LITMIR.BIZ

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a change.

      This experience with Allie had made her more emotional than usual. Before falling asleep, she prayed that the little kidnapped girl would be found alive and that Allie would find the courage to confide in her father. She eventually fell asleep remembering the joy in Colt’s voice and expression as he’d picked up his daughter and carried her to the car. Every parent should have such a happy reunion.

      At eight the next morning, Kathryn showered and got ready for the day. She’d packed an oyster-colored silk blouse and dove-gray pants in fine wool, cinched with a wide leather belt. She caught her hair back with a tortoise shell clip and put pearl studs in her ears.

      In a minute, she knocked on Allie’s door and announced herself.

      “Come in.” The teen had already showered and looked terrific in a long-sleeved, navy-blue cotton pullover teamed with Levi’s and sneakers.

      “Well, look at you. I don’t think I need to take your vitals, but I’m going to anyway.”

      “First will you do my hair like you wore yours yesterday?” Allie handed her the brush.

      “Of course. Have you got a scarf?”

      “No, but will this neckerchief do?”

      “Let me see it.”

      Allie pulled it out of her middle drawer. It was a Levi brand with a navy cowboy motif. She handed it to Kathryn.

      “I think it’s long enough to tie in a bow.”

      Kathryn brushed her hair back and made short work of it. She studied the teen. Whoever her mother was had to have been a beautiful woman. “You look lovely.”

      “Thanks.”

      “Now if you’ll indulge me while I check you, then we can go downstairs for breakfast.” A couple of minutes later and it was all over. “Your temperature is normal, Allie.”

      “That’s what I was afraid of,” she mumbled.

      “You don’t really mean that,” Kathryn said, trying to be cheerful. “Although you still have some head congestion, your lungs are clear. Just take it easy for another day or two to get back your strength. Take your pills now, then we’ll go.”

      “Okay.”

      Once that was accomplished, they left the bedroom and walked toward the staircase. Colt was coming up the steps two at a time, dressed in a plaid flannel shirt in reds and blues. He wore Levi’s and cowboy boots.

      By accident, his eyes lifted to Kathryn’s, forcing her to swallow the cry in her throat. Beneath his inky-black hair and brows, those orbs had taken on the color of crystal green shards.

      “Good morning, Ms. McFarland.”

      Kathryn found him the most attractive man she’d ever met in her life. “Good morning,” she answered back, thankful she could speak.

      Until she’d flown in yesterday, her brother-in-law Jake Halsey had been the only living male to merit that distinction. Considine lurked in her dreams. Who knew the day would come when a forbidding Montana cowboy who jealously guarded his mountain isolation would topple them both in an instant.

      He switched his attention to Allie. “Hi, honey. Noreen has breakfast on the table. I was just coming up to get you. I guess I don’t have to ask how you’re feeling.”

      “Her temperature is normal,” Kathryn volunteered when Allie only muttered something indistinct.

      “That’s the best news yet.” He reached for her and carried her the rest of the way.

      “Dad, put me down. I’m not a baby.” But she said it with a giggle.

      “Don’t you know you’ll always be my baby girl?” he teased before setting her on her feet with another hug.

      When Kathryn imagined him hugging her like that, a shiver of delight raced through her body. She followed father and daughter through to the other side of their home, not having seen the vaulted living and dining room before. The same refined rustic decor and tall windows ran through the entire house.

      So much daylight opened up the rooms to nature. The sight of new fallen snow from the night before was glorious. She almost blurted that this had to be one of the most beautiful spots on Earth, but she caught herself in time.

      While Colt helped her and Allie to the table laden with scones and bacon, Matt came running in wearing a polo and jeans. He flashed Kathryn a smile before taking a seat next to their father. “I was hoping you guys would be up.”

      “After we eat, I want to see your video, Matt.”

      “Which one is that?” Allie wanted to know.

      “My football banquet DVD.”

      Kathryn turned to her. “Have you seen it?”

      Allie rolled her eyes. “About a dozen times.”

      “Then it must be good.”

      “Except we lost in the playoffs,” he said.

      “That doesn’t matter, Matt. To think your team made it that far is terrific. Not every guy has the ability or the opportunity to even go out for football. Someday, you’ll be able to show it to your children. Think how fun that will be for you and them.”

      Colt shot her an enigmatic glance. “Do you have a favorite sport besides football?”

      Matt must have told his father what she’d confided to him. “Yes. It’s skiing.”

      “We love it, too, don’t we, Dad?”

      “We do,” he answered.

      “Are you really going back to Salt Lake today?”

      “Yes. At noon.”

      “Noon!” Both teens moaned aloud.

      “Since your sister is on the mend, I’m needed elsewhere.”

      “But if you stayed until tomorrow, you could go skiing with us this afternoon.”

      “Matt! You heard Ms. McFarland. I’ll be driving her to the airport shortly. There’ll be no skiing for us today. We’re staying in with Allie, and you have some homework to get busy on before school tomorrow.”

      “Can I at least go with you to take her to the airport?”

      Kathryn heard Colt’s hesitation before the answer came. “I don’t see why not. Noreen will be here to keep an eye on Allie.”

      “I don’t need her to watch me.” His daughter’s predictable response settled things for Kathryn.

      Not wanting to get in the middle of a talk with his disgruntled children, she got up from the table. “Those scones were fabulous. Excuse me for a minute while I go in the kitchen and thank Noreen. Then I’ll watch your video.”

      Colt wanted to see the back of Kathryn. She was doing her best to oblige him. Only another hour before he drove her to the airport and out of their lives.

       Chapter Five

      The snow had been heavier on the mountain, but last night’s storm hadn’t developed into anything ferocious. By the time Colt turned his car onto the highway, the plows had already been out to clear it for the rest of the drive into Bozeman. The clouds had opened up, allowing the sun to shine through.

      Under normal circumstances, it was his favorite kind of winter day, but today had a different feel about it. An intangible gloom had descended over his household and none of his efforts could shake it. He’d left Allie seated in front of the fire to work on the puzzle with Ed. Between her red-rimmed eyes and his broken arm, they made quite a pair.

      When Matt had brought Ms. McFarland’s suitcase down to the Xterra, she’d moved ahead of him and had climbed in the backseat. His son got in front with

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