“THIS IS A FIRST FOR ME,” Tucker admitted, leading two goats down the road. He’d had to deal with wildlife before, but not goats. At least they were friendly enough.
“Poor Heidi,” Nevada said, hanging on to her own two goats. “I think she assumed the fencing was secure. I know she’s going to blame this one on the cows.”
“She has cows, too?”
“Sort of. They’re feral.”
Tucker chuckled. “Feral cows? Is that possible?”
“According to her, it is. They came with the ranch, but they’ve been running wild for years. The old man who used to own the Castle Ranch died a long time ago. I barely remember when he lived there. It was abandoned close to twenty years.”
And he’d been worried that building a hotel and casino in Fool’s Gold would be boring.
“You know those cows,” he said with a chuckle. “They can cause all kinds of trouble. Skipping class, smoking behind the gym.”
She grinned at him. “Is this where I remind you you’re dealing with goats on your job site? Don’t mock the cows. They may come after you.”
He laughed. “I can handle feral cows.”
“You say that now. I noticed your dad didn’t volunteer to return them to Heidi.”
“He’s more of a hotel guy. Too many years behind a desk.”
“Ever since you started heading the big projects, I’ll guess,” she said.
He nodded. After his disastrous relationship with Cat had ended, he’d thrown himself into his work. Within a year, he’d been managing a ten-story building in Thailand. The following year he’d built a bridge in India. His father had started spending more time in the office.
“I don’t think I could live like that,” she said. “Going from place to place. I like having a home.”
“Moving around is all I’ve known.”
He glanced at her. Sunlight illuminated the various shades of blond in her hair. Her profile was perfect, her mouth full.
He looked away, not wanting to stray too far down that path. It was tempting but dangerous. Better to think about the day, the bright blue sky, the trees, the rhythmic clip-clop of the goats.
“Tell me about Fool’s Gold,” he said.
She smiled. “I’m not sure we have that long. It has a distinguished history.”
“I’m sure. No pirates or scoundrels here.”
“Maybe a few, although I am a direct descendant of one of the founding families. The first people to live here were your relatives, though. The Máa-zib tribe.”
“Strong female warriors who used men for sex, then abandoned them. Something you can respect.”
“Appreciate might be a better word.” Humor danced in her eyes. “They left or died out. History isn’t clear on that. In the eighteen hundreds, a young woman named Ciara O’Farrell was on her way to an arranged marriage to a very wealthy older man. She fled her ship in San Francisco to look for gold and make her own fortune so she would never be at the mercy of a man.”
“This place does something to women,” he said. “I need to warn my guys.”
“They can take care of themselves. Do you want to hear the story or not?”
“I do. Tell away.”
“The captain of the ship, Ronan Kane, pursued Ciara.”
“Ronan, like the guy who built my hotel?”
“It wasn’t a hotel back then. He came after her and they fell in love and found gold. He built her a beautiful mansion to show his love to the entire world.” She looked at him. “That’s your hotel.”
“Okay. I like that. Drama, a chase, a happy ending.”
“We’re so pleased you approve of our history.”
“Is there still gold in the mountains?”
“Probably, but no one is looking for it. Kids sometimes go panning for gold. It’s been years since anyone discovered anything.”
“Maybe Heidi could train the goats to sniff out gold.”
“I’ll mention that to her.”
They rounded a corner and saw an old farmhouse up ahead. It had been built in the thirties, he would guess. The roof wasn’t in bad shape, but the whole place needed painting. He wondered if any of the original woodwork remained. He appreciated craftsmanship in any form.
A woman ran out the open gate and hurried toward them.
“Heidi,” he guessed.
“Looking for her goats.”
“Maybe I should get a goat.”
Nevada laughed. “Start with something small. Like a fish. If you can keep that alive, we’ll talk.”
“You wound me.”
“I’m sorry,” Heidi called as she approached. “It’s all my fault. I wasn’t paying attention and I left the gate open.”
“Not to worry,” Nevada told her. “They found their way to the construction site and scared the guys. I enjoyed seeing that happen.”
Heidi gave her a sad smile. “We were distracted by some bad news.” The smile faded. “A friend of my grandfather’s told us he’s sick. He needs surgery and medicine and doesn’t have insurance. It’s a terrible situation.” She took the lead ropes. “Thanks for bringing them back.”