The Virgin and Zach Coulter

Cade nodded. “Sounds like a plan.”

Zach shoved back his chair and stood, carrying his dirty dishes to the sink where he rinsed them off and slotted them into the dishwasher rack.

“I’ll grab my hat and be down in a minute,” he said. As he left the room, he caught a quick glimpse of Cade bending to brush a kiss against Mariah’s mouth.

He wondered how she’d managed to get close enough to Cade to get under his skin, let alone capture his heart. Cade had always sworn he would never fall in love and marry. He’d claimed he carried too much baggage after enduring their father’s misery and alcoholism following their mother’s death.

Hell, he thought. We probably all do. It was good to see Cade had found a woman he wanted to share his life with.

Mariah was wrong if she thought Zach would ever get married, though. He loved women, but marriage? Not in the cards. His lifestyle had him traveling often for work and his love of adventure did the same, which left little time or space to consider settling down. It wouldn’t be fair to ask a woman to put up with his absence from home two-thirds of the year.

But in a flash of stark honesty, Zach realized that was the stock answer he’d been giving for years to anyone who quizzed him about his bachelor status.

It was all true, but it wasn’t the whole story.

If he were being honest, he knew he had the same reasons for avoiding marriage that Cade had. His parents had seemed happy and deeply in love before his mother died. After her death, Joseph had plunged into an abyss of grief and alcoholism, dragging his sons with him into their own particular hell.

Zach couldn’t remember exactly when he’d made the decision, but within a few years of his mother’s death, he’d vowed to never love anyone as much as his father had loved his mother.

And if Cade had leftover baggage from their childhood spent struggling to deal with Joseph’s alcoholic rages and violence, then Zach was sure he did, too, despite the years he’d spent in counseling.

Still, he wondered if there was a possibility that someday, a woman might look at him like Mariah looks at Cade.

The swift image of Cynthia’s soft mouth curving in a smile as she looked up at him, blue eyes warm with amusement, made his step falter.

He barely knew her, had only spent a few moments talking with her. Yet he couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to have her look at him with love.

Chapter Four

When Zach came back downstairs, Cade was waiting at the front door and they left the house together.

Zach paused on the porch, sweeping an assessing glance over the property. His ability to analyze and predict the potential of businesses had brought him executive-level success in San Francisco. He reported directly to the CEO of a capital venture firm; it was his responsibility to descend on companies in trouble, analyze their strengths and weaknesses, then recommend either a plan to save them or to dismantle them.

He’d never imagined that expertise would be used on his childhood home.

Though all but the house and bunkhouse were weathered and needed paint, each appeared to be in relatively good condition. What he could see of the fences in the pasture, they were straight and strong, with white-faced Hereford cattle grazing within the barbed wire enclosures.

“I see you’ve started painting,” he commented as he and Cade left the porch and walked to his truck. “Any major repair work needed on the buildings?”

Cade detoured to his own truck, collected a toolbox from the back and returned to set it in the bed of Zach’s truck. Then he pulled open the passenger door. “Everything is pretty sound. I haven’t had to make any emergency repairs.”

Zach halted, hand on the driver’s door handle, as a green truck pulled into the yard and stopped on the far side of Cade’s vehicle. Zach instantly recognized the driver.

“Hey, Grady.” Warm pleasure filled Zach’s voice as he greeted his old friend. The six Turner brothers lived on a neighboring ranch, and although Zach was five years older than Grady, they’d been best friends before he left Indian Springs. He purposely hadn’t kept in touch with anyone in Montana, but he’d missed Grady and his brothers. “It’s good to see you.”

“When did you get back?” Grady Turner jumped out of the pickup and jogged across the graveled yard to join him, the two men shook hands and exchanged a brief, hard hug. Grady nodded at Cade before turning back to Zach.

“Just yesterday,” Zach replied.

“I heard you were climbing Mt. Everest. How was it?”

“Cold.” Zach laughed at the expression on Grady’s face.

“How was the trip home?”

“Long.”

“Damn.” Grady laughed. “I heard Cade reached you overseas.”

Zach nodded. “There was a message waiting for me when I descended to base camp.”

“Did you make it to the top of the mountain?” Grady asked with interest.

“Hell, yes.”

“Should have known.” Grady clapped him on the back. “Congratulations.”

“How are your brothers?”

“Fine—all five of them. We’ve all spent some time here on the Triple C over the last few months,” Grady said.

“Yeah, Cade told me how great you and your brothers have been.” Zach studied his old friend. “I appreciate it. I know Brodie and Eli would tell you the same if they were here.”

“Have you heard from your younger brothers?” Grady asked.

“No.” Zach shook his head. “I have an assistant who’s talented at tracking people and I’ve asked her to start looking. With luck, she’ll find them.”

“It’s good to see you Coulters here on the Triple C again—since Cade’s been back, the place is looking up. And now that you’re here, too, things can only get better, right?”

“I sure as hell hope so,” Zach said. “We’re headed to the old Lodge to take a look inside—want to come with us?”

Grady shook his head. “I’m supposed to meet Mason in town and I’m late already. I just wanted to stop by and say welcome home.” Grady held out his hand and Zach took it, the warm firm clasp an affirmation of friendship. “I’m damned glad you’re home, Zach.” Grady clapped him on the shoulder once again. “You should join me and Mason at the Black Bear on Saturday. The management booked a good local band and you’re sure to see people you know. My brothers will probably show up if they’re in town.”

“I’ll be there unless something comes up,” Zach promised.

The two men parted; Grady returned to his truck while Zach joined Cade in his pickup.

“Are you ready for this?” Cade asked, his deep voice quiet.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Zach replied, knowing he’d have to steel himself to step into the Lodge. Memories of his mother were sure to blindside him on occasion, especially now that he was back on the ranch she’d loved.

He wondered how she would have felt about the son who caused her death owning the Lodge she’d created.

“I haven’t gone inside, but the outside of the Lodge and Mom’s studio seem just as solid as the rest of the buildings,” Cade said. “Hopefully the interior is fine.”

Zach twisted the key in the ignition and shifted the pickup into gear. “We’ll soon find out.”

They left the ranch yard, following the gravel road past the big barn. Just beyond Mariah’s cabin the road curved to follow the creek to the Lodge, a half mile away.