Montana Wrangler. Charlotte Carter

“I’m sorry for your loss.” She wished there was something more helpful she could say but she didn’t have the words. “Your wife must have been quite young. If you don’t mind talking about it, how did she die?”

      His Adam’s apple bobbed, the muscles of his tanned neck flexing. “Childbirth. Our son died, too.”

      She gasped. Her chest ached with regret that she’d been so nosy. “I’m so, so sorry. How in the world did you ever get past your anger? Losing your wife and child?”

      He glanced in her direction. “I finally figured out the Lord must’ve known what He was doing even if I didn’t. I had to trust Him.”

      Tears burned in her eyes. Paige had to give him extra points for experiencing such a huge loss and rebuilding his faith.

      After turning off the main road, Jay asked, “So have you thought any more about Bryan and what you’re going to do?”

      Relieved by the shift from such an intimate, painful topic, she said, “As a matter of fact, I spent several hours on my laptop last night. You were right. Based on Montana law, even with Krissy’s letter, I’ll have to file a bunch of forms with the family court in order to officially become Bryan’s guardian.”

      “I didn’t think it would be easy. You can’t just drag a kid off to Seattle without some kind of government rigmarole.”

      “Apparently that’s true.” Given the information she’d found online, it wasn’t going to be as easy as strolling into the court in Kalispell, handing someone Krissy’s letter and getting the whole deal sewed up in minutes, either. The process was going to take days, if not weeks.

      “So what are you going to do? Head on back to Seattle tomorrow?”

      “No. I’m not one to give up that easily. I’ll drive to Kalispell tomorrow, see if there’s a way I can expedite the necessary approval.”

      He glanced at her. “What about your boss?”

      “Guess I’ll have to do some fancy talking, won’t I?” As much as she liked the hotel manager, she knew he wouldn’t be thrilled to hear her trip to Montana had to be extended. Yet nothing critical would come up in the next day or two that her assistant couldn’t handle.

      “Or you could forget the guardian business and leave Bryan where he belongs.”

      She tensed and stared out the windshield.

      Jay made the turn into the church parking lot, which was filled with pickups and SUVs, the favored means of transportation in Montana. The church itself was a simple one-story, whitewashed building with a steeple topped by a wooden cross. A welcoming place to worship the Lord.

      “I can’t forget about Bryan. Krissy picked me to be his guardian. For years I turned my back on her. A few phone calls to see how she was doing. Occasional visits. Presents at the holidays. Turns out all she wanted was for me to love her.” Guilt rose in her throat like a boulder, cutting off her air. She swallowed painfully. “Taking care of Bryan is the one thing she’s asked of me. I’m not going to say no.”

      He wheeled into a space next to an RV and braked hard. “Even though you know it’s not what Bryan wants.”

      That wasn’t a question, and Paige didn’t respond. Somehow she’d make it work. Make Bryan see that moving to Seattle was a great opportunity. They’d develop a good relationship. A loving relationship, one she’d want with her own child if she was ever blessed with children.

      And she’d have a chance to make up for the way she’d treated her sister.

      Jay hopped down from the truck and went around to the passenger side to help Paige. He needn’t have bothered. She’d managed on her own.

      Within a few steps, however, Jay could tell walking in high heels on gravel wasn’t so easy. Paige wobbled, and he caught her arm to steady her.

      Slipping her arm through his, she blessed him with a tentative smile. “Thanks.”

      “Don’t you own any shoes without high heels?”

      “I have running shoes but I left them at home. I didn’t expect to be gone but a few days.”

      He glanced at her sideways. “You run?”

      “Every morning unless I’m working an early shift. I joined a twenty-four-hour gym so I wouldn’t have any excuse to miss my workouts. Not even bad weather.”

      That news surprised Jay. Given her sophistication, he hadn’t expected her to do anything more athletic than polishing her fingernails.

      He glanced at her hand on his arm. Slender fingers, soft hands and nails that were cut fancy and shiny with a clear polish. Not showy but nice.

      She released her grip on his arm as they reached the double-door entrance of the church. Ward Cummings, a former marine who could arm wrestle and beat anybody in town, Jay included, greeted them.

      Ward handed Paige a program, then extended one to Jay. “Good to see you, Jay. Sorry to hear about Krissy.”

      “Yeah. Pretty tragic.” Not only for Krissy and her son, but for the horse she rode, as well. “This is her sister, Paige. Came in from Seattle for the funeral. Ward Cummings.”

      “I’m sorry for your loss, miss.”

      Paige thanked him politely before moving farther into the sanctuary.

      Jay and Ward did a mock arm wrestle before shaking hands. “She’s one nice-looking lady,” Ward said. “How long is she going to be around?”

      Jay frowned, watching Paige walk ahead of him. “Not long.”

      “Too bad. She’d add a little class to Bear Lake.”

      Yeah, maybe, he thought as he caught up with her. But classy Paige had made it clear she wasn’t about to hang around Bear Lake any longer than necessary, and she sure wasn’t the kind who’d have any interest in a horse wrangler who smelled of sweat and leather more times than not.

      He followed her into a pew wondering what she’d meant when she’d said joining a church was the first time that she’d felt loved. What about her folks? Hadn’t they loved her?

      Right! They sent their other daughter away just because she got pregnant. That didn’t sound like love to him.

      He sat down and reached for a hymnal.

      “This is a lovely little church. Very peaceful feeling.” She spoke in a soft whisper than made him lean toward her, and he caught a whiff of her sweet perfume.

      “I suppose it is. But sometimes if I’ve got a serious problem to work out, I go to a special place I found in the forest. I think of it as God’s natural cathedral. Towering pines. A waterfall that ribbons down the mountain like threads of silver.”

      She studied him a minute, her expression intent, before she spoke. “That sounds lovely.”

      “If you stick around long enough, I’ll take you there.”

      She held his gaze, her eyes a deep, warm brown. “I think I’d like that.”

      The organ switched from the prelude, introducing the first notes of the opening hymn. The congregation stood as Pastor Walker walked on stage and held his arms up in welcome.

      Jay mentally kicked himself as he searched through the hymnal to find the right page. Why had he offered to take Paige to the spot where he went when he needed to pray? His private place of contemplation. A place where he felt closer to Annie.

      He didn’t want to take someone like Paige there, a woman who didn’t want anything to do with him or his beloved horses.

      As he held out the open hymnal to Paige, he realized he didn’t have to worry. She would turn down the invitation the instant she learned the only way to get to his cathedral was on horseback.

      * * *

      Grandpa