Trent's smile got a whole lot wider as he looked at Caitlin. "Check the Internet when you get home."
She shrugged her shoulders. "Whatever."
"Gracie's staying in Bozeman for a few weeks. She's going to be teaching at one of the elementary schools."
A shiver passed through Caitlin's skinny body. Teaching must rank about as high in the teenage girl's career aspirations as working in Walmart.
Caitlin frowned at Trent. "I overheard Stella asking about you the other day. Said she hadn't seen you around in a while. Could be she misses your company."
"I've been busy. Haven't you got work to do?"
"I am working." A cheeky grin lit her face. "I'm pushing a shopping cart, aren't I? So how long have you and Gracie been dating?"
"We're not dating. Gracie's staying with me?"
"Shoot," Caitlin hissed, "the dragon lady's on her way over." With a sweet smile on her face, and a voice three times louder than it needed to be, she bellowed, "I'm glad I could be of help. Have a nice day." And she scooted off. On all four wheels.
Trent stared down the aisle. "That was probably the worst person to bump into."
Gracie smiled at the dragon lady as she power-walked past them, following Caitlin's escape path. The poor woman would need all her wits about her if she had to keep tabs on the teenage wonder-worker.
"Caitlin wasn't that scary, Trent."
"She might look harmless, but if she gets within ten feet of a computer the whole world knows about your business quicker than you do."
"It's just as well she's not in front of a computer then, isn't it? By the end of the day she won't even remember that she saw us. So who's Stella?"
Trent jammed his hands in his jacket pockets. "Let's find some clothes."
"I take it Stella isn't one of your most favorite people?" Gracie asked, jogging to keep up with his long-legged stride.
"No."
"Oh. Well." She scanned the aisle just in case Caitlin decided to make another unexpected appearance.
"Before the days out half the town will think we're living together."
Gracie stopped in the middle of the aisle. The last thing she wanted to do was complicate his life with an early house guest and lots of gossip.
Trent glanced over his shoulder, stopping when he realized she wasn't behind him. "What's wrong?"
Gracie kept her eyes glued to the buttons on his shirt instead of the steady gray eyes watching her move toward him. "I'll stay in town until Gerald gets back. I've got some research I want to do, so it won't be a problem."
Trent took his hat off and raked his hands through his hair. "Ignore me. I'm over-reacting. It makes more sense to have you stay on the ranch."
The frown on Trent's face worried her. Gracie knew all about small town gossip and how it could ruin a person's life. She'd sleep on the street if it meant stopping the rumors before they made it around Bozeman. "I don't mind staying in town. It's a pretty place. You've already helped me and I don't want to make your life difficult."
"You won't make my life difficult. If I didn't want you working on the ranch, I wouldn't have said yes in the first place."
Trent crossed his arms in front of his chest. He didn't look as though he was going to give in and let her do the sensible thing. Staying in Bozeman would be the most sensible thing she could do, especially if he thought they were about to make the evening news. "Why would Caitlin think anything was going on?"
"It could have something to do with the way her eyes lit up when I told her you were living with me."
"But we won't be living together like a couple."
A faint tinge of red washed above the collar of Trent's shirt. "She doesn't know that and what she doesn't know she'll make up."
"Maybe it's not as bad as you think. She's a teenager. No one's going to believe everything she says."
Trent shook his head. "Forget about Caitlin. At least you'll have some new clothes when everyone comes visiting." He headed into the center of the store and pointed to a huge neon pink sign. "Do you think you'll be able to find something in here?"
Gracie stared at the racks of clothes designed for teenagers. If she couldn't find anything to wear, she was in serious trouble. "I'll give it my best shot. If you lose sight of me, I'll be in the changing rooms." She glanced quickly at Trent, then started hunting through a pile of T-shirts. It was time for some intense retail therapy. And if there was one thing Gracie was good at, it was shopping in double quick time.
CHAPTER TWO
Gracie smiled at the shiny blue bags stacked on the back seat of the pickup. She'd only found a handful of clothes in Walmart. But in the space of one short hour, Sandra Lee's Fashion Boutique had become her favorite store. They'd come across the store by accident. Gracie called it fate. From the moment she'd seen the color-coded racks of clothes designed for women under five-foot-two, she'd known they wouldn't be leaving anytime soon.
A helpful sales assistant, sensing a desperate woman with limited time and unlimited resources, had rushed backward and forward getting different sizes and suggesting different styles. Clothes had flown in and out of the changing room so fast that Gracie didn't think there was an outfit she hadn't tried on.
"I think I've fallen in love."
Trent choked back a laugh as he turned onto the highway. "It's just as well Caitlin's not around to hear you say that. So the dreamy expression on your face means you're happy?"
"I'm so happy I could kiss the person who shoved my suitcases on a plane going to Budapest. If they hadn't messed up majorly and you hadn't suggested Walmart, then I might never have discovered Sandra Lee's."
"I take it you're planning a return trip into town?"
"At least one." Gracie reached for the catalog she'd left beside her carry-on and thanked the computer savvy owner of the store. "I can even shop online."
"Why do I get the feeling you're about to max out your credit card?"
Gracie smiled at the worried look on Trent's face. "You don't know how hard it is to find clothes that fit me. Nothing needed to be shortened, tweaked or tailored. Ruby even said she'd call me when their next shipment arrives."
"Ruby?"
"The sales assistant. Ruby Monroe. She moved to Bozeman to be closer to her boyfriend and when they broke up, she decided to stay."
"You talked about Ruby's boyfriend while you were trying on clothes?"
"Ex-boyfriend and it's called multitasking. It's something women are good at." Gracie didn't need to see his raised eyebrows to know he didn't believe her. "It's true. Wait until you see me on the ranch."
That earned her a moment of silence. "Have you ever worked on a ranch before?"
She glanced at Trent, not sure how much his mom had told him about her. The only thing she knew about a ranch was to shut the gates and watch where you put your feet. Most people probably wouldn't be too impressed with her limited work experience, but Trent wasn't most people. At least she hoped he wasn't.
"I've fed baby lambs from a bottle and watched sheep being sheared. Does that count?"
"It would if we raised sheep. We've got two and a half thousand heifers and not one sheep in sight." A frown slid across his face. "I thought New Zealand had more cattle than people."
"We do, but there's not much need for cows in the city, except on the supermarket shelves. I've taken my class to visit farms around Wellington, but we've only gone to see the animals and not help with anything else."
"Do you know what you've signed up for, Gracie?"
He sounded worried, and maybe disappointed, so she tried to make him smile. "Early mornings, late nights and lots of hay?"
Trent shook his head. "I hope you're ready for a steep learning curve?"
Gracie didn't think anything could be as bad as what she'd been through in the last year. "Ready and willing, boss."
Trent stared straight ahead and Gracie closed her eyes. After the constant drone of the airplane and a whirlwind shopping spree, her energy levels h
ad dipped to almost zero.
Right about now, Trent was probably cursing his mom and Gerald. She didn't mind what chores Trent wanted her to do as long as she got a few hours sleep tonight. Tomorrow would be soon enough to rethink the plans she'd made for Bozeman. Plans that involved more than teaching and a ranch vacation.
She turned her head and stared out of the window. Except for the blue-green mountains in the distance, they were traveling through a valley so flat that it looked like a giant had squashed his footprint into the land. Gracie was used to hills and roads that twisted and turned, but she'd never seen mountains as high as the ones surrounding them or a sky so blue that it took her breath away.
"You live in a beautiful part of the world."
Trent glanced across the cab. "I wouldn't live anywhere else. If you want to try something different while you're here, there's always fly-fishing. Or we can take you big game hunting if you know how to shoot a gun."
The thought of shooting an animal sent a shiver down Gracie's spine. "I think I'll pass on the hunting, but fly-fishing sounds like fun. What would you be doing if you weren't in your truck with me?" she asked.
"I'd be out on my horse, moving cattle. There are more than thirty thousand acres on the Triple L. Moving stock over the spring and summer months is a big job."
Gracie heard the smile in his voice, sensed the deep pride he felt for his land and cattle. She could understand that kind of devotion. Teaching gave her the same rush of pleasure. It was more than the satisfaction of a job well done. It was knowing you were making a difference.
She took a small paperback out of her carry-on and flicked through the pages.
"What have you got there?"
She tapped the edge of the cover on her chin and grinned at her new boss. "I believe it's called a book. How many acres did you say you own?"
"Thirty thousand."
She turned the page, counting out numbers in her head. "That equals about twelve thousand hectares." She tried to imagine what a hectare of land looked like. City girls from New Zealand thought in terms of square meters. Townhouse sized square meters. No one she knew owned anywhere near one hectare, let alone twelve thousand of them.
"What's the book called?"
Flipping to the front cover, she said, "Americanisms in Plain English."
"You need a dictionary to understand what I'm saying? I can speak real slow if that helps you?"
"That won't be necessary, Mr. McKenzie. My brain works just fine, thank you."
A smile worked its way across Trent's face and Gracie held back a sigh. Before they'd left the shopping mall, Trent had thrown his hat on the back seat.
Without half his head in shadow, she was able to fully appreciate the sharp angles of his face. A strong jaw, pouty bottom lip and the hint of a dimple in his chin turned a rough and rugged cowboy into someone a girl should step carefully around. He had the kind of looks that could sweep an unsuspecting female off her feet and straight into his bed.
As she contemplated the likelihood of anyone ever sweeping her off her feet, he turned and looked at her. Gracie's heart pounded. Taking a deep breath, she tried to keep her brain focused on safe questions. "How many people work on your ranch?"
"Including me there are eleven of us. Less in the winter. You'll meet my brother, Jordan when we arrive."
Gracie didn't know if he was making conversation or warning her. One McKenzie brother had turned out to be trouble. Two of them on the loose would be pure insanity.
***
Gracie could have sworn they'd passed the boundary of the Triple L Ranch over ten minutes ago, but she still couldn't see the homestead.
Trent pointed to what would have been a large lake, but the water level was so low that it looked more like a crater on the moon. "The runoff from the mountains feeds a couple of large, spring-fed creeks. And the water from the creeks irrigates the entire ranch. At the moment we're in the middle of a drought, so the lakes we've created are only a third full at best."
"When did it last rain?"
"A couple of months ago. Every summer it gets worse. We're not as bad as other ranches, but it has the same impact. Feed prices skyrocket and we end up on water restrictions." He gazed out of the window, looking across the fields toward the mountains in the distance. "Even with a drought, the land's still amazing. If you want to go out hiking, I'll give you a map of some of the trails around the ranch. Yellowstone National Park's only a short trip away. You'll find some great walking tracks through there."
"What about Yogi Bear? Does he ever come visiting?"
"It's not the grizzlies you have to worry about, it's the wolves. Especially high in the mountains."
Gracie swallowed. Apart from her mom's dog, Tornado, she'd never been particularly fond of four-legged canines. Most big dogs looked her in the eyeballs, and even though she was pretty quick, four legs could outrun two human feet any day. Skipping the long walks and concentrating on something a bit closer to the house, like fishing, suddenly took on more appeal.
"Do you have other people working on the ranch like I am?" Gracie asked.
Trent's hands tightened on the steering wheel. "You mean like a dude ranch?"
"Exactly. Campfires, cattle roundups and horse trails. I bet there are lots of people who'd enjoy seeing Montana in all its glory."
"You're an exception. Group visits aren't going to happen here. This is a working cattle ranch, not an amusement park."
She knew she'd said something wrong as soon as she looked at Trent's clenched jaw. "I didn't mean to offend you."
"You didn't offend me." His death grip on the steering wheel relaxed as he settled back into the seat. "My brother's been trying to convince me to set up a dude ranch, but I'm not buying into all the cowboy hype. We earn our living off the land, not people."
She couldn't understand Trent's reluctance to open his home to strangers, but then she didn't understand much about his life. From what she'd seen so far, she was just glad he'd decided to let her stay on the ranch.
The driveway turned toward a clump of tall pine trees. Peeking out from above green branches she could see the top of a stone chimney. As a house came into view, Gracie swallowed a lump in her throat.
Oh, my. Special didn't even come close to describing the incredible home. If ever a house lived and breathed the Wild West, then this was it. She'd seen pictures of log cabins, but never any of this size and beauty.
Spread over two levels, the log house sheltered under a high pitched shingle roof. An enormous stone chimney rose from the center of the house. It teased her imagination into dreaming of roaring fires in the depth of a snow-covered winter. The side gable was made entirely of glass, supported by wooden beams shaped like spokes on a wagon wheel. A veranda wrapped around the front of the house, creating lots of comfortable nooks to take in the glorious view of mountains and pasture. Her jaw dropped when Trent stopped the truck by the entrance. "This is your house?"
"Yep."
"You live here all by yourself?"
"Sort of. Mrs. Davies, our housekeeper, has got her own living quarters attached to the far side of the house. Jordan moved into the bunkhouse a couple of months ago, but most days he comes across to raid the pantry. Apart from that, I'm on my own."
Sliding out of the truck, Gracie stared at his beautiful home.
Trent reached into the back seat, grabbing a few of the bags. "Come on in and I'll show you where you'll be sleeping. I'll get the rest of the shopping later."
The inside of the house was every bit as wonderful as the outside. The ceiling in the foyer soared high above Gracie's head. Golden timber logs bathed the house in a warm and welcoming glow, seeping deep into her tired body. As Trent moved up the staircase, she ran her hands along the wood, absorbing the essence of what made this home special.
She thought about her mom's house back in New Zealand. The one-hundred-year-old villa had been her sanctuary. It had given her a sense of peace when her life had been a tumble
of emotions, and stability when her world crumbled around her. Trent's house gave her the same feeling of protection. She felt like she'd flown over eight thousand miles from home and found a haven for lost souls.
"You're awfully quiet back there. Is everything all right?"
"I don't know what to say. Your home's beautiful."
Turning at the top of the stairs, he grinned at the stunned expression on her face. "Nice to know something can leave you speechless, little one."
"Be nice, Mr. McKenzie."
A deep rumble of laughter filled the stairwell.
"Is that you, Trent?"
Trent looked behind him, smiling at a woman coming out of a room further along the landing. "Mrs. Davies, come and meet Gracie."
Mrs. Davies walked toward them. She had a kind face that looked as though it laughed easily, and a shiny cap of silver hair that had been cut by someone with a good eye for fashion. But best of all she was only an inch or two taller than Gracie.
"Welcome to the Triple L, Gracie. Please call me Adele. Trent and Jordan have called me Mrs. Davies their entire lives and they refuse to call me anything else."
"Hi, Adele. It's nice to finally get here."
A warm smile lit the housekeeper's face. "Your bedroom's all ready for you. There are fresh towels in the bathroom and if you get cold during the night, there are extra quilts in your closet. If you need me for anything just head downstairs and follow the hallway as far as it goes."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome." She turned toward Trent. "Dinner's all cooked and waiting in the kitchen."
Trent nodded. "Thanks, Mrs. Davies. I appreciate you helping out at short notice."
"It's no bother. You'd better show Gracie her room before you drop all of those shopping bags on the floor. I'll see you tomorrow morning."
Gracie followed Trent into a room further along the landing. A huge bed with a brass headboard sat against one wall, piled high with blue and white cushions. A vase of bright yellow daisies sat on a white chest of drawers, and a rocking chair took pride of place in another corner. But it was the view of the mountains that drew her across the room to the window.
Trent left Gracie's clothes on the bed and stood beside her, nodding into the distance. "That's Beartooth Mountain. If you look hard, you can just make out Granite Peak. It's the highest point in Montana. All of the ranges in front of us are part of Yellowstone National Park."