Chapter Three

Cade sat down in his newly unpacked foreman’s house and took it all in. He placed his feet on the dark-wood coffee table, linked his fingers behind his head, leaned back, and breathed a deep sigh of satisfaction. So this was his new home. Not that he was one to become overly attached to a place—he’d learned early on in life that a home was just a roof over your head and nothing more—but this was a place he could get used to.

He glanced out the large picture window in the family room with its view of the mountains in the distance and couldn’t deny that it was probably the nicest home he’d ever had. Sure, the place he’d had at Tyler’s ranch was nice, but it had been more like a bachelor pad, and an extension of his friend’s family home. Not…his. Just another reminder that he’d always been at the mercy of someone else’s pity.

Sure, it hadn’t been like that with Tyler’s family because they had treated him better than his own biological family, but he knew that in the beginning, they had felt sorry for him. Especially Tyler’s mother, he thought with a slight smile. She had been the real deal. The first time he’d seen what a real mother was like, she’d taken him in like a wounded animal, mothering and doting and making him envy the love his friend had grown up with. But he’d never had time to dwell on his lot in life—work and earning his keep had been priority one.

He took a deep breath, pride seeping its way into his body, shutting out all those old voices of how worthless he was. This wasn’t the home of a worthless man. This was the home of a hard-working man. He just needed to prove that he was a worthwhile investment for the Joshua Ranch. He could and would outwork anyone.

This was a true family home with three bedrooms and a large-enough kitchen that there was a place to put a table. The furnishings were modest but clean and neutral. The front porch was welcoming, and in the future, he might even put a pot of some kind of flowers out there.

Or not. But if he were so inclined, it would be on that kind of a porch.

Dusk was settling in, and it was his favorite time of day. If he didn’t already know that his best friends were busy, he would have invited them over. He sat up a little straighter as he spotted a woman walking quickly up the driveway.

Already standing by the time she knocked on his door, he opened it a moment later. A tall, thin, gray-haired woman stood there with a pie in her hand. Her smile was so tight that Cade thought it looked like someone was holding it up with puppet strings. “Cade Walker?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

She held out a thin hand and then gripped his with the force of a much younger person, her steely gaze holding him. “Edna Casey. Housekeeper for the Turners.”

He held the door open and gestured for her to enter. “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Casey.”

She gave him a quick nod of semi-approval and walked in, holding out the pie in his direction. “This is a welcome pie. Strawberry rhubarb.”

Despite the claim that it was a “welcome” pie, “welcomed” was not exactly how he was feeling. He didn’t know if she was suspicious of all newcomers or if it was him specifically. Knowing they’d be crossing paths repeatedly, he thought it best to try and get on as good terms as possible. Part of being successful at a new ranch was having a great camaraderie with all the employees—especially the ones who baked pies. “Thank you, that’s very kind of you. Can I offer you a slice?”

She folded her hands in front of her and kept her chin high, no signs of warming in those steely eyes. “No, thank you. I have another one at the house. I thought I would come out here and get to know you, since you’ll be spending time with Sarah.”

Ah, so she was protective of Sarah. He walked across the room and placed the pie on the counter. “Sure. Would you like a cup of coffee?”

“I drink tea.”

He grimaced. He loathed tea. He’d rather drink water from the horse stalls. “I’m afraid I don’t have any of that.”

She nudged her chin in the direction of the whiskey bottle on his counter. “I wouldn’t mind a small glass of that. It’s the end of my workday.”

He hid his surprise while he poured her a glass. “Would you like to sit down?”

“That would be nice, thank you,” she said, taking the glass from his hand and sitting on the edge of the couch, as though she had no intention of getting comfortable. He crossed the room and sat opposite her. She adjusted her skirt and then drank her scotch in one fluid motion, then placed the empty glass on the coffee table with barely a sound. “I thought I would give you a little insight into the Turner family before the workweek starts tomorrow.”

He leaned back on the sofa, placing one ankle over the other as he stretched out, trying to look casual and not at all like he was on high alert. He wasn’t about to let on what he already knew. He cleared his throat. “I appreciate that. It’s always a bit of a process starting a new job.”

She raised a neatly formed brow. “You’ve had a lot, then?”

“Jobs?”

She nodded, her hard gaze not leaving his.

He sat up a little straighter, realizing she was looking for his flaws. He’d already completed his interview, already been hired, but she was obviously close to Sarah and would report back anything she saw that was alarming. Knowing he had to keep his cool, he played along and answered her question. “Well, I’ve been at the same ranch for more than seven years. But then, Sarah knows all that information.”

“Yes, of course. Sarah mentioned something about that. We are very close. I should tell you that I have worked for the Turner family for more than twenty-five years. I knew Sarah when she was just a baby.”

He raised his eyebrows, waiting for her to continue. When she didn’t, he was forced to come up with something. “She must be like family, then.”

“Like a daughter. They are a very special family, and I treat them as though they are my own. Her parents died much too young, leaving her with a great burden to deal with. Her father died a few years ago, followed by her mother last year. The ranch was running itself until that hoodlum, Mike, just up and ran off, leaving her to scramble to find new help. I would like to assume that you know better than to do something like that.”

He leaned forward, not feeling very casual anymore. “I’ve never abandoned anyone, and I’m not the type to take off in the middle of the night.”

She gave him a nod. “That is good to hear. I worry about her. Sarah has had too much to deal with in her young life, and I take it upon myself to ensure that nothing else happens to her. I’m not sure this is something you need to know, but I feel that if you fully understand the type of woman you are dealing with, your job and my job will be much easier.”

He was careful to keep his expression neutral. Hell, he wasn’t even sure how accurate any of what Dean and Tyler had said was, and it wasn’t his business, either. “Okay.”

“Sarah has spent the last three years nursing her mother through an illness that ended in death. She’s been surrounded by tragedy her entire life, and I need someone to watch out for her.”

Alarm bells rang loud and clear in his head as he processed this. He wasn’t in the habit of babysitting or getting involved in people’s problems. “Can I ask what kind of tragedy?”

She pursed her lips and sat a little straighter, even though he had no idea how that was even possible without a steel rod in her back. “I am not at liberty to discuss the family’s history. Do you have any family?”

He blinked at the sudden change of subject. “I don’t.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

Yeah, well, so was he. He didn’t want to be rude, but he didn’t talk about his family life, his past, or any of that kind of stuff to anyone. Even his best friends. Especially not another employee at the ranch where he was working. “Thank you.”

“It is my understanding that Sarah’s goal is to learn how to run this ranch herself by the end of the year. Sarah is a wonderful young woman, but she is not cut out for the ranching life.”

He shifted in his seat. “What makes you say that?”

“It is not realistic for her.”

He didn’t want to be in the middle of family problems. He hated drama. He also wasn’t going to do anything that might jeopardize his relationship with his new employer. He’d found it odd that Sarah needed the help of an outsider to learn about her own family ranch, but he’d assumed there was a reason. “I would think that as an adult, she would know what is realistic for herself.”

Edna smoothed a hand down the front of her skirt and then gave him a pointed stare. “She doesn’t know her limits. She has a medical condition that can get triggered by stress, among other things.”

He didn’t say anything for a moment while he processed what she was saying. He got that Edna was trying to protect Sarah, but he found the entire conversation odd. Why would Sarah put herself at risk? Why wouldn’t she just let a foreman run the place? “What health condition?”

Her eyes shifted to the window, almost like she was feeling guilty. “I’m not at liberty to say.”

He stood up. “Then I’m afraid I can’t help you. This is Sarah’s ranch, and as foreman, I answer to her. She seems like an intelligent young woman. I’m confident that she knows what she wants and what she’s capable of.”

Edna pursed her lips and stood. “Just keep in mind what I’ve told you. Watch out for her. Her parents trusted her with me. Right up until the end, I looked out for her. Now that they’re gone, Sarah seems to be going through this phase where she feels like she needs independence, even if it puts her at risk.”

He rolled back on his heels. This had felt like a dream-job scenario. Now things were getting complicated. When Edna didn’t budge, he realized he was going to have to give her some kind of reassurance. “Well, don’t. No one has ever died on any ranch that I’ve worked at.”

She pursed her lips even tighter and spun on her heel, marching to the door. Clearly she’d hoped for more from him. He followed her to the door, his eyes landing on the pie she’d baked him. Even though he knew it was meant to disarm him and make him feel indebted to her. “Edna,” he said when she opened the door in an angry, jerky motion.

She turned around and raised a thin brow.

He swallowed hard. Despite his feelings about the conversation, she was the only person who’d brought him a pie, ever. And she was trying to help Sarah, to protect her from…he had no idea what. “I’ll watch out for Sarah.”

Her harsh features relaxed slightly. “See that you do.”

He stood there silently, the warm night breeze washing over him, watching as dusk rolled in over the pasture, the image of Edna disappearing, the distinct tightening in his gut warning him that he was getting a lot more than he bargained for.

…

Sarah took another sip of piping hot coffee and tried not to let her nerves take over. While she knew she was doing the right thing, finally stepping up and taking over the ranch like she and Josh had always planned, she still worried that maybe Mrs. Casey was right, maybe she wasn’t cut out for any of this. She was nervous as hell, not that she’d ever let on. She had no idea what she was doing. She was about to go against every single rule she’d had growing up…or really, since she was ten.

The family pictures that lined the green-and-white-floral-wallpapered hallway were so familiar to her that she knew the exact order they were in, and she knew the last picture before she came to the mudroom would be her favorite—the one of Josh and her by the horse barn. Most of his pictures had been removed, but she’d begged her parents to keep that one up. That picture symbolized the life she yearned for every day, the one she still visited in her dreams at night, the one that was filled with promise and the love of a family who she thought she would have by her side forever.

She never stopped at any of the pictures, but today she stopped in front of the last one and glanced down the hall to make sure Mrs. Casey wasn’t watching. Satisfied the coast was clear, she allowed herself to look deep into Josh’s eyes, not caring how silly she looked. She stared at him until the picture became blurry and the only voice she had was a whisper.

She knew she wouldn’t cry; she never did. Learning that tears wouldn’t change anything, wouldn’t bring anyone back, made her decide long ago not to bother with them.

“I can still outride you any day, Josh.” Her throat tightened as she held his gaze, wishing it were real, wishing he were here. “If you’re around and you’re watching me today, can you make sure I don’t make a fool of myself? It was supposed to be the both of us running this place. You would have handled the guys, not me. You would probably have been friends with Cade, but don’t worry—I can handle this. I’ll…see you later.” She kissed her index finger and then pressed it on the glass over his face before hurrying to the mudroom.

Nerves were settling deep in her gut, but what she was doing felt right. Once her fleece sweater was zipped, she stepped out into the early morning and took a deep breath. Wishing River, Montana, had been home forever, and this was the first time in a long time that she’d been out here before the crack of dawn.

The damp, clean air filled her lungs as she headed to her father’s office, where she’d be meeting her new foreman. She was always slightly in awe of her surroundings on the ranch. The morning dew sparkled, and the mountains in the distance reminded her just how small they all were in this place. The vast skyline was tinged with a cool pink, promising a sun-drenched day ahead.

Gravel crunched under her feet in a comforting rhythm, and the unfamiliar tingle of anticipation at seeing him again caught her by surprise. When she’d set out to find a new foreman, she had assumed he’d be a middle-aged, fatherly type of man. She hadn’t expected someone like Cade.

Her eyes caught the tall figure leaning against the office wall. Cade. He was early. “Morning,” he called out, his deep voice holding a note of friendliness.

“Good morning,” she said, taking the last steps before reaching him. “All settled in?”

He nodded. “I am. And I’m looking forward to getting started today. I’ve met all the men this weekend and have familiarized myself with the buildings and operation. Still lots to learn, but I feel I’ve got a pretty good handle on things.”

“That’s great,” she said, unlocking the door and turning on the light. It felt strange to be in here, the musty old office a smell she always associated with her father. Sometimes it was overwhelming to think how quickly life could change, how fleeting all of this was, how little control any of them had over their own lives. But thinking like that didn’t get her anywhere. Today, she was the owner of Joshua Ranch, and she needed to act like it.

She pushed aside her embarrassment and decided to get the whole Mrs. Casey thing out of the way. The older woman had mentioned her…visit, and Sarah didn’t want there to be any awkwardness between them. “I’m really sorry about Mrs. Casey. She just told me that she’d stopped by your house. I hope she wasn’t interrogating you?”

He smiled, not looking bothered at all. “It’s okay. Her loyalty and protectiveness of you are admirable.”

She let out a sigh of relief. “She can get a little dramatic when it comes to my safety.”

“No hard feelings.”

“Great. Did you mention anything to any of the men that I’d be joining you guys and learning the ropes?”

He followed her into the old office. He stood in the doorway and seemed to fill up the small place with his presence. He had the ability to be nonthreatening and yet exude power in a way that was very unique among the men she’d worked with.

A flicker of something passed across his features before he spoke. “I did. I think they were a little surprised, but it won’t be an issue. Seems like you’ve got a good group of men out here.”

“So you think by the end of our year together, I’ll be able to run this ranch?”

He gave her a slight smile that made her stomach do an odd flip. “I don’t see why not.”