Page 50 of Choosing the Montana Cowboy

“I didn’t tell him because Brice quit the end of last week. And I wassorelieved to see him go, knowing I wouldn’t have to avoid him at work anymore. For the record? I understand now why people always say not to date a coworker.”

Especially one with a penchant for tarnishing others’ reputations. “Damn. Well, I’m glad you won’t have to dodge him anymore, but that doesn’t really fix anything.”

“I’m really sorry, Natalie. I had no idea he would do something like this.” Julianna sighed. “If there’s anything I can do to help fix this mess, tell me.”

“Thank you, I appreciate that.”

An apology—that was the most she’d gotten from her sister in years. But after talking with Sam about his siblings, she realized that a single apology wasn’t nearly enough. This time, Jules had to be a part of the solution, too, no ifs, ands, or buts. Brice might have pulled the strings, but she’d put the idea in his head to begin with.

“So, here’s what we’re going to do to try to fix some of the mess you made. First, you’re going to call Steven.”

Chapter Sixteen

Sam invited Natalieto ride along while he worked Wednesday, trying to get as much alone time in with her as he could before Neil arrived. And he made sure she understood that there would be no horseback riding involved, truck and four-wheelers only. Unfortunately, she’d been pulled into another project for work and occasionally had online meetings with the folks back east. So, they’d struck a compromise—she’d work her job until noon, then head out to the ranch and ride with him the rest of the day.

Which actually worked out perfectly—he was able to get done what he needed to on horseback in the morning, then came back and got cleaned up for lunch. By the time Natalie arrived, Gran and Norah had light meals waiting for them in the lodge’s family dining area.

“Thank you all so much,” Natalie said when she saw lunch waiting for them. “I finished the stew you sent with Sam yesterday and hadn’t had time to stop and get anything to eat on my way out here.”

“Hon, don’t ever feel like you need to eat before coming to visit. At the Flying J, we always have food on hand,” Gran said.

Norah nodded. “So, what do you two have planned for this afternoon?”

“No idea,” Natalie answered with a laugh. “Sam invited me to ride along while he worked today. It sounded a whole lot more fun than sitting at my desk any longer. This new project has kept me cooped up inside more than I’d hoped this week. I’m missing all the Montana out here.”

Sam watched the women carrying on, the sight making him happier than a pig in mud. Now that Gran and his sister had moved past their suspicions concerning Natalie’s loyalties, they were treating her like one of their own. Even more, he suddenly realized, than they’d really ever welcomed Sasha. But how to convince Natalie that Montana could be the perfect long-term destination?

That was going to take some thinking.

“Oh! I forgot to tell you—corporate is still trying to win you all over.” Natalie grinned as she shared Terakion’s pathetic attempt to placate them over losing their farming land on the Nelson property. Sam was more than ready to catch these ferrets on film so they wouldn’t have to worry about the fate of that lease any longer.

They all finished lunch, and soon Sam and Natalie were in the truck, AC on, tunes cranked, and heading out to check the western fencerow for Stubby-damaged locations. There were driving paths along the outer perimeter of the ranch for this exact reason. Fences often needed mending; it was the nature of the beast. However, this particular beast sent him traveling these paths more often than most.

“So, why does Stubby keep trying to escape?” Natalie asked.

“Not sure. Personally, I think he’s got a thing for the neighbor’s prized Highland cow, Miss Petunia.”

She laughed softly. “Well, maybe if you gave those two a date night on occasion, he wouldn’t always be so mad all the time.”

Sam chuckled. That was him a week ago, and scratching his itch had definitely worked wonders for his mood.

“Maybe so,” he said. “Though I think that might lead to some bizarre-looking calves no one has any use for.”

“Or maybe the calves could be a new kind of hybrid everyone wants in on.” She shrugged. “Sometimes, you’ve got to experiment a little on the way toward finding the perfect solution.”

Sam liked where this conversation was headed. “Is that what you did at your last job? Experimented until you found those startup companies the right marketing plan?”

“Exactly. And I loved it—no two jobs were the same. Where I’m at now is completely different. Terakion has a model laid out to minimize thinking. Heck, half our introductory speeches are scripted. It works great for onboarding and training, but it doesn’t allow for much creativity.”

“Do you miss it?” Sam reached over and took her hand.

Natalie was quiet for a moment. “Sometimes,” she said. “I missed it terribly when I first left. Not just the job but the people I’d worked with, too.”

“Like Neil.”

She grinned. “Well, Neil was someone we contracted to come in and do shoots for us from time to time. But, yeah, Neil, too.”

“You made new friends at Terakion, though, right?”

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