Читать книгу This Time Forever - Carol Steward - Страница 13

Adam locked the front door, ready to put the day behind him. He needed sleep. It looked as if tomorrow would be another long day.

He turned around, greeted by the coat rack. Lisa’s coat instantly reminded him of how nice she had felt in his embrace. She was tempting as homemade apple pie—a perfect mixture of sweet and tart.

What was he thinking? He hadn’t as much as been on an official date in three years. And if he planned to see someone, a woman who spent her life on the road would not be the one for him.

Lisa had a portfolio full of dreams, and enough talent to make them come true. Despite the challenges of her early years, she, like her sisters, had stomped on the restrictions their meager background could have inflicted on them. Each one had set goals and never gave up until she reached them.

Adam closed the door between the lodge and his private quarters, the modest ranch house his grandparents had built in the early forties. Climbing the narrow stairs to the attic bedroom, Adam found it odd to think he had his first guest staying in his new lodge. Even more perplexing that it was Lisa.

He spent half the night awake, wondering how to protect his heart from the unwelcome woman at the tip of Cupid’s arrow. Despite recent efforts by many well-meaning friends and relatives, no woman had caught his eye since Alex and Katarina’s wedding. He and Lisa had spent the better part of the blizzard sipping hot chocolate and telling stories about their brothers and sisters. He immediately discovered Lisa wasn’t an easy woman to get to know. She didn’t like talking about herself, her accomplishments or her feelings.

Why the drifter had made such an impression on him, he wasn’t sure. It was more than her looks, as there were plenty of good-looking women in his life. With each tidbit he picked up about the youngest Berthoff sister from his brothers, Adam realized he stood a better chance of surviving a stampede than he did falling in love with Lisa. She wasn’t his type. Wanderlust was in her blood, and he was more than content in his own corner of the world.

Lisa was a journalist. Her job came first. After all, that’s why she was here. She hadn’t come to see him, or even her sisters. It was a story she was after. A story about a romantic getaway. That means big trouble for the ranch, and me.

It had taken him long enough to find where he belonged, and he’d be sure that no one—especially not a woman with no ties to family or land—came between him and the dreams God had called him home to.

Adam didn’t need or want his life turned inside out by a stubborn woman who didn’t believe in promises, or God, or slowing down long enough to see exactly what she was missing. A loner like himself had no business tying anyone else down to his obligations.

Keeping Lisa around in the confines of his lodge was definitely asking for trouble. Regardless of her familial connections or her charming personality, the beautiful drifter couldn’t stay. Wouldn’t, even if he’d be foolish enough to ask her to.

While he wouldn’t exactly call his ranch secluded, it was a far cry from the hub of activity Lisa was accustomed to. Just yesterday, she had started her day with plans of whale-watching, and by the end of the day she was in Colorado to write a totally different story on a bed-and-breakfast. The world was her playground, and this ranch was his world.

While his brothers had followed in their father’s footsteps of the construction business, Adam had counted the years, just waiting for the day his parents would let him spend summers helping his grandparents run the ranch. Now he had that chance. Whispering Pines was all he had to remember his grandparents by and he would do everything within his power to maintain the legacy they had left behind.

This was his dream. His destiny. His calling. And if he couldn’t make a go of the guest ranch, his cousin would be more than happy to put his own name on the deed. Chance had offered to buy the MacIntyre cousins out in the very beginning, and still did on a regular basis. At the going price of land in the area, and the rate of population growth, they all knew their opportunistic cousin probably had investors lined up to divide and develop the entire ranch.

Lisa’s mission stirred up fears and shadows, from the list of unfinished detail work, to decorating the place, to the warning that mixing business and romance was a lethal combination. While it helped that he knew Lisa’s family, trusting any woman with his business image would always bring back caustic memories of all that Amelia’s betrayal had cost him.

As usual, all it took was one inkling of a reminder of that dark time in his life to ruin the entire night’s rest. He tossed and turned, barely catching a wink of sleep before he heard the alarm clock’s dutiful “cock-a-doodle-doo.” Back to work.

Adam stepped into the house a few hours later, followed by a chilling gust of wind. To his surprise, Lisa was sitting by the window enjoying a cup of coffee, reading the morning newspaper, seemingly oblivious to the vehicles driving up the lane. “You think the entire family can convince me to go along with this?”

Minutes earlier Adam had seen Kevin’s SUV pull through the Whispering Pines gate, followed by Alex’s truck. If his brothers were coming to work, they’d have driven out in one vehicle, which meant this was a family visit, not business.

She looked up from the paper. “Good morning to you, too. Now what have I done?”

Without a word, Adam pointed out the window. “Face it. This idea of my sister’s backfired. End of subject. You may as well take your matching set of luggage and head on down the road to the next golden opportunity.” He pulled a mug from the cupboard and poured a cup of coffee.

“You’re even crankier than usual this morning. Didn’t you sleep well? I suppose that’s my fault, too.” Lisa took a sip of coffee and turned back to her newspaper.

As a matter of fact, it is.

She glanced out the window, then stood up and placed her hands on her hips. “Adam, I didn’t call anyone. I wasn’t sure I’d even be here long enough.”

“You’re right about that.” He lifted the mug to his mouth. “You’d like me to believe the whole family just happened to show up out of the blue on a Saturday morning?” Without thinking, he took a drink.

“That’s hot. Be—” she winced “—careful.”

He spit the coffee back into the mug before he realized what he was doing. “Phew.”

He set the mug on the counter and opened the freezer. He dropped two ice cubes into the steaming brew. “I should have known. I wasn’t paying attention to what I was doing, I guess.” From the feel of his burned tongue, it would be a long while before he’d make the same mistake.

“Believe what you want about my sisters, Adam. I had nothing to do with it.” She shook her head. “I don’t know why they’re here, but I can’t think of a better way to prove my innocence to someone as…as…bullheaded as you.”

He walked closer with quick, long, purposeful strides. Adam cocked his head questioningly. “Bullheaded? You sure you don’t want to add cad to that? If my memory serves me correctly, that was the word of choice at the church after Kat and Alex’s wedding. You sure you don’t want to come up with a few more names for me?” The words slipped from his mouth before he thought about the implication, that he’d been thinking of that darned bouquet.

Lisa folded the newspaper and neatly put it back into the copper boiler next to the small Franklin stove heating the kitchen. “I think that will do fine for now. Given time, I’m sure I could come up with a few more that fit your sour disposition.”

Thankful that she hadn’t seemed to catch his slip, Adam returned to the entry. He slid the heel of his cowboy boot into the wooden boot jack and tugged first one foot, then the other from the fitted leather.

“It’s no wonder you’re still an eligible bachelor if you’re always this charming,” she muttered.

“I heard that, and I couldn’t be happier.” Adam stood at the doorway to the great room and waited. “Must be all that running that makes you so miserable.”

Car doors slammed on the opposite side of the lodge, and Adam returned to the coffeemaker, pausing long enough to add a spot of hot coffee to the overly cooled liquid. “Come on.” He nodded his head toward the front door.

“Whatever makes you think I’m miserable?” Lisa’s feet were planted to the oak floor, her arms crossed.

“Later. Right now, we have bigger fish to fry. And you’re not getting out of this one.” Adam caught her by the elbow and firmly escorted her to the front oom to wait for their guests.

Lisa pulled her arm from his grip. “What has you so worried, Adam? This story…?” Lisa sank into the leather sofa with her back to the door and stared defiantly at him. “Or did you tell someone that we caught that bouquet? I thought that was our secret.”

He set his cup of coffee down on the marble coffee table with a crash, spilling hot liquid on his hand. He muttered under his breath. “I didn’t tell a soul. As for the story, Liz sent the paperwork, I didn’t. This is a bad time, is all.”

Lisa crossed her arms over her chest.

His voice faltered and he narrowed his eyes in warning. “Don’t look at me that way.” He pulled a couple of tissues from the box on the mantel and wiped up the spilled coffee, then tossed them into a wicker trash can as the doorbell rang.

“Yoo-hoo! Adam? Anyone home?”

Despite his chilling glare, Lisa kept her back to the door and remained silent.

He was minimally surprised that she didn’t back down. Not that he should be. After all, he’d heard stories from his brothers of how stubborn her sisters were. Why should this Berthoff woman be any different?

Adam glanced at the houseguest, then to her sisters, who didn’t seem to notice Lisa sitting on his sofa. He was surprised to see Susan and Elizabeth had also arrived while he and Lisa were arguing.

“What’s the big emergency?” Alex asked as he helped the very pregnant Katarina take her coat off.

“Emergency?” Adam echoed.

Kevin took Alissa from her car seat while Emily showed Ricky where to put his wet snow boots.

After a quick “Hi, Uncle Adam,” Susan’s boys grabbed hold of Ricky and ran directly to the private family room to play with Adam’s stash of old toys. “Mom called and said we all needed to be here in an hour. What’s so important that you had to wake us all at the crack of dawn on a Saturday morning?”

Susan, Elizabeth and their husbands shared their annoyance at the early beckon to rush right over.

The door opened once more, and Millie strolled inside with a smile on her face. “Morning, everyone. How about some warm muffins fresh out of the oven?”

The room hushed to an eerie silence.

All eyes were on Adam. He raised his hands in front of him. “Don’t look at me. This isn’t my doing.”

Lisa stood and turned around, diverting the attention away from him. “Hi, everyone.” Her bright clear blue eyes gleamed with satisfaction.

Lisa’s sisters screamed as they made their way over to greet their youngest sister. Emily hugged Lisa and held her at arm’s length. “I didn’t even recognize you. You’re so thin….”

Katarina nudged Emily aside and took her turn for a hug. “You look wonderful, Lisa. What are you doing here? Why didn’t you call?”

Alex glanced at Adam with a puzzled look, and Kevin, still holding his curly-haired toddler, gave Adam the thumbs-up, then took his daughter over to meet her long-lost aunt. The toddler immediately grabbed a handful of Lisa’s silky blond hair.

Adam caught Susan shrugging her shoulders as Elizabeth asked why they’d been called over for a Berthoff family reunion.

“Lisa, why didn’t you tell us you were coming?” Emily’s smile and question were genuine.

“I didn’t know. It was a last-minute assignment. I just arrived last night.” Lisa smiled at the child, seemingly wary of frightening the child. “I meant to call. I just ran out of time.” Her voice was soft, and she covered her eyes, playing peekaboo with Alissa. The toddler giggled, then hid her face in the crook of Emily’s neck.

He had no more doubts that Lisa was right. This time his paranoia was getting the best of him. Too much time spent trying to avoid Cupid’s arrow, he guessed. The fact that the festival coordinator had managed to dub Adam and herself as host and hostess for the masquerade probably didn’t help right now.

With their niece in her arms, Lisa made her way through the crowd to him. “Now are you convinced?”

“Point made,” he grumbled, giving Alissa a raspberry on her baby-soft neck. The toddler instantly dove into his waiting hands. “It still doesn’t mean I want to be a part of your magazine.”

Elizabeth’s eyes lit up. “The magazine? You mean, we—we’re going to be featured? Really?”

Lisa’s eyes brimmed with mischief. “Not if your brother doesn’t stop being so obstinate.”

Adam felt his face turning red. “I never dreamed you were serious, Liz. You might have warned me. Who would have thought an unfinished lodge would stand a chance? Especially as a romantic bed-and-breakfast.”

Elizabeth winced at her brother’s raised voice. “You’ve opened Grandma and Grandpa’s house to others as if it were a bed-and-breakfast since the day you moved in, Adam. If adding a touch of romance can help us keep the ranch in the family, isn’t it worth considering?”

“Not only does my brochure not mention bed-and-breakfast or romance, but we’re not even open yet. Didn’t you have to send testimonials or something?”

While the others laughed, Elizabeth immediately defended herself. “I sent your brochure as is without one change. Remember, romance is a matter of personal opinion. As for customer recommendation, you shouldn’t be surprised that your friends gave you wonderful reviews. Admit it, Adam, this was a great idea.”

He had to remember, though he held the majority of the interest in Whispering Pines, he couldn’t forget that he wouldn’t be standing in this spacious guest house without the help of his family. Kevin and Alex had donated their time and talent on the lodge construction, Elizabeth and her husband, Kirk, had offered not only financial backing, but business insight, as well. Susan and Mike had donated manual labor to the project each weekend. And without his mother’s encouragement, Adam never would have had the courage to tackle the project at all.

“Why don’t we have some muffins and juice?” Millie suggested. “I see Adam has coffee made.”

The conversation eventually drifted away from the article, but not before Liz made arrangements to come back later in the day to visit with Lisa and show her around the ranch. After serving refreshments, Adam’s mom and sisters left, leaving only Lisa’s family.

While the women visited, Adam, Alex and Kevin discussed unfinished details on the lodge. When they returned, Emily and Katarina had already bundled the little ones in their coats and were ready to leave. “We’ll see you both at church in the morning, right?”

Adam looked directly at Lisa, waiting for her response. “Your sister’s welcome to join us.”

Before Lisa could reply, Katarina waddled over to give Adam a hug. “It’s settled, then. Sunday dinner will be at our house this week. Emily’s on call.”

Lisa took her coat from the hook and followed them out the door. He watched her hug everyone goodbye, then walk around the side of the lodge with Toby.

Standing alone in the foyer, Adam said, “I’d sure like to know how you worked this one out, Lord.”