‡‡
“I can’t believe he was casing the joint,” Jack said as Connor gunned his truck’s engine and roared down the country highway after Alice and Landon. They’d both watched in shock as Landon photographed every angle of Alice’s studio and many of her costumes while she was getting ready in the house. Jack was more determined than ever to stay close to Alice as long as Landon was around, and they’d hopped into Connor’s vehicle just moments after Landon pulled out and headed for town, leaving Max at home.
“He might have been trying to steal Alice’s costume designs,” Connor pointed out.
“Shh!” Jack fiddled with his tablet and turned up the volume in time to hear Alice say, “Turn here.”
“You bugged your girlfriend?” Connor said.
“I bugged her purse. What else was I supposed to do?”
“She’s not going to be happy.”
A crackling sound made them both wince. It continued, and Jack swore. “It’s not going to pick up enough. I’m going to have to go into the restaurant when they get there.”
“I’m coming, too.”
“Like hell—”
“You need me.”
“Really. In what way?”
“If you show up at Fila’s alone, Alice will know you were tailing her, which is creepy. If we show up there together, we’re just two hungry guys picking up dinner for the family.”
Jack had to admit he was right. “Fine. Don’t talk to them, though. Leave that to me.”
“This should be fun. Better call Cass,” he went on. “Tell her we’re taking care of dinner.”
When they entered Fila’s fifteen minutes later, it wasn’t hard to spot Alice and Landon. It was a small restaurant, which meant Alice spotted him just a moment after he walked in. Her eyebrows shot up. Jack feigned surprise right back. He crossed the restaurant to their table.
“Small world, huh? We’re getting takeout. Hi, I’m Jack Sanders.” He put out his hand to Landon, who shook it, giving him a long, assessing look. Jack moved close to Alice. “What did you get?” He attached a bug to the underside of the table.
“Enchiladas.” She shot him a look he couldn’t quite decipher, but it definitely wasn’t “come join us.”
“Nice. See you back at home. Good to meet you, Landon.”
“Nice to meet you, too.”
Jack had a feeling Landon would be asking some pointed questions after they left. Good. He figured the man had gotten the message. Alice was his girl. Hands off.
They ordered, and when their food was ready, Jack waved to the couple and sauntered out the door.
“Where are you going?” Connor asked him when Jack angled away from his truck and toward Landon’s fancy black car.
“Be right back.”
Connor caught up to him as he tested the car’s handle and found it locked. Connor pulled out a shim from under his jacket and popped open the lock a moment later. “Make it quick.”
“Where the hell did that come from?”
“Thought it might come in handy.”
“You’re full of surprises.” He ought to have brought one, Jack thought as he fastened a few more bugs in the car’s interior. At least a vehicle like this would run smoothly. Should be easy to hear their conversation in here.
“Still think this could backfire if she catches you,” Connor said as they finished up and made for their truck. “Alice won’t appreciate the interference.”
“Leave Alice to me.”
“Terrific meal.” Landon wiped his mouth, set his napkin down and pushed away his plate. “Have to admit, I wasn’t sure what to expect.”
“I’m glad you liked it.” Alice tried to smile, but it was hard when she was scanning the room. Someone was listening. She was sure of it. And yet, all around them, people chatted and laughed, thoroughly involved in their own conversations.
Jack was long gone, but she kept getting a flash—almost a vision, but not quite—of him gazing intently into the distance…
Listening.
But Jack was nowhere near here.
A quick text to Jo while she was in the ladies’ room confirmed that the men had brought a huge takeout dinner home. “We’re all stuffing ourselves silly,” Jo had texted back.
Which meant whatever her intuition was trying to tell her about Jack, she wasn’t getting it right.
“That’s why Keith Baker is my hero. He’s a venture capitalist who’s a total genius when it comes to raising funds,” Landon was saying.
Alice tried to pay attention. “My hero is Kate O’Dell. She did the costumes for The Passing Hour,” she said distractedly. She loved that Regency film.
“Never heard of it,” Landon said.
That got her attention. “Never heard of The Passing Hour? I’d think anyone interested in period dramas would know it.”
Landon frowned. “I’m interested in blockbuster movies, Alice. I know what’s good when I see it.”
“Well, The Passing Hour is good. You should watch it.”
“Sure thing.” He flashed her a smile. “Maybe we can watch it together.” He touched her hand.
Alice squirmed. She didn’t want him touching her. She was already uncomfortable enough without that additional pressure on the situation. She had the horrible feeling she was about to fail monstrously, and she couldn’t shake the persistent image of Jack—
Listening.
For some reason Alice thought about the drone. It had been persistent, too, in its attempt to film the maze. When Jack wanted information, he tried to get it by any means necessary.
Landon took her hand in his. “I think it could be a real pleasure to work with a professional like you. You perform miracles, don’t you?”
“What? Uh… I guess.” She tugged her hand free and reached for her purse, pretending to look for something, still trying to get a handle on what she was feeling. How could Jack be eavesdropping when he wasn’t even here?
Had he planted a listening device of some kind?
A bug. That’s what they called it in the movies. That had to be it. But how could she find it without alerting Landon?
She put her purse aside and clasped her hands in her lap. Where would Jack have put it? She ran through his quick visit to their table in her mind and remembered the way he’d leaned in close. Keeping her upper body perfectly straight, nodding and acknowledging Landon’s continued praises, she ran one of her hands under the table.
Bingo. All her senses told her she’d found the culprit.
Alice plucked the small round device off, dropped it, found it with her foot and crushed it, never taking her gaze off Landon.
What had he been saying?
“How many more people do you need to interview for the position?” she managed to ask, kicking away the remnants of the bug.
“Only a couple. I’ve narrowed the field down to the best.”
He took her hand again, and Alice, uncomfortable, and still distracted by the thought that maybe there were more bugs around, decided it was time to leave.
“Alice, I—”
“It’s been a long day,” she announced suddenly and got to her feet, gently but firmly extricating her hand from his grasp. “I think I need to get home. Country hours, you know.”
“Of course.” Landon hid his annoyance well as they exited the restaurant and walked to his car, but Alice knew she now had a mark against her. She had far too much experience with this type of behavior from men not to know the signs. It couldn’t be helped. She had no plan to get intimate with him, and the sooner he knew that, the sooner he’d bring things back to a business relationship. Men seemed to have to try with her. Once they knew the answer was no, most of them behaved themselves.
She hoped Landon would, too.
Landon opened the door to his car and handed her in, before getting in on his own side. He didn’t start the engine, however. “Beautiful night,” he said conversationally.
“It is.”
“I don’t get to see so many stars in the city.”
Alice pitied him for that. She loved the stars. “They sure are a sight, aren’t they?”
“Bet they’re even better out of town.”
She wasn’t dumb enough to fall for that trap, but as she raced for a way to deflect the conversation, nothing came to her, so when her phone buzzed, she answered it quickly.
“Alice? Coming home soon?” Jo asked.
“I’m on my way right now.” She was thankful for the chance to say that out loud. Now Landon knew someone was waiting at home for her. Maybe he’d stop flirting.
“Awesome.” Jo cut the call.
What had that been about?
“That was my sister,” she explained to Landon, grasping at the excuse eagerly. “They’re expecting me.”
Landon covered his displeasure again quickly, but Alice caught the anger in his eyes. This time her feeling of foreboding made sense. If he was the kind of guy who didn’t take kindly to a brush-off, it was a good thing she was learning that now. Maybe this sense of dread had more to do with Landon’s character than her job prospects. She could arrange not to be alone with him. Easy enough with everyone around her, and her quiet life at Two Willows.
She silently thanked Jo for her call. It was as if her sister had known she’d need the excuse—
No. Not Jo.
Jack.
He’d been listening in the restaurant, which meant he’d probably gotten the sense Landon was hitting on her. Still, Jo’s timing—
Was he still listening? He was, wasn’t he?
Landon turned on the engine. “If they’re expecting you, I suppose we’d better get you home. Your family keeps you on a short leash, don’t they?”
“I’ve never felt that way.” Not until Jack had arrived. She directed Landon back out of town.
“I’m an only child. Can you tell? No one’s ever reined me in.” He grinned at her, and Alice relaxed a little. Maybe she was overreacting. Landon had hit on her. So had a hundred other men, many of them with far less panache. He was lonely. Traveling. Starting a new business against all odds.
“I suppose siblings can be troublesome,” she said. “But you know what’s worse?”
“What?” Landon asked.
“Soldiers. They’re the lowest of the low.”
Landon shot her a puzzled look. “Your father’s a soldier. He’s served for over thirty years, right?”
Caught by surprise, Alice didn’t know how to answer. “How did you know how long he’s served?”
She braced herself as Landon took a turn a little too fast. He slowed down. “Sorry. Alice… look, I check up on all my possible employees. Old habit. I’ve been burned more than a few times in the past. This venture is important to me. I’m not going to let just anyone work on my first picture. When you mentioned your father, I looked him up. Impressive career.”
His explanation made sense, she supposed. “Yes, he has had a long career.” One that was probably over now. She knew a storm was looming in that direction, too. The General had been quiet so far—most of the time—but soon he’d get restless.
“Let’s get you home,” Landon said. “Family comes first.” There was an irony in his tone that contradicted his words, though. He was impatient, and he didn’t like being put off.
Back at Two Willows, Landon parked, opened her door and helped her out, but he didn’t linger. “I’ll be in touch tomorrow about seeing your costumes.”
Alice bit her lip, hoping she hadn’t ruined her chances for the contract but at a loss for how else she could have handled the situation. She didn’t want Landon to think the relationship between them could be anything other than a business one. If he was only here to hit on her, best to know it now.
Landon must have read her worry on her face. He stepped closer and lowered his voice. “Don’t worry, Alice. I’ve been given the brush-off before. I’ve always lived to fight another day.”
He was gone before she could think of an answer, and as she turned toward the house, Alice told herself she was making a mountain out of a molehill, but when she saw Jack near one of the columns holding up the porch roof, all her anger returned.
“What the hell was that?” she asked without preamble, climbing the steps to face him.
“Not sure what you—”
“You forget you aren’t the first man to try to control me. The General’s made it his life’s work. It stops now—from both of you.”
“Alice—”
“No. Don’t make some lame excuse, and don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about. I deserve better. If I want to talk to Landon in private, I’ll talk to him in private. Even if I have to take him to the center of the maze to do it.”
She headed for the carriage house. She still had to finish her ball gowns—even if it took all night.
It had been past one in the morning by the time Alice returned to the house to make herself a snack, giving Jack the chance he’d been waiting for to slip into the carriage house and remove the camera he’d hidden in her studio. Back in the guest bedroom, he’d lain awake for several more hours before he’d finally fallen asleep. He woke again just after four-thirty in the morning to the knocking of the pipes and lay staring into the darkness, unsure what to do. Alice would barely get to rest before she had to get up again, and this was her big day. She was due to unveil her creations to Landon in a matter of hours, and even though he disliked the man, he didn’t want to ruin her chances at the contract.
On the other hand, he hated that they were fighting. He especially hadn’t liked what she said about soldiers to Landon on their car ride home. He didn’t know how much time he had to win her over—and beyond any concern about clearing his name, or winning a fifth of the ranch, he didn’t think he could stand the thought of moving on with his life and leaving Alice behind.
He looked forward to their trysts all day. A glimpse of Alice made his heart lighten and his pulse kick up. He liked listening to her.
Liked touching her.
Wanted a chance.
A soft knock on the wall had him surging up to a sitting position. It came again a moment later. A single rap.
That was her salacious purposes knock?
Jack slid out of bed, pulled on his sweatpants and went to the door. Out in the hall, he paused, but the house was quiet. When he opened Alice’s door, she was sitting up, her covers wrapped around her.
Her shoulders were bare, as usual. He liked that Alice slept nude.
“You need to work on that signal,” he said as he shut the door behind him, but when she lifted the covers, he forgot everything else. Without thinking through the consequences, he shucked off his sweatpants and joined her under them. Alice came into his embrace with a sigh, and for a moment, Jack lost himself in the feel of her.
He was hard, and she was all soft curves and silky skin. Jack cradled her head, found her mouth with his own and kissed her thoroughly, until every fiber of his body strained to get closer to her.
It would be so easy. A shift of his hips, a thrust. He could bury himself inside Alice where he belonged.
But not yet.
Tonight was all about her.
He gently rolled her on her back and moved to position himself between her thighs, fighting against the instinct to push inside. Instead, he shifted lower and took his time exploring her breasts with his hands. Their soft smoothness felt good against the rough skin of his palms, and when he bent to take one of her nipples into his mouth, Alice groaned and arched, bringing herself closer.
His thorough but slow investigation of her body soon had her urging him on. Her fingers dug into his skin, her breathing became rapid, and when he slid lower still, exploring the core of her with his tongue, she tangled her fingers in his hair and held on.
Jack took his time bringing her to a fever pitch, and when she came, her soft cries made it all the harder for him to restrain the desire that coursed through him. When she finally sank back against the mattress, breathing hard, all the tension in her melting away, he moved back up to cover her, stealing a kiss.
“What about you?” she said.
“Another time. You need to sleep. Today’s a big day.”
“How come you’re so… wonderful… at night and such a pain in the ass during the day?” she complained, turning on her side and snuggling into her pillow.
Jack slipped out from under the covers, aching from his hardness but determined to let her sleep. He pulled the covers over Alice. “I don’t know,” he said honestly. “I’m trying the best I can.”
“Do better. And stop spying on me,” she commanded and yawned.
He dropped a kiss on her head and left, once again spending quite a bit of time with himself before he was finally able to drop off to sleep. He hadn’t made so much use of his right hand since he’d been a teenager.
It was worth it, he told himself. Someday soon Alice would be his, and he’d make up for lost time.
The morning came all too soon.
“Lake,” the General said when they mustered in his office after breakfast.
“All quiet on the western front, sir,” Brian said smartly.
“O’Riley?”
“Ditto, sir.”
“Powell.”
“Everything’s good, sir.”
“Sanders.”
“Been keeping an eye on the surveillance system. So far, so good, sir. No one’s come onto the ranch we don’t know.”
Jack thought the General hesitated before moving on to the women. Was he bracing himself?
“Cass?”
“Wye and I are cleaning the bathrooms today. Good times.”
A muscle worked in the General’s jaw. “Alice?”
“I’m exhausted, and I don’t have time for this.” She sounded cheerful, though. Jack hoped he’d contributed to her good mood.
“Sadie.”
“Fucking fabulous.”
“That’s fucking fabulous, sir, Soldier!” the General barked.
Sadie cocked an eyebrow, and Jack steeled himself for what was to come. She didn’t disappoint.
“You know what isn’t fucking fabulous? The way you turned your back on this land—when it was your wife’s deal with it that kept you safe all these years. Mom never once stepped foot off Two Willows. And when she died, you couldn’t even do a drive-by of the ranch?”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Like hell I don’t. I did it, too. So did we all. None of us have left Two Willows in eleven years without making sure one of our sisters was going to be at home. We gave up our freedom for your safety. What did we get in return? Nothing!”
“You didn’t keep me safe.” The General slapped his hand down on his leg. “Look at me, all busted up.”
Alice stiffened by Jack’s side, and Jack reached for her hand. Squeezed it.
“That was an accident,” Sadie said, “and it makes no difference. Two Willows was part of Mom. When you turned your back on it, you turned your back on her.”
“I turned my back on it because it was part of her. I couldn’t stand to be so close—and so far—” The General broke off. “You think I wanted to stay away?” His voice cracked, and the room became silent.
Sadie’s face was a study of pain. “Two Willows is part of me, too,” she said. “It’s part of all of us. When you turned your back on it, you turned your back on us. You left us. I nearly—I nearly gave up. The garden started dying. The hedge started dying.”
The General straightened and scanned her face as if looking for more information. “The hedge is dying?”
“Not anymore. Not since Connor came. He helped me… find my way.”
“So I did one thing right at least.”
Sadie huffed out a breath, but Connor put his arm around her shoulders. “I didn’t do anything but hang around you. You did all the work.”
“Couldn’t have done it without you,” she told him.
The General observed them with approval. “You’re right; Amelia did love this land and everything that grew on it, including the five of you.”
“But you hate it here,” Sadie said.
The General shook his head. “No. I don’t hate it. I just… hate that she’s gone.”
Sadie seemed to digest that. When she spoke, her voice was unsteady.
“I hate that, too.”
A moment passed. The General cleared his throat. Nodded at Sadie. “At least we agree on something.”
“Is there anything else here you don’t hate?”
“Sadie.” The General reached for her. Jack held his breath. When Sadie moved toward her father, finally taking the hand he offered, Jack’s throat tightened in sympathy with father and daughter’s anguish. “I don’t hate… I… You’re my girl. You’re all my girls.” He gripped her hand tightly. When he released it, Sadie’s eyes were bright with unshed tears. She stepped back into her place. The General cleared his throat several times.
“Jo? Report.”
“Everything’s fucking fantabulous,” Jo said, and the tension cleared. Jack let his shoulders relax.
The General straightened again. “Where’s that Wyoming woman?”
Myers looked up, as if interested to know the answer, too.
“She’s at an appointment in town. Another job interview,” Cass said.
“Make sure she comes back,” the General said.
“Don’t worry, she’s coming back.” Cass sighed. “I don’t think she’s going to stick around in Chance Creek much longer, though. Not unless she finds a good job.”
“She’ll stick around,” the General said darkly.
“Good,” Myers said. “I mean… goodbye,” he stammered. “I mean… everybody’s dismissed.”
The General looked at him curiously. “Since when do you give the orders around here, Corporal?”
“Since it’s time for your physical training, sir. Everyone out.”
An hour later Jack was staring at the implacable green wall where the maze’s entrance should have been when he heard footsteps. He turned to see Jo approaching from the direction of the stable. Champ and Isobel followed her, like usual.
When he turned back, the entrance was open again.
“I thought you’d be with the other men doing chores,” Jo said as she approached, shaking him from his thoughts. “Something wrong?”
“I have… other things to work on.” He kept an eye on the entrance, wondering if he darted forward if he’d be able to make it in. Would the maze close up if Jo was here to witness it? He decided not to chance it.
“Your spy stuff?”
Jack turned to face her. “Surveillance. It’s important work. Don’t you want to know if someone’s sneaking up on the ranch?”
“What I really want to know is why you’re so keen to get out of mucking stalls. This is a ranch, Jack. If you’re going to marry Alice, you’d better be willing to help out.”
“I’m willing to help out. It’s just—” Time to face the music, he guessed. “Look, I haven’t mentioned this to anyone else but Alice, but—it’s been a while since I did much ranching. I’m… rusty.”
“How rusty?” She cocked her head, waiting for his answer.
“Like… I haven’t been on a ranch since I was seven rusty.”
“Oh, wow.” Jo straightened. “Got it. Well, in that case, you’re going to need some practice.”
“Guess I will. As soon as I’ve made sure Two Willows is safe.”
“Not good enough, Soldier. Come on. Let’s get started.”
Alice wasn’t sure whether to be worried or grateful that Landon didn’t call until mid-afternoon. She was sure he was sending her a message: if she could brush him off, he could brush her off, too. She’d spent the morning racing to make some last-minute changes to the gowns, beginning to second guess all her decisions as a creeping sense of dread sprouted in her gut, soon blossoming to full-on panic.
She thought he’d have called first thing, and as the hours passed she’d grown edgier and edgier, until her fingers shook when she tried to make her trademark tiny stitches. Will had arrived at breakfast time to take another look at the pipes, which were still banging. While Corporal Myers stood grimly by replenishing a cup of coffee for the General, the plumber told them he had several ideas about how to fix the problem, but that it might take a few more return visits. He and Corporal Myers had both perked up when Wyoming came into the kitchen.
Alice’s growing sense of impending doom was preventing her from getting any helpful flashes about anyone’s future, however. She was as curious as Cass seemed to be about how the Will–Wyoming–Corporal Myers triangle would turn out but couldn’t get a read on the situation at all.
Back in her studio, she fussed with the gowns until the phone finally buzzed. She was proudest of the lace that edged the bodice and the sleeves of the lilac gown. She’d had to call in some favors to find the authentic, period-accurate edging. As far as she was concerned, it made the dress.
She braced herself when she answered Landon’s call. “Good afternoon.” That sounded too stilted. “How is Chance Creek treating you?” That sounded far too breezy.
She was really batting a thousand.
“Chance Creek is treating me fine,” Landon said, his warm baritone soothing her worries. He didn’t sound angry. Maybe she’d read too much into things last night. “How has it been treating you?”
“Good. In fact, really good. I’m ready to show you the gowns.”
“Glad to hear it. When should we meet?”
“Any time.”
“I have an errand to run, but I’ll be back at my motel in an hour.”
Alice realized her mistake. The last thing she wanted was to end up alone with Landon in his motel room. What was the alternative? He’d made it clear he didn’t want to come back to the ranch, and she’d volunteered early on to bring the gowns to him—before she’d realized what kind of man he was.
“Landon—”
“Is there another problem?” His slight emphasis on “another” stopped her from suggesting a different venue.
“No. I’ll be there.”
“Good.” Landon cut the call.
Alice heaved a sigh of frustration. What was wrong with her? She was acting like a schoolgirl. She needed to get this situation in hand.
“Is your boyfriend coming over?”
Alice jumped when Jack spoke behind her.
“He’s not my boyfriend. And he’s not coming here. I’m going to him.”
“He wants to be your boyfriend.”
She wished she could deny it. “I think he does,” she admitted. “I’ve made it clear that’s not going to happen.”
“You need to be more direct.”
Alice remembered Jack had listened to the whole conversation at the restaurant—and on their ride home, if she was right. “You’d better not be planting bugs in here.”
Jack held up his hands. “I’m just talking.”
She doubted that.
“Your sister sure put me through the wringer today.”
“Which sister?” Alice turned back to the lilac gown, arranging and rearranging the folds of its full skirt, making sure it was perfect.
“Jo. Decided to make a rancher out of me.”
Alice had to laugh. “I’ll bet.” She glanced at Jack, and when she took in his answering smile, her stomach gave a little flip. Now that was a man.
She caught herself. That was a snooping, interfering man.
“I listened in on your conversation because I was worried about you.”
A flash of intuition caught her off guard. She saw a girl dressed in foreign clothes. Sand stretching in every direction.
“You were in the desert,” she said.
Jack stilled. “I was. That’s classified, though. Did your dad tell you?”
Alice made a big deal of scanning the workshop. “You see the General anywhere?”
“You could have talked to him any time.”
“You’ve been there every time I’ve talked to him so far.”
“I don’t buy that you’re psychic, Alice. I’m sorry; but I don’t believe in that kind of thing.”
“Then we’re even. I don’t believe in snooping into other people’s business. If you’ll excuse me, I have to get ready to go see my boyfriend.” She turned back to the business of peeling the dress off the dummy and a moment later heard Jack’s tread going down the stairs. She couldn’t say why she felt let down that he hadn’t risen to her teasing, but she did.