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“I’ll leave you to your dinner, then,” Drake said, excusing himself. He nodded to them both, very ready to part ways with Mateo. “Jessamyn, I’ll cc you on the offer I make on Crooked Elm. Fleur told me the three of you need to agree when you’re ready to sell.”
He would have liked to explain his hopes for Crooked Elm, but this wasn’t the time.
“Of course.” She smiled warmly and passed him her card. “I’ll look forward to hearing from you.” And then she disappeared into the crowd with her father.
Stuffing the contact information in his jacket pocket, he headed toward the food tables, considering his next move with the Barclay family. He needed their property to continue his parents’ legacy of conservation and land restoration efforts. Drake invested heavily in carrying out their work as a way to honor their memory, but he couldn’t fulfill his goals in his own backyard while the Crooked Elm continued to be misused by the Barclay family’s tenant. He’d tried more than once to convince Antonia Barclay to rent the rangelands to him instead, but she’d refused, insisting that her tenant was working on an irrigation system for the property as part of his reduced rent. Drake had seen little evidence of any such progress. As it stood, a creek that fed the White River wound through his property and the Barclays’ ranch lands, and there was no way to restore the wetlands surrounding it without managing the nearby property.
All the ranch lands would be more valuable once he’d restored it. But better for him if Mateo Barclay—the real estate developer—kept thinking Crooked Elm was worthless. Drake didn’t need him getting involved in the sale. He’d give Jessamyn a call during the week so they could speak privately.
For now, he’d wait until the meal was over to seek out Fleur again. Not to talk about the deal. Just to smooth things over from earlier. If she was going to spend some time in Catamount enjoying her grandmother’s ranch, at least that would mean Drake had more time to convince her to sell to him.
His first step? Making a few fresh memories with her so she could replace the old ones from the day when he’d decimated her hopes of marriage to his brother.
Three
Two hours after she’d served the food, Fleur eyed the buffet tables through the thinning crowd at her grandmother’s memorial and decided she could begin cleaning up. Although the preparation for the meal had been a lot of work, she was grateful for the activity on a difficult day. Her grief was too deep to share with the others gathered for the celebration of Antonia’s life, so it was better to stay busy now and process the loss later, when the hurt wasn’t so fresh.
Excusing herself from a conversation with the local grocer, who’d been sharing a memory of Antonia’s early attempts to order fresh octopus when she’d first moved to Colorado, Fleur wove through the people milling around the exit ready to leave. She’d almost reached the buffet when a tall, blonde beauty with hazel eyes approached her, a navy blue dress hugging her slim figure. It took her a moment to recognize Drake and Colin’s younger sister, Emma Alexander.
Trepidation seized her even though they’d been friends once. She hadn’t seen or spoken to Emma since Fleur had broken off her engagement to Colin.
“Fleur.” Emma held her arms wide before wrapping her in a hug scented with the same perfume she’d always worn—something warm and spicy, with a hint of rose. Then, pulling back, she frowned. “I’m sorry about your grandmother. I was late to arrive since I was in Denver getting a last fitting on my wedding dress today, but I wanted you to know how much I loved Antonia. Colin’s still living in Montana now, but I’m sure he’d also send his sympathies.”
Her chest eased at the kind words and the woman’s obvious sincerity. She was glad that Drake’s disdain hadn’t tainted Emma’s view of her. Or if it had, the woman was too well-mannered to show it.
“Thank you so much. And congratulations on your wedding. I didn’t know you were engaged.” As soon as the words left her mouth, she worried they would call to mind her own failed relationship with Colin, but Emma only beamed.
Fleur could see a resemblance to her oldest brother around the eyes. But where Drake looked at her with dark cynicism, his sister seemed determined to see the good in people. For a moment, it occurred to her that Emma might have that ability because Drake had set aside his own dreams, sacrificing college and the rodeo to ensure his siblings could grow up in their childhood home. But she dismissed the idea again, not sure why her brain wanted to defend Drake Alexander.
“We’ve been engaged since last Christmas. Glen and I just moved up the wedding to the Fourth of July because we can’t wait any longer to start our happily-ever-after.” Her smile was infectious, her cheeks glowing pink.
“That’s just a few weeks away. Will you have the ceremony locally?” Fleur thought to her own brief engagement. There’d been no thought of wedding dresses then.
There hadn’t been time before things fell apart.
“Drake has said we can marry at the ranch, which will be perfect as it can be difficult to change the date with a big venue. But I’ve been in complete despair about finding anyone to cater it on short notice after the first company I contracted with went out of business suddenly.” Emma gave her a sly smile. “Or at least, I despaired about it until today.”
Emma pivoted on her nude pumps and gestured toward the buffet tables.
“What?” Confused, Fleur tried to follow her meaning. “I didn’t have it catered, so I don’t have a name to give you.”
“Because you’re a chef now!” the other woman said enthusiastically. “Just like you always wanted to be. And you fed half the town today on your own. Wouldn’t you consider doing the same thing for my wedding? I have a very generous budget, too, but it’s been impossible to find someone good to make the trip all the way out to Catamount, especially on short notice.”
The request was so flattering, so exciting, she reeled. Still, even if she could pull off something like that, she wasn’t sure it would be a good idea. She had no desire to see Colin again after the way they’d parted, and spending time around Drake—who’d never liked her—was surely an even worse idea.
“Oh no, Emma. I can’t do a formal, sit-down meal or anything. I just thought this would be a nice way to remember Antonia—”
“Of course, this was perfect.” Emma squeezed her arm gently. “You served all the things we remember her cooking. And that’s why I’d love the same foods at my wedding. Antonia brought meals to my family for weeks after my parents died. She was so good to us. To me, in particular.”
Emma was only ten at the time of her parents’ deaths. Fleur remembered that awful summer when the barn had caved in with the Alexanders inside. She’d heard reports afterward that Mrs. Alexander had been pinned under debris and her husband had gone in to help, but then the rest of the structure fell, killing them both. She’d been one year older than Emma and had grown tongue-tied around the neighbor who’d been through something so traumatic.
“I hadn’t realized,” Fleur mused, touched anew by her grandmother’s generous heart. She would have had her hands full keeping track of Fleur for months on end, yet she’d made time to extend herself to a motherless child, too. “Can I have a few days to think about it and get back to you next week?”
She hadn’t secured a job yet, so the income would be welcome. But would the work put her too much in the path of Drake and Colin? She wasn’t ready to face either of them anytime soon.
Then, as if called by her thoughts, she met Drake’s dark-eyed stare from across the room. A buzz of awareness zipped through her, her nerve endings humming to life. No doubt that only happened because he made her wary. She needed to be on guard around this charismatic—ruthless—man. And yet, she couldn’t deny the prickly sense of something...morebetween them.
“Certainly. And I’m sorry if this wasn’t a good time to bring it up.” The younger woman frowned.
