CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Belle sat on Trevor’s gelding, the noontime sun shining warm on her back. Blake and Henry had brought her on a roundabout way out to Five Sisters so they would end up on a rise that afforded the best view of the ranch. They forked their horses, three across, taking in the Colorado scenery.
Cradled between two forested highlands was a large valley. Along the distant stand of trees she could make out a river, but couldn’t tell from here whether the flow was swift or slow. She was able to pick out a grove of cottonwood trees and tall, magical aspens. Several windmills in the midst of the ranch yard turned slowly in welcome, and vines that she thought might be honeysuckle twined up their legs.
“To the right,” Blake said, pointing, “is the old homestead. She might look rickety, but she’s stood off many a bad snow year as well as torrential rains—and the big winds we can get in the spring. She’s kept us just fine all through the years.” He pointed again. “That’s where the new place will go up.”
His voice was low and calm. By his tone, there was no doubt how much he loved the land, the ranch, and everything in between. Although the hint of resentment told her he liked that old house just fine and didn’t see a need for a new one. Belle didn’t dare look over to see the expression on his face.
“No argument she needs a little loving care,” he said. “But as Henry said, there’ll be a new one going up soon enough. Until then, I’m sure you and your sisters will want to stay in Eden at the hotel, where the accommodations are comfortable and there’s the eatery downstairs.”
Since she wasn’t sure yet what she and her sisters would decide on that subject, she ignored his comment. A smattering of aspens grew on the slopes between them and the ranch. In her mind, she imagined the clacking of the rigid, almost heart-shaped leaves and rolling soft strips of white bark between her fingers. Is that a childhood memory? That plus the feel of velvety-soft grass beneath my bare feet? They had no aspens in Philadelphia. She’d never gone barefoot outside before. And what of the unfamiliar, deep voice calling to Mavis and me?
Henry touched her arm. “Belle?”
“Beautiful,” she murmured, shaking off the gentle squeeze of her heart. “Every bit as lovely as you said. I can see why Father loved the ranch so. Back in Philadelphia, we’re used to breathing coal dust and smelling grease on the streets.” She took a deep breath and held it for several seconds. “This air smells so sweet.”
She took in the barn as well as the corrals and a rambling bunkhouse with a high-pitched roof. Leaning forward in her saddle, she felt an unsettling pull toward the land. This was Father’s dream, not mine. The place is a means to an end, right? This is not where my heart belongs. In six months, I’ll be back home with Lesley. Disconcerted, she pushed the questions away, glancing at Henry and then at Blake. The men seemed lost in their own thoughts.
“Henry, concerning the new house . . .” She felt awkward voicing her opinion on such an important matter, one that would usually be reserved for men. She had to realize she was now a partner—at least for the time being. Her views mattered. She wasn’t dealing with Vernon and Velma anymore. “I know your heart is in the right place, but I’m not sure taking on a huge debt would be prudent. Such an undertaking must be substantial. Spending all that money just so we can live comfortably seems almost sinful.”
Henry was looking at her in wonder. Blake still gazed out at the valley.
What must they think? They don’t realize we sisters have worked since the day we finished school. We’ve saved prudently all our lives. She knew the meaning of a dollar and didn’t like wasting a cent.
“A frivolous, unneeded expenditure,” she went on, trying to make a point. “Until we know more about the accounting books and income, I think we should wait. I feel moderately certain my sisters will agree. If Mother could live all those years in that little house, I’m sure we’ll be able to as well. We never asked to be pampered. Or for a fuss to be made.”
Henry chuckled. “Sorry, Belle, but that decision isn’t up to you and the girls. Or Blake, for that matter. John felt strongly about building. If you’re to stay on, even for only the six months, the new homestead will go up as planned, along with the smaller one for Blake. Knowing I’d follow through on his wishes made John able to die in peace. If you do decide to sell after the allotted time, which you have every right to do, the additions will make the ranch’s worth go straight up. Those rich Easterners are taken in by our big and bold ways. You needn’t worry about the cost. Long ago, your father opened a separate account to pay for it. The money is just sitting there, waiting to be spent. The Five Sisters can afford it.”
She chanced a glance at Blake. He was a difficult man to figure out, but she thought she knew what his carved-in-stone, unreadable expression meant. Driving up the price would make his ability to buy them out that much more problematic.
Blake doesn’t appear flush with cash, not like Lesley and his family, who throw money around like water.
“Indeed. The money is there,” Blake agreed, although he’d not taken his attention off the ranch stretched out before them. “John spoke often of the new place for his daughters.”
The way he’d said “daughters” made her sit straighter. She could tell he didn’t like them one bit, no matter how he tried to act nice. He thought them spoiled and arrogant. He was inconvenienced by them, but worse, he feared they’d hurt the ranch. The urge to strike squeezed her heart.
“So much land,” she said with phony excitement. “I can only guess at how much it’s worth. A true fortune. You must have speculators sniffing around all the time.”
His mouth actually opened in surprise. “Is that how your sisters feel as well? Ready to sell off the first time you lay eyes on the place?”
“I’ve seen it before.” She glanced over her shoulder at Henry to find he hadn’t heard their comments—or was ignoring them. Either way, the hot stare Blake was sending her was meant, she was sure, to intimidate her. “Eighteen-plus years ago. So quickly you forget.” She smiled.
His jaw clenched and released several times. “John scrimped and saved to add each and every acre to this place, for the likes of you. He talked of seeing your face when he showed you the land the first time, and how you’d love the vastness just like he did. I’m glad he’s not here to hear you talking about the money selling it could put in your pocket.”
A man stepped out the door of the bunkhouse, drawing Blake’s stunned expression away.
Her smile faded. Even though he deserved a moment of unease for his lack of faith in her, she felt childish for baiting him needlessly. The fella on the bunkhouse porch glanced around as if he had a feeling he was being watched.
With a hard-set mouth, Blake drew his gun. Before Belle could even think to gather her reins, he shot a round into the air. Surprisingly, Gunner didn’t even flinch.
Thank goodness he’s not a flighty Philadelphia park mount.
The man on the bunkhouse porch shaded his eyes and searched the area in their direction. When he saw them, he waved his arm several times and then disappeared back inside.
“That’d be KT, one of the hands,” Blake said sourly. “He’s a wealth of information in case you find yourself in need of any answers . . .”
“If you’re not around?” She filled in the blank and smiled. “Good to know. Thank you.”
Blake nodded and took up where he’d left off. “The new barn was built five years ago. There are a few cattle here and there, but most of the corrals are almost empty.” He shifted in the saddle. “A few head came wandering in, feeling the roundup drawing near.”
That’s so interesting. “They know the time of year? That’s remarkable.”
Blake glanced her way, his scar a deep scarlet. “Sure.”
Belle noted his tone. If he was ten when we left the ranch, then he’s twenty-eight now. Six years older than herself, since she was about to turn twenty-two in ten days. Has he gotten any education, living here in Eden and working on the ranch since he was a boy?
Blake stretched his legs, making his saddle creak. “Soon every one of those corrals will be full, and the ranch will look—and sound—quite different.”
“This is only a small part,” Henry stated, nudging his horse closer. “Your father, and now you and your sisters, as well as Blake, own tens of thousands of acres. The Five Sisters is huge. There’s a reason she dominates in Colorado.”
Henry was looking at her, gauging her reaction. Suddenly, she wanted him to be proud of her. She didn’t want to fall short in his eyes. “I can’t wait for my sisters to arrive,” she said, the weight of his scrutiny making her fidget. “I don’t remember the house, but I’m drawn to it. I’d like to go inside.”
“This may sound strange,” Henry went on, “but I’m feeling rather fatherly at the moment. I think I know how John would’ve felt today.” He withdrew his handkerchief and actually blotted his eyes.
Hot pinpricks jabbed at the backs of hers. As hard as Belle tried to keep the moisture at bay, a tear slipped out, which she quickly brushed away. “I have the impression he’s somehow near. Do you think that’s possible?”
Henry nodded. “I do.”
Blake kept quiet.
“Mother said the only thing he ever talked about was Eden,” she breathed, mesmerized by the sight before her.
Henry shifted his weight. “And you girls.”
Guilt pushed at her lungs.
Henry took off his hat and pointed toward the mountains. “Your land runs all the way to the base. And you’ll find a lot of highland open pastures. That’s where your cattle feed in the summer and fall, before the snows hit. After the roundup, Blake will take you and your sisters on a pack trip so you can see the whole ranch.”
She glanced at Blake. “You will?”
His eyebrow twitched.
“We’ll camp?”
“There aren’t any inns or hotels out there. Just soft grass and fresh air.”
“What about Indians?”
Blake leaned his forearms on his saddle horn. By the gauge of his smile, he was about to exact his revenge.
“What about ’em? Most live on the reservations to the south and east, but not all. Renegades cause dustups from time to time, but we’ve learned to live with ’em best we can. We’ve a mutual respect for one another.”
She mulled that around, thinking of her mother. Then she caught sight of movement. “Look.” Belle pointed to a buggy approaching at a quick pace. The spinning wheels kicked up a plume of dust on the dirt road.
“That would be your sisters,” Henry said. “We best get down there so you don’t miss all the fun. I expect they’re excited to be back after eighteen years.”
Following the men’s lead, she nudged her horse into a jog. Right now, she wasn’t sure whether Blake was their partner or an enemy. Belle wasn’t sure about much, except the beauty of the land, the invigorating way it made her feel, and the fact that, with the amount of acreage Henry had mentioned they had to explore, six months suddenly felt like it would go by awfully fast.