to snow before the day was out.
In the distance, he could see a large star made out of red and green lights on the side of a barn, a reminder that Christmas was coming. Flint thought he might even get a tree this year, go up in the mountains and cut it himself. He hadn’t had a tree at Christmas in years. Not since...
At the sound of a pickup horn, he turned, shielding his eyes from the low winter sun. He could smell snow in the air, feel it deep in his bones. This storm was going to dump a good foot on them, according to the latest news. They were going to have a white Christmas.
Most years he wasn’t ready for the holiday season any more than he was ready for a snow that wouldn’t melt until spring. But this year was different. He felt energized. This was the year his life would change. He thought of the small velvet box in his jacket pocket. He’d been carrying it around for months. Just the thought of it made him smile to himself. He was in love and he was finally going to do something about it.
The pickup rumbled to a stop a few yards from him. He took a deep breath of the mountain air, and telling himself he was ready for whatever Mother Nature wanted to throw at him, he headed for the truck.
“Are you all right?” his sister asked as he slid into the passenger seat. In the cab out of the wind, it was nice and warm. He rubbed his bare hands together, wishing he hadn’t forgotten his gloves earlier. But when he’d headed out, he’d had too much on his mind. He still did.
Lillie looked out at the dull brown of the landscape and the chain-link fence that surrounded the missile silo. “What were you doing out here?”
He chuckled. “Looking for aliens. What else?” This was the spot that their father swore aliens hadn’t just landed on one night back in 1967. Nope, according to Ely Cahill, the aliens had abducted him, taken him aboard their spaceship and done experiments on him. Not that anyone believed it in the county. Everyone just assumed that Ely had a screw loose. Or two.
It didn’t help that their father spent most of the year up in the mountains as a recluse trapping and panning for gold.
“Aliens. Funny,” Lillie said, making a face at him.
He smiled over at her. “Actually, I was on an all-night stakeout. The cattle rustlers didn’t show up.” He shrugged.
She glanced around. “Where’s your patrol SUV?”
“Axle deep in a muddy creek back toward Grass Range. I’ll have to get it pulled out. After I called you, I started walking and I ended up here. Wish I’d grabbed my gloves, though.”
“You’re scaring me,” she said, studying him openly. “You’re starting to act like Dad.”
He laughed at that, wondering how far from the truth it was. “At least I didn’t see any aliens near the missile silo.”
She groaned. Being the butt of jokes in the county because of their father got old for all of them.
Flint glanced at the fenced-in area. There was nothing visible behind the chain link but tumbleweeds. He turned back to her. “I didn’t pull you away from anything important, I hope? Since you were close by, I thought you wouldn’t mind giving me a ride. I’ve had enough walking for one day. Or thinking, for that matter.”
She shook her head. “What’s going on, Flint?”
He looked out at the country that ran to the mountains. Cahill Ranch. His grandfather had started it, his father had worked it and now two of his brothers ran the cattle part of it to keep the place going while he and his sister, Lillie, and brother Darby had taken other paths. Not to mention their oldest brother, Tucker, who’d struck out at seventeen and hadn’t been seen or heard from since.
Flint had been scared after his marriage and divorce. But Maggie was nothing like Celeste, who was small, blonde, green-eyed and crazy. Maggie was tall with big brown eyes and long auburn hair. His heart beat faster at the thought of her smile, at her laugh.
“I’m going to ask Maggie to marry me,” Flint said and nodded as if reassuring himself.
When Lillie didn’t reply, he glanced over at her. It wasn’t like her not to have something to say. “Well?”
“What has taken you so long?”
He sighed. “Well, you know after Celeste...”
“Say no more,” his sister said, raising a hand to stop him. “Anyone would be gun-shy after being married to her.”
“I’m hoping she won’t be a problem.”
Lillie laughed. “Short of killing your ex-wife, she is always going to be a problem. You just have to decide if you’re going to let her run your life. Or if you’re going to live it—in spite of her.”
So easy for her to say. He smiled, though. “You’re right. Anyway, Maggie and I have been dating for a while now and there haven’t been any...incidents in months.”
Lillie shook her head. “You know Celeste was the one who vandalized Maggie’s beauty shop—just as you know she started that fire at Maggie’s house.”
“Too bad there wasn’t any proof so I could have arrested her. But since there wasn’t and no one was hurt and it was months ago...”
“I’d love to see Celeste behind bars, though I think prison is too good for her. She belongs in the loony bin. I can understand why you would be worried about what she will do next. She’s psychopathic.”
He feared that that maybe was close to the case. “Do you want to see the ring?” He knew she did, so he fished it out of his pocket. He’d been carrying it around for quite a while now. Getting up his courage? He knew what was holding him back. Celeste. He couldn’t be sure how she would take it—or what she might do. His ex-wife seemed determined that he and Maggie shouldn’t be together, even though she was apparently happily married to local wealthy businessman Wayne Duma.
Handing his sister the small black velvet box, he waited as she slowly opened it.
A small gasp escaped her lips. “It’s beautiful. Really beautiful.” She shot him a look. “I thought sheriffs didn’t make much money?”
“I’ve been saving for a long while now. Unlike my sister, I live pretty simply.”
She laughed. “Simply? Prisoners have more in their cells than you do. You aren’t thinking of living in that small house of yours after you’re married, are you?”
“For a while. It’s not that bad. Not all of us have huge new houses like you and Trask.”
“We need the room for all the kids we’re going to have,” she said. “But it is wonderful, isn’t it? Trask is determined that I have everything I ever wanted.” Her gaze softened as the newlywed thought of her husband.
“I keep thinking of your wedding.” There’d been a double wedding with both Lillie and her twin, Darby, getting married to the loves of their lives only months ago. “It’s great to see you and Trask so happy. And Darby and Mariah... I don’t think Darby is ever going to come off that cloud he’s on.”
Lillie smiled. “I’m so happy for him. And I’m happy for you. You know I really
