website.”

  “Holy buckets. Don’t you have anything better to do than play on the computer?”

  Josh missed the days when he could take Sam in a wrestling match. “Like listening to my little brother make fun of me?”

  “If you don’t want me to make fun of you, don’t be stupid.”

  What a waste of a phone call. “Thanks for the advice, man.”

  Sam chuckled. “If you want advice, I can do better. Get your butt outside, and be the ranch hand you used to be.”

  Josh hung up the phone and stood. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, Sam was right. Paisley wouldn’t open up to Josh unless they were working together. If only he hadn’t grown so soft sitting behind a desk at work. Sure, he ran on a treadmill every evening, but that wasn’t the same as bailing hay or hauling tack. “I’m gonna be sore tomorrow.”

  Paisley lifted the birthday girl off Sundance, Grandpa’s favorite dun.

  “No. I wanna wide more. I Pwincess Anna.”

  Paisley smiled at the princess’s speech impediment. She loved that kids enjoyed her ranch so much and how her Frozen parties had been such a big hit. Though being so frozen that she was having trouble feeling her toes inside her thermal socks and boots might be taking the theme a little too far.

  Didn’t kids ever get cold? Probably not since Natalie’s mom, Cindy, had insisted she wear snow pants under her ballet tutu.

  “We’ve got a castle cake inside the barn for you, sweetheart. Don’t you want to blow out your candles and open presents?”

  Princess Natalie smiled to reveal a gap where her top two teeth used to be. “I get a pony for a pwesant?”

  Paisley pasted on a smile and looked with bug eyes over the little girl’s head to silently beg Pastor Taylor and his wife for help.

  Josh’s confident gaze met hers. What was he doing there?

  “Is this the birthday princess?” he asked in a theatrical voice.

  Of course. He was there to put on a show like he always did. If it distracted Natalie from the pony rides, Paisley would be grateful.

  “Why, yes.” It couldn’t hurt to play along with his performance. “This is Princess Anna. Her royal subjects are awaiting her presence so they may celebrate her fourth year of life.”

  Josh bent down on one knee. “Fair maiden. I have traveled a great distance to meet thee. May I have the honor of escorting you to the festivities?”

  Natalie giggled and bopped him on the chest with the snowflake at the end of her light-up wand. “You silly.”

  Paisley shook her head. First Dot and Annabel, and now Natalie. Sir Josh charmed females of all ages.

  Josh sent Paisley a sly smile. But it was because they were coconspirators. That’s all. No reason for her toes to tingle back to life. She curled them against the sensation and turned to lead Sundance to the grooming stall.

  Josh had Natalie taken care of, but who had Josh taken care of? He was supposed to be inside working on her website, not in her barn playing with kids as if he knew that was the secret for melting her heart. And she’d thought seeing him with horses in high school had been bad.

  Why did he want to even be around her at all? She’d been all prickly and rude ever since he’d gotten there. Didn’t he have enough troubles of his own without having to worry about the survival of an old ranch?

  She pulled off Sundance’s saddle and brushed him. His muzzle turned toward her, and warm air puffed from his nostrils. She took off one of her mittens and held her hand in front of his nose to enjoy the heat.

  “You did good today, Sundance.” Dad had never liked the Fjords. Some were as short as ponies, but they weren’t allowed to compete in the same contests since they were thicker and stronger. And Dad was all about competing. But the Fjords were perfect for these parties and for pulling sleighs, which kept Grandpa’s ranch going after he got sick. And it could keep her going, too.

  She glanced over her shoulder toward the party/tack room. That’s where she should be headed. It was usually her favorite part of an event. Because then she was done working and could just enjoy the laughter and sweet innocence that came with youth. The soft hands. The honest eyes. The funny questions.

  But today she’d have to let Josh enjoy it for her. And enjoying it
he was. Through the window she could see a couple of little silhouettes swiping at him with plastic swords. He spun and ducked out of the way. If she didn’t know better, she would have assumed he didn’t have a care in the world. How did he make life look so easy?

  Maybe his life was easy. She turned her back on the scene and led Sundance to his stall, but her thoughts stayed on the man who was adored everywhere he went. Sure, he’d been accused of stealing advertising ideas and lost his fiancée, but he’d bounce back. He was talented enough to land a multi-million-dollar deal in the first place, so he could do it again. And he’d never lacked for female admirers. He’d be snatched up as soon as word spread that he was on the market again. But if neither of those things worked out, he’d still have his family.

  With four brothers and lots of nieces and nephews, he probably knew more about kids than she did. He’d want to have a big family of his own, no doubt.

  “He doesn’t need us.” She smoothed the horse’s hair away from his eyes. “We’ll have to try to forget all about him.”

  Hay rustled behind her.

  Paisley froze.

  “Who do you have to forget about?”

  Oh dear. He’d know she was talking about him. Because there were no other men in her life. Grandpa was gone, not forgotten. And Dad—but she wanted to forget her childhood with him. And then Nick of course, but . . . Nick.

  “You know I was engaged.” She wasn’t going to answer his question with a lie. She was simply going to change the subject. “I decided to move to the ranch when our engagement was called off. So I’m forgetting the past and moving on here.” She peeked up to find Josh crossing his arms over the gate. That meant he was settling in for a longer conversation. But at least he didn’t know he was harder to forget about than Nick.

  Josh tilted his head. “Sam never mentioned you were engaged.”

  Yeah, like Josh asked Sam for updates on her relationship status after he moved to Chicago. “Nick Riley from high school. He became a vet and helped out at Dad’s ranch quite a bit.”

  “Riley?” Josh’s jaw shifted side to side.

  Did he have bad memories of Nick, or did he not like the idea of her being married? Nah. That was ridiculous. She’d pretty much been the only girl Josh hadn’t ever asked out. Which wouldn’t have been so bad if he hadn’t kissed her at his senior masquerade prom.

  She looked away in case her eyes might display her memories like a movie screen. “You probably don’t remember him. He was pretty quiet.”

  Josh had turned quiet himself. She glanced up.

  Mistake. Because though Josh wasn’t reading her thoughts, he was studying her intently. “Did he break your heart? Is that why you’ve been so irritable?”

  The heat from his gaze dissipated the moment he reminded her of her attitude. She pulled her hat lower over her face. “The stress of taking over the ranch would be enough to make anyone irritable.”

  Josh held up his hands as if to defend himself. “Hey, I’m here to help.”

  Sure, he was here for the moment. But that wouldn’t last long. As soon as he got his job back, he’d be gone. Which was okay. Because they were both adults now. Maybe it was time she started acting like one. “I know. Thanks for your assistance with the ‘pwincess.’”

  His stare softened. It roamed her face.

  The tingle in her toes traveled up into her belly. If she couldn’t be irritable and push him away, she’d have to do the leaving herself. She closed the gate on the horse stall to head into the party.

  His hand caught her arm. His skin might as well have been sandpaper, and her arm might as well have been bare with the way his touch rubbed her raw. It was definitely uncomfortable knowing he had the power to smooth her rough edges.

  “I want to do more, Paisley.”

  She inhaled the fresh scent of straw mixed with the mossy scent of Josh’s cologne. What was he talking about? She couldn’t let her imagination hunt for an answer. Because it might run away with her. “More?”

  “Yeah.” He let her go, but his eyes held on.

  She couldn’t look away. She couldn’t step back. Why couldn’t he have treated her this way in high school when working at Dad’s ranch? Now it was too late for anything to come of it.

  “Since your loan isn’t going through right away, and I have nowhere else to be, I could step in as the ranch hand you planned to hire.”

  By “more” he wanted to be her ranch hand. Until he had a better opportunity anyway.

  Her shoulders dropped slightly with the weight of the idea.

  On the one side, he wasn’t trying to get closer to her. He was trying to help get her closer to her new dream. This was like an answer to a prayer for a friend to share her excitement.

  Except, on the other side, their relationship was a lot different than Dot and Annabel’s. If she took him up on his suggestion, she would be working with him. Which would make it harder to let go of her old dreams.

  She’d have to take what she could get. Since she couldn’t have both. Could she?

  She shifted her gaze past him to survey Butch and Cassidy, Sundance’s brother and sister. “You haven’t worked with horses for a long time, Josh. Would you feel comfortable leading trail rides or sleigh rides by yourself?”

  Josh’s brow dipped as if he were incredulous. “You don’t know me at all, do you Paisley Sheridan?”

  Did she? “I know you chose to move to Chicago. What else is there to know?”

  Josh pulled a carrot from his back pocket and held it over the gate for Sundance to reach up and nip. “You should know I once had dreams, too.”

  What did Josh dream for that he hadn’t achieved? “Like . . .” she prompted.

  “Well.” A small smile played on his lips as he looked down at her pony. “The very first thing I ever asked Santa for was a horse.”

  Was he opening up or was he trying to prove himself capable of the job she was informally interviewing him for? If he wanted to talk about horses, she’d talk about horses.

  “Did you go to a pony birthday party? Is that what made you want one?” She wouldn’t be surprised if Natalie asked Santa for a horse when she didn’t get one for her birthday.

  His eyes darted her way in good humor. “No, I liked playing cowboys and Indians.”

  “Of course.” Maybe she would have played cowboys and Indians if she’d had a brother. “Did Santa come through?”

  Josh turned toward her, one elbow resting on the stall door. “You know, I thought he did. I woke up Christmas morning and ran to the window, and there on our lawn stood the most beautiful horse I’d ever seen. Chestnut. With black legs and a black mane.”

  What a gift. Except Josh hadn’t said Santa came through. He said he’d “thought” Santa had come through. “The horse wasn’t for you?”

  Josh shook his head slowly. “I ran out the front door yelling that Santa had brought me my horse to the utter shock of both my parents. And then I was shocked when that gorgeous horse ran away.”

  Paisley wrinkled her brow. That didn’t make any sense. “He ran away?”

  “Wild horse. Must have come down from the preserve in Challis.”

  “Oh no.” Paisley covered her mouth. She’d actually gotten a horse for Christmas when she was little. Named him Ranger after her hero, The Lone Ranger. Whenever Dad was yelling at Mom, she’d go out to the barn and hide in his stall. What would life have been like if Ranger had never been hers? If getting him as a gift had turned out to be a cruel joke?

  Josh shrugged. “My parents tried to make it better with a new bike, but I was so mad at Santa. Made me hate working at our Christmas tree farm as a kid because families would come to get trees, and I’d hear them talking about Santa, and I wanted to go tell the other children it was all a big lie.”

  Paisley licked her lips to keep from smiling. The horse thing was sad, but Josh’s anger toward a man who didn’t exist was kind of humorous.

  “I see that smile,” he teased. Maybe he was good at marke
ting because he could read people so well.

  At least she didn’t have to hide her amusement. She grinned but tried to remain sensitive. “I’m sure it was . . .” She pictured a miniature version of Josh glaring daggers at the man in the red suit at the Sun Valley shopping center. A chuckle escaped. “. . . tough.”

  “It was,” big Josh defended little Josh. Which made her laugh even more. “And I never forgot about that horse. That’s why I was drawn to the Independence Day Rodeo where I met your dad and why I accepted his offer for a job rather than work for my parents in high school.”

  Her joy deflated. Because Dad hadn’t needed a ranch hand when he had her. But he’d preferred working with Josh. The same way he would have preferred her mom giving birth to a son. “Hmm,” she said because she didn’t know what else to say.

  “So.” Josh narrowed his eyes, probably wondering why she’d stopped laughing. “I wasn’t born on a ranch the way you were, and I don’t live on a ranch now, but I’ve always loved horses.”

  And he liked her dad. Everybody liked her dad. Nobody knew what he was really like. Nobody knew she would never be enough for him.

  “Paisley?” Josh’s eyes searched for a response.

  Her initial instinct was to erase all emotion from her expression to hide the pain, but Josh wasn’t looking at her with pity. His face reflected a similar longing for approval. As if he was afraid he wasn’t enough.

  Is that why Josh tried so hard to charm? Why he wanted to prove himself as a ranch hand? Why he’d told her that story?

  He’d always walked around with such confidence. Like he owned the world. She hadn’t thought his job suspension really affected him beyond the monetary.

  “Do you want me to stay?” He broke the silence though it came back even thicker.

  Did she want him to stay? So badly that he’d better go.

  Had he moved closer? Or had she? They both had a hand on the gate now, facing each other. She wished she had her lip gloss with her because her lips felt dry again.