A Rancher's Christmas. Ann Roth

      Though if Zach did kiss her again, she wasn’t at all sure she’d stop him.

      Her cell phone rang. Grateful for the interruption and eager to get her mind off Zach and his kisses, she set her phone on speaker mode and picked up.

      “It’s Carrie,” her assistant said.

      Gina started guiltily. She hadn’t thought about work or Carrie since early this morning. “It’s about time you called me back,” she chided. “Where have you been all day?”

      “Where do you think I’ve been?” Carrie sounded defensive.

      “I called you early this morning—hours ago.”

      “The note from Marsha didn’t say it was urgent. Did she tell you that I was at the office until almost nine-thirty last night? I was up before dawn this morning and worked from home. Then I stopped in at a few of the Grant stores so that I could get a visual to go with the numbers they’ve been sharing.” She filled Gina in on what she’d observed. “I sent you an email with all the details. Did you see it?”

      “Not yet, but I’ll be checking soon.” On the way back from the attorney’s office.

      Things seemed to be going well, and Gina smiled. “That sounds good, Carrie. I’m impressed with what you’ve done. I thought you were supposed to have dinner last night with that guy you met at the bar.”

      “Chad. Yeah, but it was too late for dinner, so we had drinks instead. We made a dinner date for this weekend.”

      Been there, done that. Getting ahead sometimes meant putting your personal life on hold. “I’m glad he’s flexible,” Gina said.

      “Chad’s an attorney—he understands long hours. That’s one of the many things we have in common.”

      Everything Carrie said reminded Gina of herself and Wayne. When they’d first started dating they’d both thought they shared a number of interests. But after a few months, they’d realized that the only thing they really had in common was the desire to climb the corporate ladder. Neither of them had been upset when they’d parted ways.

      “Have you had a chance to work on any of our other campaigns?” Gina asked. “Is there anything I should know about?”

      She heard the sound of papers shuffling. “Oh, you know—the usual reports and phone calls. All the companies are anxious about their holiday campaigns.”

      Something in her voice put Gina on alert. “Is everything okay? If you need help, tell me now.”

      “I don’t! It’s super busy, but I’m handling it,” Carrie assured, sounding extra perky.

      Too perky. Gina’s worry radar kicked up again. But then, like herself, her assistant thrived on deadlines and stress, so maybe the bubbly enthusiasm was for real.

      “Look for an updated report on the Grant stores tomorrow,” Carrie added.

      “Do you think you could send it this afternoon? With the funeral tomorrow, I doubt I’ll be checking email until the following day.”

      “I’ll try. How are you?”

      Gina didn’t have to think long about that. She’d just been kissed more thoroughly than she could ever remember, by a man she had no business kissing, and already she wanted more. She was a confused wreck.

      She shook her head. “At the moment, I’m driving my uncle’s old four-speed truck down an all-but-deserted two-lane highway to his attorney’s office.”

      “That doesn’t sound fun. You take care of yourself and your family, and don’t worry about me or work. Things are great here.”

      Gina disconnected, dismissed her concerns and went right back to thinking of Zach’s kisses.

      Chapter Four

      Thanks to the meeting with the attorney, checking her email—and not finding the report from Carrie—and running some errands, Gina didn’t return to the ranch until nearly dinnertime. She walked in the back door with her arms full. Her family was in the kitchen—Sophie and Redd getting out cutlery and dinner plates and Gloria putting one of the casseroles into the oven.

      “You’re finally back.” Gloria lifted her cheek for a kiss. “What took so long?”

      “Honestly, Glo.” Sophie tsked. “Give the girl a chance to catch her breath.”

      “For goodness’ sake, Sophie. It’s a figure of speech, not a criticism.”

      Gina ignored the petty squabbling and set down her things. “I met with Matt Granger. Then I ran around, doing all the things he needed me to do. I also checked my email and stopped off at Spenser’s to buy trash bags and boxes for when I sort through Uncle Lucky’s things. Since you’re all here...”

      She leaned against the counter and crossed her arms. “You all knew Uncle Lucky left the ranch to me instead of Uncle Redd. Why didn’t one of you say something?”

      Her uncle and cousins exchanged looks. “We thought it might be better coming from someone else. I need a kiss, too,” Sophie said, as if their keeping a secret from Gina was no big deal.

      Obligingly, she kissed her cousin’s wizened cheek.

      “Were you surprised when Matt told you?” Uncle Redd asked, offering his cheek, too.

      Gina kissed him, then straightened and frowned. “I would’ve been if Zach hadn’t warned me.”

      “Zach told you?” Gloria’s eyebrows shot up. “I didn’t expect that.”

      “I’m thankful he did,” Gina said. “I don’t like surprises like that.”

      Sophie looked contrite. “We were afraid you’d be upset.”

      “That doesn’t mean you should avoid the subject. How would you feel if I did that to you?”

      Her uncle gave her a sheepish look.

      “I guess we should have told you,” Gloria said.

      Sophie bit her lip. “Please don’t be angry with us.”

      She looked so anxious that Gina kissed her cheek again. “I’ll live. But from now on, please don’t keep secrets from me.”

      “Understood.” Uncle Redd eyed the folders she’d set on the counter. “What’s all that?”

      “Papers I took to the attorney. I’m going to put them away and drop these trash bags and boxes in Uncle Lucky’s office. I’ll be back.”

      In the office, Gina removed the painting and opened Uncle Lucky’s safe. She returned the folders and then searched for the packet the attorney had described. She found what she was looking for in the back corner of the safe.

      She didn’t have to fold back the layers of tissue paper to know what was inside—the watch Uncle Lucky had inherited from his father, who’d gotten it from his father. According to the attorney, for some time now, Uncle Lucky had thought of Zach as the son he’d never had and had asked that the watch be passed on to him. Gina knew that Zach would be touched.

      Over his seventy-four years, Uncle Lucky had known his share of ranch hands. As far as she knew, he’d never grown as close to any of the others as he had to Zach. It was comforting to know that someone her uncle cared about had lived on the ranch these past few years.

      She should’ve been here, too. Once again, her guilt stirred. Every year, Andersen, Coats and Mueller closed from December 24th through January 1st, and she could easily have flown home last year. Her uncles and cousins would have loved that.

      Instead, she’d spent Christmas Eve at a party with Wayne. That night, he’d stayed over, but early the next morning, he’d left for a family get-together, and she’d gone to Lise’s townhouse for brunch. She’d spent the rest of