The skirt of her dress had deep creases, as if she’d been sitting for a long time. Behind the wheel of a crappy old truck.
“Where did you sleep last night?”
“I didn’t.”
He’d guess she was running on fumes. “Do you have a place to stay here in Blackwater Lake?”
She shook her head. “Not yet. Maybe you could recommend something.”
Glancing out the window, he assessed her ride. The paint was old and chipped, and rust showed through in some places. It had seen better days. He figured she probably couldn’t afford to pay for a room.
“Blackwater Lake Lodge is the only place in town, but it’s expensive.”
“That’s okay. I’ll be all right.”
Again, that was probably pride talking. Sleeping in the truck wasn’t a good idea, but she likely had no other choice. She was here without a lot of options. And somehow he felt she was now his problem, which he didn’t like even a little bit. Bottom line was the camp needed an extra pair of hands and the duties weren’t rocket science. He couldn’t afford to be too choosy.
He stood up. “The job comes with room and board. Meals included.”
She blinked those big green eyes at him. “Are you hiring me?”
“Subject to approval by Caroline Daly. She manages the camp for me and also does the cooking.”
“Wow. I don’t know what to say.”
He didn’t, either. If anyone had told him he’d be hiring a runaway bride that day, crazy would have been the first word that came to mind.
The thought made him irritable. “Do you want the job or not?”
“I want it.”
He looked at the dress then met her gaze. “Do you have anything else to wear?”
“No.”
“You’ll need stuff. I can give you an advance—”
“That’s okay. I can handle it.”
“Okay.” He wasn’t going to argue. “Michelle can tell you where the discount store is and give you directions to the ranch. Like she said, it’s about ten miles outside of town. When you’ve got what you need, meet me there.”
“Thank you, Mr. Dixon.”
“It’s Cabot.” He looked at his watch and shook his head. If he didn’t leave now he’d be late picking Tyler up from school. “I have to go.”
“Okay.” She held out her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Cabot. I promise you won’t regret this decision.”
Time would tell. He shook her hand and the electricity that shot up his arm made him regret not letting Michelle handle the interview solo. But the diner owner was pretty close to dead on about one thing. He was a sucker for hard-luck cases. At least he wasn’t a romantic sucker anymore.
When a wife walked out on her husband and infant son, it tended to crush the romance out of a man.
* * *
A few hours later, as Kate Scott was driving to the ranch, she figured a rush of adrenaline was the only explanation for the fact that she hadn’t passed out and run off the road into a ditch. She’d never been this tired in her life. As an athlete she was trained to eat well, get enough sleep and take care of her body. In the past twenty-four hours she’d done none of the above. Candy bars and coffee were nothing more than survival snacks. That was what happened when you drove from Southern California to Montana in nineteen hours.
But the adrenaline rush in the diner had been unexpected. It had a lot to do with Cabot Dixon, she thought as she drove Angelica, her brother’s ancient truck, through his gates and beneath a sign that announced Dixon Ranch and Summer Camp.
Serenity was the first thing she noticed. It was all about rolling green meadows crisscrossed by a white picket fence. Majestic mountains stood like sentinels in the distance. As the truck continued slowly up the long drive, she passed a huge house. It looked a lot like a really big wooden cabin with dormers and a double-door front entry. The kind of place Architectural Digest would have on the cover for an article about mountain homes for the wealthy.
Following the instructions Michelle Crawford had given her, Kate drove past a real working barn, then a smaller barnlike building with a large patio and scattered picnic tables. That must be where camp meals were served. Beyond that were six spacious cabins. Michelle had told her the first five housed campers and senior counselors, and the last one, a much smaller cabin, would be where she’d stay for the summer. If she got the cook’s approval for the assistant-counselor position.
She parked by cabin number six and turned off the truck’s ignition before blowing out a long breath. What a relief to just be still. It felt weird. Not good; not bad. Just...strange. She couldn’t remember the last time she hadn’t had a million things going on at once. Training, practice, competition and product endorsements made for twenty-hour workdays. Now she had...nothing.
Sliding out of the truck, she noticed a little boy running toward her. Oh, to have that much energy, she thought.
The dark-haired, dark-eyed kid skidded to a stop in front of her. He looked about seven or eight. “Hi. I’m Tyler, but most people call me Ty. Not my teacher, though. She believes in calling kids by their given name.”
“I’m Kate Scott. Nice to meet you, Ty.” His features and the intensity stamped on them were familiar. “I bet your last name is Dixon.”
“It is.” His long-lashed eyes grew bigger, as if she’d read his mind. “How’d you know?”
“You look like your dad.”
“That’s what folks say.”
And when he grew up, he’d probably be just as drop-dead gorgeous as his father. It hadn’t escaped her notice that Cabot Dixon was one fine-looking man, which had probably sparked the unexpected blast of adrenaline at the diner. She hadn’t been too tired to notice that he wasn’t wearing a wedding ring.
She’d felt only a little shame about the spurt of gladness following the observation. Shame because mere hours ago she’d been on the verge of getting married and now she was scoping out commitment symbols, or lack thereof, on the handsome rancher. It felt wrong to ask this little boy about his mother, so she didn’t.
She looked around and saw the lake just past a grassy area beyond the cabins. “This is a nice place you’ve got here, Ty.”
“It’s not mine. It’s my dad’s.” His expression was solemn, as if he’d been taught to tell only the absolute truth. “He told me to come down and let you know he and Caroline will be here in a few minutes.” The boy thought for a moment, as if trying to remember something, and then his expression changed. “Oh, yeah. And I’m s’posed to welcome you to the ranch.”
“Thanks. That’s very
