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“There’s plenty of land for them to roam free, at least around here. You can join one of our trail rides while you’re here and get a closer look. Here we are.” He pulled through the wooden arched entrance, never tiring of seeing the low-lying acres, rolling, tree-lined hills and rough-hewn buildings he and Devin had put so much effort into. Nodding to the left, he said, “That’s the social hall. Mary and Les Ingram do all the cooking for the daily buffets and tend the reservations desk. Feel free to walk over this evening and introduce yourself. They know you’re coming. There’s a pool table and game table, if you play.”
“I do, but it’s been a while.” She blew out a breath, the heavy sigh a sign those entertainments weren’t enough to appease her. As he continued driving down the unpaved road, he saw her frown at the three stables off to the right.
“What?” he asked, pulling to a stop in front of their two-story, log cabin home.
“Is this it?” Kelsey waved a hand toward the window with a shake of her head. “I didn’t see a nearby town between here and the airport.”
“Because there isn’t one. We lie north between Willow Springs and Billings, both about a forty-minute drive from here. People come to the ranch to get away from everyday life, which is why the McAllisters think it’s a good place for you to stay until they can learn more about who your assailant was after. No one knows you’re here or that we’ve stayed in touch with our former boss.”
Shaking her head, her tone laced with disbelief, she asked, “What the heck do you do all day and night?”
His mouth curled in amusement. She was such a city girl. “This time of year, we work twelve to fourteen hours a day except Sunday. Camping season lasts from May through mid-September and once we close the ranch activities for the winter, we still rent out the cabins for those who want more privacy and a rustic retreat while here to ski, or just a quiet winter getaway. Devin and I also spend a few months visiting our families during the worst of winter. From the look on your face, you’re not an outdoors person.”
She lifted one slim brow. “Only to walk from store to store when I’m shopping.”
He shrugged, unconcerned with the stark differences in their daily lives. She would have to make the best of what they offered for the time being. “Sorry, no shopping around here. We can take you into Billings one day, if we can spare the time.” He slid out of the truck, not surprised Devin wasn’t around to greet them. Grabbing her suitcase from the back, he jerked his head toward the front door. “Come on in. I’ll show you your room and you can get settled while I check in with Devin.”
Kelsey’s jaw almost dropped as she entered Greg’s home. The tiled entry gave way to the largest, two-story room she’d ever seen in a house. A place like this would cost in the millions in Philly and there was something appealing about the wooden beams above and the floor to ceiling rugged stone fireplace in front of them. She tried to keep up with his long-legged stride as he led the way past the open kitchen sporting a hanging rack of copper pots and pans dangling over a gray concrete counter-topped island but didn’t mind the view of him from behind. The man looked as good going as he did coming, making her warped mind wonder what he looked like when coming in an altogether different way.
Pull your head out of the gutter, girl. Even though Greg had shown her every courtesy on the long drive out here, he hadn’t expressed a hint of interest in her other than as a temporary guest. Since she was currently dealing with worse things, that didn’t bother her.
“My rooms are on the opposite side of the house and Devin’s quarters are upstairs,” Greg said as he veered down a long hallway. “There are two guest rooms separated by a bath at this end. You can pick either one.” He set her bag down in the hall and lifted his hat to run his fingers through his hair before settling it on his head again. The girls and slutty bitch tingled with warmth and Kelsey decided she must be in desperate straits over being stuck here if she found even that simple gesture sexy. Settle down! she scolded her happy places as her body seemed to dance a jig at the thought of spending time in the wilds with nothing to do but ogle the man doing a favor for her foster parents. Cocking his head, those moss green eyes turned sharp and assessing without warning. “What’s wrong?”
She wasn’t dumb enough to ask him what he meant. “Nothing, just jet lagged.” She waved a hand toward the first room. “This will be fine. Go on back to work. I take it I’m not a prisoner and can walk around and acclimate myself.”
“So long as you stay within close proximity to the house where one of the hands can see you from the pastures or the barns you can go where you please. Let someone know if you want to hike through the woods, then stay on the paths and don’t venture far enough you can’t see any of our buildings. Don’t bother the guests and don’t enter any of the enclosed pastures or corrals. We have livestock that aren’t broke in yet.”
“Gee, I’m glad I’m free to roam around,” she drawled with as much sarcasm as she could muster up. “Do you honestly think there are worse hazards and risks out here than in Philly? I thought you lived there when you were working for Jordan.”
“Devin did. I was in Albany until we were paired up on a case, and yes, there are wilderness hazards a city girl like you could fall prey to. Here.” He pulled a pre-paid cell phone from his back pocket and handed it to her. “Stick close and you’ll be fine, but if you need help, I’ve programmed my, Devin and our stable manager, Tom Weston’s phone numbers in there. Tom lives in the apartment above the largest barn and is always around when Dev and I are either out for the day with guests or away from the ranch.”
Something akin to panic dug its claws into Kelsey’s abdomen at imagining him leaving her alone here for so long. It was a struggle, but she managed to fight off the need to beg him not to take off anywhere without her. That alone was a testament to how much out of her depth, alone and abandoned she felt in this place. At home, she was comfortable spending time alone, even going to movies or somewhere to eat by herself when she wasn’t with friends, coworkers or the McAllisters.
“Hey.” Greg reached for her and wrapped a thick, muscled arm around her shoulders. Naturally, the girls and the slutty bitch took the friendly hug to heart and reacted to the press of that large body and the steady thud of his heart beneath her ear by going all warm and tingly. “Relax and let yourself enjoy this time. Who knows, you may end up liking it here enough to book a vacation next year.”
Kelsey huffed a laugh and stepped back, both surprised and a touch piqued when he released her immediately. “Let’s not get ridiculous. Go away. I need to get settled and send a note to my boss. You do have internet out here, don’t you?”
He tipped his hat down and started back up the hall, tossing over his shoulder, “Why, no ma’am, we still use smoke signals to communicate. Didn’t Jordan tell you that?”
“Moron,” Kelsey muttered, her lips twitching as she heard the front door close. She wondered if Devin Fisher was as sexy and easy to be around as Greg.
An hour later, she discovered Devin was nothing like his friend and business partner. Her bedroom window offered a stunning view of the mountains and tall pines as well as the barn closest to the house. Putting away her clothes in the small dresser next to the four-poster bed, she caught a glimpse of another tall, broad-shouldered man leading the biggest horse Kelsey had ever seen into the stables. Ink black hair brushed the back of his neck below an equally dark Stetson.
“Oh my,” she breathed as her traitorous body sat up and took notice when he turned around and her eyes were automatically drawn to the way leather chaps framed his pelvis. If all the men around here were that panty-melting, she wouldn’t get bored, just needy for a diversion from all this space and quiet. “Behave, damn it,” she scolded herself out loud. “I’m not some horny hussy lusting after every man I see.” But if she became desperate, she suspected she could easily become one.
Turning from the window, Kelsey set up her laptop on the desk and sent her boss a quick e-mail stating she would get back to her accounts tomorrow, once she acclimated to the time change, and all the other differences from Philly she was stuck enduring for the next month. The good news was she wouldn’t have to give up her daily walking regimen. Instead, she would have to adjust to stumbling her way over forested terrain instead of strolling city blocks window-shopping fun stores calling her name. If the jerk that accosted her weren’t already dead, she would be tempted to go back and kill him for that alone.
The mid-afternoon sun shone high in a cloudless blue sky by the time she left the house to stretch her legs. Curiosity pulled her to
ward the barn, and the man she’d spotted entering a short time ago. She’d seen a few other cowhands milling about, two riding out in a field where a small herd of black cattle grazed. Two horses, both sporting coats in varying shades of reddish brown that reminded her of Greg’s hair, were busy chowing down on a bale of hay in the corral next to the largest barn. Even from several feet away they appeared huge, with rippling muscles every time they shifted their long legs. She had to admit they were beautiful creatures as she entered the stable and took in the tall, regal equine heads hanging out the long row of half doors to their stalls.
The murmurings of a soft, deep voice resonated down the aisle as Kelsey strolled across the wide, neatly swept concrete floor, keeping her distance from the horses sticking their noses out toward her. She passed ten stalls lining each side by the time she rounded the corner at the end of the row and spotted the dark-haired man who caught her eye from the house running a brush along the side of the black beast he’d led inside.
“Feels good, doesn’t it, boy? Mind your manners and I might have a carrot or two for you.”
Some impish part of her prompted Kelsey to ask, “What happens if he doesn’t behave?”
The man turned slowly, as if her sudden presence didn’t surprise him. Nudging his hat back, she got a look at his midnight blue eyes, a shiver skating under her skin at the cool assessment he subjected her to before answering.
