when she came out of the bathroom. Her brunette hair was cut in a short bob that framed her face. The dark color brought out the tiny trail of freckles that arched over her nose and made her blue eyes look even larger. He stopped short at the sight of her.
“Is it that bad?” she asked in alarm.
He shook his head. “It’s that good. You look...amazing.”
She laughed, clearly relieved. “Isn’t it wild?” Rushing toward the bed, she said, “Let’s see what you got me to wear.” She held up the skirt and peasant blouse that went with it. “Oh, these are great. I can’t wait to try them on.” With that, she turned and hurried back into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.
He stared after her, surprised by her excitement—and a little worried. The woman was excited about wearing hand-me-down clothing that hadn’t even cost him twenty bucks? People reacted differently to fear, he knew, but Cassidy almost seemed to be treating this as if they were on some undercover adventure instead of probably running for their lives.
* * *
BUCK REALIZED HIS campaign manager was still speaking.
“What about your girls? Are they on board?”
He thought about his six daughters. He wouldn’t exactly say they were on board when it came to his political career. They’d grown up used to politics being discussed at meals, they’d lived through his run for senator and the subsequent years of his being gone to Washington.
But he knew that as supportive as they’d often said they were, none of them wanted this kind of attention. “You don’t have to worry about them.”
Jerrod eyed him as if reading between the lines. “We need them with you the night of the election. The public will want to see them—and the solidarity.”
The election was months away, Buck thought. A lot could happen between now and then.
“You have a big debate coming up,” Jerrod continued. “I need you to be on top of this. You can expect questions about Sarah and your relationship. Maybe you should go home and get some rest. We can do a run-through as the date approaches. I want you relaxed, confident and ready to be president. Make sure Sarah understands how important that is.”
He nodded, although he wasn’t sure telling Sarah would make a whole lot of difference. The woman who’d returned after being presumed dead for twenty-two years looked like the Sarah Johnson Hamilton he’d known, but she didn’t act like her. Maybe that Sarah was gone and he was a fool for thinking he could recapture the past and put his family back together. Sarah said she supported him, but if anything, she didn’t want to live in the White House. Nor was she here with him now or waiting for him in their house back on the ranch.
“I’ll be ready for the debate,” he said, picking up his Stetson. The best thing he could do now was to go back to Montana. He needed to find out what was going on with Sarah and see his daughters. He missed them and worried about them all the time even though they were settled into their own lives. Olivia and Bo were each now happily married. Olivia was talking about a second child, Bo was expecting twins, and Kat and Harper were engaged.
Only Ainsley, his oldest, was still single, and his youngest, Cassidy. In truth, he had no idea where either of them was at this moment. Ainsley had taken a job scouting locations in Montana for film companies after dropping out of law school. Cassidy, as far as he knew, was still in New York dating some Frenchman she’d met while in Europe.
After Jerrod dropped him off at the airport, Buckmaster put in a call to his youngest twin. He felt badly he hadn’t kept in touch. He’d spent so little time with them. He’d put his political career ahead of his family and was now doing it again.
When Angelina was alive, her driving ambition had been a tornado-like force that had kept him aloft. He’d gotten caught up in her dream of his being president. But Angelina was gone and he had a bad feeling that he should have dropped out before the primaries. Now he would hurt his party and possibly lose the election for the Republicans. He told himself he was just tired. Things would look different tomorrow. Unfortunately, he doubted that.
The call to Cassidy went directly to voice mail. “It’s your father. Please give me a call when you have time. I can’t remember the last time we talked.” He hung up realizing that she hadn’t been home in more than a year.
As he boarded the plane—unlike some candidates, he flew commercial since it was what Montana voters expected of him—he told himself he had to convince Sarah to come on the campaign trail with him. With her by his side, he believed he could do anything. But without her, without his family...
As soon as he landed in Bozeman, he called to tell Sarah he was on his way. He just had one thing he had to do first—make a call to the owner of a local jewelry store. The store had been closed for hours, but the owner promised to meet him there.
He had no idea what had happened to the first engagement ring—let alone wedding band—he’d given Sarah, but if he hoped for a new beginning, it was time to put a ring on her finger.
* * *
AS SARAH JOHNSON HAMILTON disconnected from Buck’s call, she turned to look at the man standing with his back to her. He was dressed in a dated brown suit and tie, which made him look like a second-rate undertaker. Hardly anyone wore suits in Montana unless they were getting married—or buried.
As if feeling her gaze on him, Dr. Ralph Venable turned to look at her. He was in his early seventies, but didn’t look his age. A tall, lean man with kind blue eyes, the doctor had unexpectedly shown up at her door back in the spring, something she’d kept secret from everyone.
“Was that Buck on the phone?” he asked now.
“He’s landed. We have time.” She’d been packing, planning to move in with Buck that night back in early spring, when the doctor had shown up at the old ranch house where she was still staying.
Seeing this man had frightened her, since, while she lived on Hamilton Ranch, she lived some distance from the main house—and everyone else, including her former husband and her six daughters.
“Who are you?” she’d demanded, telling herself that she didn’t know the older man who’d appeared at her door without warning. But he knew her. And bone-deep, she realized she did know him. His name was Dr. Ralph Venable and he was the man who had stolen twenty-two years of her memory. Dr. Venable specialized in brain wiping. Not only had he stolen her memories, he’d also planted false ones.
“You made me forget my life,” she had accused, moving quickly to the kitchen, where she’d grabbed a carving knife and brandished it as he’d followed her. “You stole twenty-two years from me.” Her voice had broken with emotion. “I missed seeing my babies grow up. Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you.”
“Because you need me.”
“Who hired you to do that to me?” she had asked, terrified he would say it had been Buck, the father of her children, the man she loved. She hadn’t wanted to suspect Buck, but the man who’d found her when she’d literally been dropped back into Montana, Russell Murdock, had been convinced that her husband had been behind the brain wiping. Russell believed that there was something Buck didn’t want her to remember. Something so terrible that it had driven her to attempt suicide all those years ago.
“I saved your life, Sarah,” Dr. Venable had said.
