LITMIR.BIZ

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on him. Not that anyone believed it in the county. Everyone just assumed that Ely had a screw loose. Or two.

      It didn’t help that their father spent most of the year up in the mountains as a recluse trapping and panning for gold.

      “Aliens. Funny,” Lillie said, making a face at him.

      He smiled over at her. “Actually, I was on an all-night stakeout. The cattle rustlers didn’t show up.” He shrugged.

      She glanced around. “Where’s your patrol SUV?”

      “Axle deep in a muddy creek back toward Grass Range. I’ll have to get it pulled out. After I called you, I started walking and I ended up here. Wish I’d grabbed my gloves, though.”

      “You’re scaring me,” she said, studying him openly. “You’re starting to act like Dad.”

      He laughed at that, wondering how far from the truth it was. “At least I didn’t see any aliens near the missile silo.”

      She groaned. Being the butt of jokes in the county because of their father got old for all of them.

      Flint glanced at the fenced-in area. There was nothing visible behind the chain link but tumbleweeds. He turned back to her. “I didn’t pull you away from anything important, I hope? Since you were close by, I thought you wouldn’t mind giving me a ride. I’ve had enough walking for one day. Or thinking, for that matter.”

      She shook her head. “What’s going on, Flint?”

      He looked out at the country that ran to the mountains. Cahill Ranch. His grandfather had started it, his father had worked it and now two of his brothers ran the cattle part of it to keep the place going while he and his sister, Lillie, and brother Darby had taken other paths. Not to mention their oldest brother, Tucker, who’d struck out at seventeen and hadn’t been seen or heard from since.

      Flint had been scared after his marriage and divorce. But Maggie was nothing like Celeste, who was small, blonde, green-eyed and crazy. Maggie was tall with big brown eyes and long auburn hair. His heart beat faster at the thought of her smile, at her laugh.

      “I’m going to ask Maggie to marry me,” Flint said and nodded as if reassuring himself.

      When Lillie didn’t reply, he glanced over at her. It wasn’t like her not to have something to say. “Well?”

      “What has taken you so long?”

      He sighed. “Well, you know after Celeste...”

      “Say no more,” his sister said, raising a hand to stop him. “Anyone would be gun-shy after being married to her.”

      “I’m hoping she won’t be a problem.”

      Lillie laughed. “Short of killing your ex-wife, she is always going to be a problem. You just have to decide if you’re going to let her run your life. Or if you’re going to live it—in spite of her.”

      So easy for her to say. He smiled, though. “You’re right. Anyway, Maggie and I have been dating for a while now and there haven’t been any...incidents in months.”

      Lillie shook her head. “You know Celeste was the one who vandalized Maggie’s beauty shop—just as you know she started that fire at Maggie’s house.”

      “Too bad there wasn’t any proof so I could have arrested her. But since there wasn’t and no one was hurt and it was months ago...”

      “I’d love to see Celeste behind bars, though I think prison is too good for her. She belongs in the loony bin. I can understand why you would be worried about what she will do next. She’s psychopathic.”

      He feared that that maybe was close to the case. “Do you want to see the ring?” He knew she did, so he fished it out of his pocket. He’d been carrying it around for quite a while now. Getting up his courage? He knew what was holding him back. Celeste. He couldn’t be sure how she would take it—or what she might do. His ex-wife seemed determined that he and Maggie shouldn’t be together, even though she was apparently happily married to local wealthy businessman Wayne Duma.

      Handing his sister the small black velvet box, he waited as she slowly opened it.

      A small gasp escaped her lips. “It’s beautiful. Really beautiful.” She shot him a look. “I thought sheriffs didn’t make much money?”

      “I’ve been saving for a long while now. Unlike my sister, I live pretty simply.”

      She laughed. “Simply? Prisoners have more in their cells than you do. You aren’t thinking of living in that small house of yours after you’re married, are you?”

      “For a while. It’s not that bad. Not all of us have huge new houses like you and Trask.”

      “We need the room for all the kids we’re going to have,” she said. “But it is wonderful, isn’t it? Trask is determined that I have everything I ever wanted.” Her gaze softened as the newlywed thought of her husband.

      “I keep thinking of your wedding.” There’d been a double wedding with both Lillie and her twin, Darby, getting married to the loves of their lives only months ago. “It’s great to see you and Trask so happy. And Darby and Mariah... I don’t think Darby is ever going to come off that cloud he’s on.”

      Lillie smiled. “I’m so happy for him. And I’m happy for you. You know I really like Maggie. So do it. Don’t worry about Celeste. Once you’re married, there’s nothing she can do.”

      He told himself she was right, and yet in the back of his mind, he feared that his ex-wife would do something to ruin it—just as she had done to some of his dates with Maggie.

      “I don’t understand Celeste,” Lillie was saying as she shifted into Drive and started toward the small western town of Gilt Edge. “She’s the one who dumped you for Wayne Duma. So what is her problem?”

      “I’m worried that she is having second thoughts about her marriage to Duma. Or maybe she’s bored and has nothing better to do than concern herself with my life. Maybe she just doesn’t want me to be happy.”

      “Or she is just plain malicious,” Lillie said. “If she isn’t happy, she doesn’t want you to be, either.”

      A shaft of sunlight came through the cab window, warming him against the chill that came with even talking about Celeste. He leaned back, content as Lillie drove.

      He was going to ask Maggie to marry him. He was going to do it this weekend. He’d already made a dinner reservation at the local steak house. He had the ring in his pocket. Now it was just a matter of popping the question and hoping she said yes. If she did... Well, then, this was going to be the best Christmas ever, he thought and smiled.

       CHAPTER TWO

      EVERY DAY THAT Maggie didn’t run into Flint’s ex in the small town where they both lived was a great day. In fact, it had been so long since she’d seen the woman that Maggie was beginning to think that either Celeste had left town or become a housebound recluse.

      So it was no surprise when her luck gave out. She was starting down the produce aisle at the only grocery store in town when she smelled the woman’s perfume and made the mistake of looking up.

      Celeste made a beeline for her. Dressed in a navy-and-white suit with matching spectator shoes and bag, the blonde looked like something out of an old movie. This was Gilt Edge, where no one dressed up except for weddings and funerals.

      Maggie, of course, was dressed in jeans, a T-shirt and sneakers since it was her day off. Her long curly auburn hair was pulled up in a ponytail. Nor was she wearing any makeup. She hadn’t even put in her favorite earrings, a pair of silver hoops Flint had given her on her birthday.

      “I was just picking up a few things on my way home from the park planning committee meeting,”

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