The Mechanics of Mistletoe - Liz Isaacson Page 0,27

be right back.”

He left the truck running as he dashed inside, and Sammy just watched him go. He could move surprisingly well for a tall, thick man, and she sure did like that about him. A few seconds later, her phone buzzed, and Bear had said, Success. Zona made lunch.

Nice, Sammy sent back.

She wants to know who I’m taking lunch to before she’ll give it to me.

Sammy tapped the camera icon next to the text box and took a quick selfie. She didn’t analyze the fact that she wasn’t wearing makeup and that she’d put her hair into a ponytail with her fingers. Show her that, she said, smiling at her device.

The picture and text went through, and Sammy waited for Bear’s response. It didn’t come right away, and when it did, the message read, This is Arizona Glover. How in the world did my crotchety brother get a goddess like you to go out with him?

Sammy laughed, the sound filling the whole truck. She didn’t think Arizona really needed an answer, and she didn’t have one to give her anyway. A few minutes later, Bear came storming out onto the porch, a paper grocery bag in one arm and his phone clenched in his fingers. He wore fury on his face as he came down the steps, and Sammy figured out why only seconds later.

At least a dozen people had followed him, all of them lining up against the railing on the front porch. “Oh, my,” Sammy whispered to herself, though she found the whole thing quite comical.

Bear opened the door by practically ripping it off the hinges. “Stupid Zona,” he muttered as he got in. He glared at the house—at all the people—but Sammy laughed again. She lifted her hand in a wave and wiggled her fingers at all of them. A few of them even waved back.

“You’re only encouraging them,” Bear growled as he backed out of the driveway.

Sammy just laughed again. “I should’ve just gone in,” she said. “What? Were they all just waiting for you to show up?”

“Yes,” he said. “They ambushed me.” He glared out the windshield, and Sammy sure did like this grizzly version of the man. She liked him and all his sides a whole lot.

She peered into the bag. “Well, you do run the whole ranch. I imagine they had some questions or reports or something. You’ve been gone for hours.” She pulled out a plastic container. “What did Arizona make for lunch? Something fit for a goddess, I presume?”

He finally looked at her, their gazes locking. Sammy knew her grin was too big and utterly ridiculous, yet she couldn’t erase it.

“It’s a taco bar,” he said. “Took forever to pack up.”

She reached for his hand and settled her head back against the rest. “I’m sure it’ll be worth it.”

He squeezed her hand, and Sammy let herself drift as he drove them back to her house. At one point, she thought she heard him say, “You’re worth it,” but she was half-asleep and couldn’t be sure.

Chapter Nine

Bear stepped out onto the porch several days later, his arrival outside only minutes before the sun’s appearance on the horizon. He had to be up and ready, because all the cowboys were coming to Shiloh Ridge that day.

He had never worked so much in his life. He’d been at Wade’s at sunup every morning for four days, and then at Brit’s every morning at first light for a few more.

The end was nowhere in sight either, as there were still plenty of ranches to go. Everyone came, and everyone worked hard. He’d shoveled, he’d moved logs, he’d rebuilt fences, he’d wrestled with stubborn cattle, he’d roped wild horses.

He’d swept out barns and stables, sheds and houses. He’d cleaned up broken glass, and shattered ceramic, and splintered wood. If there was something to be cleaned up, taken out, repaired, or redone, he’d done it.

Everyone had.

After they’d put in eight hours on the ranch of the day, he’d returned to Shiloh Ridge and worked until he felt like his back would snap in half. Between all of his siblings and cousins, they’d managed to fix the roofs on the buildings that had been damaged. They’d rebuilt all their fences and corralled all their animals. They’d found buckets and tires and shingles all over the ranch, and the pile of trash just behind the gate and sign for Shiloh Ridge grew by the hour.

But really, all Bear needed help with was his mother’s cottage. If he could