Im surprised to see you here, she said, a soft lilt to her voice. She had a small gap between her two front teeth, an imperfection, that he found charming.
I dont know why youd be surprised. My sister might have inherited the ranch but Im still family.
She smiled at that and he figured she knew all about what had happened after his mother had diedand her new will had gone missing.
I didnt think youd ever come back to the ranch, she said.
He chuckled. Neither did I. But people change.
Do they? She was studying him in a way that
said she doubted he had. He didnt need to read her expression to know she was also wondering what kind of trouble hed brought back to the canyon with him. The horse moved under her, no doubt anxious to get going.
Your horse seems impatient, he said. Dont let me keep you from your ride. With a tip of his hat, he headed down the mountain to the ranch house where hed been raised.
It seemed a lifetime ago. He could barely remember the man hed been then. But he would be glad to get off the property before his sister and her husband returned. He planned to put off seeing them if at all possible. So much for family, he thought.
WHEN DANA OPENED HER EYES, she saw that theyd left the wide valley and were now driving through the Gallatin Canyon. The canyon as it was known, ran from the mouth just south of Gallatin Gateway almost to West Yellowstone, fifty miles of winding road that trailed the river in a deep cut through the mountains.
The drive along the Gallatin River had always been breathtaking, a winding strip of highway that followed the blue-ribbon trout stream up over the continental divide. This time of year the Gallatin ran crystal clear over green-tinted boulders. Pine trees grew dark and thick along its edge and against the steep mountains. Aspens, their leaves rust-reds and glittering golds, grew among the pines.
Sheer rock cliffs overlooked the highway and river, with small areas of open land, the canyon not opening up until it reached Big Sky. The canyon had been mostly cattle and dude ranches, a few summer cabins and homesthat was until Big Sky resort and the small town that followed at the foot of Lone Mountain.
Luxury houses had sprouted up all around the resort. Fortunately, some of the original cabins still remained and the majority of the canyon was national forest so it would always remain undeveloped. The canyon was also still its own little community, for which Dana was grateful. This was the only home shed known and, like her stubborn ancestors, she had no intention of ever leaving it.
Both she and Hud had grown up here. Theyd been in love since junior high, but hit a rocky spot some years ago thanks to her sister. Dana didnt like to think about the five years she and Hud had spent apart as they passed the lower mountain resort area and, a few miles farther, turned down the road to Cardwell Ranch.
Across the river and a half mile back up a wide valley, the Cardwell Ranch house sat against a backdrop of granite cliffs, towering dark pines and glittering aspens. The house was a big, two-story rambling affair with a wide front porch and a brick-red metal roof. Behind it stood a huge weathered barn and some outbuildings and corrals.
Dana never felt truly at home until they reached the ranch shed fought tooth and nail to save. When Mary Justice Cardwell had been bucked off a horse and died six years ago, Dana had thought all was lost. Her mothers original will when her children were young left the ranch to all of them.
Mary hadnt realized until her children were grown that only Dana would keep the ranch. The others would sell it, take the profits and never look back until the day they regretted what theyd done. By then it would be too late. So her mother had made a new will, leaving the ranch to her. But her mother had hidden it where she hoped her daughter would find it. Fortunately, Dana had found it in time to save the ranch.
The will had put an end to her siblings struggle to force her to sell the land and split the profits with them. Now her three siblings were paid part of the ranchs profit each quarter. Not surprisingly, she hadnt heard from any of them since the will had settled things six years before.
As Hud pulled into the ranch yard, Dana spotted a car parked in front of the old house and frowned. The car was an older model with California plates.
You didnt already hire someone
No, Hud said before she could finish. I wouldnt do that without talking to you first. Do you think the doctor called one of the women she told you about?
Before Dana could answer, she saw that someone was waiting out on the broad front porch. As Hud pulled in beside the car, the woman stepped from out of the shadows.
Stacy? She felt her heart drop. After six years of silence and all the bad feelings from the past, what was her older sister doing here?
SURPRISE,STACY SAID WITH a shrug and a worried smile. Like Dana, Stacy had gotten the Justice-Cardwell dark good looks, but shed always been the cute one who capitalized on her appearance, cashing in as she traded her way up through three marriages that Dana knew of and possibly more since.