The Rancher Who Took Her In (The Bachelors of Blackwater Lake) Read online

  In spite of the fact that she was doing a good job on her beer, it was hard to believe this girlie girl could hold her own in the wild. “You’re serious?”

  “Don’t judge me by the way I handle—or mishandle—a baseball. I can build a fire without matches and find food in the woods.”

  “Why?”

  “Why not?” she shot back.

  He waited for more details, like why she would go out of her way to acquire that kind of skill, but she stared him down without saying more. It made him curious, but he didn’t ask. She probably had her reasons for not sharing more personal details. It was typical of all the strays who had a need to use his spare cabin.

  All he knew was that she’d been engaged to a guy, then ran out when it was time to commit. Her story was that he’d cheated, but Cab didn’t know for sure. What he did know was that there were too many similarities to his ex, and that was plenty of reason to keep his distance.

  But obviously he was cursed. Otherwise he wouldn’t be attracted to a woman who had run away from something.

  Chapter Three

  It was a spectacular night.

  At about nine o’clock, after cleaning up the pots and pans she’d used to cook dinner, Kate sat on the wooden bench on the small front porch of her little cabin. The inky-black Montana sky glittered with stars, a sight that took her breath away. The absence of Los Angeles nuisance light revealed the beauty a person couldn’t see in the big city.

  Being away from L.A. was having unexpected effects on her. She hadn’t been this relaxed in a very long time. Dinner with the Dixon men had been partly responsible for that. Fried chicken, mac and cheese and beer were probably the world’s most comforting foods. But the best part was that no one wanted anything from her. She’d had to make a federal case to get her boss’s permission to cook.

  Cabot Dixon was a brooder, which only added to his appeal. He didn’t have a poker face, either. That was for sure. When he’d talked about missed career opportunities, she’d seen resentment and resignation in his expression. But when she’d gone into Blackwater Lake to shop for food and toiletries, everyone she’d talked to had said he had made the Dixon ranch more successful than his father or grandfather had. So it might not be his first choice for making a living, but he was darn good at what he did.

  The scrape of boots coming down the dirt path startled her in the still night. Adrenaline kicked up her heart rate; she was all alone out here. As a tall form moved closer, lights mounted on the cabins revealed that it was Cabot.

  “Evening,” he said, not slowing his stride.

  He was going to walk right on by. If he’d said nothing, a case could be made that he hadn’t seen her, but he clearly had and didn’t want to talk to her.

  Kate knew she should let him go, but for some reason his remoteness kicked up her contrary streak. She didn’t like being ignored. On top of that, she was curious about why he was out here. Surely he didn’t exercise. He was lean and muscular, walking proof that his job kept him fit without having to add a workout routine.

  “Hey, wait up.” She stood and hurried after him.

  “What?” he asked over his shoulder.

  Kate caught up to him, but it wasn’t easy. His long-legged stride made it a challenge. “That’s what I’d like to know. Why are you out here? Is something wrong?”

  “Nope. Habit. I do a nightly inspection of all the ranch buildings.”

  “Where’s Ty?”

  “In bed.” Cabot glanced down at her. “He’s old enough to be left by himself for a few minutes.”

  “I wasn’t judging,” she protested.

  “Maybe not out loud, but I could hear you thinking about it.”

  Just a little. Possibly.

  When he got to the grassy area by the lake, he turned right on the dirt path and headed for the barn and corral. He wasn’t saying anything, and she felt the need to fill the conversational void.

  “It’s a beautiful night.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Do you ever get used to it? Take all this for granted?”

  “Probably.”

  The least he could do was throw her a bone, she thought. But she didn’t discourage easily. A person didn’t win Olympic gold medals by giving up when the going got tough.

  “The lake is spectacular during the day, but with the moon shining down, it just takes your breath away.” Or maybe she was breathless just being near him and trying to match his strides. “The mountains are gorgeous, too. And the air.” She drew in a deep breath. “So clean and fresh.”

  “You’re not wrong about that.”

  “This is a lovely piece of land you’ve got here.”

  He glanced down again. “Sounds like you love the outdoors.”

  “Who wouldn’t?”

  “My ex-wife, for starters.”

  Their arms brushed and she could almost feel the tension in his body, the annoyance he felt at letting that slip out.

  But he had let it slip. “You were married.”

  “A lifetime ago.”

  “What happened?” That was nosy and probably rude, but he knew about her past. Turnabout was fair play. This was the opening she’d been waiting for, and she didn’t plan to let it drop.

  “She didn’t like it here. Wasn’t happy being a wife and mother.”

  “That pretty much sucks.”

  “Pretty much,” he agreed. But there was a harsh edge to his voice.

  “Must be hard on Ty—not having a mom, I mean.” Moments of silence dragged out after the comment, and she didn’t think he was going to answer.

  “He asks questions,” Cabot admitted. “And I answer as honestly as I can.”

  “What do you say?”

  “That the two of us are a different kind of family. But there’s no way a kid can understand why his mother didn’t want to stay for her own son. Hell, I don’t understand.”

  Anger had given way to wistfulness in his tone and that made her wonder if he still had feelings for the woman who’d walked out on him. “Is there a chance that Ty’s mom will come back?”

  “Always, I suppose.”

  Kate was a little surprised when he didn’t add that it would be a cold day in hell before he took her back. “What if she did?”

  His mouth pulled tight for a moment, but when he answered, his voice lacked any emotion. No anger, regret or sadness. Just matter-of-fact. “If she showed up at the front door tomorrow, Ty wouldn’t have to wonder where his mother is.”

  “Do you wonder?”

  “No. I know where she is.” And she doesn’t want to be here. He didn’t say it, but the words hung in the air between them.

  “Where is she?” That question was out-and-out nosy. Every time he answered something, more stuff popped into her head to ask him. At some point he was going to tell her to mind her own business, but until he did she couldn’t seem to stop herself from inquiring.

  “Helena.”

  Montana’s capital. “So it’s not that she doesn’t like Montana.”

  “Nope. Just the ranch and small-town life.”

  “Does Ty know how close she is?”

  “Nope. She hasn’t shown any interest in seeing him and I wouldn’t put him through that unless she did.” He slowed his pace. “There’s no point in it. Rejection hurts.”

  “Yeah.” She’d been rejected very publicly. She was realizing that she didn’t love her ex-fiancé because he hadn’t crossed her mind all that much since she’d arrived in Blackwater Lake and, more specifically, since she’d met Cabot. But at first it had hurt. The humiliation was no fun, either. And she was a grown-up. Ty was a little boy. “Are you ever going to tell him?”

  “If he wants to know.”

  “That seems wise,” she agreed.

  “Y
ou’re judging again.” This time there was a smile in his voice.

  “In a good way.”

  “It’s not wise. Just common sense,” he claimed. “If you tell a kid he can’t do something, that’s exactly what he wants to do.”

  “Is that the voice of experience talking?” she teased.

  “Maybe. Maybe not. I think of it more as human nature.”

  They had come full circle, past his house. She’d expected he would go inside and let her see herself back, but he didn’t. Cabot walked her to her front door and stopped.

  “Good night, Kate. Two more days until the kids get here. Get some rest. You’re going to need it.”

  “See you,” she said.

  She watched him turn and walk back up the hill, a solitary man in the dark. Walking with him had been both exhilarating and enlightening. He had been married but was now divorced. She’d wanted so badly to say that he and his son were better off without a shallow, selfish woman like that having any influence on their lives. Only an idiot would run away from the child she’d borne and a man who loved her.

  It was the running part that gave Kate pause. She’d run. Granted, the guy she’d left might be a good match for Cab’s ex—in the shallow-and-selfish department. But still, she’d run. Did he put her in the same category as his ex-wife?

  The thought troubled her, which was both annoying and not very bright. She’d just escaped from complications with a man and shouldn’t let herself lose sleep over what this man thought. They’d only just met.

  And she hoped to be wrong but couldn’t shake the feeling that he might be pining for the woman who’d left him.

  * * *

  On the first day of camp Kate helped the other four counselors greet and sign in the kids, then assign cabins and settle them there. The other employees were all first-or second-year schoolteachers and this was their summer job. She was the only oddball without training.

  It was late afternoon when she walked into the camp kitchen. The dining room was a log-cabin-style building, and the food-preparation area was situated behind the larger room where picnic tables would seat the campers for meals. A patio jutted off, and if they wanted, the kids could eat out there with a spectacular view of the lake. Without children around, it could be the perfect spot for a romantic dinner if you were with a man who looked like Cabot Dixon, one who might lean toward a little romance after a walk under the stars. He didn’t seem to lean that way, but maybe she just wasn’t his type.

  And the fact that she would even wonder about this meant she probably needed serious therapy.

  “Hi, Caroline.” She greeted the manager/cook who was cutting up vegetables on the long stainless-steel counter in the center of the room. A six-burner stove stood behind her, and different-sized pots hung from a rack suspended from the ceiling.

  The tall blonde looked up and smiled. “Did the kids scare you off?”

  “No.” But Kate grinned at the teasing. “They’re a terrific bunch and I really enjoyed meeting them. But Jim told me to take a break while they divide the campers into color groups for activities.”

  “Jim Shields is a good teacher and really terrific at what he does here.”

  Kate knew Caroline worked with him at Blackwater Lake High School, where he taught math and was the boys’ volleyball coach. “I came to see if you need any help in the kitchen.”

  “You don’t want to put your feet up? Catch a power nap?”

  “Working with children might not be my best skill, but I can take it. I’m sturdier than I look.”

  “What is your best skill?” the other woman asked.

  Kate couldn’t blame her for being curious. She’d shown up in a wedding dress and given no other information about herself besides the fact that she’d left her cheating weasel of a groom at the altar. But this peace and quiet felt good after so many years of nonstop media interest and craziness. It would end if the details about her came out. She wanted serenity for just a little bit longer.

  “If you don’t mind, I’d rather not say.”

  “Suit yourself.” Caroline put down the knife in her hand. “I can use some help. Hamburgers and fries are the traditional first-night meal here, and I insist on fresh, not frozen, potatoes. You can cut them up. Real thin.”

  “Okay.”

  “When you finish that, would you slice some carrot and celery sticks? I always like to have those available.”

  “Got it.”

  Kate saw that the potatoes were already peeled and soaking in a pot of water. She got to work, and after checking the thinness of her fries, Caroline said nothing for a few moments. Finally Kate couldn’t stand the silence. It was against all the laws of nature for two women to be in a kitchen together and not talk. Usually about men. And she knew exactly which man she wanted to talk about.

  “How long have you managed the camp for Cabot?”

  “Ten years now.”

  Tyler was eight, which meant this woman had met his mother. After the little bit Cabot had said, Kate had a lot of questions. “So what was Cabot’s wife like?”

  Caroline glanced up quickly from the tomato she was slicing. “Why do you want to know?”

  “He told me what happened and why.”

  “Interesting.” She looked up again. “He doesn’t usually talk about it.”

  Should she feel special that he’d told her the story? A question for another day. “I guess I’m just curious what you thought of her.”

  “It’s hard to answer that. There is my impression when he was first with her and my feelings about what she did to him by running away.” She sighed and rested her wrist against the cutting board. “She was a very pretty little thing. Long black hair and violet-colored eyes. Seemed sweet and head over heels for Cabot. No one saw that she was unhappy or that she would do what she did. Folks were shocked, and some blamed it on postpartum depression. But she never came back to set things right. Cabot was stunned and dazed. The thing is, he didn’t really even have time to process his feelings because he had an infant to care for and a business to run. Maybe that was a blessing.”

  Kate remembered his wistful tone when he’d talked about his wife. “Do you know how he feels about her now?”

  “No,” Caroline said. “As far as I know, no one knows.”

  Kate had been hoping for something specific, a tidbit to explain why he hadn’t shown the least bit of interest in kissing her. It wasn’t that she’d wanted him to get romantic, because that would complicate her peace and quiet. But she kind of wanted him to want to and be fighting it just a little. Crazy. Except that she was still feeling the effects of her fiancé cheating on her and the lingering questions about why she was found lacking. Maybe her self-confidence had taken a bigger hit than she’d realized.

  “Does he have a girlfriend?” That would explain the lack of interest.

  “Not that I’m aware of. And this is a small town,” Caroline said pointedly. “If he did, everyone would know.”

  “He must have needs.”

  Caroline gave her a sharp look. “You’re awfully curious.”

  “I’m sorry. That was really nosy. I didn’t mean to be inappropriate. But he’s an exceptionally good-looking man. It’s hard to believe he’s been unattached for so long.”

  Kate figured if he had an itch that wasn’t getting scratched and he’d still not been tempted by her, that would make her feel even more pathetic.

  The other woman nodded, apparently understanding the curiosity. “Cabot likes women, if that’s what you’re asking. No one knows for sure, but the assumption is that he ‘dates’ discreetly. The last thing he’d want is talk linking him to anyone getting back to his boy. He’d never put up with that.”

  “Anyone can see he cares about Ty,” Kate agreed. “He seems like a wonderful father.”

  �
�And then some.” Caroline looked thoughtful. “Because of what happened, he’s got a deep empathy for wounded people and goes out of his way to protect them.”

  That actually was a segue into something else she was curious about. “I have another question.”

  “I bet you do.”

  “Clearly I have no right and I’d like to believe it’s not prying. Maybe inquisitive—”

  “You think?” She saw humor in Caroline’s blue eyes.

  “Yeah. But I can’t help it. I’m curious about the cabin where I’m staying.”

  “Why?”

  “It was empty and available. Stocked with basics—including coffee and toiletries, like a hotel room. As if it was ready. Like people in areas that are prone to natural disaster keep emergency supplies up to date.”

  “Natural disaster and emergency pretty much describe Cabot’s reasons for keeping it prepared.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Folks call it the ‘stray cabin.’ Cabot has a soft spot for the three-legged dog or a blind cat. People, too. He keeps that place for anyone who’s in need. Like the soldier returning from the war who needs quiet to deal with post-traumatic stress disorder. Or the homeless guy who lost his job and just needs a temporary place to stay while he gets back on his feet. Then there was the abused woman who left her husband, and Cabot made sure she was safe until the crisis was over.”

  “Very noble of him.”

  “Also, there’s the occasional runaway bride,” Caroline added drily.

  “Not that I don’t think he’s an incredibly decent man, or that I’m ungrateful for his help, but I’m not a charity case,” Kate assured her.

  “Okay.”

  The tone was on the patronizing side and Kate felt obligated to share just a few big details. “In some circles I’m fairly well-known.”

  “That doesn’t mean you don’t need a little help.”

  “Not really,” Kate assured her. “I can take care of myself. In fact, it will be news when I surface and I’ll have to make a statement.”