Forever Dreams (Montana Brides) (10 page)

“What countries did Jim visit?” Trent asked.

Gracie’s gaze locked on his face. The words had fallen off the end of his tongue as if the question wasn’t the most important thing in the world to her.

Kristina dropped her gaze to her hands, tightly clasped in her lap. She looked across at Gracie, and then turned back to Trent. “Jim visited a lot of places. His passport looks like an advertisement for the United Nations. He got so many stamps that we gave up counting how many countries he’d visited after he filled up his third passport.” She cleared her throat. “Who wants dessert?”

Gracie didn’t think she’d be able to eat another thing. Her stomach twisted into a ball of knots. The questions she’d carefully thought about back in New Zealand seemed too personal, too much of an intrusion into Kristina’s life. She needed to speak with Jim, but for the first time since she’d begun her search she wasn’t excited. She was scared. Scared of the answers to questions that had sat heavily on her shoulders for the last eight months.

“You go ahead, Kristina.” Trent stood up and held his hand out to Gracie. “I’m going to introduce Gracie to Becky.”

Gracie looked at his hand, reaching out to the only person that knew what was running through her mind.
 

He slid his palm around her wrist, pulling her upright. “We’ll be back soon.” Wrapping his arm around her shoulders, Trent nudged her toward the side of the house. “You’ve gone pale. Take a few deep breaths.”

As soon as they were out of sight, Gracie leaned forward, bracing her hands on her knees. She sucked in a great lungful of air, trying to clear the fuzzy dots drifting across her eyes. Trent’s hand rubbed her back in slow deliberate circles, centering a world that had tilted on its end.
 

“Are you alright?”

Gracie nodded.
 
“I don’t know why I got so wound up. Half the men in Montana know how to wrestle a steer to the ground and ride a bull.” She stood up, trying to control her pounding heart. “I shouldn’t get too excited about Kristina’s husband being in the rodeo. And it could be a coincidence that he traveled a lot.”
 

“What’s your father’s name, Gracie?”

“I can’t tell you.”

Trent’s hand dropped to his side. “Can’t or won’t?” He stared at her with a mule-headed stubborn look on his face.
 

“If I find my father it could stir up a whole lot of issues. I don’t want you getting in the middle of my problems when you’ve got enough of your own.”

“Who is he, Gracie?”

Trent looked like he was fit to burst when Gracie kept her mouth closed.
 

“It won’t do any good keeping it a secret if you want help finding him.”

“You have to promise not to tell anyone I’m looking for my father.”
 

“You think I’d go around telling everyone?”
 

“Of course I don’t,” Gracie sighed. “But he might not live here and the list of names I’ve got could be totally wrong.”

“You wouldn’t have come all this way if you didn’t have an idea of who you were looking for. What’s his name, Gracie?”

“James Green.”

Trent’s body stilled. “So it could be Kristina’s husband?”
 

Gracie shrugged her shoulders. There had to be thousands of men in the world with her father’s name. It would be pure luck if her father still lived in Montana. If he was still alive. “I don’t know if it’s Kristina’s husband or not.”

Trent’s gaze traveled the length of the house, staring at a clump of trees sheltering the backyard. Children’s excited voices cut through the silence that had settled on their hiding place.
 

“Jim’s not going to be home for a while. That will give you time to locate some of the other people on your list.”
 

“I guess I should be glad he stopped still long enough to settle in one place. At least I’ll be able to find out one way or another whether we’re related.” Her lips wobbled into a half smile. A breeze stirred the nape of Gracie’s neck, cool and inviting, taking the sting out of the late afternoon heat. “We’d better get back to the others before they think we’ve disappeared.”

“Will you be alright?”

“I’ll be fine...” As they rounded the edge of the house more than one set of eyes followed them. “…but I don’t know about you.”
 

Gracie stopped in the middle of the yard. A ball flew along the ground straight toward them, followed by a red-faced six-year-old looking like he’d nearly run out of steam. Gracie put her foot out to stop the ball and kicked it back to the little guy. His face broke into a grin as he booted the ball back to the rest of the kids playing in the yard.
 

“I’m not about to stand between a man and his dreams.”
 

“What dreams?” Trent asked.

 
“Marriage. Babies. If people see us spending time together your wedding plans might turn to custard. Katie might be tempted to start looking elsewhere for her match made in heaven.”
 

Trent bent down until his head was level with hers. A smile hovered on his lips and his grey eyes flashed brighter than the afternoon sun.
 
“You’ve forgotten one thing, Gracie,” he whispered. “I’m not looking for heaven.”

CHAPTER FIVE

Tossing the salad one last time, Gracie put it on a tray along with a couple of cold cans of lemonade and headed out of the kitchen. This time tomorrow night the first guests would be arriving for the best barn dance Bozeman had ever seen. For the last few days every ranch hand, wife and girlfriend had been working hard to get the Triple L ready for the big night.
 

Smoke from the barbecue stung her eyes as she walked through the French doors. Settling the tray onto the wooden table, she passed Trent a drink and leaned against the railing surrounding the deck.

“Thanks, Gracie. How was your ride with Jordan?”

She watched sausages and steak sizzle on the hot grill. “Spectacular, breathtaking, inspiring…and that’s only for starters.”

“I take it you’re talking about the scenery and not Jordan?”

Gracie laughed. “If I told Jordan he was all of those things his head would swell so much he wouldn’t be able to get through the kitchen door. And I wouldn’t do that to him because I know how much he loves Adele’s cooking.” Smiling at the warmth in Trent’s gaze, she ducked her head and fiddled with her glass. “In between admiring the mountains, we managed to find enough wildflowers to fill the barn to overflowing.”

“I take it you’re hooked, then?”

In more ways than one, a little voice whispered. “It kind of puts your life into perspective when you’re sitting on top of the world, watching nature do what it’s done for hundreds of thousands of years.”
 

Turning the heat down on the barbecue, Trent brushed more marinade over the meat.

Gracie took a sip of her drink. “I’m beginning to understand how you feel about the land. If I’d grown up here I’d want to raise my family on the ranch as well.”

Dropping the barbecue fork, Trent turned to face her. “Be still my beating heart. Does this mean you’ll marry a lowly cowboy?”

“No,” she laughed. “Life wasn’t meant to be that easy.”

“You’re a cruel woman.”

She blew him a kiss. “That’s what they all say.” Thinking about his desperate bid to find a wife reminded her of the reason she’d come to Montana. Over the last week she hadn’t had any luck tracking down any more J. Greens.
 

She’d even caught a ride into town with Jordan, convincing him to do a drive-by of two addresses she’d found in the phone book. He’d taken his beat-up work truck, sitting hunched in the driver’s seat with his hat pulled low, just in case someone recognized him. He hadn’t wanted to add stalking to his colorful reputation around town.

“I had a call from Gerald today.” Trent turned back to the barbecue. “His mom’s not doing as well as they expected. He’s going to stay with her for another few weeks. He wants to know if you’re happy to do the whole six weeks out here first and the last two in Bozeman.”
 

Gracie held the cold can of lemonade to her flushed face. “How do you feel about that?”

“Fine by me. As long as you’re happy?”
 

Gracie stared long and hard at his back. He didn’t seem worried about living together for another four weeks. She’d almost been looking forward to going into Bozeman. At least that way she could get on with her life and leave Trent to find the perfect Mrs. McKenzie. Wanting to jump his bones every time she saw him hardly made for a stress free living arrangement.
 

“Gracie?” Trent’s back muscles clenched under his fitting t-shirt as he turned to look at her.

She dragged her gaze back to her drink. She really had to do something about her fascination with his body. “Okay, let’s give it a go. But if I start to annoy you, just tell me and I’ll head into town.”

“Can I have that in writing?”

Gracie sighed. “I’ll leave it on the kitchen counter in the morning. What time are you leaving for tonight’s poker game?”

“Are you trying to get rid of me?”

“Only when you’ve finished cooking dinner,” she said sweetly.

“Just for that, you can have the burnt piece of steak.”
 

Jordan walked onto the deck, looking a lot cleaner since the last time Gracie had seen him. He’d spent the afternoon with his head buried in a work truck, covered in grease and engine oil, grumbling non-stop about idiot people who didn’t know how to look after their vehicles.
 

“You need to have a serious talk with your brother, Jordan. He wants to give me burnt meat for dinner.”

“He usually saves that for me. You must be making an impression on him.”
 

Trent choked on his lemonade. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and glared at his brother. “And you would be here because?”

“I’m hungry, and you’re giving me a lift into the game tonight.” Jordan glanced at the barbecue. “Sausages need a turn. I’ll just go and get myself a plate and then it looks as though dinner’s ready.”

Trent watched his brother swagger into the dining room. “How the hell did he know we were eating?”

“It could have something to do with the smoke signals you’re wafting over the ranch.” Gracie laughed. “It was probably the burnt steak that did it.”

Saturday morning dawned bright and clear. Gracie stood in the kitchen, munching on a piece of toast and watching the first rays of the sun peak over the horizon. Trent came into the room looking all sleep tousled and cuddly.
 

He blinked. “Gracie? What are you doing up and dressed so early?”

“Morning to you too.” Smiling at his stunned expression, she added milk to her mug of chocolate. “We’re going into Bozeman for the farmers’ market, remember?”

“Yeah, but it’s only five thirty. We don’t have to leave for another hour yet.” He yawned and scratched the back of his head. “Why aren’t you still in bed?”

“I promised Karen I’d make more pavlovas for the barn dance. I made five yesterday and there’s another two in the oven. By the time we leave they’ll be done.”

Trent reached across the counter, pouring himself a thick, black mug of coffee. Just thinking about the mega-dose of caffeine hitting his system was enough to make Gracie’s stomach turn.
 

Trent leaned back against the counter. A look of bliss settled on his face as he swallowed his first sip. “I know, I know. This stuff’s not good for me. But it tastes real good first thing in the morning.”

Reaching for her hot chocolate, Gracie raised it in a salute, “We’ve all got to live dangerously at some point. How did the poker game go?”

Trent shook his head. “Not good. Adam cleaned me out of chips twice.” He glared across the room as Jordan came bounding into the kitchen. “What on earth are you doing here this early?”

“Isn’t that just dandy. A person gives up their Saturday morning sleep-in to be greeted by a grumpy old man in the morning.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “Not exactly husband making material there.”

Gracie coughed as a toast crumb disappeared down her windpipe.

Trent glared at her. “Gracie?”

“Not me, I haven’t said a word. Scout’s promise.”

Jordan opened the fridge, pulling out last night’s leftovers. “The trouble with you, big brother, is that you think we’re all as blinkered as you are. Mom said you’ve been looking for a lady-love. What could be more romantic than meeting Ms. Right in the middle of a pile of hay?” He looked across at Gracie.
 

She felt herself blush scarlet.

Jordan stuck a plate of food in the microwave. “I’ve seen the guest list and the single girls are coming from far and wide. You’re not the only one who wants to look good, bro’.”

“You must think you’re a lost cause if you’re up at five thirty to get cleaned-up.” Trent poured another cup of coffee, holding it out to his brother as he passed by.

“Some of us don’t need to stay in bed to look beautiful, and some of us need all the help they can get.” He stared pointedly at Trent. “As I’m not the man in the firing line, I can afford to be a little more relaxed about my ruggedly handsome features.”

Gracie burst out laughing, earning her a sharp glance from Trent. Which made her laugh even harder.
 

Jordan winked at Gracie. “Mom gave me a list of jobs to do this morning. After I’ve had breakfast I thought I’d go across to the barn and make sure the decorations didn’t fall off the wall last night.” He eyed the toast that had just popped. “Are you going to eat that or just look at it?”

Trent sighed, passing him the toast.
 

Gracie rinsed her dishes and put them in the dishwasher. “I’ll be back in ten minutes, Jordan. I’ll meet you over at the barn and give you a hand until Trent’s ready to leave.”

Jordan grunted as Gracie left the room.

Trent followed her out of the kitchen. “Wait up, Gracie. I’ve got a surprise for you. Take a look in the living room.”
 

She stopped in the hallway. “You’ve found a wife already?”