Montana Unbranded. Nadia Nichols

stop eating all that corned beef and cabbage.”

      Molly gnawed on a fingernail, turning sideways and eyeing herself in the full-length mirror on her friend’s bedroom door. “I wish it were that easy, but it’s more than just food.”

      Dani met her friend’s eyes in the mirror. Molly’s were dark with unspoken pathos and shining with tears. For a few moments Dani wondered what could possibly be wrong, and then it clicked, and a big smile brightened her face. “You’re pregnant! I don’t believe it.” Dani hugged her friend impulsively. “You’re having a baby! Why didn’t you tell me?”

      “I only found out this morning. All winter we’ve been crazy busy with the fund-raiser for Madison Mountain and I was so afraid we wouldn’t make Condor International’s deadline to raise the money. I was sick to my stomach all the time and I thought it was from the stress of it all. Then we made the deadline, we raised the money, we did it. The mountain was saved from that huge mining operation. I should have felt better but I just kept feeling squeamish. Then this morning, because Steven insisted, I went to see my doctor and...” Molly drew a sharp breath and the three recently inserted pins popped out of the fabric. The tears spilled over and Molly wiped them from her cheeks. “It turns out, I’m very pregnant.”

      “That’s wonderful news, Molly! You always wanted kids, and in a few weeks you’re getting married to the man of your dreams. But you’re acting like the doctor just gave you a death sentence. What’s wrong?”

      “Steven doesn’t know yet, and when my mother finds out she’ll disown me. She’s very Catholic.”

      “Steven’ll be tickled pink and so will your mother. How far along are you?”

      “Dr. Phillips thinks almost two months. Eight weeks! And I didn’t even notice missing my monthlies, that’s how stressed out I’ve been.”

      “A December baby is perfect.”

      “Why?”

      “Because a baby has to be the most perfect Christmas gift of all,” Dani said, giving Molly another hug. “I’m so happy for you both.”

      “But the timing couldn’t be worse—we don’t have any money, the practice is struggling, we’re living on a shoestring and...”

      “You have each other and now you have a baby to celebrate. You’re the two luckiest people in the whole world.”

      Molly wiped fresh tears from her cheeks and tried for a smile. “I know you’re right, Dani, but the baby part scares me. I’m not ready to be a mother and I don’t know how I’ll tell Steven. We agreed to wait a few years before starting a family.”

      “Unless I missed something in high school biology, Steven had something to do with all this.”

      Molly heaved another big sigh and more pins scattered to the floor. “Oh, Dani, I wish we still lived in the same town. I love Steven’s place and it’s close to our office, but I miss our talks over lunch. And right now I really, really miss those big, steady paychecks I got working for Skelton, Taintor and Abbot.”

      “You’d hate yourself if you were still working for those heartless corporate sharks. The law firm of Young Bear and Ferguson is going to be a great success, and who knows where I’ll be in a year’s time. I might just have to move south to be nearby when you need a babysitter or a third partner.”

      Hope illuminated Molly’s face. “I’d love it if you moved to Bozeman, but what about your house? What about Jack?”

      Dani picked the pins up off the floor, avoiding Molly’s eyes. “Jack and I split up,” she said with what she hoped was an offhand shrug. “It was bound to happen, Molly. He was gone ninety percent of the time with his job and surrounded by beautiful stewardesses.”

      Molly reached out and clamped on to her, all wild red hair and hazel eyes. “You mean, Jack’s gone? When did this happen? How could he just walk out on you like that? What about the house? The dogs?”

      “The house was mine to begin with and he left me his dogs. He walked in one night about two months ago, told me he was in love with another woman, said I could have everything, not that there was anything of his here except for the dogs, and that was that. It was all very civil. Too civil, really. I didn’t cry or beg him to stay. I don’t think we ever really loved each other, not the way you and Steven do.”

      “Let me get this straight. He walked out on you two months ago, and you didn’t tell me?”

      “I didn’t want to upset you. Your wedding’s coming up and you were working so hard on raising the money to save Madison Mountain and...”

      “Oh, Dani.” Molly embraced her fiercely, causing more pins to pop out. “How could he do that to you? You’re the smartest, sweetest, most gorgeous girl on the face of the planet and he’s the biggest idiot of all time. I’m so sorry it didn’t work out. Or maybe I shouldn’t be. You deserve a whole lot better and now you have the chance to find that person.”

      Dani shook her head with a rueful laugh. “Not me. I’m done with men. Come on. Get out of that dress, very carefully, and I’ll buy you lunch.”

      “I can’t eat for another month, remember?”

      “You’re eating for two now, and don’t worry about your gown. I’ll alter it this week, but you might want to think about bumping the wedding date up.”

      “I’d rather not,” Molly said with a shake of her head. “The invitations are in the mail. But I’ll think about it.”

      Molly’s cell phone rang while she was in the midst of peeling out of the wedding dress, and in her haste the last of the pins scattered onto the floor. Dani rescued the gown and the pins while her friend rummaged in her purse for her cell phone. “Ferguson,” she said. Then, a heartbeat later, she squealed, “Joseph!” and her face lit up so bright that even if she hadn’t cried out his name, Dani would have known it was Molly’s beloved older brother.

      “Joseph, saints be praised. Mom told me this morning you were doing much better! When are they letting you out of the hospital?” She paced across the room, then stopped abruptly. “You mean, you’re here? In Helena? At the airport? Here? Right now? Jesus, Mary and... Oh, Joseph, you should have let me know you were coming!” Another pause. “Well, you’re just lucky I’m in town because I don’t even live in Helena anymore.” After a brief pause, she continued. “Yeah, I’m only here because I’m visiting Dani. She took Friday off from work to alter my wedding gown.” Molly caught her eye and made a face. “I live outside Bozeman now, with Steven, about two hours away. But don’t tell Mom! She’ll have a fit. You’ll love Steven’s place—it’s really pretty and you’ll have your own bedroom and private bath and you’ll get to meet Steven and, oh, Joseph, it’s so good to hear your voice! Are you sure you’re really all right?” Another pause. “Well, you did the right thing, coming here. There’s no place like Montana. We’ll take good care of you. You’ll love it, you’ll see. You won’t want to leave. Dani and I will pick you up and then take you to lunch before heading south. Sit tight, we’ll be there in two shakes of a lamb’s tail!”

      She hung up and spun around with an incredulous laugh, beaming. “Joseph’s here! His flight just got in. He was released from the hospital this morning and decided to come here for a visit! Can you believe it? Big-city cop from back east finally meets the Wild West!”

      Dani held the discarded wedding dress in her arms and watched while Molly shimmied into her skirt and pulled on her blouse, fingers flying down the buttons. She made another face as she zipped the skirt. “I won’t be able to wear this much longer, either.” She slipped her feet into her leather pumps and reached for her handbag. “Come on, Dani, you have to meet my big brother. He’s the coolest, handsomest and nicest guy in the whole world.”

      “You told me Steven was the coolest, handsomest and nicest guy in the whole world.”

      Molly laughed. “They’re the two