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When she didn’t answer, he glanced up and met her raised-eyebrow, exasperated expression. “No, Zane. I just threw some random numbers on the page for kicks.”
He rolled his eyes. “I see marriage hasn’t made you less sarcastic.”
Mention of Piper’s recent wedding brought a quick smile to her lips. “Nor has it made me less meticulous with my numbers.” She folded her arms over her chest and leaned back in the chair across the desk from him. “Besides, you ask me that every month, dork.”
She added a lopsided grin to soften the epithet his siblings had given him when they were kids.
“Yeah, okay.” He turned back to the computer screen and sighed. “Maybe I was just hoping there was better news than this. If we don’t start getting reservations and deposits soon, we’ll be out of cash before we open in April. I refuse to go back to Gill for another loan.”
Just the thought that his high school rival and all-around SOB oversaw the business loan for McCall Adventure Ranch soured his gut. The sooner he and his siblings could get out from under that debt the better. But the numbers Piper had presented him this morning showed a lot of red ink and expenditures.
“None of us want that,” Piper said and leaned down to pat the head of the family’s Maine Coon, Zeke. The cat rubbed against her shins and mewed at her. “I know, Zeke! Right?” she said to the cat. “See, even Zeke knows what a putz Gill is.” Dusting loose fur from her fingers as she rose from her chair, Piper flashed her brother a conspiratorial grin, which he returned. “I gotta go. I’m late.”
“You headed out to pick Connor up from school?” Zane asked without taking his eyes off the computer screen.
“Yep. What time do you expect that reporter to get in?”
Zane’s chest tightened. Even though his family had been enthusiastic about having the travel writer come visit, he remained skeptical. Sure, good publicity, free publicity, would be great for the adventure company. But he’d gotten a weird vibe from the Well Traveled reporter that he hadn’t been able to shake. He trusted his instincts about people, and the odd conversation they’d had set him on edge.
He flipped his wrist to check the time. “According to her last text, she should be here anytime now. She’s driving in from Boulder.”
“Hmm. Guess I’ll meet her when I get back then.” Piper shouldered her purse and rattled her car keys as she headed out.
“Tell my favorite nephew I said hi,” Zane called as she left the office.
Zeke, abandoned by Piper, moved on to demand attention from Zane. The cat hopped up on the desk and walked in front of the computer monitor, his fluffy tail swishing in Zane’s face. “Uh, excuse me, Fluffbutt.”
Zeke nudged Zane’s hand with his nose. Pulling an amused face, Zane scratched the cat behind the ear for a few moments then lifted him down to the floor. “Now, vamoose. I have work to finish before our guest arrives.” He gave the cat’s head a final pat before returning to the spreadsheets Piper had prepared.
He stared at the dismal numbers with a pit in his stomach. No matter how many ways he tried to rework or reimagine the company budget, the bottom line remained the same. The delays in opening, the expense of rebuilding the zip line and increased insurance premiums had hit the fledgling McCall Adventures hard. Really hard.
Zane jammed his fingers through his short-cropped hair and buzzed his lips as he exhaled his frustration. Zeke, who rarely took no for an answer, jumped into his lap and, purring loudly, head-butted Zane’s hand. He ruffled the cat’s head. “Thanks, pal. But what I need is about a hundred thousand dollars to get the business back in black.”
“Zane,” his twin brother Josh said, thumping his hand on the office door frame. “Your reporter just pulled in the front drive.”
“She’s not my reporter,” he replied, frowning, and not sure why the pronoun bothered him so much.
“You’re the one said she could come stay and write her article.” Josh hitched his head toward the front of the family house. “Yours or not, get out here and greet her.”
“You heard the man,” he told Zeke, shooing the cat to the floor as he pushed his chair back from the desk.
“Dad?” he called down the hall toward his father’s office, “Ms. Palmer’s here if you wanna come meet her.”
From the next door down, his father replied, “On a business call. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
Zane traipsed through the family home to the mudroom where he snagged his winter coat from the hook by the back door. Shoving his arms in his fleece-lined jacket, he hurried out into the frigid December air, arriving at the main drive in front of his family home just as the sporty, dark blue Toyota 86 pulled up to the house. While the family’s two blue heelers wiggled and wagged their tails in excitement, Josh opened the driver’s side door and introduced himself as he offered their guest a hand to help her climb out.
Zane stopped in his tracks to stare as a woman with long, curling, dark brown hair and high cheekbones stepped out, flashing Josh an appreciative smile. He wasn’t sure what he’d imagined the freelance travel writer would look like, but this stunning beauty wouldn’t have been it. When her gaze met his and locked, his pulse jolted as if he’d been hit by the cattle prod.
The bright smile she’d given Josh faltered briefly as she gazed at Zane, then returned to full wattage as she stepped forward, shucking her gloves to extend a bare hand. “You must be Zane. Erin Palmer. Nice to meet you.”
Recalled to the moment and his manners, Zane returned a welcoming grin and gripped her hand. Her handshake was firm, her hand warm, her skin silky-soft. Zane became self-conscious of how work-roughened his own palm must be, but she seemed unfazed by his callused hand.
“Welcome, Ms. Palmer.”
One delicate eyebrow lifted, and she tilted her head. “Ms. Palmer? What happened to Erin? I thought after our phone conversation that we were on a first-name basis. I certainly would prefer to be less formal...Zane.”
The way she said his name, as an addendum, her husky voice heavy with innuendo, her rosy lips twitching with amusement, caught him off guard. And shot a spike of lust through his blood. Zane arched one eyebrow, matching her gesture, and nodded once in agreement. “Erin, then. How was your drive?”
“Blessedly traffic-free, although I did run across a good bit of ice on the road.” She had yet to release his hand, and he found himself drawn to her eyes. Eyes the deep green of—
A loud clatter and shout drew her attention across the ranch yard. Erin’s hand dropped from his, her gaze seeking the source of the disturbance.
“Hey, can I get a hand here?” Piper’s husband, Brady Summers, shouted. He was carrying a tall stepladder and stood next to the twenty-five-foot blue spruce tree that grew next to the stable. A pile of Christmas lights lay on the ground at his feet.
Even as he tucked his hand in his pocket, Zane could still feel the satin warmth of her fingers, like lingering impressions on his memory-foam mattress. He determinedly steered his brain away from thoughts of Erin and his bed. Clearing his throat, he turned to his brother. “Josh? Would you—?” Zane hitched his head toward Brady and the ladder. “I need to show Erin where she’ll be staying, help her with her luggage.”
His brother, who already had Erin’s suitcases out of the sporty Toyota, said, “I can—” Josh bit off his words as he met his twin brother’s gaze and the silent message relayed in Zane’s expression. “I can...help Brady with the Christmas tree lights.”
Josh flashed his brother a not-so-secret grin and play-punched him in the shoulder as he headed across the ranch driveway toward the massive spruce, the two dogs at his heels.
“All right, then.” Zane moved to the bags and lifted one in each hand, while Erin slid an additional duffel over her shoulder. “If you’ll follow me...”
Traces of slush and ice left from a light snow earlier in the week crunched under Zane’s boots as he escorted Erin across the ranch yard toward the bunkhouse-turned-guest-quarters. “You’ll have the run of the guesthouse. Once the adventure biz gets up and running again, this is where the clients will sleep during the on-site portion of the tours.”
“Uh-huh,” she hummed distractedly, watching Brady position the large ladder with Josh’s help. She strayed from the path Zane was leading to get a closer look at the spruce. Setting the suitcases on a dry spot of ground, he followed her over to the tree that the family decorated each year with a copious number of lights and large red glass balls. The glass decorations were already hung on the tree.
“Um...” Erin said as she approached the tree, putting her glove back on. “Can I make a suggestion?”
Brady turned to face their guest, taking a moment to blow warmth into his hands. “Uh, sure.”
Zane jogged a few steps to catch up to Erin and made the introduction to his new brother-in-law. After niceties were exchanged, Erin waved a gloved hand toward the spruce. “It’s easier to put lights on a tree if you do them before the other decorations.”
“Told you!” another male voice said, and Zane angled his head to see their ranch hand coming out of the stable with an extension cord looped over his arm. Zane introduced Erin to the hand, Dave Giblan, and Dave gave her a smile and a nod of greeting, adding, “We went through this last year, too. But Mr. The-Order-Doesn’t-Make-A-Difference didn’t remember the hassle we had with the lights last time.”
“I don’t mean to butt in. I’ve just learned from experience,” Erin said and grinned brightly at Dave.
He was not jealous of the spark of attraction he saw in her eyes as she replied to the ranch hand, Zane told himself, despite the niggle of irritation in his gut.
Brady grunted and cast Dave a hooded side glance. “Whatever.”
As Brady began plucking the glass decorations off the tree, the ranch foreman joined the crowd, as well. Roy Summers, Brady’s father and long-time ranch employee, frowned at the group. “Is this like a lightbulb riddle? How many ranchers does it take to decorate a Christmas tree?” He cast a startled glance at Erin. “Oh, hello, young lady. You must be the writer.”
More introductions were made, and Roy put a hand on Brady’s shoulder. “Come on, son. Someone’s got to do the real business of the ranch. Give me a hand tending the abscessed hoof on that calf I brought in earlier.”
“Be there in a minute,” Brady said, and Roy firmed his mouth in displeasure.
“I’d say a hurting calf takes priority over some baubles on a tree, son.” He nudged Brady more insistently. “Let’s go.”
“Fine,” Brady replied grudgingly, and he handed off the glass balls he’d gathered to Dave. “Okay, Santa Claus. I’m out. You have the conn.”
Dave responded with a snort and an eye-roll that made Erin chuckle. He repositioned the ladder, which rattled and creaked as he settled it closer to the tree.
“I can’t wait to see it all decorated and the lights glowing.” She turned to Zane, her face lit with enthusiasm, her cheeks and nose pink from the cold. “I love Christmas. Even more than spring. And my birthday’s in spring, so that’s saying something, because I really love celebrating my birthday.”
His chest tightened as he gazed at her. Her eyes reflected a childlike glee that reminded him of Christmases past, rising before the sun with his brother and sister, filled with exuberance and anticipation. As she stood in the winter sun, gazing up at the spruce tree, her breath clouding in the chilled air, Zane finished his earlier interrupted thought. Spruce green. Erin’s eyes were the same color as a Christmas tree, he decided as a he felt a small hiccup in his pulse.
He gave himself a mental finger-thump to the forehead. Don’t go all hearts and flowers over her in the first five minutes, dork. Such an impetuous reaction to a woman was more his flirtatious brother’s style than his own. Zane preferred time to build an opinion based on his interaction with a person.
Pragmatic. Reasoned. Grounded. He prided himself on being everything an oldest sibling should be, even if his age advantage was only five minutes. So why did Erin evoke such a visceral reaction from him?
He cleared his throat and tipped his head toward the guesthouse. “I’ll just put your luggage inside. Then, whenever you’re ready, I can—”
A loud snap crackled through the winter air like a gunshot. In the next instant, the tall step ladder where Dave perched buckled and collapsed. He toppled to the ground, landing with a thud and a feral cry of pain.
Chapter 3 (#ud0e994ef-21a1-51ef-8250-3ad136980580)
Erin gasped her shock and concern as the handsome ranch hand crashed to the frozen ground. If his guttural shout left any doubt to his injury, the odd angle of his leg did not.
She clapped a hand over her mouth as a wave of nausea roiled through her at the gruesome sight. Zane abandoned her bags and brushed past her as he rushed to aid his friend.
“Call 9-1-1!” he yelled to no one in particular.
Pulling her glove off with her teeth, Erin fumbled her cell phone from her purse and tapped in her security code with a trembling finger. She squinted at the screen, trying to make out the image against the glare of the winter sun. Her signal reception was weak at best.
Josh hustled past her. “Landline’s more reliable. I’m on it.”
As Zane’s brother ran toward the main house, Erin faced Zane and Dave again, her heart in her throat. Surely she could do something to help. Yanking her knit scarf from under the collar of her coat, she balled the scarf as she dropped to her knees across from Zane. “Here,” she said, handing him the messily folded neckwear. “Put this under his head.”
A pillow may be a small thing under the circumstances, but she had little else to offer at the moment. And standing idly by while the cowboy suffered was not her style. Action was her go-to mode, and her brain was ticking through more options for the crisis, even as Zane tucked the knit scarf under Dave’s head.
As if sensing something was amiss, the dogs barked and paced the yard. When the black-and-white dog tried to nose in next to him, Zane pushed the dog back. “No, Ace. Lie down.”
The foreman and Brady appeared at the door of the barn across the yard.
“What happened?” Brady called as he trotted toward them.
“Ladder collapsed. Dave broke his leg, maybe more,” Zane returned in a clipped, efficient tone, despite his obvious worry. With a wave of his hand, he directed the father and son to, respectively, fetch someone named Helen and to go to the end of the driveway to flag down the ambulance when it arrived.
Zane’s take-charge leadership impressed Erin, as well as the way that the other men followed his directives without demurring. Zane’s father had indicated as much, as well. Though the McCall siblings and Brady Summers were equal partners in McCall Adventure Ranch, Zane was the gatekeeper, it seemed.
Zane held one of the injured man’s hands, letting Dave squeeze his fingers as he writhed and groaned. “Stay still, buddy. I know it hurts. Help’s coming.”
Seeing Dave’s other hand at his side, his fingers clenched in a tight ball, Erin lifted his fist into her lap. Cupping his fist between her palms, she stroked his taut knuckles with her thumb and muttered, “Hang in there, cowboy.”
Zane’s gaze darted to her, then dropped to her comforting gesture as Dave loosened his balled fingers to grip her hand.
“Thanks,” Dave rasped, casting a quick side glance to her before scrunching his eyes closed in pain. His breathing was shallow and rapid, and she didn’t need to be a nurse to know hyperventilating was not what Dave needed.
“Hey, Dave,” she said, jostling his hand to get his attention. “Will you try something with me?”
Both Zane and Dave peered at her with curious looks.
“You need to calm your breathing, so I thought we could do some yoga breathing together. Will you do it with me?”
The injured cowboy furrowed his brow and stared at her with shock in his eyes. “Yoga?”
Though Zane’s expression was equally leery, she could see his concern for his friend outweighed his skepticism. “What do you have in mind?”
She fixed her gaze on Zane and his stunning blue eyes sent a tremor through her. With her host’s penetrating gaze on her, she needed the relaxation technique as much as Dave. “Calming breaths. You do it with us.”
Dave scoffed quietly between gasps and grunts.
Patting his hand firmly, she directed him to inhale with her as she counted two beats in her head. “Now exhale slowly for four seconds.”
The cowboys both blew their breaths out through their mouths.
“Through your nose, gentlemen. You’re not having a baby, you’re trying to relax.”
Her comment earned her odd looks from both men, but they followed her example as she inhaled again and let her exhale draw out twice as long. “Now inhale for three seconds and exhale for six.”
Dave’s demeanor calmed, his hyperventilating quieted, and Erin’s pulse slowed, too...so long as she didn’t look into Zane’s piercing eyes. Meeting his celestial-blue gaze was a bit like staring at the sun. Doing so for too long was risky, as if he could sear something deep inside her with his laser-bright stare.
She continued walking them through the one-to-two breathing ratio for a couple of minutes until Josh ran back across the ranch yard and skidded to a stop beside them.
“Ambulance is on the way,” Josh said as he spread a heavy blanket that he’d brought out over Dave. Josh was panting from exertion and stress, and his tense energy and ragged breaths distracted her students.
Erin felt the tension reenter Dave’s grip as his eyes darted to Josh, and she saw the muscles in the injured man’s jaw flex as he gritted his teeth. She snapped her fingers in front of Dave’s eyes and, with a nudge of his chin, brought his attention back to her. “Right here, cowboy. Focus on me.”
He gave her a pained grin and rasped, “My pleasure. You’re a...heap prettier than either of these...chumps.”
“Thank you. Now, less talking and more slow breathing, friend.” She flashed him a bright smile, and from her peripheral vision, she noticed the frown that Zane divided between them.
Dave followed her directions for a couple more breaths, then with another thin grin that reflected his agony, he added hoarsely, “Any chance I could...repay you for your kindness?” He paused to drag in another breath. “Dinner sometime maybe?”
Now Zane’s whole body tensed, his brow forming a deep V as he sent the hand a hard look.
“Why, you flirt!” She sent the injured man a wink. Anything that helped distract him from his pain was acceptable in her book. “I just might have to take you up on that.”
“What about Helen?” Josh said, and Zane arched a raven eyebrow and cocked his head as if to say, Yeah, what he asked.
“Helen?” She gave him a scolding pout.
The ranch hand grimaced, clearly from his excruciating pain rather than the shame of being caught out. He gulped a couple shallow breaths. “It wouldn’t be...a date, so what’s...wrong with it?”
She gave him a disapproving grunt, then tapped his nose with her finger. “Through your nose. Let’s start again. Three-second inhale...”
Her coaching was interrupted again as a woman’s distress cry reached them through the chill air. Erin and the men all turned to look toward the back of the main house where the foreman appeared with a young woman wearing a stained apron and no coat. She ran toward them, calling, “Dave! Oh, my God, Dave!”
