Page 6 of Rocky Mountain Home

Chapter One

Heart Falls, Alberta, four months later

“You’re daydreaming again.”

A teasing voice brought Dare’s focus back to earth, and she twisted toward her best friend to offer a smile. “It’s a dreamy kind of morning.”

Ginny Stone took the stairs onto the porch with her usual enthusiasm. Dressed for working the ranch in jeans, boots and a couple layers of shirts, her dark brown hair settled over her shoulders as she held a ceramic mug toward Dare. “I made a new batch of that fruity herbal mix you like, and I’ve time to sit if you want company.”

The railing she’d been leaning on creaked as Dare straightened, turning from where she’d been staring over Big Sky Lake and the rest of the Silver Stone ranch. “I would kill for a coffee right now, but thank you for bringing the next best thing.”

“My company makes it all the sweeter, right?”

Dare settled into the rocking chair while her friend curled up in the pillow-filled wicker chair beside her. “Please. It’s not that long since I’ve stopped being nauseous every morning. Do you really want to send me back there?”

Her friend tried to cover it up, but it was clear her gaze lingered a little longer than usual on Dare’s stomach. She laid a hand over the growing bump, and Ginny’s gaze darted upward guiltily.

“Sorry. Didn’t mean to stare.” She gestured toward Dare’s belly. “It’s just…you’re starting to show.”

“Yeah. Not too much longer before everybody in town and their dog knows I’m pregnant out of wedlock. Oh, woe is me.”

Her friend peered over the edge of her mug, her startling green eyes dancing with mischief. “As if you give two hoots what the town gossips think.”

Dare shrugged. “You’re right, but while I don’t think I’m a fallen harlot, I wish things had gone differently. It’s got to be hard on your brothers, especially Caleb. I never meant—”

“Stop right now.” Ginny’s amusement vanished and her eyes snapped with anger. “My brothers are your brothers, or as good as. They love you, and they would never let anyone say or do anything to hurt you.”

“It’s not as if people have to go out of their way to make up shit. I am pregnant.” Dare wiggled her hand in the air. “Oh, and look! No ring. Ergo, I am an unwed mom.”

“In this day and age, who cares?”

Dare sighed. “We’ve had this conversation before. I’m fully on board with taking care of Buckaroo Banzai on my own. Still wish I could find his daddy—that’s the only part that makes me uncomfortable.”

Ginny leaned forward. “Any luck tracking down the sperm donor?”

Dare shook her head. “Short of hiring a private investigator—as if—the only way is if we run into each other at some point. What are the chances?”

“Who knows? Maybe it will happen.”

Dare wasn’t quite sure what to wish for. The night she and Jesse had spent burning up the sheets had been spectacular. But when she’d missed her period a month later and gone back to try and track him down—because she figured letting a guy know he was going to be a daddy was the decent thing to do—she’d come up with a total blank. He’d paid cash for his room same as she had, and the night clerk hadn’t got a license plate or anything she could use.

And this was old news, and it was time to change the topic. “What’re you working on this week?” she asked her closest friend.

Ginny gestured toward the oversized garden and greenhouse outside the main ranch house where she lived with her oldest brother and his kids. “Garden boxes and farmers’ market, same as usual. What about you? You need help with any of your upcoming posts?”

She could always use more material. “I should come out and take extra shots this week at the Farmers’ Market. You’ve got some new items in the Community Supported Agriculture boxes, right?”

“Yeah. I’ve already printed the descriptions and recipes you gave me to slip into the deliveries.”

“I bet you’re not the only CSA passing out things customers don’t know how to cook. I thought I’d post pictures and recipes. Hopefully others out there will be grateful. Plus, I should start stockpiling a bunch of posts for when Buckaroo puts in an appearance.”

“Smart.” Ginny looked her over, smiling harder. “You need to start a new section to your blog. Ranching with Buckaroo.”

It was like lightning stuck. Dare hauled her jaw back into position and offered up thanks for her best friend. “You’re brilliant. You’re right—I do need to add a section.”

“Anytime you need fabulous ideas, you know who to call.” Ginny winked. “You coming up to the house for dinner tonight?”

“If I can bring dessert.”