LITMIR.BIZ

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Airport to the bed-and-breakfast. She would call Katarina and Emily once she knew more about her schedule. Raking the unruly strands of hair out of her eyes, Lisa took a deep breath. Come on, Francie.

      Despite the frustrations of the sudden change in plans, she couldn’t deny it would be good to see her older sisters again.

      She knew Loveland was close to Springville, but she wasn’t exactly sure where this bed-and-breakfast was in relation. Surely she could squeeze in a few days with Katarina and Emily before she rushed off on her next assignment. A smile teased her lips. Kevin and Emily’s daughter would have her first birthday soon, while Katarina and Alex were due to have their first baby in just a few months. It seemed like just yesterday that she’d flown into a Colorado blizzard for their wedding. Had it really been a year already?

      Memories invaded her thoughts and threatened to send her into a tailspin of emotions. She forced them away and moved to the next e-mail, making notes to send a requested article as soon as she reached the bed-and-breakfast. The Internet age had certainly simplified her job.

      Francie’s message finally arrived, instructing Lisa to take a shuttle to Loveland and wait for the proprietor.

      “We received the attached brochure from the owner’s sister. From what she sent us about the place, I think we might want to feature Whispering Pines Guest Ranch in our monthly column, ‘America’s Most Romantic Getaways.’”

      Most romantic getaway? “You’ve got to be kidding,” she muttered. Lisa turned off the laptop and put it away. How do I get stuck with these assignments? No one will take me seriously with stories like this. The passenger beside her left his seat and Lisa stretched her arms. “It’s amazing what a person will do to get a job.”

      Several hours later, after taking a shuttle bus from Denver to Loveland, Lisa dragged her luggage to the curb.

      A spry, silver-haired woman approached. “You must be ours.” A smile crinkled her delicate pink skin and brought a sparkle to her eyes. “I’m Meg, from the ranch. We’re so delighted that you’re here.”

      She eyed Meg again. This frail-looking woman couldn’t possibly run a ranch. “Are you sure? I mean, that you’re expecting me?”

      Meg snatched the huge suitcase from Lisa’s grasp and hoisted it over the side of the truck. “Well, I did think there would be two of you,” she said, glancing at the shuttle as it pulled away. “But if you’re from the magazine, then this is just perfect.”

      Lisa nodded, suddenly a bit flustered. “I’m the Greens’ replacement, Lisa Berthoff. The couple you were expecting went into premature labor.”

      “Oh, my. Well, I’m delighted that you’re here, Lisa. Millie apologizes for not being able to pick you up herself.”

      Meg filled the thirty-minute drive with a history lesson on Whispering Pines Guest Ranch. “Millie has turned the ranch over to her son now.”

      Lisa learned that Meg and her late husband had worked for the Carter family for three decades. From Meg’s descriptions, Lisa had wonderful mental pictures of the ranch, as well as the generous family determined to share their land with others instead of breaking it up into exclusive residential property.

      Meg slowed the truck around a curve. The road opened before them into an enormous valley of gently rolling hills, jagged bluffs and wooded fringes. “Welcome to Whispering Pines Lodge, Adam’s plan to save his grandparents’ property,” she said softly. “Bless his heart. He’s put everything he has into saving this place.”

      “He must love it.” Lisa pulled her camera from the bag and focused on the stately new guest house. “Wow…” She sighed. “Can you stop here, Meg? I want my first impressions on film.”

      Lisa hopped from the truck. The camera whirred.

      On one side of the valley she photographed horses corralled between a weathered barn and split-rail fence. On the other, snow-dusted pine trees climbed the mountain. She snapped a series of shots of the icy creek meandering under a rustic stone bridge that separated a smaller home from the land where the new addition was located.

      Lisa lowered the camera and filled her lungs with the pine scent. She paused. An odd feeling stirred within her. Anticipation was to be expected on any new job, but that wasn’t all.

      Mystified by the intensity she felt about this assignment as they drove closer to the lodge, Lisa felt her usually “on-edge” nerves dissipate. She squirmed in her seat, uneasy with the sense of hope and tranquillity. If she didn’t know better, she’d think there was something to this romantic getaway idea.

      How Meg had managed to convince a skeptic like Lisa was a mystery. She’d given up on romance long ago. Yet, in that brief moment when she first saw Whispering Pines, it was as if she knew everything she needed to know in order to write this story.

      Meg pulled through the circular drive to the impressive front entrance and shut off the engine. Lisa slid from the seat of the truck and looked around. In the distance a man carrying a huge ax over his shoulder like Paul Bunyan disappeared behind a miniature barn-shaped building.

      Lisa lifted her eyebrows. Hmm, this may not be so bad after all. When he appeared again, Lisa was waiting with camera focused. Click…click…click… He propped the ax against a tall evergreen and turned toward her. The man was tall, broad-shouldered and much younger than she’d anticipated. He sauntered closer in long, purposeful strides. The lens cap dangled in the icy breeze, tapping against her hand.

      Seconds later the man’s hand pulled the camera away from her face.

      “What are you doing?” Lisa yanked it from his hand and snapped the lens cover in place to protect it from any chance of damage. “Excuse me, but this is my camera.”

      “And this is my land.” His voice left no room for discussion.

      Lisa glanced up again. He had a strong jaw, deep-set eyes and sun bleached brown hair that desperately needed a cut. Nevertheless, he was still one drop-dead handsome cowboy. He crossed his arms over his chest and Lisa felt her heart race. Whispering Pines Guest Ranch. It couldn’t be. “Adam?” She stepped back, confused. “I thought…”

      He looked puzzled. He obviously didn’t recognize her from their sisters’ and brothers’ weddings.

      “I beg your pardon, ma’am. I don’t believe we’ve met. May I ask what in tarnation you’re doing with that camera?”

      Pulling herself together, Lisa extended her hand. This was a professional assignment. Not a family gathering. The backpack slid from her shoulder, and with the flick of his wrist, the stunning proprietor caught it. Lisa lifted it back to her shoulder. “I’m taking pictures….”

      “I figured that much out.” His frown deepened. “Question is, why?”

      “I’m…” Momentarily, she wasn’t sure who she was, and less sure of what she was doing here. “I’m Lisa Berthoff, Katarina and Emily’s sister.”

      One eyebrow lifted. “Lisa?” A look of shock plastered onto his face, Adam tried to regain his composure. “I didn’t recognize you.”

      No kidding. “Must be my hair. It was shorter.”

      “And…” Adam raised his hands to his hair and awkwardly let them drop again. “Umm…curlier.”

      Lisa nodded, remembering. “Yes, it was.” The expense of curling her stubbornly straight hair was a luxury she’d had to go without after the surprise that awaited her return from Kat’s wedding. The changes in her appearance were obviously not improvements from the look on Adam’s face. She had stress to thank for the weight loss. Stress and Dale. Or were the two one and the same? At least her perception had improved since he’d walked out on her. When it came to men, she now had twenty-twenty vision. She’d been blinded by love once, but never again.

      Adam stared, speechless.

      Mrs. MacIntyre came down the guest house steps

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