The Sheriff Catches a Bride

Chapter Eight



FILA WAS USED TO THE COLD; she’d never been properly dressed for the weather in her small village. Still, each time she disembarked from a train and found the next one, she grew more uncomfortable, both with the temperature and the way she was dressed.

When she’d first pulled her burqa from over her head, she’d felt a rush of adrenaline. Wearing this skimpy skirt was like stepping onstage to act a part she’d been rehearsing for years. Now it felt like the production had dragged on far too long. Her costume was wilted, her makeup rubbing off. She was tired, scared. Out of her league.

Her clothes attracted attention, too. Lots of it. Men eyed her hungrily. Woman walked past and wrinkled their noses. Out of the big city and away from her group of chatty, temporary friends, she stood out in her garish, unsuitable colors. It was time to change disguises again.

She stepped out of the train station in Chicago and fought down a wave of fear. The bravado that had gotten her this far was fast disappearing. She was hungry, thirsty, and had no idea how to navigate this town. She traced her way to a ladies’ room—her life now seemed made up of ladies’ rooms—and faced herself in the mirror.

No wonder everyone was staring.

She washed off her remaining makeup carefully, took out her hairpins, adjusted her wig and repinned it carefully. What could she do about her clothes?

A movement in the mirror caught her eye and she looked up to see a woman about the age her mother would have been had she lived.

“That’s better,” the woman said, and Fila knew she was referring to the way she’d washed her face and tidied her hair. The woman was dressed in a sensible, knee-length, brown tweed skirt and a cream-colored sweater. Over them she wore a dark wool dress jacket. On her feet she wore trim suede shoes. She looked… safe, Fila decided.

“Could you advise me on where I might buy some clothes?” she asked, nodding at the woman to indicate she wanted something similar to what she wore—something sensible.

“You have the look of someone who is starting over,” the woman said. “You need a department store. Macy’s should do it.” She pulled a pen and pad of paper out of her purse and drew a map. When she handed it over, Fila grasped her hand and thanked her profusely.

“Do you have the money you need?” The woman looked at her sharply.

“Yes, I have money.”

“And somewhere to go?”

“Yes. I have that, too.”

“Then you’ll be fine.” The woman patted her hand, drew her purse over her shoulder and said her good-byes.

There were angels everywhere, Fila thought.

“YOU KNOW THOSE AL-QAEDA FOLKS would love to get their hands on our land,” Kevin Coulter said, waving a hash brown for emphasis.


Cab bent over his scrambled eggs and bit back a sigh. Seven o’clock in the morning and already Kevin was hot on another conspiracy theory. Linda’s diner was full of cowboys, ranchers, truck drivers and other working folks eating a hearty breakfast before another long day’s work. He liked to come here several times a week and linger over his coffee, soaking up the chatter that went on around him. It helped him keep abreast of the gossip and any trouble that might be brewing. Stephanie Lakins, who owned the diner and kept everything going from her perch behind the cash register, and Tracey Richards, one of the waitresses, filled him in on anything they’d overheard that they thought he should know.

“He’s really on a rant today,” Tracey said, nodding at the old man as she bent over the table to refill Cab’s coffee mug.

“Anything new or noteworthy?” Cab asked, more out of habit than because he thought there would be.

“Not unless you think al-Qaeda operatives are planning to set up a sleeper cell in Chance Creek.” Her blond ponytail swung as she dabbed at a spot on the table with a cloth.

Cab pretended to consider the notion. “Nah, can’t see it.”

“Me, neither. Can I get you anything else?”

“Just the bill.”

Still shaking his head over Kevin’s latest batch of crazy talk, Cab headed to his truck ready to check in at the station and get to work. It was a shame about Kevin, really. A rancher all his life, he’d been sidelined at sixty-eight when a horse backed him up against a corral fence and broke his hip. Now he couldn’t do any heavy work and his son and grandsons ran the ranch. Too much idle time on his hands had gotten to his brain. Al-Qaeda. Sheesh. Al Qaeda operatives would have a hard time hiding in Chance Creek. That was the curse of small town life in Montana; everyone was pretty much the same. Strangers stuck out like sore thumbs.

His thoughts drifted to the unexpectedly pleasant evening he’d spent with Rose last night and he gave thanks to Carl for buying one damn cushy couch. Poor Rose didn’t stand a chance with him sitting next to her. She weighed barely more than a grasshopper and he’d been delighted to discover a shift here and there got her sliding in close. She hadn’t protested, either, when he snuggled her to his side and clamped an arm around her. He had to exercise a lot of self-restraint not to take things any further, but Rose was worth some self-restraint. They’d get to the good stuff soon enough if things went his way.

Wouldn’t the rest of the gang crow when they found out, though? Ethan, Rob and Jamie had given him grief for years for not dating all that much. They alternated between questioning his manhood and offering to set him up with someone. They used to urge him to ask out Bella Chatham, until she went on that television show, beat the billionaire, and then married him for good measure. Lately it seemed like they might give him up as a lost cause.

He’d had moments of doubt himself. All the rest of them already found their women. First Ethan met and married Autumn, then Jamie and Claire got hitched, and then even Rob—who’d sworn he’d never, ever marry—tied the knot with Morgan. Maybe that’s why he was stepping up and testing the waters with Rose now. It was his turn, wasn’t it? Plus, her reaction to the ring he picked really fired up his curiosity. Rob was always a pain in the ass, but sometimes he was an effective pain in the ass. He’d still be sitting on the sidelines, bemoaning a fate that left Jason engaged to Rose and him out in the cold, if Rob hadn’t stuck his ring on Rose’s finger. Not that he’d ever mention that to Rob. That cowboy was dangerous enough already.

Was it right to take action, though, he wondered as he drove to the station. He hadn’t thought so previously. That’s why he hadn’t made a move before. Rose’s reaction changed that. If she wasn’t really in love with Jason, then the right thing to do was to break them up.

Jason probably wouldn’t see it that way, though.

Well, he’d deal with Jason if it came to that, he thought as he pulled into the parking lot. Time to focus on the day ahead. At twenty-eight, he was young to be county sheriff, but he’d been appointed to the job a few years back when his father hurt his back and had to resign suddenly after thirty years of service. By the time the next election rolled around, Chance Creek’s voters had gotten used to him, and he ran unopposed. Family counted for a lot in this small town. Most people knew his father, and knew him, too. Even those who didn’t like him preferred the evil they knew to the evil they didn’t.

As sheriff, Cab oversaw thirty-eight deputies in a variety of departments, from the patrol division to the detective division, to the officers who ran the county jail. Every day brought something new, and since he headed the pack of them, he got to pick and choose which activities he wanted to take part in. At least some of the time.

Today he had some business at the jail later on, but after the morning’s briefing session, he planned to spend an hour or two on patrol. He liked to keep his visibility high—both among the citizens of Chance Creek and among his own deputies. Underlings were less likely to get up to trouble when the boss made his presence known.

An hour later he was driving the streets of Chance Creek before heading out on some of the long, winding county roads that surrounded it. He had a few planned stops to make, but mostly he was keeping an eye on the sleepy little town he loved so much. Chance Creek had always been his home and he always meant it to be. With the latest reminder that very bad people could lurk anywhere, he’d rededicated himself to patrolling the streets.

He was driving past Dundy’s Hardware when he spotted Rose’s banged up old truck. And there was the woman herself.

What a sight for sore eyes.

She was petite but everything about her exuded energy, from the pace of her stride to the bounce of the mass of brown curls spilling down her back. She wore jeans that hugged her curves like they were painted on, hiking boots, and a forest green fleece. She carried a plastic shopping bag and looked like she was in a hurry. Her face belied her energetic bearing, however. She looked tired, and her eyes were rimmed with red like she’d been crying. No wonder. She’d had a tough day yesterday. He was surprised she was out and about at all.

The thought of Emory piling her paintings on the bonfire made him itch to knock the man into next week. As far as he was concerned, Emory had long ago used up any sympathy he deserved for the loss of his wife, his son moving away, and his… condition. Cab knew all too well that people’s demons could push them to do horrible things, but why wasn’t Emory getting help to control his obsession with order? Was it his obsession that pushed him to destroy Rose’s things, or was it a straight up desire to hurt her?

Cab didn’t know. Without thinking, he pulled into the lot and parked the car behind her truck, effectively hemming her in. She stopped with her hand on the door handle as he got out of the cruiser.

“Hey, Rose.” He nodded toward the bag she was carrying. “Find everything you need?”

“What, you work for the hardware store now?”

Ouch. She wasn’t just tired, she was cranky, too. “Just making conversation.”

She hesitated. Made a face. “Sorry. It’s really hitting me today what a mess my life is.”

“You’re not working?” He folded his arms over his chest and leaned back against his patrol car. He’d prefer to pull her close and give her a kiss, but he had a feeling that wasn’t on the menu right now. Probably should have tried it last night, Jason be damned. He’d been pretty sure she wanted to then.


“No, I’m done with the jewelry store.”

He nodded. That made sense. “You want to set a time for Saturday?”

She looked away. “I’m not sure about Saturday.”

His good mood sunk even further. He understood why she’d be upset right now, but he’d hoped she’d see their shooting date as something to look forward to. “Why not?”

“Look, Cab…”

Oh God, here it came. “Wait. Rose… I know it’s too soon for us to be anything other than friends. I know you’re still attached to Jason…”

“It’s not that.”

“Then what is it?”

“I don’t like what you did last night.” She opened the door to her truck, placed the shopping bag inside and closed it again. She folded her own arms over her chest and faced him.

“You mean, holding you?” he forced himself to ask. Shit, had he blown it by moving too fast when they watched the movie? It was a bonehead move, putting his arm around her like that. But she’d accepted it happily enough at the time.

“No.” She shook her head, obviously irritated. “Not because you held me. Because of the other thing.”

What other thing? Cab wracked his brain to try to remember what else he’d done. He hadn’t kissed her. He sure wanted to, but he’d restrained himself. With difficulty. That left… nothing.

“You insisted on following me home to the carriage house like I’m some kind of child!” Rose exploded. “What the hell was that about?”

Cab blinked. “I wanted to make sure you were safe. It turned out to be a good thing, too. You and Emory nearly came to blows.”

“I can take Emory any day. And I’m perfectly capable of driving from Carl’s house to town by myself.”

“Calm down. Look, that’s a backcountry highway. If you broke down you’d be all alone out there.”

“Hello! Autumn, Morgan and Claire live just down the road from Carl’s house. Are you telling me that Rob and Ethan and Jamie don’t let them drive after dark?”

“I just… wanted you to be safe. That’s all.” Why couldn’t she understand the worry he felt toward her—toward all the women of Chance Creek if it came to that? She hadn’t seen what Grady did to his victims. He hoped she’d never see anything like it. If it came to a choice of seeming overbearing or losing her to a monster…

“It’s not your responsibility!”

“I want it to be.” He didn’t remember moving closer but they stood eye to eye, or they would have if the disparity between their heights weren’t so large. Rose glared up at him, her hands on her hips now.

“Get this straight. I don’t care if we’re friends, or dating or even sleeping together. You don’t get to tell me what to do. Ever!”

Sleeping together? A corner of Cab’s mouth lifted of its own accord.

Rose growled in frustration. “Are you listening to me?”

“Yes, I am,” he said. “And I like where you’re going with all of that.”

“I’m serious. Stop ordering me around!”

The back of Cab’s neck prickled and he realized he’d stopped paying attention to their surroundings. A quick scan of the parking lot told him there were several witnesses to this altercation.

And one of them was Rob Matheson.

“Yeah, Sheriff, stop ordering her around or you’ll have to arrest yourself for conduct unbecoming an officer,” he drawled. He shut the door to his truck and came to join them. “Hi, Rose. This man bothering you?”

She rolled her eyes. “No. He’s just treating me like I’m twelve.”

Rob nudged Cab. “She’s not twelve, buddy. Lucky for you.”

“I know she’s not twelve,” Cab said.

Rob chuckled. “Figured as much. You two coming to Ethan’s place tonight?”

Ethan’s place? He’d forgotten about that. It was Thursday night again. Poker and pool at the Cruz ranch. “Yeah, I’ll be there.”

“Me, too,” Rose said after a moment’s pause.

“See you there.” Rob strode off whistling.

Cab exchanged a look of dismay with Rose.

“You realize he’s going to tell everyone about what he saw and heard just now,” Rose said, making her way around to the driver’s side of her truck. “With his own embellishments.”

Cab hated to think what those embellishments might be. “Want me to steer clear of the Cruz ranch tonight?” he asked wearily.

Rose hesitated. “No.” She didn’t meet his eye as she got into her vehicle. “Just stop bossing me around.”

THANK GOODNESS SHE’D PLANNED OUT each and every step to build her cabin. Now that Rose had the posts in place, the rest of it went more easily. Pieces fit together correctly and screws tightened easily in her predrilled holes. By the time the pale sun had climbed as high as it would get on this fall day, she had the floor and four walls in place. Which was good, because if ever she needed a place to get away to, it was now.

Autumn had welcomed her with open arms to the Big House last night, assigned her a room and told her to stay as long as she liked. Later she’d pick up the rest of her things from the carriage house and move them in, but for now she needed to be alone, outside.

Here.

It felt good to work like this on her own. No one to stand over her and tell her what to do. No one to point out the small mistakes she’d made on the way. No one to take the tools out of her hands and do it for her. Why was it no one thought she could do things for herself?

Standing on the ground and looking up at her creation, Rose felt proud of what she’d accomplished. The small house wasn’t perfect by a long shot, with gaping holes where the windows would go, another for the door, and not even a start to the roof on top. It was a plain square box.

But it was her plain square box. She couldn’t wait to finish it.

First, however, she needed lunch and a bathroom break. A quick trip to the truck got her the bag lunch she’d packed this morning and a roll of biodegradable toilet paper. She left her lunch near the tree house and walked farther into the woods to find a suitable place to pee. As she heeded the call of nature, it occurred to her this was a flaw in her flawless plan. She envisioned slipping away to her tree house for long days of painting, which meant many more cold and uncomfortable bathroom breaks like this one in her future.

What if she wanted to stay overnight?

An image floated into her mind of her grandparents’ lakeside cabin where they used to visit when she was a kid. Completely off the grid, it had no indoor plumbing. Instead it had a pristine outhouse with a linoleum floor, washable walls and a padded toilet seat. Adequate ventilation ensured that while not exactly odor-free, it didn’t reek either. Rose finished up and made her way back to the building site. Should she make one of those, too?

Maybe.

First things first. She used hand sanitizer to clean her hands, and sat down to eat her lunch with an appetite she rarely had when she worked at the jewelry shop. She liked it out here where it was quiet and peaceful. Sociable by nature, she wouldn’t want to be alone all the time, but she needed restful periods like this for her artist’s soul.

She frowned as she thought over her difficulties finding time and places to paint. No one took her art seriously. In fact, it galled her that no one took much of what she did seriously. Including Jason. Even now that it seemed obvious he hadn’t been serious about her for quite some time, that didn’t stop him from getting together with her when he came through town. She was good enough to sleep with, obviously. Just not good enough to marry.


Was he dating someone else in North Dakota?

She waited to feel the blow that thought ought to deal her, but instead of anger, she only felt sad. What had happened to them? Were they ever meant to be together?

Probably not, given the way things had gone.

She set down her sandwich and contemplated the thin band of silver on her finger. Was it time to take it off? She’d planned to wait until she had a final conversation with Jason, but the truth was, she didn’t feel like waiting. Jason had kept her waiting for years, and lately he hardly had bothered to pretend they were having a relationship. Why should she give him the courtesy of a formal breakup when he hadn’t given her any such courtesy?

She gave the ring an exploratory tug, wondering if it would cling to her after so much time on her finger. But just like the other day at the jewelry store, it slipped off easily. She held it up, looked it over one last time, then slid it into her pants pocket. Nothing to it. With a shrug that masked an ache in her heart, she packed up the remainder of her lunch and got back to work. She was sad for the death of her first real relationship, but her pain was for the girl she’d been, not for the woman she was today. She was ready to move on.

She’d been ready for quite some time.

Rose stood up and surveyed the tree house rising above her. She should have done this years ago. She didn’t know how she’d get through these next few days, until she rescued the rest of her things from the carriage house, found a new job and moved on. She was afraid Emory might try to hold her to the lease she’d signed. If he did, she might have to make a trip to small claims court. Autumn had said she’d be glad to rent the room to her on a long term basis, but if she had to pay for two places, money would be awfully tight.

Later that afternoon she rolled back into town and parked at the grocery store. She needed a contribution to bring along to the gathering at Ethan and Autumn’s place tonight. She’d left the woods early today to give herself time for a shower and change of clothes once she got back to the Big House. She’d framed in one of the large windows of the tree house securely, without even scratching the glass. And she’d prepped the doorframe, too. Next she’d put in the smaller window and get started on the roof. It had been hard to leave the tree house at the end of the afternoon. She wanted to keep on working straight through until it was done, but she was tired, her muscles ached, and she desperately needed a shower before she would be fit for company.

“Hi, Rose.”

Rose turned at the entrance to find Hannah Ashton behind her. “Hi, how are things at the clinic?” She made a mental note to stop by soon and visit the animals. It was hard to play with the strays and not be able to take any home, but she knew Hannah’s boss, Bella Chatham, appreciated anyone who took the time to come and handle them.

“They’re good. We’re busy,” Hannah said. “You coming to Ethan’s tonight?”

“Yes.” Rose smiled. “I take it you are, too?”

“Uh huh. These poker nights are getting out of hand. I think we might have enough people for three tables tonight. Are you shopping for something to bring along?”

“I’m grabbing some chips and dip.”

“I’m on soda duty. Although we all know everyone’s going to drink beer.”

“Except Autumn, Claire and Morgan,” Rose said. She envied them their built-in friendships and the fact that next year they’d be overrun with babies. The Cruz ranch was a heavenly place to live and work. She determined to make the best of the fact that she was living there now, too. At least temporarily.

Hannah nodded. As they made their way through the aisles of the grocery store, Rose noticed she was quieter than usual.

“Anything wrong?” she asked.

Hannah let out a sigh. “Actually, yes. Do you ever feel the need to get away?”

Rose laughed. “All the time.”

“Really?” Hannah faced her. “It’s not just me?”

“Nope. It sucks being young. You don’t own anything that’s yours.”

“That’s it exactly.” Hannah brightened. “I need my own place. My own land. Somewhere no one will watch what I’m doing. Somewhere away from Cody.”

“There’s a lot of land out there,” Rose said noncommittally, wondering what was wrong between Hannah and her boyfriend. She knew Hannah currently lived at Cody’s house, so if things weren’t right between them Hannah wouldn’t have anywhere to retreat. When they reached the potato chips, she stopped to survey the shelves and chose several bags.

“Sure, but someone owns all of it,” Hannah said. “It isn’t fair. It’s not like people even use all their land. It just sits there. And then there’s the fencing. How do you even build it?”

“Fencing?” Rose struggled to keep up with her. “You mean like for a corral?” Did Hannah want a horse? Was that what she and Cody were fighting about? Maybe Cody didn’t like horses. “Check online,” she said, thinking about the YouTube videos she’d watched to learn how to build the tree house.

Hannah looked at her. “Yeah, that’s a good idea. Anyway,” she suddenly became brisk. “I need to grab some pop. What do you think I should get?”

As Rose watched her pace up and down the row of brightly colored drinks, she wondered what scheme Hannah was considering. She obviously had a secret. Just like Mia.

Just like her.

There was much more going on in Chance Creek than met the eye.

BY THE TIME CAB DROVE UP the long dirt lane to the Cruz place, the parking area was filled with vehicles, and when he entered the large house, conversation and laughter spilled over him. He stood for a moment unnoticed in the doorway and counted all the friends in the large open-plan interior. Ethan, Jamie and Rob stood clustered by the fireplace where flames danced and sputtered in the grate. Bella and Evan Mortimer sat side by side on one of the comfortable sofas, their knees touching. Claire sat opposite them, gesturing as she spoke. Morgan and Autumn stood behind the half-height kitchen partition, setting up the snacks. He was surprised to see that all of Rob’s brothers had joined them tonight. He remembered a time not too long ago when Rob could barely stand to be in the same place as them. Things must have sorted themselves out between them now that it was clear who ran what over at the Matheson ranch. Rob and Morgan owned their section of Matheson land outright, along with a stake in the Cruz ranch. The other three Matheson boys ran the rest of their ranch jointly, overseen by their father, Holt.

Cab’s eyes narrowed as he took in another couple; Hannah Ashton and Cody Frank. Since Hannah and Morgan became fast friends over the summer, she’d joined them a couple of times, but this was the first time she’d brought her boyfriend. Cab frowned. He didn’t care for the man. Cody was a bit of a hotshot. Full of himself. Kind of an ass, if you asked him. Hannah was sweet and he hated to see her hitch her wagon to a man like that.

The door opened again behind him and he swung around to see Rose come in. She stopped in her tracks when she saw him.

“Hi,” he said, trying to keep it casual. The last thing he’d expected this morning was her tirade in the parking lot. He still didn’t understand what she was so upset about. By his way of thinking not only was it smart for him to make sure she got safely home—he saw enough in his line of work to know how dangerous the world was—it was also romantic. It showed he cared about her.


That certainly wasn’t the way Rose saw it, however, so he would heed her request. He wouldn’t follow her home next time. At least not closely enough for her to see him.

He smiled down at her now, enjoying the sweet curves of her figure and the way she looked back up at him, interest and suspicion warring in her eyes.

“Hi,” she said and edged around him to enter the living room. “Hi, everyone,” she called out as they both moved into the large, open space.

“See? What did I tell you? They’re together,” Rob said loudly, his voice cutting through every conversation in the room.

There was a hush as all eyes turned to them. Cab stifled the urge to strangle Rob, not an unfamiliar feeling since the man never missed a chance to create mischief. A glance told him Rose had gone pale. He also caught sight of her hand, however, where a certain ring finger no longer wore a ring. Hope surged through him. Had she broken up with Jason?

“I thought she was engaged,” Jamie murmured to Ethan, but his voice carried in the sudden hush.

Cab winced. Awkward, to say the least. Rose stood rigid, her lips pursed together, but just as Cab moved to set things straight, she said loud enough for everyone to hear, “I’ve decided not to be with Jason anymore.” She glanced at Cab. “I had some trouble at my place last night with Emory and Cab helped me out. He was checking to see how I was earlier when you saw us together, Rob. Cab’s a good friend. I appreciate that.”

After another awkward moment of silence, Autumn bustled over and took Rose under her wing, tugging her toward the kitchen where the rest of the women gathered around to question her. Cab shot an angry look at Rob, who ducked his head. He went to sit by Bella and Evan and hoped the rest of the evening would pass more smoothly.

“How are those bison doing?” he asked Bella.

For a moment she seemed confused. When understanding dawned, she laughed and said, “Still haven’t managed to acquire any for my menagerie, but Hannah sure seems interested in them these days.”

“Really?” Evan asked. “Bison?”

Cab still found himself wary around the billionaire, but Evan was proving to be a regular guy. A regular guy with wide interests and the money to fund investigations into many of them. The last he’d heard, Evan and Jake Matheson were putting their heads together to research ways to lessen cattle ranching’s environmental impact.

“Yes,” Bella said. “She’s had a million questions about them this week.”

“Odd,” Evan said. “I do, too.”

Bella looked at him askance. “Why?”

“I’ve read their meat is healthier for us than beef. And since bison ranged here long before we brought cattle with us, you’d think they’d do less environmental damage. It’s one of the things I want to investigate with Jake.”

“There are a few bison ranches to the west,” Cab said. “Mostly for meat, but a few stock the animals so that big game hunters can come and hunt them.”

Bella wrinkled her nose. “I don’t get that. Where exactly is the sport if they’re all penned in?”

Cab shrugged. “Beats me.”

“It’s all about the rush.” Cody appeared suddenly in their midst. A stocky man of medium height, dirty blond hair and brown eyes, he sat down at the far end of the couch Cab occupied, his legs wide and a beer propped on the armrest. He wore faded jeans and a rumpled sweatshirt. Cab doubted he’d done anything to clean up for the gathering tonight. “It’s just you and five thousand pounds of wild animal squaring off. It doesn’t get any better than that.”

Hannah came to sit on the edge of Bella and Evan’s couch. She held a glass of soda with both hands, balancing it carefully on her knees. Her frown told Cab she didn’t agree with Cody.

“But… you’ve got a gun, right?” Bella said. “So you’re far enough away that the bison can’t hurt you.”

Cody waved that off. “Plenty of things can go wrong on a hunt. All kinds of things.”

“Like what?” Cab asked conversationally. He didn’t mean to rile the man, but he also didn’t like letting him off the hook that easy. Something about Cody got under his skin.

“Like… your firearm could jam. Or you could… trip.”

Somebody snickered. Cab thought it was Bella. She shook her honey-blond curls. “It doesn’t seem altogether fair to me.”

“Well, I’d like to see you come face to face with a bison. See what you think is fair then,” Cody said. He shook his empty bottle and turned to Hannah. “Darling, you want to go grab me another?”

Hannah’s eyebrows shot up and Cab was sure she would tell Cody where to get off, but instead she took a deep breath, let it out and stood up. “Sure, honey. Anyone else need a refill?”

The rest of them shook their heads, but Cab stood up, too, and followed her to the kitchen. He wanted to see how Rose was faring. She glanced at him over the other women’s heads as he approached. “That’s when Cab arrived and stopped me from murdering Emory,” she said as if finishing up a long story.

“Thank goodness for Cab,” Autumn said and smiled at him, flipping her long hair over her shoulder before reaching into the oven to pull out another tray of appetizers. Cab had liked her right away when she came to Chance Creek from New York City, and he was glad she and Ethan had hit it off so well. Now nearly six months pregnant, she glowed with good health, her belly noticeably rounded. It was no coincidence that most of their get-togethers happened at the Cruz ranch. Autumn was a born hostess and she never seemed happier than with a roomful of guests.

“Thank goodness for you,” he said. “I didn’t like the thought of Rose going back to the carriage house last night.”

“There’s always a room for you here, Rose,” Autumn said.

“Have you talked to your parents at all about what happened?” Cab asked Rose.

She nodded. “They were pretty shocked. My Mom took Emory’s side at first, but she backtracked pretty fast. Even she couldn’t justify him burning my paintings. They don’t like it that I’m moving out, though. Dad said he’ll take Emory to see his family physician and get it taken care of. I told him you can’t get something like that taken care of. It got pretty ugly. I think they think that since I’m marrying Jason, I should be Emory’s nurse or something.”

“But you’re not marrying Jason, right?” Autumn said gently.

Cab flashed her a grateful look. Just what he wanted to say.

Rose looked down. “No, but I haven’t talked to him yet. I will, though—tomorrow. I want to be single again. I want to be on my own. I don’t ever want to be around a man who thinks he can tell me what to do again.”

Claire snorted. “Better not ever get married then.”

The other women chuckled.

Rose looked from one to the other. “Do you really believe that? Is it impossible to find a man who will mind his own business and let me mind mine?”

Autumn wrinkled her nose. “Would you really want that?”

“Yes,” Rose was adamant. “I mean, what does some… guy… know that I don’t know? Why should he have anything to say about what I do?”

“Well, maybe because he loves you?” Morgan said, leaning against the counter. She waved her Perrier. “Not that you have to listen to him or take his word for gospel,” she added, “but if he’s got nothing to say about anything you do, why be with him at all?”


Rose blew out an angry breath. “You don’t get what I’m saying.”

“Actually, I think we do,” Autumn said. “Or at least I do. You live in the same town where you grew up, your parents are still alive and you’ve been living on a property your fiancé’s father owns. Plus your fiancé’s father is a busybody who has just about lost his mind. You haven’t had time to discover who you are. You haven’t really been out on your own. Now that you’re ending things with Jason, you need to do that before you can become part of a couple again. Then you won’t feel so overwhelmed by it.”

Rose’s face fell. “Yeah. I guess that’s it. I tried to be independent before, though. I moved out from home, I got a job, but being engaged to Jason meant I lined up my whole life around his decisions, and with Emory being how he is I might as well have had a second set of parents living with me. I seem to attract people who want to tell me what to do.”

She flashed a glance at Cab, and a weight settled in his chest. Did she mean him? He wasn’t like that at all. Not usually.

Not all of the time.

“Oh, we all attract people like that,” Claire said, her black bob swinging. “It’s just some of us are better at telling them to go hang themselves.”

“Like you,” Morgan said to her. She turned to Rose. “If you want to learn from an expert, watch how she does it.”

Claire made a face. “I don’t think sticking up for yourself is easy for anyone, Rose. You just have to keep doing it anyway.”

Cab was beginning to regret he’d ever crossed the room. Felt like a lot of anti-male sentiment in this corner. The way he figured it, if you saw someone making a mistake you ought to tell them. You didn’t need to be mean about it, but a head’s up sure didn’t hurt. And if there was something you could do to prevent them from coming to harm, wasn’t it your duty to do it?

Autumn handed him a beer with a smile, but he thought he saw pity in her eyes. He didn’t like that one bit.

He retraced his steps to the opposite side of the room and took refuge among the men.