by Jeannie Watt
Madeline looked around the restaurant. She was the only person in the place, but it was ten-thirty. Too late for breakfast and too early for lunch. She left her purse at the table and walked over to the Christmas tree. The tags, as she’d expected, had the names and ages of children who needed gifts.
What do you think, Skip? Boy or girl? Teen or toddler?
Last year she’d made a donation to the local teen crisis center in his name. This year she’d been too distracted.
She pulled a tag for a sixteen-year-old boy and another for a thirteen-year-old girl. Most people probably went for the younger kids. Easier to shop for. Madeline liked a challenge.
“Good for you,” the waitress said when she returned with the cinnamon roll and coffeepot. “We’re hoping to empty that tree by the end of the week, but with hard economic times…” She shook her head and poured the coffee.
“How is the economy here?”
“Well, we’re lucky to be in a gold-mining area, so there are still jobs. Ranching is suffering and gaming is way down.” The waitress’s mouth tightened in a way that made Madeline think that tips were probably down, too. “People are being careful with their money.”
“No doubt.” Madeline peeled the top off a small container of cream. “Is there a good real-estate agent in town? Or would I be better off going to Elko?”
“There’s Myron Crenshaw, right across the street.” Madeline smiled politely. “What kind of property are you looking to buy?”
Madeline saw no need to correct her. “A smaller ranch property. Say…a couple hundred acres.”
“Myron,” the waitress said firmly. “Or you might try Kira Ross. She works from her home, which is about fifty miles from here.”
“Fifty miles.”
“Yeah.” The waitress didn’t seem to think that was a big deal. “She should be in the phone book. I know for a fact she’s on the internet because my uncle just bought a lot on the marshes from her.”
“Anyone else?”
“Well, you might try Century 21, but the local office mainly does horse properties, not ranches.”
“What’s a horse property?” Madeline asked, pouring the cream into her coffee. Wasn’t a ranch a horse property?
“A piece of land with enough room for a few horses,” the waitress explained patiently. “A couple acres.”
“I see.” Madeline smiled before she picked up the spoon next to her cup. “Thanks for the information.”
“Anytime.” The waitress sauntered away, stopping to adjust the holiday bouquet on a nearby table before returning to the counter.
Kira Ross was in the phone book and, better than that, she was in town and more than happy to meet with Madeline. Madeline suggested the café and Kira countered with the public library.
“More private,” she said with a laugh. “At least until school gets out and it becomes the local babysitting service.”
Madeline killed the two hours until the appointment shopping for Christmas presents for the Angel Tree. She bought a couple small gifts—a necklace for the girl, a skater hat with a popular logo for the boy—then added two healthy gift certificates so that the kids could do their own shopping at the local variety store. The clerk wrapped the presents as she chatted with Madeline, who then dropped them off at the café on her way to the library. Her throat closed as she placed the presents under the tree. She wished she’d been shopping with her brother instead of in memory of him.
How would he feel about her selling the ranch?
Would he approve, because she was doing what was best for her? Disapprove, because she wasn’t doing what was best for his business partner…who made her nerves tingle and smelled of some as yet unidentified, intriguing spice?
I have to sell, Skip.
The one thing they’d never seen eye to eye on was his quitting his job and, for all intents and purposes, dropping out of society. At least society as Madeline knew it. She’d always figured it was a phase, a sort of late-twenties craziness he needed to get out of his system.
When Madeline entered the children’s section of the library, an attractive woman with straight blond hair to her shoulders waved at her before leaning down to say something to two small boys. They nodded solemnly in unison and threw themselves into the beanbag chairs near the window, each with a book.
“Hi,” the woman said, holding out a hand and closing the small distance between them. “I’m Kira Ross.”
“Madeline Blaine.”
Kira led the way to an adult-size table near the wall, private, but still within sight of the children’s area. “You want to sell the Lone Summit Ranch?” she asked as soon as they were seated.
“Are you familiar with it?”
“I am. I remember the last time it was on the market.
I don’t think it’ll be an easy sell. It’s one of those places that’s great for what it’s being used for now, but finding people who need it for the same purposes, well, that may take a while.”
Exactly what Ty had told her. And Myron, too.
“That doesn’t mean it won’t sell,” Kira continued, “only that it’s not a quick and sure deal.”
“I understand.”
“Are you in a position where you can wait for a sale?
Or, if you don’t mind me asking, is it a necessity?”
“It’s more of a case of wanting to get out.” Kira raised her eyebrows and Madeline explained, “I inherited half the property from my brother. I live in New York, and I’m not well versed on ranching, so I think the best move is to sell.”
“Your partner?”
“Has agreed to the sale.” He doesn’t have much choice.
Kira blew out a breath, then shot a quick glance over to her boys, who were now snuggled together in one chair, the older one pretending to read to the younger.
She focused on Madeline again.
“Forgive me for saying that you don’t look like a ranch owner, but for the time being, you’re probably going to be one.”
Madeline nodded resignedly.
“I’d be happy to come up and look at the property, but unfortunately, not until January. I’m going to Boise for the holidays. My sister is pregnant and due any day.”
Madeline really wished they could have settled matters sooner, but it was hard to compete with a pregnant sister. “I understand. I’ll have to arrange to fly back for the meeting.” The long drive from Reno again. She shuddered.
“You’re not living here now?”
“Visiting.”
“I know I’m supposed to be a salesperson and all, but have you considered hanging on to the property? My husband thinks your partner is running a decent operation. What with organic beef coming into vogue, you might be sitting on a gold mine.”
“Is your husband a friend of Ty’s?” Madeline thought she did an excellent job of keeping suspicion out of her voice, just in case Kira’s husband was a friend.
Kira laughed. “No. But the ranching community is tight, so we know one another’s business and reputation, even if we aren’t close friends.”
“What is Ty’s reputation?”
Kira blinked at the point-blank question. “My husband was surprised the ranch was going on the block, so I’d say his reputation is good.” She tilted her head. “Are you asking me if you can trust him?”
So Kira Ross was a straight talker, too.
“I don’t know Ty very well,” Madeline explained. “He was my brother’s partner. And I don’t know anything about ranching, so I haven’t been able to assess his…management abilities.”
“Then perhaps you should educate yourself,” Kira said bluntly. “You’d be in a better position to decide whether or not you really want to sell.”
“I’ve never been in the rural West.” Madeline tried to be tactful, just in case Kira’s ranch looked like Ty’s. “My ranch seems to be…ramshackle.”
Kira laughed again. “It doesn’t look like the ranch on Bonanza?”
Madeline shifted in her se
at. Truthfully, she had gauged the ranch by what she’d seen on television. “It’s not picturesque,” she allowed.
“It’s probably pretty normal by local standards. Working ranches here tend to be bare-bones. Wood was expensive to haul in, so most of the homesteaders and early ranchers only built what they had to. Nowadays ranchers can put up prefabricated metal buildings and sheds, but if they have an older wood building that will do, why bother? Ask Ty about it.”
Oh, yeah. Ty loved it when she asked him questions.
Kira reached into her purse and pulled out a business card. “If you still want to sell, give me a call in January and I’ll see what I can do for you.”
“I appreciate that.”
“So, what do you do in New York?”
“I’m a professor of anthropology.”
“Really. That sounds fascinating.”
Madeline and Kira spent the next several minutes chatting, until the boys wearied of reading and disappeared into the stacks.
“I’d better go help select books,” Kira said apologetically.
“Have fun with that.” Madeline draped her purse strap over her arm. “I’ll call you in January.”
If Skip was sending her a message, it was coming in loud and clear through the real-estate agents’ dreary sales predictions. But Madeline had every intention of calling Kira. She huffed out a breath as she left the library, as she’d always done when, during an argument, Skip had made a point she didn’t agree with.
I can’t keep the place. All right?
Madeline was getting into her car for the long drive home when her phone rang. Her heart jumped. Everett? Connor? News?
Her grandmother’s name was on the screen.
“Grandma. Is everything all right?” Madeline asked, without bothering to say hello. Her grandmother never made cell-phone calls.
“Why didn’t you tell me about your job?”
So much for protecting her grandma. “I didn’t want to worry you.”
“Because I’ve had no experience with worry,” Eileen replied, with enough of a bite to let Madeline know she was hurt at being left out of the loop.
“It’s not that I didn’t think you could handle it, it’s just that…” Madeline’s voice trailed off. She felt as if she was sixteen and had come in after curfew.
“You were ashamed?”
Exactly. “I didn’t do anything wrong, but yes. I guess I was ashamed.”
“I do not for one minute believe you’ve done anything wrong.”
“Thank you.” At least someone besides Connor believed in her. She hadn’t exactly received a rally of support from the people she worked with when she’d been suspended—most probably because they didn’t want to rub Dr. Mann the wrong way. Madeline had never backed down from an issue, whether it was funding for her student labs, or the ridiculous policy that had tripled the paperwork necessary to submit academic proposals to the department head. She didn’t know if her colleagues were distancing themselves so they wouldn’t get dragged down with her, or because they believed she was guilty. “I planned to tell you after the investigation. I didn’t want to ruin the holidays and cause concern.” She paused, then asked, “How’d you find out?”
“It’s on the internet.”
“But only if you go looking for it.” A small college in a midsize university suspending academic staff wasn’t exactly earthshaking news that the wires picked up. Jensen’s situation had hit the local papers, so Eileen was aware of his troubles, but thankfully Madeline’s suspension hadn’t made print.
“To tell you the truth, Connor’s been acting shifty, and when I questioned him, he was quite uncomfortable. I figured it had to have something to do with you.”
Madeline rolled her eyes. Connor was a worse liar than she was.
“It took me a while, but I finally got a general idea of where to start my research.”
“So he didn’t break under your interrogation.”
Her grandmother laughed. “No. He sputtered at the proper moments.” Her voice became serious again when she said, “I think it was a good idea to visit Skip’s property rather than stay here and obsess over matters you can’t control. But you should have told me the entire truth.”
“Agreed,” Madeline said in resignation. She should have told her. But it had been so damned embarrassing….
“Tell me about the ranch Skip was so proud of.”
Eileen, like Madeline, had never understood what possessed Skip, the favorite grandchild, to throw away his education and take up ranching.
“I’m selling.”
“Mr. Hopewell made an offer?”
“Not exactly.” Her grandmother made no response, waiting. So Madeline poured out her frustrations about the condition of the ranch and how she and Ty hadn’t exactly hit it off, which was an understatement bordering on a lie. The only solution was to sell and go on with her life and leave Ty to his.
When she was done, there was a long silence, and then her grandmother said, “Are you being fair to Mr. Hopewell?”
Madeline almost dropped the phone. “Fair how?” she asked in disbelief. Her grandmother had hammered fairness into her since birth. Later in life, Madeline had learned that even though she might be playing fair, oftentimes the rest of the world wasn’t. But that was no excuse to Eileen. One played fair at all times.
“He’s shouldered the burden of running the ranch alone, since Skip passed away.”
“He gets an extra percentage for that burden, Grandma. And he’s agreed to sell. I want to sell. I think that adds up to, well, selling.”
“It’s a big decision, and not to be made lightly.”
“Grandma—”
“You’re under pressure because of your job. It makes perfect sense to try to extract yourself from other complications. But this may not be the time to make such a decision.”
Okay, this was getting weird. Why on earth was her grandmother, the most sensible of women, taking this track? Madeline was about to ask when Eileen started to speak, then stopped abruptly to clear her throat, not once, but twice.
Her grandmother, who never cried, was on the edge of tears.
Oh. Dear. Heavens. Madeline felt like such a fool.
She pressed the heel of her palm against her forehead. Eileen wasn’t ready for this step. She wasn’t ready to let go of this last link to Skip.
“I’ll tell you what,” Madeline said finally, in as steady a voice as she could manage. “I’ll give the matter more thought. Maybe I should familiarize myself more thoroughly with the situation.”
“I thought that was the reason you’re there,” her grandmother managed to say.
“It is. I just…got sidetracked.”
“I simply want you to be sure you have all the data,” Eileen said with a note of huskiness in her voice.
“I’ll get more data,” Madeline agreed, feeling both trapped and guilty. “And I’ll be home on Christmas Eve, as planned, and we’ll talk then.”
She hung up a few minutes later and then let her head drop back against the seat rest.
She hadn’t seen this one coming.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
TY HAD JUST FINISHED washing his few dishes when Alvin lifted his head off his paws.
“Do we have a visitor?” he asked the dog. Just what he needed. He was almost to the door when Madeline knocked.“Come in,” he said, stepping back. A subzero cold front was moving in on the heels of the warm front that had dumped snow the day before, and he didn’t want to spar with Madeline in an open doorway.
“Thank you.” She ducked past him, then stopped inside the door. “How’s your knee?” she asked politely.
“Better now that it’s in the brace.” The tension hummed between them.
“I got back from town a few minutes ago,” she said, as if she hadn’t driven by his place. Ty waited, knowing she’d speak her piece without encouragement from him. “According to the real-estate agents, we’re going to be partners for eternity, because this place will
never sell.”
He didn’t say “I told you so,” but it was tempting. “Are you going to put it on the market anyway?”
She glanced down at the floor briefly. “I initially came to the ranch to understand more about the operation. Instead of doing that, I allowed myself to get off track.”
She’d also sidestepped his question. He wanted an answer. “So what does all this boil down to?” Because it was boiling down to something.
Madeline raised her chin. “I’m going to help you with chores tomorrow.”
Ty blinked. The hell she was. “I’m not that injured.”
“Are you going to be able to drive the tractor with your knee like that?”
Good question—one he’d been asking himself. The last time his knee had gone out, the cows were on pasture and he hadn’t had to drive the tractor and deal with the clutch.
“If I can’t, I’ll hire someone to help.” Manny Hernandez, the local handyman, was always up for a job.
“You’d hire someone when you can have me help for free? No wonder the ranch isn’t making any money.”
“Madeline—”
“I’m sorry,” she blurted, cutting him off. “I wasn’t trying to go for the jugular. I just…have some stuff on my mind.”
“Yeah. I imagine you do.” For a moment she said nothing, but he could see the wheels turning.
“You researched me,” she finally said in a flat voice.
“I did.”
“What did you find out?”
“That you’re probably as interested in lying low as you are in selling the ranch.”
She forced a laugh. She was as bad at acting as she was at lying. “You think I’m here because I’m running away from an uncomfortable situation?” He raised an eyebrow. “I’m taking advantage of the time off to do something I should have done last summer.”
“Why didn’t you do it last summer?”
“I had summer classes.”
“And now you have no classes.”
“Until January.”
“That’s not what the article said. Indefinite suspension.”
Madeline’s back seemed to become even straighter than before. The woman had excellent posture. “The hearing is immediately after New Year’s. I’ll be teaching when the semester starts. My lawyer assures me it’s more of a formality than anything.”
