Montana Reunion Read online

  MONTANA REUNION

  SORAYA LANE

  MONTANA REUNION

  SORAYA LANE

  Copyright © Soraya Lane 2012

  Edited by Laura Bradford of Bradford Literary Agency

  Cover by Mixing Ink Design

  All rights reserved. Except for us in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form is forbidden without the prior written permission of the copyright owner of this book.

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Soraya is represented by Bradford Literary Agency.

  To contact Soraya, visit her website www.sorayalane.com, on twitter @Soraya_Lane or email her: [email protected]

  Also by Soraya Lane

  The Navy SEAL’s Promise

  Rescued by the Rancher

  The Soldier’s Sweetheart

  The Navy SEAL’s Bride

  Back in the Soldier’s Arms

  Rodeo Daddy

  The Army Ranger’s Return

  Soldier on Her Doorstep

  A Note From Soraya

  The only thing more exciting than starting a new story is starting a new series! For longer than I can remember, I’ve been carrying around a red notebook filled with ideas for a “cowboy” series, and it’s with great pleasure that I share the first in my MONTANA collection of books with you.

  As always, I’d like to thank my mom for her constant help with our young son, which allows me time to write. I also have to thank my regular support team, Natalie and Nicola, as well as my agent-extraordinaire, Laura Bradford.

  Look out for the next three books in the series, MONTANA HOMECOMING, MONTANA LEGACY and MONTANA CHRISTMAS.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Epilogue

  CHAPTER ONE

  JACK Gregory closed his fist over the crumpled piece of paper he held, smothering it. He hated him. He hated his father with a passion he hadn’t even realized he was capable of.

  All these years of putting up with him, of trying to stay civil for the sake of their land, and now he was finally gone and the man was still trying to punish him.

  Jack walked to the window and looked out over the fields – across the parched, yellowed grass and out to the cattle roaming in the distance. He loved it here. He loved every tree that shaded his stock, every animal that grazed on his land, and the house that had been in his mom’s family for generations.

  The one mistake he’d made was honoring his father’s wish of burying him on the ranch in the family plot.

  His father had been true to his word, he just hadn’t expected there to be a clause attached to his will, a note that was read out aloud in his lawyer’s office, like a final serving of punishment to ensure he suffered even now that he was on his own. It wasn’t binding, would never hold up in a court of law to stop him from inheriting, but it sure made his father’s thoughts clear. That his eldest son had failed him as much as his youngest had.

  Jack collected his hat, slipped it into place on his head, and walked out the door. He whistled for his dog, asleep in the cool shade beneath the veranda, and headed for the barn.

  He had no intention of marrying, his father had known that, but running this ranch was something he was determined to do. With every beat of his heart, he would prove to himself that not everything about their old life had died when his mom had.

  Maddison Jones reached for her sister’s hand and squeezed her fingers.

  “Have I told you how good it is to be back?”

  Charley laughed, retrieving her hand and placing it back on the wheel. “Only a few times since you got in the car.”

  Maddison touched her head to the cool of the window, watching as the world she’d left behind so long ago sped past. “I know I was desperate to leave, but maybe I never realized how special it was here.”

  Growing up in Montana had been amazing, she realized that now. But as a teenager it had seemed like there was nothing here for her. Now it was like she’d come full circle, and getting back home had been the only thing she’d been able to focus on lately.

  “I’ve been trying to tell you that for the last five years,” Charley said, slowing as they approached the turn off to their ranch. “Clean air, horses, real people… what’s not to love?”

  It wasn’t that she hadn’t loved it years ago, but there had been other things she’d wanted to experience. Places she wanted to go. People she wanted to meet. Except she probably could have done without some of the people she’d met.

  “So tell me about dad? How is he really?” she asked.

  Her sister didn’t take her eyes off the road, but Maddison didn’t miss the tension that dragged her eyebrows together. “He’s okay, I guess, but he just won’t slow down. Doesn’t seem to think I can handle things on my own, even though I’m the young, able bodied one and he’s technically supposed to be on bed rest still.”

  “Or maybe he just doesn’t want you to do it alone?” Maddison suggested. “Mom’s concerned about you doing so much, and dad probably can’t stand the thought of not working the land every day. Rest isn’t exactly something he’s used to.

  Charley’s face lost the frown and her mouth turned upwards into a smile instead. “Do you know who’s been helping out lately?”

  Now it was Maddison’s turn to raise her eyebrows in question. “Who?”

  “Jack.”

  Oh. Now that was a name that still made her smile, even if it had been… She shut off the question in her mind. Way too long was how long it had been. “How’s he doing on his own?”

  “Fine, I think. But then his dad’s only been gone a month.”

  Maddison nodded, suddenly feeling claustrophobic in the vehicle. Just looking outside at the land rolling past the window was making her want to stretch her legs. And thinking about Jack had made her take a very fast trip down memory lane. To what seemed like centuries ago, but was little more than a decade.

  “I should have kept in touch with him.”

  Charley shrugged. “Yeah, you should have.”

  Not what she’d needed to hear. “It wasn’t that I didn’t want to, but things change. People change.” Sounded corny but it was true, and Jack had been her best friend. She’d never intended on losing contact with him, it had just happened.

  “Speak of the devil.”

  Maddison looked up so fast she practically gave herself whiplash. “Where?” she asked.

  “Top of the ridge.”

  She followed the field in a straight line up as Charley slowed. Riding down towards them, mounted on a black horse with four white socks and a striking white blaze, was a man way bigger than Maddison remembered Jack to be. “Are you sure that’s him?”

  Why the hell had no one told her what the grown up Jack was like?

  “No, it must be another lone cowboy riding out on the Gregory land.”

  Charley’s voice was sarcastic. But it didn’t make Maddison look away.

  “It just, doesn’t, well…” Maddison held up her hand in a wave as the rider did the same. Geez, it really was him. “Jack’s kind of changed.”

  “Has he? I haven’t noticed.” Charle
y laughed. “Bet you’re regretting not staying in touch with him now, huh?”

  Maddison ignored her. She had no intention of rising to the bait. But as the car slowed, her stomach started to flip. If she’d been alone, Maddison might have been tempted to restart her childhood habit and bite her nails again.

  “We should say hello,” Charley insisted.

  Before she could respond, their vehicle slid to a halt and Charley was jumping out of the driver’s seat.

  “Hey,” her sister called to Jack.

  Maddison took a breath. Then another deep one. She had nothing to feel weird about – nothing at all. Jack had been her best friend, her partner in crime, and they’d grown apart. So why was her heart hammering so hard at the idea of seeing him again?

  She couldn’t delay the inevitable any longer.

  “Maddison?” She’d hardly stepped from the car before Jack was in front of her. He swung down from his horse, face shaded by his hat as he landed with a thud to the ground.

  She refused to look at her sister, watching Jack as he took off his Stetson and crossed the short distance between them. “Hey Jack,” she managed.

  Damn, he’d changed. Jack had always been nice looking, but there’d never been anything romantic between them, even if she had lain awake at night as a teenager wondering if he’d liked her like that. Wondered if something would happen between them one day if she didn’t leave. But now? Jack was seriously handsome, in a rugged, real-man kind of way. He was tall as hell, his jeans hugged his long legs, and a checked shirt fitted snug to his broad frame.

  “Missy Maddison, all the way from the big city, huh?”

  She didn’t have a moment to answer before he enveloped her in a hug. A real hug. The kind that told her he’d genuinely missed her. That he was actually pleased to see her. Not the kind of fluttery pat on the back that was usually followed by a series of air-kisses that she’d become used to of late.

  “It’s good to finally see you again.”

  “It’s great to see you too, Jack,” Maddison told him, reluctantly stepping back as he let her go, away from the warmth of his embrace and the citrus scent of his cologne. She looked up into deep brown eyes that were so familiar yet so unfamiliar to her at the same time. And lined. There were lines there now, deep creases that she didn’t remember. “Are you doing okay?”

  He shrugged, twirling his hat between his fingers. “I can’t say I miss my old man, if that’s what you mean.”

  Maddison nodded. She knew first hand why he’d hated his dad so much, and she couldn’t blame him. “Pleased to see the end of the old bastard, huh?”

  Jack laughed and so did her sister, and Maddison found herself smiling with them. You could take the girl out of the country, but not the country out of the girl.

  “So how long are you back for?” Jack asked.

  Charley slung an arm around her shoulders before she could answer. “Indefinitely. We’re going to keep her here as long as we can.”

  She smiled and took the chance to study Jack some more. The man was seriously good looking, built like an athlete and with a smile that could make a girl’s knees knock. Like hers were threatening to do right now.

  “Maddie?”

  She hadn’t been called that name in a long time. “Honestly Jack, I don’t know.” It was the truth, she didn’t. “But it’ll be long enough for us to catch up properly. I promise.”

  He smiled – the same kind of smile she remembered so well. “Good.”

  Maddison tilted her face to look up at him as he placed his hat back on his head and swung up into the saddle. “Are you sure everything’s okay?” she asked.

  She felt her sister pause beside her, no doubt as concerned for Jack as she was. He just shrugged.

  “One day soon I’ll tell you all about it.”

  And then he gave them a wave and turned his horse, nudging her into a trot as he headed back up the incline.

  “Home?” Charley asked.

  Maddison forced her eyes from Jack’s disappearing silhouette and touched her sister’s shoulder as she walked past her to the passenger side. “He’s not okay, is he?”

  “Maybe he’ll be better now that you’re home.” Charley gave her a wink over the roof of the vehicle before swinging into her seat.

  “And what exactly is that supposed to mean?”

  “Weren’t you two best friends, before you fell in love with him?” her sister asked. “I mean, I was only a kid back then, but I’m sure I remember you doodling love hearts around his name.”

  Maddison held her tongue between her teeth, not wanting to answer but knowing she had to. “Jack and I were best friends and for the record I never fell in love with him.”

  Her sister grinned and started the car. Maddison slouched down in her seat and tried to stop thinking about Jack.

  Because maybe her sister was right. Maybe she had fallen in love with him, or thought she had. She’d been a teenager, off to boarding school and confused about how she felt for the boy she’d known all her life. But that was then. They were grown-ups now.

  So why was her heart beating so damn fast?

  Jack refused to look back over his shoulder, even when he heard the car take off down the dirt road that lead to both their ranches.

  Maddison was all grown up. There was more than a hint of the girl he used to know and love, a flicker in her eyes, the way she watched him like whatever he was saying was the most important thing in the world. But to look at? She was nothing like that girl any more. This Maddison was tall and slender, with curves that he’d sure as hell never noticed back then. Her hair was lighter, her lipstick brighter, and she was beautiful.

  If there was one woman he’d marry, if he actually ever went through with satisfying the clause instead of wasting money on having the will overturned, hands down he’d have to talk to Maddison. Not just because she was the only woman he’d ever trust wholeheartedly, but because she was the only girl his father would blatantly disapprove of.

  Jack nudged his horse back into a trot, then a canter. What he needed was a good gallop across the fields down to the yearlings and some hard work to make him exhausted. Because no matter how much he wanted to pretend his father’s will wasn’t getting under his skin, he couldn’t. It was giving him a feeling that he didn’t belong here, and he needed to figure something out to forget that his old man had ever existed. And fast.

  CHAPTER TWO

  MADDISON hadn’t realized how much she’d missed being in the saddle. It had been years since she’d last ridden, and it still felt great. Exhilarating, exhausting and liberating – exactly the kind of activity she’d been needing.

  “Whoa!” She gripped the reins a little tighter as her horse bucked. “Let’s just take it nice and slow, okay?”

  She pushed him into a canter and sat deep in the saddle. They might both be a little older, but nothing beat riding before the heat of the sun made it unbearable. Even if her horse was technically well into his retirement.

  A movement caught her eye as they neared the boundary – a flood of dust rising into the air as a vehicle crossed the field. Maddison slowed her horse to a trot, trying not to look but unable to stop her eyes from dragging back in the direction of the truck driving across Wild River land.

  Her horse picked up on her lack of concentration, flicking his tail and creeping into a faster gait. “Don’t even think about it, Finn,” she growled, giving him a tap on the shoulder with her reins as she felt the tell tale signs of another buck on its way. “How about we just walk instead,” she muttered, no longer the confident daredevil she’d once been on horseback.

  When Maddison looked up, the vehicle had pulled closer, and she knew without looking who it was. Jack was the only rancher around here who’d have his dog riding shotgun instead of in the bed of his pick-up. She could see his four-legged friend sitting like a person beside him, but it wasn’t the dog that made her breath catch in her throat.

  Jack had his arm out the window, tanned forearm
bent at the elbow, fingers grazing the top of the frame. He wasn’t wearing his hat, but she bet he had it on him. Jack was a cowboy through and through, and that meant his Stetson wouldn’t be far away. Or at least that’s how she remembered him.

  But it wasn’t her memories of Jack that was making her mouth feel like it was full of sand. Before she’d left, things had become kind of awkward, like it probably did for any different-gender childhood friends who transitioned from kids to young adults. She’d agonized over whether she liked him like that, and if she’d known how he’d look as a grown man, maybe she would have had her answer.

  Maddison cleared her throat and held up her hand in a wave, forcing a smile on her face. She needed to get a grip. Jack had been her best friend growing up, and just because he’d aged well didn’t mean she had to act like he was a different person than the boy she’d once been so close to.

  “Morning,” Jack called as he pulled up beside their boundary fence and stepped from his truck. He leaned against the body, one leg bent, the other straight out in front of him, squinting into the sun. “Nice ride?”

  Maddison sat up straighter and nudged her horse a few strides closer. “I’d kind of forgotten how fun it is,” she admitted. “Being in the city made me realize how good we had it here as kids.”

  She cringed at her words. She might have had it good here, but when Jack’s mom had passed away, his dad had worked him like a dog and almost broken both of his boys. His childhood had been far from idyllic.

  “How’s your dad today?” Jack asked.

  Maddison smiled. Thinking about her dad was a sure fire way of kickstarting her mood. “He’s good. Especially with another daughter back under his roof.”

  “He couldn’t wipe the smile off his face all last week.” Jack chuckled. “Gotta say that some of his excitement kind of rubbed off on me.”

  Maddison’s cheeks started to burn. What she didn’t need right now was Jack talking like that, especially when she was trying not to notice how… she cleared her throat.