LITMIR.BIZ

       Chapter Three

      The next day Tessa grappled with the urge to drive into Wickenburg and shop for something special to wear to Three Rivers Ranch. Yet each time she came close to grabbing her handbag and truck keys, she talked herself out of the notion. It was foolish of her to try to look extra special for Joseph Hollister, or any of his family, she’d argued with herself.

      Now, as she stared at her image in the dresser mirror, she wished she’d made the trip into town. The black-and-white-patterned sheath was neat, but it was hardly glamourous, and the strappy black sandals on her feet looked like she was going to a picnic in the park instead of to dinner with a prominent family.

      Sighing, she picked up the silver-backed brush and tugged it through her straight hair. Since it was almost time for Sam to pick her up, it was too late to do anything about her lackluster appearance.

      Minutes later, as Sam helped her into the cab of his old truck, Tessa said, “Thank you again, Sam, for going to this dinner with me. I hope you’re not dreading the evening.”

      As he drove the truck down the dusty dirt road, a slight grin cracked the wrinkles on his face. “It’s been a long, long time since I carried a gal to dinner. I’m not dreading it.”

      Tessa smiled back at him then turned her gaze out the passenger window. As the pickup headed away from the Bar X and on toward Three Rivers, the land opened up into wide valleys dotted with rocks, standpipe, blooming yucca and prickly pear. The grass that covered the lower slopes was short but very green.

      When the simple barbed-wire fence running next to the road suddenly changed to one of painted white pipe, Tessa asked, “Are we seeing Three Rivers land now?”

      “That’s right. Just a little stretch of it butts up to the Bar X. Most of Three Rivers stretches on east of here—toward the old ghost mines around Constellation and north toward Congress.”

      She doubted Three Rivers would come close to covering as much land as that of the Silver Horn, but it was clearly a prominent ranch. Not that the size, or the wealth of the Hollisters, mattered to her. She’d already decided that even if Joseph wasn’t already attached to a woman, he was out of her league.

      Minutes later they reached a fork in the road and Sam steered the truck to the left where they passed beneath a simple wooden plank burned with a 3R brand. Another two miles passed when they topped a rocky rise and the Hollister homestead spread majestically across a wide, desert valley.

      As they drew closer, Tessa could see a large, three-story house with wooden-lapped siding painted white and trimmed with black. The structure was surrounded by massive cottonwoods and smaller mesquite trees. A hundred yards or more to the right of the house was an enormous work yard with several large barns, sheds and holding pens, all of which were painted white.

      “Here we are,” Sam said as he pulled the old truck to a stop in a driveway that curved along the front of the house. “Quite a spread, wouldn’t you say?”

      “It’s beautiful,” she agreed, then added, “but I happen to think the Bar X is beautiful, too.”

      Sam chuckled. “Sheriff Ray is smiling right now.”

      Even after they’d departed the truck and walked onto the ground-level porch running the length of the big house, Tessa was still thinking about Sam’s comment. If not for Ray Maddox, Tessa would never have been in this part of Arizona, much less be meeting these people. That fact multiplied her questions about the late sheriff.

      At the wide door, Sam ignored the brass knocker and rapped his knuckles against the white wood.

      After a brief wait, a young woman with a dark blond ponytail and a red, bib apron tied over her shirt and jeans answered the door.

      “Good evening.” Pulling the door wide, she gestured for them to enter. “Please, come in. Mrs. Hollister and the others are out back having drinks. I’ll show you the way.”

      Tessa and Sam followed her into a short entryway and through a spacious living room with high ceilings and sand-colored tongue-and-groove walls. A mix of leather and cloth furniture was the kind that invited a person to take a seat, while the cowhide rugs scattered over the oak parquet were a reminder that the ranch had been built on cattle.

      At the back of the room, the maid opened a pair of French doors and gestured for them to precede her onto a large brick patio.

      “Mrs. Hollister is there by the fire pit,” the maid said. “And if you two would like anything to drink that isn’t out here, just let me know.”

      Tessa thanked the woman then focused her full attention on the group of people sitting in lawn chairs and standing around. Since the men had their backs to her, it was impossible to tell if Joseph was among the group, but the idea was revving her heart to a sickening speed.

      Sam must have picked up on her nervousness. With his head bent slightly toward hers, he said in a low voice, “Don’t worry. These folks won’t eat you.”

      The two of them had hardly taken two steps before Maureen spotted their arrival and hurried over to greet them.

      “Tessa, welcome.

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