The Cowboy's Pride and Joy

He’d done a good job on this house. He’d designed it himself, working with an architect to build just the right place—something that would look as though it had always been standing here, in the forest. He had wanted to bring the outdoors in and he had been pleased with the results.

The support beams had been built to look like tree trunks. The windows between those beams showcased the lake below them and the miles of open country, forest and sky that made Montana the best place in the world to live. Dark brown leather couches and chairs were arranged around the huge open space, and a river-stone fireplace stood on the far wall, flames inside the hearth dancing and snapping as a sharp wind chased across the top of the chimney.

“Wow,” she said, stepping slowly into the room. “Just...wow.”

“Thanks.” He smiled in spite of everything, enjoying her reaction to the home he loved. “Pretty great, I admit.”

“Oh,” she said, shaking her head as she turned in place, taking in everything, “it’s better than great. It’s so gorgeous I’m even going to forgive you for being a jerk and leaving me out there to make it into the house on my own.”

Surprised, he snorted a laugh. “Jerk? Is that the way to talk to your boss’s son?”

Cool gray eyes slid over him. “I have a feeling she wouldn’t blame me.”

He thought about it, imagining his mother’s reaction to how he’d left her assistant standing in the yard, and had to wince. “No. Probably not.”

“Is there some reason in particular that you’re not happy to see me?” she asked. “Or is it women in general you disapprove of?”

One corner of Jake’s mouth quirked. “Let’s answer that with another question. Are you always this forthright?”

“Usually,” she said, nodding. “But I probably shouldn’t be. So maybe we should consider ourselves on even ground and start over. Deal?”

He looked at her for a long moment and tried not to notice that her eyes were the very color of the fog that lifted off the surface of the lake. Or that her hair looked soft and tumbled, as if she’d just rolled out of bed. Damn, it really had been too long since he’d had a woman.

“All right,” he agreed, to end his train of thought before it went even more astray of the subject at hand. “Deal. Now, you’ve got some papers for me to look over and sign, correct?”

“Yes. They’re in my bag in the car.”

She actually turned as if to go lurching out across the gravel again to retrieve her bags. Jake stopped her by saying, “One of the guys will bring your stuff in. You’re probably beat from the flying and the drive up the mountain...”

“Actually,” she admitted, “I would love a shower and change of clothes.”

Oh, he wasn’t going to think about her in the shower. He’d been prepared for her to spend the night, though. It was a two-hour drive from the airport, and by the time he finished going over the papers before signing them it would be too dark for her to safely drive down the mountain. So she’d be here overnight and gone in the morning. The earlier the better.

“My housekeeper has your room ready for you,” he said abruptly. Leading her across the room, he pointed to the staircase directly opposite the front door. “At the top of the stairs, turn right. Third door on your left.”

“Okay,” she said, already heading for the stairs. “And thanks.”

“Dinner’s at seven,” he told her. “So come down whenever you’re ready.”

She laid one hand on the heavily carved banister and turned her head to spear him with one long look. “I’ll see you in an hour. We can go over the paperwork before dinner.”

“Fine.” Good idea. Remember that this was all business. His mother hadn’t sent him a woman to warm his bed. She’d sent her assistant here to finally give Jake what he’d wanted for years. Freedom from the Hunter family conglomerate.

Freedom to live his life the way he wanted.

The fact that his mother’s messenger was more than he’d expected...well, that wouldn’t matter once she was gone.

Two (#ulink_e32cdef5-fddd-5a52-b758-935d1558d86e)

A few minutes later, Cassidy was trying to relax in a bedroom fit for a queen. She was tired, and she wanted a shower and something to eat. But first, she grabbed her cell phone and checked for coverage. Not surprising to find that she was good to go. Heck, Jake Hunter probably built his own cell tower on the mountain.

Shaking her head, she hit speed dial and listened to the phone ring until her sister answered. “Hey, Claudia,” Cassidy said, smiling. “Just wanted to let you know I got here safely.”

Her younger sister laughed. “Yeah, Montana’s not on the far side of the moon, so I figured you were okay when I didn’t hear any news about a plane crash.”

“Ouch.” Cassidy plopped onto the edge of the bed and let her gaze wander around the bedroom she’d been given for the night.

As spectacular as the rest of the house, the room was as large as her entire studio apartment back in Boston. And furnished better, she added silently. Again, there were floor-to-ceiling windows offering that tremendous view of water surrounded by pines bending and twisting in the wind. There were colorful rugs strewn across the gleaming wood floor, a fire burning cheerfully in the hearth and two overstuffed chairs pulled up in front of it, looking cozy enough to be on a Christmas card. On a narrow table against the wall sat a crystal decanter of what was probably brandy, considering the two bulbous glasses beside it. But there were also two bottles of wine. Red and white and accompanying glasses—which she would so take advantage of as soon as she was off the phone.

The bed she sat on was huge and covered in a silky quilt in varying shades of green that made her think of the forest beyond the house. The mattress was so soft and welcoming, it practically begged to be napped on.

“So how did your test go this morning?”

“Aced it,” Claudia retorted quickly and then laughed with glee. “I’m going to be the best damn doctor in the country by the time I’m done!”

“You will. And so humble, too,” Cassidy said, smiling at her sister’s enthusiasm. Since she was a child, Claudia had wanted to be a doctor, and now that she was taking premed at college, she was just unstoppable. Thanks to scholarships and the hefty salary Elise Hunter paid Cassidy, they wouldn’t have to worry about college expenses and Claudia could pursue her longtime dream.

“So what’s it like in the Wild West?”

Cassidy chuckled. “No stagecoach holdup if that’s what you mean. It really is gorgeous even though Elise’s son is kind of...” Hmm. How to explain that rush of attraction combined with the troll attitude?

“Ooh,” her sister said, “I sense intrigue. Cass is interested in an actual living, breathing male.”

“I’m not interested.” Okay, that was a lie, but she wouldn’t admit to it. Besides, interest and attraction were two different things, right? Interest would imply that she was looking at Jake Hunter as more than simply a great-looking man with a crappy attitude. Attraction was an involuntary biological imperative for the survival of the species and—oh for heaven’s sake, she sounded like one of Claudia’s professors.

To her sister, she said, “I’m just here to get him to sign some papers and then first thing tomorrow I’m on a plane home again.”

“Uh-huh. First thing tomorrow means you’ve still got all night tonight.”

Yes, she did. Funny, but the thought of spending the night at the ranch hadn’t bothered her at all until she’d gotten her first look at Jake. Now, it was different. That buzz of sensation she’d felt just shaking his hand left her feeling oddly off-balance and she didn’t really enjoy that at all. Not that she would tell Claudia any of this, of course.

“Is there some reason my baby sister is trying to shove me at a man she’s never even met?” Cassidy scooted off the edge of the bed and walked across the room to the window.

“Because my big sister has been living like a nun for way too long,” Claudia countered. “You haven’t been on a date in like forever. Do you even remember what fun is?”

Stung, Cassidy dropped onto the window seat, leaned against the cold glass and said, “I have fun all the time.”

“Doing what?”

“I like my job—”

“Work is not fun.”

“Fine. Well, I went to the movies just...” She had to think about that, and when she realized how long ago it had actually been, her scowl deepened. “Fun is overrated.”

“Uh-huh.” An all-too-familiar sigh of exaggerated patience sifted through the phone. “I’m all grown up now, Cass. You can stop throwing yourself on the altar of substitute motherhood.”

Her gaze locked on that amazing view, Cassidy let her sister’s words rocket around her mind for a second or two before she said, “Claud, I never thought of it like that.”